Chapter Fifty-Three

  On a pitch-black night, the lanterns surrounding the horse-drawn carriage that slowly passed through the main street illuminated a considerable area. The muffled hum from the nearby alleys sounded especially clear. Quan Pei used a copper hairpin to stir the charcoal ash in the hand warmer and then carefully wiped her hands with a handkerchief.

  Not long after, another black figure darted out from the alley and followed behind the carriage. Xiaomantou raised an eyebrow and waved his hand back, walking with a clear conscience and a steady pace.

  In the corner of the alley, several people were scattered about, with Fuerqin, who was in charge, still twitching his hands and feet. This Fourth Madame is too ruthless, it's really a case of seeing him once and beating him up once. But how did she manage to find out he was still nearby...

  Ba Fu Jin entered the palace for the first time and as a sister-in-law, on the second day after entering the door, they all had to get to know each other.

  The Empress Dowager was wearing a purple embroidered cheongsam with auspicious patterns and looked very festive. She asked Baifu to sit beside her and smiled, saying: "You all know each other, no need for introductions one by one. From now on, you are all family members. Ping'an is still young, so you older ones should help take care of her."

  The empress dowager was obviously biased towards the Eighth Imperial Concubine, but she didn't seem out of place. The imperial concubine smiled and said, "This way, we can't even keep up with our children's troubles, it's really a blessing for our old Eighth."

  The shy and gentle girl twisted her handkerchief and whispered: "Our father is also very good."

  Everyone burst out laughing, and the crown princess said: "This is just getting married, and the arm has already been twisted to our house, and it's still the eighth brother who has the skills!"

  The atmosphere was great, almost everyone had a smile on their face, except for the Ninth Princess who sat beside her and looked unhappy. After finishing the conversation, it was time for dinner at home. Quan Pei said to the Ninth Princess: "You haven't been feeling well these past few days? Why do you look so unhappy?"

  The Ninth Princess saw that Quan Pei was about to speak and pouted: "......since you came, I'm nothing. Originally, it was agreed that a new headpiece would be made for me, but because the inner court made one for Ping'an that wasn't as good-looking as mine, they gave mine to her instead. Don't look at her shy and demure appearance, she's actually very wild and doesn't put me in her eyes at all!"

  It turned out that the Empress Dowager was biased towards Eighth Concubine Fu and Ninth Princess had a bad temper.

  "Don't mention these things in front of the empress dowager, if you're short of face I'll give you a set, serve the empress dowager well and don't lose everything for something small."

  The ninth princess suppressed her anger and put on a smile, holding onto Quan Pei's arm: "I won't bother with her, I have my own sister to care for, she doesn't!"

  Ba Fu Jin walked over with a wine cup in hand, smiling and saying: "Fourth Sister."

  The Ninth Princess didn't like Eighth Imperial Concubine, but she still maintained a good face and smiled as she greeted Eighth Imperial Concubine.

  Ba Fu Jin held up a cup of wine and presented it to Quan E: "I toast Fourth Sister with this cup."

  This was the usual etiquette, Quan Pei took it in her hand and drank it all up, and then a maid poured another cup of wine for Ba Fu Jun. Quan Pei took it in her hand, not knowing if there was any other wine in the jug, looking at it until it didn't seem much different from before, she hesitated for a moment and still handed it to Ba Fu Jun: "Wishing you and Eighth Brother a hundred years of harmony, and an early birth of a noble son."

  Bafujin heard this and couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed, she took it in her hand and drank it all in one gulp.

  On the side table, several main seats of the palace were seated, some looking this way, and some whispering to each other. The beautiful Empress Dowager was smiling warmly and benevolently at Eighth Princess, as if she were looking at her own child. However, Eighth Princess's attitude towards offering wine was not good, and it seemed that in her heart, she looked down on the humble-born Empress Dowager. Perhaps in the future, Eighth Prince would have a lot of troubles sandwiched between them, but Eighth Princess was definitely no match for the Empress Dowager.

  After leaving the Cining Palace, De Fei pulled Quan Pei and said again: "...... This fourteen is not listening to me, I have no way with him, every day he follows those messy people."

  The pines and cypresses are lush and green, not yielding to the harsh cold of winter, but instead becoming even more vibrant and upright. Quan Pei wrapped in a large fur coat with a water lazy skin, gazed at the calm lake surface: "The child is still young, it will be fine slowly..."

  De Fei didn't know why she let out a sigh: "If you were still someone I could negotiate with, it seems like this has become a settled matter."

  "How could this be?" Guan Yu smiled faintly: "The world is unpredictable, things are up to people, and the days are still long."

  De Fei was silent for a moment, she probably didn't think of her own absurd words, but Quan Pei understood the meaning behind them. Perhaps Quan Pei had long seen through the situation and knew that this day would come, when she and Yi Fei were still fighting, but for the sake of their children, they had to compromise, while Empress Dowager manipulated everything from behind the scenes.

  A gentle breeze blew in a refreshing fragrance, and Quan Pei's figure gradually disappeared into the distance. The words she spoke still lingered in De Fei's ears: "Everyone has their own plans and arrangements, no one knows who is the biggest manipulator behind the scenes, but one day we will all understand that no matter how much plotting there is, ultimately it is the Emperor's will that prevails, everything else is just empty and fleeting."

  What is divine will? What is divine will anyway?

  She waited until night, and unexpectedly got her period. Her stomach hurt more than usual, and she couldn't serve Eighth Prince on the second day of their marriage, which made her very worried. Eighth Prince gently coaxed her into drinking ginger sugar water, then watched her fall asleep before saying: "I'll sleep on the couch outside, you focus on taking care of your body."

  Baoyu's words made Baochai's eyes light up, and her heart warmed up. Although she was uncomfortable in the stomach, she slept exceptionally soundly that night. She knew she hadn't chosen the wrong person; Eighth Brother truly cared for her...

  The clothing store opened by Tong Kang and his wife quickly became popular, thanks to the several Suzhou beauties in Wang's mother-in-law's hands, who showed off their extraordinary talents. Additionally, when Consort Kang, Quan Pei, Jue Luo Shi, and Wang's mother-in-law went out to socialize, they always wore new clothes from the store, which soon gained a small reputation among noblewomen.

  Adding the newly opened Dye Fragrance Pavilion, as well as the maritime dividend and foreign goods store, the monthly income is almost 5,000 taels. With a comfortable financial situation, Yongzheng and Quan Pei calculated together and allocated 3,000 taels to Qing Mr. and Qing Jue for the construction of the Dark Guard, 1,000 taels were kept by Quan Pei, and another 1,000 taels were placed in front as daily expenses.

  The Emperor has clearly indicated that he will personally lead the expedition again, and Yongzheng's departure is imminent. This time, he plans to bring Qingjue and Mr. Qing together: "...In the war outside, there are many refugees or extraordinary people on the road. This time, let Mr. Qing and Qingjue go together, or they can pick out good candidates, and slowly but surely, they will have a model."

  Having a master of one's own by one's side is indeed different, just like the last time Qing Jue beat Fu Er Gun, it was done quietly and safely.

  Quan Pei Qing checked off the items that Yongzheng was to bring on his trip: "No matter what, safety first, never let Qing Awu leave your side."

  Yongzheng sat down and also instructed Quan Pei: "If Fuerdun dares to disturb you again, remember that when I come back, I will settle the score with him. Whatever you do, don't take matters into your own hands and get hurt."

  Knowing that Yunxiang might not be a match for Yongzheng after all, Yinzhen was still uneasy.

  Outside, the sound of Bao Ge and Da Ge's laughter could still be heard. The bright light from the window illuminated the woman's face, and the faint smile between her eyebrows seemed like a gentle ray of light that didn't stir up any dust, yet it was enough to make one's heart drunk. Yongzheng grasped Quan Pei's hand: "We won't see each other for many days again."

  The woman in front of him became even more charming, like a flower in full bloom: "I'll be waiting for you at home."

  The child's cry suddenly made the ambiguous atmosphere disappear, and the distress in Yongzheng's eyes flashed by, only to see Quan Pei getting up and walking towards the window: "What are you crying about again?"

  The people below were frightened and exclaimed: "Big Brother has fallen!"

  "If you're not hurt, get up after falling down, and don't let anyone help you."

  Da Gege was staring at Bao Geer, who was still lying on the ground, with a somewhat tense expression. Bao Geer, looking rather disconsolate, saw that no one was coming to deal with him, and looked up at Da Gege again. Da Gege's heart softened, but she didn't dare approach him. She glanced at Quan Pei, who was standing by the window, then quickly lowered her head, staring at her own toes.

  The child was small, no one took care of him, so he had to get up by himself. The nanny rushed over to check and saw that the treasure brother was indeed not hurt, only then did she secretly let out a sigh of relief. Although Fu Jin raised the eldest brother more roughly, if the eldest brother was really hurt, these servants would not have good fruit to eat.

  The young and spirited wet nurse revealed a few hints of cleverness, Quan Pei glanced at her several times, waiting for the two children to start playing, before saying to Yin Zhen: "When they turn three years old, we won't need the wet nurses around anymore. The more wet nurses there are, the more complicated human relationships will be, and it will also make things more cumbersome for the child in the future."

  The wet nurses, having nursed the masters, later became half-masters themselves, without blood ties but with such kindness, indeed some entanglements. If these wet nurses harbored evil intentions in their hearts and the masters trusted them extremely, it would be another disaster. Yongzheng said: "You take care of these matters."

  At night, it's extremely gentle and affectionate, the charming night scenery makes people blush unconsciously...

  It was just like the last time the emperor went on an expedition, taking away many men, so even the Forbidden City became quiet and the days were more relaxed. During his free time in the stables, Quan Pei would always ride a lap around, sometimes bringing Bao Ge with him. The servants were all scared and broke out in cold sweat. Quan Pei rode very fast, and since the stables were limited in size, he leaned precariously when turning corners. But Bao Ge in his arms wasn't afraid at all, laughing loudly instead.

  It's better for boys to be more natural and brave, Bao Ge'er has been following Quan Pei riding horses and also likes horses. In the horse circle, he even picked out a small horse for himself. Quan Pei smiled and instructed: "Raise this horse well, it will be Big Brother's mount in the future."

  Just after bringing Bao Ge back from the horse farm and changing clothes, someone came from the Kang Wang Fu. It was a servant of the Kang Wang Fu's wife: "Our Fu Jin's old illness has relapsed, she is bedridden and unable to get up. She wants Fourth Fu Jin to come over for a visit."

  The old lady's eyes were filled with entreaty and anxiety, and it seemed that the body of Consort Kang was indeed not well, but how could her old illness have recurred again?

  "What's going on?"

  "The lady has been feeling dizzy for the past few days, but didn't pay attention to it at first. This morning, she heard that one of the concubines of the young master had a miscarriage and got so angry that she fainted and fell to the ground. When I left the house, she had just woken up, feeling dizzy and weak all over, unable to get out of bed."

  At home, the Eighth Princess didn't want to tell Quan Pei too much about the details. The young master's concubine had finally gotten pregnant, but then she miscarried. The Consort of Prince Kang was furious and called the Young Master's consort over to question her. The Young Master's consort retorted a few times before the Consort of Prince Kang got so angry that she fainted.

  Ruan Pei wasn't ignorant of medical principles. When Consort Kang suddenly fell ill, it definitely wasn't a relapse of her old illness. It was probably just another muddy pool, but who knew if it was worth her wading through this muddy water...