Chapter 82

In the days that followed, both the imperial relatives and the ministers were very busy.

The Ninth Prince... oh no, now it should be called the Ninth Prince, Prince Yin Tang's wedding is scheduled for June.

Next, Prince Zhi, Yinti, left the palace to build his own residence and hosted a banquet for guests. Then came Prince Cheng, Prince Yong, and so on. The Ministry of Works was very busy with all the princes leaving the palace to build their own residences.

October is the tenth prince's wedding month, and the ministers have spent a lot of money on gifts.

Eighth Prince Yinzhi thought that Ninth Prince, as a prince from the Guoluo clan, had a good relationship with his wife.

He should be closer to me, so why is he closer to Lao Shi? It must be because Lao Shi spoke ill of me to Lao Jiu.

He also knew how inseparable the Ninth and Tenth brothers were; if the Tenth brother could put in a good word for him with the Ninth brother…

Yinzhi had met his cousin from the Guoluo family; she was indeed gentle and kind, certainly different from the wife of the tenth prince, who came from a Mongol tribe.

The plan is to send that gentle princess into the Tenth Prince's harem before his wedding, so that the Tenth Prince will like her.

The ninth and tenth brothers didn't feel as close to the eighth brother as they used to, but they were still brothers. Since the eighth brother was so kind to entertain them, the ninth and tenth brothers wouldn't refuse.

However, upon arrival, they discovered that Eighth Sister-in-law... was also there? Both Yinzhen and Yin'e assumed that the woman beside Eighth Sister-in-law was a maidservant serving her.

Guo Luoluo Yichun looked at the two noble princes who had entered with a hint of shyness in her eyes. She also knew that her cousin intended to give her to the tenth prince.

As a concubine's daughter, she was not qualified to become the wife of a member of the imperial clan or a minister, unless she married a bondservant.

However, she didn't want to think that now there was a chance to rise to the top right in front of her. The Tenth Prince was a prince, and if she worked hard, it wasn't impossible for her to become a concubine.

The second emperor, who had just entered the Central Plains, despite his efforts to learn Han culture, still instilled in his ministers the ideas of the time outside the Great Wall.

What is a secondary consort? It is equivalent to a consort of equal status. In classical Chinese terms, it can be described as a "level wife".

If the prince's secondary consort were the tenth prince... well, the chance of him ascending the throne is impossible. By bestowing her upon a Mongol tribal consort, the chance of him ascending the throne is effectively eliminated.

However, it's not that one cannot become a prince's concubine.

"Eighth Brother, your maid is so ignorant." Ninth Brother glanced at the maid who was standing still. Didn't she know to serve tea when guests arrived?

“Ninth Brother, this is my wife’s cousin, Consort Guo Luoluo.” Yinzhi explained gently, seemingly unconcerned about the small misunderstanding. However, his gaze still lingered on Consort Guo Luoluo.

perhaps……

Is it because this Princess Guoluo isn't pretty enough? Or is she unable to attract the Ninth and Tenth Princes?

Upon hearing the Eighth Prince's explanation, Princess Guoluo stepped forward and gracefully bowed to the two princes, saying, "This servant, Guoluo, greets the Ninth and Tenth Princes."

After completing the ceremony, she raised her head and looked at Prince Yin'e with her bright eyes. The look in her eyes was filled with tenderness and affectionate adoration.

Um... why are you looking at me?

Yin'e was frightened by the fierce look in her eyes. She looked at the woman with a mixture of disgust and shock. "You, you, you, what are you doing?"

She subconsciously took a step back. "Since she's a princess from the Guo Luo Luo family, why is she here to meet male guests?"

"Tenth Brother, how can you speak like that? What kind of rude talk is this about male guests? This isn't the brothel, Yihonglou." Yinzhen slapped Yin'e on the head, this big fool. But as soon as he said those words, the expressions of Yinsi, the Eighth Prince's wife, and the princess from the Guoluo family all turned slightly unpleasant.

The princess of the Guo Luo Luo family is already over sixteen years old, while the imperial court stipulates that the age for selecting imperial concubines is between thirteen and sixteen. She had a serious illness when she was fourteen, and was past that age.

Moreover, she was still a concubine's daughter, so she neither dared nor had the right to ask the people in the palace to show her extra favor.

Now that he's climbed onto the line with the Eighth Prince's wife, why isn't he clinging to her as tightly as possible?

"Yes, yes, Ninth Brother is right." Yin'e scratched the back of his head sheepishly, then sat down with a thud. He was baffled to see the princess from the Guo Luo Luo family still standing there, looking at him with teary eyes as if accusing a heartless man.

"Why are you still staring at me like that? Get down, get down! Men talk, what are women doing here?" Yin'e looked at him with disgust and felt a chill run down his spine. What a dog.

The disliked Princess Guo Luoluo wanted to stay despite her shamelessness, but being a young lady, she could only look to the Eighth Prince's wife for help.

"Tenth Brother, this is my cousin. She's come to visit me. I can't leave her alone, can I? Come, come, sit down..." He beckoned to Princess Guoluo and sat down next to Yin'e.

Yinzhi brought over a jar of wine. “Ninth Brother and Tenth Brother have gone to build a large ship. This is a great thing for the country and the people. I am really happy for you two.”

Yinzhi smiled and praised Yintang and Yin'e for following the Crown Prince outside for so long, and later for taking on important responsibilities on their own.

In the past, we might have been influenced by the filter of 'deep brotherhood,' but now...

"Brother Ba, isn't it a bit inappropriate for you to do this kind of thing?" The place where they build big ships is full of all sorts of people. They've dealt with all sorts of people. How could they not know about this kind of thing?

Yin'e was unaware that in real history, if it weren't for Jialuo and the Crown Prince's interference, this Princess Guoluo would have indeed entered his harem, been greatly favored, and even become a secondary consort. Now, he felt nothing but disgust, always thinking of her as one of those women who entertained guests at the Grand View Garden, all dressed up and feigning coquettishness, utterly repulsive.

Suddenly, Yin'e remembered the dashing Mongolian wives he had seen before. Perhaps his father was concerned about him and had specially chosen them for him?

"Eighth Brother, come, drink." Yin Tang grew up in the palace and had seen a lot of the dirty deeds in the harem. When he went to provide disaster relief, those corrupt officials all looked honest and upright, but they were still exposed.

Don't artisans and laborers from all walks of life have their own little schemes? The fact that he can keep them in check and command them means he's not a complete fool.

If the myna bird truly congratulated him, it wouldn't resort to such underhanded tactics. Who is Princess Guoluo? Her own clansman, yet she uses such a despicable method…

To put it bluntly, even the concubines in the inner courtyard wouldn't do such a thing; only the women in the Grand View Garden would do it... and so would Eighth Sister-in-law.

Looking at the gentle and refined myna bird before him, Yinzhen recalled the life he had shared with the myna bird.

In the Imperial Study, in the Prince's quarters.

However, these memories seem so distant, so very distant... as if from another world.

Not as good as Second Brother… Suddenly, the image of that noble and elegant man appeared in Yinzhen's mind, and his eyes darkened slightly, but a sense of relief also appeared deep in his eyes.

I see……

"Brother Ba, come on, let's drink until we drop." It's time for this brotherhood of so many years to come to an end.

Mynah is starting to plot against them. In other words, all the brotherhood they shared back then has vanished in an instant.

However, he still felt heartbroken. No matter what, had he given too little in dividends every year and every month? No matter how much he regretted it, he never took back those words.

Yinzhi was unaware of Yintang's thoughts at that moment. The smile on his face was gentle and warm, like a spring breeze. "Alright, I'll keep Ninth Brother company today, until we're drunk."

This time, when Yinzhen looked at it from an outsider's perspective, he realized that the Eighth Prince was actually quite skillful in his speech.

Yin'e was watching Ninth Brother and Eighth Brother drinking happily, and was a little dazed. Just as he was about to join in, Ninth Brother pressed him down.

Although Ninth Brother was slamming his fist on the table, how could Yin'e and Yin'tang not understand what Ninth Brother meant, given their tacit understanding?

Immediately, the person sitting there responsible for pouring wine for the two of them, Eighth Prince's wife and Princess Guo Luoluo were dumbfounded. Wait, wasn't it agreed that they would get the Tenth Prince drunk?

"Tenth Brother, why aren't you drinking?" The Eighth Prince's wife looked at Yin'e and reached out to pour him a bowl of wine.

“Eighth Brother, it’s not that I’m criticizing you, but when men discuss matters, you bring your wife here, especially when it comes to important state affairs. Father Emperor said that the empress and concubines are not allowed to interfere in politics, but he didn’t say that as a royal consort, she can interfere in state affairs. And you even brought her cousin here to listen…”

Yin'e was not polite at all. He was reckless to begin with. When he got close to the Eighth Brother before, it was only to get close to the Ninth Brother and he barely paid attention to the Eighth Brother.

Feelings? Hmph, no one's feelings are as deep as his and Ninth Brother's.

"..." Upon hearing Yin'e's words, the Eighth Prince's wife's expression turned somewhat unpleasant.

"Alright, Tenth Brother, perhaps Eighth Brother and Eighth Sister-in-law are too affectionate. It's getting late. Eighth Brother, let's get together again next time. Come over to my place for a get-together." Yinzhen also felt a bit bored. Was it so obvious that Eighth Brother thought he and Tenth Brother were fools?

In the past, he could have turned a blind eye and gone along with the myna bird's wishes without a care.

After returning, he pretended that nothing had happened and instructed his subordinates that they no longer needed to send dividends to the Eighth Prince. Then, the Ninth Prince's wedding day arrived.

The eldest, third, and fourth sons have already moved out of the palace one after another. The fifth son's residence is still almost finished, but everyone still came early.

A day earlier, the three chubby little boys, Hongyang, Hongxuan, and Hongtun, had already been brought over to roll around on the wedding bed. Now, they are not only craving the legitimate son, but also the legitimate son of triplets.

The three chubby little ones are only a year and a half old, the perfect age to learn to speak in their babyish, innocent voices, and they're just the most adorable.

The princes were all eager to have one, especially the third prince who had lost a son and the fourth prince who had never had a son...

Oh... and there's also Yinti, who hasn't yet given birth to a legitimate son. The three-year period has passed, and he's now working incredibly hard to cultivate his own legitimate son.

"Come here, let your uncle give you a hug." He immediately took away... Hongtun, who looked just like the Emperor.

There was nothing he could do. Hongyang resembled the eldest son, and Hongxuan resembled the Crown Princess. Sigh... In fact, he wanted to have a legitimate son who resembled him, but there was no such auspicious sign for him to share.

Hearing Yinti's absurd idea, Yinreng accidentally stomped on his foot as he passed by.

Yinti let out a roar, his eyes wide with anger, and shouted at him, "Yinreng!"

Yinreng looked at him coldly. If he didn't know that Yinti had no such intentions, Yinreng, who was prone to acting impulsively for a woman, would have punched that big brat Yinti in the face.

"Hongyang, come on, roll around one more time." Yinzhen looked at the three adorable cubs with a grin, hoping that his future legitimate son would also be so cute, chubby, and just like him.

"Hongxuan, let your tenth uncle hug you. Your tenth uncle loves Hongxuan the most. Does Hongxuan like your tenth uncle?" I want to share in the joy of the triplets and hope that I can also have three legitimate sons in one birth in the future.

No, no, no, it's not enough for just me to share in the joy; the Princess Consort must come too.

Why not say "concubine" or "princess"? Isn't that insulting? This is the Crown Prince's legitimate son and the Crown Princess's precious grandson. What does he have to do with those concubines?

"I like it." Little Hongxuan nodded with his babyish voice, his chubby little body buried in his tenth uncle's arms, his little hands holding the cakes his tenth uncle had given him, slowly munching on them.

"Haha, tenth brother, you cheated! Come here, it's my turn to hug you." The third brother was also eyeing the triplets. If his own Hongqing weren't busy, he probably would...

"Let me hold her." The fourth son reached out and snatched her away. He didn't even have a son yet. Last time, after Li got pregnant, she kept showing off and ended up eating and drinking too much... which caused her to miscarry.

The fourth prince had considered the possibility that his wife might have done something to cause Li's unborn child to miscarry.

However, after investigating, it turned out that Li herself hadn't paid attention, even though the Fujin (wife of the emperor) had reminded her that there were some things she shouldn't eat.

As a result, Lady Li thought that the Fujin (principal wife) wanted to harm her, and she refused to accept the doctor the Fujin had invited, fearing that the doctor was there to harm her. She avoided the doctor and ate those so-called secret formulas for conceiving a child, guaranteeing that the child she was pregnant with would be a boy.

It almost drove Yinzhen crazy. Now, Lady Li has been neglected. With such a brainless mother, even if she gives birth to a son, he will be a brainless son.

Yinzhi looked at the three chubby little boys who were being snatched up and felt a little envious, but he wasn't as anxious as his older brothers.

He is still young, but he doesn't want to have children yet (referring to with other princesses). He only wants to have a legitimate son, a son of noble status.

(End of this chapter)