novelaction Chapter 318: Trip to Shengjing
Chapter 318: Trip to Shengjing
Chapter 318: Trip to Shengjing
Shengjing is considered the birthplace of the Manchus. In 1631, Huang Taiji changed the name of the place to Shengjing, which was the capital at that time and the economic, political and cultural center. In the first year of the Shunzhi reign, Dorgon presided over the relocation of the capital from Shengjing to Beijing.
Although Shengjing is no longer the capital, there are still many old Manchus left here. What's more, the ancestral hall of the Aisin Gioro family is also here.
The emperor's visit was a grand affair, so the first stop was definitely to pay respect to the ancestors. This kind of thing was always unrelated to women in this feudal dynasty, so even though Burhe was now the empress, she was still left in the Shengjing Palace to await the emperor's return.
However, Buerhe was not idle during this period. After all, they came to Shengjing with a mission. At least it was necessary to come and comfort the old Manchus.
So at this time the men all went to the ancestral temple, and the women in the backyard came to Liudu one after another. This was the name of the original Shengjing Imperial Palace. Because the Forbidden City had been moved to Beijing, it was specially named Liudu.
At that moment, Burhe sat dignifiedly on the high throne, smiling and gazing tenderly at the ladies who had come to pay their respects. She said softly, "Ladies, please rise quickly. This is the first time I've met you all. Come, offer you a seat and serve tea!"
As soon as the words fell, everyone in the room responded in unison: "Thank you, Queen, for your grace!" After everyone had taken their seats, Buerhe gently waved to Qi'er beside him. Qi'er nodded in understanding, then turned and gestured outside the hall.
Soon, seven or eight palace maids in gorgeous attire filed in. Each of them held a delicate tray, upon which lay a series of small, exquisite boxes. They walked gracefully to the table where the ladies were sitting, carefully set down the trays, and placed the small boxes on the tabletop.
It turned out that all of this had been arranged by Buerhe in advance. The small boxes contained the exquisite jewelry she had brought from the capital. Qi'er had carefully sorted and divided these items into different grades based on each household's status and their closeness to the court.
So although the gifts each concubine received in the end were different, they were all precious things that matched her status.
When these ladies opened the small boxes in front of them, surprise immediately appeared on their faces.
Buerhe waved at Qi'er, "Since this is our first meeting, I'd like to get to know you all better. These are the pieces of jewelry I brought from the capital. They're basically the most popular styles in the south right now. They're not as grand as the ones in Shengjing, but it's nice to wear them in rotation every day to keep things interesting, right?"
The concubines all nodded in agreement. It's true that while Shengjing's jewelry was made of more refined materials, it wasn't as exquisite as the ones from the south. Especially since the designs the concubines had worn before were basically the same year after year, never as exotic as those from the south.
In addition, these were bestowed by the current Empress, which adds to the beauty of these jewels.
Seeing the love in everyone's eyes, Buerhe asked the palace servants to present the prepared cloth as well.
She pointed at the cloth and said to the concubines, "Now that the weather is warming up, the concubines need new clothes. I'm here to celebrate. These are all top-quality Shu brocades. When we leave, each of you can take two pieces home. It's a small token of appreciation from the Emperor and me."
After hearing this, the concubines quickly stood up and saluted Buerhe again: "Thank you, Your Majesty, and thank you, Your Majesty."
After Burhe called out, the atmosphere in the entire hall had reached the most harmonious state. There was no woman who didn't like exquisite jewelry and beautiful clothes. Burhe's gift touched their hearts.
It happened that it was still early, and it was impossible for Buerhe to stay in the hall with them all the time. In addition, some of the female relatives had brought their daughters here to see the world, so Buerhe ordered everyone to go directly to the garden at the back to hold a flower viewing banquet.
Although it was spring and approaching summer, the plum blossoms were in full bloom because Shengjing was located in the north. This was a good opportunity for Buerhe to take advantage of the blossoms and hold a plum blossom banquet in the garden.
At this moment, the little girls were also directly welcomed by the palace maids. Although Burhe didn't know how many of them came here because they really wanted to see the world, or were forced to come because of family reasons, she knew that some goals could not be achieved. In this case, Burhe's attitude was still very gentle when facing them.
The gifts for these little girls were even simpler. Jingyi had prepared them beforehand. Each girl got the same one, a simple and crude jade bracelet, and the color was quite uniform. They were all white jade bracelets.
According to Jingyi, they are all pure girls who have not been polluted by society. One jade bracelet for each of them is just right for them. As for the others, if there is a real need, one or two more can be added directly.
It's no wonder that Buerhe thought this suggestion was quite good. Although people are born into different classes, these girls in front of him were just a group of little girls in Buerhe's eyes. There was no need to look up to someone because of their family background.
Burhe didn't want to get involved, but the little girls' self-esteem wouldn't allow them to be surpassed, so several of them spontaneously came to Burhe, wanting to compete and win.
Although Buerhe disliked such pointless comparisons, she was a bit tired of hearing these unfamiliar concubines talk about the same old topics over and over again. Secondly, she also wanted to see what level these so-called noble ladies of Shengjing were at. If she met the right one, she wouldn't need one herself. The Ulanara family still had several nephews who were single.
Thinking of this, Buerhe nodded and agreed to their request for the competition. At the same time, he generously asked Qier to prepare a golden hairpin as a prize.
There is a butterfly spreading its wings on the golden hairpin, as if it is about to fly. The shape is exquisite and the craftsmanship is superb. It immediately catches the eyes of the ladies when it is taken out.
Buerhe smiled faintly. "This was a tribute sent from the south before coming to Shengjing. Because of its lifelike and light butterfly, I love it very much. Since several princesses want to compete today, I will use this as a prize. The winner will be worthy of this golden hairpin of mine."
As soon as Buerhe finished speaking, the ladies in the audience took out the jewelry they had brought with them to add to the charm.
"Since the Empress has taken the golden hairpin, although we don't have something as exquisite, this golden ring is what I have always worn. It is just right to add it as a lucky charm. Let each of you ladies enjoy it."
"I will give you a gold bracelet."
"I will give you a golden gourd."
......
Just like that, with just a few words, the tray in front of Qi'er was filled with a small pile of gold jewelry.
Seeing that everyone was in high spirits, Buerhe struck while the iron was hot and asked the princesses in front of him what they wanted to compete in.
One of the princesses from the Xitala clan stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, the girls in Shengjing cannot learn the literary arts of the capital. They are more interested in riding, archery, and needlework. Therefore, I dare to ask Your Majesty to allow us to compete in riding and archery."
Burhe thought about the situation in Shengjing and nodded. However, the venue required for the horse riding and archery competition was not small, and this small garden could not meet their needs. Therefore, Burhe directly called the guards to ask if there was a martial arts training ground in Liudu.
After receiving a positive answer, Bull and everyone went to the training ground.
The Manchus grew up on horseback, and Shengjing still retains rich traditional Manchu customs, so almost all the children here are good at horseback riding.
Since they were going to have a competition, they had to start with something simple. Buerhe had riding clothes prepared for the princesses who were going to compete, and also prepared the venue. He stood on the high platform and watched the competition with the other concubines.
The first round was archery. Since all the participants were women, a twenty-meter target was used. As expected of a noblewoman who had practiced archery since childhood, Xitala, who spoke first, and Yehenara and Wanyan, who followed, all hit the target perfectly at the same time, achieving equal and excellent results.
Seeing this, Buerhe nodded affirmatively and praised the concubines: "Women are as capable as men. The princesses have been well educated and have not forgotten their roots. This is the style of Manchu daughters."
The three wives were overjoyed. Although their daughters were excellent and there was no need for outsiders to tell them, with this compliment from the Empress, they would feel proud whether they were discussing marriage or going out in the future.
The first round of competition failed to determine the winner, so the second round was horseback riding. Shengjing was different from the capital, being closer to the grasslands, so riding a horse was very easy. So, once the princesses mounted their horses, their professional postures made Buerhe's eyes light up.
She had once been a skilled horseman, so seeing this, she knew that the girls before her were truly skilled riders. Sure enough, after a lap, although there were some who were ranked first, second, and third, their riding skills were actually quite good in Buerhe's opinion, at least much better than some of the Eight Banners children in the capital.
The second and third rounds have already ended, so the third round should continue as well. Buerhe also wants to see how many more surprises these ladies can give him.
The third round is horse archery. The targets will change from fixed targets at the beginning to moving targets later on, and the difficulty will increase step by step. It is not much different from the men's training.
At the beginning, the princesses were evenly matched and kept pace with each other. Gradually, some of them fell behind, and in the end, only Xitala and Yehenara were left to compete.
Until the two of them finally shot an arrow at the same time, both hitting the cabbages thrown by the guards. At this time, Yinreng suddenly cheered from outside the arena: "Well done, it is true that women are as good as men. They are all the Steel Roses of our Qing Dynasty. Well done! Rewards, huge rewards."
It was only then that Bu Erhe realized that Yin Reng and the others had returned from paying homage to their ancestors, and were now standing quietly by the side waiting for the game to end.
Buerhe smiled and led the other concubines to greet him: "I was so engrossed in watching the game just now that I didn't see the emperor coming. I pay my respects to the emperor. May the emperor be blessed with good health."
Everyone followed Burhe in greeting: "Greetings to the Emperor, may the Emperor be blessed with good health and happiness."
Yinreng stepped forward to help Buerhe up, and waved to everyone: "Haha, everyone, get up. I am in a good mood today, so I will hold a banquet in the capital. Stay here tonight and drink with me."
After saying that, he pulled Buerhe back to the stage and called the two princesses who had finally won to come forward.