Mu Lan slowly straightened her back, raised her head, and looked ahead.

I saw that in the middle of the imperial case on the steps of the pavilion, there was an old man in a dragon robe with an elegant bearing, who must be the current emperor Emperor Kangxi.

And the person sitting on the main seat beside him with a graceful smile must be Queen Yiren Tong Jia's family.

When Emperor Kangxi saw this show girl Yingying coming, he felt that there seemed to be a faint mist in front of him, which was common in the south of the Yangtze River.

The fire that was in Fang Cai's heart seemed to be damp by this mist at this time, and it dissipated silently.

After looking carefully, I saw that this girl had clear eyebrows and beautiful eyes, dignified manners, and in the respectful training of raising her eyes, she revealed a trace of imperceptible beauty and agility, but she didn't know it.

Kangxi looked at it and thought it was interesting, and smiled slightly: "Get up and talk back." ”

After Mu Lan kowtowed and thanked her, she stood up and said, "The courtiers see the emperor and queen, the emperor is blessed with Jin'an, and the queen is blessed with Jin'an." ”

Kangxi hummed lightly, glanced at Mu Lan's mist-like plain clothes, and said leisurely: "Do you know what day it is?" ”

Mu Lan said respectfully: "The courtiers know that today is an auspicious day for the emperor to live and the queen to be a draft girl. ”

When Empress Yiren heard this, she couldn't help but smile, and her thoughts flew back to the year when she first entered the palace draft.

At that time, I seemed to be like this out of the water hibiscus, neither humble nor arrogant.

Emperor Kangxi frowned slightly, and said in an aggravated tone: "Since you know that today is a festive day for the draft, why are you wearing such a light dress?" ”

The corners of Mu Lan's mouth curved and said: "Your Majesty, this is the best dress for a courtier from childhood to adulthood!" ”

When Emperor Kangxi heard this, he let out a noncommittal "oh".

Mu Lan said naïvely: "Your Majesty, when the courtiers were three years old, their father came to Beijing alone to take up their posts, and the courtiers were raised by their mothers. Over the years, the family was not very wealthy, and in order to live frugally, my mother dismissed her subordinates, and the family relied on us to take care of it inside and out. You see, my mother sewed this dress for me before I left. This dress may not be as particular as others, but it is really the best in Mu Lan's heart. ”

When Emperor Kangxi heard this, he smiled and said, "In this way, the queen also thinks that your clothes are good." ”

After a pause, he asked, "What books have you read over the years?" ”

Mu Lan's eyes lit up and said, "Go back to the emperor." Her mother taught Mu Lan to read a few books, and also taught Mu Lan to do some female skills. However, Mu Lan's favorite thing to do is not these two things. ”

"Oh? Don't like reading and female skills? So what do you like? Emperor Kangxi's face elongated again.

The big eunuch on the side frowned when he heard this, obviously he had just mentioned it, could it be that he had seen the wrong person?

Among so many show girls, none of them dare to say in public that they are not good at women's virtues and women's skills.

Before her parents got into the sedan chair, didn't they teach her how to answer? I don't know if answering like this is tantamount to self-destruction of the future!

was faintly worried in his heart, and quietly looked at Emperor Kangxi's face, but heard this amazing show girl, and continued.

"If you go back to the emperor, the first thing that slaves and maids like to do is to study ink. My second favorite thing to do is cooking. When my father came to Beijing, I helped me study the ink used for writing and painting every day. After my father left Beijing, I helped my mother cook every day. ”

Emperor Kangxi, who was already displeased, couldn't help but tilt his head at this time, looked at Empress Yiren and smiled, and said softly: "Empress, look at her, does she look like a person?" ”

Empress Yiren's gaze paused slightly on Mu Lan for a moment, and she nodded knowingly and said, "Your Majesty, it's really like our four-grid jade." It's a pity that Bang Yu has been married for more than two years, and there has been no news for a long time. ”

Emperor Kangxi reached out to hold Empress Yiren's cold hand, took a deep look at the queen's lowered eyes, turned his head to Mu Lan and said, "Since you have come to see me and the queen in the best clothes, I will also give you the best place to go." ”

When Mu Lan heard this, she quickly knelt down and kowtowed to thank her.

Emperor Kangxi smiled slightly, and then said: "I ask you, if you were to choose, would you be willing to go to my Heart Cultivation Hall and give me ink every day?" Or are you willing to go to Kunning Palace and make soup for the queen every day? ”

Mu Lan was slightly stunned, raised her head, and said with sparkling eyes: "The courtiers respectfully ask the emperor to be gracious and allow Mu Lan to enter the Shang Food Bureau and offer delicious food to the emperor and the queen Chitose, so as to show the auspicious combination of the dragon and the phoenix." ”

Emperor Kangxi laughed when he heard this, turned his head to the big eunuch Liang Jiugong on the side and said: "The courtier Mu Lan is diligent and thrifty, and has a soft character. Awarded the first-class palace maid waist card, and from now on, she will be on duty at the Shangshi Bureau. ”

Mu Lan was overjoyed in her heart, bowed deeply, and said with a smile: "The courtiers thank the lord Longen." ”

In the autumn of September, after the cold dew and a few rains, the days became colder and colder day by day.

On the day of the draft, there were a total of 12 show girls who were left behind like Mu Lan.

Half of these show girls were transferred to the concubines of the harem as maids.

The other half, like Mu Lan, was assigned to the palaces, embroidery workshops, dining workshops and other departments of the harem to be palace maids.

The Shanggong Bureau is not a place where people can easily enter and exit at will, and there is only one palace maid who can be assigned to this place this time.

Although she is a newcomer, everyone seems to know that she was handpicked by the emperor and assigned here, and at first they had some respect for her.

However, Mu Lan didn't take it to heart, and always put all her thoughts on the things assigned by the aunts in charge of each department. Be cautious in everything you say and do, say less and do more. Unconsciously, he has been on duty from the food, medicine, brewing, and gluttony divisions.

Because of his diligence, thoughtfulness, and understanding, he has gradually been recognized by the Shang Food Bureau.

On this day, Han Shanggong, headed by the Shangshi Bureau, summoned the aunt in charge of the four divisions to give a lecture with Mu Lan in the inner room, originally to discuss which division Mu Lan was assigned to work in after the rotation of the four divisions.

Mu Lan was on duty in these four divisions, in fact, he was secretly observing, which division he was more interested in, and which division was easier to deal with.

Han Shanggong, as the highest-ranking female official in the Shang Food Bureau, looked kind, but did not smile in front of everyone, and after explaining the topic of the discussion, he sat upright and waited for the speech of the female palace in charge of the four divisions.

The four divisions of the Shanggong Bureau are neck and neck with each other outside, and the competition is fierce inside, and each division is secretly competing, in a vain attempt to take the lead in their own ability.

Therefore, Han Shanggong's voice has not fallen, in addition to the wait-and-see attitude of Yao and the aunt in charge of the second division, Min Sishan and Zheng Sijiao, the two aunts in charge, have already fought with each other, and they all want to try their best to pull Mu Lan to their side to make a name for themselves.

Zheng Si Shan is the one with the most flamboyant personality among the four divisions, and at this time he stared at Min Sishan and said: "Min Sishan, you took advantage of it last time, and among the four palace maids, you let you pick Chunhua and Xia Qing first, how can you give us a humble attitude this time, right?" ”

Min Sishan's face was a little rounder, but his mouth did not decrease at all: "Zheng Sishan, you can't say that." Qiu Shi and Dong Xue were both first-class good talents back then, why haven't you cultivated them in the past few years? ”

Zheng Si said indignantly: "Hmph...... It's not that those two little girls are in Cao Ying, and they are in Han, I don't know who poured ecstasy soup, and I think that doing it in our food division is more popular without your food department! ”

……

"Alright, alright! Don't make any noise. ”

Han Shanggong on the side had heard enough. frowned and said: "The two of you, if you don't fight to the death, no one will be reconciled." Forget it, let her choose! ”

After that, he turned his head and smiled at Mu Lan: "Mu Lan, these four divisions under the Shangshi Bureau, you have already taken a turn. Let me ask you, if I give you the opportunity to choose which division to join, who will you choose to be your master? ”