"Be obedient; it'll be good for you to be in charge," Yinzhen softened his tone. Having the household management in Yin Qingyi's hands could only benefit her, and even if it did, he would smooth things over for her. He wanted to let this young woman establish her authority in the inner courtyard now, which would be beneficial for the future...
Yin Qingyi looked at Yinzhen, the man who would become emperor in the future, and now he was speaking to her so softly. If it had been half a month ago, Yin Qingyi's heart would have been pounding like a drum, but at this moment, Yin Qingyi's heart was very calm.
"Uh, uh!" A child's cry interrupted Yin Qingyi's thoughts. Seeing the three little ones being carried in by the wet nurse, the smile that had not appeared on Yin Qingyi's face since she met Yinzhen immediately reappeared.
"My little Yue'er is here." Yin Qingyi got up and went over to take her daughter from the wet nurse's arms.
Yinzhen naturally got up and took the fifth son from another wet nurse's arms, ignoring the fourth son as always. This time, the neglected Bulha did not cry as he had last time, but just looked at Yinzhen curiously. Yinzhen had not come for half a month, and the little guy did not recognize him very well.
Seeing this, Yin Qingyi didn't say anything, but her thoughts changed. Although she could be indifferent to Yinzhen and whether he cared about her or not, the three children couldn't. In this backyard, children without their father's love also had a hard time, especially those whose mothers were not favored. Weren't the children of the unfavored concubines in Kangxi's harem the best examples?
So, before the children are able to protect themselves, it seems she shouldn't go too far against Yinzhen. Thinking this, Yin Qingyi naturally didn't stop Yinzhen from holding the children; it's better for the children to be close to him.
So when Yinzhen approached Yin Qingyi with the child in his arms, he noticed that Yin Qingyi was no longer as resistant to his approach as before. Yinzhen was delighted, thinking that he would have to start with the child to deal with this little woman.
Yinzhen didn't go anywhere all morning; he just stayed in Luoxue Pavilion, playing with the children and coaxing Yin Qingyi. Su Peisheng, who was waiting outside, couldn't bear to watch, but what could he do if his master had brought this upon himself? He turned to look outside; he'd better not watch from here, lest he damage his master's wise and mighty image in his heart.
The people in the back courtyard had already heard about Yinzhen's visit to Luoxue Pavilion early in the morning. At first, they didn't think much of it. They figured their master was probably just going to see the children. After all, even if he no longer favored his concubine, the children were still his own, so there was nothing wrong with him going to see them. But since he stayed for the whole morning, no one thought that Yinzhen was just going to see the children. It seemed that his concubine had captivated his master again. They said that with such a beautiful concubine, how could his master really neglect her? Look, it's only been half a month and he's already gone again.
But it was only half a day, and the women in the back courtyard remained calm; there was no porcelain in any place that needed replacing. It was only half a day, what was the big deal? If this Lady Yin was so capable, she could have her master go for several days in a row!
Those who thought this way were quickly proven wrong in the following days. Yinzhen really did go every day, but he didn't stay overnight. The fact that he stayed overnight made the women in the inner courtyard feel much better. So what if he went every day? The master didn't stay overnight. What did that mean? It meant that Lady Yin had fallen out of favor!
But is that really the case? Yinzhen had a bitter pill to swallow. It wasn't that he didn't want to stay overnight; it was that this woman always had an excuse not to let him. It was always either the rainy season, or the children wanted to sleep with her—one day it was this one, the next it was that one, and so on. He was incredibly frustrated, but he couldn't be harsh with any of the four children. He couldn't bear to be harsh with the eldest, and if he was, the youngest wouldn't be happy. What could he do? So, although Yinzhen went every day, he never got to stay overnight, not because the women in the inner quarters thought he didn't want to, but because Consort Yin didn't want him to stay. If those women knew this, they'd probably be furious. They certainly would.
The Fujin coldly observed Yinzhen's actions over the past few days. She didn't believe that Yinzhen had truly stopped favoring that Lady Yin; she could only say that Lady Yin was quite capable, managing to keep Yinzhen strung along like this. She inwardly scoffed, thinking, "Yinzhen has finally met his end."
Although Yinzhen had confined her to her quarters, he still possessed some humanity, allowing Honghui to visit the main courtyard twice a month, which somewhat eased her heart. However, the Fujin's actions differed from Yin Qingyi's expectations. Instead of showing kindness to Honghui after Li Mama's death, the Fujin became even stricter with him. Previously, Honghui's favorite monthly visit was to see his mother, but now he only went after much self-consolation. Each time, he returned with a long face, which further fueled Yinzhen's dislike for the Fujin. On one of Honghui's return visits, Yinzhen simply told him not to go anymore. Although Honghui was always heartbroken when visiting his mother, he still wanted to go. However, he was used to obeying his father, so even though he was unwilling, he didn't voice his reluctance and respectfully agreed.
Before long, the end of the year was approaching. Yin Qingyi knew that the Fujin should come out, since the Fujin was supposed to enter the palace during the New Year. Yinzhen could not allow the Fujin to claim illness. So, on the day the Fujin was released from confinement, Yin Qingyi brought the account books and a warrant to the main courtyard.
"Greetings, Madam." Yin Qingyi still didn't give Madam a friendly look, and her greeting was perfunctory. Looking up at Madam at the head of the table, Yin Qingyi noticed that her face was somewhat pale, probably from staying indoors for the past few months; she looked unhealthy.
"What are you doing here? Are you here to laugh at me?" The princess knew that she had already broken ties with Yin Qingyi since the last time she framed her, so she didn't ask in a friendly tone. However, when her eyes swept over the account book and warrant in Qiuju's hand behind Yin Qingyi, she paused for a moment. What did this Yin family mean by this?
"If I wanted to see you make a fool of yourself, why would I have come at this time? I'm not here to talk to you about these things today. I'm returning the account book and the warrant to you. Qiuju." Yin Qingyi didn't even want to address her as a concubine. The fact that she could speak to the Fujin so calmly was already a testament to her last shred of self-restraint; any more would be very unfriendly to herself.
"You... Yin Qingyi, this Fujin really can't see through you." Although the Fujin had guessed something when she saw the account books and warrants, she still didn't quite believe it. After all, no one would not want power. But now that Yin Qingyi really said this, the Fujin looked at Yin Qingyi differently.
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