Chapter 4 Various Aspects of the Backyard
At Qinghezhai, Jixiang carried the dinner brought back by the eunuch into the inner room and served it to Qi Yuebin.
"Princess, it's time for your meal."
On the table were three servings of pastries, four dishes, a bowl of soup, and a small bowl of warm, moist rice. The Fourth Prince's household promoted frugality, so while this dinner wasn't lavish, it was still in accordance with the princess's rations.
Among them, lotus-shaped pastries were Qi Yuebin's favorite because Yinzhen once praised her for being "pure and unpretentious," possessing the noble character of a lotus flower. He even specially renamed her courtyard "Qinghe Zhai" (Pure Lotus Study). Since then, the lotus has become her favorite flower, and lotus-related pastries and embroidery have become the most frequently seen items in her life.
"What happened?" Qi Yuebin sat down at the table with Ruyi's help and immediately noticed the conflict on Jixiang's face. Jixiang was still young and couldn't hide her thoughts; her mind was always on her face, and she was too naive. But Qi Yuebin valued her for her understanding, loyalty, and lack of troublemaking, which was why he took such good care of her.
“Princess…” Jixiang hesitated for a moment, but ultimately her loyalty to her master prevailed. Looking at Qi Yuebin’s expression, she replied truthfully, “Just now, Ping’an went to the main kitchen to get her meal and ran into Jianqiu from Wutong Courtyard…”
"Isn't Jianqiu the head maidservant of the concubine? Why is she the one who went to fetch the meal?" Ruyi, who was serving Qi Yuebin the dishes, was the mistress's mouth-servant and asked directly. Qi Yuebin had a vague guess in his heart, but he didn't say anything.
Jixiang glanced at Qi Yuebin with a troubled expression and said in a low voice, "Jianqiu went to take care of the dinner at Wutong Courtyard. It is said that... it is said that Prince Beile will be having dinner at Wutong Courtyard tonight."
After Jixiang finished speaking, he quickly lowered his head and stopped talking. Ruyi, who was standing to the side, also carefully observed Qi Yuebin's expression.
"Gege..."
“It’s alright,” Qi Yuebin said bitterly upon hearing the news, but didn’t say much. Seeing Jixiang’s reaction, he knew there was more to it, so he asked, “Jixiang, what else did you say? Tell me all of that.”
“Princess…” Jixiang looked up and saw that Qi Yuebin’s emotions were relatively stable. Without further hesitation, she told the rest of the story in one breath, “Jianqiu also said that the Prince was considerate of the concubine’s health and did not want the concubine to worry too much. It was just an ordinary dinner, and everything… everything was for the concubine’s sake.”
After Ji Xiang finished speaking, the room fell into a deathly silence. After a long while, Qi Yuebin finally sighed softly, touching his flat stomach, and said, "In the end, offspring are still the most important thing... It's just that my body is letting me down..."
"Princess..." Upon hearing Qi Yuebin's words, the two loyal maids became anxious. After all, they were still young girls and did not know how to persuade her.
"It's nothing..." Qi Yuebin gently wiped away the tears that had fallen without him noticing, picked up his chopsticks and began to eat. He suppressed all his emotions and said softly, "Let's eat. We need to get better first."
“Yes, Princess is right. Once you’ve recovered, the young prince will come soon…” The two maids agreed repeatedly, thinking that the clouds had cleared and they earnestly served Qi Yuebin the dishes, thinking about how to nourish the princess afterward.
Qi Yuebin forced herself to eat, but it tasted bland. She thought about how she and the Prince were childhood sweethearts, and she was the Prince's first woman, yet they hadn't had any joy together all these years, causing their relationship to grow increasingly distant...
Fourth Prince Yinzhen was not fond of lust. In his harem, besides his secondary consort Ulanara, there were only two princesses and three concubines.
Now, not only Qi Yuebin's family, but also the others have received this news. The Prince has not entered the inner courtyard for more than half a month and his attitude towards them has become cold. When he finally came, he went straight to the concubine's place. Who wouldn't have some thoughts?
Upon learning the news, Song Wan'er, a concubine of the Song family, couldn't help but come to the small Buddhist hall at Yunshui Residence. She recited the Rebirth Sutra for her daughter who had died young once more, distributed her evening meal to the servants in the courtyard, and leaned against the soft couch, stroking the little clothes she had made for her daughter, silently shedding tears.
"If only my eldest princess were alive..."
Song Wan'er wasn't particularly favored, but because she was pregnant with Yinzhen's first child, Yinzhen treated her extremely gently during that time. She received a lot of attention from pregnancy to childbirth, and she was so happy that it was like living in a dream, a dream where there were only the three of them. But fate was against her happiness, and her little princess died not long after birth.
Song Wan'er wept bitterly, her heart breaking, and she remained immersed in grief over the loss of her daughter. Gradually, the Prince stopped coming. She knew that the Prince was also unable to accept the death of the eldest princess; perhaps seeing her reminded him of his deceased daughter. She simply quietly increased her allowance. Even though he no longer came, no one dared to bully her.
But Song Wan'er was so sad and couldn't get over it. A year or two passed, and by the time she finally came to terms with it, the Prince already had a concubine and was about to have a new child.
I thought I could remain calm, but hearing this news still made me burst into tears. I don't know if I was crying for myself or for that poor eldest princess...
The Feihua Courtyard housed Yinzhen's three concubines: Mei, Yuan, and Liu. Mei Qiyue and Yuan Yuxiu entered the manor at the same time and had a good relationship. Their fathers were both minor officials working under the Fourth Prince, and they were specially sent to the manor.
Mei Qiyue was elegant and refined, while Yuan Yuxiu was charming and pretty; neither could be considered a great beauty. However, they were the most outstanding girls in the family, otherwise they wouldn't have been sent to the Prince's mansion. Although they weren't favored, they managed to get by.
The two were very close friends, often spending their free time together. They happened to be having dinner together today, and when they heard the news, they didn't react much, just chatting and laughing it off.
They heard the sound of things being smashed coming from the next room. The two women exchanged a glance, and Yuan Yuxiu rolled her eyes inelegantly, saying, "That Liu woman is really making a scene; she doesn't even know her place..."
“Yuxiu,” Mei Qiyue glanced at her disapprovingly and stopped her, “Why do you care what she does? Walls have ears, there’s no need to get involved.”
"Okay, okay, good sister, I won't say anything." Yuan Yuxiu tugged at Mei Qiyue's sleeve, trying to be charming and obsequious.
Liu Qingxue, who lived in the same courtyard next door, didn't care whether others could hear her or not. She threw the cushion at the maid and, still not satisfied, paced back and forth in the room, stomping her feet in anger.
Unlike the other two, she was originally a maid serving writing brushes and ink in the front courtyard. She was favored by the prince and enjoyed his favor for a period of time.
Just as she was dreaming of gaining status through her son, half a month ago she was suddenly assigned to the back courtyard, where she had to live with two unfavored concubines. Naturally, Liu Qingxue was not satisfied.
She thought she would at least become a princess, but she was just an ordinary concubine, and she didn't see the prince for half a month.
She lost her status and her favor; how could she not be anxious? But what could she do? The front courtyard was under strict control, and as a concubine who started as a maid, she couldn't even get any information.
After finally waiting for the Prince to enter the backyard, Liu Qingxue heard that he had gone to the concubine's quarters. She didn't dare to intercept his favor and could only rage helplessly here.
Ulanara Yixiu didn't care what others thought. Once the news was out, she dressed up and waited for Yinzhen to come for a meal.
"Consort, the Prince will be here soon..."
The lookout eunuch came to report the news. Yixiu touched the hair ornaments on her head to make sure everything was in place, then took Jianqiu's hand and walked outside. "Quickly, come with me to the door to wait for the master..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
