"Your Highness, it's Lady Yan..."
“Embroider the book!” Princess Jiahua interrupted Miss Xu’s words.
Xiu Shu pushed open the door and came in.
"Take Miss Xu downstairs to wash up again."
Xiu Shu glanced at Miss Xu, who had fallen to the ground, helped her up, and took her out.
Princess Jiahua did not want to know the details from Miss Xu's mouth. After a moment, Xiushu turned back and said, "Miss Xu washed up and said she had something to do before leaving."
“My lady, I can smell the incense from Fengyi Palace on Miss Xu.”
Princess Jia Hua didn't expose her. She had sensed it as soon as Miss Xu entered the room. She held a scroll in her hand and flipped through it absentmindedly.
Seeing this, Xiu Shu didn't dare to disturb them and silently waited to the side.
...
Phoenix Palace
"Your Highness, this servant saw with her own eyes that Miss Xu came out of the Seventh Prince's residence, and her eyes were still red when she came out," a palace maid reported.
Empress Yan raised her eyebrows: "You convinced Zhao Jiahua in just half an hour?"
"Perhaps, Miss Xu is a smart person. If she were to reveal that the Seventh Prince's Consort was the mastermind, the Seventh Prince's Consort would definitely be branded with a bad reputation. Perhaps the Seventh Prince's Consort is afraid."
The master and servant chatted idly for a while.
Just then, the Third Prince's Consort entered the room carrying a book of scriptures. She only slept for two hours a day and copied the scriptures for ten days to reach a thousand copies.
She stepped unsteadily across the threshold.
She heard what was said earlier, but she kept her head down, pretending not to hear anything.
"Third Prince's wife, why do you look so haggard?" Empress Yan gave a wink to a palace maid, who immediately helped the Third Prince's wife to sit down and poured her a cup of tea.
The Third Prince's wife accepted the document with a smile: "After today, the palace gates should be open. If I don't go back for a month, I don't know what kind of mess the house will be in. So, hurry up and finish copying the scriptures."
Empress Yan stared intently at the Third Prince's Consort, trying to read something from her face. She felt that the Third Prince's Consort seemed to have become a different person after that day.
"Third daughter-in-law, you're not blaming me, are you?" Empress Yan asked with a half-smile.
The Third Prince's Consort quickly waved her hand: "How could that be? I know Your Highness has had a hard time, and you are only thinking of the Third Prince's residence. I am grateful to you. Your Highness is overthinking it."
Seeing that she showed no resentment, Empress Yan breathed a sigh of relief: "I'm sorry to have troubled you. It's been quite a while since I've seen the young prince. You are a blessed person, with two daughters and a son."
The Third Prince's wife was on tenterhooks, unsure of Empress Yan's true intentions.
At this moment, a palace maid said, "On the day the young prince was one month old, Her Majesty returned and praised the young prince for being so beautiful and lovable. You spend most of your time in Fengyi Palace, which is quite boring. If you really like the young prince, why not bring him here and raise him under your care?"
The Third Prince's wife was shocked and quickly explained, "The child is still young and at an age where he cries and fusses. How could we dare to disturb Your Majesty's peace and quiet?"
"I'm not old enough to be seeking peace and quiet. There's no need for formalities between us. Send the young prince over later so I can take care of him for a while." Empress Yan smiled gently and untied a fine piece of white jade from her waist. "This was carved by a master craftsman when I was born. I'm giving it to the young prince today, hoping he will be safe, healthy, and successful in the future."
They didn't give the Third Prince's wife a chance to refuse.
"This..." Under Empress Yan's piercing gaze, the Third Prince's wife had no choice but to nod in agreement: "It is his good fortune that Your Majesty likes him."
Empress Yan's smile deepened: "Don't worry, although I have no experience in childbirth, there are plenty of skilled nurses in the palace who can take good care of people. I will definitely raise the little prince well."
Upon hearing this, the Third Prince's wife couldn't even manage a smile, and gave a perfunctory reply with a dazed expression.
Empress Yan then changed the subject and asked, "Miss Xu wishes to become the Seventh Prince's concubine. I will bestow this marriage upon her. What do you think?"
The Third Prince's wife lowered her eyes: "I'm afraid the Seventh Prince might not agree."
The Seventh Prince is not so easy to talk to, and Princess Jiahua is no pushover either. Neither of them is easy to deal with, so this plan simply won't work.
“I am his legal mother. Marriage is a major event that should be decided by parents and matchmakers. Besides, the seventh prince’s wife cannot conceive again for three to five years. The seventh prince is not young either. For the sake of offspring, what reason does he have to disagree?”
Empress Yan was deliberately trying to disgust Princess Jia Hua.
She refused to believe that Princess Jia Hua could remain indifferent just because there was another person in the household.
“To refuse this marriage is to be unfilial!” Empress Yan smiled faintly. “If he defies the imperial decree to marry him, where will Lord Xu put his face?”
Whether this matter succeeds or not, it will only benefit her and not harm her.
The Third Prince's wife fell silent upon hearing this.
I always felt that this matter was not as simple as I imagined.
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