After the busy evening of building rabbit hutches and setting up chicken coops, which kept them occupied until dusk, Su Muyao slept in late the next day.
After washing up, she sat at the table in the outer room and looked in surprise at the bowl of soft, tender steamed egg custard Yun Mo placed before her. Sprinkled with a bit of soy sauce and chopped scallions, it looked exceptionally delicious. "Where did this come from?" she asked.
This certainly didn’t seem like the work of Shoushanfang.
Shoushanfang followed a fixed routine for meals, and their daily breakfast was always the same: plain congee, steamed buns, and pickled side dishes.
Apart from rotating a few types of congee and side dishes, there had been no variation in the past half month.
Yun Mo smiled and said, "I found this egg in the nest while feeding the pheasants earlier. I thought you’d like it, so I made it especially for you. Please have this to fill your stomach first, and I’ll go to the kitchen to fetch breakfast."
Although it was already February, the spring chill lingered. Seeing that Su Muyao hadn’t yet risen, Yun Mo worried the food would get cold, so after retrieving the meal, she kept it warm in a pot.
Now that Su Muyao was up, the timing was just right.
As a maid, Yun Mo had always been thoughtful.
What impressed Su Muyao even more was the taste of the steamed egg custard. With the first bite, it was smooth and tender, without any greasiness. Slightly salty with a rich eggy aroma, it filled her empty stomach on this early morning with its light and savory flavor.
After breakfast, Su Muyao went to the backyard to check on the pheasants.
She could roughly guess that their egg-laying was due to the bowl of water she had given them the previous night. Just a few drops of the spiritual spring had caused the pheasants to lay eggs unusually early. What if she gave them the undiluted spiritual spring water to drink?
Would they, as described in novels, gain spiritual intelligence, cultivate for a while, and even transform into human form?
Su Muyao wanted to try, but after some hesitation, she decided against it. If things became too abnormal, Yun Mo, being superstitious, might start treating these chickens as divine beings.
Moreover, if they gained intelligence, how could she bring herself to eat their meat in the future?
For her experiments, she’d better stick to plants.
While Yun Mo was busy washing the dishes, Su Muyao slipped through the moon gate and entered the side courtyard.
This side courtyard was likely built for summer retreats, as it was planted with many trees. However, having been neglected for a long time, no one tended to it. Withered branches lay scattered haphazardly on the ground, covered in moss and wood ear mushrooms.
Spring had not yet arrived, and most trees were bare. Only a row of tall pear trees planted along the southern wall, their crowns extending about half a meter above the wall, had sprouted new branches and tender leaves early due to ample sunlight.
Su Muyao carefully approached and counted eight large pear trees, all roughly the same height and planted in similar soil, making them ideal for her spiritual spring water experiment.
After selecting the trees, she worried she might forget the details, so she went back to fetch a piece of paper and a quill pen. From left to right, she labeled them: Tree A, Tree B, Tree C, Tree D, Tree E, Tree F, Tree G, and Tree H.
To ensure rigor, she prepared a controlled experiment.
Tree A: No watering;
Tree B: One ladle of well water daily;
Tree C: One ladle of well water mixed with one drop of spiritual spring water daily;
Tree D: One ladle of well water mixed with two drops of spiritual spring water daily;
…
And so on, with the concentration of spiritual spring water increasing progressively, up to Tree H: One ladle of undiluted spiritual spring water daily.
It was early February now, and by mid-February, it would be time for the pear trees to bloom.
At that time, the effectiveness of the Spirit Spring Water could be determined by observing the number and sequence of pear blossoms.
Su Muyao had originally thought she would have to wait fifteen days, but unexpectedly, overnight, the Ding and Wu trees suddenly shot up a great deal, and the entire trees were covered in white pear blossoms, extremely lush and abundant.
As for the other trees watered with Spirit Spring Water, except for the last Xin tree, they all bloomed and grew taller compared to the previous day.
Depending on the concentration of the diluted spiritual spring, the amount of blossoms and the growth height varied.
From left to right, whether in terms of the number of blossoms or the height of growth, there was a very regular pattern, showing a trapezoidal shape that first rose and then fell:
Jia tree < Yi tree < Bing tree < Ding tree = Wu tree > Ji tree > Geng tree > Xin tree
Upon seeing this, Su Muyao thought: "…"
This is way too conspicuous!
Can't a person even conduct experiments peacefully in the palace?!
But regardless, the results were in. The effect of the Spirit Spring Water was quite astonishing, but it needed to be diluted with water. If the concentration was too high, the plants couldn't withstand it, and the effect would actually diminish.
While Su Muyao was still pondering her spiritual spring, she was unaware that because of the Haidongqing that frequently flew to Qianxi Sisuo, the eunuchs at the Falconry Office had not had a peaceful night's sleep for several days.
In Su Muyao's view, that white Haidongqing was either ownerless or had not yet been assigned to anyone.
The Haidongqing at the Falconry Office were all raised for the imperial family.
There were two types: one already had an owner, and to distinguish them, a metal ring engraved with the owner's name was worn on their feet;
The other type consisted of fledglings or newly presented ones from various regions that had not yet been claimed by members of the imperial family.
Since this white Haidongqing wore no ring on its foot and came daily for free meals, Su Muyao estimated it wasn't highly valued at the Falconry Office and thus wouldn't cause her any trouble.
But this time, Su Muyao overlooked one possibility.
The absence of a foot ring might be because it didn't need one to prove its identity.
This Haidongqing was named Baturu (meaning "hero" in Manchu), and its owner was the current Emperor, Yongzheng.
Due to Baturu's exceptionally noble status, not only did it not need to wear a foot ring, but it was also allowed an hour of free flight every day after the Xu hour (7–9 PM).
In the past, Baturu would usually circle around the South Garden and return before the allotted time, occasionally bringing back some prey.
Recently, however, the Falconry Office staff noticed that Baturu often returned late, well past its free flight time, and when it did return, it no longer carried any prey.
That wasn't even the critical issue; the most alarming part was that Baturu had started eating poorly!
This ancestor was tied to their lives and livelihoods, so the Falconry Office staff dared not be negligent. They immediately summoned an eagle physician.
After an examination, it was found that Baturu's health was fine—it had just gained some weight and needed to slim down.
This could be considered a stroke of luck amidst misfortune.
However, eating less yet gaining weight—there was definitely something going on.
Initially, the Falconry Office staff thought Baturu might have hunted and eaten its fill in the South Garden, hence eating less upon return. But after inquiring with the South Garden guards, they were told that Baturu hadn't been seen there at all these past few days.
The eunuch in charge at the Falconry Office panicked. When he reported this to the higher-ups, they too grew fearful, covering up for each other and not daring to let any hint of the situation leak out.
I had originally planned to brush it off and let the matter pass, since Batu Lu wasn't gone for good anyway.
But this morning, Yongzheng met with Nian Gengyao, the Governor-General of Sichuan and Shaanxi, in Yangxin Hall to discuss military and administrative affairs in the northwest. After reporting, Nian Gengyao couldn't help but boast about a Ferghana horse he had obtained during the suppression of Zhun Ga'er.
He went on about how brave and battle-hardened the horse was, capable of traveling eight hundred li by night and a thousand li by day, no less impressive than Red Hare, the steed of Lü Bu from the Three Kingdoms era.
Listening to his enthusiastic account, Yongzheng was reminded of his own Haidongqing. No matter how remarkable a horse might be, it was still bound to the ground, unable to compare with a soaring eagle in the sky.
When it came to hunting and flight speed, his Batu Lu was unmatched among eagles.
Yongzheng then ordered the imperial kitchen to prepare the game Batu Lu had hunted over the past few days into a midday feast to entertain General Nian Gengyao.
The decree was issued, and within moments, a crowd of people knelt outside Yangxin Hall.
After Nian Gengyao left, Yongzheng inquired about the details. The supervisor of the Falconry Office knelt trembling on the ground and recounted Batu Lu's changes over the past few days. Upon hearing this, Yongzheng's face darkened, and he demanded, "Why wasn't this reported earlier?"
No one dared to answer.
Rumors had spread both inside and outside the palace: although this new emperor was young, he was ruthless, cold-blooded, and merciless. Shortly after ascending the throne, he had already dealt with several veteran ministers of the late emperor. How could servants like them not be afraid?
Their reactions spoke for themselves.
Yongzheng narrowed his eyes, snorted coldly, and stormed off with a flick of his sleeve.
In the end, everyone in the Falconry Office, from top to bottom, was punished with thirty lashes, and all supervisors had their salaries suspended for six months.
Back in the hall, Chief Eunuch Su Peisheng approached quietly and cautiously said, "Your Majesty, this servant heard from people in the palace the day before yesterday that a white shadow was seen darting toward Qianxi Sisuo. It might very well be the Haidongqing you raised."
He was at least seventy to eighty percent certain when he said this.
Without looking up, Yongzheng dipped his brush in vermilion ink and continued reviewing memorials, asking indifferently, "Who lives in Qianxi Sisuo?"
Su Peisheng replied, "The late emperor's consort, Guaerjashi Huyi."
Thinking the emperor might not know, Su Peisheng paused before adding, "In the sixty-first year of Kangxi's reign, a group of palace ladies was selected to enter the palace. Later, the others were sent to guard the imperial mausoleum. Only she, due to a severe illness, received Your Majesty's grace and was specially permitted to remain in the palace to recuperate."
At the mention of Guaerjia, Yongzheng remembered.
Recently, this was already the third time he had heard this name.
The first time was over two months ago, after the late emperor's passing. The Minister of Libu inquired about the arrangements for the consorts in the rear palace. As he had just ascended the throne and the state was unstable, he needed to implement benevolent policies to restore order in the court, so he used this matter as an example.
According to ancestral customs, consorts suffering from severe illnesses were to be moved out of the palace, even the Empress being no exception. By making an exception for Guaerjashi, a palace lady, and allowing her to remain in the palace to recuperate, he fully embodied the image of an enlightened and benevolent ruler.
But everything has its pros and cons. Because of this, he was lectured by a few self-important censors in the court for quite some time.
The second time was a few days ago, when the Hubu submitted the overdue monthly allowances and bonuses for the consorts in the rear palace. Since Guaerjashi was a palace lady of the late emperor and had no rank, neither the Hubu nor the Imperial Household Department knew how to determine her allowance, so they came specifically to ask him.
Since he had already shown mercy, he thought he might as well be merciful to the end, so he allowed them to provide for her according to the Changzai's standard.
And today marked the third time.
What deeply puzzled Yongzheng was this: wasn't Guaerjia naturally frail, afflicted with a serious illness, and confined to her sickbed? What on earth was Batulu doing flying to Qianxi Sisuo?
As the emperor, it was easy to get to the bottom of this matter—simply summon Guaerjia and ask her.
But doing so would be somewhat inappropriate. Guaerjia was a former emperor's concubine, young and never having received favor. Summoning her directly to Yangxin Hall, if discovered by those unaware of the circumstances, would inevitably lead to gossip behind closed doors.
Yongzheng set down the Vermilion Brush, pondered for a moment, and ordered, "Instruct the Qintianjian to select an auspicious day for the Taiyiyuan to conduct routine health checks for the imperial harem consorts. Remember, this time, it includes all consorts."
The Taiyiyuan had limited personnel. In the past, when they conducted monthly health checks, they only visited the palaces of consorts at the rank of Pin or above. Guaerjia, as a mere former emperor's selected maiden, naturally was not among them.
But this time, with Yongzheng's order, things were different.
Su Peisheng, who served before the emperor, could be described as the shrewdest of the shrewd. With just one sentence from the emperor, he immediately grasped the key point and hurried off to carry out the task.