Dan Qing looked up to see a young man in golden-yellow everyday attire walking over, his brow and eyes bearing a good seven or eight parts resemblance to Kangxi, a smile on his face, his bearing proper and his stride steady, even kneeling to pay his respects, he carried an air of noble refinement about him.
“No need, come look at your fourth sister.”
Kangxi’s eyes were full of fondness as he looked at his son, his tone especially affectionate. “Dan Qing, this is your second brother.”
Second brother, the legendary Crown Prince Yinreng, deposed and reinstated twice?
Only then did Dan Qing realize who this visitor was, and couldn’t help staring even more closely, her eyes wide.
History held mixed opinions of this Crown Prince, the only one formally invested in the whole of the Great Qing, some said he was accomplished in both letters and arms, others said he was arrogant and dissolute, but right now, at just ten years old, Yinreng looked no different from any other child his age. No matter how properly he carried himself, there was still the restlessness of youth in his eyes.
“I really did come to see fourth sister, but the moment I walked in, I heard Han Ama here badmouthing me. If fourth sister believed it, she’d surely think I was an idiot!”
Yinreng stood and walked to the bedside, pulling a fuzzy little creature from inside his robe and dangling it in front of Dan Qing. “Fourth sister, look, do you like it?”
“A rabbit!”
Dan Qing was astonished, her Crown Prince brother looked so dignified, and yet he’d been carrying a rabbit tucked inside his robe, a live one, no less!
Kangxi frowned. “Did you steal this from the imperial kitchens again?”
Yinreng protested, “Of course not! This is the offspring of a pair of rabbits I caught myself the last time we went hunting, this one’s the best-looking of the litter, and I picked it out specially to give to fourth sister to play with.”
As he spoke, he placed the little rabbit into Dan Qing’s arms.
The warm, fuzzy little creature was truly an irresistible temptation for any human, and Dan Qing found herself instinctively cradling it in her hands, gently stroking it.
“Thank you, second brother!”
Dan Qing chose an address she felt was rather affectionate.
In the decades to come, before Kangxi deposed Yinreng, he would remain the single most honored figure in the entire Forbidden City, it could never hurt to be on close terms with him.
Yinreng was quite pleased with this form of address from Dan Qing, and sat down at the bedside, speaking softly to tell her all about how “heroically” he’d managed to capture that pair of rabbits, and how carefully he’d looked after them until they safely gave birth to this litter of little ones.
Kangxi didn’t interrupt the two siblings’ conversation, getting up and returning to sit beside the Grand Empress Dowager, laughing, “Just look at him, Grandmother, killing wolves and hunting tigers doesn’t make him proud, but he just has to show off about those two rabbits.”
Hearing this, Yinreng protested, “Han Ama, how can you talk about wolves and tigers in front of fourth sister, aren’t you afraid of scaring her?”
Kangxi clicked his tongue. “You think she’d be afraid of tigers and wolves? Do you know what she asked us yesterday when she went to find us in the Imperial Garden? She asked us whether, once she grows up, we’re going to send her to the grasslands to feed wolves!”
Yinreng’s eyes went wide at once, and even the Grand Empress Dowager looked somewhat surprised.
“We asked her if she even knew what feeding wolves meant, guess what she said?”
Kangxi couldn’t help laughing. “She said it’s just like feeding a cat, give it a little food and drink, and it’ll listen to her.”
Yinreng hadn’t quite grasped what Kangxi was getting at yet, but the Grand Empress Dowager laughed and shook her head. “Crude as the words are, the reasoning isn’t wrong.”
“Just giving it food and drink isn’t enough,”
Yinreng said to Dan Qing. “You have to first let it know hunger, and only then will it understand you’re its master, and truly listen to you.”
Dan Qing thought it over, then shook her head. “I don’t want to be its master.”
Yinreng was puzzled. “Then what are you feeding it for?”
Dan Qing’s big eyes shone bright, and she raised a little arm high, declaring loudly, “I want to be the Wolf King!”
Kangxi: …snort.
The Grand Empress Dowager: …
Yinreng: “…Wow, fourth sister is really something!”
…
That such a sweet, soft little princess would set her ambitions on becoming the Wolf King made Kangxi keenly aware that the matter of educating the princesses needed serious attention.
So that very evening he went to Consort Rong’s Qixiang Palace, intending to see how the Second Princess, whom he hadn’t seen in a long while, was getting on.
Consort Rong was one of the earliest to have served Kangxi, and had once borne him several children, though only the Second Princess and the Third Prince had survived.
She was two years older than Kangxi, and had long since given up any inclination to compete with the younger consorts for favor. Ever since the Third Prince moved to Nansansuo, all her thoughts had turned entirely to her daughter, hearing that Kangxi wanted to examine the Second Princess’s studies, she wasn’t the least bit flustered.
The Second Princess, a year older than Yinreng, had already grown into the appearance of a young lady, her manner extremely proper and dignified, and she formally presented Kangxi with a handkerchief she had just finished embroidering a few days before.
Embroidered on the handkerchief was a peony design, the needlework was somewhat lacking, but still passable enough to be shown.
Only, after looking it over, Kangxi’s brow furrowed tight.
“Is this what you’ve been studying all this time?”
Kangxi asked. “Besides embroidery, what else do you know?”
The Second Princess answered with some restraint, “I’ve also been learning bookkeeping from Mother, but I’m not very skilled at it yet.”
Kangxi asked further, “What about reading and writing?”
The Second Princess shook her head, puzzled. “Isn’t reading and writing only something the princes need to learn?”
Kangxi took a deep breath, forcing himself not to lose his temper in front of his daughter, and only told her to go rest.
Once the Second Princess had left, Kangxi smashed his teacup on the ground.
Consort Rong immediately knelt to beg forgiveness.
“We are occupied with affairs of state and inevitably cannot attend to the princesses closely, we thought having their own mothers raise them would surely be more than adequate, but what exactly have you been teaching her?”
Kangxi said angrily. “Is our daughter meant to become an embroiderer?!”
Consort Rong kowtowed. “Your Majesty, this concubine only hopes she’ll live a long life! How could this concubine not know that she could be taught to read and understand reason, but she is meant to marry into Mongolia in the future, and if she understands too much, how could she ever resign herself to it and live on!”
Kangxi froze.
Consort Rong wept. “If she could stay by this concubine’s side for her whole life, this concubine would certainly have her well-read and well-mannered, skilled at riding and archery, the most carefree little princess in this world, but this concubine cannot keep her! Your Majesty, if she is fated to sacrifice her whole life for the sake of the state, then let her understand nothing at all, that way she can live longer.”
The anger in Kangxi’s heart vanished at once, leaving only heartache and helplessness in its place.
He reached out and helped Consort Rong up, having her sit beside him, and sighed. “How could we not wish for our princesses to all live freely and unrestrained, but they were born into the imperial house, and with that comes a duty they cannot escape, one that must serve the stability of the Great Qing.”
“This concubine is not unreasonable, and understands that as a princess, she has her own fate to bear, but Your Majesty, this concubine only wishes to secure a measure of peace and safety for her,”
Consort Rong looked at Kangxi earnestly. “Your Majesty once told this concubine that you meant to marry the princess into the Barin tribe, the Grand Princess Gulun Shuhui is her own great-grandaunt by marriage, and it would only be right for the princess to attend to her once she marries there.”
Grand Princess Gulun Shuhui was the Grand Empress Dowager’s own birth daughter, married into the Borjigin clan of the Barin tribe of Mongolia, her son had already been made a prince, and had several grandsons of his own by now.
When the Second Princess was born in the twelfth year of Kangxi, Grand Princess Shuhui had once returned to the capital to visit the Grand Empress Dowager, and at the time had mentioned wanting to take a grandniece as a granddaughter-in-law in the future, Kangxi had agreed on the spot, though since the Second Princess had only just been born, they hadn’t discussed the details further, only agreeing to settle the matter once the princess had grown up.
Ever since then, Consort Rong had been certain the Second Princess was destined for the Barin tribe. Above her would be the even more esteemed Grand Princess, so the Second Princess would naturally have to be humble and deferential, but with Grand Princess Shuhui there to look out for her, at least she wouldn’t be easily mistreated to death.
So Consort Rong had always taught the Second Princess to be virtuous and filial, wholeheartedly hoping she could live a long and peaceful life, she’d thought this matter was already settled, but who could have known that Kangxi would suddenly take the Fourth Princess off to Cining Palace, and that the Grand Empress Dowager would actually keep her there.
Everyone in the palace knew that the Eldest Princess, raised in Cining Palace, was destined for the Khorchin, now that a Fourth Princess had suddenly joined her there too, Consort Rong couldn’t help but grow suspicious: could it be that the Grand Empress Dowager wanted to personally choose a granddaughter-in-law of her own?
But if the Fourth Princess were sent to the Barin tribe instead, then what would become of her own Second Princess!
Consort Rong made no attempt to hide her worry, and Kangxi understood it perfectly well.
“You’re overthinking this, even if the Second Princess goes to the Barin tribe, she’ll still be our daughter, and we would never let her go there to serve anyone else,”
Kangxi, pitying Consort Rong’s devoted maternal heart, softened his tone to comfort her. “The Second Princess is still young, our princesses aren’t to be married off until at least eighteen, so why are you in such a hurry? Wanting to temper her disposition is a good thing, but you mustn’t let her grow up truly ignorant of the world, how can a princess of the great Qing not know how to read?”
“Tomorrow we’ll have the Imperial Household Department find a governess who knows Mongolian to come teach the princesses. Rather than have her learn embroidery, she should study Mongolian properly instead, it will be far more useful to her in the future,”
Kangxi was thinking of his daughter’s own good. “In a while we’re going on a hunting expedition, and we’ll have a few of the princesses come along to get used to it too, when we go on our northern tour of the grasslands in the future, they’ll need to come along as well, so they must learn to ride.”
He didn’t expect his daughters to achieve any great accomplishments, but they couldn’t remain ignorant of everything either, or they’d be at the mercy of the servants around them in the future, and besides, since they were meant to marry into Mongolia, learning Mongolian and riding was simply necessary.
With these words, Kangxi had essentially agreed to send the Second Princess to the Barin tribe after all, and the great weight on Consort Rong’s heart finally settled, she knelt once more to offer her thanks.
…
Meanwhile, back at Cining Palace, Dan Qing, now fully recovered in spirit, was happily petting a dog.
When she had first arrived, the Grand Empress Dowager, worried she might be frightened, had had the large dog she kept tied up, but the young eunuch in charge of watching it had let his attention wander, and the big dog had slipped its leash and dashed in, nearly leaping right onto Dan Qing if Yinreng hadn’t stepped in to block it in time.
The young eunuch at fault had been given a beating, of course, but the big dog was allowed to stay.
Dan Qing wasn’t afraid of dogs at all, though the big dog looked nearly as tall as she was, its eyes were gentle and warm, and it wagged its tail, looking altogether friendly.
“This little thing has real nerve, last time White Snow scared second sister to tears, and here you are petting it without a second thought,”
Yinreng said, hovering protectively beside his little sister. “White Snow’s actually very good-natured, it’s never bitten anyone, it just likes you, that’s why it wants to play with you.”
Dan Qing had no idea what breed this big dog was, only that it was snow white all over, its fur especially smooth and soft, making her want to rub her hands all over it.
“Hello there, White Snow, my name is Dan Qing, I’m the old ancestress’s great-granddaughter, and second brother’s little sister,”
Dan Qing greeted the big dog with proper formality. “I’m going to be living here from now on, so we can play together!”
Whether or not White Snow understood, it whimpered a couple of times, then pushed its big fuzzy head right into Dan Qing’s embrace.
The short-armed little girl couldn’t quite wrap her arms around the big dog, but she buried her face in White Snow’s fur, giggling, while White Snow, quite understanding of people, sat down obediently, resting on its own paws to make it easier for Dan Qing to keep petting it.
While the two siblings played with the dog nearby, the Grand Empress Dowager watched them and instructed, “Have the Office of Punishments question that young eunuch properly, find out exactly whose instructions he was acting on.”
The dog was innocent, but the person behind it might not be.