Chapter 133
The princes, including Cheng Qian, were undergoing smallpox inoculation, and no outsiders were allowed in.
Not even their mothers could visit, despite their concern. The Imperial Physician said it was to prevent people coming and going, bringing in harmful influences, and disturbing the patients' rest.
So, this morning at the Cining Palace, the concubines came to pay their respects.
From the Empress Dowager to the Empress, almost everyone had visible dark circles under their eyes.
Today was the second day of the inoculation.
Everyone was a bit worried.
"You're the bravest, Concubine Liu. Cheng Qian takes after you," the Empress Dowager, who hadn't slept well last night, glanced at Concubine Liu and noticed that among the group, she seemed the most at ease.
Concubine Liu looked much the same as before, her skin radiant and her eyes bright. She clearly hadn't lost sleep over worry.
"I couldn't help myself last night. I sent someone to Qianxi No.5 Residence to inquire several times, oh dear," the Empress Dowager fretted over her grandsons' inoculation. "The Empress did too, right?"
As she spoke, the Empress Dowager glanced at the Empress beside her, noticing her dispirited demeanor. Her face was heavily powdered to conceal her pallor, and her eyes were filled with anxiety.
"Think about it, both myself and you, Empress, should learn from Concubine Liu," the Empress Dowager sighed. "A mother must be strong. We need to stay calm in front of the children."
Empress Tong seemed on the verge of speaking but held back.
Consort Li, who also hadn't slept all night worrying about the Fourth Prince, looked equally troubled.
How could they stay calm?
It was smallpox, after all.
The Imperial Physicians had only briefly tested it on the young eunuchs before using it on their sons.
Who knew if there might be unforeseen consequences?
"When the Former Emperor was alive, he always said, if we adults look like we're worried sick, how will the children feel?" The Empress Dowager, seeing Concubine Liu's composure, felt she had the Former Emperor's spirit.
"Even during times of war, the Former Emperor kept his joys and worries from showing on his face. Back then, the Emperor, still a Crown Prince, continued his studies undisturbed," the Empress Dowager looked at Concubine Liu with admiration.
"Concubine Liu, your calmness has rubbed off on Cheng Qian. He doesn't seem to fear the inoculation. Yesterday, I noticed he was the bravest of all. Well done," the Empress Dowager had been observing each grandson's reaction.
This comment made the Empress and Consort Li restless.
"Children are naturally bold. Our anxiety can easily affect them," the Empress Dowager also noticed that her eldest grandson wasn't easily frightened.
Smallpox was terrifying.
But a ruler of a nation might face even more, like the assassination attempt by the remnants of the Earth and Moon Sect from the previous dynasty.
Threats from neighboring countries, internal strife in Jing Country, natural disasters...
As she spoke, the Empress Dowager had her maid reward Concubine Liu, "Once this smallpox matter is over, we should hold your investiture ceremony as a consort."
"It's all the Emperor's fault, doing this and that, never giving the Ministry of Rites time."
As Concubine Liu was thinking of how to respond, the Empress Dowager affectionately took her hand, "I'm a mother too. I know there's no mother who doesn't care for her child. You must rely on forbearance, keeping your concerns and worries hidden in your heart."
Concubine Liu opened her mouth.
Before she could speak, her precious little princess, Xiao Chuchu, burst into laughter in her wet nurse's arms.
【Oh my, my brother is teaching the Sixth Prince to read, haha! The Sixth Prince's face is all puffy, he says his arm hurts and he feels awful all over. He says even the young eunuchs who got inoculated get ten days of rest...】
【The Sixth Prince refuses to read, but Jiu Xiao is eating a meat pie in front of him.】
【The Sixth Prince just jumps up with a yelp, his inoculated arm doesn't hurt anymore. It's so funny, haha!】
Xiao Chuchu, held by her wet nurse, was brought to the Cining Palace today.
But in the Cining Palace, because the Empress Dowager was worried about her grandsons, the other concubines without princes didn't dare show a smile in front of her. They all wore gloomy faces.
Xiao Chuchu found it terribly boring. She'd long since tired of listening to their worries. Just like last night before bed, bored, she used her points to watch the live broadcast from her big brother's side at Qianxi No.5 Residence.
【Hehe, the Sixth Prince can't compete with Jiu Xiao at all.】
【The meat pie's gone, he's crying now, gaga. My brother quickly sends for the kitchen to prepare more, lest his cries reach the Imperial Physicians and they think something's wrong.】
【My brother's face is so embarrassed. It's his first time making his little brother cry, he's totally at a loss~】
Xiao Chuchu's joyful thoughts were heard in real-time by Concubine Liu.
"How do you manage to stay so calm, Concubine Liu?" the Empress Dowager pondered, then asked curiously, "I heard from the matrons that you didn't send anyone to check on Cheng Qian's condition yesterday?"
This...
Under the Empress Dowager's praise, Concubine Liu's gaze flickered.
She hadn't sent anyone to inquire.
Because ever since Cheng Qian's inoculation, her daughter had... well, in celestial terms, it would be called 'live streaming' her son's and the other princes' situations to her all night.
She even knew that last night, Cheng Qian had a good appetite, eating a whole big pork meatball, and insisted on getting up to write despite Xiao Luzi's advice.
Thinking about it made Concubine Liu feel a bit guilty.
Her son was growing up. As his mother, prying into every detail of his life didn't seem quite right.
But her precious daughter's thoughts, babbling about her brother's affairs, had gone on for half the night... It was hard not to listen.
Thinking this, Concubine Liu looked modestly at the Empress Dowager, "I was indeed worried."
"But as Mother said, I thought the children might be frightened, so I didn't send anyone."
"When I was little, I didn't want to learn embroidery and even thought catching a cold or fever was a good thing because I could slack off."
The Empress Dowager was taken aback, then laughed heartily, "You were a clever little thing. Good, the princes of Jing Country should have such a mindset. Even minor ailments are no big deal."
The Empress Dowager was extremely pleased with Concubine Liu.
In her wet nurse's arms, Xiao Chuchu's attention was briefly diverted by the Empress Dowager's laughter, but she quickly refocused on the system's broadcast.
Because of the inoculation, the princes could skip their studies for ten days.
Today was the second day, and each prince was idle, either worried, afraid of death, or indulging in rest, each with their own way of eating, drinking, or playing.
Xiao Chuchu found this far more interesting than staring at the ceiling or watching the tedious concubines fawning over the Empress Dowager.
Every time she came to pay respects at the Cining Palace, she felt like a corporate employee forced into an early morning meeting with the boss.
It was all hierarchy, little familial warmth.
It wasn't as intimate as when the Empress Dowager spoke one-on-one with her mother.
Thinking this, Xiao Chuchu watched in the system's broadcast as her own brother, Cheng Qian, ignored Xiao Luzi's advice again and got up to practice calligraphy.
【Oh, my brother just can't sit still.】
Xiao Chuchu shook her head.
【But this is good. Better to find something to distract yourself than lie there worrying about this and that, fearing the virus.】
[Don't overwork yourself, I'm a little worried that my brother might get exhausted and have a weakened immune system, leading to acne or even a fever.]
Concubine Liu was smiling at The Empress Dowager, but quickly stopped when she heard her daughter's thoughts.
Indeed.
Why was Cheng Qian practicing calligraphy again?
There's no need to rush when it comes to self-improvement.
[My brother is probably just bored.]
Xiao Chuchu frowned.
She had watched the livestream overnight and in the morning, and although she had been asleep most of the time, every time she opened her eyes and looked at her brother, she realized there weren't many entertainment activities at the Qianxi No.5 Residence.
In ancient times, people would read books and practice calligraphy, and princes in the palace would at most read novels or go horseback riding.
There weren't any anime or video games.
[Huh?] Xiao Chuchu's mind wandered, and then her eyes suddenly lit up. [Oh, it would be great if we had board games!]
Concubine Liu was taken aback.
[Flying chess, jumping chess, Monopoly... Werewolf...]
Concubine Liu was momentarily stunned by her daughter's incessant rambling about the 'Monopoly game' in her thoughts!