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

Chapter 44: Kejing Gets Married (I)

The new year was peaceful. Several princes quietly moved out of the palace, and the Warm Home Banquet was scheduled for the end of the new year, when the princes would have finished mourning and could hold a banquet. Before that, Buerhe received a mission, a task personally assigned by the emperor, to prepare a dowry for the fourth princess.

When Liang Jiugong arrived at Yuqing Palace to deliver the Emperor's instructions, Buerhe and the Crown Prince were still discussing nicknames for the twins. Although the Emperor had already given them full names—Hongye for the younger prince and Jingyi for the younger princess—the couple felt they hadn't been a part of the conversation and decided to give them nicknames.

They thought of a lot of names, such as Eagle, Bateri, Hada, Qiqige, Garu, Peaceful and Safe, Reunion, Tangyuan, Zongzi, etc., from Mongolian names to Chinese names, and prepared several paper balls for the twins to draw lots.

It was at this time that Liang Jiugong arrived at Yuqing Palace. The emperor summoned him, and Bu Erhe certainly did not dare to delay. He handed the children to the prince, packed up a little, and followed Liang Jiugong to the Qianqing Palace.

The maid Qi'er saluted Liang Jiugong and when she stood up, she put a purse into Liang Jiugong's sleeve pocket. As they walked to the Qianqing Palace, Buerhe quietly asked: "Liang An'da, do you know what the emperor wants to talk to me about? I hope An'da can tell me a little bit."

It's easy to beg for mercy, especially since Liang Jiugong had just received the purse and squeezed it. It contained two pearls. If there was anything valuable in the palace, it wasn't gold or silver, but rather the light silver notes and small items. Silver notes were commonplace for a eunuch of his rank, but the small pearls the Crown Princess had gifted him were clearly the Southern Pearls bestowed by the Emperor a while ago. These were truly priceless gifts from the Emperor, and even if they were kept on display, they would be a source of pride.

Liang Jiugong bent down, leaned over to Buerhe and whispered, "Today, Khalkha sent a letter saying that the prince is no longer young and wants to propose marriage in advance. The emperor agreed, so he sent me here to invite you."

Hearing Khalkha, Burhe immediately realized that this was the future husband of the fourth princess, Kejing. "Why is the marriage proposal so early? Didn't you say it would be next year?"

Liang Jiugong: "I don't know about this, please don't blame me, Princess."

Buerhe: "This is also my fault. I am sorry to have troubled An Da. I was just asking casually. It doesn't matter if I don't know. I also want to thank An Da for telling me that Yuqing Palace has made a new cooling cream that is very suitable for use in summer. The weather is getting hot soon, An Da will definitely need it. I will ask the young man from Yuqing Palace to bring you a bottle later."

Liang Jiugong: "Thank you, Her Majesty the Crown Princess. Everyone says that the cooling ointment from Yuqing Palace is very useful, so I shamelessly accepted it."

Seeing that they were almost at the Qianqing Palace, the two stopped talking and just lowered their heads to hurry on their way.

Buerhe: "Your daughter-in-law pays respects to the Emperor, and may the Emperor be blessed with good health and happiness."

Kangxi: "The Crown Princess is here. No need to be polite. Please take a seat."

After hearing this, Wei Zhu ran over with a round stool in her arms, put it down next to Buerhe, and then lowered her head and left.

Buerhe: "Thank you, Emperor."

Kangxi: "I asked you to come here today mainly because of Kejing's matter. I have decided to marry Kejing off to Khalkha in July. The Empress Dowager said that you and Kejing are on good terms, and the Grand Empress Dowager also praised your thoroughness in her lifetime. So I thought of giving you full authority to handle Kejing's marriage this time."

Buerhe stood up and saluted. "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your consideration. I will certainly take care of it carefully. However, I have a question. I am not sure what specifications Your Majesty requires me to follow when preparing Kejing's dowry."

Kangxi thought for a moment and said, "Let's follow the rules for Princess Gulun. Kejingyuan is marrying Khalke, and she's my favorite daughter. All the rules should be followed for the empress's legitimate daughter. If there are any difficulties, I will order the Ministry of Internal Affairs to assist."

Since the emperor has made it clear, Buerhe said: "Yes, I know. I will handle it seriously and will not let the emperor down."

Kangxi: "Well, I have seen you taking care of Yuqing Palace, so I think it is best to entrust this matter to you. So, you should focus on it from now on. I have nothing to do here. Liang Jiugong, please escort your mistress, the Crown Princess, back to Yuqing Palace."

Liang Jiugong: "Yes, Your Majesty."

Buerhe: "Yes, Father Huang, then your daughter-in-law will take her leave."

Liang Jiugong followed Buerhe out of the Qianqing Palace, and the palace maids of the Yuqing Palace hurried forward and followed behind them, each holding a wooden plate covered with a cloth.

Buerhe: "Liang An Da, just send them here. I can go back by myself, but what are these?"

Liang Jiugong: "Yes, I will follow your instructions. Your Highness, these are all prepared in advance by the Emperor. He said they are gifts for the young grandchildren. Please take them back with you."

Knowing that these were the gifts given by the emperor to the twins, Bu Erhe did not refuse. After bidding farewell to Liang Jiugong, they returned to Yuqing Palace.

When Burhe came back, the prince was still playing a tumbling game with the two little babies. The children would turn over, and the prince would put them back in place. Then the children would turn over again, and the prince would put them back in place again. He never got tired of it.

This was the game the prince had been playing with the two children ever since they learned to roll over at three months old. He never got tired of it, and neither did they. On the contrary, whenever the prince appeared to play this game with them, the two children would burst into laughter. Even if the prince got tired and wanted to leave, he would be held by the fingers and not allowed to leave.

The prince often said that he relied on strong willpower to go out every day now, which was more difficult than when he was a child, when he had to get up early every day to go to the Shangshufang. Because he really couldn't bear to leave his two lovely children.

Buerhe also did not expect that the prince also had the talent of being a warm father. As long as the two babies winked at him, the prince would immediately compromise and would take time to play with them no matter how tired or busy he was.

Bu Erhe sat at the table and drank the red date tea served by the servants. This was Aunt Pang's instruction, and Bu Erhe needed to drink it for at least half a year before stopping.

Yinreng: "Why did you take so long? What did the Emperor want to see you about?"

Buerhe said without hesitation: "As for what we discussed last night, Fourth Sister's marriage, I didn't expect that this matter would fall on me. I originally thought that it would be the responsibility of Concubine Yi."

The prince thought for a moment and said, "It seems that the emperor is trying to elevate Kejing's status. It's true that Concubine Yi is my fourth sister's aunt, but she's still not as respected as you, the legitimate Crown Princess. If you prepare the dowry, the Khalkha tribe will look up to my fourth sister."

Buerhe: "You are right. I asked the Emperor, and he said it should be done according to the standards for a Gulun Princess. This is a first for any princess."

Yinreng: "Oh, that's true. The previous sisters were all married with the specifications of Heshuo Princesses. The one before that was married with the specifications of Gulun Princesses, but she was our ancestor's second daughter, Gulun Shuhui Princess."

Buerhe: "Yes, I didn't expect that the Emperor would value Fourth Sister so much. We will have to give more to her when the time comes. In addition, I want to choose one of the female doctors I have trained to give to Fourth Sister. What do you think?"

Yinreng said: "You sisters get along well, and you trained the female doctor, so give it to her if you want. The Internal Affairs Department can't do anything, but the Fourth and Ninth Brothers can both speak to you. If you need anything, just tell them and I will pass it on."

Buerhe: "Okay, if there's anything I need, I won't hesitate. I'll need to think about the details later. Anyway, there's still plenty of time, enough for me to prepare."

Yinreng: "Okay, but what are these things you brought back?"

Buerhe: "Oh, that's the gift Liang An'da said the emperor prepared for the two little ones, so I brought it back. Let's see what's inside?"

Yinreng uncovered the box and found a big red rattle that looked well-preserved, but it was also obvious that it had been used; a golden hydrangea with a red tassel, and a "nothing happened" plaque at the bottom; the last item was two identical warm jade peace buckles, which were warm to the touch and in excellent condition.

Buerhe didn't react much, but the prince looked at each item one by one, and even picked up the rattle and hydrangea to look at them for a while.

Buerhe: "This isn't new, is it? Looking at your expression, could it be that these were all used by me when I was a kid?"

Yinreng: "You guessed it right. I heard that the rattle was prepared by my mother before she died. After I was born, the emperor gave it to me, but took it back when I turned one year old. The golden embroidered ball was specially made by the emperor for me when I was six months old, mainly to attract me to stand up and sit down. As for these two peace lockets, they must have been specially found by the emperor for the twins. Judging from their quality, they must be the best things in the emperor's treasury."

Buerhe: "I didn't expect that the emperor would preserve the things I used so well. The emperor really cares about me."

Yinreng: "Yes, the Emperor has always been very good to me."

But the Emperor's life span was too long. What would it matter if I was his favorite child? By that time, even if I was still alive, I, his son, would be a thorn in his side. What would all the love and affection he had shown me mean in the end?

Buerhe ignored Yinreng's little mood and teased the little hands that turned over and stretched out in her direction at the sound of her voice. She held each little hand, smiled at the twins, and asked, "How did the nicknames come out in the end? What did they choose in the end?"

Speaking of this, the prince had no time to think about anything else. He was depressed as to why the twins didn't like the heroic and masculine nicknames he wrote and didn't even bother to look at them, while the twins loved the soft names written by the Crown Princess.

These two children are only three months old and can't read a single word. Is it really fate that they have to be called by those cute, squishy nicknames?

Buerhe used his eyes to urge the prince to answer, and the prince was unable to explain: "In the end, they caught the nicknames. Hongye's was a small glutinous rice ball, and Jingyi's was a small mooncake."

Bull raised the corner of his eye and said, "It seems that I have won this time. I accept the loss. I will trouble you tonight, Your Highness."

Yinreng nodded helplessly: "Don't worry, I won't default on my debt. But as the eldest brother, it's not appropriate for the eldest brother to have such a cute name, right?"

Buerhe didn't think so. "Why not? Little Tangyuan is so cute. It sounds so soft and sweet. Our eldest brother will definitely be a sweet baby who is filial to his elders and cares for his younger brothers and sisters, right, little Tangyuan?"

When the eldest prince saw his mother smiling at him, he also grinned back at her without realizing that he had unconsciously lost an opportunity to change his name.