Yinzhen eagerly sought advice from Tong Wanyan, a sight Yinreng had never seen before.
"He really does have a wife now, he knows how to please her," Yinreng teased.
Yinzhen pretended not to hear Yinreng's words and only looked at Tong Wanyan.
Tong Wanyan covered her mouth and laughed, "There probably won't be a second one. Jiarong also had one of these birds, which my sixth cousin bought from a foreign merchant. I heard that Jiarong's bird was also smart, but it could only learn quickly by mimicking what you said. A mischievous bird like the Blackbird is probably gone."
Yinzhen was disappointed for a while, but then he cheered up.
"My lady, I will try to spend more time with you in the future," Yinzhen comforted Ulanara Fanghui.
"Alright, that's enough. You two are just here to freeload off me, but you're being all lovey-dovey in front of me. My daughter isn't asleep yet; what if you corrupt her?" Yinreng said, making an excuse to shoo them away.
Yinzhen retorted, "Isn't Second Brother the same?"
Yinreng shook his finger at Yinzhen with an inscrutable expression: "It's different. This is my daughter, and I am her father. I have a good relationship with your second sister-in-law, and I'm trying to create a good family atmosphere for them."
Yinzhen pursed his lips, suppressing his inner turmoil. Second Brother is shameless!
Yinreng was shameless: "We're all family, so I'll speak frankly. You two go back, I need to keep your second sister-in-law company."
Yinreng's appearance was so irritating that Yinzhen, who had originally planned to leave soon, became unhappy.
He went to Tong Wanyan to complain: "Second Sister-in-law, look at Second Brother! He's only been here a little while and he's already sending us back. He promised to love his brother, but he's done something so hurtful."
Tong Wanyan first looked up at Yinreng with a sweet smile. While Yinzhen was secretly thinking that things were not going well, she said, "Husband and wife should follow each other. Fourth brother, I won't say any more."
Yinzhen, feeling frustrated, grabbed Ulanara Fanghui's hand: "I can never win an argument with Second Brother and Second Sister-in-law. My wife and I are in the way, so we won't bother you anymore."
Yinreng waved happily: "Deshun, see the Fourth Prince and Fourth Princess off for me."
"You two are so ignorant. I have some free time today, so I can spend more time with you at noon." Yinreng held Tong Wanyan's hand, his eyes full of love.
Having been half-driven and half-chased out of Yuqing Palace, Yinzhen no longer showed the unwillingness he had shown in front of Yinreng.
"Fujin, look how good Second Brother and Second Sister-in-law are. We should be like that in the future," Yinzhen said.
Ulanara Fanghui also longed for it; the way her second brother and sister-in-law got along was completely different from how her father and mother treated her.
While her father and mother treated each other with respect, she preferred the lively and intimate relationship between her second brother and his wife.
Leaving aside the fact that Yinzhen and his wife were led astray by Yinreng and Tong Wanyan, this was foreseeable.
Back at Ning Shou Palace, even after Ulan had offended the Empress Dowager, she still harbored feelings for Yinreng.
She went back to her room alone, muttered to herself for a while, and then took a good nap.
Young girls are beautiful no matter what.
After a good afternoon nap, Wulan woke up with a rosy complexion and carefully dressed herself in front of the mirror.
“Princess, the Empress Dowager has instructed that you should stay within the Ning Shou Palace. The Forbidden City has many rules, and some palaces are forbidden areas. There are also some places that can only be visited according to one's status,” said the nanny assigned by the Empress Dowager to serve Princess Wulan, her expression serious but respectful.
Princess Wulan looked at her proudly: "Then could the Empress Dowager issue a decree forbidding me from stepping out of Ning Shou Palace?"
The old woman hesitated and said, "No, Your Highness, that's not true."
Princess Wulan said smugly, as if she had found a loophole in the old woman's words: "Since the Empress Dowager did not say that I am not allowed to leave Ning Shou Palace, what's wrong with me going out for a stroll? I know the forbidden areas of the palace. You were assigned to me by the Empress Dowager to serve me, and you are just reminding me not to break the rules of the palace. I will walk around as I please. If I go to a place I should not go, you can stop me."
“Since the princess has said so, this servant dares not disobey your orders,” the nanny said.
Princess Wulan thought she had made the nanny submit in fear of her status, but little did she know that this was a deliberate act by the Empress Dowager and the nanny.
The Empress Dowager had been a young girl herself and knew what kind of temperament girls on the grasslands had.
Some people won't turn back until they hit a wall, and some even won't turn back after hitting a wall.
Since Princess Wulan was so focused on Yinreng, she decided to let her experience the shame of rejection.
Princess Wulan went out in a good mood. She had inquired about the location of Yuqing Palace, where the Crown Prince lived.
She thought she had secretly made her way to the main gate of Yuqing Palace without anyone knowing, but little did she know it was the result of the nanny's negligence.
As luck would have it, Tong Wanyan was seeing Yinreng off to court, a rare occasion, when she unexpectedly encountered her little rival outside Yuqing Palace.
Judging from Princess Wulan's attire, Tong Wanyan could easily guess her identity.
De Shun and Yinreng decisively turned around to avoid Princess Wulan's gaze.
"Xiao Yan, go back inside. It's windy outside, don't catch a cold." Yinreng lied through his teeth.
He dared to say that he had no feelings for Wulan whatsoever, but since she had come to his door, he didn't want Tong Wanyan to misunderstand.
Tong Wanyan smiled and pushed Yinreng aside.
"This must be Princess Wulan. She's so lovely, quite different from the Manchu ladies," Tong Wanyan greeted Princess Wulan with a gentle smile.
"Princess, this is Consort Tong. You should pay your respects." —A maidservant sent by the Empress Dowager.
Princess Wulan immediately regretted her actions upon seeing Tong Wanyan.
She felt ashamed of herself. Although her Chinese wasn't very good, she knew the idiom.
She had assumed that the handsome and dashing crown prince looked down on her because he didn't want to be associated with Mongolia.
Now it seems that even with such a beautiful concubine, the Crown Prince wouldn't be interested in a celestial being descended to earth.
"Princess Wulan greets the Crown Prince and Consort Tong." Princess Wulan mourned sadly for her unrequited love.
Her lingering feelings for the Crown Prince completely vanished.
“Consort, I, Ulan, will tell you the truth. I came here specifically to see the Crown Prince. He is so handsome, learned, and talented; any woman would fall in love with him. I have never seen a man more outstanding than the Crown Prince on the grasslands, so it is no wonder that I want to stay by his side.” Ulan blurted out quickly.
Mustering her courage, under Tong Wanyan's curious and gentle gaze, she continued, "However, Wulan's admiration for the Crown Prince is a thing of the past, and not a trace remains now. Because you are too handsome. When you stand next to the Crown Prince, Wulan can only see you, and even the Crown Prince's handsome face is not so attractive."
“Consort, Ulan will no longer ask the Empress Dowager to betroth me to the Crown Prince. Could you please come to Ning Shou Palace occasionally so that Ulan can keep you company and have a chat?”
Ulan's heart changed too quickly. Not only was Yinreng stunned, but even the nanny who was on guard against her causing trouble was frozen in place.
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