The Qing Palace Never Meets Spring

Yinxiang wrote "My wife" on his pen, then crumpled it into a ball and threw it on the ground.

He picked up his pen again and wrote "My Wife Qingwan," crumpling and throwing the paper again until the floor was covered with crumpled pieces. Zhang Rui picked up the paper as Yinxiang threw it.

Seeing that he could barely hold her anymore, Zhang Rui looked up with a pained expression and called out, "Master."

Yinxiang looked up, threw the crumpled paper in his hand away, and said, "What are you standing there for? Throw all of these into the charcoal brazier."

"Yes, sir. Oh? Master, are you really going to burn it?"

"Hurry up, stop rambling."

Yinxiang waved his hand irritably. Zhang Rui, while secretly observing Yinxiang's expression, put the crumpled paper in his arms into the charcoal brazier.

In the leaping flames, Yinxiang sat in a chair, staring blankly at the overhead beam, some things already beyond his control.

When Emperor Kangxi returned to the palace, it was almost the New Year. On the day of his return, the first thing Kangxi did was to go to the Empress Dowager's palace to pay his respects. Except for the Crown Prince, everyone else left after paying their respects, leaving only Kangxi, the Crown Prince, and the Empress Dowager to enjoy family time together.

After learning of Yinxiang's return, Qingwan thought for a moment, put on the white fox fur cloak that Yinxiang had sent over, and stood at the courtyard gate holding a hand warmer to wait for Yinxiang.

Emperor Kangxi had many sons, and the two palaces built at the beginning, Qianxi and Dongxi, were not enough to house them, so Zhaoxiang Palace was built. Yinzhen grew up in Zhaoxiang Palace. After he got married, he moved out of Zhaoxiang Palace to make room for other princes.

He, Yinxiang, and Yintao lived in several courtyards close to each other, and it seems they never separated their households. As their wives, concubines, and children increased, they were probably able to get other courtyards.

Light snow was still falling from the sky. Mu Xiang, who was taller than Chen Xiang, held the umbrella for her.

Because they were keeping track of the time, they only stood there for a short while before spotting Yinxiang. He walked very quickly and soon arrived in front of Qingwan.

Yinxiang had only seen the person standing at the door from afar, without being able to see her face clearly. He only saw that she was dressed in white and had a guess in his mind. He unconsciously quickened his pace, and sure enough, when he got closer, he saw that it was Qingwan.

Qingwan had become a bit plumper due to her pregnancy, and her face looked even more radiant against the backdrop of the white fox fur.

Yinxiang took the umbrella from Muxiang and held it for Qingwan. He opened his forearm, and Qingwan put her hand on his forearm and linked arms with it.

Yinxiang then said, "Let's go inside first, so we don't get cold."

"Okay." The two walked forward, and the rest followed behind.

Yinxiang looked down at her and said, "This outfit suits you very well."

Qingwan looked up into his eyes and smiled, "Thank you, sir. It's very warm, I like it very much, I even love it. So when you came back today, I thought I would wear it for you."

Hearing her say that, Yinxiang did not hold back his praise: "Such fine fur naturally deserves a beautiful woman."

Fuling had just turned one month old yesterday. Because it was winter, Qingwan didn't ask her to go out. Only Yingyu waited in the courtyard. When she saw the two of them like this, she only bowed and didn't follow them.

The eldest princess, dressed in a plump outfit, stood with her wet nurse. When she saw Qingwan and Yinxiang, she ran forward and stopped. After thinking for a moment, she hugged Yinxiang's leg and called out, "Father!"

She originally wanted to hug Qingwan, but her wet nurse kept telling her that she couldn't hug Qingwan anymore, so she changed her mind in front of the two of them and hugged Yinxiang, who had far less contact with Qingwan.

Yinxiang looked down at the small pendant on his leg, then turned to look at Qingwan: "How should I put it?"

Qingwan chuckled and, with Yinxiang's help, half-squatted down: "It's too cold outside, Mingxin, go back first, and Father will come to see you and your brother later, okay?"

Mingxin released Yinxiang: "Fujin, may I play in the snow a little longer?" She didn't care whether Yinxiang would come to see her.

Qingwan touched her small, cold hand and said somewhat seriously, "No, you've already played today. Go back inside and let them open the door, then let the wet nurse hold you by the charcoal brazier to watch the snow, okay?"

Moreover, the snow wasn't heavy, and it didn't pile up, so it wasn't as fun as the previous days.

"Alright." Mingxin nodded with some disappointment, but still obediently went to the wet nurse's side and took her hand: "Granny, please take me back."

Only after seeing the wet nurse leading Mingxin to her room did the two of them continue walking back.

Yinxiang was silent for a while before saying, "Mingxin is very well-behaved. You have taught her very well."

Qingwan just looked down at the road and said, "Actually, it was Fuling who taught me well. I'm not taking credit for her teaching."

"After what happened the day Fuling found out she was pregnant, I didn't think you two would get along so well."

"I'm sure the master is well aware of the infighting in the inner quarters. Now that I've become his primary wife, I sometimes need to use methods to keep the servants in check. As long as they are obedient, I won't argue with them about these things."

"For example, you replaced the people around Shi Jia and Fu Ling?" Yinxiang's tone was calm, showing no sign of anger.

So Qingwan continued without worry: "I knew I couldn't hide it from you, Master, or rather, I couldn't hide it from Eunuch Zhang Rui."

Zhang Rui dragged out the word "Eunuch Zhang" for so long that Zhang Rui felt his scalp tingle and walked slower and slower until he fell behind Chen Xiang.

Upon noticing this, Chenxiang pulled him out, ignoring Zhang Rui's gestures of clasping his hands together and winking at her.

Chenxiang looked at Zhang Rui with disdain, knowing that he was guilty because of what happened in the study last time. She didn't care that Zhang Rui was several years older than her and was not polite at all.

When Yinxiang, who was standing in front of the group, heard Qingwan say this, he chuckled and said, "Zhang Rui is indeed exceptional when it comes to gathering information."

Qingwan also said, "After all, she was trained by Master himself."

As they were talking, the two entered the room, took off their cloaks, and sat down on the kang (a heated brick bed). Qingwan then continued, "I shouldn't say this in front of the master, but he told me that he would give me the respect and authority of a primary wife, and that as long as I don't go too far, he won't interfere in matters of the inner quarters. I always trust the master."

When Qingwan said this, her eyes were full of trust as she looked at Yinxiang. Yinxiang coughed lightly and said, "I did say that, and I trust your actions."

Qingwan looked at him with unwavering trust and smiled as she said, "I don't mean to blame Zhang Rui. You know my family background. It's not the highest, but it's not the lowest either. It's just that my father is the only one supporting us. If my father retires one day, my family will truly become an ordinary family."

Furthermore, my older sisters were also around the same age as the princes, but they were all rejected and forced to marry on their own. So, my family really didn't expect that I could be betrothed to a prince.

Therefore, in terms of conduct, I am naturally not as tactful as a noblewoman like the Crown Princess. Knowing that Zhang Rui told you these things actually gives me more confidence.

Because of what Grandpa said, I always thought I couldn't let him down, so if there was anything I did wrong, Grandpa would teach me.

For example, the change of people around Fuling and Yingyu.

"You did very well. I have nothing to teach you." After saying that, Yinxiang raised his cup to cover his lips. He knew that Qingwan said some things on purpose, but he had heard her say things with hidden meanings so often. He really appreciated Qingwan's attitude and frankness.

Seeing Yinxiang like this, Qingwan smiled and lowered her eyes to hide her emotions.