noffsinger Chapter 248 Fang Nanxi's Transmigration to the Qing Dynasty 2
Chapter 248 Fang Nanxi's Transmigration to the Qing Dynasty 2
Chapter 248 Fang Nanxi's Time Travel in the Qing Dynasty (2)
On New Year's Eve, sunlight shone through the thin clouds and fell on the glazed tiles of the Fourth Prince's Mansion, giving off a cool glow.
Yinzhen, accompanied by his primary consort Ulanara and secondary consort Li, entered the palace for the New Year's Eve banquet.
On this day, Fang Nanxi appeared before Yinzhen's concubines for the first time.
Since she had recovered from her illness, she had not yet been able to serve the emperor, so she did not need to pay her respects to the primary consort. She also lived in seclusion in Qinglan Garden, so she had never met anyone before.
Yinzhen's harem was not large. He had his primary consort, Ulanara, his secondary consort, Li, who was quite beautiful, as well as Consort Song, Consort Wu, Consort An (fictional), and several concubines. These concubines had low status and did not need to go to the main courtyard to pay their respects on a daily basis.
Fang Nanxi dressed up carefully, wearing a pale yellow cheongsam that fit her perfectly, outlining her slender waist.
She wore her hair in a neat double bun, adorned with simple earrings and hairpins, which added to her gentle and beautiful appearance.
The primary wife arranged for Song Gege to host a banquet, aiming to allow all the princesses and concubines to celebrate New Year's Eve together.
When Fang Nanxi stepped into the banquet hall, everyone's conversation stopped abruptly, and all eyes turned to her. Having experienced so much, Fang Nanxi was naturally not intimidated.
She had a graceful figure, crescent-shaped eyebrows, and bright, star-like eyes. When she looked up, her tender and charming appearance instantly captivated everyone's attention.
In an instant, several involuntary gasps were heard from the audience.
Fang Nanxi smiled slightly. She knew that the original owner was extremely beautiful. Otherwise, she wouldn't have been envied and framed as soon as she entered the manor. It was because someone didn't want her to stand out.
Now, as Fang Nanxi, she has recovered from her illness and taken meticulous care of herself, becoming even more stunningly beautiful.
Song Gege was the first to come to her senses, a flash of amazement crossing her eyes, before she said softly, "This must be Fang Gege, whom I've never met before. Come over here and sit down."
I heard that Song Gege was Yinzhen's first woman and even gave birth to a daughter for him, but unfortunately, she could not raise her.
Two years later, in the forty-fifth year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, Song Gege would give birth to another princess for Yinzhen, but she still couldn't keep the child.
Fang Nanxi looked at Song Gege and saw that she was slender and gentle, with the appearance of a girl from a modest family, but there was an inescapable sorrow between her brows and eyes.
With just one glance, Fang Nanxi knew that Song Gege's health wasn't very good, no wonder she managed to keep her two daughters.
"Greetings, Song Gege and all the sisters." Fang Nanxi greeted Song Gege with a polite bow, and then greeted the other princesses one by one, showing impeccable manners.
After the princesses exchanged greetings, Fang Nanxi, led by Princess Song, took her seat next to Princess An. Princess Song had arranged everything very well: the princesses sat around one table, while the other five concubines sat at another.
Fang Nanxi chuckled as she watched this scene. She thought to herself, "Being a prince must be so pleasant. Look at this backyard, so many beauties!"
"I entered the manor with my sister that day, but I never expected her to be sick for so long." Wu Gege spoke first. Among the people in the backyard, she had a rather ordinary appearance, but a sturdy build.
"Sister Wu, I've been frail since childhood, but I've finally recovered. Thank you for your concern." Fang Nanxi replied calmly and gently.
"Hmph, what an unlucky person." Wu Gege's words carried a hint of sarcasm.
She thought that since there weren't many people in the Fourth Prince's mansion and Fang Nanxi was sick, she could easily win the Fourth Prince's favor.
Unexpectedly, the Fourth Prince was indifferent to her, visiting her courtyard only twice in two months, and both times were when he was favoring new concubines. In other words, the Fourth Prince never visited her again after that.
Seeing Fang Nanxi's beauty again today, he was immediately filled with anger and wanted to take the opportunity to suppress her.
Fang Nanxi remained calm, chuckled lightly, and said charmingly, "My sister is indeed not as fortunate as Sister Wu to be favored by the Fourth Master. Sister Wu will surely conceive soon."
Upon hearing this, Wu Gege's face instantly lit up with smugness. She thought Fang Nanxi was feigning weakness and admitting defeat, completely failing to detect the sarcasm in his words. After all, everyone in the courtyard knew that Wu Gege didn't actually receive much favor from the Fourth Prince.
Seeing that the atmosphere was a bit tense, Song Gege quickly smoothed things over: "Alright, today is New Year's Eve. Thanks to the kindness of the First Princess Consort, we are able to celebrate the New Year together. I'd like to toast everyone."
Although there were many dishes at this noodle feast, the food lost its heat as soon as it was served due to the cold weather.
Fang Nanxi had already eaten some snacks before arriving, so she didn't mind the cold food. Nothing else went wrong during the meal, and after everyone finished eating, they returned to their rooms to prepare for the night watch.
Fang Nanxi did not have the habit of keeping watch at night, so she asked Xingluo and Qiushuang to keep watch while she went back to her room to rest.
The next morning, Fang Nanxi heard that the Fourth Prince and his primary wife had left home before dawn.
Today is a grand day for offering sacrifices to Heaven and Earth. The Emperor will lead all the princes and ministers in the sacrifices, while the Empress Dowager and Consort Tong (the half-sister of Empress Xiaoyiren) will be busy with palace affairs with the primary wives of the princes and the wives of the ministers.
For the next ten days, the Fourth Prince and his primary wife were busy with various affairs, and things in the mansion settled into a relatively peaceful rhythm.
Fang Nanxi sat in the warm pavilion, leisurely drinking milk tea, and admiring the snow-covered scenery outside through the window.
"Phew—" Fang Nanxi breathed a sigh of relief, approached the stove, and invited Xingluo and Qiushuang to warm themselves by the fire. With nothing else to do, Fang Nanxi suddenly said, "Xingluo, let's have hot pot for lunch later."
"Yes, Princess." Xingluo replied cheerfully. Since the princess recovered from her illness, life at Qinglan Garden had been getting better and better, and her heart had become much more at ease.
When it was lunchtime, Fang Nanxi invited Xingluo and Qiushuang to eat hot pot with her.
However, due to the strict social hierarchy in the Qing Dynasty, the two dared not dine at the same table as Fang Nanxi.
Fang Nanxi had no choice but to pick up some food and let them eat at the small table next to her.
Watching the two of them enjoy their meal, Fang Nanxi felt a little regretful. She felt that eating hot pot was more enjoyable with a large and lively group of people.
That winter, Yinzhen seemed to have completely forgotten that there was a Fang Nanxi in the mansion.
Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, it was March of the forty-fourth year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign.
Since she was not required to serve the emperor in bed, Fang Nanxi still did not need to pay her respects to the primary wife and could sleep until she naturally woke up every day. After getting up, she would read books and practice calligraphy, living a leisurely and carefree life.
Fang Nanxi already had ten thousand taels of silver, which was given to her by the Fang family when she entered the manor. In addition, she also had a lot of gold and silver in her spatial storage, so she was extremely well-off and lived a comfortable and pleasant life.
In the main courtyard, the primary consort, Ulanara, frowned slightly, her face full of worry. Seeing this, Granny Gui kindly stepped forward and massaged the primary consort's temples.
"What happened to my elder brother and the others again?" the primary wife asked.
"The old man said he was out of money again this month and wanted to borrow some silver from the wife, saying he would definitely repay it in May."
Granny Gui looked at the primary wife with heartache. As the primary wife's wet nurse, she could say, without any disrespect, that she regarded the primary wife as her own daughter.
Since the old master passed away, the eldest son took over his position, and the Ulanara clan gradually declined. The eldest son was incompetent and addicted to gambling, often losing everything, and each time he needed the primary wife to help him out.
"Pay back? When have you ever really paid back?" The primary wife said sarcastically with a bitter smile.
But her elder brother and she were born of the same mother, who passed away two years ago, and she also lost Honghui last year. As a primary consort who had neither children nor favor, she could only rely on her family's influence to keep order in the inner court.
Granny Gui dared not say anything more and waited quietly. After a while, the primary wife said helplessly, "Take eight hundred taels of silver from my storeroom and send it to the Ulanara family."
"Yes," Granny Gui replied and withdrew to carry out her duties.
At this moment, Lanxin and Zhuying stepped forward to assist the primary consort in handling affairs in the Fourth Prince's residence.
After finishing her business, it was lunchtime, and Lanxin had already gone to get her meal.
The primary wife put down her pen and casually remarked, "I remember there's a concubine named Fang in the mansion who hasn't yet served the emperor?"
Zhu Ying didn't quite understand the First Princess's intentions, and replied truthfully, "Yes, Princess. She entered the mansion last August and was ill until November."
"I've heard that this Princess Fang is quite beautiful?" the primary wife continued to ask.
“We saw Princess Fang on New Year’s Eve, and she is indeed very beautiful,” Zhu Ying replied cautiously.
"Hmph, since she was chosen by Mother, it's not appropriate to keep her in the manor forever," the primary consort remarked seemingly unintentionally.
In fact, Madam Li has been far too arrogant lately. Relying on the fact that the two sons and one daughter in the household are all her children, she often challenges her authority.
If a more beautiful princess were to appear, perhaps Li's arrogance could be curbed.