A Crossover of Film and Television: Miao Miao's Life Transmigration

Chapter 270 Fang Nanxi's Transmigration to the Qing Dynasty 24

The Fourth Prince has been troubled lately. The political situation in the court is turbulent and unpredictable, with constant infighting. At this critical juncture, if news of unrest in the Yong Prince's residence were to spread, he would surely be impeached by the censor and accused of mismanaging his household.

He had already decided to get rid of An Gege and Zhang Gege, but to avoid being accused of being heartless and ungrateful, he planned to endure it for half a year before taking further action.

The little princess left behind by Yigege, without her birth mother's care, would inevitably suffer neglect if she were raised solely by her wet nurse.

Both Song Gege and Wu Gege vied to raise the little princess, but the Fourth Prince favored Song Gege more. After all, Song Gege had known him for many years and had given birth to two little princesses for him, although both of them unfortunately died young, but that bond remained.

Five days later, the Fourth Prince made his decision, entrusting Song Gege with raising the young princess. Upon learning the news, Wu Gege was furious and smashed many porcelain pieces in Qingfeng Garden to vent her anger.

Time flies, and it was the fifteenth day of the eighth month of the fiftieth year of Kangxi's reign. Fang Nanxi brought the twins into the palace, while the Fourth Prince Hongxu accompanied the Fourth Prince.

Previously, Consort De had repeatedly requested that the Prince's wife bring the twins to the palace, but the Fourth Prince had always evaded the request with various excuses. In the Fourth Prince's household, infant deaths were common, and since the twins were premature, their constitutions were weaker than those of singletons at birth.

The Fourth Prince was filled with worry, after all, these were the first set of twins in the imperial family since the founding of the Qing Dynasty, and their untimely death would be an ominous sign for the Qing Dynasty. Fortunately, Consort De was understanding and knew the importance of the twins, and after mentioning it once, she did not insist on it again.

This year, the twins turned three years old (by the traditional Chinese age reckoning) and were visibly healthy. When Consort De brought it up again, the Fourth Prince couldn't refuse any longer, so Fang Nanxi had no choice but to bring the twins into the palace.

"Come here quickly, let Grandma take a look." When Consort De saw the lively and adorable twins, it was as if she had seen the celestial children under the seat of Guanyin Bodhisattva, and her face immediately lit up with a smile.

Hongchen, being bold, ran straight to Consort De with his short legs. Hongxi followed closely behind his brother, tilting his rosy little face up and calling out in a clear voice, "Grandma, Grandma!"

Consort De gently stroked the two children's heads, her face full of affection, and said, "So good." Hongxi and Hongchen stayed obediently by Consort De's side.

This year, Consort De's attitude towards the Fourth Prince's wife and Fang Nanxi has improved significantly, but she still doesn't treat Lady Nian well. Lady Nian is deeply favored by the Fourth Prince, but she has been unable to conceive, which greatly displeases Consort De.

When the Fourth Prince and the Fourteenth Prince arrived at Yonghe Palace, they saw Consort De chatting with Hongxi and Hongchen, their voices carrying a touch of childlike innocence. Upon seeing this scene, the Fourth Prince's tense expression relaxed considerably.

"Your sons greet Mother, may Mother be blessed." The Fourth Prince and the Fourteenth Prince bowed respectfully.

"Get up. Why did you two brothers come together?" As soon as Consort De saw the Fourteenth Prince, she immediately forgot about teasing Hongchen and her eyes were full of concern.

Fang Nanxi quickly called Hongxi and Hongchen to her side. Then, Hongshi and Hongxu behind the Fourth Prince, Hongchun and Hongming behind the Fourteenth Prince, and other princes stepped forward one by one to pay their respects to Consort De.

Looking at the scene before her, Fang Nanxi thought to herself that if it weren't for her, Fourth Master would only have Hongshi as his only son.

The Fourth Prince is more than ten years older than the Fourteenth Prince, but he has far fewer children than the Fourteenth Prince. If that were the case, the Fourth Prince's wife might be criticized for not being virtuous.

Now that she has given birth to three princes for the Fourth Prince, his offspring have doubled, making him look much more respectable.

"Father is busy with other matters, so he sent us to pay our respects to Mother first," the Fourteenth Prince explained.

The group chatted with Consort De for quite a while. Consort De glanced at the sky and, feeling that it was about time, said she needed to go to Cining Palace to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager.

In the Cining Palace, Consort Tongjia, Consort Hui, Consort Yi, and other concubines were already waiting. Since the First Prince was imprisoned, Consort Hui had lived a secluded life and rarely appeared in public.

The Empress Dowager is quite old and has a particular fondness for children. When she saw the Fourth Prince's twins this year, her eyes lit up and she immediately had the children brought to her.

Hongxi and Hongchen were very clever; they immediately bowed and said in their childish voices, "Mama Uku!"

The Empress Dowager was overjoyed and instructed the nanny to prepare gifts for the two children. She also chatted with them for a while. This scene drew the attention of everyone present to Fang Nanxi.

The Empress Dowager has many great-grandchildren, and she has a deep impression of the children of the Crown Prince and the Fifth Prince. Now that she is so fond of the twins, how can Fang Nanxi not feel jealous?

A short while later, the Emperor arrived, followed by the Crown Prince. Fang Nanxi bowed to the others, secretly glancing at the Crown Prince out of the corner of her eye. She saw that the Crown Prince's steps were unsteady, and his face was haggard; clearly, he was indulging himself more and more and had no self-control.

The Emperor chatted with the Empress Dowager for a while and then played with the twins. The Empress Dowager, being elderly, grew tired after a short time. Seeing this, everyone excused themselves.

It was still early, so the Fourth Prince and the Fourteenth Prince went to serve the Emperor, while the women returned to Yonghe Palace.

An hour later, the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet officially began. Consort De led everyone into the banquet hall, with Fang Nanxi quietly following behind the Fourth Prince's wife.

Fang Nanxi spotted the Eighth Prince's wife at a glance. The Eighth Prince's wife moved among the crowd with ease and grace. For some reason, the Eighth Prince's wife always seemed to hold a hint of disdain for this concubine who had given birth to twins.

"Fourth Sister-in-law, in my opinion, we shouldn't give those concubines too much face." The Eighth Princess's gaze swept over Fang Nanxi, her words carrying a strong sense of sarcasm.

Fourth Prince's wife didn't have a good impression of Eighth Prince's wife. Eighth Prince's wife liked to interfere in the affairs of Ninth Prince's mansion. Ninth Prince's wife had argued with her about this and was scolded by Ninth Prince.

Which primary wife would like someone who meddles in other people's business? Therefore, most primary wives didn't like the Eighth Prince's wife very much.

The Fourth Princess Consort gave a few perfunctory replies and then fell silent. After chatting for a while longer, the Emperor arrived, and the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet officially began.

Fang Nanxi was filled with worry for her two children and remained constantly vigilant about those around her. After all, many people were eyeing the twins covetously. Only after the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet ended and she returned to Shaoguang Courtyard did Fang Nanxi finally feel completely at ease.

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, Princess Niohuru gave birth prematurely, just nine months into her pregnancy. She suffered greatly during those months. Although the imperial physicians prescribed medicine to help her recover, it couldn't compare to the remedies sent from Princess Geng's family.

Fang Nanxi went to Yunxue Courtyard to visit her. When the Fujin saw that everyone had arrived, she said a few words and then told everyone to go back first, since Princess Niohuru's delivery wouldn't be so quick.

After a difficult day and night of childbirth, Princess Niohuru finally gave birth to a sickly prince. The seventh prince was weak and needed medicine from birth. Moreover, Princess Niohuru's body was severely damaged due to the difficult labor, and she would never be able to have children again or serve the fourth prince.

Fourth Master went to visit the child, but seeing the sickly child, he became worried that the child would not survive like Hongpan, who had died young. So he did not pay much attention to him.

After learning the news from Xiao Linzi, Fang Nanxi couldn't help but sigh, "He's actually a sickly prince." Life is unpredictable; things are different from history. The historical Hongli was healthy, lived to be over eighty, and even became an emperor.

Upon hearing the news, Geng Gege was overjoyed and ate an extra bowl of rice. Niohuru Gege had taken her fertility-enhancing prescription but repaid kindness with enmity. Now, having given birth to a prince whose survival was uncertain, Geng Gege naturally felt a sense of satisfaction.