Yin Chu finally shut his mouth and remained silent.
After a long while, Kangxi, Xu Lejin, and the others saw that Yin Chu remained unmoved and did not reveal which family the girl he admired was from, so they could only shake their heads helplessly.
The matter of the twelfth princess's zither was ultimately resolved and returned to its rightful owner.
Yanxi Palace
Consort Hui learned from the palace servants that the Fourth Prince, Yin Chu, had fallen in love with a young girl and had taken the Twelfth Princess's zither to give to her, but the girl refused.
Yes, Consort Hui received the news that the Fourth Prince's advances had been rejected.
With a gloating expression, Consort Hui spoke coldly, "The prince born to the Imperial Noble Consort has fallen for a young girl, but she actually rejected him?"
"I'm quite curious, though, which minister's daughter rejected the Fourth Prince?"
After a pause, Consort Hui continued, "As a grandson of the Emperor, if he falls in love with a woman, he should simply marry her. The Imperial Noble Consort is deeply favored by the Emperor and holds a position equivalent to the Empress Dowager. The Fourth Prince is the Imperial Noble Consort's son, practically a legitimate heir. Why bother trying so hard to please him?"
"Something that can be resolved with a single imperial decree from His Majesty..."
Cunxin lowered her head slightly and remained silent.
Consort Hui let out a long sigh, then changed the subject, saying, "Cunxin, do you think I'm getting old and don't understand the thoughts of young people these days?"
"The Emperor and the Imperial Noble Consort actually let the Fourth Prince run wild without doing anything about it."
She glanced quickly towards the outside of the hall, then lowered her head and whispered in a voice barely audible, "Your Majesty is in the prime of her life; this is not good at all. Fourth Prince..."
"The Fourth Prince has a unique mind and may have his own ideas."
After a moment of stunned silence, Consort Hui gave Cunxin a deep look, her brows furrowed, and remained silent.
Two weeks later
Consort Que sat down cautiously at the lower end of the table, raising her eyes to look at Xu Lejin. "Your Highness, in three days it will be Princess Gongjing's wedding day. Princess Gongjing's birth mother was only a Noble Lady. Although she was fortunate enough to be raised by Consort Hui for several years, Consort Hui..."
"Consort Hui didn't seem to care much about Princess Gongjing. She never inquired about Princess Gongjing's dowry, and she didn't even arrange for a nanny to teach Princess Gongjing how to get along with her husband."
Xu Lejin nodded and put down her teacup.
With a calm and composed expression, he spoke lightly, "Since Nalan Mingzhu was demoted for selling official positions and titles, he has never been reinstated. Now, his family relies entirely on the three Nalan brothers, Rongruo and his brother."
"Although Princess Gongjing's husband is Nalan Mingzhu's youngest son, he is not born of the same mother as Nalan Rongruo and his two brothers."
Consort Que nodded slightly, her brows furrowed.
Xu Lejin added, “Consort Hui has lived in the palace for many years and has picked up the palace habits. She is arrogant and domineering. Seeing that Nalan Mingzhu has no hope of being reinstated, she naturally treats him with contempt.”
"They didn't even seem to care much about Princess Gongjing marrying into the Nalan Mingzhu family. Furthermore..."
Looking up, Xu Lejin glanced towards the prince's quarters and said softly, "Consort Hui's entire attention is now focused on the Second Prince, hoping that his concubine will give birth to a grandson for her soon."
"Princess Gongjing was only raised by her for a few years, so there is some affection between them."
Xu Lejin and Consort Que chatted back and forth about Consort Hui.
Liu Ying hurried into the hall and reported to Xu Lejin with a solemn expression, "Your Highness, Your Highness, news has come from the Second Palace of Gan Dong that the concubine in the Second Prince's courtyard has fallen and gone into premature labor."
"You fell down?"
Xu Lejin paused for a moment, then said in a deep voice, "Why did you suddenly fall? I remember that the Second Prince's concubine is only seven months pregnant."
"Your Majesty, the water was accidentally spilled by the palace maids and eunuchs who were sweeping the floor."
Firefly replied softly.
Nodding, Xu Lejin said in a deep voice, "I understand."
When Consort Hui received the news, her mind went blank for a moment, and she immediately rushed to the Second Palace of Gan Dong.
Gan Dong Er Suo Li
The two concubines looked anxious, while the princesses and maids lowered their heads. A heart-wrenching scream came from the delivery room. Consort Hui's face was gloomy as she said coldly, "What's going on? Dong E Clan, Irgen Gioro Clan, you two are in charge of Yinti's inner court."
"Why did Lady Tian suddenly fall and go into premature labor? The child in Lady Tian's belly is the eldest child of the Second Prince, which I have been looking forward to for a long time."
The words that were on the tip of her tongue were abruptly changed by Consort Hui.
Consort Hui and Prince Yinti knew long ago that their concubine, Lady Tian, was carrying a girl, but it didn't matter.
The girl was also the Second Prince's child; it was good that the flower bloomed first and the fruit ripened later. Of course, Consort Hui initially considered "switching the dragon for the phoenix," but ultimately reason prevailed over impulse.
Consort Dong'e and Consort Irgen Gioro lowered their heads and listened to Consort Hui's reprimand.
After a long silence, Yinqi spoke coldly, "Mother, the most urgent matter is ensuring Tian's safe delivery. While we haven't been able to properly care for Dong'e and Irgen Gioro, we can't control them. It's Tian who matters."
"Instead of staying quietly in her room, Tian insisted on coming out."
Consort Hui was taken aback for a moment, "..."
Out of the corner of her eye, Consort Hui noticed the radiant beauty of Consort Dong'e and Consort Suochuoluo, and suddenly realized what had happened.
Tian was only of average appearance, not comparable to Dong E or Irgen Gioro.
Therefore, her good son couldn't bear to see Dong Eshi and Irgen Gioroshi suffer injustice!
Three hours later
Liu Ying trotted into the hall and whispered to Xu Lejin, "Your Majesty, news has come from the Second Palace: the concubine in the Second Prince's quarters has given birth to a little princess, but..."
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