newbobooks Chapter 276 Fang Nanxi's Transmigration to the Qing Dynasty 30
Chapter 276 Fang Nanxi's Transmigration to the Qing Dynasty 30
Time flies. Fang Nanxi, worried about the twins, did not go to the border with the Fourth Prince, but Nian Shi went instead.
With many children in the household, the Fourth Prince visited the inner courtyard less and less. Except for the first and fifteenth of each month when he would regularly visit his wife, the birth mother of his child, he would visit her monthly. Sometimes he would have dinner there and then rest in the front courtyard. Most of the time, he would go to Lady Nian's Shuyu Courtyard.
Fang Nanxi doesn't care who Fourth Master likes; as long as she lives well and is the ultimate winner, that's all that matters.
In recent years, the former emperor has been trying to balance the power in the court between the Fourth Prince and the Fourteenth Prince. The Fourth Prince knows that he can no longer hide behind the scenes and plot against others, so he no longer hides himself.
However, in the fifty-seventh year of Kangxi's reign, the Fourteenth Prince was appointed as the General Who Pacifies the Distant Regions and went on a western expedition. At that time, there was no longer any struggle for the throne in the court, and the Fourth Prince stayed in the capital to help the emperor with his affairs.
Fang Nanxi's father has been promoted to the second rank and works in the Ministry of Works. Her third brother has been transferred to an official post outside the capital, and her eldest brother has also been promoted. She doesn't believe that this was not due to the Fourth Prince's promotion. Now, they are at a crucial stage in the struggle for the throne.
Fang Nanxi was the Fourth Prince's concubine, and was naturally an asset to him. Of course, the Fourth Prince wanted to promote his people, and the Fang family was indeed capable.
In the fifty-eighth year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, news spread that Lady Nian was pregnant. The people in the inner palace were not too surprised, after all, Lady Nian had previously given birth to the Third Princess, which had damaged her health. Now, after so many years, she should have recovered long ago.
Hongli, who lived in the backyard, was quite clever. Every time the Fourth Prince tested his studies, Hongli would try to show off in front of the twins. Hongchen, a chatterbox, had mentioned a few times that the Seventh Brother was too fake.
Fang Nanxi wouldn't care about Hongli. Although he was a winner in history, Hongli had been sick for several months every now and then, especially in winter. The Fourth Prince couldn't bear it and even exempted him from studying in the front courtyard. His body was too weak, so he was basically out of luck for the throne.
"You little rascal, since you know your seventh brother's character, then keep your distance and just be a brother in name only," Fang Nanxi said, patting Hong Chen.
"Mother, don't worry, Hongchen will definitely do it." Hongchen patted his chest and promised.
Hongxi rolled his eyes. He was truly exasperated with his younger brother. He always managed to mess things up and drag him into it. Regardless, Hongxi still liked Hongchen. They were twins, and sometimes he could tacitly know what Hongchen was thinking.
Fang Nanxi naturally wouldn't show favoritism. She patted Hongxi's head again and said with emotion, "Time flies. In the blink of an eye, you're almost ten years old, and your fourth brother is almost fourteen."
Before Fang Nanxi could even properly reflect on it, the noisy commotion of the twins broke out. A helpless smile appeared on her face. Honghan was obedient, but her younger sister Hongnuan was a typical Manchu auntie. She would get angry at the slightest thing, but thankfully Hongnuan listened to her. It was just a pity that the Fourth Prince spoiled her too much.
"Mother, come and tell me about my little sister." Honghan came running over with her short legs.
Upon seeing that there was a lawsuit, Fang Nanxi asked with concern, "What's wrong? Why are you two arguing again?"
"Mother, let me tell you, it's Ninth Brother's fault." Hong Nuan complained directly. It turned out that Hong Han was greedy and ate her sister's sticky rice cakes today. Hong Nuan was naturally not convinced and immediately took action.
Fang Nanxi finally managed to appease the two troublemakers, but each of them was also at fault.
Hongshi and Hongxu went to the palace to study, while Hongxi and Hongchen studied in the front courtyard with the tutor found by the Fourth Prince.
In May of the 59th year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, Lady Nian gave birth to a prince. The prince was still in poor health, and the Fourth Prince was worried that the child would not survive. In addition, due to his affection for Lady Nian, he named the prince Fuyi.
However, Fu Yi was frail and died young in the sixtieth year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign. Lady Nian cried so hard she almost fainted. Before she could even grieve over Fu Yi's passing, in March, Lady Nian was diagnosed with being more than a month pregnant.
In the previous dynasty, the Fourteenth Prince's expedition made no progress. In October, the Fourteenth Prince requested a suspension of the campaign against Tsewang Arabtan (Tsewang Arabtan was a person's name, the Great Khan of the Dzungar Mongols). The emperor agreed, but the journey was too long, and it took several months to send the message.
In the sixtieth year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, the Fourth Prince seemed to have gained the Emperor's favor. He was sent by the Emperor to Shengjing to offer sacrifices at the ancestral mausoleum, and he was also tasked with reviewing the examination papers of the candidates. This winter, he even performed the Southern Suburb Sacrifice to Heaven on behalf of the Emperor.
Some of the more hesitant ministers secretly supported the Fourth Prince. The Emperor was getting old, and the Fourteenth Prince was not in the capital. If anything happened, by the time the Fourteenth Prince returned, everything would be settled.
In the backyard, nothing major happened. Lady Nian gave birth to a little prince, and the Fourth Prince named him Fu Hui.
Hongshi married Dong'e this year as his primary consort. The Fourth Prince originally wanted to ask for a primary consort for Hongxu, but Fang Nanxi said that Hongxu was only fifteen years old and still too young, so they should wait until next year.
In the sixty-first year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, his health deteriorated further. The Emperor often took Hongxu with him and entrusted the affairs of the court, both large and small, to the Fourth Prince, clearly indicating his intention to pass the throne to him.
In February, the emperor personally issued an imperial decree to bestow a marriage upon the eldest daughter of the Niohuru clan, who was to marry Hongxu. The wedding was to take place in mid-June of this year, thus bringing the Niohuru clan into the Fourth Prince's camp.
Upon receiving this news, Fang Nanxi knew that Hongxu had secured a place in the Emperor's heart, and guessed that the Fourth Prince also valued him highly.
In April, the Fourteenth Prince received news that the Emperor had fallen ill again, and quickly requested permission to return to the capital.
In June, Fang Nanxi drank tea prepared by Niohuru Siyan and learned that when the emperor bestowed a primary consort upon Hongxu, he also bestowed two princesses according to regulations. Both of these princesses were of stable character and seemed unlikely to cause trouble.
After Hongxu got married, the emperor paid more and more attention to him, and would often take him to his side to give him some pointers. Hongli, who was in the household, was jealous that Hongxu was able to receive the emperor's attention and wanted to change something, but his health was not good. Niohuru Gege had finally raised Hongli to adulthood, but Hongli fell ill due to his depression.
In late October, the emperor, knowing his time was coming to an end, suddenly issued an edict, appointing Yinzhen as crown prince and Hongxu as imperial grandson.
Yinzhi, who originally wanted to cause trouble, was completely dumbfounded. Who would have thought that his father would actually appoint another crown prince?
Yinzhi looked unwell. Today at court, the emperor directly announced that Yinzhen was the crown prince, catching them completely off guard. The fourteenth prince, Yinzhen, was already on his way back to the capital. Originally, there was still a chance to fight back.
"No, who will submit to that fourth prince? I'll go and ask Father Emperor to rescind the imperial decree," said Ninth Prince Yin Tang indignantly.
They've been at odds for years; who knows if Yinzhen will be able to tolerate them after he becomes emperor?
Yin'e (who couldn't find the radical for "礻") quickly grabbed Yin Tang and said, "Ninth Brother, calm down. Father Emperor suddenly announced in front of the ministers that he would make the Fourth Prince the Crown Prince. It's clear that he's made up his mind. If you suddenly go to Father Emperor now, he will definitely be furious."
"Then what should we do? Should I bow down to the fourth prince as emperor?" Yin Tang said indignantly.
Yinzhi comforted Yintang, saying that now that the imperial edict had been issued and the ministers knew about it, they could have manipulated things if it weren't for the edict. Now they could only wait until their father passed away and see if there would be an opportunity...