Actually, there was nothing wrong with arranging for a princess; everyone does it this way. However, He Zhuo didn't want to increase Nalan's stake. First of all, confining a princess wouldn't work, but Nalan became a foster mother, which inexplicably raised her status.

Consort Fan has twins, and Lady Wuya is Consort De's niece. Neither of them is suitable, and besides, they don't want to be raised in the Zhilan Courtyard so they can visit each other. If they were to be raised in the Consort's Courtyard, according to the rules of the Qing Dynasty, they would become the adopted children of the Consort. They don't want to be used for someone else's benefit.

This Lady Uya also harbored lofty ambitions, wanting to become a concubine.

In fact, Princess Guan was not very willing either. She was clear-headed and knew the taboos of the Fujin. She preferred that the Fourth Prince be raised in the front courtyard as it was now. She was worried that if he was raised in the side Fujin's presence, the side Fujin would have a son and it would be bad for her Fourth Prince. In addition, raising him in the side Fujin's presence would make him a thorn in the side of the Fujin and the three princes in the mansion.

Princess Xitala wanted to live in the concubine's courtyard, but Hezhuo wouldn't allow it, nor would Yinzhi. After years of training by Hezhuo, Yinzhi knew the importance of maintaining a balance and stability in the inner court. Both of them were Manchus, and the Xitala clan also had a certain influence in the army. What would they do if they joined forces? To deal with the primary wife or the prince's legitimate son?

That's right, the eldest son!

Because he was the eldest son born of a concubine, Yinzhi valued the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children much more than ordinary Manchus. Furthermore, his three sons born to his wife were all intelligent, adorable, filial, and sensible, and he was with them daily, naturally developing a deep bond with them. He did not allow his illegitimate children to surpass his legitimate children, thus causing chaos in the household.

This is a classic case of "the magistrate is allowed to set fires, but the common people are forbidden to light lamps."

The reason why Yinzhi made the women in the inner palace drink contraceptive soup for so long was not only because everyone in the inner palace was either a Han Chinese bannerman or a bondservant, and his wife was very much to his liking, but also because he wanted to widen the age gap between his legitimate son and his illegitimate son.

When Yinzhi learned that Princess Wuya was pregnant again, he knocked over his teacup.

He was shocked because he felt guilty about Wuya Gege's miscarriage, so he had dinner with her twice and stayed overnight twice. But she got pregnant after just those two times. That's incredibly lucky.

A complex mix of emotions—joy, guilt, and doubt—flashed across Yinzhi's eyes before settling into calm. He dispatched a servant with a reward for the princess's pregnancy, and then...he didn't care anymore.

These rewards were all decided when Hezhuo was in the palace, and Yinzhi, his head nanny, and the women in Yinzhi's original harem were all used to it.

What rewards are given to a princess when she is pregnant, and what rewards are given to a concubine when she is pregnant?

What rewards were given to princesses when they gave birth, concubines when they gave birth, the baby on the third day after birth, the baby at the full moon celebration, and the baby on the first birthday?

What gifts should a princess and a concubine give upon entering the mansion?

He Zhuo set a fixed rule, which essentially established a precedent that is quite difficult to break.

This is also why He Zhuo's harem was more stable than the harems of other princes' wives; there was nothing to compare them to, as everyone was in the same boat.

The constant comparisons always caused some trouble, so He Zhuo was too lazy to put effort into the backyard and had already made the rules from the beginning. The head nanny was an impartial person, and Yin Zhi had been indoctrinated and trained by her for so many years. In addition, he had indeed found that his wife was handling things this way, so there was no conflict in the backyard.

At first, Yinzhi did not realize the benefits, but later, with the Crown Prince, the Third Prince, and the Fourth Prince as comparisons, the advantages of Hezhuo's actions became apparent.

Just as Hezhuo had expected, Yinzhi bestowed the pregnant Princess Wuya as a reward and then ignored her completely. He knew that the people in the inner court had no good intentions towards Princess Wuya, and that the Fujin (principal wife) did not like her either. He did not send anyone to protect her child and left her to fend for herself.

How could Princess Wuya handle the entire backyard by herself? After struggling to cope for a month, her pregnancy was already unstable. With all this harassment, she discovered that there was something cold in her food and started eating poorly, which led to her miscarriage.

Actually, the cold food was prepared by Consort Nalan. He Zhuo would not allow people in the inner courtyard to bribe the kitchen staff. Nalan's position was not yet secure, so he simply prepared some slightly cold food, without directly harming her.

Therefore, this was Wuya Gege's own problem; she couldn't protect the child. Her allowance remained the same as in the palace, coming from the head matron of the front courtyard, and had nothing to do with Hezhuo Ke. Consort Hui in the palace also didn't want the child.

So when He Zhuo went to the palace to tell Consort Hui about this sad matter, Consort Hui just sighed twice, and the matter was over.

There wasn't even a ripple in the backyard. Yinzhi did visit Princess Uya twice after her confinement period, perhaps out of some guilt, since it was his own child, and Yinzhi was always good to the child. However, to have a spy father a spy's child involves political matters, not just a matter of the backyard. Hezhuo estimated that Yinzhi would treat this person well from now on, but would never touch her again, just like with Princess Li.