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

Chapter 72 Eating Cold Noodles

The next day, while Burhe was still having breakfast, the Sixth and Ninth Princesses arrived at the Qingfeng House. Seeing the two princesses' blushing faces and their excitement, Burhe smiled and asked, "Have you had breakfast yet?"

As soon as these words were spoken, the Sixth Princess and the Ninth Princess lowered their heads shyly. They were so excited when they heard that they could go out and play that they forgot everything.

Buerhe sighed and ordered the servants to add two sets of bowls and chopsticks: "Sisters, do you mind coming to eat together? It's still early, and we can't run away from that place."

The Sixth and Ninth Princesses had just sat down when Qi'er entered the room and said, "Master, the Fourth Lady is here."

Then she heard the energetic voice of the Fourth Lady outside the door: "Second sister-in-law, I'm here!"

Buerhe was helpless. "Okay, so you're so happy just going out to play? Can't wait any longer?" He gestured to the servants to add another set of bowls and chopsticks, and then Buerhe invited the Fourth Lady to sit down and eat together.

After greeting the Sixth and Ninth Princesses with a giggle, the Fourth Lady coquettishly said to Buerhe, "How did Second Sister-in-law know that I didn't have breakfast?"

Buerhe glared at her: "Do you remember what I said to you yesterday afternoon?"

After being reminded, the Fourth Lady finally remembered what Buerhe had said yesterday about picking her up at the Pine Forest Cottage. She stuck out her tongue and feigned obedience, saying, "Oh, dear sister-in-law, I forgot! Besides, being able to go out and play is such a happy thing, how could I bear to wait?"

Buerhe couldn't argue with her and didn't want to talk to her anymore. Instead, he focused on his meal. It is basic dining etiquette not to talk while eating or sleeping.

The Fourth Lady was not angry when she saw her second sister-in-law ignored her, but she stopped talking nonsense and sat down obediently to have her meal with them.

This morning, the breakfast here in Burhe was a bit similar to the Korean cold noodles. The chewy noodles were boiled in boiling water and then chilled in cold water for a while. Then, the noodles were added with the beef broth freshly braised that morning, and on top lay a perfect poached egg, a few large slices of well-seasoned beef, some apple strips, a large spoonful of peanuts, and a little coriander. Finally, it was sprinkled with the freshly pickled side dishes from the kitchen. Slurp it up, and it whetted the appetites of several people who didn't want to eat because of the heat. It didn't take long before the big bowl in front of them was cleaned up.

The Fourth Lady ate with great pleasure: "Second sister-in-law's rice is still the most delicious. I don't know why, it's the same recipe, but Second sister-in-law's rice tastes better than mine."

Although the Sixth Princess and the Ninth Princess came here for the first time, they could clearly feel that the food at the Crown Princess's place was more delicious than that in the imperial kitchen.

Buerhe: "As long as you use it well, it's fine. I was worried that you wouldn't be used to it, so I asked the kitchen to prepare wontons in advance. Now it seems that they are no longer useful."

The Fourth Lady said: "This big bowl will take some time to digest. However, Second Sister-in-law's wontons can be arranged for afternoon tea time. I will definitely be able to enjoy another big bowl then."

Bull tapped Fourth Lady's nose and said, "I've never seen Fourth Brother treat you badly. Why do you always seem like a greedy cat and can't get enough to eat every time you come here?"

The Fourth Lady said: "We haven't treated me badly, but who told me to eat for two? I've been feeling hungry ever since I became pregnant, but I don't want to eat the food in my own courtyard. It's the same every day, there's no novelty at all."

The Sixth Princess and the Ninth Princess nodded repeatedly. In order to avoid mistakes, the imperial kitchen's meal menu remained basically unchanged over the years. No matter how delicious the food was, who wouldn't get tired of it if they ate it every day, year after year?

Buerhe had no choice but to say, "Sixth and Ninth Sisters don't have a small kitchen, so they'll have to put up with it for now. In a couple of days, Second Sister-in-law will ask the Empress Dowager to see if she can build one for you. As for you," she said, looking at Fourth Lady, "forget it. Let the cook from your small kitchen come here and learn for a few days. Learn as much as you can. If the food still isn't tasty, then I can't do anything about it. Also, no matter how delicious the food is, you're pregnant now, so you have to eat small meals frequently. Otherwise, if you eat too much in the early stages, your stomach will expand, and your belly will be too big for labor later on."

The Fourth Lady said, "Thank you, Second Sister-in-law. I know. Mother wrote to me a few days ago and told me not to eat too much."

Hearing that it was his aunt who had written a letter to remind him, Buerhe stopped talking. The Hadanara family was not a small family, and many people knew this common sense. Besides, their family had a fourth wife, so her affairs would definitely be given top priority.

The Sixth Princess and the Ninth Princess were even more overjoyed. They had originally wanted to come and build a relationship with the Crown Princess, but they didn't expect to have such a pleasant surprise today. They could have their own small kitchen, even if it was just in the garden. It was something they had been looking forward to for a long time.

These two princesses had a low presence in history and were neglected in the Forbidden City. If Kangxi hadn't thought of Buerhe this time, the two princesses would probably have been left in the Forbidden City. After all, in terms of favor, the two of them combined are not as favored as one of the concubines under the name of Min.

Originally, Burhe had also made an appointment with the Eighth Princess and the Tenth Princess today, who were the two princesses of Concubine Min of the Zhangjia clan and the biological sisters of the Thirteenth Prince. However, it was not known whether it was because Concubine Min did not die so early in this life, or because she was still quite favored by Emperor Kangxi, the two sisters could be regarded as favored princesses in the palace, and they were treated very well. As a result, they directly refused Burhe's invitation on the grounds of being unwell.

Buerhe did not care too much. She was not familiar with these princesses. The Sixth Princess and the Ninth Princess were arranged by the Emperor in advance. Later, because the two princesses had good personalities and their ways of doing things were very much to her liking, she took the initiative to take them out to play. Otherwise, she would just find a nanny to go over and give the servants in the yard a beating from time to time, which would be considered an explanation to the Emperor.

After the meal and a short rest, Buerhe took a few people to Lilac Dike. This time they had a mission, which was to explore whether there were any interesting places there. Just looking at the scenery could not satisfy Buerhe and the Fourth Lady.

The group didn't walk very fast. Fortunately, it was still early. Even though the sun had begun to rise slowly, the roadside trees provided shade, so it was still quite cool.

When they were halfway there, they happened to meet the First and Third Concubine. The First Concubine was with her three little princesses, and the Third Concubine was with her eldest prince.

After exchanging greetings, Buerhe asked, "Sister-in-law, how come Third Sister-in-law is free to come out today? Where are you planning to go?"

The first wife had never expected to see so many people today when she finally had time to take her three daughters out for a walk. She was immediately surprised and said, "I was just planning to take a stroll around here. I heard the scenery here is beautiful, especially the lotus flowers. I wanted to take the girls to see the endless green lotus leaves reaching the sky."

The Third Lady also followed suit, "Yes, I am too. I happen to be free today and want to take Hongqing to the Lilac Embankment. Last time I was so busy playing mahjong that I didn't even take in the scenery. The weather is perfect today, so I'm not worried about him getting cold or hot."

When the First Lady heard the Third Lady say that she planned to go to Lilac Dike, she was also tempted. She was also one of the people playing mahjong last time. If she was asked about the scenery there, the only thing she remembered was the lilac flowers and the big lake. She didn't remember anything else.

It was also a coincidence that the First Lady had just met the Third Lady and had just greeted her before she could say a few words when she ran into Bull and his group.

Since we have the same goal, yes, the eldest lady also wants to go to Dingxiang Dike, so let's go together.

The Third Lady said, "Come to think of it, of our sisters-in-law, only the Fifth Brother's wife is not here. Do you think she will be angry when she finds out that we're going out without her?"

Buerhe smiled and replied, "You're overthinking it. I've already made an appointment, but the imperial physician said that during the first three months of pregnancy, Fifth Sister-in-law's fetus isn't very stable yet, so she should just walk around the courtyard. Lilac Embankment is too far for her to walk over. But, how did you and Sister-in-law happen to run into each other today? I was planning to make an appointment with you two, but since I knew you were both busy, I didn't bring it up."

At this time, several people were divided into several echelons and walked together. In the front were the three princesses from the eldest prince's family and Hongqing from the third prince's family. They were making noises as they walked, laughing and running in the front.

Next came Buerhe and the Third Lady, then the Fourth Lady and the Sixth Princess, and finally the First Lady and the Ninth Princess. As the people behind were chatting among themselves, the Third Lady complained to Buerhe in a low voice: "I wish I could find some free time today, otherwise it would be a shame to come out of the garden just once! I really envy you. You are the only one in the Crown Prince's backyard. On weekdays, you only need to take care of the lives of the Crown Prince and the children, and there are fewer things to worry about in daily life.

Look at our master. No matter what their status, as long as he takes a fancy to them, he will take them all into his backyard. He is also not loyal. Those women basically don't stay in his favor for more than three months before he will be replaced by the next one. I originally wanted to discipline them severely, but after seeing my master's face, I feel that they are all miserable people. Why should women make things difficult for other women?

Buerhe patted Sanfujin's hand in understanding. This Cheng Beile really didn't live up to the name bestowed by the Emperor. What was so sincere about it? He usually claimed to like the way scholars behaved, but his actions were the opposite. He liked the company of beautiful women, but after a long time, he would abandon them if he felt they were no longer interesting.

It means that my third brother's wife is a kind-hearted person. Otherwise, if anyone else pushed all the women that their husband likes to themselves to take care of, wouldn't they find an excuse to punish or send them away?

The Third Lady continued, "This time, our master brought this Tian from the mansion. I feel like she's quite scheming. This is already her fourth month of favor. Based on the past, it would have been about the end. But I have a feeling this time is different. Tian seems very confident that she won't fall out of favor. For this reason, I've been sending people to keep an eye on her this time. Now, after sorting out everything today, I'm going out to take a look."

Although Buerhe had never dealt with concubines, he had heard a lot about what happened in the harem. If the Third Lady felt something was wrong, there must be something wrong.

After thinking for a moment, he suggested, "After we return, let's find a royal doctor to check the pulses of all those people. The women in the backyard are so confident, basically, one, they are favored by men, and two, they are pregnant."

After Buerhe finished speaking, the Third Lady looked as if she had suddenly understood something and nodded in agreement. It seemed that the Third Lady would ask the imperial physician for help after returning home today.

Later, the Fourth Lady and the Sixth Princess chatted about food and fun things that happened to them to pass the time. They were not interested in the gossip that the two sisters-in-law were talking about. It was not that they were not interested, but their voices were too low and it was obviously not meant to be spread outside, so they decided not to get involved.

As for the final encounter with the First Lady and the Ninth Princess, they didn't seem to be getting along like sisters-in-law, but more like mother and daughter. The Ninth Princess was only a few years older than the First Lady's eldest daughter, so there was nothing wrong with calling them mother and daughter. Furthermore, the Ninth Princess's personality wasn't much different from the First Lady's. The First Lady was trying hard to promote her eldest daughter, hoping to get the First Lady and the Ninth Princess to be friends.

This only happens in the royal family. In an ordinary family, how could a niece and a younger aunt be of similar age but so distant from each other that they hardly see each other?