NFBE Chapter 113: Another bowl of rice
Chapter 113: Another bowl of rice
Chapter 113 Another bowl of rice
When Yinzhi and Yinyou arrived, Yinzhen and Yuanzhen were counting their pieces. Yinzhen had lost half a piece in this round. Seeing his eldest and seventh brothers coming together, Yinzhen was a little curious, but he still went up to greet them: "Eldest brother, seventh brother."
Yinzhi and Yinyou also greeted him: "Fourth brother/fourth brother."
Yinzhen looked curious: "Big brother and seventh brother are here to burn incense today too? Or are they here together?"
Yinzhi and Yinyou felt a little embarrassed when they heard Yinzhen's question, but they didn't forget the purpose of their visit. "Well, we are here to burn incense too. Fourth brother, you came here early this morning? My seventh brother and I heard that you were also at Handuo Temple today, so we wanted to see you. Are you planning to stay a while?"
Yinzhen had no idea why they were here today, but he wasn't really interested in Nianhulu Gege. After learning who she was, he simply dismissed the news. He'd been coming to Handuo Temple at his usual time every month, a habit he'd maintained for years. There was no need to change his schedule for a woman he didn't even know.
However, Yinzhen answered his eldest brother's question honestly: "My younger brother left the capital at the beginning of the morning hour. I have some things to attend to at the Ministry of Internal Affairs today, so I thought I would finish this game of chess with the monk Yuanzhen and then leave. Will you leave soon, eldest brother? How about my seventh brother?"
After hearing what Yinzhen said, the two of them calculated the time. If they looked at it according to the time originally planned by Nianhulu Gege, the chance of the fourth brother meeting her was really not that high. Moreover, the fourth brother would come here on this day every month, and this had been happening for many years. It was not like he came to Handuo Temple suddenly.
Compared with the Fourth Prince, their actions are obvious to everyone.
Hearing Yinzhen's question, and thinking of the fact that Princess Nianhulu had already left today, the two of them thought about returning to Beijing with the Fourth Prince.
Yinyou: "Fourth brother, we are done here. Since you want to go back, let's go back together."
Yinzhi: "Yes, yes, yes, let's go back together. We can still make it in time for lunch."
Yinzhen raised his eyebrows and did not comment, but he did not refuse either. Anyway, he had already decided to go back, so it didn't matter whether there was one more person or one less person.
Yinzhen bowed to Yuanzhen and said, "I'm sorry to bother you, Master Yuanzhen. I'll take my leave today and discuss Buddhism with you again next month."
Yuan Zhen nodded, clasped his hands together in front of the three people, and said, "Amitabha, I respectfully send you three donors off."
Seeing this, the three brothers, along with their guards and servants, left the bamboo forest and headed towards the main gate of Hantuo Temple. Unexpectedly, when they reached the main gate, they ran into Guo Luoluo Jiayan, who was chatting and laughing with the Nianhulu Princess. Eighth Prince Yinsi was also beside them, but Yinsi kept a polite distance and did not get too close to them.
The three brothers looked at each other. Suspicion was in the eyes of Yinzhi and Yinyou. Yinzhen was also puzzled and spoke first: "Is today a big day? Why is the eighth brother here too? And that's the princess from the Guoluo family, right? The imperial decree hasn't been issued yet to grant the marriage, and they've already made an appointment to come to Hantuo Temple together?"
After hearing Yinzhen's doubts, Yinzhi and Yinyou completely dispelled their suspicions about him. It seemed that the fourth brother really didn't know the inside story. However, Yinzhi and Yinyou were worried whether Yinsi really came to burn incense or used this as an excuse to contact Nianhulu.
At this time, Zhenhuan was indeed having a very pleasant conversation with Guo Luoluo Jiayan. Apart from anything else, the main reason was that Jiayan was a big customer of Zhenhuan's shop. As long as Zhenhuan's shop added a new floral soap, it would definitely appear at Jiayan's place soon.
Princess Jiayan is not only a generous client for Zhenhuan, but also a channel for her to get to know more noble ladies. With the help of flower soap, Zhenhuan has attended no less than five banquets in the past few months, got to know many noble ladies in Beijing, and also got a general understanding of the beauties in this year's selection.
Princess Jiayan did not expect that she would meet Zhenhuan today. She was also invited by the Eighth Prince Yinsi to come to the Handuo Temple to burn incense and have fun. Because she had already been designated as the Eighth Concubine, and the Eighth Prince met Jiayan's requirements in every way, as soon as the Eighth Prince made the invitation, Princess Jiayan followed him out without saying a word.
She also knew that she was reckless at that time and rushed directly to the emperor to grant the marriage, but the opportunity was just right at that time. If she didn't act in advance, then such a good Eighth Prince might become someone else's husband. She didn't want to hear such news.
It has to be said that Princess Jiayan has not had a happy life recently, because during the Chinese New Year, Jiayan forced Buerhe to take out the canned food recipe in front of everyone. At the beginning, Prince An's mansion was very lively, with a lot of traffic and people coming and going, and it was no worse than when Prince An was alive.
Many people came to ask for a canned food recipe, and thanks to this recipe, many people became grateful to the Prince An's Mansion.
But soon there was a rumor that this secret recipe was originally presented to the emperor by the Crown Princess, and the emperor was planning to reward it to his ministers during the New Year. If the effect was good, he would use it to reward meritorious officials in the future. If anyone in the capital needed it, he would put it directly in the Imperial Hospital, and the Imperial Hospital would provide it directly according to demand.
However, because of what happened to Princess Jiayan, the Emperor was too embarrassed to keep the prescription to himself, and the Crown Princess had already given it away and there was no reason for her to take it back, so the matter was simply left unresolved.
That's what they said, but in fact everyone knew that the person who could spread gossip about the royal family was definitely not an ordinary person, and it was even possible that the emperor had ordered the gossip to be spread.
The purpose is to warn those who have contact with the Anjun Prince's Mansion. Because of this incident, the emperor is angry and has opinions about the Anjun Prince's Mansion. If they still fail to recognize the current situation and continue to be entangled with the Anjun Prince's Mansion after spreading rumors, then if something happens in the future, whether these families tied together can escape is a matter of opinion.
Those who can survive in the capital are not fools. The day after the rumor came out, many families sent back the prescriptions they got from Prince An's Mansion. As for any agreements signed privately, they were directly invalidated. In the following time, the entire family began to slowly distance themselves from Prince An's Mansion.
In a short time, the Anjun Prince's Mansion went from being crowded with guests to being deserted. Prince An was also worried. Although the Anjun Prince's Mansion was nominally his, in reality, the power was still in the hands of the old princess. It was mainly the old princess who made the decisions, and even he, a prince, could not change them.
Just like when Jiayan was desperate to marry the Eighth Prince Yinsi, they knew the emperor's hatred for their family over the years. Since the death of their father, the emperor had relaxed his vigilance, but the necessary precautions still existed. They also told the old princess this, but Jiayan only cried once and the old princess supported her wholeheartedly, and even sent someone to the palace to intercede with the empress dowager.
Because of the actions of those in power, the Anjun Mansion was becoming increasingly difficult. Princess Jiayan's life in the Anjun Mansion was no longer as comfortable as before. It wasn't that her treatment had deteriorated, but rather that all of Anjun's children, regardless of whether they were legitimate or illegitimate, were hostile to Jiayan. Even Anjun's wife, who had previously sympathized with Jiayan, now hated her to death.
Jiayan is now thinking about winning over the Eighth Prince's affections and marrying him as soon as possible. Then, as the prince's wife, other people will have to be respectful to her even if they are angry.
So now, after knowing that the Eighth Prince was interested in the business of the Niuhulu family, Jiayan was trying her best to build a good relationship with Zhenhuan. Zhenhuan had just met the Eldest Prince and the Seventh Prince, and now she also knew that her status was low and she needed a big backer. The affectionate Eighth Prince, who only had one legitimate wife, could take advantage of her at this moment.
It doesn't take too long. I just need to be able to avoid those princes by using the title of Eighth Prince before the selection.
As far as Zhenhuan knew, the Eighth Concubine Guo Luoluo was the Eighth Prince's true love, the kind who would only take one scoop from the vast sea of water. Therefore, to be able to gain the support of Guo Luoluo was to gain the Eighth Prince's protection in disguise.
One of them was intentional and the other was intentional. After several conversations, the two of them really got along like a pair of good sisters.
At this time, the Eighth Prince also saw his three brothers standing in front of him. He walked to Jia Yan Gege and whispered a few words to her. Then the three of them came over together to pay their respects to the three brothers.
Yinsi: "Big brother, fourth brother, seventh brother."
Jiayan/Zhenhuan: "Zhi Beile, Yong Beile, Seventh Prince."
Taking this opportunity, Zhenhuan secretly took a look at the future Yongzheng, now Yong Beile. He was dressed in a blue shirt embroidered with bamboo patterns and dark blue boots. He had a straight back, a thin figure, and a handsome and stylish appearance. He was one of those rare handsome men. However, perhaps because he rarely smiled, his face looked particularly serious.
Everyone else noticed Zhenhuan's gaze, especially on the fourth brother, where the gaze was a little longer. However, they had all met Zhenhuan once, and it was only the first time for the fourth brother, so it was no big deal for her to stare at him for a little longer.
Yinzhen didn't care what the others were thinking. He just wanted to go back to the Imperial Household Department as soon as possible. He had left a task before leaving in the morning and thought he had to complete it tonight.
It would not be too late to go back in the afternoon, but who knew that his brothers all happened to come over. He had no intention of contacting this special Nianhulu Gege, nor did he want to get involved in this mess. It would be better for everyone if he went back early.
Thinking of this, he said directly to the people in front of him: "I have something else to do. If Big Brother, Seventh Brother, and Eighth Brother still want to stay here, then I will go ahead."
After saying this, he nodded to the princes, and without paying any attention to the two princesses beside him, he left with a team of guards.
The remaining few looked at each other, and then the eldest prince quickly spoke: "Princess Niuhulu, do you want to go back? Do you want to go with us brothers?"
Over there were two males, the eldest and seventh princes, while over here was a thigh that she could cling to temporarily. It was obvious which side to choose, so Zhen Huan refused without hesitation: "Thank you for your kindness, Prince Zhi and the seventh prince. I will go back with Princess Jiayan later."
Knowing that there was no hope for either of them today, the eldest prince and the seventh prince did not delay and followed him back to the capital after saying goodbye.
Only the eighth prince Yinsi was left standing there, quietly watching the two princesses who were talking, with a smile on his face, and it was unclear who he was looking at specifically.
When Yinzhen rode back to the Imperial Household Department at full speed, Kangxi in the Qianqing Palace had also received all the news. Of course, Crown Prince Yinreng had already returned to the Yuqing Palace by then, so he did not see Kangxi's expression at that time.
However, before he left, he saw Wei Zhu who was out to inquire about the news. Her hurried appearance and the sweat that she didn't have time to wipe made Yinreng realize that the matter was definitely not simple. He thought that the emperor's face must be very interesting at this moment. Thinking of this, Yinreng couldn't help but add another bowl of rice.