The next day, just as dawn broke, Hongli and Empress Nara got up together.
The self-disciplined Lady Nara wanted to help Hongli get dressed, but he politely declined, saying, "It's alright. I still need to pay my respects to my wife today. You should hurry up and get ready so as not to be late."
She silently withdrew her hand that had been raised in mid-air. Although she felt it was not good, she still obediently went to do her hair and makeup.
Although serving my husband is necessary, my lord is right. I need to pay my respects to my wife later. I can't be late and I can't let myself be seen as someone who doesn't know the proper etiquette.
Because she was in a hurry, Nara didn't dress up much, dressed very simply, and didn't have many hair ornaments. But she was beautiful, and even dressed casually, she looked good.
His eyes showed no emotion, unusually unmoved by beauty. Hongli stepped out the door, with Nara following behind.
Upon arriving at the main courtyard, Consort Fucha was already seated in the seat of honor, while Yunyi waited for a seat on the left.
After everyone was seated, Lady Fucha, as the primary consort, spoke a few familiar words, namely, to serve her husband well, abide by the rules of the household, and produce offspring for the royal family.
Then a maid came over from the side and arranged the things. Nara, knowing the situation, stepped forward, took the teacup, and offered tea to Fucha and Hongli.
This is something all newcomers to the household must go through, whether they are concubines or princesses.
After Lady Nara offered tea, Lady Fucha then began to introduce the people in the mansion to Lady Nara.
"This is Consort Gao, a concubine of the household. She entered the household earlier than you and has the eldest prince, the second princess, and the fourth prince under her care."
Yunyi smiled kindly at Nara. It was their first meeting, and since there was no conflict between them, there was no need to be too hostile.
Both were secondary consorts, so Lady Nara gave a half-bow: "Greetings, Sister Gao!"
She is younger than Yunyi in age and entered the manor later than Yunyi in terms of seniority. In any case, it is only right for her to call Yunyi "elder sister".
Next, the princesses in the back courtyard bowed to Nara. Since they were of lower rank, Nara did not need to return the bow; she only needed to sit quietly with a smile.
Hongli remained silent throughout. He had come to pay his respects to Empress Nara today, which was also to give the Emperor a proper title, since she was the secondary consort bestowed upon him by the Emperor, and he could not be too negligent.
Furthermore, since it was chosen for him by his mother, Hongli could not ignore it and displease his mother.
...
With the arrival of a new woman in the household, the concubines in the back courtyard were on high alert, fearing that this concubine would be a formidable rival. However, after observing for several months, they discovered that Concubine Nara was not favored and did not win Hongli's favor.
While everyone breathed a sigh of relief, they also lost respect for this concubine, who was incomparable to Concubine Gao.
Just then, another piece of news plunged them into unhappiness once again.
In Jin's courtyard, upon learning that Su Gege, who had entered the manor with her, was pregnant, she was both angry and furious.
She and Madam Su had entered the inner courtyard together to serve the prince. She had not conceived for many years, but she could comfort herself and others.
Now that Su suddenly says she's pregnant, Jin's emotions are so agitated in comparison.
Upon hearing the news that Su Gege was pregnant in Fucha Gege's courtyard, she couldn't help but cough a few times.
"Cough cough cough, Hongxiu, Master will have more and more children in the future. Without me as his mother, what will Yonghuang do!"
With a sigh, Hongxiu felt utterly helpless. She had advised her mistress back then, but her mistress was too foolish and fell into Huang Gege's trap, leading to the current situation. What could she, a mere maid, do?
Princess Fucha was getting anxious. She knew her time was running out, but she still hadn't found a suitable adoptive mother for her son.
The Princess Consort has both sons and daughters, so she certainly wouldn't raise her own son, thus creating obstacles for the Third Prince.
Consort Gao is also out of the question; she already has two sons and a daughter, so why would she want to raise her own sons?
The remaining Jin and Su families were still favored, but Jin wanted to have a child, and Su became pregnant at this time, so neither of them could be chosen.
Then there are Haigege and Chengege, both of whom are unloved and low-key, unable to raise their own sons.
After much deliberation, Princess Fucha realized that she could only choose the newly arrived concubine, Nara, as there was no other person she could choose.
With time running out, Princess Fucha had no other choice but to try to contact Lady Nara to see if her plan could succeed.
When Princess Fucha first met Lady Nara, Lady Nara was unwilling. She was still young, but the Second Prince was already six years old, and she was unwilling to raise such a grown child.
Lady Nara was not very willing, but Yang, the nanny who served her, was somewhat tempted.
She served her master closely and could sense that the prince did not like him. During this time, she also figured out what type of girl the prince liked.
Her master clearly doesn't have that kind of personality; he's not liked by the prince at all.
The mistress was rigid and disciplined from a young age, which often worried the lady of the house. It would be great if the mistress were the principal wife, but fate had other plans and she became a concubine in the royal family.
A concubine serves men with her beauty, and men are most fond of delicate and beautiful women. A mistress with this kind of personality is unlikely to win a man's favor.
Yang Mama had noticed the coldness in his eyes during this period. The prince didn't come to rest, and even when he did come to the courtyard, he rarely stayed overnight.
Of course, someone her age would know this, but it's surprising that Master Ye got pregnant and gave birth to a child in this way.
Now that Princess Fucha has health problems, and her master wants to raise the Second Prince, Yang Mama thinks it's a good opportunity.
With the Second Prince around, the Prince will definitely spend more time here than before. If we can use this opportunity to persuade the Prince to stay overnight, then the young master will surely come.
Even if she couldn't conceive, with the Second Prince around and his birth mother gone, Princess Fucha would definitely make him please the master for the sake of her son. As long as the master treats the Second Prince well, it will be beneficial in the future.
In this way, raising the second prince would only bring benefits and no harm to the master. Such a good opportunity should not be missed, or it will be gone forever.
However, Lady Nara was too young to understand these things. Yang Mama, being loyal to her mistress, had no choice but to secretly facilitate the matter. To this end, she even went to Lady Nara's mother, Lady Langjia, to act as an intermediary.
With the "traitor" Yang Mama around, and after being persuaded by her mother, with Yang Mama constantly reminding her, and with Princess Fucha's sincere pleas, Nara finally agreed.
A few months later, Princess Fucha's life came to an end. Perhaps it was a moment of lucidity before death, but after lying down for more than a year, she was miraculously able to get up.
After she was able to get out of bed, Princess Fucha took a bath and changed into a set of clothes that she had worn when she first entered the mansion, clothes that she kept at the bottom of her trunk.
After eating a normal meal, she felt full of energy. After dressing up and applying rouge, Princess Fucha asked Hongxiu to invite Hongli over.
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