The next day, Lanqin really didn't want to get up, but she didn't want the Fujin to find fault with her, so she still asked Nianxue to wake her up on time. The Fourth Prince had already gotten up. Lanqin sometimes really admired the Fourth Prince. How could he get up so early after such strenuous exercise the night before? Wasn't he sleepy at all?
“My lady, let’s wear that cherry red dress today. Now that you’ve reached this status, it’s time for you to dress more appropriately,” Nianxue said.
“Red doesn’t suit me. Why does wearing red mean I have to be of high status? Nianxue, you heard what the older sisters said yesterday. Didn’t the Fujin mean to make me distance myself from them? I’m used to being casual. I’ll just do whatever makes me comfortable. It’s not like I’m entering the palace where there’s no way to do that.” Lanqin sat in front of the dressing table wearing a beige undergarment.
"This servant knows her mistake. This servant will comb the princess's hair first," Nianxue said.
"Nianxue, you've been with me the longest, so you still don't know my temper," Lanqin said, seeing that Nianxue seemed a little sullen after her words.
“Yes, I’ve been with you the longest, mistress. So I’m worried that now that your status is higher, you’ll have more opportunities to enter the palace to see the Emperor and the ladies, and you can’t be as casual as before,” Nianxue said with concern.
"Don't worry, I know what to wear and say. You're like an old fogey, always worrying about this and that even though you're about the same age as me," Lanqin said with a smile. She knew that Nianxue was doing this for her.
Nianxue smiled shyly.
After Lanqin finished getting ready, she still took Nianxue's hand and headed towards the main courtyard.
When Lanqin arrived, Song Shi and the others had also arrived. They greeted each other according to their status and then sat down in the seats assigned according to their status.
After waiting for a while, the Fujin (principal wife) came out, supported by Lingxiu's hand.
The princess was dressed in a bright red qipao embroidered with gold thread, and her head was adorned with many pearls and jade ornaments, exuding the air of a principal wife.
After she sat down, she glanced at everyone and saw that Lanqin was still wearing her usual light green qipao, with only a few hairpins on her head and no hair ornaments. She smiled and said, "Now that Sister Niu is a concubine, why are you dressed so elegantly? If I didn't know better, I would think she was just a princess."
Lanqin didn't take it to heart. She stood up, walked to the middle of the inner room, gave the Fujin an extremely dignified bow, and said with a faint smile, "This concubine greets the Fujin."
The Fujin looked at Lanqin indifferently, but couldn't find anything wrong with her, so she had no choice but to tell her to get up.
Lanqin tossed her handkerchief aside and slowly walked back, thinking to herself: It's nothing more than this etiquette; I won't miss anything that needs to be done.
After Lanqin bowed, everyone began to greet the Fujin in turn. However, after greeting the Fujin, they also went to Lanqin to greet her again.
When it was Geng's turn to bow to Lanqin, the Fujin suddenly said, "Geng Gege, squat down a little lower. The way you're doing it, it looks like you're doing a standard bow."
Geng was taken aback and, feeling embarrassed, had no choice but to squat down a little more. Lanqin quickly told her to stand up, but the Fujin said, "Niu Consort, you should just accept the greeting. The rules of etiquette are there. If you break the rules, how can you manage the inner quarters? Speaking of which, now that you are a Consort, you should also be in charge of some things."
Lanqin had no choice but to accept Geng's bow once more before she was satisfied.
After everyone had finished their greetings, the Fujin said, "All of you sisters may leave now. Sister Niu, please stay for a while. I have something to discuss with you."
The Song family and the others glanced at Lanqin with concern, then got up and left.
Lanqin glanced around the room casually, noticing that it was quite different from before. She felt that the furnishings and the indoor flowers were more elaborate than before.
“My sister, do you feel that my room is a little different?” The Fujin noticed Lanqin’s expression and smiled.
"Yes, the furnishings in the Princess's room are thriving, so she must be in a good mood these days," Lanqin replied, turning around.
"My sister is truly kindred spirit to me. Thanks to her, I have been living a very comfortable life these past few days. Being confined by the master for a month has given me a lot to think about and a lot to understand," the princess said.
"Congratulations, Madam! May I ask if you have something to say to me?" Lanqin didn't want to continue this pretense with her.
"Sister thinks my hair is too plain. I used to like to wear bright and lively things, but I'm getting older and it's no longer appropriate for me to wear them. I might as well give them to you. They'll just be gathering dust anyway," the princess said with a smile.
Lanqin was taken aback. She hadn't expected the Fujin to say these things to her. She immediately replied, "Thank you for your kindness, Fujin. However, the eldest and second princesses are still unmarried. Fujin should keep them for them." Lanqin thought to herself, "When I come to pay my respects to Fujin, we are all sisters. There's no need to be so formal. It seems that Fujin has misunderstood."
What are you thinking? Are you deliberately trying to annoy me by making me wear your old hairpins instead of my own?
The Fujin was momentarily speechless at Lanqin's words. She glanced around and then said, "Well, what you say makes sense. The two princesses are growing up, and as their legal mother, I naturally have to think more about them. Actually, I was just letting you know beforehand that I might be going to the palace."
Lanqin's heart skipped a beat; she thought to herself, "I knew there was more to come."
"I don't know what it is, please enlighten me, sister," Lanqin said.
“Our mother specifically told my elder sister that she was feeling slightly unwell and asked her to come to the palace to attend to her. I’m afraid even the prince doesn’t know about this yet; it was a palace maid from my mother’s side who came yesterday to deliver the imperial decree,” the Fujin said.
When Lanqin heard about this, she was momentarily stunned.
Seeing Lanqin's expression, the Fujin quickly said, "Sister, are you unwilling? Sister is truly blessed to be personally summoned by Mother. Serving her well is a meritorious deed."
Lanqin thought to herself: Which part is being sung about?
“How could Lanqin refuse Mother’s summons? Serving Mother is what we daughters-in-law should do. When shall we enter the palace?” Lanqin asked. Since her promotion, she was entitled to address herself as Mother.
Seeing that Lanqin was not afraid, the Fujin felt a little disappointed: she had originally thought that if Lanqin refused, it would be perfect for Consort De to dislike her spoiled nature.
"It is today. Sister, you should go back and prepare. I will arrange a carriage and have someone send you to the palace," the Princess Consort said. In fact, yesterday, Consort De suddenly sent someone to ask Niohuru to come to the palace to see her because Niohuru had just been promoted and should go to her to receive some admonitions. Serving her when she was ill was just a pretext.
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