Meanwhile, news that the Fourth Prince would be holding a flower-viewing banquet at the Yuanmingyuan quickly spread throughout the palace. However, it seemed that the Fourth Prince only invited some relatives and their families to the banquet, and did not invite the concubines of the palace.
The concubines of lower rank naturally had no right to protest and could only complain in secret. However, the mistress of Yikun Palace was unhappy and frequently lost her temper in the palace.
On this day, several palace maids ran out of Yikun Palace crying, their faces flushed red, with several handprints clearly visible. Cuiling, carrying ginseng tea prepared for Consort Nian, happened to run into the palace maids coming out.
Cuiling angrily questioned, "Are you all blind? Why are you displeasing the Empress at a time like this?"
The palace maid lowered her head and cried, "Sister, we really don't know what we did wrong. Her Majesty has been throwing tantrums since yesterday, and I'm the third group to be kicked out..."
Cui Ling waved her hand impatiently and said angrily, "Go away...behave yourselves..."
The palace maid ran away crying. Just as Cuiling reached the door, a vase suddenly smashed against the doorframe. Hearing the sharp sound, Cuiling trembled, her heart pounding. Then came the sound of Consort Nian angrily berating the palace maid. It was clear Consort Nian was furious. Cuiling knew that if she didn't go in to intervene, Consort Nian might unleash a massacre today…
"Your Highness, please calm down..." Cui Ling gently comforted Consort Nian, stepped forward to support her arm, moved her to the chair, and turned to scold the trembling palace maid kneeling on the ground: "Get out of here now, do you want to get in Your Highness's way?"
The palace maids breathed a sigh of relief and crawled out.
Consort Nian knew that Cuiling had come to persuade her on purpose, and her anger gradually subsided. She didn't say much about Cuiling's act of dismissing the palace maid.
Cuiling stepped forward and gently massaged Consort Nian's shoulders, softly comforting her, "Your Highness, why must you lose your temper like this? It's bad for your health..."
Consort Nian was still furious and said fiercely, "How can I not be angry? That slut managed to bewitch the Emperor at the Yuanmingyuan. What flower-viewing banquet? It was clearly the Emperor who brought that slut to entertain the imperial relatives and their families. It was supposed to be a royal banquet, but the Emperor only brought her along. Where did he bring me?"
Cui Ling knew that Consort Nian was furious. After a moment's thought, she whispered to Consort Nian, "This servant has an idea! Why don't Your Highness go to the flower viewing banquet by yourself? After all, the Emperor didn't say that Your Highness couldn't go to the Yuanmingyuan..."
Upon hearing this, Consort Nian realized that this was the only idea she had left, and she didn't care about saving face. Anyway, on that day, she would take the initiative to request permission to go to the Yuanmingyuan Garden; surely the Emperor wouldn't refuse her entry then?
Along with Consort Nian, the Empress of Jingren Palace was also displeased. As the mother of the nation, she should have been with the Emperor, entertaining the imperial relatives. Now, however, Lanqin had stolen her limelight, so how could the Empress not resent it?
Although the Empress was not interested in the flower-viewing banquet at the Yuanmingyuan Garden, the thought of the Fourth Prince standing with Lanqin, acting like an empress, made her feel utterly humiliated. However, despite her anger, the Empress knew this was a crucial moment for Hongshi's ascension to the throne, and she couldn't afford to jeopardize the greater good by offending the Fourth Prince, which would ultimately implicate Hongshi.
Therefore, the Empress did not say anything. On the surface, she gently advised the other concubines in the harem to prioritize the overall situation, thus displaying the Empress's tolerant, magnanimous, and reasonable demeanor.
Seeing that the Empress did not object, everyone had no choice but to accept the Fourth Prince's arrangement, and the inner palace calmed down for a few days.
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