A silence fell over the room as everyone craned their necks to see if the Princess Consort would dare to swear an oath on the fate of her entire family.
"I, Unalana, swear that if I utter even the slightest falsehood, may my entire family be cursed and never regain its former glory," the Fujin said tremblingly, then seemed utterly exhausted.
As everyone watched her utter such a vow, their hearts sank, thinking: "How could she possibly get through this unscathed again?"
Lanqin was already lying in bed when she heard the Fujin's words. She found them laughable and sighed, "The future of the Unalana family is truly doomed!"
Looking at his wife and then at the princesses kneeling on the ground, the Fourth Prince sighed inwardly and said, "Wife, you may go back. However, I will have people guarding the area day and night. No one may enter or leave without my permission. Hongshi has moved out, and I will take care of him personally, so there is no need for you to trouble yourself."
The Fujin (Prince's wife) said sternly, "Hongshi is already my lifeblood. If Your Highness wishes to take him away, you might as well grant me three feet of white silk." With that, she knelt before the Fourth Prince, resisting his punishment with her life. She had just sworn an oath, which at least earned her some leeway from the Fourth Prince, who only confined her to her quarters. But if he were to take Hongshi away, it would be tantamount to severing all her future hopes.
“From Song Gege’s first pregnancy onwards, several of Your Highness’s children have died and several have survived. As the primary consort, you bear the responsibility for not taking good care of them. Your Highness has never questioned the consort about this, but time and again, problems have arisen with her, and now it’s this bracelet. Whom do you expect Your Highness to believe?” the Fourth Prince said.
Lanqin listened quietly as the Fourth Prince criticized the Fujin (wife of the wife), while the others were secretly pleased. They all hoped that the Fujin would be abandoned by the Fourth Prince and would no longer cause trouble in the inner quarters.
The Fujin looked dejected; she was speechless at the Fourth Prince's question. Counting from Song's first child, there had already been four or five children who had not been born safely.
It turns out he had been concerned for a long time and had long felt that he was an incompetent wife.
"Princess Consort, please return. Hongshi can then move out of the main courtyard. From now on, you only need to stay there to eat vegetarian food and chant Buddhist scriptures; you don't need to concern yourself with anything," the Fourth Prince said resolutely.
The princess consort never imagined that even after she made a vow, the fourth prince would no longer believe her.
"Master!" the Fujin shouted loudly.
"Your Highness should take good care of yourself. I will take good care of you," the Fourth Prince said firmly. This was all he could do. He would not strip her of her status, but he would no longer grant her any power.
Lanqin lay in bed, suddenly feeling as if a concubine had risen to power, forcing the principal wife to step down. Hearing the Fourth Prince's words, although the others hadn't completely punished the primary wife, they understood that he no longer trusted her. How could a primary wife be called a primary wife if she were stripped of her power?
"Su Peisheng, escort the Fujin back, and then inform the head nanny to send two capable nannies to guard the gate. From now on, no one is allowed to enter or leave without the master's permission," the Fourth Master said.
The Fujin was completely stunned. She never imagined that she was the primary Fujin in the morning, but now she had become a discarded woman who had been stripped of all her rights by the Fourth Prince. Although she had not been deposed yet, it was not much different from being deposed.
Lanqin turned around and saw that the Fujin was staring at her hatefully, as if she was the culprit who caused her current situation. In fact, she didn't even think about who was really responsible for all of this.
The princess left with Qiu Chan's help, and everyone felt a little emotional, so they all went back to their own rooms.
Soon, the room, which had been full of people just moments before, was empty except for Lanqin and Fourth Master. Cui Niang and Nianxue had already tactfully left.
"Are you still angry with me?" Fourth Master said to the retreating figure.
"Your Excellency has already dealt with it, so I dare not say anything more!" Lanqin sighed.
"By doing this, Your Highness has essentially rendered her useless, only leaving her with a nominal title. Qin'er, do you understand?" Fourth Master called out emotionally.
"Your Highness has your reasons for doing this. I am content!" A tear rolled down Lanqin's cheek. From the time she transmigrated to her marriage into the Fourth Prince's mansion, almost four years had passed. The events that had occurred during that time were truly dramatic, as if she had lived a lifetime.
"I'm going back now. You should rest well. No one will come to harm you again," Fourth Master said.
Lanqin nodded and said, "Master, please go back and rest. I'll take a nap."
Fourth Master originally intended to pick up Lanqin and comfort her, but upon seeing her say this, he abruptly withdrew his hand.
Fourth Master stood there for a moment, but seeing that Lanqin still hadn't turned around, he had no choice but to turn around and leave.
After Fourth Master left the South Courtyard, Cui Niang walked to Lanqin's bedside and said, "Master's actions show he has already recognized her true colors. Why must you insist on..."
“I don’t need it. This is the best that Master can do. I understand. Cui Niang, there’s no need to say anything more,” Lan Qin said.
“My lord, please don’t take it to heart anymore. This servant thinks that Yehe Shi seems to have gained a special place in your heart. You should be wary of her,” Cui Niang advised.
"I can already tell. Fourth Master seems to have some unusual feelings for her. Let's talk about it after I've recovered," Lanqin said with her eyes closed.
Seeing that she couldn't persuade Lanqin, Cui Niang had no choice but to step forward and pull down the gauze curtain for her, then retreated to guard her.
Meanwhile, after Su Peisheng informed the head nanny, he immediately sent two capable old women to the main courtyard. They sent all the old women who were originally guarding the gate aside, and the two of them guarded the gate.
With Qiu Chan's help, the Fujin returned to her room, then seemed to remember something and said, "Lingxiu has already gone out. She's back, but she can't get in. What should we do?"
Qiu Chan said quietly, "Don't worry, Master. Master only forbids others from visiting you and forbids you from going out, but he didn't say that we maids can't come in or out."
The princess was slightly relieved, but still said resentfully, "They are all truly despicable people, a whole house full of despicable people. I will not give up, and one day I will get out of here!"
Looking at the Fujin's agitated eyes and her seemingly deranged state, Qiu Chan felt a chill run down her spine. Unlike Lingxiu, she wasn't quick-witted and couldn't offer any words of comfort, so she simply stood silently to the side.
"Go, go find my snuff bottle! I want my snuff bottle!" the Fujin suddenly shouted sternly.
"Yes, this servant will go find it right away." Qiu Chan left as if she had been granted a pardon.
"I, the Empress Dowager Ulanara, will not lose!" the Fujin shouted at the door as if she had gone mad. But all that answered her was the increasingly loud chirping of cicadas.
From then on, Unalana Xiayu was imprisoned by the Fourth Prince for fourteen years, and they hardly ever saw each other again. But at this time, the Princess Consort could not have imagined that this imprisonment would almost certainly imprison her for the rest of her life.
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