After the late emperor passed away, Consort Yi was arranged by the Fourth Prince to live in a side hall of Cining Palace. The location was remote, and since it was occupied by consorts, the palace staff naturally did not pay much attention to her, making it akin to a cold palace.
When the Eighth Prince's wife arrived at Cining Palace, she found no maids or eunuchs to serve her. The desolate courtyard was littered with fallen leaves, indicating that it had not been cleaned for a long time.
The Eighth Prince's wife called out a few times, but received no response. She had no choice but to grope her way forward alone until she found the side hall.
An older nanny, carrying a basin, slowly walked out and bumped into the Eighth Prince's wife as she entered. She stopped in her tracks, staring blankly at the Eighth Prince's wife. The Eighth Prince's wife immediately recognized her as the nanny who served the Dowager Consort Yi. The nanny also saw the Eighth Prince's wife and hurried over.
The old woman was also overjoyed and wept, dropping the basin and bowing to the Eighth Prince's wife: "This servant greets the Eighth Prince's wife..."
The Eighth Prince's wife hurriedly helped her up, saying, "Please rise, Granny..." Looking at the basin on the ground, filled with quite a bit of murky water, the Eighth Prince's wife asked in confusion, "What is this water?"
The old woman answered evasively, "There aren't enough people in the side hall, so we have to carry the water ourselves. I'm too old to use buckets, so I have to use basins..."
The Eighth Prince's wife said angrily, "The old nanny is an elder in the palace. How can she do such a job herself?"
The old woman lowered her head and remained silent. The Eighth Prince's wife hurriedly went in and saw that the Dowager Consort Yi's temples were gray, and she was slumped in a chair, looking old and haggard. She no longer had the youthful beauty of her past and looked more like a lonely old woman. Her eyes were cloudy as she looked out the window. Thinking that the old woman had come in, she said weakly, "What time is it?"
The Eighth Prince's wife felt a lump in her throat and cried out, "Aunt..."
Upon hearing this, Consort Yi turned around in surprise and reached out to the Eighth Prince's wife, calling out, "Minghui, what brings you here? Or am I seeing things?"
The Eighth Prince's wife went over, took the Empress Dowager Yi's hand, and said with tears in her eyes, "Aunt, you've lost weight..."
Consort Yi gripped the Eighth Prince's hand tightly as if it were a lifeline, pleading, "You've seen it all. It's worse than the Cold Palace. The current Emperor rarely cares about us consorts. Every servant in the palace looks down on us. Now that the late Emperor is gone, I've become a consort, so naturally they won't respect me..."
The Eighth Prince's wife's gaze shifted to the table beside her, where there was still leftover food that hadn't been cleaned up. The bowls and plates were filled with coarse grains and vegetables, with not a trace of oil in them, which made the Eighth Prince's wife even more distressed.
"Aunt, you've suffered so much..." the Eighth Prince's wife said, tears streaming down her face.
Consort Yi said excitedly, "I have begged the Emperor many times to let me leave the palace to live with Ninth Prince, but the Emperor just won't agree and has rejected my request several times. You...you've come at the right time. You and Eighth Prince should beg the Emperor together to let me leave the palace..." Consort Yi's emotions were so turbulent that she coughed several times.
Consort Yi, worried about her health, quickly comforted her, "Aunt, please don't be agitated. This matter can't be rushed. Besides, you were the late Emperor's concubine; you can't just leave whenever you want. The Emperor's refusal wasn't without reason. I will definitely discuss it with the Eighth and Ninth Princes when I get back, and ask the Emperor to allow you to leave the palace. During this time, you must take good care of yourself..."
Consort Yi was relieved to hear that the Eighth Prince's wife had agreed, and she began to recount her various experiences in the palace. The Eighth Prince's wife offered kind words of comfort, and they did not leave Cining Palace until dusk…
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