Chapter Eleven

Is palace intrigue interesting? The Fourth Princess looked at Consort Chun, who stood before her with a gentle smile. The Fifth Princess took a few steps back and stood behind the Fourth Princess. Why did she find Consort Chun's smile so terrifying?

Consort Chun looked at the two princesses who could make the Emperor feel guilty. Which princess in the palace had ever received such favor from the Emperor? Weren't they afraid of shortening their lifespan?

The Fourth Princess sized up Consort Chun. She was a pitiful woman, wasn't she? Ignoring her real rival—was that position really that alluring? She should have thought more about her son's future. Instead of seeking revenge for the one who harmed her son, she… The Fourth Princess shook her head inwardly. These women in the palace didn't deserve to be mothers. "Greetings, Consort Chun. My sister and I are going to pay our respects to Grandmother Empress. Are you sending us there, Consort Chun?"

"As it happens, I was thinking of borrowing a scripture from the Empress Dowager."

"Consort Chun should take a look." The Fourth Princess looked directly at Consort Chun with a smile. Why was it that every time she heard the word "this Empress," she would think of—"To practice this skill, one must first castrate oneself. Even if one castrates oneself, success is not guaranteed. One can succeed without castration." The joke of those three pages of magical martial arts manual.

Consort Chun's eyes flashed with a sharp glint as she listened to the Fourth Princess's words. Was she mocking her?

Fourth Princess didn't mean to mock Consort Chun; her words were simply following Consort Chun's lead. However, she unintentionally touched a nerve. Fifth Princess, who had been watching Consort Chun's expression closely, saw a flash of sharpness in Consort Chun's eyes, while her face remained gentle. This frightened Fifth Princess, who shrank back even further. Her sister was right; a seemingly gentle person isn't necessarily a good one.

Unbeknownst to Consort Chun, she indirectly taught the Fifth Princess a lesson, making the Fifth Princess even more obedient to her sister's words.

~

Upon entering the Cining Palace, the Fourth and Fifth Princesses greeted the Empress Dowager and then tremblingly ran to her side. Although the Fifth Princess was somewhat afraid of the Empress Dowager's face, the live lecture from Consort Chun had deeply educated her, and she was no longer so afraid of the Empress Dowager's stern expression. Moreover, they had been doing this every day for the past few days, and although the Empress Dowager hadn't given them a smile, she hadn't turned them away either. The Fourth Princess, however, didn't think as much as the Fifth Princess. She thought simply: no matter how serious or mean the old lady was, she couldn't be mean to her grandchildren who were pretending to be cute. So she had the Fifth Princess pretend to be cute to deal with this old lady whom Xiao Yanzi called an old witch.

The Empress Dowager had recently grown increasingly fond of her two granddaughters. They wore identical clothes, wore the same expressions, and had the same large, expectant eyes. The more the Empress Dowager looked at them, the more she liked them, but she couldn't easily let her guard down. After the two children ran over, the Empress Dowager immediately noticed that one of her granddaughters looked different than usual. She wondered if someone had bullied her granddaughter.

"Your Majesty, I have a request that I cannot make." Consort Chun had not originally intended to borrow the Buddhist scriptures, but since she had asked the two princesses, she worried that if she didn't speak up, the princesses might say something to the Empress Dowager, and the Empress Dowager might think she was causing trouble for the two princesses. Although she felt that the Empress Dowager didn't seem to have a good impression of the two princesses, she didn't want to leave any evidence against her.

The Empress Dowager looked up at Consort Chun. Why was Consort Chun with her two granddaughters? Just now, when Consort Chun was speaking, the Empress Dowager clearly felt one of her granddaughters glance cautiously at Consort Chun and then tighten her grip on her own hand. Could Consort Chun be causing trouble for her two granddaughters? Or are these two children…? “What is it that you don’t want me to ask? Tell me, how can I help you?”

Consort Chun then directly addressed the matter of borrowing the scriptures, but she was quite adept at finding excuses, saying that she had dreamt of Princess Hejing the previous night.

Upon hearing that it was for the sake of harmony and respect, the Empress Dowager instructed Qing'er to fetch a Buddhist scripture and also rewarded Consort Chun with some gifts.

Fifth Princess's big eyes darted around. Consort Chun was a bad person. Yesterday, the Empress Dowager told the Emperor Father to bring Sister Hejing back, and today Consort Chun used Sister Hejing as an excuse to ask for things from Grandmother.

Although Consort Chun failed to win over the two princesses, she did receive a reward from the Empress Dowager, as the Emperor was a filial son and listened to the Empress Dowager quite a bit. Unbeknownst to Consort Chun, after she left, the Fifth Princess spoke ill of her to the Empress Dowager.

"Grandma, does Mother not want Sister Hejing to come back?" Fifth Princess asked the Empress Dowager earnestly.

"Why do you say that?" The Empress Dowager leaned back on the soft couch, looking at her granddaughter who had spoken. These two granddaughters were being cared for by the Empress… she couldn't even tell which was the older one and which was the younger. Why did the Empress dress them in the same clothes, give them the same handkerchiefs, and comb their hair in the same way? These two maids even looked exactly alike, and their voices were identical.

"This morning, the Empress Dowager said that Sister Hejing would be coming back for the New Year. Mother Consort was there at the time. Now she's saying she's worried that Sister Hejing is suffering in Mongolia. Is Mongolia really that bad, Grandmother? Why would Sister Hejing be suffering there? Is anyone bullying her?" After saying this, Fifth Princess blinked her big eyes, which were full of doubt.

The Fourth Princess wondered why Ziwei was talking so much today. What had Consort Chun done to her?

The Empress Dowager had heard from the Empress that the Emperor was going to bring Hejing back for the New Year. She hadn't paid attention at first, but now that her granddaughter had reminded her, the Empress Dowager also felt that Consort Chun's motives were not very good.

Having served the Empress Dowager for many years, Qing'er secretly memorized the princess's words, intending to pass them on to Consort Ling later—that gentle lady who resembled her mother. In the Cining Palace, she held a high position, but she knew her status was inferior to these true princesses. Which other lady would treat her well? Only Consort Ling was kind to her, often thinking of sending her gifts. She knew people should repay kindness, so she would secretly relay what the other ladies had said to Consort Ling. Of course, this was on the condition that Consort Ling wouldn't harm the Empress Dowager. But Qing'er was unaware that her actions had already hurt the Empress Dowager's feelings.

"Mongolia! Grandma has never been there, but I've heard that there are grasslands, cattle, sheep, and fine horses there. In Mongolia, everyone, young and old, can ride horses; it's a place that has produced many warriors." The Empress Dowager thought about the information about Mongolia in her mind, patting her two granddaughters' hands.

"The Empress Dowager's description is so beautiful, Qing'er can't help but want to go there herself."

The Fourth Princess looked at Qing'er. This Qing'er was truly extraordinary. She had always felt this Qing'er was far from simple when watching the television series; seemingly helping everyone, yet secretly belittling the Empress to nothing, and ultimately running off with a wandering swordsman. She really wanted to know, what could Qing'er do without her wealth and status? Could she really go tea picking with someone? Would Qing'er, whose youth had been wasted on hard labor, still elicit the words of that wandering swordsman, "Suddenly turning around, I find her where the lights are dim"?

The Empress Dowager looked at Qing'er. She was aware of Qing'er's little actions, but she didn't want to point them out. She didn't expect Qing'er to become so bold. Since she wanted to go to Mongolia, she could grant her wish.

~~~~

Back at Kunning Palace, the Fourth Princess asked the Fifth Princess, "Sister, why did you say those things in front of Grandmother?"

"Can't I say that? Then I won't say it next time." Fifth Princess lowered her head. She had forgotten that her sister had said that the palace was not like home, and that one could not say just anything.

The Fourth Princess shook her head at the Fifth Princess's expression. "Think before you speak next time. What if there are Consort Chun's spies around Grandmother?"

"I just asked about something I couldn't figure out."

"You can come back and ask me. Next time you see Consort Chun, if you're alone, just go around her and don't let her bully you."

Fifth Princess nodded as if she understood, "Sister, that Qing'er is so annoying. She always interrupts when we talk to Grandma Huang."

"If fate had been on your side, you and she would have been rivals in love, yet you ended up as friends." The Fourth Princess couldn't help but grumble to herself. But looking at Ziwei now, could this really become the kind of person who would abandon her dignity for love a few years from now? The Fourth Princess shuddered. She quickly began to discipline her, making sure she didn't grow up to be someone who constantly said things like, "You're not kind, you're not noble, you're not benevolent, you're not..." "You can't say things like that carelessly. Qing'er was raised by Grandmother Empress. If she heard you say that, she would be heartbroken and say you can't tolerate others."

Fifth Princess covered her mouth with a handkerchief, "I won't say anything more."

~~~

"What are you talking about?" The Fourth Princess stood in front of the main hall of Kunning Palace, looking at a very tall pine tree. Suddenly, she heard something about the Crescent Moon Princess and the Prince. The Fourth Princess's lips twitched, and she prayed in her heart that it was not what she thought, not what she thought.

"Your Highness, Princess Xinyue and Prince Beileke from the Duan Prince's Mansion have come to the palace to pay their respects to the Emperor." The palace maids who had been discussing this immediately stood up to greet the Fourth Princess and add their words.

"Who else came with you?" Fourth Princess was curious about how old New Moon Princess was.

"Also accompanying us is Princess Lanxin, who has been adopted as a goddaughter by the Empress. Princess Lanxin's father died in battle last month while defending the border."

OMG, she thought this was just the world of Huan Zhu Ge Ge, but unexpectedly, Xin Yue and Lan Xin appeared! Oh my god! Someone, please chop her up! "How dare you! How can you call a princess her given name so casually?"

"Your servants know their crime!" The palace maids immediately knelt down and begged for forgiveness from the Fourth Princess. They had just spoken so casually that they had momentarily forgotten that the person in front of them was their mistress.

Turning around, Fourth Princess decided to go see how old Lanxin Princess was.

"Sister, what's wrong? Why are you so angry?" Fifth Princess came out looking for Fourth Princess. She had just seen the Empress Dowager holding a little girl in the main room. The Empress Dowager said that the girl's parents had been killed on the battlefield... Father Emperor, out of compassion for the meritorious officials, decided to entrust his adopted daughter to the Empress Dowager's care. She had just come out to find her sister when she heard her sister's angry voice.

Fourth Princess looked at her younger sister, hesitating whether to take the opportunity to teach her a lesson, but then decided against it. "You may all rise! Go find the steward to receive your punishment." Fourth Princess looked at her sister, expecting Ziwei to stop her, but Ziwei didn't even ask. "Sister, let's go in! Mother is waiting for us!"