coobybook Chapter 31 Osmanthus Sesame Glutinous Rice Balls
Chapter 31 Osmanthus Sesame Glutinous Rice Balls
Chapter 31 Osmanthus Sesame Glutinous Rice Balls
"I was too busy during the New Year holidays and was careless. I will go back and check the personnel arrangements at Yimeyuan." It was winter and there was still snow outside, but Huang Guiquan was sweating profusely.
The pressure from Concubine Hua was too great. Even though she was a distant relative of the Nian family, she still felt scared unconsciously when she saw Concubine Hua.
If such a restless palace maid appeared under her command, and if she climbed onto the dragon bed one day and shared Concubine Hua's favor, Concubine Hua would probably skin him alive.
When Concubine Hua gets jealous, the whole palace is filled with a sour smell, and all the servants in the palace are aware of it.
"If you know what's going on, just go and do your job." Concubine Hua glanced sideways.
Huang Guiquan wanted to withdraw but did not dare to do so because the treasury was not well-off. The first Spring Festival after the emperor ascended the throne would always be a grand celebration, but Huang Guiquan could not produce any money, so he could only bravely report the matter.
When Concubine Hua heard that there was no silver, she couldn't help but roll her eyes again.
What's the point of telling yourself that you don't have silver? Can you conjure up silver yourself?
Since there is little money in the treasury, we have to live frugally. Anyway, it is impossible for me to pay more money to supplement it.
If it were in her previous life, Concubine Hua would indeed use the allowance given to her by her brother and sister-in-law to allow the emperor to have a good and dignified New Year.
But in this life, if it wasn't for the sake of saving face, she would even want to save on the holiday gifts she prepared for the empress dowager.
Neither of this black-hearted mother and son is a good person.
In the previous life, she assisted in managing the harem. She had to make her man look respectable, but at the same time, she couldn't let him feel that he was living off a concubine. Who knows how it feels?
Think about the previous life, the ministers impeached my brother for corruption and bribery, but much of this money was spent on the emperor, and the emperor never counted this in his mind.
On the other hand, these people below work diligently and conscientiously, and during the New Year, they have to make the servants happy.
When it comes to managing servants, coercion is one thing, and reward is another. If you don't live well yourself, you will be harsh on your servants.
And there was Fu Zi, who had been kept in front of the Queen for some time. She was an honest person. Although she always passed messages to the Queen, she did not leak out any important information. She just told them what Hua Fei wanted her to see and tell the Queen.
"Doing things depends on whether you put your heart into it. The emperor has been advocating frugality since he ascended the throne. Since the treasury is not well-stocked, then we should be frugal. However, this matter should be reported to the emperor first, and he will make the decision." Concubine Hua patiently replied to Huang Guiquan and let him go.
Huang Guiquan hunched over and walked backwards out of the main hall of Yikun Palace.
Even a good cook cannot cook without rice. Concubine Hua thought it would be better to report to the emperor, so as to avoid being laughed at for being too frugal at the New Year's Eve banquet and having the blame put on herself.
Having said that, Songzhi asked Zhou Ninghai to call for a sedan chair and go to the Yangxin Palace.
In her previous life, Concubine Hua attached great importance to assisting in the management of the six palaces. Assisting in the management of the six palaces was both an honor and a proof that the emperor loved her. However, in this life, Concubine Hua only felt that Yongzheng was only interested in squeezing out every bit of value from the women in the harem.
Not only did he use his concubines to keep their maternal families loyal to him in the previous dynasty, he also wanted the women in the harem to give birth to his children, and he also wanted the women in the harem to take care of the various affairs of his inner treasury, which was already not rich.
Look at Shen Meizhuang, who is diligently learning how to be a housekeeper and cherishes the emperor's favor. Her father Shen Zishan served the emperor in the previous dynasty, just like herself back then.
After Hua Fei understood all this, her love for Yongzheng faded a little.
Thinking about these things, Concubine Hua soon arrived at the Yangxin Palace.
Yongzheng was reviewing a pile of memorials sent by ministers from all over the country during the New Year. The emperor was reviewing them in a boring way. At this moment, Yongzheng was writing a big "read" on a memorial, when Xiao Xiazi came in with a hunched back and reported: "Your Majesty, Concubine Hua wants to see you."
The emperor thought of Concubine Hua's bright and charming smile, and between reviewing the memorial and the beauty, he would undoubtedly choose the latter.
Hua Fei entered the Yangxin Palace and asked Songzhi to take off her cloak. She then went forward to greet Yongzheng.
"Your Majesty, your servant is here to pay his respects." Yongzheng walked past the desk and helped Hua Fei up, holding her small hand in his own. Hua Fei's small hand was icy cold, because Hua Fei had just thrown the hand warmer to Song Zhi on purpose.
"Why are your hands so cold? Is it because the servants didn't take good care of you?"
"Songzhi and the others are doing well." Concubine Hua put on a bright smile, warming Yongzheng's tired heart.
"Your Majesty, Doctor Jiang said that the Queen has been a little weak since her miscarriage in the palace. She also suffered from a headache some time ago and has not yet fully recovered. She has also been overworked in recent days. As a result, the Queen often has cold hands and feet in winter." Song Zhi bowed and replied carefully, her words were very eloquent.
"Stop talking too much. The emperor is busy with many things. Why bother him with such a small matter?" After Songzhi finished speaking, Concubine Hua frowned and dismissed Songzhi.
Yongzheng felt very guilty when he thought about how he had forced Concubine Hua to assist in managing the six palaces and favor Nian Gengyao in order to let him devote himself to the battle in the northwest.
"If you feel unwell, you should tell me. Songzhi is doing a great job."
Yongzheng took Concubine Hua's hand and walked towards the Luohan couch in the inner room of the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
"I am weak, I just need some rest. Your Majesty must be tired after reviewing memorials for so long, Songzhi, bring up the food box."
"I got up this morning and asked the kitchen to make some sweet-scented osmanthus sesame dumplings. I brought a bowl here for Your Majesty to try to relieve his fatigue."
Hua Fei and Song Zhi, the master and servant, cooperated well, and a bowl of hot glutinous rice balls with the fragrance of osmanthus was brought to Yongzheng by Hua Fei.
Yongzheng felt even more touched, as Shilan really cared about him.
In fact, Concubine Hua only thought that after she sent some of the osmanthus dumplings she made that morning to Xianfu Palace and Suiyuxuan, she ate a bowl herself, and there were some left. In line with the principle of not wasting, she gave them to the emperor to eat.
"Your Majesty, what are you planning to do for the New Year's Eve banquet?" Concubine Hua asked casually when she saw Yongzheng enjoying his meal.
"I have just ascended the throne, the dynasty is not stable, and the treasury is not well-off. Let's be frugal. We can just have a family dinner behind closed doors." The emperor thought the osmanthus sauce in the osmanthus dumplings was well made. It retained the fragrance of osmanthus but removed the astringent feeling of osmanthus. It was not too sweet, which suited Yongzheng's taste very well.
In fact, it was just that Concubine Hua, Concubine Jing and the others were afraid of getting fat, so they asked the kitchen to put less sugar.
"Yes, I understand." After getting the emperor's approval, Concubine Hua did not plan to stay any longer.
Just as she was about to get up and leave, Yongzheng grabbed her waist. Yongzheng pulled Hua Fei into his arms forcefully, and Hua Fei sat on Yongzheng's lap without noticing.