The news that the Third Prince and the Fourth Prince had been granted the title of Prince had already spread throughout the capital in the past few days.
The main courtyard of the Fujin was already piled with countless visiting cards, but because the Fourth Prince had instructed her to keep a low profile during this period, the Fujin gritted her teeth and rejected all of them.
She also knew in her heart that when someone receives a benefit, they should be more discreet.
Such connections and networks, offered only after you've achieved success, are hardly even icing on the cake.
The Fujin decided to spend more time on the Fourth Prince and take care of the Second Prince.
However, she had only seen the Fourth Master a few times in the past few days, and several of those times were when the Fourth Master was unconscious.
Unlike the low-key atmosphere at Fourth Master's residence, Third Master's residence was much more lively.
Although it wasn't as extravagant as the three-day, three-night banquet of the past few days, the steps in front of the Third Master's mansion were probably worn smooth and shiny from all the footsteps.
Fortunately, the Fourth Prince's residence was only two or three streets away from the Third Prince's residence; otherwise, given the commotion these past few days, the Fourth Prince might not have been able to recuperate peacefully.
However, while the Fourth Prince's residence provided him with a period of peace and quiet, the Fifth Prince was not so lucky later.
Fifth Master's residence was located less than a street away from Third Master's residence. Not to mention that everyone going to Third Master's residence would disturb the peace of Fifth Master's residence, most people would pass by that street.
Fifth Master was a good-tempered man. Although his two older brothers had been granted the title of Prince of the County but he had not, he was certainly disappointed. However, when he saw his third brother at court, he could still smile and clasp his hands in congratulations.
Although the Fifth Prince's wife was also good-tempered, she couldn't stand that the Third Prince's wife was so arrogant and domineering that she had sent out several invitations to the Fifth Prince's wife in the past two days.
The Fujin (wife of the fifth prince) was unwilling to be the one to flatter him, so she pretended to be sick and declined. However, the Third Fujin seemed determined to go, sending two invitations to the Fifth Fujin in one day.
Fifth Prince's wife was no pushover either. She went to the palace yesterday, but instead of complaining to Consort Yi (née Guo Luoluo), she went directly to the Empress Dowager's Cining Palace.
She didn't say much, but spent a day in the Empress Dowager's Cining Palace.
Unable to find any vanity in the Fifth Prince's wife, the Third Prince's wife eventually turned to the Eighth Prince's wife.
Even though the Eighth Prince's wife's family has fallen on hard times, she is still a shrew. Or rather, the Eighth Prince's wife, Lady Guoluo, is now fearless and has nothing to lose.
The Third Prince's wife delivered the invitation to the Eighth Prince's residence, and the Eighth Prince's wife chased her out with the invitation within half an hour.
The Eighth Prince's wife was also good at stirring up trouble; she had just driven away the Third Prince's wife, and then she turned around and went to Consort Hui's palace to cry.
The Eighth Prince's wife went to complain, and as soon as she entered the Forbidden City, she started crying and wailing, saying that her master was just a prince, unlike others, and that he was inferior to them in everything he did...
Although His Majesty did not blame the Third Prince or his wife in the end, he did not take the Third Prince with him when he went north in May.
Li Chenjiao learned this news from someone visiting Consort Li Jia.
While ostensibly a visit, Li Chenjiao was actually trying to find out about the current situation at the Fourth Prince's residence. However, she naturally said what she should say and simply shook her head, pretending not to know what she shouldn't.
However, it must be said that the Fourth Prince's decisiveness in not allowing outsiders to disturb him is still admirable.
The Emperor set off northwards in mid-May to tour the northern frontier.
I heard that the Prince Zhi, the Fifth Prince, the Eighth Prince, the Ninth Prince, the Tenth Prince, and several younger princes were also accompanying him.
The Crown Prince stayed in the capital to oversee the country, but it is said that all matters, big and small, still had to be sent to His Majesty by express courier for his approval.
Third Master also stayed behind, but he wasn't assigned any tasks, as if he had been completely forgotten by His Majesty.
Although the Fourth Prince did not accompany them, he was recuperating from an illness.
Before leaving, His Majesty specially dispatched two imperial physicians to stay at the Fourth Prince's residence to take care of his health, and also said that once the Fourth Prince recovered, he would assist the Crown Prince in overseeing the country.
In this way, even a fool could tell that His Majesty was displeased with Prince Cheng's ostentatious behavior these days.
In fact, when Third Master saw that Fourth Master's residence was keeping a low profile, he intended to restrain himself. However, he had already accepted invitations from all the families a few days ago, which set a precedent. If he stopped accepting invitations from any family midway through the process, it would be seen as forming cliques. In the end, Third Master had no choice but to accept it reluctantly.
This wasn't the most painful thing for Third Master; the most painful thing was yet to come.
In June, His Majesty was still traveling north. During his tour of the border regions, he saw that the Fifth Prince was exceptionally skilled in riding and archery, and surprisingly, he also conferred upon the Fifth Prince the title of Prince Heng. Later, the Eighth Prince and the Ninth Prince were also promoted from Beizi to Beile.
Now things are really messed up. The first few princes are all Princes of the Second Rank, none of them are much more noble than the others, and the later princes are all Beile.
It's unclear whether His Majesty's actions were impromptu or pre-planned.
After receiving the news, Third Master, who was far away in the capital, became even more discreet.
The Fourth Prince was still recuperating at his residence and was not affected at all. Upon learning that the Fifth Prince and the Eighth Prince had been granted the titles of Prince and Beile respectively, the Princess Consort sent congratulatory gifts in accordance with the rules.
Perhaps because of the low-key atmosphere at the Fourth Prince's residence a few days ago, the Eighth Prince's wife didn't say anything sarcastic this time and was quite polite.
This made the princess very uncomfortable.
However, after this incident, the Princess Consort's reputation improved even more.
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