The Qing Palace Never Meets Spring

When the Crown Princess and the Fourth Prince's wife heard the words "Come out," their hearts, especially the Crown Princess's, gradually calmed down.

The two smiled at each other. As soon as the baby was born, the wet nurse took it away to wash it clean and then fed it before bringing it back.

The Crown Princess took the child into her arms, and the child, who had eaten and drunk his fill, lay obediently in her embrace.

The Crown Princess leaned close to the Fourth Prince's wife and said, "This child has really worn me out. You must be filial to me in the future."

Compared to her younger siblings, she seems more like the thirteenth brother, especially those eyes. Who knows, she might grow up to be a dignified little princess.

Yi Huan also went to look at the child next to the Fourth Prince's wife, and suddenly said, "I can't tell who he looks like. He hasn't grown up yet. I have to go write a letter to my brother first." After saying that, she hurriedly ran out.

Without further ado, the Crown Princess placed the child in the Fourth Prince's arms, saying, "I'm going to check on my sister-in-law."

Caught off guard, Fourth Princess Consort hugged the child tightly in her arms. Seeing the child still moving his little mouth, she was somewhat dazed, and her eyes involuntarily reddened.

She had never held such a small child since her Honghui grew up, but her Honghui was now lying in the cold darkness, with no future.

She held the baby's soft body and murmured, "What a good child. Grow up healthy and strong."

Hearing a noise inside, she looked up. Although she couldn't see inside, she still handed the child to the wet nurse to hold so she could go in.

The Crown Princess also came out at that moment and said to the wet nurse, "Take her inside."

He then said to the Fourth Princess Consort, "Let's go back too."

Although the Fourth Princess nodded, her gaze remained fixed on the child until the curtain of the delivery room was drawn, at which point she followed the Crown Princess out of the room.

Qingwan vaguely felt that there was something she hadn't done, so she forced her eyes open and saw Li Jia sitting next to her. She called out "Eh-ne" in a somewhat aggrieved tone.

Li Jia lowered her head and rubbed her forehead against hers, just like when she was a child and Li Jia would comfort her after she cried: "You've worked hard."

Just as Qingwan was about to say something, she felt something on her pillow and turned her head to find it was her child.

She reached out and touched the child's face, then tilted her head and rubbed it against the child's little face. One rub wasn't enough, so she rubbed it again. The people in the room couldn't help but laugh at her childlike actions.

Amidst their laughter, Qingwan recalled how she had grabbed Aunt Yan's forehead and pinched it during childbirth, and blushed deeply again, calling out "Aunt Yan" shyly.

Aunt Yan just smiled and shook her head, her sleeves covering the marks Qingwan had left on her hands.

Li Jia then said, "You just closed your eyes, why don't you sleep a little longer?"

Qingwan stared intently at the child: "I want to see the child."

Li Jia brushed aside the damp hair stuck to her forehead with sweat: "The little princess weighs six jin and four liang, she's perfectly fine, there's nothing wrong with her. Her birthday is March 18th, Shen time."

Qingwan then realized, "Today is the Emperor's birthday."

Li Jia nodded and said, "Our little princess has chosen a very auspicious birth date for herself. She will definitely be a blessed child in the future."

“It doesn’t matter,” Qingwan said softly. “No matter when Little Princess is born, she will always be my treasure. I only hope that she can grow up safely and peacefully.”

"Sleep for a while. The Crown Princess has allowed me to enter the palace again tomorrow. I'll watch you sleep, and I'll leave after you fall asleep. I'll come to see you again tomorrow." Li Jia had a thousand words she wanted to say, but she was even more reluctant to let Qingwan suffer.

Qingwan hadn't seen Li Jia for a long time and was a little reluctant to part with her, but she was too tired. She nodded and glanced at the Second Princess one last time before closing her eyes and falling asleep again.

After learning that Qingwan was safe and sound, Fuling and Yingyu went back to their rooms.

Both of them seemed somewhat lost and dejected.

After returning to her room, Fuling looked at the sleeping Mingxin and murmured, "Gege is good. If you are a princess, then my eldest prince still has time to grow up."

But what about Mingxin? What if the Fujin (wife) stops caring about you? If she doesn't support Meng, you'll be overshadowed by her daughter for the rest of your life.

Even if I really become a concubine, it won't matter. Will you blame me when you grow up?

Just last year, an imperial decree was issued that daughters born to concubines and secondary consorts would no longer be treated the same as those born to the principal wife, and would be demoted two ranks.

Unless she receives a special favor or marries into Mongolia, and her husband's status is high, the rank of a princess will change accordingly. Otherwise, a princess born out of wedlock in the imperial clan will be of lower rank than a princess born out of wedlock.

Then she thought back to when she gave birth, only Qingwan was by her side out of duty as the mistress of the house, but today Qingwan is giving birth.

The Crown Princess, the Fourth Prince's Consort, the Tenth Princess, and even Qingwan's daughter could enter the palace. Normally, she wouldn't even be qualified to see these people, especially the Crown Princess.

Fuling gently patted the sleeping eldest princess; this was all she could ever do for the rest of her life.

Now it's the Prince's quarters, later it'll be the mansion's courtyard; she won't even have a chance to leave. Perhaps in the future, the highest-ranking people she'll ever see in her life will be Yinxiang and Qingwan.

But Mingxin is different. Mingxin's surname is Aisin Gioro, and she is a grandson of the emperor. She will be married off by the palace and will have a rank. She cannot be a burden to Mingxin.

Fuling patted Mingxin affectionately again, got up and left the bedroom, called the wet nurse and said, "You should take the eldest princess to see the Fujin more often in the future, and let her play with the second princess more often."

Also, keep an eye on the eldest princess; don't let her hurt the second princess. Teach her to listen to the Fujin (principal wife).

Qingwan's social circle is far superior to hers. If she could gain Qingwan's sympathy and have her take the eldest princess out more often, perhaps one day she would win the favor of a noble person.

Then there's Yinxiang. Yinxiang is visiting her less and less these days. If Mingxin can spend more time with Qingwan, she can see Yinxiang more often.

After returning to her room, Yingyu bit her fingers repeatedly. She was an illegitimate daughter in her family, only a few months younger than her elder sister. The two of them were selected in the imperial concubine selection but failed to be chosen.

She thought she would be married off at will by her family, since she had no value and her stepmother didn't like her. Unexpectedly, Zhuang Ge sent back a message that he wanted to give a girl to Yinxiang.

After years of being submissive and timid, this was the first time she had used such methods. Looking at her elder sister, who might be disfigured, she felt a sense of relief.

Fortunately, she guessed correctly. Compared to which daughter to send to the palace, Zhuang Ge cared more about whether she could get close to Yinxiang.

When she left home, she told her to live well and wait for her.

She hoped that Qingwan would give birth to a prince, so that Qingwan could give up Yinxiang and she could successfully conceive.

During this southern tour, Qingwan was even unwilling to let Yinxiang take her along to serve her. Now that she has given birth to a daughter and Yinxiang has returned, Qingwan has recovered her health and will certainly not want to let Yinxiang go again.

The more she thought about it, the harder she clenched her teeth to grip her fingers. She couldn't just sit and wait to die any longer; her forehead was still waiting for her.

After noticing something amiss, her head maid quietly left the palace.