intercept
After the newlyweds entered the house, the backyard was bustling for quite a while.
After all, she was the woman chosen by his own mother, so Prince Xuan had to act in a proper manner no matter how dissatisfied he was.
After appeasing Madam Wan for several days, he spent three nights at Concubine Yang's, and two more at Lady Liu's and Lady Zhang's. This marked the middle of September. On the fifteenth, Prince Xuan was undoubtedly in the main courtyard, and he spent the next few days at Lady Wang's, followed by three days at Lady Li's. With only a week left in September, Lady Zhao, who had yet to meet Prince Xuan, naturally pressed for more. But Concubines Yang, Liu, and Zhang, who had already tasted success, were still eager to get him to their courtyard. The remaining two concubines, though they knew their chances were slim, also held out hope.
Of course, Li Qingping was not among those waiting.
Li Qingping would talk and chat with the Princess of Xuan and Concubine Li every day. When the eldest daughter came back from the clan school, he would spend time with her in the yard. His life was so happy.
I heard that Zhao went to deliver soup to Prince Xuan today, and it was about to belong to her at night, but Concubine Yang went over and snatched it away.
The person who is most well-informed about news in Li Qingping's courtyard is the young eunuch Fu'an. After all, he is the one who usually runs errands outside.
Although his master does not fight for anything, Fu'an will not miss any necessary news. It would be fun to tell Li Qingping about it when he has nothing to do.
Hearing what he said, Li Qingping was a little surprised: "Concubine Yang has only been here for a few days?" She dared to interrupt Zhao?
Although Zhao was only an unfavored concubine, she was still an elder in the mansion and had the second daughter. Her words still carried some weight in the backyard. Although Yang was a concubine, Zhao was certainly dissatisfied with her behavior, and the others were probably also watching her laugh.
Concubine Li naturally heard about this incident as well. The next morning, when she and her sister went to have breakfast with Princess Xuan and chatted about it, she laughed and said, "It seems that Yang is not very smart."
Naturally, no one in the main courtyard dared to eavesdrop. Li Qingping whispered, "This time, it's not just Madam Wan. I'm afraid the Zhao family will also bear a grudge against her."
Princess Xuan drank the soup, smiling without saying a word, but it was obvious that she was gloating over Concubine Yang's behavior.
Yang was originally a concubine of Consort Xian, thrust into the palace through connections. Upon entering the palace, she immediately bypassed Consort Wan and took the position of concubine, deeply offending her. Consort Xian's meddling in the affairs of a grown prince's harem clearly showed her disdain for her as a princess, and also belittled the Li sisters. In this way, Yang indirectly offended the three Li sisters.
They couldn't openly antagonize Concubine Xian, but being able to squeeze someone in was already their limit; no more Concubines would do the trick. The people in the palace knew who was in charge of the backyard, so they naturally acted to the benefit of the wife and the concubines. Princess Xuan was in charge of the palace's backyard, so while she wouldn't deduct the share from Yang's family, she still had the rightful place as a concubine. Princess Xuan wasn't stupid, after all, and wouldn't let anyone catch her making a mistake. But no matter how much she took, Yang couldn't expect to squeeze a single cent out of her.
Several influential women in the backyard kept their distance from Concubine Yang. If she were the Princess of Xuan, she would certainly not offend the Zhao family again. After all, her relationship with them was already strained. Among the remaining elderly, Zhao had the Second Young Lady, so her status was still higher. If she could maintain a good relationship with the Zhao family, even if she lost the Prince's favor in the future, her life would be better.
It’s a pity... Concubine Xian chose a stupid one.
Did she really think that relying on Concubine Xian and the Yang family would save her from all the trouble and intrigue? What a naive little girl. Or did the prince's stay the other day give her the illusion that she could cause trouble as she pleased?
But no matter what, Princess Xuan didn't intend to intervene. It was her own doing, and she had no right to interfere.
As expected, Zhao was furious after being intercepted by Concubine Yang, but she was only a concubine and it was not easy for her to make a scene in front of the concubine. She could only endure the grievance temporarily.
That afternoon, the maidservant beside Zhao went to call a doctor, saying that the second girl had caught a cold.
Since the second young lady was ill, Princess Xuan immediately sent Huixin, who was by her side, to the Zhao family courtyard to take care of her, and then sent someone to deliver medicinal herbs.
As soon as Prince Xuan returned, he went to the main courtyard. He was worried when he heard that the second young lady was ill. He first asked the princess, "Has the doctor seen her? She was fine, so why is she sick?"
"The doctor has already gone. He must still be seeing patients. I have sent someone to take a look."
Since his daughter was ill, Prince Xuan naturally wanted to go see her. Princess Xuan didn't try to stop him, but instead sent someone to invite Concubine Li and Madam Li. The prince would definitely not be dining in the main courtyard tonight, so it would be nice for the three sisters to chat together.
I also got the news when I thought about it. Concubine Li and Li Qingping would be here soon.
Princess Xuan first asked Li Qingping, "Where's Yujin? Why didn't the child come with you this time?"
Li Qingping said, "Ms. Wu came to visit the eldest girl today. Thinking that we only had a brief meeting last time because of the clan school, I decided to have her talk to Yu Jin more today."
Concubine Li grumbled, "Sister, you are still too kind. Who knows what she will say when no one is watching."
Wu was the eldest daughter's biological mother and one of the two concubines in the palace. She had previously concealed her pregnancy, forcing the birth of the fetus, which had already earned Prince Xuan's dislike. However, she was spared because she was the eldest daughter's mother. As a concubine, she was actually of lower status than the other concubine, Ding.
Even before Princess Xuan entered the palace, the eldest daughter had lived with her for two years and was already old enough to remember everything and knew who her real mother was. It was not appropriate to cut off all contact at this point. Therefore, Prince Xuan ordered Wu to see the eldest daughter once a month, but not more than that.
Wu knew that this was Prince Xuan's greatest favor; anyone else would have killed her countless times. Furthermore, no matter who the young lady followed, it would be far better for her than her own mother. Therefore, she cherished every time they met and would not say anything out of line.
Princess Xuan knew that Li Qingping was also sensible and just smiled, not caring much about it, so Concubine Li didn't say anything either.
"Come to think of it, Zhao wouldn't deliberately make the second young lady sick, right?" Concubine Li muttered softly.
Before Princess Xuan could speak, Li Qingping shook his head and said with a smile, "Zhao is not that stupid. If she is discovered, she will definitely lose the custody of the second daughter, and there will be no chance of recovery."
"The second young lady must be really sick. I don't know if I didn't take good care of her or what. But it won't stop the Zhao family from making a fuss about it." Princess Xuan also said.
Concubine Li nodded obediently, but she couldn't help but worry about the little child. After all, the child could die if she wasn't careful: "Oh, oh, oh, then I hope the second young lady gets better soon."
On the other side, Zhao saw Prince Xuan coming, and she knelt down to salute him with a look of surprise and fear on her face.
Prince Xuan hurriedly excused her. Seeing her tired face and the way her hair and face were not properly groomed, he knew that she had not taken care of herself because her daughter was sick. He felt pity for her and said, "Don't tire yourself out. Yuzhen is sick, and she would be distressed if you fell ill."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your consideration."
With tears in her eyes, Zhao hugged the second girl and fed her medicine.
The second girl was over one year old, and her eyebrows and eyes looked like Prince Xuan. Seeing his daughter in pain, Prince Xuan took the second girl from Zhao and held her in his arms.
The second girl called out "Dad" in a daze, and Prince Xuan's heart softened even more.
After coaxing his daughter to sleep, Prince Xuan asked, "Why is Yuzhen sick out of nowhere? What happened?"
Zhao didn't hesitate, she knelt down and apologized, "It's all my fault, Your Majesty, please punish me."
Prince Xuan frowned: "What's going on? Stand up and talk."
Zhao refused to get up, looking guilty, and covered her face with a handkerchief. "It's all my fault. Yesterday, after I brought soup to the prince, Yuzhen asked me if the prince would come to see her. I thought Yuzhen missed the prince, and since he was in a good mood at the time, I coaxed Yuzhen into coming. I didn't expect Yuzhen to wait so long, and even when the wind started to blow at night, she would wait and not come into the house."
"It's my fault. I misunderstood your Highness's intentions and even caused Yuzhen to misunderstand. Please punish me, Your Highness!"
Zhao didn't dare to cry, but she knelt on the ground, looking shaky.
Prince Xuan's heart ached. Actually, Zhao Shi wasn't wrong. He'd seen the soup she'd sent him, and he'd been thinking about going to her courtyard the night before. He'd even hinted at it, and she'd surely understood. It was Concubine Yang who'd come looking for him, and it was he who had stood her up.
I just didn't expect that the second girl also missed her father and was still longing for him, even to the point of missing herself.
Prince Xuan knew that Zhao didn't have the courage to make the second girl sick for no reason. It seemed that his long absence from Zhao's courtyard had made the second girl feel that he had neglected her and her.
Concubine Yang, on the other hand, had called him over and started rambling on about a lot of things. It was unclear what she was talking about, but Prince Xuan was so annoyed that he told her to shut up. It was already late at night, and it was not a good idea to disturb Zhao, so he went to sleep at Concubine Yang's place.
After helping Zhao up, Prince Xuan hugged her and lay down, comforting her, "It was my negligence, not your fault."
Hearing such a gentle tone, but with anger in her eyes, Zhao knew that it worked. She also knew that the anger was not directed at her, so she lowered her head to wipe her tears, and smiled when she looked up again.
That night, because he had to take care of the second young lady, Zhao did not sleep with the prince, but Prince Xuan slept with her in his arms all night, which made her very happy.
Prince Xuan spent the next two days staying at the Zhao family's courtyard, and a slew of rewards arrived. A man, when guilt strikes, tends to be more generous than usual, and the rewards he showered on him for days on end were a sight to behold.
On the other hand, Concubine Yang couldn't sit still, so she followed Zhao's method and went to deliver soup to Prince Xuan. Somehow, she angered Prince Xuan and was not only kicked out, but also assigned a nanny to learn etiquette and rules by Prince Xuan, which made the backyard a laughing stock.
Princess Xuan said to her two sisters, "That Nanny Su is an old lady by the prince's side. Even the prince's wet nurse is not as good as her. She is the most old-fashioned and strict. Concubine Yang is going to suffer these days!"
Concubine Li laughed out loud: "That would be great."
Li Qingping tried to calm her down: "Don't let yourself get carried away by laughing."
Unexpectedly, Concubine Yang's actions benefited Li Qingping, allowing her to serve the emperor in the last few days of September.
Prince Xuan has been very upset with Concubine Yang these past two days, but fortunately the children are quite well-behaved.
He went to see the second girl and the eldest son, and just as he came out of the backyard, he met the eldest girl who had just returned from the clan school.
"Father!"
The eldest daughter smiled brightly, which made Prince Xuan feel warm in his heart: Hey, my lovely daughter.
The eldest girl happily paid her respects to Prince Xuan, and then showed him the calligraphy in her hand as if it were a treasure.
"Calligraphy copybook?"
The older girl smiled and said, "The teacher tested our homework today, and I got an A!"
Prince Xuan took the calligraphy and read it, then patted his eldest daughter's head in appreciation: "Excellent! As expected of our Yu Jin."
He was so happy that he had just come out of the backyard and now followed the eldest girl back to Li Qingping's courtyard. Seeing Prince Xuan coming, Li Qingping was surprised and quickly sent people down to get busy.
Prince Xuan first continued to check the eldest girl's homework, then had dinner together, and finally went to bed with Li Qingping.
The eldest daughter was intelligent and sensible, and Prince Xuan was delighted that Li Qingping had raised her well. Furthermore, Li Qingping never showed jealousy in front of him, but simply spoke to him with care and concern, which made Prince Xuan feel completely relaxed. He stayed in Li Qingping's courtyard for three consecutive nights.
This had never happened before! Even when she was first canonized as a wife in the palace, Prince Xuan only stayed with her for two consecutive nights for the sake of Princess Xuan.
The servants in the courtyard were extremely happy. Princess Xuan and Concubine Li were also happy for Li Qingping.
Li Qingping himself didn't care much and continued to live his life as before.
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