After the rebellion was successful, I realized that this place was the Red Mansion

Chapter 89 Daming Palace

In the end, Jia Yuanchun and Empress Zhang did not go to Daming Palace with Chu Yan because they had to stay in the palace to handle affairs.

Xue Baochai, Qin Keqing, and Princess Qinghe rode on a sedan chair and, together with Chu Yan, left the Lingxiao Gate on the north side of the imperial palace and entered the Daming Palace.

When passing by the Imperial Garden, Chu Yan specifically asked Baochai: "Which is bigger, the Imperial Garden or the Grand View Garden?"

Baochai glanced around and said with a smile, "The Grand View Garden is much larger. To accommodate the Imperial Concubine, the Ning and Rong mansions have converted the Rong mansion's backyard and more than half of the Ning mansion into separate courtyards for her visit. It's probably seven or eight times the size of the Imperial Garden."

Chu Yan smiled and said, "It's hard for you to walk around the Grand View Garden every day, and you're afraid of the heat. Now you can ride in a sedan chair. But it's a bit of a pity."

"what."

Baochai was secretly surprised again. How could the emperor be so familiar with her?
Qin Keqing hurriedly asked, "Why is it such a pity?"

Chu Yan smiled and lowered his voice and said, "Miss Bao has fair skin. She will look beautiful after sweating."

Baochai blushed again. The emperor seemed to like her plump and heat-sensitive body very much...

She hadn't even entered the bedchamber yet, yet the emperor had already granted her favor. Could it be that Leng Zixing was plotting against her again? But when she thought about it carefully, she couldn't recall when she had been seen by a man from outside. Could it be Zhou Ruijia?

Qin Keqing covered her mouth and laughed, "Your Majesty does appreciate beauties. Last year, Jia Rong went to the West Mansion and came back completely lost in thought. I was puzzled, so I asked Sister Feng and found out that he had seen Bao-ya-tou."

When she said this, Baochai suddenly remembered that she had indeed met Jia Rong once last year. After a quick glance at him, Baochai saw that he looked dazed, so she turned around and left.

Wang Xifeng is a few years older than Qin Keqing and is her elder, but now Qin Keqing calls Jia Rong by his name and also calls Wang Xifeng "sister".

Baochai could tell that Qin Keqing wanted to sever ties with the Jia family, especially with Jia Rong.

"Skin so fair and smooth..." Qinghe, who was standing behind, took a quick look at her wrist. Her slender wrist was as white as jade.

She is also very white!
As they were talking, everyone entered the Daming Palace.

"Are there any horses?"

Chu Yan, sitting on the sedan chair, asked the eunuch accompanying him, and Xia Shouzhong quickly replied: "Your Majesty, there are horses in the Daming Palace!"

"Go and get one."

Compared to riding a sedan chair, Chu Yan was more accustomed to riding a horse. After the horse was brought over, he jumped lightly from the sedan chair to the horse's back, causing the eunuchs and palace maids to stare wide-eyed.

Ordinary emperors were not like him, but Chu Yan became emperor through rebellion, and there were no ancestral rules to restrict him.

"Let's go."

Chu Yan entered the front court of Daming Palace. Baochai, Keqing and Qinghe followed him in sedan chairs, with Keqing sitting side by side with him.

Xue Baochai sat cautiously and dignifiedly on the sedan chair carried by four eunuchs. Her plump and fair body swayed gently with the sedan chair, and one hand slightly supported the handle.

She looked at the tall figure of the new king riding on the horse in front of her, and her heart was filled with mixed feelings.

Ordinary concubines in the palace did not have sedan chairs. She had only entered the palace once, and before she had served the emperor in bed, Chu Yan allowed her to sit on a sedan chair.

At this moment, she was accompanying Chu Yan on a trip, followed by more than 300 palace maids and eunuchs. Her wealth and power had reached the extreme, just like when the imperial concubine came to visit her parents.

"Your Majesty, is this where officials hold court?"

Qin Keqing asked curiously.

Baochai looked at her and found that this eldest lady was not at all restrained, as if she should sit in the concubine's sedan chair, and her demeanor was as if she was at home. It was obvious that she really regarded the palace as her home and had no connection with Ningguo Mansion anymore.

"It should be." Chu Yan called Xia Shouzhong over and asked him to explain.

It turns out that the Daming Palace also has most of the functions of an imperial palace. It was used by the former dynasty to hold court and handle government affairs. Except for the lack of the Altar of Land and Grain and the Imperial Ancestral Temple, it has all other functions.

Because the emperor did not live in the Daming Palace, the front court was empty. Chu Yan took the three of them on a quick tour of the front court to satisfy their curiosity about where officials attended court, and soon entered the harem area.

Compared with the harem of the Forbidden City, the rear garden of the Daming Palace was obviously built in the style of a garden for the emperor to enjoy. The pavilions and towers are scattered in an orderly manner, without the regularity of the Qianqing Palace, Kunning Palace and the six east and west palaces. Because it is spring now, exotic flowers and plants are in full bloom everywhere. There are various lotus flowers, cattails, water chestnuts, etc. in the lake, and willow trees with drooping silk along the shore. The beautiful scenery makes Xue Baochai, who lives in the Grand View Garden, admire it.

"Your Majesty, I love this place." Qin Keqing said in a soft and cheerful voice, pointing to the shimmering lake. "If I could go boating on the lake with Your Majesty, and drink wine at night while listening to the frogs' croaking, it would be worth my life on earth."

Her voice was gentle and peaceful, but her words were extremely bold, causing Princess Qinghe behind her to look at her with a frown.

Chu Yan rode on his horse and said with a smile: "You can come and play on weekdays, but I have no interest in boating. I will not move here until the situation is stable."

"Your Majesty, state affairs are more important." Baochai said with a smile.

Qinghe Dao: "Ever since my father devoted himself to seeking the truth in the Eastern Palace, Daming Palace has been abandoned. No concubines can come here to enjoy the scenery on weekdays. It only becomes lively during festivals such as Mid-Autumn Festival and Lantern Festival."

As she spoke, she felt a little nostalgic, and then quickly glanced at Chu Yan, her expression disappearing, for fear of being punished.

It is not a good thing for people of a fallen country to miss their homeland in front of the new king.

Chu Yan smiled and said, "We built such a huge palace, but if no one visits it, wouldn't it be a waste? Qinghe, go back and tell your sister-in-law and Consort Xian De to allow the palace staff to visit the Daming Palace gardens during their days off."

Qinghe was a little worried: "The palace servants only have one day off each month. If they come here to play, there might be trouble. We need to send more people to guard."

There have always been people maintaining the palace and gardens in Daming Palace.

"The palace maids only have one day off? That's too little. Go back and tell them I'll tell them to have one day off every ten days, just like the officials."

"His Majesty!"

Qinghe disagreed: "Court officials need to work every day, but palace maids are actually free most of the day, so they are not toiled every day."

Chu Yan smiled and said, "Of course the palace maids and eunuchs you saw are not tired. They are all in charge. The eunuchs and palace maids below are different."

Qinghe's face flushed and he agreed.

Baochai also took note in her heart that Chu Yan was a person who sympathized with the poor and the humble.

The group walked forward and arrived at a waterside pavilion. Qin Keqing turned to look at Chu Yan beside her and said with a smile:
"Your Majesty, can you catch me?"

As she spoke, she stood up shakily from the sedan chair, which frightened the palace maid so much that she hurried over and stretched out her hand to catch her.

Chu Yan stretched out his arms to her on the horse. Qin Keqing leaped up and threw herself on him. Her legs couldn't reach the horse's back, but she was held tightly in Chu Yan's arms.

Chu Yan was speechless, only Qin Keqing smiled in his arms with her eyes curved and her natural charm revealed.

Seeing the charming smile on her face, Chu Yan's heart was moved.

Qin Keqing is truly worthy of being called the Golden Hairpin of the Red Mansion, who possesses the beauty of both Baochai and Daiyu. She is the most charming woman Chu Yan has ever seen.

When she decided to enter the palace, she believed that she could win his favor. This kind of confidence that came from her bones was probably because she knew that she was naturally beautiful and could easily attract men's attention.

For example, even her father-in-law Jia Zhen couldn't help but peek at her graceful body. It is conceivable that Qin Keqing had been looked at by countless eyes of amazement, admiration, and jealousy in the past, which made her proud of her own charm and believe that once she entered the palace, she would definitely be a favorite concubine.

Therefore, she dared to throw herself into Chu Yan's arms.

(End of this chapter)