Chapter 16: Prince Zhi's Wife

Inside the Cining Palace
Concubine Hui, Concubine Yi, Concubine Rong and Concubine De all brought their daughters-in-law and grandchildren to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager. The Empress Dowager had always been self-cultivating and never asked about state affairs, and was highly respected by Kangxi.

The old lady likes to see her children and grandchildren around and having fun. Now the adults are sitting and talking while the children are running around on the ground without restraint. The empress dowager's smile is even more kind.

Hongqing and Honghui hit it off right away. They huddled together, whispering to each other about something, and were reluctant to part even when they had to.

Things were not so smooth for the eldest princess. The daughter of the Prince of Zhi was too arrogant to make friends with her illegitimate sister and completely ignored her in her words.

Fortunately, the eldest princess was strong-willed and not swayed by external factors. She kept her eyes on Honghui, fearing that he might make a mistake.

The empress dowager saw it clearly and specially awarded a pearl flower to the eldest princess alone, which was a very proud thing.

With this kind of relationship, the eldest princess's social interactions and even marriage proposals will be guaranteed in the future.

The Third Lady became the wife of a prince. She was in high spirits and walked with a breeze. For a while, the entire Cining Palace was filled with her cheerful voice.

Rong Fei was so angry when she saw her short-sighted daughter-in-law, but she had to endure it because the occasion was not right.

"Is the First Concubine in good health?" Rong Fei wanted to interrupt the Third Concubine and turned her target to the Concubine of Prince Zhi.

Today, Irgen Jueluo was wearing the gorgeous court dress of a prince's wife, and even the powder on her face could not stop her pale complexion. She was now sitting on the chair with great difficulty, and her personal maid had been supporting her with her body to prevent her from falling down.

Concubine Hui felt distressed when she saw her daughter-in-law’s sickly body. How could she give birth to a healthy eldest son for Yinzhi in this condition?

"I am very well. Mother often sends imperial physicians to diagnose my pulse and prescribe medicine. I will be well again after some rest." The first wife managed to answer.

Yihuan remained calm, but felt a little sad in her heart. The first wife looked like she was on the verge of death. She heard that Concubine Hui had already started looking for the next wife for Prince Zhi in private. She wondered how much she knew.

Perhaps it is because she knows everything that she wants to stand in front of others and speak for herself.

The Queen Mother still smiled and said slowly: "If you are sick, take good care of yourself. You must take your health seriously."

"Yes." The eldest wife took the lead.

***
Seiin
Yinzhen came to have dinner with Yihuan and her son. Yihuan thought about what happened during the day and said to Yinzhen, "It seems that the eldest wife is not going to make it."

Yinzhen sneered: "It is said that my eldest brother dotes on my eldest sister-in-law the most, but she has given birth to children one after another. It is a miracle that she can hold on until now, considering her body that will collapse at the slightest gust of wind."

The first wife risked her life to leave four daughters and one son for Yinzhi. She did have a legitimate son, but it was difficult for her to see the child grow up.

It is said that if there is a stepmother, there will be a stepfather. When the Prince of Zhi has a new wife and a new legitimate son in the future, will he still care about a child who has lost his mother and has no one to teach him?
Yihuan was having a hard time swallowing: "Master, I am so lucky to have such a healthy and lovely child like Honghui."

Yinzhen glared at Yihuan and said, "How could I let you fall into such a situation?!"

Yihuan secretly retorted in her heart that the Empress Xiaojingxian in history was no worse, who received no sympathy at all until her death.

However, who knows whether the place she traveled to is the Qing Dynasty recorded in the textbooks. Now Yinzhen treats her and her son very well, and what she has to do is to continue this good relationship indefinitely.

Sure enough, not long after, news came that the wife of Prince Zhi had passed away. Yihuan sighed. She had not spent much time with the first wife, but she still remembered the look in her eyes when she looked at Honghui.

This is a woman who was driven crazy and eventually killed by her child.

Yihuan went to Yinzhen for advice: "Master, let's go to the Prince of Zhi's mansion to pay our condolences tomorrow. Should we bring Honghui with us?" "No, he is still young. It's hard to say if he offended anyone. Just increase the gift by 20%." Yinzhen said.

Yihuan didn't want to take Honghui with her either, but the one who passed away was the wife of Prince Zhi, and as nephews, they normally had to be present, so Yihuan asked Yinzhen for his decision.

The next morning, Yihuan and her group hurried to the Prince of Zhi's Mansion.

All he saw was white. The four princesses were crying uncontrollably in the mourning hall. The Prince of Zhi was sitting there blankly with a blank look in his eyes, and no one knew what he was thinking.

Hongyu was still young and kept crying and calling for his mother, but no matter how the wet nurse tried to comfort him, it wouldn't work.

Such a messy scene made Yihuan's heart skip a beat.

Yinzhen and Yihuan lit a stick of incense for the eldest wife and came to the Prince of Zhi and said, "Brother, please accept my condolences. The children are still young, especially Hongyu. Be careful not to cause trouble in the chaos."

Yinzhen reminded himself that he had fulfilled his responsibilities as a younger brother, and took Yihuan home to be with his son.

Prince Zhi's eyes moved, he looked at Yinzhen and murmured two words, which Yihuan thought sounded like thank you.

He sent people to protect the children closely, confined all the concubines to the inner courtyard, and used the requirements for rectifying military discipline to reorganize the Prince of Zhi's Mansion, with immediate results.

Prince Zhi came to Hongyu, whose voice was hoarse from crying, and said, "I will sleep with my father today."

"Where's mom? Hongyu wants mom!"

Prince Zhi patiently explained, "Mother is tired and needs more rest. Our Hongyu should be a good boy and not wake her up, okay?"

"it is good."

The princesses in the Prince of Zhi's mansion looked sad when they heard their father coaxing their younger brother. The five siblings would be children without a mother in the future, and the youngest brother was still so ignorant. How would they live in the future?
***
The sorrows and joys of the world are always incommensurate. Just when the Prince Zhi's Mansion was in grief, the Prince Cheng's Mansion received good news.

Dong E successfully gave birth to her second legitimate son, Hong Sheng.

Hongsheng was born well-proportioned, fair and tender, weighing 8.12 pounds when he was born. Although Dong E suffered a lot when giving birth to him, she recovered well. As long as she saw her healthy son, she was filled with joy.

During the third-day bathing ceremony, Yihuan came to visit with the eldest princess and Honghui.

Honghui and Dong E's eldest son Hongqing gathered together and looked down at the fat baby who was still sleeping: "Why is he so small?"

The eldest princess was a little older after all. She said softly, "All children are like this when they are born. Brother Honghui was not even as old as him at the beginning."

Honghui stretched out his hand to measure the size, and his chubby face wrinkled, which looked very funny.

Hongqing is a little monkey who only wants to play: "When can my brother play with me?"

Yihuan took out a handkerchief and wiped Hongqing's little face: "He is still young. When he is as tall as the flower pot, he can play with Hongqing."

Hongqing looked at the most beautiful flower in his mother's place and thought for a long time with his mouth wide open. It would take a very long time.

The two boys couldn't sit still. After watching their younger brother sleep for a while, they ran out hand in hand.