"Keep an eye on him for me, and see if the Second Prince will go again!" Consort Jia said, her eyes darting around as she made up her mind.
Meanwhile, Yonglian returned to Xiefang Palace and happened to run into Mingyu. Both mother and son were surprised. When Mingyu saw that Yonglian seemed to have returned from outside, her anger flared up instantly.
"Yonglian, why won't you listen to your mother? Where have you gone again?" Mingyu stared at Yonglian. Now that she was the Empress, she was no longer like a prince's wife. She had many things to worry about every day. Although Consort Gao helped her with some things, she couldn't manage the harem entirely on her own.
Mingyu felt that she was not in good spirits and often neglected one thing for another. As a result, she became more and more direct and even a little rough in disciplining her eldest son, Yonglian.
Faced with Mingyu's anger, Yonglian was used to remaining silent. He knew that no matter what he said, his mother would not respond. His mother only wanted him to study and please his father.
"Mother, your son knows he was wrong," Yonglian said, bowing his head in apology.
"Don't try to fool your mother with apologies. Once your mother is no longer around, you'll do the same thing again, won't you!" Mingyu said angrily.
When Yonglian realized that this tactic was no longer working, he simply kept quiet and let Mingyu scold him.
Fortunately, Mingyu had other matters to attend to, so she didn't ask any more questions. She simply instructed the governess, Momo, to keep a close eye on the Second Prince.
After that, Yonglian still found opportunities to go to Yikun Palace to feed the kittens.
After Consort Jia learned that Yonglian frequently visited Yikun Palace, she sent spies to keep an eye on him.
One day, Consort Jia's spies noticed that every time Yonglian came to Yikun Palace, a small cat from the palace would follow him out. Because Yonglian often came to play with the cat, it gradually became familiar with him. Whenever Yonglian left Yikun Palace, the cat would often follow him out, clinging to his legs and refusing to let him go.
Consort Jia's informants were the eunuchs who swept the area around the entrance of Yikun Palace.
He told Consort Jia all of this, took the reward money, and left.
Since giving birth to the Fourth Prince Yongcheng, Consort Jia has gained favor with Emperor Hongli because of her son.
"Your Majesty, why don't we go and tell the Empress? Let's enjoy a good show," the palace maid suggested.
"What's so interesting about that? It's just that the Empress won't let the Second Prince go anymore. What good does that do for me? What good does it do for Yongcheng?" Consort Jia said.
"Your Majesty, what should we do now?" the palace maid asked.
"I need to think carefully about how to use this matter to benefit my Fourth Prince," Consort Jia said. "Yongcheng is the first prince after the Emperor ascended the throne, and I cannot wrong him."
Time has passed by in the blink of an eye, and the spring equinox has arrived once again. The palace women have finally shed their thick cotton-padded coats and put on brighter spring clothes.
Yongzhang and Yonglian returned from the archery range together. Knowing that Yonglian had asthma, Yongzhang said, "Second brother, you should rest assured, lest your asthma flares up again."
Yonglian knew that Yongzhang was deliberately provoking him, so he said, "Even if my asthma flares up, I won't lose in archery."
Yongzhang glanced at Yonglian, a hint of displeasure creeping into his heart.
When Yongzhang returned to Xianfu Palace, Su noticed that he was unhappy and asked him what was wrong.
Yongzhang pouted and said, "It's all because of Yonglian. He's clearly younger than me, so why is he the second prince and I'm the third prince?"
Yongzhang was already a year older than Yonglian, but in order not to compete for the eldest son's position, Lady Su insisted that Yongzhang be "younger" than Yonglian.
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