The Fourth Prince has been somewhat conflicted these past few days, for two reasons: first, the matter of Emperor Kangxi wanting to take Lanqin's child away; and second, the Mid-Autumn Festival family banquet requiring his fourth wife to attend with him. His fourth wife has been neglecting herself for quite some time, her prolonged absence from the imperial family has already sparked gossip. Lanqin, being pregnant, cannot attend. And the Fourth Prince cannot be accompanied only by Lady Nian.
Therefore, although the Fourth Prince loathed Ulanara, he still had to step into the main courtyard, a place he hadn't visited in a long time.
"This concubine greets Your Highness!" When Ulanara was informed that the Fourth Prince had arrived, she almost dropped the pen in her hand. She quickly had Lingxiu help her change her clothes, re-arrange her hair, and put on the headdress of a Fujin (Prince Consort) before coming out to see the Fourth Prince.
"No need for formalities, Madam, please sit down," said the Fourth Prince. He glanced at the woman he had once despised; she had indeed aged considerably.
After the two sat down according to their status as host and guest, Fourth Master was somewhat at a loss for words. Suddenly, he felt an overwhelming sense of unfamiliarity with this woman. Although it had only been a little over a year since they last met, it was as if he had completely forgotten her.
"The Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, and Consort Niohuru is six months pregnant and about to give birth, so it's not advisable for her to go out. Consort, please come to the palace with me in a few days to pay our respects to Father Emperor and Mother Emperor." The Fourth Prince felt there was no need to say anything else, so he got straight to the point.
Upon hearing this, the Fujin felt a pang of bitterness in her heart. It turned out that the Fourth Prince had not come to see her, nor had he thought of her. He simply wanted her to go out and fulfill her duties as the Fourth Fujin, and it was not appropriate for Niohuru to go out.
"It has been a long time since I paid my respects to Father Emperor and Mother Emperor. It is time for me to do so," said Ulanara.
"Alright, then the Princess Consort should get ready. If you need anything, just have someone tell the head nanny." The Fourth Prince didn't want to stay a moment longer and immediately stood up, intending to leave.
"My lord! I have a request!" The princess consort said hastily when she saw the fourth prince get up and knew he was about to leave.
"Does the Princess Consort want the Prince to lift your confinement?" the Fourth Prince asked.
“No, I know I have committed grave sins, and it is understandable that Your Highness will not forgive me. I just miss the Fourth Prince so much. Could you please allow him to visit me from time to time?” said Ulanara.
"That's all?" Fourth Master hadn't expected that she was thinking about the Fourth Prince.
"That's all. The Fourth Prince was raised by me for over two years. I've long regarded him as my own son. For the past two years, I've been remorseful for what I did, and I feel deeply sorry for you, Your Majesty, Father Emperor, and Mother Emperor. I've been praying for the Fourth Prince, hoping he can grow up safely. Although my sins are unforgivable, please, Your Majesty, for the sake of the Fourth Prince, allow me to see him often," Ulanara said, wiping away her tears.
Was she truly repentant? Did she really just want the Fourth Prince to see her? The Fourth Prince didn't turn around to look at her.
"You should focus on preparing your clothes and jewelry for the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet. Don't worry about anything else, I understand." After saying that, the Fourth Master strode out.
As the Fourth Prince's tall figure gradually disappeared from her sight, Ulanara's tears slowly subsided.
"Madam, does this mean that the master has begun to forgive you?" Lingxiu quickly handed a handkerchief to Madam.
“No, he only needs the Fourth Prince Consort, not me. However, all I have left is the title of Fourth Prince Consort,” said Ulanara.
“Fujin, as long as you are the Fourth Fujin, you can still suppress Niohuru when necessary,” Lingxiu said.
"Prepare my clothes and headdress for entering the palace, and then have Lady Uya come to see me. She has only been favored for a few days, why haven't I seen her?" Lady Ulanara said.
“Your Highness, it’s obvious that Uya isn’t very sincere about cooperating with you. I feel that she’s holding back something from you, Your Highness,” Lingxiu said from behind the princess.
"Hmph, she's always been petty and uncouth. However, I need her to stand against Niohuru," the princess said.
Meanwhile, Madam Nian was sitting in her main room, with the head steward of the kitchen and the head nanny standing in front of her discussing the Mid-Autumn Festival family banquet.
"Today's family banquet, I, the Consort, would like to make it a bit more elaborate. After all, this is the first time I've hosted a family banquet, so the dishes will be three times more elaborate than usual. Secondly, let's invite an opera troupe to come and entertain us. Head Granny, I, the Consort, will pay for this." As she spoke to them, Madam Nian looked at the fabric that Bi Rou had brought over.
"Consort, you can hire this opera troupe, or you can use your own money to hire them. Where do you plan to have them perform?" the head nanny asked.
"Naturally, it will be in the East Courtyard. Invite them all to the East Courtyard for the Mid-Autumn Festival dinner, and then watch the play," said Madam Nian.
"Alright, then the concubine needs to give me a range of how many people to send over to serve you," the head nanny said, glancing at Lady Nian a few times.
“How would I know? This is exactly what you need to do. The people here usually come to the palace with me. You need to arrange all the servants. Also, you need to arrange all the furniture and other items.” Lady Nian said.
“Consort, His Highness has appointed you to host this Mid-Autumn Festival banquet, not me. I am merely assisting you. Therefore, whatever you require, however much you need, I can only offer my help,” said the head nanny.
When Nian heard her say this, she frowned. She thought that she only needed to give instructions and the head nanny would immediately cooperate. But now it seemed that this head nanny had no intention of taking charge at all.
"Consort, we need to specify three dishes. I'll bring you the menu now, and please decide immediately so we can prepare the necessary ingredients. Otherwise, if we delay, the ingredients may not be ready." - Head of the kitchen.
"Alright, just bring it over," said Madam Nian.
"Consort, I still have things to do. Once you have prepared a list of the number of servants and items needed, I will come back to receive your instructions," said the head nanny.
After they left, Lady Nian angrily threw the fan on the ground and said, "That old nanny dared to give me, her concubine, such a hard time."
"Consort, which fabric do you think is suitable for making the Manchu-style dress for entering the palace?" Birou asked.
"Get out of here! If I, the concubine, knew everything, would I need you all?" Lady Nian shouted.
"Please calm down, Consort! These are not difficult. I will prepare the list for you," Bai Zhi said.
"Yes, I need to prepare my attire and headdress for entering the palace. I'll leave the family banquet to you," Lady Nian said hastily.
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