Chapter 861 A Dream of Youth 393
Princess Baochu's last gaze was directed past everyone to the window, and Yan Xi followed her gaze.
The little girl gazed curiously at the falling rain, her clear eyes reflecting the autumn rain filling the sky and the wind filling the courtyard. Her small hand was held up by a long, slender hand, allowing her to feel the raindrops.
The sound of rain pattering down, raindrops pattering on fallen flowers, all the heat of summer has faded away; the wind blows the leaves yellow, staining them with the melancholy of autumn.
"Yun Shu is a good child. I will bring her into the palace and raise her myself," Yan Xi said softly.
Princess Baochu smiled, took one last look at her daughter, and closed her eyes. In her life, the daughter she felt most guilty towards was Yun Shu. Even though Yun Shu had wealth and honor, she had never felt the love from her father's family.
She even suffered malice from her biological father and grandmother. Although she once loved Prince Consort Lu very much, that love had long since dissipated under the daily cold treatment.
All that remained was love and guilt towards his only daughter.
As a mother, she failed to protect her child, which is why Yun Shu was shocked by those sordid things at such a young age, and still cannot speak to this day.
Perhaps she should have been stronger, at least to live for her child, but she was truly exhausted. So, she decided to be selfish for once: if she couldn't live, she would die for herself.
"Bao Chu!"
The sound of weeping drifted through the window and reached Xie Ning's ears. The little princess seemed to feel the sorrow as well, burying her head tightly in Xie Ning's shoulder, but she couldn't help but look inside.
Upon seeing her slender, white wrist hanging outside, adorned with a small jade bracelet that matched the jade pendant around her neck, the young princess opened her mouth, but no sound came out.
Xie Ning patted the little princess on the back, but he was thinking about something.
Regarding the matter of Consort Lu, Yan Xi has already instructed the relevant authorities to investigate in detail, and Xie Ning has also heard some things about Consort Lu.
Prince Consort Lu frequently went out to brothels for entertainment, became addicted to prostitution, took many prostitutes as concubines, and often engaged in group debauchery with some friends.
Emperor Jing suspended Consort Lu from his official post for this reason. It was only after Princess Baochu pleaded for him that his post was reinstated. However, Consort Lu was found to be a womanizer both at home and outside the home, and was so disgraceful.
There must be more than just Prince Consort Lu who has acted this way; other prince consorts who marry princesses may also be like this. Therefore, Yan Xi needs to use this incident to give them a warning.
Then there are those "friends" who indulge in debauchery with Prince Consort Lu. This group is extremely corrupting to social morals and therefore needs to be restrained.
Xie Ning had previously proposed restrictions on court officials' indulgence in sensual pleasures, but these were never formalized into written form and could not be elevated to the level of policy.
Because there were quite a few such people, and the Great Zhou Dynasty was relatively lenient in its regulations on officials patronizing prostitutes and taking concubines, after all, it was a patriarchal society. Qingxu was on good terms with the maids of many households, and thus learned a lot of gossip.
Let alone group sex, there are even cases of fathers and sons sharing a prostitute.
Of course, this is only a local phenomenon. The Great Zhou Dynasty still attaches great importance to social morality and family ethics, and its marriage system is relatively rigorous.
Indulging in sensual pleasures existed in every dynasty, and some people, like Xia Xiang, expressed their disapproval.
They believed that officials should advocate frugality and not indulge in sensual pleasures. Furthermore, they believed that one wife was enough for the household, as having more would easily lead to chaos.
Xia Xiang had always practiced this way. He had only one wife and lived a frugal life. The number of servants in his household could be counted on one hand.
This is also one of the reasons why Xie Ning chose him over Yu Xiang. She and Xia Xiang had more in common, and Xia Xiang had a higher prestige among the people.
Princess Baochu's death was sudden, but it could also serve as a trigger, an excuse, to achieve certain political goals.
Xie Ning met Yan Xi's wounded eyes inside the room, and she knew that Yan Xi would not let this opportunity pass.
The Lu family won't be the only ones to suffer.
As Xie Ning walked out of the princess's residence, he saw the Xie family's carriage waiting outside. Qingxu went to pick someone up but failed, so she asked other people and found the princess's residence.
"It's getting late. Have you had dinner yet, young lady?"
Xie Ning shook her head. The people above were all in grief and had no appetite, so they didn't care about eating. Therefore, she was also working on an empty stomach.
Qingxu quickly took out some pastries prepared in the carriage, "Miss, please have something to eat first."
Then he instructed the coachman to take him to a restaurant. It was so late, and there wasn't much good food left at home. But it was very lively outside, with many restaurants open even at night.
But when Qingxu returned with the meat and vegetables, Xie Ning was already asleep.
She had no choice but to put the still-warm food aside. Light conversation came from outside the carriage. Qingxu lifted the curtain and peeked out, only to see Qingli standing beside the carriage with a paper bag in her hand.
"Sister Qingli".
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