Upon hearing this, Lanqin really didn't want to listen anymore, so she bowed to the two of them and turned to walk towards Wuxiha.
"Sister-in-law, do you think what we just said had any effect?" Third Princess asked, staring at Lanqin's retreating figure. Like all first wives, she naturally harbored resentment towards Lanqin.
"Seeing how hurriedly she left, it must have served its purpose," said the First Princess Consort.
Meanwhile, Lanqin walked back to Wuxiha's side and said to her, "Wuxiha, let's go back. It's windy here, and your mother is afraid you'll catch a cold if you stay out too much."
Ushiha was a child who was very good at reading people's expressions. Seeing that Lanqin's face was not good, he quickly went to Lanqin's side, took her hand and asked, "Mother, what's wrong?"
Seeing how sensible her daughter was, Lanqin immediately bent down and knelt down, touching Wuxiha's little face and saying, "Mother is fine, Mother is just a little cold, let's go back!"
Ushiha nodded understandingly, then rushed into Lanqin's arms. Lanqin picked up Ushiha, and then walked out of the Imperial Garden with Cui Niang and Nianxue.
After they returned to Yonghe Palace, Lanqin asked Nianxue to take Wuxiha to find Namin and Bechuk to play.
"My lady, what's wrong? Why did you leave after only exchanging a few words with the First and Third Princesses?" Cui Niang knew that Lanqin was not happy, and after seeing that Wuxiha had been taken to Bechuk's place by Nianxue, she spoke to Lanqin.
"I don't want Wuxiha to be ridiculed by them," Lanqin said sullenly as she sat down. She had just overheard the First and Third Princesses talking about the Fourth Prince's past, and it still bothered her. She had tried hard not to think about it before, but now, hearing that Wuya Wanru was in Consort De's palace, Lanqin felt genuinely uncomfortable. She remembered the gaze that had been watching her from behind, and now it was right here in this palace.
"My lady, they only tried to suppress you because they saw you were gaining favor with the Emperor. The First Princess Consort, of the Gioro clan, has always considered herself the wife of the Prince of the First Rank and, being the most senior among the primary consorts, has always acted arrogantly. The Third Princess Consort has never been favored by the Third Prince, so she has the lowest status among the primary consorts. She's a fence-sitter, depending on who's in power!" Cui Niang recalled the days she spent with the Fourth Princess Consort in the Prince's residence. At that time, the prince's wives had all just gotten married and lived together in the Prince's residence.
“I know. Cui Niang, can you tell me about Wu Ya Wan Ru? You know her too, right?” Lan Qin said.
Startled, Cui Niang looked at Lan Qin with concern and asked, "Why did you bring her up again, Master?"
Lanqin said, "She is in Yonghe Palace right now, and she might be not far from here."
After thinking for a while, Cui Niang was afraid that if she said too much, she might upset Lan Qin.
“My lord,” Cui Niang said, “at that time, I had not yet served the Fourth Prince’s wife, and I only knew a little about Wuya Wanru through hearsay. I didn’t know anything about her.” “I only heard that she looked somewhat like Consort De and was very beautiful. Because she was well-behaved and sensible, Consort De took her to the palace to play, and that’s how she became familiar with you, my lord. Later, when the Emperor was choosing a primary consort for you, you considered marrying this Wuya woman, but Consort De immediately nipped the Fourth Prince’s idea in the bud and arranged for this Miss Wuya to marry into the Xiao family of Nanling. The Fourth Prince later married a young lady from the Ulanara family.”
Hearing this, Lanqin understood the past between Fourth Master and Wuya Wanru. In short: what you can't have is always better; what you can't have, you always yearn for. This is the inherent weakness of men, and Fourth Master, being a man, is no exception!
“Master, after all, this Lady Wuya has already been married and has had children. You don’t need to worry too much.” Cui Niang felt that it was impossible for Fourth Master to accept such a woman into his harem now, especially since their past was known to almost everyone.
“But what if he still has a place for her in his heart? Now this cousin is openly here, and they'll inevitably run into each other from time to time,” Lanqin said. Actually, Lanqin couldn't accept that the Fourth Master had Wuya Wanru in his heart besides her. She stubbornly believed that at this moment, the Fourth Master's heart should only belong to her, and that Lady Nian was only forced by circumstances and would eventually fall out of favor. But now that Wuya Wanru had arrived, would the Fourth Master's heart be divided in half, or even more?
“My lady, you’re just scaring yourself. After all, she’s just a widow. How could she possibly remarry into the Fourth Prince’s household? Even the Consort De wouldn’t allow it,” Cui Niang quickly comforted Lan Qin when she heard her say that.
“Cui Niang, do you know that the royal family has never been afraid of these things? Consort Dong’e was the sister-in-law of the founding emperor, so how did she end up in his harem?” Lan Qin said.
"Master, you can't say such treasonous things!" Cui Niang said, quickly covering Lan Qin's mouth in fright.
"Cui Niang, I'd like to meet this Wuya woman. Could you go out and find out where she lives?" Lanqin asked. She didn't want to be in the open while others watched her from the shadows. Since she had to confront her anyway, she might as well go and see who this person really was.
Seeing Lanqin's resolute expression, Cui Niang knew that she had made up her mind, so she had no choice but to nod in agreement.
A short while later, Cui Niang returned with the information Lan Qin wanted to know. She smiled and said to Lan Qin, "Wu Ya Wan Ru has been sent out of the palace by Consort De and is not in the palace at all now."
"Gone? When did they leave?" Lanqin asked in surprise.
"It was early this morning. They said that Consort De specially arranged for someone to send her away," said Cui Niang.
"This morning? Why the rush? She should have gone back to her parents' home for the New Year, why is she staying in the palace? And it just so happens that she was sent away when I wanted to see her." Lanqin murmured.
"Yes, I specifically asked a few palace maids. That's what they all said, but when I pressed them for details, they wouldn't say anything more," said Cui Niang. She used to work in the palace, so she naturally knew how to inquire about information from the palace maids.
Lanqin pondered Cui Niang's words, but some doubts arose in her heart. Why was Wuya Wanru sent away by Consort De at this time, and why did she seem to leave in such a hurry? Suddenly, a bad premonition surfaced in Lanqin's mind.
“Cui Niang, call Su Peisheng over for questioning. He shouldn’t have gone to the front with the master,” Lanqin said.
When Su Peisheng was summoned to Lanqin by Cui Niang, he hesitated, but when Lanqin sent someone to inquire, he kept it a secret. Now that Wuya Shi had even entered the inner chambers, should he tell Consort Niu now?
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