Plotting (Part 1)

  As soon as he came out of the Bu Ku, Wu Shu Lai promptly handed over a warm towel and said: "Master, Xi Fei Niang Niang has sent Chun Lan Gu Gu to ask if you want to go to Jing Ren Gong for dinner later."

  "Alright." Hongli responded faintly, thinking to himself if the Empress Dowager had summoned him to dine at Jingren Palace too many times lately? Seeing Fu Heng come out after adjusting his attire, he asked: "Chunhe, shall we head to the Empress Dowager's place for dinner together before returning?"

  In the past, it didn't matter when he was younger, but now that he's grown up, wouldn't it be a joke if he often ate in the rear palace? Moreover, the food in Jingren Palace isn't necessarily very delicious and the rules are strict. Fu Heng shook his head, "A new volume of 'The Complete Collection of Books and Illustrations' has just been released, I've already ordered it from Mingxin Studio, I'll go pick it up later."

  He had the chance to go to Zhen Guo Gong Fu to eat the meal his sister made, he didn't want to eat in the palace.

  It was bought as a gift for his sister.

  "Alright, I won't keep you then." Hongli envied Fu Heng's relationship with his sister. Although he had many brothers, none of them were as close and dependent on each other like Fu Heng and his sister. It was just like his own relationships with his Ama, Huang E Mama, and E Mama - they were family, but the emotions always seemed to be subtly distant.

  This is related to his growth environment, from a young age he was raised by his stepmother and taken care of mostly by wet nurses and eunuchs. At the age of four or five, he spent most of his time studying and practicing calligraphy, and as he grew older, he also learned martial arts... The time he spent in his father's arms was short, at the age of twelve he was summoned to the palace by the emperor to be educated, and after that, when his father ascended to the throne, becoming the emperor, the distance between them became even greater.

  Sometimes, he even envies Fuhui's spoiled behavior towards the Emperor, Hongdai's disrespect towards the Emperor, and even Hongshi's rebelliousness against the Emperor. They are just like ordinary fathers and sons...

  Sometimes, however, it was just sometimes. Hongli would suddenly throw away this emotion. From a young age, he clearly recognized that he was different from his other brothers. The birth mothers of the other brothers were all from the Han army flag, but only he, his mother was Manchu, and he had pure Manchu blood flowing through his body. Moreover, he was raised in front of his stepmother since childhood, making him half a legitimate son... The position of the crown prince, and even the future heir to the throne, belonged to no one else but him.

  Everyone pursues differently.

  He believed that his third brother, Hongshi, was also aware of this. However, his birth mother, Empress Qi, who had long since fallen out of favor, apparently did not understand or refused to accept it.

  Perhaps it was due to the grudges from his early years with Huang E Niang, Nian Gui Fei, and others, or perhaps it had something to do with the early deaths of several older brothers... He had also heard some vague words, but he did not want to investigate further, as that was all in the past. What could she do if she was unwilling? It didn't have the slightest impact on the overall situation.

  He just didn't expect his seemingly intelligent third brother would end up being expelled from the imperial clan by the emperor...

  Those rumors circulating outside that they are fighting for the throne, brothers turning against each other... How ridiculous is that? Is it necessary? Among the brothers, he's not the only clever one, just that everyone has different personalities. However, he's the only one who can calm down and study diligently. This alone makes him most favored by the Emperor. With the Emperor's temperament, could he possibly let his arrogant third brother or his incompetent fifth brother ascend to the throne?

  Moreover, with Hongshi's intelligence, he would not be unaware that as long as he loves the new Jueluo, the possibility of him ascending to the throne will greatly increase... And from a young age, such opportunities have not been absent. The emperor father has secretly protected him, but this protection is not so strict that there is no room for maneuver... It can be seen that his rebellious third brother does not truly want to contend either.

  Maybe it's for his mother to see.

  He secretly despised him in his heart, of course, and did not rule out the possibility that Hong Shi had inherited his mother's stupidity.

  Even his birth mother, Nian Xialing, felt the same way to Hongli. He thought that his Ama's women... were all uninteresting. Huang E Mama was quite skilled, but unfortunately, she was too dignified; Li Shi looked good when she was young, but unfortunately, she had limited literacy and not much brains; E Mama, although bearing the surname of a prominent Manchu clan, still fell short of Huang E Mama in terms of temperament, and her looks were more delicate than beautiful. Geng E Mama was robust and eloquent, but also had mediocre artistic skills. As for Consort Yu, she was quite talented and not unattractive, but unfortunately, she was always ill and loved to monopolize Ama's attention, offending all his other women... nor did she seem like an intelligent person...

  What will his future wife be like? He often thought, she must be elegant and refined, warm and gentle, good at riding and shooting, but also able to discuss poetry with him. She should also be good at managing the household and helping him keep the backyard in harmony... (Author's note: Xiao Ganzi, you're daydreaming!)

  "The son greets his mother." Hongli entered the side hall of Jingren Palace and paid respects to Empress Xiaoshengxian.

  "Get up!" Xi Fei personally got out of bed and helped him up, her well-maintained face rippling with faint joy. "Are you tired? Chun Lan came back and said you were practicing in the fabric storehouse."

  "My son is not tired."

  "Uh-huh." Xi Fei looked at her son, who had grown a lot in the past two years, and was now slightly thin but still had a tall and slender figure. She felt happy in her heart, finally having some semblance of an adult. But thinking about what she would say later, her feelings became complicated again... This son, whom she had never truly possessed, would soon be someone else's responsibility to care for... From now on, his focus would shift to his wife and children.

  Concealing the faint jealousy in her heart, Xi Fei said to Qin Mama beside her: "Prepare dinner." Qin Mama went off to prepare, and she smiled at Hong Li, saying: "Today I've made your favorite dishes - swallow's nest stir-fried with chicken shreds and braised pork belly in soy sauce."

  "That's great, my son was just thinking of eating this." Hongli responded happily, and Xi Fei smiled even more when she heard him say that.

  At this time, Qin Mama led the people to bring in various dishes, among which there were seven or eight meat dishes that Hongli loved to eat. There were also garlic eggplant and pickled cucumber, as well as several rare green vegetables that were hard to find in autumn and winter. Xi Fei personally served him a bowl of chicken and chrysanthemum congee, saying: "Try some, this was specially made by your mother's orders, to warm up your stomach first."

  "Thank you, Mother." Hongli smiled and narrowed his eyes, his birth mother's concern made him very obedient.

  It was probably because he had practiced Bu Ku with Fu Heng for a good while in the afternoon that Hong Li felt hungrier than usual, and the food tasted especially delicious. However, he was a man of self-control, so when he was about 80 or 90 percent full, he put down his chopsticks.

  The Empress and Emperor sat back on the couch, holding the milk tea brought by the palace staff, savoring the rich aroma without hurrying to drink.

  "Hong Li, after the New Year's Palace will begin to prepare for the triennial selection of concubines. Your imperial mother's intention is to give you and Hong Xiao the title of Fu Jin in this selection. What are your thoughts on this?"

  Hongli paused for a moment, "I believe that the Emperor will not treat his son unfairly. Mother, when you arrive, please help to take a look and see if he is being filial or not."

  Xi Fei couldn't help but burst out laughing: "Selecting a daughter-in-law, isn't that about looking at her family background, talent, appearance, and character? How can you tell if she's filial or not in just a short while?"

  "How can you not see? Whose daughter is not raised at home, they are no different from sons... Whether they are close to their parents and have a good relationship with their siblings can also be found out. Hongli said, "Sons don't have any other requirements, just thinking that in the future when the son is not by his mother's side, she can replace him in being filial to his elders... That's all he wants." As for other requirements... If someone can point them out to him, it means they have passed the emperor's standards, how could they be any worse?! On this point, he was still very confident.

  Xi Fei was coaxed into a smile by his few words, and after a long while, she took a sip of milk tea and said: "The other day, I heard Zhuang's wife praising a girl, saying it was Ma Qi's niece...I asked your uncle to ask around, and without saying anything else, just the fact that her father Li Rongbao had such energy in giving birth to sons made me feel good." She wasn't interested in those poems or lyrics.

  Li Rongbao? Isn't that Fu Heng's Ama? Hongli was stunned, and immediately, the appearance of Fucha Yunzhu, whom he had seen from afar, emerged in his mind. "Isn't that Chunhe's sister?"

  "Spring and? Oh, that delightful companion of yours?" Xi Fei paused, "Actually, it's his sister?"

  "Hmm, he's very close to his sister. He used to mention it in front of his son a few times before, but hasn't brought it up for the past two years... His older brothers are all quite good, and some of them still serve as imperial guards."

  Fu Cha's family is not bad, the children all look promising. However, recently, Ma Wu, the inner attendant minister, passed away, and Ma Qi has also grown old. Li Rongbao looks fine, but after all, he only holds a idle position... Xi Fei thought to herself that this matter still needs further consideration. Fortunately, in this generation of the Ula Nara family, there is no suitable woman participating in the selection.

  The topic was temporarily shelved.