Surpassing His Father

In the room, Hong Taiji had regained his composure, sitting calmly as Hairanju skilfully tidied his loosened braids.

Earlier, he had asked a casual question, but Hairanju had keenly discerned the doubt in his heart. Of course, he trusted Yuer, but doubt had almost become second nature to him. If the rumours implicated Hairanju, he might similarly be compelled to ask Yuer too.

This inner turmoil left him exhausted and pained, struggling to suppress his instinct to question even the women he deeply loved.

Yuer was no exception, nor was Jeje, and least of all, Hairanju.

"All done," Hairanju said with satisfaction as she admired the now revitalized Hong Taiji. She asked gently, "Is the Great Khan hungry? Would you like me to make some snacks?"

Hong Taiji shook his head. "Let the servants prepare something. Your cooking is too delicious—I have to ration it to avoid growing tired of it."

Hairanju chuckled softly, her tone tender. "Whenever the Great Khan wants my cooking, just give the word."

Hong Taiji nodded. At that moment, he noticed activity outside the window, where attendants from the side palace were dispersing as though they had finished tidying something.

Rising, he walked to the window and glanced out before turning to Hairanju. "You don't need to interact much with Nam Jung. If she tries to draw close to you, just respond politely or direct her toward Jeje."

"I understand," Hairanju replied with a nod.

Hong Taiji continued, "She's likely smarter than Zarut and won't attack you openly. But if she harms you in ways that are hard to see, tell me immediately. Don't hide it, and don't fear that I'll think less of you."

Hairanju pouted slightly. "The way you put it, you're already thinking I'm useless."

Hong Taiji looked her over with an amused smile, then took her hand and kissed her fingertips. "Then let's see tonight if you're truly useless."

Blushing deeply, her eyes shimmering with affection, Hairanju felt her earlier pain—Zarut crushing her fingernail—fade into a distant memory. Yet every kiss Hong Taiji left on her fingertips was etched deeply in her heart.

Before long, the end of March arrived. Even in Shengjing, the weather had turned warm. The world awakened, vibrant with green. Qiqige stood in the courtyard, observing the flourishing garden, yet she let out a soft sigh.

Servants carried out two chests, but she stopped them, instructing them to open the lids. Carefully inspecting the contents once more, she finally nodded in approval, allowing them to take the chests away.

This time, Dorgon had been home for over half a year, the days were so fulfilling that even Qiqige had forgotten how long he had been absent. Although Heaven had never blessed them with a child, these months spent with her husband day and night were enough to bring her joy.

Suddenly, however, he had to leave again for a distant journey, and he wouldn't be back for more than half a month. Upon his return, he would likely be leading troops to war. After finally ushering in spring, they were forced to part ways once more.

During this time, the servants in the household had been severely punished by Qiqige due to the rumours about Dorgon and Da Yuer. The household had become quiet, and the servants were likely too afraid to even think about it, but the gossip outside the gates was something Qiqige couldn't control. Even the wife of Dodo came to visit with her child, cautiously asked Qiqige about what had really happened.

The more lies one told, the more they would turn into truth. For the past few days, Qiqige had been pondering, if that day it had not been her talking with Dorgon, but Da Yuer dressed in her windbreaker, what would have happened? As the saying goes, in the Han language, one cannot wash away such rumours even if they jump into the Yellow River.

What was more important was how she would feel about it—could she trust Dorgon? Could she trust Yuer?

Qiqige sighed again, unwilling to dwell on the troubling thoughts. She told her maid, "Come with me to the study. I need to pack some stationery for your master to take along."

As they walked, she again recalled Dorgon's words. He had said, "If it were Da Yuer, I would only have been able to stand from afar and exchange pleasantries, not like you, holding and hugging."

Qiqige laughed bitterly, mocking herself for having acted that way, her head clouded in the heat of the moment, behaving so intimately in another's home.

On the first day of April, Hooge and Dorgon received their orders at the Grand Politics Hall to head out together to pacify the Chahar tribe.

A few days before their departure, Hong Taiji had already spoken to his son, reminding him of the importance of this mission and urging him not to let his emotions cloud his judgment and cause conflict with Dorgon. At this point, as a father, Hong Taiji felt helpless.

But Hooge, still unaware, harboured resentment toward his father for being so cautious around Dorgon. He felt that if his father was so wary of his younger brother, why had he raised him to such a position of power? Hooge couldn't understand why Dorgon had gotten so far, attributing it all to his father's support. He couldn't grasp why his father would keep such a powerful figure so close.

Nonetheless, Hooge was still afraid of his father, and his advisers repeatedly warned him about the damage caused by the rumours regarding Dorgon and Da Yuer's alleged affair. Gradually, Hooge began to feel uneasy, realizing that his father had likely refrained from pursuing the matter in order to maintain their father-son relationship and preserve his dignity.

Hong Taiji watched as Hooge and Dorgon left, his gaze slowly sweeping over the ministers below. He had yet to hear the ministers cry "Long live the Emperor." He remembered a time when he stood at the foot of the stairs with them, looking up at his father.

The territory of the Great Jin Empire was built by her father, and even the Imperial Palace in Shengjing was constructed by him. If Hong Taiji wanted to surpass his father, he would have to lead troops into the Central Plains and conquer the Ming Dynasty.

He aspired to stand at the pinnacle of the Forbidden City, looking down at the ministers' prostrations, to become the true ruler of the world.

From a distant corner, Da Yuer, accompanied by Sumala, hid behind and watched from afar. They saw Hong Taiji return to the Grand Politics Hall, where ministers slowly entered to discuss national affairs with him. Once he was inside, the two women turned and headed back to the study.

Sumala sighed, "The great Khan is truly mighty and imposing. Every time I see this scene, my calves tremble with fear."

Da Yuer proudly responded, "If you're trembling now, what will you do when we reach Beijing and stand on the Hall of Supreme Harmony? You can't embarrass me, and you certainly can't embarrass the Great Khan."

"Miss, when will we go to Beijing?"

"I don't know, maybe soon, maybe..."

Maybe not for a long long time, or even...

Da Yuer thought to herself, she understood well. Hong Taiji had mentioned several times that the Ming Dynasty would be difficult to conquer, but such words he would never say to outsiders.

"We will go, definitely, and soon—very soon." Da Yuer said with unwavering confidence, pulling Sumala along to study.

One thing that made both Da Yuer and the teacher happy was that Sumala, despite always saying she couldn't learn, showed her natural intelligence once she started studying. In just a short period, she had already helped teach the other young ladies how to read and write. What angered Da Yuer, however, was that Sumala's Chinese writing was even more beautiful than hers.

As a result, this domineering mistress, in order to prevent Sumala from surpassing her, decided to limit her studies, restricting what characters she could learn. When Qiqige heard of this, she laughed at Da Yuer for being jealous and unable to tolerate others' successes.

Time passed, and it had already been two days since Dorgon left the capital. Qiqige entered the palace to greet Jeje, and after that, she made her way to the study. There, she saw Da Yuer listening to Yatu read from her book.

The little girl was timid, stumbling over the words, and theruler in Da Yuer's hand made the child shudder with fear.

When she saw her aunt, it was like a lifeline, and Da Yuer flicked the ruler on the girl's backside: "Are you going to keep stuttering?"

Yatu flinched and quickly resumed reading. When she finally finished, Da Yuer said, "I'll hear you recite again the day after tomorrow. If you keep stammering like this, you'll get a beating."

Yatu, hands on her backside, shuffled over to Qiqige, then burrowed into her aunt's arms, crying with grievance.

"You are so capable at managing your daughter," Qiqige said with a mock frown. "Hurry up and put away the ruler. Don't scare our little sweetheart."

Da Yuer scolded Yatu a few more times before having the maid take the ruler away. Qiqige, who always spoiled her niece, then asked Yatu what snacks she wanted. "Aunt will go outside the palace to get it for you." Yatu coquettishly said she wanted to eat the jujubes from Aunt's house.

"Stop pestering Aunt and go back to your writing," Da Yuer said, unable to hide her worry. She couldn't let the child eat anything from the Fourteenth Beile's residence.

Although Da Yuer had long become numb to the fact that she had hurt Qiqige, the reality was what it was. She didn't know if Hong Taiji would continue to drug Qiqige and other women.

Yatu, knowing that her mother was strict in the study, feared punishment and obediently returned to her writing.

Once the child left, Da Yuer sighed. "Yatu doesn't like studying. She learned embroidery from sister, and she does it quite well. I also know her intelligence isn't in books."

Qiqige took the tea from the maid and smiled, saying, "Then why force her? You didn't study when you were young, and look how you turned out. Now that you're reading, you act like you're so special."

Da Yuer shook her head. "Isn't it just because I didn't understand anything when I was young? That's why I was foolish."

Qiqige held the tea, not knowing what to say, and sniffed the aroma of the tea. She seemed dissatisfied and instructed the maid, "Bring me some milk tea, the salty kind."

Da Yuer complained, "Is the tea in the palace now worse than what you have at home?"

"You're talking nonsense," Qiqige replied. "Of course, the tea in the palace is the best. But I can't get used to Han tea. We are, after all, children raised on the grasslands."

She then remembered something and asked Da Yuer, "When the Great Khan comes to receive the Imperial Seal outside Shengjing, aunt will go, but will you go too?"

Da Yuer lowered her head and played with the tea bowl in her hand. She said softly, "You want to ask me if I will meet Nam Jung, right?"