"Do you think you'll ever see Su Peisheng again? Even if you do, will he still believe what you say?" The last bit of pity in the Fujin's eyes melted away like the first snowflakes.
“The whole affair involving Consort Li was your doing; Consort Li was just a scapegoat. And as for Lady Yin’s stillbirth, wasn’t that also something you instructed her to do to frame Lady Niohuru?” Yan Yu said.
"Do you think the Fourth Prince doesn't have any doubts?" The Princess Consort looked at Yan Yu with disdain.
"He suspected you? Why did it end like this?" Yan Yu looked at the Fujin in disbelief.
"That's because he understands that divorcing his wife would be a huge loss for him, understand? The support our Ulanara family can provide him cannot be ignored. We were married by imperial decree, unlike the seventh prince's wife. A Niohuru is just a favored concubine, while I will always be the principal wife." When the princess said these words, she didn't feel that her position was unbreakable; she just needed to comfort herself with these words.
"So, you're using my situation to curry favor with him, showing that you're willing to disregard even family ties for him?" Yan Yu stared at that utterly selfish face.
“That’s right, you’ve finally become a little smarter. Yu’er, if it weren’t for you this time, how could I have regained his trust? What I did before was nothing more than the struggle for favor between wives and concubines. Which household hasn’t had such things happen? But this time, for the sake of his trust, I had to use your foolishness to gain his trust.” The Princess Consort’s lips even curled into a smile.
"You're horrible. No wonder he doesn't like you. You only care about yourself, you're scheming and hypocritical. You really make me feel ashamed." Yan Yu felt a wave of nausea in her chest when she saw the Fujin's smug look.
"As a daughter of the Ulanara family, I was born with responsibilities that you concubine's daughters never had. From the moment I was betrothed to the Fourth Prince, I knew I had embarked on a path of no return. Yan Yu, if you had been content with your lot, I wouldn't have pushed you out to your death. It's just a pity that your ambition was insatiable, like a snake trying to swallow an elephant, that you insisted on challenging my bottom line. Now you've ended up in this state, and you have no one to blame but yourself." The Princess Consort showed no fear, instead meeting her gaze head-on.
Looking at her eldest sister, who had always held a place above them, the concubine's daughters, Yan Yu suddenly felt an urge to laugh. She was about to be sentenced to death; why did she want to laugh?
The princess kept pondering this question in her mind.
"If I were to expose you, at worst I'd remain an unfavored princess, or be sent back to my father. How many women who are divorced by the Fourth Prince and sent back to their parents' home are truly fortunate?" Yan Yu muttered to herself. She suddenly realized that no matter how the Fujin (the wife's wife) fared, she herself would not have a good ending.
"Have you thought it through? If you have, then your elder sister will have Hailan accompany you for one last night. Tomorrow, if you take your own life, I will ask for a better burial place for you. If you remain stubborn, I'm afraid you won't even have the chance to see Hailan one last time, let alone anything else." The wife knew she would definitely agree, otherwise there would be no way out.
From the moment the Fourth Master pronounced his sentence, Yan Yu knew he would never have a chance to turn things around.
Meanwhile, Lanqin and Fourth Master were preparing their dinner. When the topic turned to the child who had been brought in as a substitute, Lanqin suggested they adopt him. "He's already been brought in; raising him won't be difficult. Why take him out again?" she reasoned.
"My lord, I have an idea, but I don't know if you will agree?" Lanqin said suddenly after picking up a few pieces of vegetables and beef for the fourth master.
"But is it related to that child?" Fourth Master frowned unhappily.
“Yes, what did that child do wrong? Now that he’s been taken away, who will raise him? The people who were in charge are all gone, and we can’t find his parents. It’s better to keep him here with Ushiha. When he grows up, we can tell him everything.” Lanqin knew that once the child was taken away, his life would be in danger.
Fourth Prince was surprised that Lanqin actually planned to adopt the child. He didn't actually dislike the child; having another child in the household was insignificant. However, the child's status was awkward; after all, he had once been his Fifth Prince, and was now almost six months old. The matter had already been reported to Emperor Kangxi, and now he had suddenly disappeared—what could be said?
The Fourth Prince suddenly realized what Lanqin meant. She was concerned about his reputation. If the Fifth Prince disappeared without explanation, what would people outside say, and how would he explain it to his father, the Emperor?
"Qin'er, you still cherish me the most," Fourth Master suddenly said.
“The child is so young, and he was brought in like this. Although he’s not the grandfather’s, he’s still nominally in the family genealogy. If we take him out now, how will we remove him from the genealogy? Let’s wait for a more suitable opportunity,” Lanqin said.
Fourth Master nodded, then said to Su Peisheng, who was serving nearby, "Go and leave that child here, bring him to the South Courtyard."
Lanqin smiled slightly and picked up a few more bites of food for the Fourth Master, saying, "My lord, I think if Princess Yu can be forgiven, then please forgive her. After all, Hailan is still young. Although her crimes are heinous, the most severe punishment is not death, but rather ensuring she never gets what she desires. Perhaps you could imprison her forever; that way, you wouldn't be too unfair to Hailan."
"But she harmed Ushiha like that, and you still pleaded for her?" Fourth Master said.
“I hate her too. Ushiha suffered such a murder at such a young age. But I don’t want you to bear such a false reputation. I think death is a relief. I want Yan Yu to be truly punished, not by death, but by living, but by living without any hope.” Lanqin didn’t know why she still wanted to talk to Yan Yu. She just instinctively felt that it was barbaric and cruel to execute a woman like this.
The Fourth Prince pondered for a moment, seemingly after a fierce internal struggle, before saying, "Since it's your wish, I won't kill her, but she must be imprisoned forever in Zhanghua Terrace."
However, Yan Yu, who was having her final conversation with the Fujin at that moment, never knew that the Fourth Prince had already decided to forgive her. That night, the Fujin brought Hailan to her.
Looking at Hailan, who looked so much like the Fourth Master, Yan Yu felt a mix of emotions. She knew that it would be very difficult to get the Fourth Master's forgiveness again. It was already a blessing that she could see her daughter one last time before she died.
Looking at Hailan's innocent face, Yan Yu suddenly felt that she had been too foolish. It seemed that Niu Shi's favor would last a long time. She had overestimated herself and made those little moves, only to end up pleasing neither side.
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