The Crown Princess was restless and wanted to immediately summon her mother to the palace to discuss the matter.
The Empress Dowager clearly saw her expression and smiled inwardly.
If she can't even sit still over such a small matter, how is she qualified to be the Crown Princess?
But then I thought, Zhu Qianqian is not as good as Zhao Shi!
The Empress Dowager's mood suddenly became somewhat heavy.
If it weren't for my own grandniece being so disappointing and making such a big mistake, why would I have to bow down to a junior?
The Empress Dowager's expression darkened, and her tone lowered.
"Actually, there are plenty of women in the palace who don't have children. And those who do have children aren't necessarily favored. Just look at me."
The Empress Dowager is comforting the Crown Princess.
In fact, the Empress Dowager herself never suspected that there was anything wrong with the Crown Prince. She judged others by her own standards and always guessed that the Crown Princess was unable to have children and therefore did not allow other children to have children, which led to the Crown Prince being twenty-four years old and still having no children.
That's why she stepped in to help Zhu Qianqian.
As a result, Zhu Qianqian proved to be disappointing, not only angering the Crown Prince but also giving him leverage against her.
The Crown Princess kept her head down and remained silent; she was feeling somewhat flustered.
What if the Empress Dowager wants to depose me on the grounds that I have no heir?
Both of them were interpreting each other based on their own ideas, and there were many barriers between them, making it impossible for them to truly open up to each other.
Even if the Empress Dowager sincerely advised her, the Crown Princess would not believe her.
That's it now.
The Empress Dowager paused, feeling that she had said all she could. If the Crown Princess was not going to listen, then there was nothing more she could do.
After a moment of silence, she changed the subject and talked about the New Year celebrations in the palace.
"Originally, the palace was managed by the three consorts, Shufei, Defei, and Xianfei. But since Xianfei was promoted to Guifei, she has been in charge of the affairs of the harem. However, in recent days, several things have gone wrong. The amount of charcoal in the palaces of several dowager consorts has decreased significantly, causing two of them to catch a cold and suffer from persistent coughs."
"And the Weaving and Dyeing Bureau actually sent substandard products to the Needlework Bureau. The palace maids in the Needlework Bureau made clothes from those defective fabrics and distributed them to the palace maids in the Qianqing Palace. A few days ago, when it snowed, the palace maid on night duty slipped and fell in the snow, and her clothes faded, which angered your father, the Emperor."
The Empress Dowager spoke at length, paused to rest, took a sip of tea, and when she looked up again, she found the Crown Princess staring intently at her.
The Empress Dowager raised her eyebrows slightly.
Sure enough, I couldn't stand it anymore.
She cleared her throat, sighed, and gently patted the Crown Princess's hand.
"Therefore, I would like you to assist the Imperial Concubine in managing the six palaces. What do you say? Are you willing to do it?"
The Crown Princess practically jumped to her feet and then knelt down.
"My granddaughter-in-law agrees!"
The Empress Dowager pulled her up and scolded her, "You child, if you're willing, just do it. Why make such a big show of ceremony? We're all family. In my palace, we don't need to talk about the relationship between ruler and subject, we only need to talk about family."
The Crown Princess smiled sheepishly.
"It's because my granddaughter-in-law is too excited. Thank you, Grandmother."
The Empress Dowager patted her hand again, her smile warm: "In that case, go to Yongshou Palace to see the Consort at 9:00 AM tomorrow! There's no need for you to come to me to pay your respects. The New Year is approaching, and there are many things to do in the palace."
The Crown Princess curtsied and said, "Thank you for your kindness, Grandmother."
After speaking for a while, the Crown Princess took her leave.
As soon as the Crown Princess left with her entourage, the smile on the Empress Dowager's face vanished instantly.
She sat expressionless in the main seat, her gaze coldly fixed on the doorway.
The room was completely silent; no one dared to come forward.
Only an old woman with a full head of white hair stepped forward, carrying a cup of ginseng tea.
"Your Highness, would you like this old servant to massage your head?"
The Empress Dowager accepted the ginseng tea but did not drink it.
"You're just like me, an old man with nothing left to do. Let the young maids serve you!"
The old nanny's face beamed with joy: "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness. Please don't refuse this ginseng tea because it's bitter; it was sent over by the Zhu family!"
The Empress Dowager stared blankly at the teacup in her hand.
"The Zhu family... Do you think I don't know what they're up to? They've become increasingly audacious these past few years. How long can I, a man with one foot in the grave, protect them?"
The old nanny was a simple-minded person. Upon hearing this, she advised, "Your Majesty, children and grandchildren have their own blessings. You are already the Empress Dowager, why bother with them? With so many filial children and grandchildren, Your Majesty should just enjoy your long life!"
The Empress Dowager was amused by her.
"You idiot!"
The old nanny chuckled, and the Empress Dowager's mood lightened considerably because of her.
"Enough! I'm too old to concern myself with these things. The emperor is like this, and so is the Zhu family. Why should I make a fool of myself?"
"...The Crown Prince should be satisfied with the division of some palace power into the Eastern Palace, right? That idiot Zhu Qianqian! She's more trouble than she's worth! If the Crown Prince doesn't want to hold a grudge, let her stay in the Eastern Palace and never come out again! If the Crown Prince can't tolerate her, then take her to the small Buddhist hall in Renshou Palace and have her chant scriptures and recite Buddhist prayers for me every day to atone for her sins!"
The Empress Dowager truly loathed Zhu Qianqian and never wanted to see her again.
Meanwhile, the Crown Princess returned to the East Palace excitedly and immediately summoned her two most trusted nannies.
Just as Granny Ding was about to reply to Consort Xi about taking the medicine, she saw the Crown Princess excitedly grab the hands of both of them.
"My two matrons, I've waited all these years, and now my chance has finally come!"
Granny Ding swallowed back the words that were on the tip of her tongue and asked instead.
"What joyous occasion does Your Majesty have?"
"The Empress Dowager has ordered me to go to Yongshou Palace tomorrow to work with the Consort in managing palace affairs."
The two old women were both surprised and delighted, and knelt down at the same time.
"Congratulations, Your Majesty! Congratulations, Your Majesty!"
The Crown Princess clenched her fist, her eyes brimming with undisguised ambition.
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