Changsheng: Peak at the Beginning

Chapter 1213 Zhen Huan Enlarged to 137

On August 23rd of the 13th year of Yongzheng's reign, Prince Bao rode to the Old Summer Palace early in the morning to ask for an audience with Jiang Xinxin. Jianqiu originally didn't want to help pass the message as she saw Jiang Xinxin hadn't gotten up yet. But when she saw Prince Bao looking exhausted and solemn, and remembered the news from the palace two days ago that Fatty Ju had fallen ill and had to stop attending court, she immediately had a bad premonition and hurriedly welcomed him in.

Jianqiu turned around and called Jiang Xinxin to wake her up. When Jiang Xinxin was still not fully awake, she leaned close to her ear and whispered anxiously, "Your Majesty, I'm afraid the emperor is dying..."

Jiang Xinxin never knew that she was grumpy when waking up. After all, she used to sleep until she woke up naturally. Now Jianqiu helped her up and said this in her ear. She could hear Jianqiu talking but had no idea what he said, and it showed on her face.

Jianqiu repeated it helplessly and advised: "My queen, it looks like Prince Bao is coming on horseback. You should wash up quickly and listen to what Prince Bao has to say."

This time Jiang Xinxin finally heard it, and calculated that this year was indeed the thirteenth year of Yongzheng's reign. She quickly threw off the quilt and was about to get out of bed. Jianqiu quickly helped her put on her shoes and put on a middle shirt for her. Other palace maids came in one after another carrying various utensils and quickly helped Jiang Xinxin to wash and dress up.

At the moment, only Jiang Xinxin and Jianqiu knew that something might go wrong, so Jianqiu simply combed Jiang Xinxin's hair and put on some jewelry for her before going out to meet Prince Bao.

When Prince Bao saw Jiang Xinxin coming out, he quickly stood up and knelt down to greet her. Jiang Xinxin called out to him, but Prince Bao did not move. He just replied, "Mother, the Emperor is not feeling well. Please go back to the palace to see him..."

Seeing that Big Fat Orange had done almost all the three things she asked in the past two years, Jiang Xinxin no longer had any desire to compete with him, so she quickly stood up and said, "Let's go, don't prepare any carriages, just prepare the horses."

Jiang Xinxin's time in the Old Summer Palace was not wasted in vain. The senior palace maids around her had already become proficient in riding and shooting, not to mention Jiang Fuhai and his apprentice Xiao Xizi who went out more often.

Jianqiu accompanied Jiang Xinxin on horseback back to the palace. Huichun walked slowly behind and packed Jiang Xinxin's luggage with Jiang Fuhai and Xiao Xizi, and then she also had to return to the palace.

The Hall of Mental Cultivation looked much smaller than the Palace of Heavenly Purity, but there were still quite a few rooms inside. If no one was there to lead the way, it would be difficult for outsiders to find out which room Big Fat Orange lived in.

Jiang Xinxin looked at Big Fat Orange lying on a bright yellow bed in a bright yellow undershirt and middle shirt. From a distance she could smell a faint fishy odor emanating from him amidst the sour herbal scent.

Big Fat Orange was much less energetic. Prince Bao stepped forward and whispered to Gao Wuyong, "Chief Steward Gao, my mother is back."

Gao Wuyong hurried forward to greet her and asked Jiang Xinxin to forgive his neglect.

Jiang Xinxin waved her hand to let Gao Wuyong get up. Seeing that Big Fat Ju had no intention of waking up, she lowered her voice and asked, "How is the emperor? I heard that the emperor was ill two days ago, but today he looks..."

Speaking of this, Gao Wuyong couldn't help shedding a few tears, "Your Majesty, the Emperor has always been diligent in handling state affairs, and now that he hasn't been to the harem for a long time, there's no one who can advise him..."

"This time the cold is coming on fiercely, and the emperor has fainted several times."

Obviously, Gao Wuyong, the person who serves Da Pangju personally, is really not optimistic about Da Pangju's physical condition.

Jiang Xinxin sighed, sat down beside Da Pangju's bed, and looked at Da Pangju's face carefully. Only then did she realize that his hair was almost completely white.

Prince Bao couldn't help but wipe his tears and speak well of Big Fat Orange: "Mother, the previous dynasty had many affairs. Recently, there was a Miao rebellion in the southwest. Burma and Vietnam are also ready to make a move. Qinghai and Junggar are actually colluding with each other. Pirate attacks on ships from the southeast coast to the South China Sea are getting more and more serious. It really keeps us busy for a moment."

The internal situation of the Qing Dynasty was still stable, but frictions in various border areas had never stopped. Even the hometown of Northeast China had fought with Russia many times. Now, he heard that the collusion between Junggar and Qinghai was supported by the Russian Cossack cavalry. Prince Bao therefore hated Russia deeply, and also hated Japan, which was behind the pirates on the southeast coast.

Jiang Xinxin took the opportunity to say, "We can put Russia aside for now. After all, they don't dare to have too direct a conflict with us now. Moreover, even if a conflict occurs, there are Junggar and Mongolian tribes in the front. The court does not need to rush to confront Russia right from the start."

"But Japan, which directly threatens the Qing Dynasty's navigation, must be taught a lesson. If possible, it would be best if Japan were destroyed and exterminated before we can rest easy."

Prince Bao also agreed with Jiang Xinxin's words. After all, Russia was only an indirect threat from land. If one wanted to solve the problem once and for all, the price to pay would be high. But as long as one did not just think about solving the problem once and for all, Russia would not be a threat at all.

But Japan is different. Its current status as an island country determines that it will not be able to do anything on land, and the island country has scarce resources. The Qing Dynasty has been training its navy for many years, and it must have achieved initial results. By then, if it can march eastward and with the cooperation of Ryukyu, it may be able to take over the entire island country.

The development of firearms in the Qing Dynasty was a little slow, but now we have automatic fire guns and the range of cannons has also been improved. They are quite useful at sea when equipped on large ships.

After talking for a while, Big Fat Orange woke up in a daze. Prince Bao, who was sitting opposite the bed, was the first to notice that Big Fat Orange had opened his eyes. He quickly went over to help Jiang Xinxin help him sit up.

Big Fat Orange looked a little weak, and even spoke with shortness of breath, "The Queen is back..."

Jiang Xinxin didn't say anything else, she just expressed her dissatisfaction and worry directly: "I heard that the emperor has been very busy recently, he doesn't sleep late at night, and has to get up before dawn in the morning. If he keeps tossing around like this, even a strong body won't be able to keep up!"

"If I remember correctly, the emperor was born prematurely. He was not well-nourished in the womb, so his body must be somewhat deficient. Even if he has taken medicine to replenish his body since he was a child, he is still very weak."

"Then I noticed that you mostly eat vegetarian food and very little meat. How can this be possible?"

Listening to Jiang Xinxin's series of words, Big Fat Orange felt much more comfortable. Even though he was being blamed, he was still happy. He even smiled at Prince Bao and said, "Look at your mother. I just said one sentence, and she has caused so many complaints."

Prince Bao had long known how to be a filial son outside of government affairs, and he also laughed and said, "Will the Emperor listen or not?"

Jiang Xinxin rolled her eyes at the father and son, gave up her seat at the head of the bed, and called to Gao Wuyong, "Go and ask the imperial physician to come in and check the emperor's pulse."

Gao Wuyong knew Jiang Xinxin's status in Da Pangju's place, so he didn't need to pretend to see Da Pangju's reaction. He just responded and walked out. After a while, he came in with two unfamiliar old men.