Chapter 354 Extra Chapter: With You (Part 7)
Princess Yongxin's earliest memories are all related to the palace.
From the time she could remember, it was the Empress Dowager's Shouning Palace, a magnificent place where everything was the best in the world.
The Empress Dowager was both dignified and kind; her dignified manner was directed towards the noblewomen, while her kindness was directed towards the younger generation.
Princess Yongxin always remembered the Empress Dowager smiling as she fed her.
"Our Mu Xiao is the best! Here, eat this and then you can go play!"
Princess Yongxin first met her mother in the Empress Dowager's palace. That day, the Empress Dowager held up a painting and told her that the woman in the painting was her mother.
From then on, Princess Yongxin liked to sleep with that painting in her arms every night.
She didn't understand why the people in the area where she lived would kneel down so often.
Other people's mothers are able to talk, move, and hold their children, but her mother can only exist in paintings.
As Princess Yongxin grew up, she gradually matured.
As she grew older, she learned a lot of things.
It turned out that she was the granddaughter of the Duke of Han, and the kind old woman who often came to the palace to see her was her maternal grandmother.
The Empress Dowager in the palace is from the Han State Duke's Mansion; she is the younger sister of the old Han State Duke!
And his mother was the youngest daughter of the Korean matriarch.
My mother later married the son of the Minister of Works, but the happy days only lasted for a little over a year.
His mother passed away less than a month after giving birth to him.
My maternal grandmother took me, who was just a month old, to the palace and gave me to the Empress Dowager.
The Empress Dowager felt sorry for her because she had lost her mother at a young age, so she immediately issued an edict to bestow upon her the title of Princess Yongxin and announced to the public that she would raise her herself.
From then on, everyone in the capital knew that the Empress Dowager doted on Princess Yongxin.
Princess Yongxin grew up happily in the palace.
...
Everyone knows that the Empress Dowager dotes on Princess Yongxin. Among the children of the same generation in the palace, this princess is the one the Empress Dowager loves the most.
Even some princesses and princes were not as favored by the Empress Dowager as Princess Yongxin.
Because of this, people in the capital say that Princess Yongxin is unruly and domineering, an unreasonable person who whips people at the drop of a hat.
Princess Yongxin was already quite sensible when she heard the rumors outside. She knew that such a reputation was bad for her and for the Duke of Han's family. She also wanted to be a gentle, considerate, and understanding girl...
Who knows...
"Mu Xiao! Your maternal grandmother sent you to the Empress Dowager's side, not so that you could be a pampered young lady."
If they want you to be a pampered heiress, your maternal grandmother can simply take you in.
The Korean royal family's level of education for their daughters was renowned throughout the capital.
Your maternal grandmother sent you to the Empress Dowager's side to find you a powerful patron whom no one else could touch.
A powerful backer that prevents the Mu family from paying attention to you.
You shouldn't become a girl just because others say a certain type of girl is good.
Those words are meaningless; they're all just bullshit.
You just need to grow according to one person's ideas.
That person is the Empress Dowager! You should become whatever the Empress Dowager wants you to be.
As for the others... ignore them!
"Those people don't dare to interfere! Do you understand?" Old Madam Zhao of the Han State Mansion said quietly to Princess Yongxin during one of her visits to the palace.
Princess Yongxin wrote it down.
Grandma wouldn't lie to her; Grandma loves her, and what Grandma says must be true.
And so, Princess Yongxin secretly observed what kind of girl the Empress Dowager liked.
But after observing for a long time, Princess Yongxin felt a little confused. She had been observing for almost half a month and found that the Empress Dowager... she didn't know what kind of girl the Empress Dowager liked.
When the daughter of the Minister of Rites entered, the Empress Dowager immediately praised her for her proper manners and impeccable etiquette, saying that she was worthy of being a girl who had grown up in the presence of the Minister of Rites.
Princess Yongxin understood that the Empress Dowager liked those who knew the rules.
Ye Mingmin from the Ye family has entered the palace. The Empress Dowager is very fond of her. Holding Ye Mingmin's hand, she said, "Who says that a woman's virtue lies in her lack of talent? Mingmin's talent is no less than that of any young master."
Princess Yongxin also learned that the Empress Dowager liked those who loved reading and were talented.
Ye Yunshu entered the palace, and the Empress Dowager held Ye Yunshu's hand and praised her.
As expected of a girl from the Ye family, she is truly remarkable. Her accounting skills are admirable. In the future, she must help His Majesty to clarify all the accounts of the Censorate.
Princess Yongxin understood again: the Empress Dowager liked people who were good at accounting and managing the household...
Gradually, Princess Yongxin discovered that the Empress Dowager liked all the girls who entered the palace.
Flamboyant, gentle, aloof, and even taciturn...
The Empress Dowager adored every girl who entered the palace.
Princess Yongxin pondered for a moment, wondering if she should learn from all these girls...
only……
Less than a day after she started learning, the Empress Dowager noticed that Princess Yongxin was acting strangely.
The pastries that Princess Yongxin used to love were served, but she only ate half a piece and then stopped. In the past, she could have eaten half a plate of them.
The Empress Dowager's first thought was that Princess Yongxin might be ill, so she immediately summoned half of the imperial physicians from the Imperial Hospital.
After examination by the imperial physicians, they finally came to the conclusion that the patient was suffering from excessive worry!
This startled the Empress Dowager. Wasn't Princess Yongxin always carefree and did whatever she wanted? With her under her protection, who would dare to bully her!
Or perhaps someone gave her a hard time or said things she shouldn't have when she wasn't with Princess Yongxin...
The Empress Dowager's face immediately darkened, and she ordered her head maid to investigate what had happened and who Princess Yongxin had been talking to that day.
Seeing things develop in a direction she dared not imagine, Princess Yongxin quickly grabbed the Empress Dowager's sleeve and told her what had happened.
"The Du family's daughter entered the palace and won the Empress Dowager's praise. I also want to be as good as the Du family's daughter."
Miss Du always only takes a tiny bite of whatever she eats; they say it's the proper etiquette.
I was thinking…” Princess Yongxin lowered her head.
At that moment, only one idiom came to her mind: "Dong Shi imitates Xi Shi" (a Chinese idiom meaning to imitate someone poorly).
The Empress Dowager was stunned for a while before she understood what Princess Yongxin meant.
Seeing that she had praised Miss Du a couple of times, she wanted to try and win her favor just like Miss Du had...
"How could you be so silly, child! I was just saying those polite things, okay? I can't be expected to say anything unpleasant!"
There are many things you don't understand yet; I'll teach you slowly later.
All you need to know is that those who can enter the palace and be seen by me are all the families of important officials.
Those people... eight out of ten things I say are lies!
"I don't like Miss Du's behavior at all. Eating so little—does that mean the pastries in my palace aren't good?"
Princess Yongxin breathed a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, she wouldn't have to go hungry anymore!
"Mu Xiao, tell me, is it because I've treated you badly? Otherwise, why would you try to please me like other young ladies?" the Empress Dowager continued.
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