Chapter 725: The only one among the emperor’s grandchildren?
As the Third Lady spoke, she glanced at Hongqing who was staying with the Third Master in the distance, and couldn't help but curl the corners of her mouth slightly.
Ever since the quadruplets were born, there have been rumors that they are the only ones among the emperor's grandchildren and are the most beloved grandchildren by the emperor.
The Third Lady was quite dissatisfied, because it was obvious that her Hongqing was the best among the emperor's grandchildren.
"Third sister-in-law, look, the emperor has picked up your Hongqing."
The Eighth Lady took a look and gently pushed the Third Lady beside her.
The Third Lady immediately looked in the direction of his gaze and saw Hongqing sitting on Emperor Kangxi's lap.
For a moment, he couldn't help but twitch the corners of his lips, and then he said, "This child...even if the emperor dotes on him, he can't be too unruly. How can he let the emperor hold him?"
"Third sister-in-law, please don't say that. Hongqing has always been the most respectful of rules. Today is the end of the year, and the most important rule is filial piety. The child is fulfilling his filial duty. How can other three-year-olds be as sensible as Hongqing? I heard that Hongqing is learning the Thousand Character Classic now? That's amazing."
The Eighth Lady paused, then glanced at the Fourth Master casually: "People say that the Emperor values the quadruplets in the Fourth Master's house the most. But I would say that the Emperor values Hongqing the most. Even the Crown Prince's Hongxi can't compare to her."
The Third Lady's mouth stretched almost to her ears when she heard this. "Quadruplets are an auspicious sign. Our Hongqing wasn't so lucky. There were no signs of anything special when he was born. He's just a little smarter than the average person, but he still can't compare to them in terms of reputation."
The Eighth Lady glanced at the Third Lady's expression and said, "Third sister-in-law, is it possible that our royal family is still lacking a reputation? Besides, is this reputation more powerful than real ability?
Besides, Hongqing is a legitimate child, so even if we have to compare, it should be compared with Honghui from the Fourth Master's house. Take a look, can Honghui ever compare with our Hongqing?"
The Third Lady looked over and saw that Honghui was sitting behind his son. He was sitting there with his head lowered, not saying a word, and was not very conspicuous in the crowd.
Then, he couldn't help laughing: "Oh, to be honest, I'm a little disappointed today. I thought Concubine Wen would bring the quadruplets. I didn't expect that the Emperor didn't even reserve a table for her."
"Alright! I really don't know what the two of you are talking about! Yesterday, when the Emperor hosted a banquet, he already invited Concubine Wen to join him for dinner. Didn't you know that?"
The more the eldest wife listened, the more she felt she couldn't bear to listen any longer. She put the cup down heavily and turned her head to look at the two of them.
The Eighth and Third Concubine looked at each other in confusion.
"Sister-in-law, what does this mean?" asked the Third Lady with a slight frown.
Seeing that both of them looked confused, the First Lady asked with a hint of bewilderment, "The Third Master and the Eighth Master also dined together yesterday. Why didn't they tell you when they got home?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the two people below looked unhappy.
The Third Lady was so angry that she kept rubbing her handkerchief. "The Third Master came back yesterday and... he went to bed right away. We didn't even have time to talk."
The Third Lady gritted her teeth. She had originally thought that the Third Master would enter the palace with her. It was only natural that they would sleep together at night. Who knew that even without the extremely favored Fang'er, he would sleep with the Concubine Tian again? She hadn't seen anyone all night, so how could she have the chance to talk about this?
"Where's Concubine Rong?" The eldest wife frowned slightly. "Didn't Concubine Rong mention it to you?"
The Third Lady shook her head gently: "Mother was not feeling well yesterday and went to bed as soon as she got home..."
To be exact, he scolded her and told her to stay away from that warm wine in the future, and then kicked himself out.
How could she speak to me in a nice tone?
When the Eighth Lady came in, the First Lady looked over and quickly took her arm. "Sister-in-law, please tell me quickly. I just came into the palace with the Eighth Master this morning. How would I know what's going on in the palace?"
As he spoke, he couldn't help but glance at the Eighth Master above him.
The Eighth Master's status was not as high as the other masters. His mother's family was weak, and no one in the harem spoke up for him.
Even the courtyard that the Eighth Master had divided up back then was not as good as the ones the Masters have today.
After they got married and left the palace, the house was renovated and given to the younger princes to live in.
It’s not that there’s no room for them in the palace, but the emperor said he would clean up a room for them.
The Eighth Master was a man who never wanted to lose to others. His brothers all had their own courtyards, so how could he sleep in the side rooms? He replied, saying he would come on the 29th of the twelfth lunar month, so she was a day late. Now it seemed she had missed a lot of things.
The eldest wife glanced at the two of them and said, "Don't mention these things anymore. The young princes in Fourth Brother's house are very smart, and the Emperor loves them very much. Third Sister-in-law, please listen to my advice. Don't always compare the children together..."
"...What sister-in-law said is right." The third lady responded, but she curled her lips.
"Dafujin, please come over here. The Crown Princess is chatting with some princesses. Please come over with her."
As they were talking, the little girl who served the Crown Princess came over.
After hearing this, the eldest wife nodded slightly, and then went to the Crown Princess with the little girl.
As soon as the front foot left, the third wife snorted and said, "Sister-in-law, when you speak now, you are not on our side, but on the side of that bitch? Sister-in-law, have you forgotten that she is just a lowly servant who climbed up to where she is today?"
The Eighth Lady frowned slightly. "My eldest sister-in-law must have been bewitched. Speaking of which, since Wenjiu is already in the palace, why hasn't she shown up? Could it be that she's afraid her sons will be outshined by Hongqing?"
As he spoke, he casually glanced at the Third Lady beside him and said, "These quadruplets are extremely famous. Everyone says they are the children of good fortune and a sign of good luck. Today is the New Year's Day and the children are all offering congratulatory speeches. If there is a prince who can surpass the quadruplets..."
Before he could finish his words, he saw Sanfujin walking hurriedly towards the Crown Princess.
The Eighth Lady raised her eyebrows and immediately followed.
The Third Lady smiled brightly, holding up her cup and suddenly approaching the Crown Princess. "Crown Princess, I wonder why Concubine Wen didn't come. And my nephews said they were coming for the full moon banquet, but I haven't seen them since. I miss them so much."
The Crown Princess raised her eyebrows, a faint smile playing on her lips. "This... I don't know either. If Third Sister-in-law is curious, how about I ask someone to go to the Fourth Master and ask him for you?"
He glanced at her with a half-smile as he spoke.
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