In the sixty-first year of Kangxi's reign, the emperor was seriously ill and there was crying in front of his bed.
Dark clouds were rolling in from afar, covering the already unclear sky in Changchun Garden.
"Prince Yong's fourth son Yinzhen is very like me... he will succeed to the throne..." The old and wrinkled Kangxi read out the last sentence of the edict with difficulty. Afterwards, he panted, patted the bed, and asked Prince Yong to come forward.
In addition to the imprisoned Prince of Zhi Yinzhi, Prince of Li Yinreng who was never allowed to go out for life, and the great general Wang Yinzhen who was fighting in the northwest, the rest of the princes and concubines all prostrated themselves beside the couch, some in tears, some in great grief.
Defei Uya led the other concubines to kneel behind, tears streaming down her face. She almost couldn't support her body and fainted.
After a while, heavy footsteps were heard. The seriously ill Concubine Yi, Guo Luoluo, supported the hand of a palace maid, coughed softly, wiped away her tears, and knelt upright in front of Concubine De.
Some people secretly gasped, and Prince Heng Yinqi and Ninth Prince Yinzhen turned their heads and were all shocked.
Concubine Yi's appearance still vaguely shows the beauty she had when she was young. However, due to her illness and excessive grief, she is just an ordinary old palace concubine. All her former grace is gone, and only the desolation of the world is left.
She turned a deaf ear to the crying around her and only looked up at the emperor on the couch - her lifelong support.
My heart feels empty.
Without even looking at her, he whispered a few words under his breath, giving instructions to the new emperor who was about to ascend the throne.
"If... Concubine Yi is arrogant and disrespectful, you don't have to consider my feelings..."
Prince Yong glanced at Concubine Yi who was kneeling in front of Concubine De, his eyes darkened, and he nodded in response.
Guo Luoluo was favored in her early years, arrogant and ostentatious, and overshadowed her mother. She had countless spies in the palace. Even though she was old, a lean camel was bigger than a horse...
It is very good that the emperor said this.
Concubine Yi's soul was half in her body and half in mid-air, and she heard the emperor's whisper clearly.
Grief, anger, and despair wrapped her heart tightly. The next second, time and space changed, and she saw her own end.
"By order of the Empress Dowager, the Emperor has issued an edict - to appoint Concubine Hui as Concubine Dowager Hui, Concubine Rong as Concubine Dowager Rong, and Concubine He as Concubine Dowager He..."
The only one missing was Concubine Yi.
Her fifth child was assigned an unsuccessful and unsuccessful job, and her ninth child was imprisoned and died. Before his death, he was renamed "Seth Black".
"Prince Heng, don't rush the Ministry of Rites. The emperor ordered you to take the criminal Yunlu to the clan office, remove his clan name, and punish him together with the criminal Yunsi. What do you think?"
After sending away the eunuchs sent by the palace, Prince Heng Yinqi knelt in front of her with tears streaming down his face.
"Mother, my son is useless!"
She gently stroked her eldest son's braids and murmured, "I don't blame you. It was me who couldn't persuade Xiaojiu, and he deserved this disaster."
The disaster came quickly.
When the news of Yinzhen's death came, Concubine Yi sat in Prince Heng's mansion all night. Her black hair turned gray, she vomited blood, and almost cried her eyes blind.
In the tenth year of Yongzheng's reign, Prince Heng died of illness; in the eleventh year, Concubine Yi, who had no more worries, followed.
There is no cure for her heart disease, and the former favorite concubine is no longer in her glory.
Before closing my eyes, the only thing that lingered in my mind was:
"Your Majesty, you said that you would never let Yun Xiu down in this life. Do you still remember?"
***
In early March of the twenty-second year of the Kangxi reign, late at night in the Yiku Palace.
Inside the brocade tent with crabapple blossoms and cloud patterns, Yun Xiu let out a low cry, opened her eyes, cold sweat covered her forehead, and her body trembled uncontrollably.
She pinched the quilt, then stood up in shock, her black hair falling on her chest like a waterfall.
It was a nightmare...
No, it wasn't a nightmare. The dream was too real, and it almost predicted the entire future.
It's just a dream, it's just a dream.
Could it be a sign from God
There was a flash of surprise in her eyes.
After a slight dizziness, Yun Xiu suddenly opened her eyes, her sharp brows softened, and her hands rested on her slightly bulging belly.
The almost five-month-old child seemed to understand his mother's mood. He moved his body and comforted Yunxiu, who was troubled by thoughts.
The fear and despair in the dream disappeared completely, leaving only calmness.
…
In the darkness, Yun Xiu was thinking about something with a gloomy face, and the candlesticks suddenly lit up. The palace guards heard the master's shouting and started to work in the bedroom.
The head maid Ruizhu carefully lifted the bed curtain and asked anxiously, "Madam, are you possessed by a nightmare?"
Wen Yuan brought a basin of hot water, wrung out a hot towel, and gently wiped Yunxiu's forehead, with the same worry on her face as Ruizhu.
Today was not their day to keep watch, so they dressed hastily, not even having time to tie their hair up. They sent someone to make a soothing soup while they hurried over.
The Queen is pregnant with a little prince. Although she passed the first three months safely, if she had a nightmare, who knows if something might go wrong
Not to mention that they blamed themselves, even the emperor, the empress dowager, and even the grand empress dowager would not forgive them.
"Nothing." Yun Xiu leaned on the couch, pressed his brows, and asked them in a hoarse voice, "What time is it?"
"Fourth watch." Wen Yuan answered in a low voice, wiping more carefully. "Your Majesty, please go to sleep. It's still early. I will stay with you."
"I have to pay my respects to you tomorrow, so you guys go and have some rest. It's just a dream..." Yunxiu drank some calming soup from Ruizhu's hand, then rinsed his mouth, closed his eyes and lay down again.
Seeing that Yunxiu looked calm, Ruizhu breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that she had escaped from the nightmare, tucked the quilt in for her, extinguished the candle, and quietly left the inner room.
The head madam Dong arrived just in time, her expression solemn, "Is the queen okay?"
Yun Xiu could faintly hear their hushed voices: "The Queen has fallen asleep... She is pregnant with a little prince... She is immune to all evil..."
The rustling footsteps faded away, and the hall returned to silence.
The moonlight shone through the window, dimly shining on the bed curtains. Yunxiu's peach blossom eyes were half closed, her eyelashes drooped slightly, and a few strands of black hair fell on her lips, staining them with a touch of bright color.
Brother
He is really a little prince.
The quilt was slightly bulging, Yubai's hand was placed on the upper part of her abdomen, and Yunxiu once again recalled the scene in her dream.
She was successful in her early years and was the most favored concubine in the harem. No one could compete with her. But everything came into line with reality.
She curled her lips slightly and gave a sarcastic smile.
The fifth child, Yinqi, was not given a high position, and his two unborn children, one died of imprisonment, and the other died of illness in childhood.
The crown prince was deposed, and the Concubine De, whom she disliked the most, became the empress dowager. Although her own flesh and blood was different from hers and died earlier than her, at least she had oppressed her for her entire life, and after her death she was honored and buried with the late emperor.
And what about her
Without the title of Concubine Dowager, the new emperor had to live in fear and tread on thin ice after ascending the throne. Anyone could step on her, and no one would remember that she was the favored concubine in the past.
…That’s fine.
She was stupid, and so was Xiaojiu. She was not as skilled as others in the fight for the throne, so there was nothing to blame.
It was the emperor who made her feel like she was falling into an icy cellar.
The knife that pierced her heart, dripping with blood and dealing a fatal blow, was none other than the Emperor Kangxi, who doted on her like a pearl and treated her like a treasure.
The sweet words of youth were nothing, and no matter how beautiful one's appearance was, it could not resist the invasion of time. In his later years, he married Han women one after another, and he didn't remember the vows he made before!
—"If Concubine Yi acts arrogantly and disrespectfully, you don't have to take my feelings into consideration."
Thoughts? What funny thoughts
When they liked her, they said her little temper was particularly charming; when they forgot about her, they thought she was domineering and did not give her any respect.
Her heart was tied to the emperor, she regarded him as her heaven, was considerate in every way, and fulfilled her duty as a favorite concubine. Even though she was arrogant and competed for favor with others, she knew when to stop.
Among all the concubines in the palace, how many did she really offend
She had never done anything to harm the royal heir or plot anything dirty.
He thought he had gained the emperor's true love, but in the end he got nothing and lost completely.
…
Just like a wake-up call -
She finally understood that the emperor was ruthless.
Losing your heart in the harem and putting yourself in shackles is true stupidity.
Under the bed curtains, Yun Xiu's breathing stagnated for a moment, and then he sneered.
This was the future predicted by God, so why should she continue to follow her dream
She came from a prominent Manchu family, held the position of a concubine, had a prince, and was valued by the Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager. No one dared to look down on her.
There are so many regrets in the dream waiting to be redeemed, why bother to restrain yourself, cautiously compete for favor, and fantasize about the illusory emperor's true love
It is the right thing to do if our children and grandchildren become successful and live freely.
As for men
I won’t serve you anymore!
***
Just after the hour of Mao, Yunxiu washed and dressed herself with the help of the palace maids.
She looked listless, with a faint dark tint under her eyes, but it did not detract from her bright and pretty face at all.
She has an oval face, eyebrows like distant mountains, a pair of sparkling peach blossom eyes, a straight nose, and rosy lips. Her facial features can be described as "beautiful", but there is not a single bit of enchantment.
In the harem, her appearance is unique. Over the years, only Concubine Liang Wei can compare with her.
Wei was favored by the emperor, and once she was favored, the concubines were all waiting to see Concubine Yi make a fool of herself.
Concubine Liang was a beautiful jade-like lady, not of the same category as the majestic and stunning Concubine Yi. They guessed that the Emperor was fond of Chinese studies and should prefer a woman like Concubine Liang, and Concubine Yi should tone down her arrogance.
Who would have thought that the Emperor would neglect Concubine Liang after a while, and when the Eighth Prince was born, Concubine Liang received even less attention from the Emperor.
From the selection to the imperial concubine, Yun Xiu remained in great favor, which made them hate her so much but they could do nothing about it.
At the moment, Yunxiu had her eyes half closed, without any makeup on. She looked like a sleeping crabapple in spring, less gorgeous and more plain.
Nanny Dong knew that her mistress did not sleep well last night, so she ordered the second-class palace maid Chunbai to be gentle when combing her hair so as not to disturb the queen.
"Does Your Majesty want to put on makeup?" Wen Yuan asked softly.
Normally, pregnant women cannot use powder, and the same applies to concubines in the palace.
Once pregnant, they would develop spots and become bloated... The concubines were most afraid of comparison and even more afraid of making a fool of themselves in front of the emperor, so they took great pains to have people prepare cosmetics, indigo and other things that would not harm their bodies.
Yunxiu naturally had some too. Wenyuan was an expert at mixing cosmetics, and when you opened it and smelled it, you could smell the faint scent of floral dew.
"No need. Just let them compete with each other. One more person won't make a difference." Yun Xiu said lazily.
Because of the dream, she was in a state of restlessness in the second half of the night and had trouble falling asleep. She only rested for a short while. How could she have the mind to dress up now
Wen Yuan agreed and softened her steps.
On the fifth and tenth day of every month, led by Imperial Noble Consort Tong Jia, everyone would go to the Cining Palace to pay respects. On the rest of the days, they would just go to the Chengqian Palace to pay respects to the Imperial Noble Consort.
Originally, the Imperial Concubine was six months pregnant, so she was exempted from the greetings, but today was a special occasion. The Imperial Concubine sent a message, asking them to go to Chengqian Palace for a short visit to prepare for the Emperor's birthday and discuss the arrangements for the Emperor's birthday.
With the Imperial Concubine giving such an order, who would dare to be absent
Defei, who is four months pregnant, might arrive earlier than Yunxiu.
After washing and dressing up, Yun Xiu casually pointed to a dress with a light apricot pattern, which surprised Wen Yuan and the others.
Concubine Yi only wore bright colors in the past, what happened today