Fang He laughed loudly.
This was a secret between two lovers.
How could she tease the lonely souls of Yanxi Palace?
Kangxi was indeed very busy, spending all his few days off preparing sincerity gifts for Fang He.
The rest of the time, he was busy in Nanshufang summoning ministers.
By the time he came to Yanxi Palace, Fang He and Jiujiu had already eaten dinner and were playing the game of repeatedly calling “Ele-ling, have fruit puree.”
Jiujiu laughed so hard she couldn’t close her mouth, clapping her hands and squealing.
“Ling, ling ling!”
Fang He turned the wooden spoon in her hand toward her mouth.
“Jiujiu said it wrong! Thank you, Jiujiu, for letting Mom eat deliciously!”
Jiujiu stuck her head forward, urgently patting the soft couch.
“Ah ah ah ling, Jiujiu, ling, Jiujiu ah~”
Fang He laughed heartily, and the spoonful of puree fell to the ground.
Jiujiu looked at the spoon, then at the fallen spot, took a breath, and tears welled in her eyes.
Fang He quickly scooped another spoonful of puree to feed Jiujiu.
Jiujiu tilted her head, murmuring reluctantly, pointing at the spot where it fell.
“La~ la~ down~ no~”
Kangxi entered and saw the little girl teary-eyed, watching Fang He stuff a spoonful of puree into her own mouth, and told Cui Wei to get another wooden spoon.
He patted Fang He’s head, laughing and crying, and picked up Jiujiu.
“Why are you still fighting with the child for food?”
Fang He snorted at him, “I just want that bite that fell on the ground. This one doesn’t count. Watch.”
Sure enough, behind Cui Wei’s back, she held half an apple, scooped some puree out unseen by the little Master, and offered it to Jiujiu.
Jiujiu, still tearful, opened her mouth and ate it with a sniff.
She still had tears on her cheek, looking pitifully at Fang He.
Earlier, Ele Ling had coaxed her with another spoonful; now it was her turn.
Not one drop of Jiujiu’s delicious treat could be missing!
Fang He reluctantly fed Jiujiu the newly scooped puree, and Jiujiu finally smiled through her tears.
Kangxi: “…..”
He seemed to see a mini version of himself, the little brat, who could remember him for years just because of one dish.
“Who do you think she takes after?” Fang He asked Kangxi with a playful brow raise and smiling eyes.
“Naturally, she takes after me.” Kangxi praised without changing expression.
“No wonder she’s my daughter; that cleverness… outshining the teacher!”
Before Fang He could continue her teasing, Kangxi bounced Jiujiu, changing the subject.
“She can say ‘Mommy’ now? How about ‘Daddy’?”
“Ah ah ah—” Jiujiu looked up at the tall figure speaking and grinned widely.
Fang He smiled at Kangxi and said, “If you’re not here, who else would Jiujiu call ‘Daddy’?”
“No problem, she’s halfway there already.” Kangxi took the spoon from Cui Wei and fed the chattering Jiujiu another spoonful, subtly saving face.
“When she learns to say ‘Mama’, she’ll definitely say ‘Daddy’ too.”
Fang He: “…..”
“Ah ah ah ‘Mama’?”
She propped her cheek with her hand, hiding a subtle smile, and nodded slightly.
Jiujiu had already eaten, so the puree feeding couldn’t be too much.
Soon, she was taken away by Chunlai.
Cui Wei and Xinhua were all very tactful, preparing tea and quickly leaving the main hall.
Only then did Fang He unabashedly click her tongue, resting her chin in her hand and smiling at Kangxi.
Kangxi knew she had figured out the meaning behind the paintings; otherwise, she wouldn’t want to exchange the New Year gift and seemed a bit uneasy.
Balancing court affairs, leading troops into battle—he handled all these with ease.
But to bare one’s heart, to show sincere feelings, was something the scheming Kangxi was not used to.
He helplessly shook his head and pulled Fang He into his arms.
“If you’re unhappy, why don’t you say it to me directly?”
Fang He tilted her head, playing the innocent act.
“I thought we’d argued too much before and worried you’d be annoyed, tired of my restlessness. So I wanted a gentler way to communicate with you. Talking in person is far more thought-provoking than letters!”
Kangxi was silent for a moment.
The old Fang He wouldn’t have been afraid; now she was.
It was because he hadn’t made her feel safe.
“I hate you.”
Fang He: “Huh? I’ll give the Emperor one more chance—say it properly!”
“I’m an emperor. I should be ruthless, but I hate that you’ve made me understand what love is—so anxious, so rash like a child.”
He gently kissed her neck.
He caressed her throat.
“Guoguo, I’m foolish. I thought I was giving you great favor, but I’m not even as good as an ordinary son. It won’t happen again.”
After a pause, he kissed her again lightly.
“No matter how much you fuss, I won’t grow tired—only fear disappointing you.”
Fang He, like a stroked cat, nestled into his arms, wondering if this scoundrel had been studying somewhere.
Where had the old clumsy Kangxi gone?
“What if I break the sky open?”
Kangxi didn’t even blink and replied, “Count me in.”
Fang He laughed uncontrollably.
Finally, he stopped talking and would protect her from these supposedly well-meaning words.
“What if I want to deal with your consorts and princes?” Fang He provoked.
Kangxi pinched her nose and said, “The Imperial Mama gave you three treasures, didn’t she? As for the princes… sometimes I think, a child isn’t raised well without some discipline.”
Fang He laughed even harder.
Her eyes sparkled as she mischievously poked Kangxi’s chin with her finger.
“I noticed when Liang Anda came over just now, his expression seemed off. When I wanted to open the box publicly, he tried to stop me. The Emperor’s preparations probably aren’t just these, right?”
Kangxi glanced toward the hall entrance without a trace.
“That useless dog servant is probably headed for the Office of Punishment and Investigation again.”
Liang Jiugong hadn’t heard this but suddenly felt a chill on the back of his neck and instinctively shrank it.
It was just past the late spring cold snap, and the nights weren’t warm.
He clutched his hands and wondered where the washboard and Green Plaque had gone.
“They naturally went where they were supposed to go.”
Kangxi didn’t say more, only playing with her small hand, speaking lightly.
“You said knowingly breaking the rules is an added crime? Today is the first apology I give you, not the gifts you thought I prepared.”
“Another apology.” Fang He stared at him.
Seeing he wouldn’t speak, she puffed her cheeks and lightly tapped his arm.
Did this dog even know there was no toilet paper in the official study room?
“When will you give it to me?”
Kangxi gently tapped her cheek, smiling, “Once the mourning period is over, I know your temper, Imperial Consort Zhao. I won’t make you wait long.”
Fang He thought: ‘a promotion and a raise?’
If so, she’d be wide awake!
She sat up straight and earnestly stretched out her hand.
“Then, Your Majesty, give me the plaque first. From now on, I will flip the cards of the guards serving Xuanye every night. How about that?”
Kangxi pulled a pouch from his waist and lightly tapped it onto her hand.
“Good idea, but to prevent you from just throwing down the plaque whenever you feel like it, I will keep it safe with me.”
Fang He was curious.
That jade washboard wouldn’t fit in that pouch.
She opened it and, wow, the originally square plaque had been crafted by some skilled artisan into the shape of the Green Plaque.
A pair of mandarin ducks intertwined over blue waves, and the lower right corner bore a faint ‘Guo’ character.
It had clearly become her Green Plaque.
She tried to pull it into her embrace and said, “You’re cheating! That’s my plaque!”
Kangxi was faster.
He deftly snatched the jade pendant away and hung it on his waist.
He held Fang He’s hand, rested his forehead against hers, smiling warmly as their eyes met.
“My Green Plaque is by your side; your Green Plaque must naturally accompany me day and night. That’s only fair.”
Once the mourning period ended, she would understand the meaning of this Green Plaque.
It would be his gift for her birthday.
Kangxi pulled her close, making her embrace him.
Seeing Kangxi so quickly slip into the mood, Fang He wanted to laugh and was half annoyed, huffing twice in defiance.
“Then let my Green Plaque accompany Your Majesty. Your Majesty still owes me the golden grain gift—no news yet—so now I’m going to flip the card of the eunuch Xiao Ye in Qianqing Palace to warm my bed.”
Kangxi: “The grain sent to the capital is seed grain, already on the imperial estate. After the Imperial Household Department tests it, it will be sent to the palace. I can’t joke about your and Jiujiu’s safety.”
“Ah, I forgot to mention. I admit my fault. I was too busy arranging troops and strategies. When the grain was sent before the New Year, I feared you’d want it, so I…”
“Fine, then I’ll punish you by making you sleep on the soft couch!” Fang He put on her Imperial Consort pose, grinning as she pushed Kangxi away and headed for the bedchamber.
“The bed will still be mine alone… Ow! Insolent! How dare you desecrate my—no, no, wrong, wrong…”
The commotion inside gradually faded, replaced soon by another kind of playful noise.
Cui Wei, Wei Zhu, and Liang Jiugong all wore smiles tinged with some secret amusement.
Although they didn’t understand why their Masters quarrelled and then made up, it seemed that every quarrel only made them closer.
Now they suddenly felt that maybe it was good for these two Masters to bicker their whole lives.
***
On the first day of the fourth lunar month, at the end of the mourning period for the Grand Empress Dowager, before dawn, the palace’s white paper lanterns and plain decorations were all taken down.
The Empress Dowager and the Emperor left the inner city before dawn to visit Huangxin Village Palace, to pay respects for the Grand Empress Dowager’s death anniversary.
Kangxi had issued a special edict a few days earlier: the Nine Princess’s catch-the-zodiac feast would be held on the second day of the fourth lunar month, a rare lively event after the mourning period, to be grandly celebrated in Qianqing Palace.
The consorts who had been waiting to see Fang He’s drama could not even get angry this time; each was utterly despairing.