Fourth Prince followed Su Peisheng, taking the familiar route towards the East Palace.
With the emperor absent, the harem seemed to have become deserted. The ladies of the various palaces, having no one to vie for his favor, probably stayed within their own quarters, so there were far fewer people on the palace paths. Occasionally, one could see a few palace maids, all bowing their heads and greeting the Fourth Prince.
"This direction should lead to the harem?" the Fourth Prince suddenly said.
Su Peisheng was puzzled as to why the Fourth Prince would suddenly say such a thing, so he replied, "Yes, this palace road leads directly to the main road of the outer harem."
The Fourth Prince simply said "Oh," and said nothing more, but a question arose in his mind: Where did the Crown Prince go so early in the morning, and why did he come from that direction? He went early in the morning, yet came from the direction of the inner palace!
The Fourth Prince followed Su Peisheng to the entrance of Yonghe Palace, where he saw a palace maid in charge of the De Consort's palace already standing guard. When she saw the Fourth Prince finally arrive, she immediately showed a slight smile and greeted him, "Your Highness has been waiting for the Fourth Prince for a long time. Please come in."
The Fourth Prince's heart sank. If Consort De was waiting for him in the palace, she must have something to say. It seemed that this was no ordinary dinner.
When the Fourth Prince stepped into the main hall of Yonghe Palace, he saw a heartwarming scene of harmony between mother and son. The Fourteenth Prince was talking to Consort De, whose face showed the tenderness of a loving mother. It was an expression that the Fourth Prince had never shown when Consort De was with him.
It turned out that dinner had already been served, and it seemed that the Fourteenth Prince couldn't wait and had already eaten. When the palace maid told the Fourth Prince that Consort De was waiting for him to dine, the Fourth Prince was puzzled but also felt a warmth in his heart. Now it seemed that Consort De had dined with the Fourteenth Prince and was waiting for her eldest son?
"He's here, come on, sit down." When Consort De saw the Fourth Prince, her gentle and quiet expression vanished instantly. She said to the palace maid, "Bring the Fourth Prince a set of chopsticks and a bowl."
"No need, I've already eaten over there. I wonder why Mother summoned me here?" The Fourth Prince hadn't eaten anything, but suddenly didn't want to dine with the mother and son.
Standing behind the Fourth Prince with his head bowed, Su Peisheng felt a knot in his heart and sighed, "Alas, Consort De can never get the Fourth Prince's rhythm right. She clearly called him Fourteenth Prince, so why was she so vague? She could have just said that the Prince had come to have a meal with his brothers and mother. Instead, she insisted that Consort De had come specifically to wait for the Fourth Prince. How could that be considered a special trip?"
Upon hearing the Fourth Prince's words, Consort De's eyes flashed with displeasure. She glanced at a palace maid standing to the side—the one who had gone to deliver the message to Su Peisheng. The maid immediately panicked, unsure of what to do with herself, and simply lowered her head humbly, awaiting Consort De's judgment.
Fortunately, Consort De was kind-hearted. She was a little unhappy, but she wouldn't punish an innocent palace maid for it.
"Your mother clearly told you to come for a meal, why did you eat before coming?" Fourteenth Prince naturally saw the displeasure in Consort De's eyes and quickly questioned her.
"I'm too busy to get away, Mother, what are your instructions?" Fourth Master ignored Fourteenth Prince and asked with a serious expression.
"Fourth Prince, no matter how busy you are, you can always find time to come and sit with your mother. How can you be so inconsiderate? Hurry up and serve tea to the Fourth Prince." No matter how displeased Consort De was, she naturally wouldn't express it to the Fourth Prince.
The palace maid quickly curtsied and immediately turned to go to the tea room to pour tea.
"I've asked you to come here today because I want you to take your younger brother with you and do some work. Now that you're assisting the Crown Prince in overseeing the country, why not take the Fourteenth Prince with you and let him gain some experience as well?" Consort De said kindly.
When the Fourth Prince saw the Fourteenth Prince, he already had a pretty good idea of what was going on. But when Consort De said it herself, he couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.
Yes, she knew she was assisting the Crown Prince in overseeing the country, and many people were watching her, even her father, the Emperor, was observing her performance. Had she ever asked her about it, or shown any concern for her? Today, she sent someone to invite him to dinner, her purpose still being for the Fourteenth Prince. But could she really trust the Fourteenth Prince to participate? When had he ever truly respected his own brother?
"Forgive me, Mother, but I cannot grant your request. My fourteenth brother is still too young to serve. Father has also not agreed to take him on a personal expedition. I am currently assisting the Crown Prince in overseeing the country, and I cannot afford to make any mistakes. My fourteenth brother would be better off staying at home, studying and cultivating his character, and so on..."
"I knew you wouldn't agree, Mother. You see, this is my own brother. He's not as good as my eighth or ninth brothers. Mother, I'm full, I'm leaving." Before the Fourth Prince could finish speaking, the Fourteenth Prince stood up angrily and hurriedly walked out.
"Stop, Fourteenth Prince. Your brother is right. You're not young anymore, how can you still be so reckless? Fourth Prince, I'm not asking you to place him in any position, just to have him do some things so he has something to do. Your father didn't take him, and I strongly objected." Consort De's affection for Fourteenth Prince was already bordering on spoiling.
"Mother, I really want to go to the battlefield with Father Emperor, why are you stopping me?" Upon hearing Consort De's words, Fourteenth Prince turned away in anger and refused to listen to her anymore.
"Mother, if you have nothing else, I will take my leave." The Fourth Prince could only smile bitterly as he saw that his arrival had completely destroyed the mother-son bond that Consort De and the Fourteenth Prince had just shared.
"Why are you always so distant, towards your mother and your own brother!" Consort De stood up, looking at the Fourth Prince, even doubting whether this overly cold man was really her first child.
Seeing Consort De's slightly injured appearance, the Fourth Prince suddenly felt a tightness in his chest. He involuntarily clenched his fists and said, "Mother never wanted to be close to me, so how can I be close to her?"
Consort De stared speechlessly at the Fourth Prince, her eyes gradually welling up with tears. She remembered how she had almost lost her life when she gave birth to him. Born a lowly palace maid, she had endured countless jealous and resentful glances ever since Emperor Kangxi took her as a concubine. After becoming pregnant, she had gone to great lengths to nurture and protect her pregnancy, finally managing to give birth to the Fourth Prince safely. But unexpectedly, Empress Tong had taken a liking to her son, while she, a mere concubine, was not qualified to raise the Fourth Prince herself, forced to watch helplessly as her infant son was taken away.
Heaven knows what kind of feelings De Guiren was enduring at that time. Whenever she felt heartbroken at the thought, she could only secretly hide where he passed by and watch him until she could have her fill.
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