Chapter 945: Reunion of Old Friends (Long Chapter)
"Report~ Concubine Wen has arrived~"
Following this announcement, the group of women gathered in the room automatically made way for them.
Wen Jiu was followed by a few children and greeted the people in the room.
"Concubine, you're here?" Nanny Fang came out and saw the wine being warmed. She immediately smiled and said, "The Empress Dowager is thinking of you. There are also several princes. Look, follow this old servant in quickly."
After saying that, he led the person into the house warmly.
"Mother, that...that's Little Four's wife? She was actually...born to look like this?" The one standing farther behind him was Little Sixteen's new wife, who was welcomed into the house this year. When she saw the warm wine for the first time, she was stunned for a moment.
The Eighteenth Lady beside him nodded vigorously: "Yes, she...she looks about the same age as us. I heard from Master that the Fourth Sister-in-law and Fourth Brother are about the same age, right? How could it be..."
The concubine beside her heard this and looked back at her daughters-in-law who were all grinning from ear to ear. A smile crossed her charming face. "This is your little fourth sister-in-law. She is incredibly beautiful, known throughout the palace. Your surprise is understandable. When you see her in the future, please treat her with respect and don't act like the legitimate wife. Especially you."
Wangpin said, taking the Eighteenth Lady's hand. "Back then, little Eighteenth followed the Emperor on the Mulan Autumn Hunt with several other princes. He was still very young then, but he fell seriously ill and passed away. If it weren't for your little Fourth Sister-in-law, there would be no Little Eighteenth today. Now, Eighteenth is in great health, and that's because he spent so much time with your Fourth Brother and his Sister-in-law when he was little. You must not let them down."
The Eighteenth Lady nodded immediately: "Don't worry, mother. I will keep this in mind."
The fifteenth and sixteenth ladies behind him also nodded immediately.
Even if mother didn't say anything, they wouldn't dare to be disrespectful.
Everyone knew by now that Prince Yong had long assumed the throne of Crown Prince. For the past two years, whenever the Emperor felt unwell, he simply skipped court and handed over all duties to the Fourth Prince. It was only a matter of time. Given the Fourth Prince's current status within Prince Yong's mansion, she could at most become a Noble Consort. It wasn't too late to get close to her.
In fact, the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Concubines had already begun to envy the Eighteenth Concubine.
I didn't know that the Eighteenth Master had such a connection with her when he was a child. They were so close since childhood. As the Eighteenth Lady, doesn't it mean that he can get close to the Fourth Lady with justification?
If nothing else, for the art of controlling a husband and the art of maintaining youthful appearance, anyone who could get even a few pointers from her would surely benefit greatly.
"Hmph, what a big deal. Those who know that Wenjiu is now a prince's concubine might think she is the empress dowager." Concubine Hui had been waiting for the whole morning, but still hadn't seen the empress dowager. Now, when Wenjiu entered the room, she followed him in to serve him. The children and relatives beside her could only watch helplessly, and she was immediately furious.
"Mother Hui, please be quiet." Seeing the looks from everyone around her, Eighth Lady reminded her softly, "The Queen Mother has always loved Little Fourth Sister-in-law the most. You know that."
"I just can't stand her ostentatious attitude. The Queen Mother loves her the most, but she doesn't seem to be very filial. She only showed up when she was sick all these days! I'm afraid she's wasting all her energy on her face. Look at the Queen Mother, she's still alluring and seductive like a vixen. What a heartless person."
"Mother." The Eighth Lady rubbed her forehead. "Little Fourth Sister-in-law looks like this already. She didn't even wear any hairpins or jewelry today, only some plain hairpins. How can she be like what you described? Besides, hasn't she just returned to the capital a few days ago? She needs to get some fresh air."
"Little Fourth Sister-in-law, Little Fourth Sister-in-law, you're calling me so affectionately, but do you think I'll even look at you?"
The Eighth Lady was almost about to spit out blood because of Concubine Hui's criticism.
I had to suppress it secretly.
At this moment, he missed his elder sister-in-law very much. If she were still alive, such a difficult task of persuading Concubine Hui would not be his.
"Why is Concubine Hui angry again? Poor Eighth Lady, she has lost a lot of weight these days with you. Poor child. Why don't you stop following your mother Concubine Hui and come with me to play? I'm going to visit Concubine De later. She will be happy to see you and I promise she won't scold you." Concubine Wang looked over and said with a smile.
"Wang Yue'e, you're going too far. Don't think that just because the Emperor favors you, you can act lawlessly. When will it be your turn to interfere in my affairs?"
When Concubine Hui saw Wang Pin, she was furious. This woman had been a tough character since she entered the palace. There were endless people vying for her favor, and she was also very good at pretending to be nice. It was harder than climbing to the sky to control her.
Almost all of the princes after the emperor were born from her womb.
Ever since the incident with Xiao Shiba, she and Concubine De have been at odds with each other.
She couldn't even take care of herself with the Virtuous Concubine, and now there was also the favored Wang Concubine. She must have been so angry over the years.
"Tsk tsk tsk, Sister Huifei, I was just talking to you nicely, why are you angry again? Jiu'er told me that being angry all the time makes you look older. Don't you look young enough?"
"Who are you calling old? Say it again?" Concubine Hui's hands were shaking with anger. "How shameless! You're a few years younger than Wen Jiu. Who knows what will happen when you're my age!"
As soon as the Eighth Lady saw this, she knew that Concubine Hui was going to be irritated.
The Concubine Mother hated being talked about inappropriately. Perhaps because she had gained weight over the years, she also had a stern face and never smiled, looking much older than the Emperor. She hated hearing such talk.
"Oh, if you hadn't told me, I would have forgotten that Jiu'er is actually older than me. Look, she smiles every day, which shows how much a smile nourishes a person. Come on, Concubine Hui, smile."
"Wang Yue'e!" Concubine Hui gritted her teeth in anger and rushed forward.
"Hahaha..." Wangpin was even more delighted: "Hurry up, hurry up, stop them, don't let Sister Huifei hurt me."
The Eighth Lady struggled to hold the person back: "Mother Hui, don't be angry. Anger is harmful to your health. Anger is harmful to your health."
After hearing what Princess Wang said, the fifteenth, sixteenth and eighteenth ladies around her also went to help pull the rope.
"Princess Hui, calm down."
The Eighth Lady, now supported, breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing the cheerful Wang Concubine, she smiled wryly and said, "Your Majesty, please be kind."
Just at this moment, I saw Nanny Fang coming out.
"My lords, the Queen Mother has woken up. Concubine Wen and Second Concubine will be in good hands. Please go back." Nanny Fang saw Concubine Hui's scowl and acted as if she saw nothing. She passed on the message and had everyone sent away.
"Wang Yue'e, we're not done yet!"
After leaving the house, Concubine Hui still glared at Concubine Wang with dissatisfaction.
The Eighth Lady rubbed her forehead and immediately made a gesture of praying to the gods and bowed to the princess.
Wangpin curled her lips and hugged Huifei's arm: "Sister, why are you angry? I just said something kind."
"Let me go!" Concubine Hui struggled desperately, but she was too old to break free.
"Sister, all these years, Daqiansui and Dafujin have been at the border, and you've always been under the care of the Fourth Prince. Have you forgotten? Moreover, five years ago, when the border was tight and Daqiansui was in the most difficult time, wasn't it the Fourth Prince who went against everyone's opinion and sent food and grass over? I also heard that a few years ago, in order to save Daqiansui, the Fourth Prince even sacrificed his own life. Daqiansui was also the first to rescue the Fourth Prince when he was in danger. We brothers only see each other, and that is a friendship that is worth risking our lives. How come you still don't understand?"
Concubine Hui frowned tightly: "What do you want to say?"
"Sister, your mind is as clear as a mirror, so don't pretend to be confused. Brothers have achieved this, so whoever sits on that position will have no effect? The Queen Mother is seriously ill now, even the Grand Prince and his wife, who are thousands of miles away, will come back. If you continue to act like this, how can your son and daughter-in-law hold their heads high? Think about it carefully."
After saying that, Wangpin adjusted the hairpin on her head and said, "Sister Rongfei, Sister Yifei, wait for me."
"Shall we go to Yonghe Palace to visit Consort De and Princess Wang?"
"That's natural."
"Wang Yue'e, don't think that today's matter is over!"
Behind him, Concubine Hui gritted her teeth and shouted again.
"What are you looking at? Go back to the palace quickly! My son is coming back soon. Do you think they are the only ones with sons?"
The Eighth Lady took a close look at Concubine Hui's expression. It was strange that she didn't seem angry at all today.
In fact, from the Eighth Lady's point of view, Concubine Hui was probably also aware of it, so she just said some unpleasant words over the years but did not do anything.
One night, she was seen secretly applying warm wine to Concubine De's face, and she also applied a thick layer of paste on her face. The next day, she broke out in several smallpox. After that, she became even angrier when she saw warm wine.
Fortunately, her sister-in-law was finally coming back. Her days were almost over.
...
"Uncle, aunt. Hongli has been ordered to come and pick you up."
By the time Prince Zhi and his wife returned from their day-and-night battles at the border, more than two months had passed and winter had already set in. Sanbao, wearing a white brocade robe and a scarlet cloak inlaid with white fox fur, looked like a beautiful woman.
"Oh my, this kid has grown so tall." Prince Zhi smiled and rubbed his shoulders: "Good boy."
"He's very handsome. At first glance, you can tell he's the child of Fourth Brother and Jiu'er." The eldest wife pulled Sanbao to look at him carefully and also laughed.
"Father is still busy in the palace and can't get away. Mother is pregnant and very heavy. She's in the Cining Palace right now, waiting anxiously. He also told Hongli to hurry up and bring back uncle and aunt. A banquet has already been prepared. He said you two haven't been back to Beijing for many years, and I'm afraid you're missing the taste of home."
"Jiu'er is always so considerate." The eldest wife said with a smile.
Prince Zhi was on his way when he saw the bright lights in the city. He was stunned for a moment: "Why are there so many people at this time of the day?"
The eldest wife was also stunned for a moment, then said, "Your Highness, this must be the Shengjing Night Market that my sister-in-law mentioned in her letter. I thought she was just kidding me before, but I never expected that in just a few years, Shengjing is completely different from when I left."
"Yes." Prince Zhi's eyes were full of admiration.
"Brother, there's a place where you can see more clearly."
Suddenly, I heard someone talking. I looked up and saw the Fourth Master riding towards me. He smiled and said, "Welcome home."
"Old Four, why are you here?"
"Take some time off and come pick up my brother and sister-in-law."
Soon, at the highest point of the city gate, the Fourth Master smiled and pointed downwards: "Big Brother, look."
Prince Zhi followed his gaze and saw lights spreading in an orderly pattern along the main road, the entire city ablaze with light. The clamor could be heard from so far away.
"We've been here before, and there's no light here. The capital city before didn't seem this big..."
As he looked at it, his eyes became red. "Great, that's great. Fourth Brother, this Kyoto is only like this because of you."
The Fourth Master shook his head: "It wasn't me, it was my eldest brother and I who created this land together."
Prince Zhi was stunned: "Huh?"
Sanbao smiled faintly, "Father always said that it was because of Uncle and the other soldiers who have been guarding the border and resisting foreign enemies for decades that this land has been able to maintain peace. We who enjoy the good life in Kyoto must live up to their expectations."
Prince Zhi choked up his throat and spoke after a long while, "I wish Changyi, who is buried at the border, could also witness this grand spectacle."
"Your Highness, why are you bringing up Changyi again?"
The eldest wife wiped away her tears and said, "Hurry back to the palace. It's more important to see the Empress Dowager."
Sanbao was stunned for a moment and looked at the elders. Seeing that their expressions seemed to be not so good, he did not ask. To be honest, it was the first time he heard this name.
Later, he took Aunt Liusu aside and asked who Changyi was.
Liusu was also shocked when she heard this: "Why do you think of asking this?"
"Aunt, please tell me. I want to know."
Liusu sighed, "Changyi...is your brother-in-law, your cousin Zhenzhen's husband, and your uncle's most proud son-in-law."
"Do you still remember your eldest cousin? Now, she is also an outstanding female general on the border. Many storybooks are about her."
Sanbao nodded immediately. "Aunt, I know cousin Zhenzhen. She is also a disciple of my mother. Everyone says that she is powerful and domineering. She has the style of her father and the demeanor of her teacher."
Liusu nodded: "Yes, Prince Zhi and his wife were sent to guard the border, and they couldn't bear to take her through hardship, and Concubine Hui also fell in love with your cousin, so they simply raised her in the Empress Dowager's palace.
At that time, Princess Zhenzhen loved to stick to the master the most. When you were little, she held you in her arms and learned kung fu from the master for some time.
Later, because the first wife missed her daughter, she sent Zhenzhen to the border. Changyi was her husband at the border. When the foreign enemy invaded, the reason was accidentally known. However, it was heard that in the snowstorm that year, Changyi brought Princess Zhenzhen back from the enemy camp, but he himself died.
It was after that that your cousin Zhenzhen joined the army and became the female general that everyone admires today."
After hearing this, Sanbao was stunned for a while: "So that's how it is..."
Liusu helped him smooth out the wrinkles on his clothes: "So, don't mention it in front of Prince Zhi and the First Lady, or it might upset them."
"Don't worry, auntie, I understand."
......
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