The Virtuous Concubine froze. Despite the Grand Princess Sheng An’s words being full of praises for her, she could discern the implied meaning. The competition between her and her elder sister for the eldest son of the Duke Residence had left her on the losing end. Out of anger, she had entered the palace and became an imperial consort. Her family had managed to conceal this ugly history well, but there was no such thing as airtight secrecy. The emperor might not know, but the Grand Princess knew it all too well, after having caught her pushing her sister to the floor, causing a miscarriage.
No matter what the Virtuous Concubine had planned, the Grand Princess’s words were an implicit warning. If she fanned the flames today and led the emperor to punish her grandson, the past would be unearthed.
A surge of hatred flashed in the Virtuous Concubine’s heart. The Grand Princess truly lived up to her reputation of having grown up within the palace walls; her strategy was not only cunning but deadly without shedding a drop of blood. Suppressing her fury, she conceded that she couldn’t do anything for the day. She could only hope that Qingping and Duanhua would be strong enough to strip Zhou Gu bare.
After saying her piece to the Virtuous Concubine, the Grand Princess noticed her rigid smile and her mechanical response of, "I miss my elder sister too." Smiling gently, she no longer paid attention to the Virtuous Concubine and turned to look at Qingping and Duanhua.
Qingping felt anxious, but for the sake of her daughter, she had to stand firm. She directed her words to Grand Princess Sheng An, "Aunt, Zhou Gu has bullied Duanhua, aren’t you going to do anything about it?"
In response to her conjecture, the Grand Princess retorted, "And what about Duanhua, who has been hanging around Zhou Gu non-stop, disrupting his studies? He could barely get a break by escaping to Jiangning County, yet she still resolutely followed him. Have you been managing her?"
The insinuation being, you won’t control your daughter, yet you expect me to control my grandson? What kind of logic is that?
Qingping choked in surprise. "Duanhua wanted to visit Jiangning County, not to follow Zhou Gu! Everyone can go to Jiangning County, why can Zhou Gu go but not Duanhua? Is Jiangning County owned by the Zhou Family? How could Zhou Gu be so domineering?"
Grand Princess Sheng An’s expression stiffened, "Of course, Jiangning County doesn’t belong to the Zhou Family, but the Duke Residence does. Your Duanhua has been causing havoc in the Duke Residence. Even with me present, she couldn’t be stopped. And you still have the audacity to claim that she didn’t go there for Zhou Gu?"
Again, Qingping choked.
Grand Princess Sheng An didn’t hold back, rebuking, "Has your daughter learnt anything about restraint and etiquette? Her persistent obsession and blatant display of affection, is this how you taught her? She could’ve visited Jiangning County anytime, but she chose to go the moment Zhou Gu went. What was she planning? Do you, as her mother, really not know? And you have the audacity to approach me with complaints."
For a moment, Qingping found herself at a loss for words.
Grand Princess Sheng An didn’t let up, her words sharp and cutting, "Thinking about what you did back then, compared to what your daughter is doing now, it truly is like mother, like daughter. You threatened others with your life, they relented and broke off an arranged marriage to marry you. What happened then? Were you happy? Content? Do you still think you did the right thing? And taught your daughter to do the same? Going crazy, threatening Zhou Gu with her life, when that didn’t work, she turned to crying and complaining. What do you want? Do you want to ruin my grandson as well? Let me tell you, Qingping, your title as the imperial princess doesn’t give you the liberty to act however you want. Look at yourself, apart from your attire, what aspect of you represents an imperial princess? You really are a disgrace to the title."
Upon hearing this, Qingping became furious, her face flushing with a mix of blue and purple. She abruptly rose, "Why shouldn’t I marry the man I love just because I am born into the royal family? Why do you have to bring up the past? The prince consort treats me well now. Just because you’re protecting your grandson, does that mean my daughter deserves to be bullied by Zhou Gu? Is Zhou Gu short of a hair or something? He’s standing here perfectly fine, yet Duanhua is the one who’s hurt."
She roughly pulled up Duanhua’s sleeve to reveal her wrist, "Look at this, she is a county princess, but Zhou Gu ordered his servants to tie her up. If you don’t give me an explanation today, I will die in front of you."
Grand Princess Sheng An glanced casually at Duanhua’s wrist. Her face showed no trace of surprise, "Qingping, you’ve really grown. You too are threatening to die in front of me. Well, go ahead, do it. If I had known your servant would turn out this way, when your father-in-law handed you over to me for protection, I wouldn’t have traded my arm to save you from the bandit’s blade. I should have let him cut you down, that would have saved me all this trouble."
Princess Qingping’s face stiffened, she momentarily lost her voice. The Eldest Princess Sheng An had once saved her life and even injured her arm in the process, leaving a scar that remained till today. This was an undeniable fact. She had no rebuttal.
Seeing her rigid expression, Princess Sheng An sneered, "The actions of my nephew, Zhou Gu, were indeed somewhat improper; but heart to heart, ask yourself this: he has been plagued by Duanhua for several years, has he ever done anything excessive to her? If she hadn’t been insistent on going to Jiangning County and threatened to deal with his fiancée, would he have stood in her way?"
Princess Qingping was infuriated, but unexpectedly became the one in the wrong, she stamped her foot, "Regardless, he laid his hands on my daughter, who did not harm anyone, are we just going to let this pass?"
After saying this, she burst into tears, calling out to the Emperor, "Imperial brother!"
The Emperor felt a headache coming on. It had been a long time since he had encountered the formidable Princess Sheng An. It was as if he had returned to the days before his coronation, when his late father, distressed by his other sons, entrusted him to his aunt’s care. He wept at the foot of his father’s bed, unsure if he could defend the imperial edict, the supreme position it represented, and overcome the ensuing panic. It was then that Princess Sheng An dried her tears, stood up, scolded him thoroughly, and was his pillar of support. The Duke Residence supported his ascension to the throne and quelled the rebels eyeing his throne within a year, ensuring his stable rule.
The Emperor had not thought of these past events in quite a while. Now, although Princess Sheng An had aged and her hair had turned white, he could still see traces of her past strength in her. As he looked upon his sister, Princess Qingping, despite being in the right, she could not hold her own. What could he say?
All he could do was to compose himself and say sternly, "Qingping, Aunt is right. You have been too indulgent with Duanhua. How could you let her go to Jiangning County on her own? It’s a long journey. I’m glad Zhou Gu interfered, else it could have led to serious consequences."
Princess Qingping’s eyes widened as she looked at the Emperor.
The Emperor coughed, then turned to Zhou Gu with a stern face, "Zhou Gu, even though your intentions were good, your approach was somewhat rash. I decree that you apologize to Duanhua!"
Zhou Gu had already been astonished by his grandmother’s actions. Since childhood, he had never seen her display such strength. In his memory, she was always a kind and gentle elderly lady. Duanhua had been persistent and even followed him home, but his grandmother didn’t do anything apart from admonishing Duanhua gently for her lack of decorum. When he was frustrated, she merely comforted him, saying that any man not pursued by women was not an impressive man. Her words indirectly affirmed his grandson’s charm, leaving him speechless. Eventually, he sought the Crown Prince for help, which finally brought Duanhua under control.
Returning from Jiangning County, he assumed he had been too harsh on Duanhua and would receive a scolding at home. Furthermore, he expected the Emperor might punish him. However, not only did his grandmother not reprimand him, but she also backed him up with her demeanor. She accompanied him to the palace, and with a few brief words, managed to silence the virtuous concubine. Then she chastised Princess Qingping, pleasing Zhou Gu greatly.
But he could not show his satisfaction. Keeping a straight face, he stood still when he heard the Emperor’s command. Without any argument, he turned to Duanhua and calmly said, "As the Emperor has said, I did not handle the matter appropriately. I apologize for hurting you, Princess. Later, I will send over two jars of jade balm to the Princess Residence as a token of my remorse. I urge you, Princess, to let go of your anger."
"Who wants your jade balm," Duanhua huffed resentfully, "I want Ziye dead. If you kill Ziye, I will forgive you."
"Ziye was acting under my orders, I’m afraid I cannot comply." Zhou Gu turned back and looked at the Emperor. He had shown his compliance to the Emperor’s order to apologize. Duanhua’s refusal was not his fault.
"Duanhua!" The Emperor stepped in as the peace-maker, sternly stating, "Starting from today, I will have court tutors teach you proper etiquette for six months in the palace, or you can accept Zhou Gu’s apology. You choose!"
Duanhua’s face changed, she lost her voice, "Imperial Uncle!"
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