The princess's health seemed to deteriorate suddenly without any reason. Her body, which had been perfectly fine before, suddenly became as cold as if she had been exposed to severe cold, which made people feel cold all over.
Especially when she stood next to Consort Dong'e, from a distance it looked as if Consort Dong'e was bullying the Fujin (the wife of the emperor).
This looks quite interesting.
When they arrived at Yonghe Palace, Consort De looked much better than the Fujin. The Golden Festival was a big day, and Li Chenjiao was very tired from wearing the auspicious clothes. In addition, Li Chenjiao was pregnant and looked a bit bloated.
Consort De was startled when she saw the Fujin and Li Chenjiao, by the Fujin's face and Li Chenjiao's belly.
Consort De asked with concern, "You two both look so weak. Sit down quickly. Since you're ill, you could have just sent someone to let me know. Li Shi, you're six months pregnant, aren't you? Don't bother with the formalities, sit down."
Li Chenjiao performed a half-bow before taking her seat. She didn't rush to speak, waiting for the Fujin to speak first.
The princess consort remained as respectful as ever: "It's alright. The Golden Offering Festival is a big day for us Manchus, and it's not appropriate for a daughter-in-law to be absent."
Upon hearing this, the smile on Consort De's face faded slightly.
The wife's words were impeccable, but she seemed to have forgotten one thing: that the Fourth Prince had stayed at the manor due to illness and had not gone to the palace today.
The way the Fujin said it made it sound as if the Fourth Prince didn't value the Golden Festival.
Fortunately, everyone in the hall was one of our own, so there was nothing serious.
After speaking, the Fujin seemed completely unaware of the change in Consort De's expression; this illness seemed to have made her quite dull.
Seeing this, Li Chenjiao still had to speak, and had no choice but to: "It's autumn now, and my appetite seems to have improved. I'm only five months pregnant, but my belly looks a bit bigger..."
It would be a lie to say she had a good appetite; Li Chenjiao actually had a poor appetite, but she had to pretend to have one for the sake of appearances.
Seeing this, Consort De stopped looking at the Princess Consort and gave her a few words of advice: "Now that you are pregnant, even if you have a good appetite, you should not overeat, otherwise childbirth will be difficult."
After saying those two sentences, Zhao Mama came in and said it was almost time. Consort De looked at the two of them and said, "It's a long way to Cining Palace. Why don't you two stay in Yonghe Palace instead?"
The princess consort stood up immediately: "Daughter-in-law, how can I stay? I should stay and serve my mother."
Li Chenjiao was initially tempted, but now that the Fujin had stood up, she couldn't stay any longer: "Yes, I can manage for now."
In any case, they would just be talking with Lady Zhaojia and the others in a side hall of Cining Palace.
Because the Fourth Prince stayed at his residence to recuperate today, none of the princes came to the palace with him; only the eldest and second princesses did.
The princes did not enter the palace; the one standing before His Majesty in the Hall of Supreme Harmony was Prince Hongxi.
This is actually a bit strange. The Emperor often neglects Yinreng, but he always shows great favor and affection to Prince Hongxi.
Perhaps this is the capricious nature of emperors?
Today, Yinreng also made an appearance. The Eighth Prince's injuries have long since healed. The people around him are like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea, each displaying their unique abilities.
His Majesty was initially quite pleased, but later, when he was testing the princes, he became inexplicably angry. It seemed that when he was testing the fifth prince's son, His Majesty suddenly changed the subject and brought up the third prince.
"I remember that the third prince also loved reading the Book of Han when he was young, but in the last two years, he seems to be more interested in swords and spears?"
The Third Prince, who was suddenly mentioned, stiffened for a second. He stood up and cupped his hands, saying, "Father, you are joking. My skills are all just for show... not as good as my eldest brother's."
The Emperor gave him a meaningful look, and finally picked up his wine cup, enduring the stinging pain: "You've been going to the martial arts arena more often lately."
Third Master chuckled awkwardly, "My son originally thought... that diligence could make up for lack of talent."
The Fourteenth Prince overheard this and grinned, saying, "Why is Third Brother thinking about making up for his lack of talent at this age? Why don't you have a friendly match with your younger brother another day?"
The Third Prince's face darkened upon hearing the Fourteenth Prince's voice.
Who wants to spar with that guy Fourteen?
To be honest, he was no match for the Fourteenth Prince in terms of martial arts skills.
The Fourteenth Prince was pulled by the Thirteenth Prince and then fell silent.
The emperor overheard the brothers' conversation and laughed heartily, but then didn't pursue the topic any further.
I originally thought it was just something His Majesty casually mentioned at lunch, but I never expected that His Majesty would suddenly make trouble for the Third Prince after the court officials were gone at the dinner.
It came even more unexpectedly than the luncheon.
However, while it seems there were no warning signs, there were still some.
"Today reminds me of that Mid-Autumn Festival day at Changchun Garden, Third Prince. I remember you were by my side that day?" His Majesty suddenly put down his wine cup, making a soft sound.
Third Master was completely bewildered, and stood up in a daze, saying "Yes."
The Emperor sneered, "It must have been hard for you to go to such lengths to plot the assassin's hiding place underwater, Third Brother. It must have been tough for you to harbor such treacherous intentions..."
After speaking, he slammed his hand on the table, knocking over wine cups.
A deathly silence fell over the Hall of Preserving Harmony.
The Third Prince almost instinctively knelt down, kowtowing and begging for forgiveness, while defending himself: "Your son is innocent! Your son has never done such a thing. I beg Your Majesty to see the truth. The Changchun Garden incident was absolutely not done by your son! Your son does not believe he would commit such a treasonous act."
Inside the Hall of Preserving Harmony, only the Third Master's voice of apology and begging for forgiveness could be heard. His voice gradually turned into a sob, whether from genuine grievance or from being frightened was unknown.
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