Chapter 34

In the height of summer, the entire palace in the capital felt like a massive steamer.

The Crown Prince, chubby and inheriting his parents’ sensitivity to heat, was only wearing a small bellyband but still seemed lethargic from the oppressive warmth.

The entourage to the summer retreat at Rehe had already left several days ago.

Aside from the first few days when the Crown Prince cried for Kang Yuyi, he had since become very well-behaved and no longer fussed.

In the early afternoon, a letter from the summer retreat at Rehe arrived swiftly, presented to the Empress Dowager in the Renshou Palace.

The envelope inscribed with “To the Crown Prince, personally addressed,” was recognized by the Empress Dowager as her son’s handwriting.

“Has the Emperor lost his mind, writing a letter to a baby not even a year old?” the Empress Dowager scolded, though her face betrayed a smile.

Upon opening the envelope, the Empress Dowager found two letters inside. After a moment’s thought, she decided to head towards the east wing where the Crown Prince and his attendants resided.

At that moment, the Crown Prince was seated on a soft couch, diligently nibbling on a rice cake, occasionally glancing around as if overseeing the palace servants.

“Look Little Prince, your parents have written you a letter,” the Empress Dowager said as she picked up the chubby little prince.

The Crown Prince’s eyes brightened at the mention as if he understood.

He waved his hand, babbling something and looked earnestly at his grandmother.

The Empress Dowager had the letters opened for the Crown Prince to see.

But being only six months old, the Crown Prince could not read and tilted his head in confusion, chattering away to his grandmother.

The Empress Dowager laughed as she saw the two distinctly different styles of writing.

One letter with childlike characters of varying sizes was clearly written by Kang Yuyi

“Dear Crown Prince, are you well in the palace? Mother is very well at the Rehe summer retreat and misses you every day.”

Kang Yuyi’s literacy was limited, so producing this brief message was quite an accomplishment.

The letter ended with a note from the Emperor: “Written by compassionate mother Kang Yuyi, 6th day of the 6th month, Year of Yuanxi.”

The other letter was from the Emperor to the Empress Dowager, consisting of expressions of concern for his mother and inquiries about the Crown Prince’s well-being.

The Empress Dowager read Kang Yuyi’s letter aloud twice to the Crown Prince. The chubby little prince, with his round eyes turning thoughtfully seemed to be trying to recall something.

Upon realizing who his “mother” was, the Crown Prince’s little face puckered in grievance as if accusing his mother who had been playing with him daily of suddenly disappearing.

The Empress Dowager hurriedly comforted him: “Oh our Crown Prince feels wronged, doesn’t he? It’s alright when you learn to walk, your parents will return!”

The Crown Prince didn’t seem to fully understand but continued nibbling on his teething rice cake. His mood quickly shifted, and soon he was energetically crawling around the soft couch again.

The Empress Dowager sighed slightly, hoping that the Emperor’s duties, including his border inspections and meetings with foreign dignitaries would end soon so he could return to the capital.

Meanwhile, five hundred miles away at the Rehe summer retreat.

Kang Yuyi had slept in until nearly lunchtime.

Upon waking, she realized that the letter she had carefully copied several times for the Crown Prince was missing.

Seeing her rummaging through the small desk, Zisu quickly asked, “Your Highness, what are you looking for? Should we help you search?”

“Nothing important, I need to get up and wash,” Kang Yuyi replied, feeling embarrassed about her less-than-perfect handwriting and hurriedly stuffed all the letters into the drawer.

Zisu helping her with her hair reported, “Your Highness, the leader of the Laku tribe from the northern border has arrived early with his family to visit the Emperor. There will be a banquet this afternoon at the Danbo Jingcheng Hall.”

The Danbo Jingcheng Hall was the main hall at the summer retreat used for receiving foreign ambassadors and hosting celebrations.

Kang Yuyi was momentarily stunned and asked, “Do I need to attend?”

Zisu smiled, “The banquet is divided by gender and as the highest-ranking lady in the palace, Your Highness will certainly need to attend.”

“In that case, inform the wife of the Marquis of Boling that she does not need to come today,” Kang Yuyi instructed calmly.

Qingzhu who had just entered, responded, “I have already sent someone to inform her.”

Thinking about meeting the foreign ladies from the northern tribes, Kang Yuyi felt anxious.

At sixteen, she had never left the Qin Wangfu and had never seen people from other tribes…

Since foreign dignitaries were visiting, she had to dress up.

Assisted by Zisu and Qingzhu, Kang Yuyi donned a bright yellow gown with golden phoenix patterns, adorned with 108 imperial beads around her neck and a string of six large Eastern pearls dangling from her ears.

“What is this outfit?” Kang Yuyi gasped as she looked at herself in the mirror.

Zisu happily replied, “Your Highness, these were sent by His Majesty early this morning, and he asked you to wear them for the banquet.”

Kang Yuyi was horrified. Her delicate face turned pale, and she stood frozen in place.

Meanwhile, the Emperor continued handling court affairs and reviewing memorials in the Yanbo Zhishuang Hall.

In the afternoon, upon hearing from the inner chamber that the Noble Consort had left for the banquet, the Emperor put down his documents and set off.

At the Danbo Jingcheng Hall, the seats for women were already occupied by a dozen or so foreign women dressed in attire distinct from that of the Zhongyuan.

The most prominent seats were occupied by the queen and princess of the Laku tribe, who wore large braided hairstyles adorned with colorful ribbons.

The queen and princess of the Laku tribe chatted loudly in their own language, confident and boastful, knowing that the surrounding palace servants couldn’t understand them.

“The Emperor of Zhongyuan owes his ability to guard the northern border entirely to our Laku tribe’s support. If that young Emperor doesn’t marry a princess to my brother as a wife, then my daughter will go to Zhongyuan to become the Empress!”

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