The Fourth Prince was discussing matters with Li Wei, Mr. Dai, and his staff in the front yard, while Su Peisheng stood guard at the door of the study. He saw Qiu Chan from the Fujin's quarters arrive and smiled as she approached.
"Greetings, Eunuch Su!" Qiu Chan curtsied and greeted Su Peisheng with a smile.
"Oh, no, no. Miss Qiu Chan, you're making me feel too bad." Su Peisheng quickly offered a helping hand, even though she was a first-class maid in the main courtyard and now she had to bow to him.
“You have served the master for nearly twenty years, so it is only right for me to pay my respects to you,” Qiu Chan said with a smile, not feeling aggrieved at all.
"But what are your instructions, Madam?" Su Peisheng was secretly pleased. Although Madam was not favored, she was still Madam, and he couldn't be completely disrespectful.
"Does the Princess Consort wish to invite the Master over to discuss when the two newly appointed princesses to enter the manor?" Qiu Chan asked.
Su Peisheng was startled, thinking to himself: "Is the Fujin trying to cultivate a new woman to seduce the Fourth Prince again?"
"Master is indeed discussing matters with the gentlemen. I'll ask him again while I go in to get him some water." Su Peisheng felt it wasn't a big deal; the Fourth Master's mind was entirely focused on preparing for the upcoming battle with the Dzungars.
Seeing that Su Peisheng didn't even seem to want to go in and report, Qiu Chan looked rather displeased. The Fujin had specifically instructed her to go and tell the master, so how was she going to report back to the Fujin in the main courtyard now that she had received this message?
Seeing the troubled look on Qiu Chan's face, Su Peisheng roughly guessed that the Fujin was having trouble replying, so he could only say, "If Miss Qiu Chan has nothing else to do, why don't you go to the side room where the maids are resting for a while? I'll go in and report when I have a chance. It's really inappropriate to go in now. The master just ordered that no one should see anyone."
Su Peisheng, a seasoned servant of twenty years, though only in his thirties, was already incredibly shrewd and calculating, unwilling to offend anyone completely. He knew that although the Fourth Prince's wife was out of favor, her position as the principal wife was undeniable. As long as the Fourth Prince didn't divorce her, she remained the Emperor's personally appointed Fourth Princess Consort, and who knew she might regain power someday. As for Qiu Chan...
"Thank you, Eunuch Su. This is a token of the Princess's appreciation. Please take it and have some tea." Qiu Chan took out a purse from her sleeve and handed it to Su Peisheng.
Su Peisheng glanced at the purse, sighed inwardly, and accepted it with a smile. The reasoning remained the same: he didn't want to completely offend the wife, and he wanted to leave himself another way out.
After Qiu Chan went to the room where the maids were resting, the Fourth Master indeed called Su Peisheng in to change the tea.
While pouring tea for the Fourth Prince, Su Peisheng quietly informed him of the message sent by the Princess Consort. The Fourth Prince paused slightly, as if remembering something, and then instructed Su Peisheng, "Tell the Chief Courtyard that I will go to the Princess Consort's place to see Hongshi after lunch."
Upon hearing this, Su Peisheng immediately bowed and withdrew. Qiu Chan, who was standing at the window, saw Su Peisheng go in and then immediately went out and waited on the veranda.
As soon as she saw Su Peisheng come out, she immediately went to greet him. Before she could speak, she heard Su Peisheng say with a smile, "Your Highness will go see the Fourth Prince after lunch."
Upon hearing this, Qiu Chan was immediately overjoyed. After bowing, she felt relieved and turned to leave.
Su Peisheng watched Qiu Chan's retreating figure with a bitter smile: it must be quite frustrating for those serving her to be reduced to this state of affairs.
After receiving Qiu Chan's reply, the Fujin was clearly in a much better mood. She immediately asked Qiu Chan to go to the kitchen to arrange Hongshi's lunch, while she and Lingxiu picked up the "resumes" of the two newly arrived princesses, which also included portraits of the young ladies-in-waiting.
First, the Fujin picked up the Yehenara clan name, looked at it, frowned and said, "This Yehenara clan name was chosen by Consort Hui? How did such a surname end up in the master's inner quarters?"
Lingxiu didn't quite understand what the Fujin meant, so she cautiously glanced at the Fujin and asked, "Is there anything wrong with this Yehe clan member?"
The princess glanced at Lingxiu and said, "The Yehe clan and the Aisin Gioro family are sworn enemies. Women with this surname rarely enter the palace or the princes' harems. Consort Hui in the palace is from the Yehe clan."
Lingxiu said "Oh," indicating that she understood.
"Judging from her appearance, she must be the dignified and beautiful type. Look, it says here that she is proficient in seven musical instruments and has beautiful handwriting; she must be a talented woman." The princess frowned as she looked at her.
“My lady, there’s no need to worry. A talented woman is bound to be stubborn and self-willed. She thinks she’s different from everyone else, but in the master’s heart, she’s just a princess,” Lingxiu said.
"Hmm, what you say makes some sense. Talented women are often very proud, but as long as we understand that, we won't have trouble controlling them," the Princess Consort said with a slight smile.
The Fujin put down Yehe's "resume" and picked up Nian's "resume" again. Once she looked at it, she couldn't put it down.
"This is quite a woman, look at her, a stunning beauty. Truly beautiful, even more beautiful than that old Lady Yin. Do you think the master will be moved?" Although the princess praised her, there was not a trace of warmth in her eyes, which was chilling.
Lingxiu walked behind the Fujin and looked at the portrait of Nian Shi in the Fujin's hand. She was indeed a stunning beauty, as charming and beautiful as a radiant pearl.
"In my humble opinion, Master probably wouldn't like this kind of thing," Lingxiu said.
"Oh, how do you know?" the Fujin asked, putting down the portrait of Lady Nian.
“This servant thinks that Wu Shi is quite charming and beautiful, and Yin Shi is also bright and beautiful, but they are all overshadowed by Niu Shi, whose appearance is not particularly outstanding.” Lingxiu said softly. Seeing that the Fujin’s expression did not change, she added with relief, “I’m afraid that the master’s preference is not based on beauty.”
After hearing Lingxiu's words, the Fujin seemed to be deep in thought, and then picked up the portraits of Yehe and Nian again to look at them.
"Lingxiu, go to the head nanny and tell her to prepare servants for the new princess. Have her choose them all so I can see them myself," the princess said.
"Yes. This servant will go and convey the message from the Madam shortly. Madam, what will these two princesses do after they come in? There is an empty room in both the West Courtyard and the North Courtyard," Lingxiu said.
"No rush, let's see what the master thinks of these two princesses first before making a decision," the Fujin said.
After discussing matters with his advisors all morning, the Fourth Prince still ate lunch in the front courtyard. He preferred to eat alone in the front courtyard rather than go to the main courtyard to dine with his wife.
After finishing his business, the Fourth Master spent half an hour writing calligraphy in his study before going to the main courtyard.
In the main courtyard, Hongshi had already eaten lunch. He was going to rest for the afternoon, but his wife kept pulling him to practice calligraphy, just to wait for the Fourth Prince to arrive.
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