“Master, yesterday the master stayed at Yehe’s place again.” Cui Ling said to Nian Shi, who was reclining on the bed taking a nap.
Now, whenever Fourth Master rests at the manor, he spends time with Lanqin in the South Courtyard. If he needs to stay overnight elsewhere, he stays with Yehe Clan five out of ten days, and with Nian Clan, Wu Clan, and others the rest of the time.
"During the day, he's either in the palace or in the South Courtyard, and at night he's mostly at Yehe's place. It seems that the master has suddenly developed unusual feelings for that Lady Ye. What methods did she use to bewitch him?" Lady Nian asked, puzzled.
“Yes, I don’t think her appearance has changed much. She still can’t compare to Master. How come she seems like a completely different person in front of Master now?” Cui Ling said.
Like Cuiling, several maids in the South Courtyard shared the same confusion. Lanqin was heavily pregnant and went to bed very early every day. No matter when the Fourth Master returned, he would always come to the South Courtyard to check on her, even if she was already asleep. He would personally inquire about Lanqin's daily life, which had become a daily ritual.
“The master comes to see our concubine every day,” Nianxue said. She had overheard Xicha and Sihua discussing the master’s recent favoritism towards that Yehe woman, so Nianxue spoke up without hesitation.
“Nianxue, we heard this from outside too. They say that Lady Yehe is quite favored, and the master has been staying in her room for several days in a row. We also heard that he has bestowed quite a lot of jewelry upon her,” Xicha said.
"So what? Our concubine is about to give birth, which gave them an opening. But I see that Master comes to see her every day; his affection is unmatched," Nianxue said. "Master will be waking up from her afternoon nap soon. Quickly prepare the chilled plum soup that Master likes. Don't gossip here, and don't let Master hear you, understand?"
Several maids began preparing Lanqin's favorite foods and drinks. Her appetite was now astonishing, almost twice what it was before she was pregnant, but fortunately, no matter how much she ate, she showed no signs of gaining weight.
Meanwhile, Yehe Shi, supported by Yuhen, headed towards the main courtyard. Looking at Yehe Shi's attire, she was completely different from the Yehe Shi who had been deeply poisoned by opium.
"This concubine greets the Fujin." Yehe stepped into the main courtyard and walked into the Fujin's main room. She saw the Fujin reading a book and went up to greet her.
"You're too polite, Lady Ye. I heard that the Master has already put ice in your room. How is it? It's not hot anymore, is it?" The Fujin put down the book in her hand and looked at Yehe Shi with great interest. Today, she was wearing a pair of white jade hairpins shaped like orchids. Judging from their quality, they were probably the latest gifts from the Fourth Master.
"It's all thanks to the Fujin's help that I had the opportunity to serve the Fourth Prince," Yehe said respectfully.
The Fujin felt pleased by these words and beckoned to Yehe Shi, saying, "Come here!"
Yehe followed the call of the Fujin and went to the Fujin's main bed, but was pulled over and sat down.
"How can this be? How can I, of such low status, sit beside Your Highness? Your Highness is too kind to me," Yehe said in a flustered manner, her frail and terrified appearance making her appear exceptionally pitiful. Even Your Highness, seeing Yehe's behavior, felt that this woman was delicate and gentle, truly endearing.
“No wonder the prince favors you now. Niohuru is heavily pregnant now, which is the best time for you to take her place,” the princess said, holding Yehe’s hand.
Yehe smiled sweetly, her eyes incredibly charming, yet not frivolous. She said respectfully, "I am merely fulfilling my duty. I have no intention of replacing the concubine. But if Your Highness is willing to let me serve you, I will certainly do my best."
The princess raised her hand, which was adorned with tortoiseshell nail guards inlaid with rubies and sapphires, and gently stroked Yehe's fair and jade-like face. With just a little force, she could probably leave a deep red mark on Yehe's face.
Yehe shrank back slightly, appearing somewhat afraid of the Fujin's intimacy.
"Does Princess Ye seem afraid of me?" the princess asked, lowering her hand.
"I'm just not used to it, please don't take offense, Madam," said Yehe.
"Hehe, it seems that Consort Ye is still blaming me. Actually, I did this so that you could understand, my sister, that in this inner court, there can be no retreat or weakness. If you take a step back, others will push you forward until you have nowhere left to retreat. Now that you have won the Fourth Prince's favor, isn't it all thanks to the pressure they put you in back then?" the Consort said.
Yehe pondered the words of the Fujin (principal wife), and had to admit that the fact that she could sit here peacefully now was truly because the desperate situation she faced back then had forced her to make a determination to win the emperor's favor.
“Sister Ye, with the current favor the Prince bestows upon you, are you truly content to merely sit in this position of a concubine? You’ve already visited the South Courtyard, haven’t you? Niohuru was just a concubine like you back then. But now, her status is beyond your reach. She has two children, while you have nothing. Do you still need me to teach you?” the Fujin said.
Yehe Shi naturally understood what the Fujin meant by those words, but she still felt a little hesitant to break off all ties with Lanqin.
"Just you wait and see," the Fujin said, "if she gives birth to this child, the master's favor towards her will only increase. You can win the master's heart now, but can you do it forever? Once Niohuru recovers, the master will probably favor her exclusively again. By then, it will be too late for you to try and win her over."
Sure enough, upon hearing this, Yehe's eyes immediately filled with fear; she no longer wanted to lose the Fourth Prince's favor. That's how people are; before they obtain something, they may be content, but once they have it, they never want to lose it again.
"What should I do now?" Yehe suddenly asked.
"What do you think? These days, the master still goes to the South Courtyard to see Lady Niohuru every day, and when he goes to your place, it's mostly at night. Do you know the difference between the two?" the Fujin asked.
"What the princess means is that the prince has her in his heart, and I am just a tool for the prince to vent his anger." Although Yehe was very unwilling to admit it, the fourth prince did indeed only go to her place at night.
“My sister is incredibly intelligent; she has figured this out on her own, so I, her wife, don’t need to remind her. How to ensure that the master doesn’t just treat you as a tool is up to you. For example, Niohuru is jealous of your favor,” the wife said.
"For example, she pushed me into the lake simply because I stole the master's favor from her," Yehe continued.
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