The Qing Palace Never Meets Spring

The Eighth Prince's wife followed Qingwan and the other woman absentmindedly until her palms stung. She then opened her hands, revealing broken nails and bleeding wounds.

Previously, in order to better care for Consort Liang, she had not worn nail guards for a long time. Fortunately, wearing nail guards is not fashionable now; it is just a pastime for wealthy idlers, and no one would notice the change in her hands.

She carefully wrapped the broken fingernail in a handkerchief and handed it to the maid beside her, still having the mind to stroke the maid's face as she wept with heartache: "It's alright, what's there to cry about? Didn't we prepare for this already?"

She brushed her sleeves aside, looked up at the sky, and murmured, "Winter is really coming; even the cold seeps into your bones."

He quickly stepped forward and stood beside Qingwan, laughing, "Sisters-in-law, let's hurry up, we can't keep up with the ladies."

Qingwan and the other woman simply smiled and agreed with her. As they listened to the Tenth Prince's wife talk about Mongolia, the Eighth Prince's wife would occasionally chime in with a smile, sharing things she had heard from her maternal grandmother.

In the last month of the 46th year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, the emperor bestowed 8,000 taels of silver upon princes, 6,000 taels of silver upon princes of the second rank and those who were granted the title of Beile, and 3,000 taels of silver upon dukes of the second rank and above.

Yin Tang, Yin Yi, Yin Xiang, and Yin Zhen, who had not yet been granted a title, received a reward of four thousand taels of silver from Emperor Kangxi, while Yin Tao, who had also not been granted a title, only received two thousand taels. The reason for this is unknown.

Ningyin was recovering from the physical damage caused by childbirth, and Yinxiang never discussed such matters with her.

She suddenly felt somewhat pathetic; if Yinxiang was unwilling to speak, she would actually know nothing at all.

That year, Emperor Kangxi did not visit the imperial tombs, and Yinxiang was able to spend the entire December in Beijing, which coincided with the birthday of the eldest prince. After the eldest prince's birthday, he also received his own name, Hongchang.

As the eldest son, Yinxiang cared for Hongchang in a way that the eldest princess could not. Yinxiang gave Hongchang many things, and she was happy to do him this favor.

She was generous to Hongchang, and similarly, she was generous to Mingxin.

Looking at the things that Yinxiang kept sending over by Zhang Rui, and thinking about the eldest prince who was born on the fifth day of the first lunar month and the child that another concubine was pregnant with in September, Yinxiang thought about them.

Finally, Lady Zhang, who gave birth to Yinzhi's eldest son, was also the Eighth Prince's wife who took the initiative to ask Yinzhi to make her a concubine. It seemed that overnight, the Eighth Prince's wife became the virtuous wife that everyone had been looking forward to.

When Qingwan heard that Yinzhi's eldest son had been born safely, she felt relieved.

Consort Liang has already laid her words bare before everyone. If anything happens to this child, I'm afraid the Eighth Prince's wife will be held responsible, as she has already been disliked by Emperor Kangxi.

Thinking of the Eighth Prince's wife's situation, Qingwan said with a self-deprecating smile, "The Thirteenth Prince is truly blessed, with harmonious wives and concubines."

"What did the Lady just say?" Mu Xiang asked as she was packing her things.

In a few days, Emperor Kangxi will leave the capital again, and Yinxiang will still be going.

Qingwan snapped out of her daze: "It's alright, are you sure you've put everything away?"

"That's about it, but my master is particular, so the clothes alone will take up several large bags."

"Will the Princess Consort send Princess Shijia again this time?" Muxiang asked hesitantly.

"Yes, let her go. Once Lady Fucha enters the palace, we can let them take turns going, or they can go together."

Fucha was a candidate for the Eight Banners' imperial concubine selection at the end of last year, which Emperor Kangxi bestowed upon Yinxiang. Her father was a Zuo Ling (a military officer), and her family background was better than that of Shijia. Moreover, she was a candidate for the imperial concubine selection. If she were to enter the palace, she would be the leader among the concubines.

He fell ill shortly after the imperial decree was issued and has not fully recovered.

After discussing it with Yinxiang, she did not insist that she enter the palace immediately. She planned to bring her into the palace and make her a concubine after she recovered.

On the day Yinxiang left, Qingwan stood at the courtyard gate, straightening Yinxiang's clothes and said, "I've been married to you for less than three years, and I've already gotten used to seeing you off from the capital."

Unlike her two concubines, Qingwan was always relaxed in front of Yinxiang after returning from beyond the Great Wall.

When she first came in, the two of them would bicker because they didn't understand each other, but that's not the case now. However, while Qingwan is relaxed, she rarely seems to show such vulnerability.

Yinxiang found it strange, but decided to speak frankly: "If you ask me, this really doesn't seem like something you could do. Your Highness, please speak frankly."

Qingwan choked on Yinxiang's words for a moment before saying, "When Your Highness returns, the new sister might enter the palace. I've heard she's a gentle and lovely sister, and I can't help but feel anxious and uncertain."

Feeling conflicted and uncertain, Yinxiang murmured those four words with a hint of amusement, then tapped Qingwan on the head before leading the others away.

Qingwan touched her head and chuckled softly, "What a nuisance."

Aunt Yan watched as Qingwan returned without showing any disappointment, only hugging and kissing Moyaqi repeatedly, and couldn't help but chuckle.

Moyaqi, who will be one year old in a month, is babbling and raising her hand to cover Qingwan's face, her eyes darting around as if searching for something.

She would occasionally blurt out "Mom".

I thought it was just Moyaqi's meaningless babbling, but Aunt Yan heard it so much that she suddenly remembered that she had been teaching Moyaqi to say "Enie" and "Ama" recently.

Qingwan often brought Moyaqi closer to Yinxiang, and through Qingwan's deliberate actions, Moyaqi and the other two children became even more favored by Yinxiang.

Compared to Fuling and Yingyu, Qingwan was more adept at "winning over" Yinxiang.

Even Qingwan was curious about how Yinxiang had changed his gender, since Yinxiang used to be able to come running whenever someone called him.

Seeing that Moyaqi kept saying "Mom" and "E" again, Aunt Yan said, "Is Princess calling her Father and E?"

Qingwan held Moyaqi and looked at her again and again: "Is the child learning to speak so early?"

Her nephews didn't start talking until they were over a year old, but she didn't watch them all the time. She would hear that they were learning to talk, and then see the child again, and their speech would be very clear.

Aunt Yan looked at Moyaqi, who was being amused by Qingwan, and smiled as well: "It varies from person to person when it comes to speaking. Our princess is so intelligent, it's normal for her to start speaking early."

Qingwan rubbed against Moyaqi's little face and laughed, "Whatever you say, it's 'me' or 'ma'. It's not 'ama', it's 'ma'."

"Good child, when Father comes back, we'll call him Mom."

Thinking of that scene, Aunt Yan shook her head helplessly and smiled, "I'm afraid the Thirteenth Master will be furious."

“Then let it be black. If his own daughter really turns black, our Moyaqi won’t even know, right, Moyaqi?”

The only response she received was Moyaqi's laughter.

Aunt Yan watched the mother and daughter playing with a smile in her eyes.

Because of her relationship with Consort Min, Yi Huan was also willing to get close to her and occasionally talked about Yi An, who had already been raised.

Yi Huan said that Yi An had also been thinking about how the child would make Yin Xiang suffer. These people really are a perfect match.

However, if Moyaqi could stay with her two aunts for a few more years, even if she inherited her mother's gentle nature, she would probably be unruly around Yinxiang.

But the thought of making Yinxiang frown and feel helpless made Aunt Yan somewhat hopeful.

If her husband hadn't died so young, she might still be able to work in the palace and watch her children grow up.