At noon the next day, Zhao Chang arrived with two imperial doctors. There were ten guards accompanying him. Zhao Chang went to the palace to greet Brother Jiu and sent Kangxi a reply.
Brother Jiu was already impatient with waiting, so he immediately opened the letter and read it. Seeing that Zhao Chang was asked to go to Karaqin to visit the princess, he handed Zhao Chang the piece of paper signed by the director.
Zhao Chang was born as a eunuch from Haha Pearl, and he could read. After reading it, he couldn't tell anything from his expression. Not counting outsiders, Brother Jiu told him the reason why he sent people to Karaqin to buy food. Because the food prepared by the palace manager was less, and there were a hundred more guards coming, so there was a gap, so food was transferred from outside the customs. , It was difficult for such a large number to leave the customs, and they had to go to the Ministry of War, so they arranged for people to go to Haraqin.
Zhao Chang nodded and wrote down the matter. He knew it was interesting and did not ask who was the person who handled the trip to Haraqin. After having lunch at the palace, Zhao Chang and his party continued their journey to Haraqin.
Only then did Zhang Tingzhan and Cao Yueying find out that Princess Duanjing was ill. Cao Yueying felt that she had some idea of Brother Ninth Brother's behavior. On the surface, he looked a little arrogant and dandy, but in fact he was a considerate and benevolent person. No matter how sincere he was, the emperor would definitely like such a son.
Nowadays, the princes all have the 18th elder brother. It is not unusual for the ninth elder brother to be so attentive and rely on this to gain some dignity in front of the emperor.
Zhang Tingzhan had no choice but to praise the ninth elder brother again with Cao Yueying, saying: "Although the ninth elder is at the rear, he is friendly to his brothers and sisters, and his innocent heart is the most rare thing." Cao Yueying did not comment, but he felt that Zhang Tingzhan was as thoughtful as he was. It's simple. I'm afraid more people are like me and know the true character of Brother Ninth Prince.
Great wisdom is like foolishness, nothing more than that. It's just that there is no interest involved, and no one wants to reveal the true face of Brother Jiu.
No matter what, we will set off back to Beijing tomorrow, and everyone is a little eager. I went out on the fourth day of October, and half a month passed in the blink of an eye.
With Cao Shun and Gao Bin watching over them, all the luggage was packed for departure. It was Gao Bin and Fu Qing who still set off one day in advance to arrange things on the road.
That afternoon, the palace animals, the remaining sheep, and some hunting deer and roe deer were gathered in several stables and then all were slaughtered.
Now that the weather is starting to get cold, the slaughtered meat can be frozen directly to make it easier to carry. As for those pigs, in order to save feed, they were all killed a few days ago and they have run out of food.
For dinner, Shu Shu had sheep tripe hot pot, which was stewed with vermicelli and sheep blood.
"It's as delicious as the sheep in the canyon. The meat is tender and not smelly..." Shu Shu was satisfied with the meal and said to Brother Jiu.
Brother Jiu said: "Every winter from now on, I'll send someone here to pull two carts of sheep shells back, so I can stop and eat them slowly." Shu Shu calculated the distance in his mind and said, "It's better to ask someone to go outside. Well, three hundred and eighty miles, it's closer than here." After hearing this, Brother Jiu said: "No, I have to find a way to ask about the pasture outside the mouth. The old princes and nobles over there are all There are thirty or forty pastures in total, but our family doesn’t have any. It’s too inconvenient, and we can’t always ask my father-in-law to buy cattle and sheep from there for favors.” In fact, Dong E’s family also has a pasture outside the mouth, which is under the government. industry.
However, Qi Xi had an awkward relationship with the Duke's government in the past two years. The cattle and sheep he bought before were not bought from Dong Gong's ranch, but from Prince Kang's ranch.
Outside the entrance, the prince's ranches with different flags are all next to each other, and the ones with red flags are all in one place. The Zhenghongqi Prince Ranch has a total radius of more than 700 miles, of which Prince Kang's Mansion occupies a radius of 300 miles, Pingjun Prince's Mansion has a radius of 140 li, Duke Dong's Mansion has a radius of 120 li, and there are two other families. pasture.
These pastures are the private property of the noble princes of the Eight Banners. Shu Shu said: "Where is the prince above? Isn't there a ranch?" Brother Jiu said: "The breeding ranch is divided, and they are all in the Shangsiyuan Ranch. The eldest brother and the others officially opened the palace and divided the horses into two. , five hundred cattle, and five thousand sheep, but these are all placed in the royal pasture, and only the cattle and sheep that are born every year can be used..." When he and the tenth prince arrived, because they were not officially ennobled and opened a mansion, they There is no such thing as a herd.
Shu Shu said: "The cost of cattle and sheep is only a few hundred taels of silver a year. There is no need for me to talk about it specifically. It is my fault." The couple went off topic, and they inevitably talked about Princess Duanjing.
Brother Jiu said: "It's really too light and too serious. Khan Ama is not easy to discipline." Shu Shu couldn't help but said: "Let me tell you, it's just too much. Except for the first few princesses, the following princesses are too restrained. I can't stand up anymore. I'm going to marry Meng from a distant place. I don't know what the situation will be like." If he were still as tough as a princess from the Taizong Dynasty and kept her husband and her husband's family in good condition, then the consort would not dare to show off his forehead. The princess had no turn to be depressed even if she gave birth to a child.
Brother Jiu heard this and said, "Look, please pay more attention. Ask someone to look at the people around the sisters. If there is anyone who controls the master, kick them out." Otherwise, getting married will make people uneasy.
They were slighted and bullied, and they also lost the dignity of the court and the royal family... One night passed, and the next day everyone left the palace and returned to Beijing.
Traveling ninety miles a day, we arrived at Gubeikou and entered the customs in two days. However, as the snow continued to fall, the group rested at Miyun Palace for two days and waited until the snow stopped before continuing to set off.
As a result, it was only the fourth day of winter that we arrived in the capital. It took a full month and one day before we left the capital.
The carriages and horses entered the city before noon. When they arrived at the Prince's Mansion, Shu Shu took a deep breath.
That's enough. You can't have your cake and eat it too. When I was accompanying the retinue, I felt that I had little freedom. I listened to the arrangements of the accompanying officials and looked forward to the opportunity to travel alone.
As a result, I personally experienced this time and my hair almost fell out. There are too many things to worry about. When she saw Mrs. Bo, Shu Shu didn't want to let go.
Madam Bo frowned, touched her wrist and said, "How come you have lost weight after going out?" Shu Shu sighed and said, "It was just a small day on the way back, and I was separated by heavy snow for two days in dense clouds. I had a cough, but I didn't. Sleep well, it's not going well anyway." Now that she was home and there was nothing she couldn't say, she couldn't help but regretted: "I didn't choose a good day. If June or July passes and I can still relieve the heat, then I can It's the most comfortable time." The uncle said: "It's a beautiful thought. In the summer, in the lush vegetation, there are fewer mosquitoes? You went on an eastern tour the year before last, and you don't have a long memory?" Shu Shu didn't want to recall it.
I set off at the end of July the year before last. When I first left Beijing, the smelly eldest sister flew into the house in a hurry. When I arrived on the grassland, I changed my tent and saw the dense moths that were everywhere.
Shu Shu immediately became honest, hugged Mrs. Bo's arm and said, "It's better to be at home." Mrs. Bo urged her, "Come and freshen up quickly and take a look at Ni Guzhu. If you don't look at it, I won't be able to think of you anymore." Shu Shu said. Shu didn't waste any time, immediately freshened up and went to Ning'an Hall.
Brother Jiu also changed his clothes and came with Shu Shu. Ni Guzhu is eight months and a few days old. It seems that he likes to be active rather than quiet. He has already started to get down on all fours. Not only can he crawl, but he can also crawl very fast.
The two nannies were watching closely to prevent her from falling off the kang. Hearing the movement at the door, Ni Guzhu raised his head and looked over. His little mouth was open, and he could see the little white teeth underneath.
When Brother Jiu saw it, he was full of fatherly love. He hugged Ni Guzhu in his arms, looked at it curiously, and said: "Our big princess is really amazing. It's only been a month, and his teeth have grown." Ni Guzhu Looking at Brother Jiu, his eyes flickered.
Brother Jiu couldn't help but use his fingers to pick up Rani Guzhu's little lips and show Shu Shu his head: "Look how powerful our big brother is, how white and neat our teeth are." Shu Shu was also a little curious when he saw There were also small white spots on the upper gums, so she asked my uncle, "Ah Mou, is it also growing on the upper part of my body?" The uncle nodded and said, "Yes, half of it is sticking out. It started when it snowed heavily a few days ago. It burned for a whole day..."
"Hey!" Brother Jiu said in surprise. It turned out that Ni Guzhu bit Brother Jiu's finger.
Mrs. Bo was also startled, and hurriedly took the Nigu bead from Brother Jiu's hand, saying: "Don't bite it, be careful as your teeth will break!"
"Cackle..." Ni Guzhu saw a familiar person, his chin rested on Madam Bo's shoulder, and he smiled cheerfully.
Shu Shu wiped Brother Jiu's hands with a handkerchief and saw the marks of two millet teeth.
"It's so strong. Does it hurt?" Shu Shu asked. Brother Jiu shook his head and said, "It doesn't hurt, it's just a shock." There were so many things going on on the road, and he still had to go to the emperor to see him.
After seeing Ni Guzhu, the couple returned to the main courtyard, had a brief lunch, and Brother Jiu went to the palace.
Here at Shu Shu, there is no need to enter the palace in advance. Tomorrow is the day of greetings on the fifth day of the lunar month. Just enter the palace normally. She was leaning on the kang, holding a booklet compiled by Walnut in her hand. It was about ten carts of things she brought back this time, in three categories in total.
One type is frozen deer meat and roe deer meat. These were all hunted during the palace stay, there were too many.
Especially on the days from the 21st to the 26th, when everyone had nothing to do, they hunted the forty miles around the palace.
Then no one likes to eat meat anymore. The several kilograms of meat each person had the previous day were gone, and everyone was a little injured.
There were only six cars left, which Tuyi brought back. Also, I ordered two trucks of fish and shrimp from Miyun fishermen and brought them with me when I came back.
Then there are the vegetables from the greenhouse in Changping. After about twenty days, another crop of vegetables has arrived, and two carts have been loaded.
In this way, it would be easier to arrange. In addition to what was reserved in the palace, the rest was in the Dutong Mansion and the Prince's Mansion. Each house had two baskets of game, fish, shrimp and vegetables.
Shu Shu made a rough distribution, looked at Walnut and said: "You have to work hard for two more days, and you will enter the palace soon. Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, go to the Dutong Mansion and the Prince's Mansion, and deliver things to Master Jiu and me..." Walnut knew that this That’s grace.
Going out for a walk on weekdays is all Grandma Xing's errand. Who would let someone like this who specializes in giving gifts come back empty-handed?
At least I will be rewarded with a first-class seal. This is to give her a fat job before she leaves the house, so that she can get some reward money to build a private house.
Walnut knelt down and agreed, grateful...
