si-mexico Chapter 103 Peace of mind
Chapter 103 Peace of mind
Chapter 103: Calm and Peaceful
"Who ordered all the palaces to go to the Old Summer Palace to escape the summer heat?" The Queen couldn't help but speak as she flipped through the shocking figures in the account book.
"Yes, it is the order of Concubine Hua." Huang Guiquan bent over and replied in a soft voice.
Once he had made the account books and calculated the money, even his own pace towards Jingren Palace slowed down a lot.
The queen flipped through the account book, closed it casually, and pinched her temples. This time she really had a headache.
"Since it was Concubine Hua's idea, I cannot interfere with the account book. Please ask Concubine Hua to assist you."
"Replying to the Queen, I had already been to Yikun Palace before coming to Jingren Palace. Eunuch Zhou said that Concubine Hua had been busy with summer vacation in Yuanmingyuan recently and was exhausted. When I went there, Concubine Hua had not woken up yet."
Queen: ······
"In that case, then..." the queen was about to speak.
"Your Majesty, I heard that the ladies of the palaces will soon follow the emperor to the Old Summer Palace to escape the summer heat. They are already packing their luggage. When will we set off?"
Huang Guiquan couldn't help but interrupt the queen. The matter was already done. If the queen asked to leave one or two concubines to stay in the Forbidden City, the first person she would hold him, Huang Guiquan, accountable would be when she found out which concubine she left behind offended someone.
Hua Fei can execute first, but I can't report later.
When the queen heard Huang Guiquan's words, she took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and pursed her lips: "In that case, let's set off in three days."
"This year, the Emperor has extended his grace to all the sisters in the six palaces. I will follow his lead."
The money has been paid, and the benefits cannot be all taken by Concubine Hua alone. The Queen must say something nice to take the credit for herself.
Concubine Hua: Don’t even think about intercepting me!
Therefore, three days before departure, everyone in the palace was excited about setting off.
Palace maid A: "I heard that the Old Summer Palace is shaded by green willows. It's not hot even if you walk under them in the middle of the day."
Palace maid B: "Yes, I heard that there is an ice storehouse in the Old Summer Palace, which is specially designed to provide cooling water for the emperor and the ladies. This year, all the ladies in the palace went to the Old Summer Palace to escape the summer heat, and even we are lucky enough to have a look at the ice jar."
Eunuch C: "Speaking of which, we should thank Concubine Hua for making the decision. That's why we were not left behind. If it had been the same as in previous years, we wouldn't have gotten our turn."
Huichun suddenly appeared and said, "It is the Empress who manages the six palaces. What does it have to do with Concubine Hua? You should be grateful to the Empress for her kindness. You are a bunch of blind servants. If you keep gossiping, I will keep you all in the Forbidden City."
Palace Maid A, Palace Maid B, and Eunuch C immediately shut up and when they saw Huichun's cold face, they pushed and chased each other away and disappeared.
Huichun, who received the tribute oranges from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, was very angry. Just now, when she was about to pick two top-quality grapefruits, Songzhi snatched them all away with Xiaolouzi who was following her.
Now, it was clearly the Empress who approved the money with great reluctance, but all the credit was taken away by Concubine Hua.
As the head maid of Jingren Palace, of course I was angry.
Huichun went into the study room of Jingren Palace with a lot of anger and peeled oranges for the queen.
While peeling the orange, she said, "The people in Concubine Hua's palace are becoming more and more arrogant."
"Hasn't Concubine Hua always been like this? Why should you be angry?"
Today the Queen was practicing the four characters "calm and peaceful". When Huichun opened her mouth, the Queen's wrist paused.
"The Ministry of Internal Affairs originally had some top-quality pomelo, and I wanted to pick two, but Songzhi from the Yikun Palace said they were going to use the pomelo to make food for the emperor, so they took all of them away."
"What's wrong with letting her take care of such a small matter?" The queen wrote down the word "平".
"That's fine. The money for the whole palace to go to the Old Summer Palace for summer vacation was obviously allocated by your Majesty. But the people in the palace are grateful for Concubine Hua's kindness. Concubine Hua just said a few words. This money is not a favor that your Majesty saved by working hard to manage the accounts."
Jianqiu had no time to stop her, Huichun had already spilled the beans out. Before Huichun finished her words, the Queen's "和" (harmony) had been written crookedly.
Queen: From now on, Huichun cannot be allowed to come in and serve you when you practice calligraphy.
Three days later, the summer sun was more dazzling and hotter than the spring sun, and the heat was already rising above the Forbidden City.
The servants from each palace helped their masters onto the carriage, while they followed behind with things in their hands.
It doesn’t matter if it’s a little hot now, it will be cooler when we get to the Old Summer Palace.
This was Linglong's first time to go out of the palace to the Old Summer Palace. She was particularly excited since she heard that she was going out with the Emperor.
This morning, she didn't need the wet nurse to wake her up. She just jumped out of bed and let the palace maid dress her up and get ready to go out.
During breakfast, every time she took a sip of soy milk, Linglong would look up and ask Xin Changzai: "Mother, when are we leaving?"
During the breakfast, Xin Changzai said twenty-eight times: "We can set off after you finish breakfast."
Xin Changzai: I must be the most patient mother in the world.
At the gate of Changchun Palace, Concubine Qi's carriage and Concubine Hua's carriage stood together on the long street, and the smaller one at the back belonged to Concubine Xin.
Obviously, Concubine Hua's carriage was much more gorgeous than Concubine Qi's. Linglong came out holding Concubine Xin's hand and said with big eyes, "Wow, Concubine Hua's carriage is so beautiful. Mother, can we sit with Concubine Hua?"
Xin Changzai forced a slightly awkward smile, after all, Concubine Qi was standing right next to her carriage.
Concubine Qi didn't pay much attention to Linglong's words. She rolled her eyes in the direction of Concubine Hua's carriage and stepped onto it.
"What's the big deal? Whether the carriage is nice or not, it can still take you to the Old Summer Palace."
Linglong had no idea of the adults' subtle thoughts. She ran directly to Hua Fei's carriage with her short legs. Hua Fei lifted the curtain and asked Zhou Ninghai to carry Linglong directly in, and Songzhi took her over.
"Would Concubine Xin like to sit with us?" Concubine Hua asked.
Xin Changzai looked at her daughter in the carriage, then at the small carriage behind her, and bowed: "I'd better take the carriage behind. I'll trouble Concubine Hua to take care of Linglong."
After saying that, Xin Chang left in a flash. Linglong would surely chatter non-stop along the way. Wouldn't it be nice for him to hide in the carriage at the back and catch up on his sleep?
It does take half a day to get from the Forbidden City to the Old Summer Palace.
The carriage made a creaking sound as it drove along the road, and the queen listened to it as if it were the sound of silver flowing.
The queue for summer vacation is really long this time.
When the emperor got on the carriage, he saw the endless line of people and his face turned grim.
After getting in the carriage, the emperor just closed his eyes and rested without saying a word, and the queen also felt very uncomfortable in the carriage.
The emperor has been very frugal since he ascended the throne, so this summer trip was indeed a bit extravagant and wasteful.
But no matter how the Queen spoke, it was not right. If she said that it was all Concubine Hua's decision, then if this word got out, everyone in the six palaces would be grateful for Concubine Hua's kindness, and there was nothing wrong with it. Extravagance was Concubine Hua's nature, and the Emperor would not be dissatisfied with her even if he knew.
But if I admit that this was my decision, then my reputation as a virtuous queen would be greatly reduced in the emperor's eyes.
Faced with such a dilemma, the queen simply closed her eyes and pretended to be dead.
It’s only a half-day walk in total, and it will all be over after a good night’s sleep.