amaotonovel Chapter 119 Pre-draft preparation
Chapter 119 Pre-draft preparation
Chapter 119 Pre-draft preparation
Soon after Honghui was given the name, she entered the triennial selection procession, known as the Grand Selection. Unlike the annual minor selection, the Grand Selection took place every three years and was held for women of noble birth.
Of course, there are poor and rich people. After all, in this era, many of the Eight Banners descendants have lost their fortunes. The reason why they are willing to raise their daughters is that they want to see if they can soar to the top in the general election, so that their own families can also rise to prominence.
There were many families who held this fantasy, and a few were lucky enough to be granted marriage or directly pass the two levels of the selection process and then have some families come to propose marriage. Fortunately, the Qing Dynasty's selection of concubines had a unified dress code, which was just a blue and green Manchu dress, and no jewelry was allowed on the head. Otherwise, these poor concubines might not even be able to afford the selection clothes.
And because there are no restrictions on the costumes for the last scene, there was a bustling shopping scene in Beijing some time ago.
In the Qianqing Palace, Kangxi once again brought up the topic of adding people to the Yuqing Palace. This time, Yinreng did not object. He knew that the emperor did not necessarily want to give him someone, but was using this as an excuse to plant spies in the backyard of the Yuqing Palace.
The Yuqing Palace is now controlled by Bu'erhe like an iron barrel. As long as Yinreng returns to the Yuqing Palace, Kangxi will not know what will happen next. This is unbearable for Kangxi, who has a strong desire for control, and even his satisfaction with Bu'erhe is reduced.
Regarding the possibility of someone coming in this time, Yinreng had analyzed it with Buerhe some time ago. Since he couldn't refuse, he could only accept it. Buerhe also meant the same thing. He couldn't start to make things more awkward with the emperor now. Wouldn't that be a self-defeating move?
If there is a conflict between my side and the emperor at that time, it will be obvious who will benefit next.
Seeing that Yinreng did not refuse as harshly as before, Kangxi felt relieved. However, Yinreng said "but" immediately afterwards, which made Kangxi frown again.
Yinreng said, "Father, I have no objection to bringing someone in, but this person's status cannot be high. Moreover, if he enters Yuqing Palace and I cannot touch him, I will just lock him up in the backyard and not allow him to leave."
"Why? An innocent woman entered your backyard and couldn't even leave? How can this be called grace? Isn't this simply a scam?"
Kangxi was unhappy. If you agree, just agree. Why do you have so many demands?
Yinreng replied calmly, "The Crown Princess is pregnant now, and the twins are not very old. If an honest woman came here and lived a quiet life, I wouldn't say anything. But you shouldn't have the intention to harm others, but you must be on guard against others. People's hearts are hidden. I can't favor her. Who knows what she might be thinking?"
After listening to this, Kangxi had to admit that what the prince said made sense. No matter what, there had been countless attempts over the years, but only the Crown Princess was able to enter the prince's body. In this respect, other women could not compare.
Besides, his purpose is actually to arrange for the servants to enter Yuqing Palace. As for that woman, he will choose someone of lower status and throw her in the backyard for life. I believe no one will pay attention to her.
At the Niuhulu household, Zhenhuan had already begun preparations. Nanny Zhang had already said goodbye and left home yesterday. After all, she had been a teacher and mentor to her. Before leaving, Nanny Zhang left a piece of advice: "Once you enter the palace, you have no control over everything. Please take care of yourself."
Zhenhuan listened, but she was now more thinking about climbing up and how to enter the Fourth Master's backyard more safely, so she just listened to Nanny Zhang's warning and treated it as wind blowing past her ears.
She now has the even more powerful Nanny Wu by her side. Nanny Wu used to work in the Qianqing Palace. She knows more palace secrets than Nanny Zhang and has made more friends in the palace. The most important thing is that Nanny Wu is alone, and she is willing to take care of her in her old age, so she can follow her wholeheartedly.
But it’s a bit early to talk about this now. I’ll have to wait until the audition is over to know how Aunt Wu will follow me in the future.
Mrs. Peng had already prepared everything for her daughter, including exquisite jewelry, gorgeous clothes, etc. Now the Niuhulu Mansion is no longer as tight as it was a year ago. After Zhenhuan's hard work for a year, the Niuhulu family account now has at least 100,000 taels of silver in it, not including the part that Zhenhuan secretly intercepted as a reserve.
The future of the talent show was uncertain, and no one knew whether they would have a chance to come back after entering the Forbidden City this time, so this time, Niu Hulu Ling Zhu called Zhen Huan to the study room one night in advance.
He took out a stack of banknotes and said, "I have been doing nothing all these years. Even this fourth-rank official position was only obtained thanks to Huan'er. I really have no other choice. This time you enter the palace, I can't help you at all. Here are 50,000 taels of banknotes. Count them."
Don't blame your father for not giving you more. The truth is that you still have older brothers and younger brothers. They will get married and have children in the future, and the remaining money in the account should be left for them.
Ama knows that you have saved a lot of money for the family this year, and Ama and E'niang are very grateful to you."
After saying this, Ling Zhu carried Zhen Huan on his back and began to wipe his tears with his sleeve. Zhen Huan watched silently. She knew that Ling Zhu had a father-daughter relationship with her, but it was just a small amount. Fifty thousand taels seemed like a lot, but if he followed his own ideas, it would be gone in a few years. By then, he would have no money in his hands, and everything would be just wishful thinking.
Although there is not much money in the account, the shop is still making money. Even if the business declines after I leave, I can still earn back the money in a year or two.
But there is no point in saying this now. It seems that my cheap father can only give me this much. It would be painful for him to give out more.
Let's wait and see. If I can become a concubine after entering the Fourth Master's backyard, I think my father will automatically curry favor with me. He is such a materialistic person.
Zhen Huan accepted the fifty thousand taels without counting them. She put them aside and knelt in front of Ling Zhu: "Father, I don't know when I will see you again. I hope that Father will take into account my hard work for the family over the past year and treat me well after I leave home.
And you, Ama, should take good care of yourself. If your daughter becomes successful, she will definitely not forget you."
Ling Zhu was just waiting for this sentence, and he quickly helped Zhen Huan to her feet. Over the past year, he had come to understand his eldest daughter's abilities, and he also knew that Peng was her weak spot. He had originally planned to take his concubine back from the farm after his eldest daughter left, but now it seemed that plan would have to be shelved.
Little did he know that due to his promotion, his social engagements increased over the past year, and that Peng had followed Zhenhuan's advice and bought him two beautiful concubines, which had made him so happy that he forgot about sending the concubine back to the countryside.
By now, the concubine should have already turned into a skeleton, buried somewhere by the servants. And this was Ling Zhu's order, but at the time, he was just enjoying his two new beautiful concubines, so when he heard that the concubine in the countryside was sick, he simply ignored her.
The father and daughter chatted in the study for a while. Ling Zhu basically kept telling Zhenhuan not to forget the Niuhulu family when she became successful in the future. It was the same old stuff over and over again. Zhenhuan didn't get impatient. It was the last time anyway, so she let her father rest assured. He would have something to look forward to, and he couldn't treat his mother badly.
If we say that Zhenhuan's greatest gain in this world over a year ago is not the shops outside, nor the money, nor the so-called phoenix fate, but the complete love of a mother. That was the first time Zhenhuan felt her mother's wholehearted love, a love without any impurities.
This also made Zhenhuan and Peng become as close as mother and daughter, and further strengthened her determination to climb the ladder. Because she knew that if she failed, she would be married off casually by Ling Zhu. The daughter of a fourth-rank official, not a particularly beautiful woman, would have to marry someone of lower status. Then, no one would be able to help Peng. After all, Guo Luomafa and Ekechuke in Zhenhuan's body were already dead.
Some might ask, "Don't you have an older brother and a younger brother?" After a year of observation, Zhenhuan truly saw the true nature of her so-called brothers. As the saying goes, a dragon begets a dragon, a phoenix begets a phoenix, and a mouse's son will dig holes. Her brother and brother were cut from the same cloth as Ling Zhu, and no amount of love or money could warm their inherent coldness.
This is why, despite Zhen Huan's continuous efforts to make money over the past year, she has been reluctant to let her older and younger brothers get involved in this business. She knows that if she doesn't control the business herself, she will soon be kicked out, and it will be difficult for her to save some money.
After leaving Ling Zhu's study, Zhen Huan went to her mother's main courtyard. After driving out all the servants, Zhen Huan took out two indentures from her bosom and handed them to Peng: "Mother, these are the indentures of the two concubines. You must keep them personally and tell no one, not even my brother or younger brother."
Mrs. Peng nodded and put away the two indentures in front of Zhenhuan. She understood what her daughter meant. If it weren't for her daughter's advice and help over the past year, she would have been pushed into a corner by the little goblin in the backyard.
She was in such a difficult situation at the time, but her two sons listened to their father and believed that men should not interfere in the backyard. They watched their mother and sister being bullied in the backyard. From that moment on, her heart was cold. If Zhenhuan had not woken up in time, she would have wanted to die with her daughters.
Later, the daughter woke up and changed. She drove away the little goblin in the master's backyard and locked the concubine in the yard and did not allow her to appear. She also made money. Knowing that she did not want to serve the master anymore, she spent money to buy a woman from outside to serve the master.
She remembered every single one of these things. In fact, she had long realized that this was not her daughter. Because of her cowardly personality, Huan'er was like her, and she could not have the courage to do such things. But so what? This was the only person in the world who was willing to understand her, to help her, and to satisfy her. Because of her care for her, the child had developed a deep affection for her.
She was a child who knew how to be grateful and a good child. As she got along with her, Mrs. Peng gradually fell in love with this child and was willing to give her all her motherly love.
Zhen Huan knew her mother understood everything, but she still wanted to say it again: "Mother, you can let Ama do whatever he wants in the backyard from now on. The indentures of those two women are with you, and they can't get out of the Five Fingers Mountain. As for my concubine sister, when the time comes, you can find a minor official far away and marry her off. As long as my daughter is still alive, I will never let them and their mother have the chance to bully you.
When my eldest brother gets married next year, you can hand over the management to my eldest sister-in-law and stay in your own yard or go for a walk on the farm when you have nothing to do."
After she finished speaking, she took out a land deed and said, "Mother, this is a small farm that I secretly bought for you. It's not big, only about a thousand acres. It's a bit far from our home in the suburbs of Beijing, but I asked someone to look at it. The scenery over there is nice, far away from the city, and it's quiet. If you are not happy staying in the Niuhulu Mansion, you can go and live on the farm."
Peng touched Zhenhuan's face distressedly, tears streaming down her face. "You're going to fight in that den of evil at such a young age. Mother is really worried. Why don't you find an excuse to reject the selection and come back to marry an ordinary person? That way, Mother can see you more often and know whether you are safe or not."
Zhen Huan's eyes narrowed as she shook her head with tears in her eyes. "Mother, it's too late. I'm stuck in this vortex, unable to get out. Perhaps I should have listened to you earlier and peacefully found someone to marry. But I'm unwilling to do that. I don't want to marry someone, work for him, bear children for him, and then have him bring back little goblins to destroy my family. I don't want that. Since I have to compete with other women for men, I'm going to go to the top. I'll win half my life's glory, and I'll never regret it if I lose."
When Mrs. Peng saw Zhenhuan like this, she couldn't help but hug her and cry.