The following day, based on his own judgment, the Fourth Prince arranged marriages for the three princesses. Qingping was betrothed to Li Jun, Qingshun to Ye Ci, and Qing'an to Zhang Youwei, with Qing'an's marriage postponed for two years.
After the imperial edict was issued, everyone received the news. Ye Ci was a little irritated when he heard that he had been chosen as the princess's husband. It seemed that his marriage to the princess was a done deal.
The news reached the Zhang and Li families. The father and mother were happy for them, and Li Jun and Zhang Youwei were also secretly pleased, as marrying a princess would greatly help their future development.
Gao Xiu also received the news. He originally thought he would definitely become the emperor's son-in-law, but unexpectedly Zhang Youwei came in. Gao Xiu couldn't help but wonder if he had failed to meet the emperor's expectations when he entered the palace that day. However, he clearly remembered that the emperor's eyes showed appreciation.
The three princesses, all believing they had achieved their desires, rushed to Changchun Palace to pay their respects. Lanqin didn't know how to tell them that the men they had married were not the ones they had hoped for.
"Your Majesty, we will always remember your kindness. Although we are not your biological daughter, Your Majesty has always been very good to us!" Qing Shun felt sad and reluctant to leave, thinking that she was about to get married and would no longer be able to visit Consort Xi and the Emperor often. Although she was not their daughter, she remembered Consort Xi's kindness to her.
Lanqin looked at the three girls in the prime of their youth and felt a pang of regret. This was the helplessness of being born into royalty in a feudal era; they still didn't know that things weren't as simple as they thought.
"You three silly children, you've been by the Prince's side since you were little, and now you're suddenly getting married and becoming wives. Are you prepared?" Lanqin prepared to teach them some principles of being a wife.
All three shook their heads in unison. Qing Shun and Qing Ping were immersed in the joy and sweetness of love. The love of young girls experiencing their first love was devoid of the mundane realities of daily life. Lan Qin wanted to make them see reality. They would all become principal wives after marriage, and from then on, they would be responsible for managing all the affairs of the household. Lan Qin wanted to impart some of her own experience to them.
“You will all be legal wives in the future. The income and expenses of the household will depend on you. You must know that managing the affairs of the household is your most important task. When your husband is away, the last thing he wants to see is disharmony in the household. Do you understand?” Lanqin said.
Lanqin didn't explicitly tell them that the disharmony within the household meant their husbands might take concubines in the future, and that as the principal wives, they should be tolerant and magnanimous, and put their husbands first. Lanqin couldn't believe that one day she would be saying the very things she once disagreed with most—how ironic! But the feudal society was what it was; if she were to advise them to fight for their husbands' undivided attention, it would sound like a joke.
The three nodded, seemingly understanding, and kept Lanqin's words in mind. Qingshun was the oldest of the three and had some understanding of matters between men and women. He had also witnessed the relationship between his mother and father. Considering how good the relationship between the Empress and the Fourth Prince was, he thought he would have to ask the Empress for advice more often in the future.
Qingping was somewhat reluctant to leave. She used to be just a concubine's daughter in the Third Prince's mansion, but now that she had entered the palace and been named a princess, her status was much more noble than before.
Qing'an was the youngest and most dependent on Lanqin. Hearing Lanqin say this, her nose tingled with emotion, but she still wouldn't get married for another two years.
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