The eldest princess was given such a stern lecture that she dared not utter another word of disrespect. Consort De immediately ordered her to be confined to her quarters for three days to recover from her injuries. She also ordered a copy of all the rules Consort De had recited that day.
"Your Highness, the eldest princess is still crying." The servant was exasperated; she had been crying for ages.
"Let her cry if she wants to. What can I do? How can I stop her from crying if I love her? What? Do I have to apologize to her and coax her? If I really do that, how will I manage her in the future?" Consort De ate the pastries sent by the imperial kitchen, quite leisurely.
"Here, this is quite delicious. Give it to her. If she likes it, she'll definitely stop crying." Consort De pushed the pastries next to her hand away.
"I've never raised a child before, so I don't know anything about these things. If she keeps crying, just tell her that I'm going to discipline her later, and she'll definitely stop." Consort De picked up another piece of pastry.
However, it must be said that it was quite effective. After eating something delicious, the eldest princess indeed calmed down a lot, truly just like a little child.
"Does Your Highness not like the eldest princess?" Wenxi, the personal maid of Consort De, asked as she poured tea for Consort De.
"It's not my child, why should I like it? And that Consort Yang, I've never liked her. I remember clearly how she used to bully others because of her pregnancy, but now she's getting her comeuppance." Consort De's face showed neither joy nor anger.
"But... do you think he's stupid? Why did he go and cause trouble with Prince An?" Consort De asked, with an expression that said, "How could that person be so foolish?"
"Perhaps they think Consort Shu is easy to bully, and they thought His Majesty treated her the same as before," Wenxi replied.
"Tsk, His Majesty, what a sudden change! He's been far too lenient with Nan Zhiyun. She's gotten so arrogant, she's practically climbing all over me." Consort De said, still looking indignant.
Wenxi found it somewhat amusing: "Why is Your Highness angry? It's not worth ruining your health. Even if Consort Shu is favored, she still has no children, but Your Highness now has a princess."
“He has no children, but she is favored now, and she will have children sooner or later. As for the eldest princess…” Consort De was genuinely disgusted.
"Can I rely on her? Look at the state she's in now! In my opinion, it would be good if she didn't hate me, anger me, or oppose me in the future." Consort De had no intention of relying on a child; it would be a miracle if she could.
"Forget it, I can't be bothered with her anymore. Go and tell your servants to find a female physician to examine her injuries. I don't have time to deal with her right now; I have an appointment with the Imperial Concubine." Consort De was too lazy to continue arguing.
"Yes..." Wenxi replied. Her mistress had been on good terms with the Imperial Concubine since childhood. Well... she didn't know whether she should say they were good, since her mistress's mouth was a bit... well, she kept chattering, which earned her a lot of eye-rolls from the Imperial Concubine.
That evening, news of Consort De disciplining the eldest princess reached Yu Jingchen's ears, as did Nan Zhiyun, since Yu Jingchen had spent the entire afternoon with Nan Zhiyun.
Nan Zhiyun thought Yu Jingchen would be angry after hearing this. After all, Consort De was not the eldest princess's biological mother, but she was so ruthless. And this happened on the very first day. What would happen in the future?
Little did anyone know that Yu Jingchen simply said casually, "It really needs to be taken care of."
Nan Zhiyun: "???" What kind of talk is this? But even if she wanted to discipline her, wasn't this a bit too harsh? After all, the eldest princess is only six years old, still a girl. Being hit with a ruler almost a hundred times, she'll probably be unable to move for several days. Consort De isn't her biological mother, so treating the eldest princess like this will definitely cause controversy.
"Can't understand?" Yu Jingchen could tell what Nan Zhiyun was thinking just by looking at her expression.
"I don't quite understand," Nan Zhiyun said honestly.
"You may not have seen the eldest princess in her current state. Although I rarely see them, I still know some of their daily activities. The eldest princess... is an eyesore." Yu Jingchen's tone was still gentle, but it inexplicably sent a chill down one's spine.
However, these things certainly existed, because in her previous life, the eldest princess was arrogant, unreasonable, willful, and lawless, abusing her status and acting recklessly. She also treated human life as worthless and was cruel in her methods.
It's a good thing that someone can keep her in check now, so he naturally won't interfere. If it were him, what would these punishments be? He would only be more ruthless. As a princess of a nation, she should naturally act like one.
Nan Zhiyun listened without saying a word. When she was little, everyone doted on her and she never suffered any punishment, let alone being beaten. So she felt that it was wrong to treat a little girl like that.
The child is still young and can be taught properly. If she's subjected to too much hardship, it might not be good for her future, and leaving her with lasting trauma would be even more of a loss. As a mother, it's best to show her more care and concern. If you're always strict and authoritarian, the child might feel that their mother doesn't care about them and won't feel close to them, or even dare to be close to them.
"What is Yun'er thinking about again?" Yu Jingchen asked, seeing Nan Zhiyun standing there in a daze.
"It's nothing." Nan Zhiyun lowered her head and gently placed her hand on her lower abdomen. Her movement was small, but Yu Jingchen still noticed it.
Remembering what he had said to her last time, Yu Jingchen's heart ached. He reached out and put his arm around Nan Zhiyun from behind, then took her hand that was resting on her lower abdomen.
“Nan Zhiyun…” Yu Jingchen called her by her full name.
Nan Zhiyun's heart trembled slightly.
"It will happen, okay?" Yu Jingchen was worried, afraid that this matter would become a knot in Nan Zhiyun's heart.
"It was all my fault before. You can be angry, but don't keep it inside." Yu Jingchen felt a pang of pain in his heart.
"Your Majesty, why can't I have my own children..." Nan Zhiyun's voice was low and somewhat disappointed.
"It's not that it can't happen, it will happen, okay? I made mistakes before because I was bad." Yu Jingchen hugged Nan Zhiyun in his arms.
Nan Zhiyun did not answer him. She used to have dreams where a child's voice called her "mother"... She didn't know what it meant, but she always felt sad along with it.
“If Yun’er likes children, we can have them too, okay? Let’s take it slow. Your health isn’t good right now, so it’s not suitable for you to have a baby, but once you’ve recovered, you can have one if you want. Okay? Let’s wait a little longer,” Yu Jingchen continued.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
