The prince only allowed me to have a baby, so the pressure is a bit high!

Chapter 3 Learning to be a Housekeeper

"Princess, are you awake? Dinner is ready. Would you like to have dinner?"

Still immersed in the thoughts of his first arrival in this world, Bullhe woke up when he heard the sound and whispered outside the mosquito net, "I'm awake, please help me wash up!"

It is easy to go from frugality to extravagance, but it is difficult to go from extravagance to frugality. After being served by servants to dress and wash for seven or eight years, Buerhe has almost forgotten how to put on clothes, let alone the three layers of clothes worn by a lady from a wealthy family. If she puts on the wrong one layer, it will not only bring shame to herself, but also to the Ulanara family.

The head maid Qin'er had returned a long time ago. She came in with warm water to help Buerhe wash up, and reported that the two maids from the palace had been placed in the west wing.

After hearing this, Buerhe didn't say anything. He just washed and dressed simply and went to the outer room for dinner.

Buerhe's dinner was very simple, consisting of a few seasonal side dishes, a steamed fish, and a bowl of black chicken, red dates and mushroom soup specially cooked in the small kitchen.

It wasn't that the family abused Buerhe, but that Buerhe had been weak before and was used to light food. In addition, the eldest sister in the family had just passed away a month ago, so it was not good to eat rich food and attract the attention of his mother, which would make her unhappy.

Speaking of it, how should I put it, the relationship between Buerhe and Jueluo was not as close as that between mother and daughter in modern society. It was not only because Jueluo had a sweet-mouthed and likable eldest daughter by her side, but also because the younger daughter was sent to the old lady to be taken care of when she was very young. She often lived in a separate courtyard and rarely returned to the mansion. She also had a wet nurse who took care of her wholeheartedly. As a result, the mother and daughter had very little time to cultivate their feelings, and naturally their feelings were not that deep over time.

But it’s not entirely true to say that I don’t like it. After all, it’s a piece of flesh that fell from my body after ten months of pregnancy. It’s my own flesh and blood. How could I not like it?

However, in addition to the deceased eldest princess, the Jueluo family had four sons to take care of, so there was much less attention given to Burhe.

Especially since the eldest sister-in-law Wang Jia, who was just married into the mansion last year, was pregnant with a big belly, which diverted some of Jueluo's attention. In comparison, she cared even less about Buerhe.

Burhe's own personality was indifferent. If he hadn't been raised by the old lady since childhood, and hadn't witnessed the old lady's efforts and heartbreak for him, he wouldn't have been able to keep his grandmother in his heart. Now, the only person in the world who could truly receive Burhe's love was the old lady. Therefore, Burhe's maids and nannies always claimed that their master was steady and indifferent, but in reality, they were just not paying attention to anything.

Therefore, it is understandable that the relationship between Buerhe and Jueluo mother and daughter is always dull.

After dinner, Buerhe asked the maid to bring out the chessboard, where he played black and white chess by himself. As he made his moves, he thought of what his grandmother had said some time ago.

That day, someone suddenly came to the mansion to inform Rang Buerhe to return home. The reason turned out to be that the eldest princess of the mansion had drowned in the palace. Grandmother was not surprised at all, or she had already determined in her heart that something would happen to her eldest sister sooner or later.

I still remember that when the maids were packing my luggage, the old lady went straight to Buerhe and told him bluntly that he didn't have to put himself in a difficult position after returning to the mansion. She also said that she had great luck in the future and told him not to panic if anything happened, as the road ahead was set and no one could stop it.

She also said that she didn't have to obey Jueluo in everything, and that she could make her own decisions on any matter. If she encountered a problem that she couldn't solve, she could send a servant to deliver a letter to the other courtyard, and as soon as she received the letter, she would rush over to support her.

Thinking of this, Buerhe's heart softened. Mama always thought about him and often said that no one loved him in the mansion. If she didn't love him more, he would be too pitiful.

In her opinion, she had lived a very happy life with her grandmother in the villa over the years, and she did not feel pitiful at all.

She didn't care about not having a good relationship with her parents, as her grandmother's love was enough. In her previous life, she also left her parents at a very young age and lived alone in the research institute, so she was used to it.

Although I didn't say much when I entered the palace today, the fact that the Empress Dowager summoned me to the palace for no reason was a signal even if I did nothing.

After all, she was a legendary figure who had gone through three dynasties, raised people alone, and helped the contemporary people capture Oboi and pacify the Three Feudatories. She was not an ordinary old lady, and her every move affected many people.

In addition, during the recent election, her sister drowned for no reason. The emperor did nothing except promoting her to the rank of princess. It seemed that the remaining opportunity to make amends might be given to her, so she would most likely become the prince's wife next.

After all, in the emperor's view, the best solution to this problem is to find a good husband for another princess of the Ulanara family, but isn't the best man in the world his own son?

As for which prince it is, just look at the fact that the Fourth Prince was suddenly pointed out as the eldest princess of the Shi Family Mansion as the princess some time ago. It is clear that the Fourth Prince has no hope, or it can be said that it is impossible for the Fourth Prince to leave a good impression in the heart of the Emperor in recent years.

As for the fifth prince of marriageable age, since he had been raised by the Empress Dowager since childhood and had the support of Mongolia, Kangxi would never arrange a marriage for him to a member of a prominent Manchu family. At most, he would find a Manchu with a decent but not prominent family background to be his fifth wife.

As for the Sixth Prince, he died young and was simply passed away.

I heard that the Seventh Prince had bad legs and feet when he was born. If that incident had not happened to his sister, it would have been possible for him to be married to the Seventh Prince. Although he was slightly older than the Seventh Prince, he was not much older, which was not a problem in the Qing Dynasty.

However, to put it another way, her sister drowned in the palace innocently, and the emperor wanted compensation, not punishment, so he would definitely not marry her to the Seventh Prince, because that would not be compensation but enmity.

The remaining princes were not considered because they were too young.

After much thought, the most likely person now is the third prince Yinzhi, the only son of Concubine Rong in the palace.

As for the unmarried crown prince, Bu Erhe dared not think about it. With her family background, how could the emperor choose a young girl like her to become the crown princess and the future queen mother!

I heard that the third prince is well-read and loves learning. So do I need to find a few books of poetry to read so that I don’t have to run out of topics to talk about after marriage and make my grandmother worry?

But I really don't like reading those. What I am most passionate about is studying mathematics. Although there are not so many books for me to study now, it is better to just use an abacus when I am free than to read those boring poems.

Time passed quickly as I played chess while thinking about these things.

It was already past midnight. Qi'er, the maid on duty today, saw that Gege was still playing chess and hurried forward, "Gege, it's getting late. We still have to learn the rules tomorrow. You should rest early today."

It was only at this time that Buerhe realized that the lights outside had been turned on for a long time and it was already very late. He didn't feel sleepy before the maid reminded him, but now he felt physically tired.

She nodded at Qi'er and said, "Have the little maid take away the chessboard. Wash up and rest early today. Wake me up at the end of the morning hour tomorrow. I'll go pay my respects to Mother and see if she has any instructions. For breakfast tomorrow, make the water chestnut wontons that Mama asked the kitchen to make a while ago, and some butter cakes, which I love. As for the two maids in the west wing, you can take care of them. Just tell the maids to serve them well."

Qi'er: "Yes, princess, I've made a note of it."

After a good night's sleep, the next day was a sunny day. As soon as the sun set behind the roof of the courtyard, the maid Qin'er woke Buerhe up. After he washed and dressed, the maid brought up breakfast.

Buerhe took a sip of the soup and praised it, "The cooking skills of the chef sent by Mama are really delicious. I still like to eat this kind of soup."

Qin'er chimed in, "If you want to say who knows Gege best in this mansion, it's the old lady. Knowing that Gege isn't used to the food, she sent a cook over early and had the master prepare a small kitchen in advance. The old lady also instructed us not to let Gege lose any more weight. If she does, she will punish the cook and Nanny Lin."

After hearing this, Buerhe laughed and said, "Mammy is just too concerned about me. The last time I lost weight, it was just because I grew taller and became thinner. How can you blame the cook and the wet nurse? Don't worry, the way you guys keep handing me a bowl of soup now and then, I won't lose any weight. I'm still fat, and if I keep drinking like this, I'll become a fat man in the future!"

After a simple breakfast, Bu Erhe took the maid Qin'er to the main courtyard to pay his respects to the lady.

In the main courtyard, Jueluo was also dressing up. Seeing Buerhe coming over, she hurriedly asked, "Have you had breakfast? If not, you can have some from mother later."

Buerhe hurriedly smiled and replied, "Thank you, mother. I have already used it."

Jueluo stopped talking about breakfast and just told the maids to hurry and dress her. After finishing her dressing, Jueluo took the initiative to talk about the two maids that the Grand Empress Dowager had given her yesterday: "How do you plan to arrange for those two maids? If you have any ideas, please tell me and I will see if there is anything wrong."

Buerhe: "Yes, my daughter has arranged for them to stay in the west wing and assigned two second-class maids to serve them. As for the rules, I plan to ask them today to see how the two maids arrange it and then make adjustments. My daughter also wants the maids in the courtyard to learn from them. After all, the maids' rules come from the Cining Palace and are the best in the world. If they can learn even a little bit, they will bring honor to the Ulanara family when they go out in the future."

Jueluo: "Well, you are very thoughtful. Let's do this. These two maids will be gone for the time being. I will leave the whole thing in your hands. But I also want to remind you that you must not slack off when learning the rules. After all, those two came from the Cining Palace and will have to return in the future. You must not leave a bad impression on the masters in the palace."

Buerhe: "Yes, mother, I will listen to you."

Jueluo: "Well, it's getting late, so you should go back. If you need anything, ask the maid to come to the main courtyard. Mother will prepare it for you."

Buerhe: "Yes, mother, I'll take my leave."

They returned to Shuangyao Courtyard, where the two maids were already waiting in the main hall. Buerhe smiled and said, "Did you two rest well last night? If you need anything, please let the maids know."

Nanny Li and Nanny Pang quickly thanked Buerhe: "Thank you for your concern, Princess. We rested well and had everything we needed. The maids served us well."

Buerhe: "As long as the maids are satisfied, it's fine. The weather is nice today. Buerhe would like to ask the maids, what should we study next?"

After hearing Buerhe's question, the two maids exchanged a glance before Matron Li answered loudly, "Princess, please be aware that before you came to the palace, we had already planned what you will need to learn next. Yesterday at the Cining Palace, we found that some of your manners were already good and didn't need to be changed. However, we are still unclear about the proper etiquette for meeting people of different ranks in the palace. Also, you probably haven't learned the basics of love pots yet. These will be the key lessons for you. As for housekeeping, which I'm good at, I'll cover it in my daily teaching. Matron Pang's health-preserving techniques will also be used to gradually adjust to your physical condition. I guess you'll need to use your small kitchen more often in the future."

Burhe was naturally surprised to hear that the two maids knew so much, but he didn't care at all about the small kitchen being taken over by the maids. After all, he and the Grand Empress Dowager had no grudges against each other, and she wouldn't suddenly harm him. Having a maid who knew how to maintain health by his side would definitely be of great benefit to him.