“This eighteenth prince was born to Consort Wang. He is about five years old this year, but his health has never been very good. This worries Consort Wang quite a bit,” said Cui Niang.
"The eighteenth prince?" Lanqin repeated.
“Yes, His Majesty dotes on this eighteenth prince. His mother, Consort Wang, is also very favored,” Cui Niang said.
Lanqin recalled that in the 47th year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, the 18th prince died young. At the time, the Kangxi Emperor was on an inspection tour in Mongolia when he suddenly heard the news. Seeing that the crown prince showed no sign of grief, he immediately began to express his disappointment in him, foreshadowing the deposition of the crown prince.
Seeing that Lanqin was in a daze, Cui Niang asked, "Consort, what's wrong?"
Lanqin snapped out of her reverie and smiled, saying, "It's nothing. I just remembered that I encountered a palace maid riding in a sedan chair on the way here. She might have been Consort Wang."
Cui Niang asked Lan Qin about the woman's clothing and appearance.
"It should be Consort Wang. She's probably going to report the Eighteenth Prince's illness to His Majesty. Alas, this little prince has had a rough time. Although His Majesty dotes on him, he's not by his mother's side, and I don't know how those people are taking care of him," said Consort Cui.
Lanqin exchanged a few more words with Cui Niang, then got up to take her leave.
“Cui Niang, if you change your mind, just let me know. You’re welcome to come anytime,” Lanqin said to her at the door.
When the three of them returned to the palace path with its red walls and green tiles, Lanqin said to Nianxue, "Ever since I told you to invite Cui Niang to the South Courtyard, your face has been pale. What's wrong? Am I not allowed to be in charge of the South Courtyard?"
Upon hearing this, Nianxue immediately went around to Lanqin and knelt down with a thud, saying with tears in her eyes, "This servant dares not. This servant just did not expect that Your Highness had this plan, and I feel that I have not served Your Highness well."
Upon seeing Nianxue kneel down, Lanqin hurriedly pulled her up, saying, "Stand up and speak. Did I allow you to kneel? I don't like kneeling down so easily."
Seeing Nianxue's tears falling even more, and noticing Lanqin's angry face, Xicha hurriedly pulled Nianxue up.
Nianxue was on the verge of tears, but she forced back her grievances and said, "This servant knows she was wrong. This servant shouldn't have been unhappy. What right does this servant have to say what kind of servants Your Highness wants?"
After hearing her words, Lanqin's anger subsided considerably, and she wasn't truly angry with her. However, while Lanqin was smiling and talking to Cui Niang, she had kept a bitter face and remained silent, which was really inappropriate.
"Do you know that although I've been promoted, it's equivalent to being completely opposed to the main courtyard? Right now, all we have in the manor is the Fourth Prince's favor; we have nothing else. If we don't find an experienced nanny to help us, can you guarantee that serving Wuxiha won't lead to us being plotted against? You've seen it; the Eighteenth Prince is greatly favored by the Emperor, yet he still suffers from various calamities. I'm afraid someone is sabotaging him," Lanqin said, softening her tone.
Nianxue gradually wiped away the tears on her face. The more she listened, the more she felt that she was being unreasonable. Finally, she simply stomped her foot and said, "Princess, this servant will go and ask Granny Cui to grant my request."
Lanqin grabbed her arm and said, "Let Cui Niang think about it. Don't push her too hard."
The three of them, master and servants, composed themselves and headed to Yonghe Palace.
Consort De was admiring flowers in a side room, while Consort Cheng was chatting with her.
"Your Majesty, I heard that Consort Wang went to the Qianqing Palace to meet the Emperor directly again," Consort Cheng said cautiously, observing Consort De's expression.
"She has been quite favored by His Majesty these past few years, so she must have done something like this at least once or twice." Consort De's fingers, adorned with tortoiseshell and jewel-encrusted nail guards, gently stroked a pot of crimson camellias. These were sent from the Imperial Flower Room, where Consort De loved flowers, and a variety of different kinds of flowers were sent every day.
“Yes, if it weren’t for the fact that she was a member of the Han Banner Army, she probably wouldn’t be in the position of a Noble Lady now,” Consort Cheng said.
Just then, a palace maid came in to report: Consort Niu from the Fourth Prince's residence has come to pay her respects to Consort De.
Consort De was stunned by these words and didn't react for several seconds before she stopped and said, "Let her in."
Seeing Consort De's expression, Consort Cheng quickly said, "Since Your Highness's daughter-in-law has arrived, I will take my leave."
Consort De pulled her aside and laughed, "You're just a concubine, so stay put. How's your seventh son doing? It's about time he takes a second wife."
Mentioning this, Consort Cheng's face darkened, and she sighed, "Alas, Your Majesty, I don't know how many times I've brought this up with him, but he just isn't in a hurry. We'll have to trouble Your Majesty to help us with things on the Emperor's side."
Consort De patted her hand and said, "Don't worry, I've taken the Seventh Prince's matter to heart."
Just then, Lanqin was led in by a palace maid.
"Greetings to Mother, greetings to Consort Cheng!" Lanqin walked up to Consort De, bowed respectfully, and raised the handkerchief in her left hand.
Consort De looked her up and down before saying, "Rise. I didn't even realize you called me 'Mother'."
Lanqin smiled and said, "It is my honor to be able to call Your Majesty 'Mother.' I have come here to express my gratitude to Mother and Father Emperor. I will certainly do my best to fulfill my duties, bear children for you, and get along well with all the sisters in the inner quarters."
Sigh, Lanqin felt incredibly hypocritical saying all this. She was willing to have a few more children for the Fourth Prince, but as for peacefully coexisting with the other princesses, that depended on whether they caused trouble. She couldn't just endure being bullied; she wasn't that kind of coward.
"Hmm. Now that you've been promoted, you've become much more sensible and proper. These words are very much to my liking. As the Fourth Prince's concubine, you must assist the Prince's wife in managing the household well and try to avoid causing trouble so as not to worry the Fourth Prince. Do you understand?" Consort De said in the tone of an elder.
Lanqin curtsied again and said, "Your Majesty, I will obey your decree."
"Alright, alright, what a good child. I heard you gave birth to a princess. You should bring her in today for Her Majesty to see." Consort Cheng quickly interrupted, seeing the awkwardness between the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.
"Your Highness Consort Cheng, Wuxiha is still too young, and the weather is getting colder. I'm afraid she'll fall ill, and it wouldn't be good if she passed on her illness to her mother. When Wuxiha is a little older, I will definitely bring her to pay her respects to my grandmother," Lanqin said.
"Alright, Qiutong, bring out the jade necklace I gave to my granddaughter." Consort De still looked rather unhappy.
"Your Majesty has already prepared gifts for the child in your womb. For a boy, a golden pony; for a girl, a jade necklace," Consort Cheng quickly explained on behalf of Consort De.
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