Chapter 159 People’s hearts are in turmoil, how can we deal with this?

After the Queen Mother finished scolding Concubine Shu, her gaze fell on Zheng Suining, then moved on to Cui Linghui. She said calmly, "You should know your status. It's best not to follow me into the palace in the future. If one day you become a mother of honor because of your son, I will naturally give you the respect you deserve."

Cui Linghui never expected that the Queen Mother would say these words. Compared with the scolding and torture from Concubine Shu, the Queen Mother's few words, which emphasized that a mother's status as a son can earn her the dignity she deserves, made Cui Linghui feel ashamed and embarrassed.

She suppressed her embarrassment and respectfully agreed, "Yes, I will follow the Queen Mother's instructions."

Looking at Cui Linghui's slightly pale face, the Queen Mother showed no sympathy. She simply placed the teacup in her hand on the table and said with a hint of fatigue, "Alright, I'm a little tired after talking for so long. Concubine Shu, please take your people and leave."

The Empress Dowager ordered them to leave. Concubine Shu was unhappy, but she did not dare to show any of her dissatisfaction. She could only respond with "yes" and leave with Zheng Suining and Cui Linghui.

The Empress Dowager watched them leave before turning to Cui Lingyan and saying, "I've heard everything that happened at Ze'er's wedding banquet. My dear child, if you encounter something like this in the future, just fight back and don't worry about who else's face is. Not to mention that Shupin is only a concubine now, even if she were a noble concubine, she wouldn't have much face in the eyes of the Emperor. You are Bingzhi's wife, and if you are bullied, Bingzhi won't have much face either. You need to be brave so others don't bully you."

Cui Lingyan nodded and said, "Yes, my granddaughter-in-law knows."

The Empress Dowager nodded and said to Lu Bingzhi, "Ask Yan to accompany me for dinner in the Cining Palace. Go and pay your respects to your uncle. If your uncle wants to keep you, have dinner in the Qinzheng Palace and then come back to pick up Yan."

After hearing this, Lu Bingzhi nodded in agreement, glanced at Cui Lingyan, and then stood up and walked out of the hall.

Cui Lingyan watched him go out and didn't take her eyes off the door for a long time.

Seeing her like this, the Queen Mother couldn't help but laugh and said, "You and Bingzhi are together all day long, yet you still miss him so much. Can't you leave him even for a moment?"

The Queen Mother's joke immediately made Cui Lingyan's cheeks blush. She didn't know how to respond to the Queen Mother's words, so she could only lower her eyebrows slightly and act shy.

The Queen Mother smiled and suddenly changed the subject, asking, "I heard that the marriage between Pei An from the Dingguo Mansion and Lu Danyan from the second house has been finalized. You get along well with He and Lu Danyan. Do you know their personalities?"

The Queen Mother's question was a testament to her curiosity. Cui Lingyan was no fool; she could tell she was worried about her granddaughter, Chun'an. Even though Chun'an was a princess, she hadn't conceived in years of marriage, and even the Queen Mother couldn't help but worry.

Cui Lingyan thought for a moment and said, "Second Aunt and Sister Yan are both smart people, and smart people shouldn't do stupid things easily. Besides, sometimes the key is not what others think, but what Duke Dingguo thinks. I heard that Duke Dingguo loves the princess deeply and has never thought of taking a concubine. If that is true, he would not have thought of hurting the princess's feelings by adopting her."

The Queen Mother knew that she was intelligent and insightful, and she was not surprised at all when she heard her words. She sighed softly and said, "He has treated Chun'an well over the years, but a man's deep affection can change at any time. Chun'an has no children, which always makes people feel uneasy, not to mention the old lady of the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion. The Emperor is in good health now and has always been indulgent and protective of Chun'an, but I have to be honest, the Emperor can't sit on that chair forever. There will always be a day when people leave. Who will protect Chun'an then? Chun'an's personality makes him not very close to the other princes, and he has a grudge against his younger brother Xiao Ze since childhood. There are some things that I don't need to tell you, but you must know some of them. If the eldest prince sat on that throne, it would be better, but if it was the second prince, once he was in that position, there is no telling what Chun'an would end up like. By then, there will be no way to compensate for the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion. Given Chun'an's temper, he may not want to implicate the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion."

Cui Lingyan hadn't expected the Queen Mother to confide in her, so she could only offer comfort. "The princess has her own destiny. Besides, the Queen Mother and the Emperor are both in good health now, and they can naturally protect her. Although my granddaughter-in-law only wanted to spend a few times with the princess, she's seen that she's not someone who can be easily bullied, and she might not take those rumors to heart. Duke Dingguo hasn't taken a concubine in all these years, and he often accompanies the princess to Huang'en Temple to worship Buddha. I think there's a lot of trust and tacit understanding between the couple. If you, the Queen Mother, worry too much about this, the princess will be upset when you know. Instead of worrying about the future, it's better to focus on the present. Who knows, things might turn around, and the princess might get pregnant?"

Cui Lingyan's words were sincere, and after hearing them, the empress dowager liked and loved her even more.

The Queen Mother smiled and nodded. "I've lived to such an old age, yet I still have to ask a junior like you to comfort me. However, you're right. Chun'an was able to ask Duke Dingguo to accompany him to Huang'en Temple, and now the two of them are living together in the Princess's Mansion. In fact, there is no need for me to worry. You are young, but you are very insightful and intelligent. No wonder Bingzhi cares so much about you."

Cui Lingyan's cheeks flushed slightly and she didn't respond.

The Queen Mother spoke to her for a while and then took her to the small Buddhist temple to worship Buddha.

Cui Lingyan helped the empress dowager copy a few Buddhist scriptures, and soon it was time for lunch.

The meals sent by the imperial kitchen were all from Jiangnan. Cui Lingyan dined with the empress dowager. The palace maids cleared the food from the table and served tea. While they were drinking tea, they heard footsteps outside. A palace maid came in and reported that the prince stayed in the Qinzheng Hall to dine with the emperor. She also reported that Concubine Shu had asked Zheng to stay with them for dinner, and asked Cui to leave the palace first and return to the second prince's residence.

The Queen Mother nodded: "I understand."

After the maids left, the Queen Mother addressed Cui Lingyan, "Ms. Zheng doesn't seem difficult to get along with. When we meet in the future, just treat her politely. As for your stepsister, since we don't have much sisterly affection, whether she's nice or not, just pretend you don't know her. Don't worry about what others say. My dislike for her isn't because I mind her current status as a concubine, but because I despise her character. She was clearly raised in the Marquis's mansion, but she can't handle the slightest bit of trouble. She has a narrow-minded nature. Even if she gives birth to a child, I don't think she'd be able to properly raise it. When the time comes, just raise the child under Ms. Zheng's name."

Cui Lingyan listened to the Queen Mother's words and nodded slightly.

In fact, she no longer cared about Cui Linghui. Even if Cui Linghui really used the prescription for having a child and became pregnant, and became Xiao Ze's concubine, she and the child would not necessarily have a good ending in the end.

If that's the case, why bother taking her to heart?

When the empress dowager saw Cui Lingyan's calm expression, without revealing any intention of watching a show or being happy, she was even more impressed. She felt that Cui Lingyan had not grown up in the marquis's mansion, and her temperament and demeanor had made her look down on her stepsister Cui Linghui. It had to be said that this child was kind-hearted by nature, and was a different person from Cui Linghui in her bones.

......

Anyang Palace

"Your Majesty, Prince Lu went to the Qinzheng Palace to pay his respects. The Emperor summoned him and even invited him to dine with him."

After listening to the palace maid's report, Concubine Shu completely lost her appetite. She put the chopsticks in her hand heavily on the table, took the tea handed to her by the palace maid to rinse her mouth, and then stood up and walked towards the couch.

Zheng Suining followed him to the edge of the couch, lowered her head slightly and dared not say a word.

Shupin glanced at her and felt that Zheng was also a person without tact. Today, she was in trouble in the Cining Palace, and Zheng was so tongue-tied that she couldn't even say a word to comfort her. She just stayed with her mother-in-law like a mute person, which made people feel suffocated.

Concubine Shu wanted to explode, but then she thought about how Zheng had only been married to her son for a few days, and how the Kangshou Marquisate had been humiliated by her son. Her son disliked Zheng, and as a mother-in-law, she had to support her, lest others should see her as a laughing stock. With this in mind, she suppressed her irritation and waved her hand at Zheng, saying, "Alright, you've only just married into the family, and there are so many things you need to handle. Go back to your own affairs. You don't have to stay with me in the palace."

Zheng Shi's face showed some trepidation and nervousness when she heard her words. She glanced at Concubine Shu's expression and then replied with a "yes". She bowed and said, "I will take my leave. I will come to the palace to pay my respects to my mother another day."

After saying this, Zheng turned around and walked out.

When Concubine Shu saw her leave, her expression darkened completely. She said unhappily, "Before, Ze'er went to the Qinzheng Palace to pay his respects a few times, but the Emperor only saw him once. But when Lu Bingzhi came to the palace, the Emperor always asked him to stay and talk, and even invited him to dine with him. As a nephew, he is more like the Emperor's own son than the other princes like Ze'er. The Emperor is not afraid of disappointing Ze'er and the others."

Since Shupin lost her position as a noble concubine, she has lost the last bit of dignity she had in the palace. If she did not have the prince Xiao Ze, her situation in the harem would have been even more embarrassing because she had no favor and a low position.

Although the palace maids and nannies around her were still respectful, whenever Concubine Shu lost her temper, few dared to persuade her. Some even felt that working in Anyang Palace had no good future, and it would be better to find a way to change jobs, at least they wouldn't have to watch Concubine Shu's mood swings all day long.

Concubine Shu didn't sense the thoughts of the servants, but Nanny Duan, who had served Concubine Shu for so many years, could sense some of the unrest. She signaled for everyone in the palace to leave, then spoke to comfort them, "Your Majesty, why are you so angry? No matter what, Prince Lu will never surpass our Highness. Isn't the Emperor aware of the closeness between a son and a nephew? He is only doing this for the Empress Dowager's sake and to spare the late Princess Shuning."

"Your Highness, the most important thing to do right now is to persuade His Highness. If His Highness neglects Zheng, and word of their marital discord spreads, it won't look good. The Emperor might even think it's His Highness's fault. If His Highness can treat Zheng better and have her give birth to a grandson sooner, the Emperor, for the grandson's sake, won't be able to disregard His Highness. Don't let the eldest prince get ahead and give birth to the first grandson. I heard that the eldest prince's concubine, Xu, is about to give birth. I just hope it's a daughter. Otherwise, I don't know how the eldest prince will feel."

After hearing what Nanny Duan said, Concubine Shu's expression eased a little. Xiao Xuan already had two daughters, and if this baby was also a daughter, it would be really laughable.

If Zheng had become pregnant and given birth to a grandson earlier, the boy would have been able to gain some respect in front of the emperor.

Thinking this way, Concubine Shu suppressed her unhappiness and said, "Forget it, let them enjoy their glory for now. I don't believe Lu Bingzhi can continue to enjoy it forever. Ze'er can't stand him. Although Xiao Xuan has a gentle personality and doesn't show it at all, and even gets along well with Lu Bingzhi, in fact, he probably dislikes Lu Bingzhi for a long time. Which prince would like to see others show off in front of the emperor? It makes the princes look less important."

"The Third Prince is still young. I don't think he'd even have a chance of getting that position. Even if it's Xiao Xuan or my son Ze who ascends to that position, Lu Bingzhi won't end well. He's a minister, but he seems so arrogant and condescending that he actually asked me to kneel before him."

Nanny Duan opened her mouth, wanting to say something but she didn't. She knew what had happened in the Cining Palace. The Queen wasn't kneeling before Prince Lu and Consort Cui; she was clearly just apologizing to the Queen Mother.

The Empress felt it was awkward to apologize in front of the younger generation, so she took her anger out on him. In fact, there was no need for that. The Empress and His Highness acted like this, which made them appear intolerant. They couldn't even tolerate a cousin from another family. In the eyes of the Emperor and the Empress Dowager, they would only think that His Highness was a man without magnanimity.

Perhaps it was because he saw this clearly that the gifts bestowed by the Emperor on His Highness for his wedding were so conventional and did not surpass those given to the eldest prince in any way.

If she were to say, the emperor is in good health, and the empress always talks about that position, but it is actually too early.

If these thoughts could not be hidden and were seen by the emperor or even a word of them reached his ears, the queen and His Highness would probably be completely disgusted by the emperor.

Seeing her madam's expression soften, Nanny Duan was about to leave when she heard Concubine Shu say, "I simply cannot swallow this anger. I can't do anything to Chun'an and the others, so can't I also mess with Cui and Lu Bingzhi?"

Shupin waved to Madam Duan to come forward and whispered a few words in her ear.

As Nanny Duan listened, her expression grew increasingly serious. She spoke with a hint of uneasiness, "How can this be possible? His Highness had just poisoned the Crown Prince. If the Queen were to take action against Cui, and if this were to be discovered, the Emperor would..."

Before she could finish, Concubine Shu said, "I'm not ordering Cui to be poisoned. I'm just trying to make it harder for her to get pregnant. It's not that Lu Bingzhi treats her well, but I want to see if Cui's situation in the Duke of Wei's mansion will remain so good if she doesn't get pregnant."

"I heard that Lu Danruo and Cui Shi are at odds because Cui Shi, her sister-in-law, is still living in the Cen family. She's young and doesn't like Cui Shi, so she just goaded her into it."