The mistress and servant walked up the steps to the main courtyard, where the Fujin (principal wife) and the Fifth Fujin (principal wife) were talking.
Lanqin hadn't been to the main courtyard for almost half a year. As soon as she entered, she saw the Fujin (principal wife). She was wearing a bright red cheongsam, and her headdress was adorned with peony hairpins and jade beads, making her look elegant, graceful, and dignified.
Although the Fujin was talking to the Fifth Fujin, when Lanqin suddenly walked in, she seemed to sense it as well, and involuntarily looked towards the door. Naturally, she saw her, and their eyes met in the air, like martial arts masters who had already engaged in an invisible battle of wills before making a move.
"This humble servant greets the Fujin!" Lanqin, supported by Cui Niang, took a few steps down and bowed to the Fujin.
"The concubine has arrived," the princess said calmly. She hadn't expected Lanqin to travel alone, as she hadn't come to pay her respects since returning. This was their first meeting.
"Greetings, Fifth Princess Consort!" Lanqin bowed to the Fifth Princess Consort again.
"No need for formalities!" Fifth Prince Consort knew that Fourth Prince favored Consort Niu, and presumably this was the woman in front of her, so she couldn't help but take a closer look.
"The concubine was accompanying Mo Yaqi in her indecent behavior, so why did she come out?" The concubine felt uncomfortable thinking that the Fourth Prince hadn't arranged anything for Lanqin, which meant that she didn't have the right to order Lanqin around.
"There's a small matter that's not quite right with the eldest princess, so I came specifically to talk to the prince about it, lest the fourth prince sees it later and it won't be good." Lanqin deliberately spoke the last two words very slowly.
At this moment, the wives of the other wives in the separate residences seemed to have also noticed the situation and all quieted down, as if they wanted to hear what Lanqin had to say to the wives about what was wrong.
Lanqin's gaze swept over everyone around her. There were the Third Prince's wives, the Eighth Prince's wives, the Ninth Prince's wives, and the Tenth Prince's wives. The remaining First Prince's wives, the Thirteenth Prince's wives, and the Fourteenth Prince's wives were probably in the inner room, or hadn't arrived yet. There was no First Prince's wife in the Seventh Prince's household; she didn't know if it was Xinyi who had come, as she hadn't seen her yet.
Well, everyone's here, so there's no need to worry about the Princess Consort disapproving.
The Fujin stared at Lanqin for a while before revealing a warm smile. She walked up to Lanqin, took her hand, and said with a smile, "Sister, you really are something. You were so sad when the Fifth Prince died that you stayed at the other residence for several months. You haven't even shown your face here since you came back. Is something wrong?"
This conversation revealed why Lanqin went to the other courtyard, why she didn't come to pay her respects to the main wife after returning, and why she suddenly came out to "nitpick".
Sure enough, after hearing these words, everyone's expressions were filled with anger at Lanqin's rude behavior. They were angry that she, as a concubine, could be so disrespectful to the principal wife. Moreover, her adopted son died in the other courtyard, so what was she doing there? Was there some hidden story behind it?
The ladies on either side were the most honored women in the Qing Dynasty. They were all chosen by the emperor himself for his sons as primary consorts, and each had her own agenda. However, they most enjoyed listening to the secrets, gossip, and even scandals among their sisters-in-law to pass the time during their mostly free time.
"I didn't know that it was inappropriate for a concubine to come and criticize the primary wife again. Eighth sister-in-law, you're lucky. Eighth Master doesn't have a concubine, otherwise, this concubine would be very arrogant." The Third Princess glared at Lanqin, her tone implying that she was talking about her own master's concubine, Tian Shi, which showed how much she usually resented Tian Shi.
"Although I don't have a concubine, I do have Consort Chen. It's said that she entered our household under the arrangement of Consort Niu." The Eighth Princess Consort felt very uncomfortable seeing Lanqin; she had long harbored resentment. She wondered how Chen Ruzhu was faring under her watchful eye.
Lanqin spoke softly to the Fujin, "I came here only to discuss the matter of the eldest princess with you. If you are unwilling to listen, then I will have to speak to the master myself." Her voice was so low that only the Fujin could hear her; the others could only vaguely make out what she was saying, but could not understand what she was saying.
The Fujin looked at Lanqin's composed and calm demeanor, showing no agitation despite the hurtful words she had just heard. She remained as steadfast and unperturbed as ever.
What could she possibly have done that made her so confident she could embarrass this princess? The princess couldn't help but wonder.
"I have already shown the eldest princess's dowry to the master. I wonder if the concubine has any objections?" the concubine said in a low voice.
“Those maids and nannies who accompanied the eldest princess to the Xu family are inappropriate. They have never served the eldest princess before. The princess consort actually gave such maids as dowry. Does she intend for the eldest princess to be lonely and helpless in the Xu family, without anyone she can rely on? If the master knew about the princess consort's plan, he would probably be very impressed by her little tricks.” Lanqin still spoke in a voice that could only be heard by the two of them.
The princess's face changed instantly. She stared intently at Lanqin, her gaze dark and menacing, as if she wanted to devour her whole. She opened her thin lips and whispered, "Are you threatening me?"
Lanqin smiled gently and said softly, "I am merely reminding you, Madam, that it's not wise to resort to such petty tricks at this time; it would be counterproductive. If you interpret this as a threat, then I will take it as such!"
The Fujin's gaze suddenly changed; she seemed not to recognize the person in front of her. She was already furious inside, but she had to maintain the demeanor of the primary Fujin.
"This concubine will take her leave. I presume all the primary wives of the various households are here. As a secondary wife, it is truly inappropriate for me to be here. As for whether the primary wife should be replaced, you can decide for yourselves. I will go and see if the Fourth Prince will personally come to discuss this matter with the primary wife." Lanqin bowed to the primary wife and then turned to leave.
Everyone was surprised to see them leave without saying anything. They had thought there would be more to see, but seeing it end like this, they couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
“Cousin, Niu is so presumptuous, why can’t you punish her? According to the rules, since she is disrespectful to the wife, she can be punished.” The Third Wife walked angrily to the Fourth Wife’s side and said.
“My cousin meant well. She came to remind me that the eldest princess’s wedding dress had a small hole accidentally snagged. Oh well, I’ve already told her to go back and find the embroiderers in the manor to fix it immediately. Everyone, please don’t take it seriously. Let’s all come inside and sit down to talk,” the princess said with a smile to the princess’s wife.
Seeing this, everyone looked on in disappointment and then went off to find someone to talk to.
"Lingxiu, go to Chunliu's room right away and tell her to prepare to marry the eldest princess. Consider it as her taking care of the eldest princess for me," the Fujin said.
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