15 Chapter 15
◎The First Plan (Part 2)◎
"Is this the place?" Nanny Fan covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief and walked into the main courtyard through the narrow path.
This is a separate courtyard in the southeast corner of the palace. I heard that Zheng allocated it to the newly arrived cousin Miss Xun. When I came in, there was a smell of fresh incense mixed with a moldy smell. The furnishings were simple, and they didn't even give me a rosewood screen.
She clearly remembered that the one placed in Zheng's own main hall was a large ivory-carved screen depicting three Yangs bringing good luck, and the one in her room was a rosewood screen inlaid with precious flowers and butterflies, but the one given to Miss Xun was just a screen with a pastel-colored landscape painting.
Yes, this is indeed quite good, but Miss Xun came here on behalf of the old concubine.
The servants Xun Rou brought were helping her make her bed. She was sitting by the window, thinking in her heart that Zheng's methods were too crude. She was arranged to live in such a place and was given an easy handle to complain.
But when she saw Madam Fan coming over, she stood up immediately and said, "Madam, why are you here? I haven't finished cleaning up here yet. I wanted to wait until everything is ready before inviting you over."
Nanny Fan smiled and said, "I just came to take a look. I'm sorry to say that Miss Xun was also raised by me."
The best thing to do now is to form an alliance, so Nanny Fan's words were certainly a gesture of goodwill.
Xun Rou asked her to sit down, propping up her chin and said, "To be honest, I didn't want to come either. My cousin has his wife here, and I think everything is well managed. But my great aunt was worried and asked me to come here. You know, I don't want to get involved in these troublesome matters."
"When the young prince was away, he led his people to seek refuge with the King of Wei, and you were the one who made all the plans behind the scenes. I'm sorry to say this, but the young princess today is far worse than you." Nanny Fan spoke frankly.
Xun Rou raised her eyelids and couldn't help but smile: "Madam Fan, how does my cousin treat her?"
This is the most important thing. If her cousin likes her, then any small matter can't bring her down. How could someone who asked Nanny Fan to send a message back personally be a fool?
Nanny Fan said, "The young prince is a kind person. Not to mention that it was Zheng who married him, even if it was a plain girl who married him, he would still treat her with courtesy."
Xun Rou sighed: "That's true."
There was an old general under the King of Wei who often made things difficult for his cousin. However, his cousin never complained and never took it to heart. He was truly a generous man.
Nanny Fan also stopped at the point and asked someone to bring a bowl of ginseng soup: "My cousin, you have been traveling hard. This is the red ginseng soup that I asked someone to make. Drink it to replenish your energy."
"Thank you very much." Xun Rou said.
Xun Rou did not sleep well that night. She was lying on a brocade quilt next to Concubine Wu and had never slept in such a room before. It was obvious that Zheng's own residence was extremely luxurious.
"Miss, are you sleeping restlessly?" asked Xun Rou's maid Meixiang.
Xun Rou turned over and nodded, "Yes, I did sleep uneasily. But so what? The old concubine asked me to come over, how could I not come over?"
Meixiang pursed her lips and said, "In fact, if the old concubine really wants the young prince to ask you to be the second concubine, then it's not a bad idea, right? You are seventeen years old this year, and you have been in the palace for ten years. You can't delay it any longer."
"Meixiang, if I become a second concubine, I will only be a second concubine for the rest of my life. When the principal wife dies, my cousin will marry another one. Have I spent all these years just to be the second concubine of Prince Huaiyin?" Xun Rou was really unconvinced.
Meixiang was afraid that her efforts would be in vain, but when she thought about how her daughter had waited for so long, only to see the cooked duck fly away, no one would accept this.
It would be fine if Zheng was gentle, kind and honest, but I had to make her live in such a place as soon as I arrived.
The sky is high and the old concubine is far away, and her cousin is not around, so she can only rely on herself.
She secretly observed this daughter of the Zheng family. She did not get up early every day, but handled things quickly. She dealt with all her mistakes according to government regulations. She was also preparing Mid-Autumn Festival gifts, and everything seemed to be in order. However, there was one thing: she would never ask for her advice. Even if she said that she was sent by the old concubine, she would never say a word.
Nan's mother was also a little uneasy: "Princess, how can this Miss Xun be sent by the old concubine? You over here..."
"So this old dowager is just a concubine after all her time in the palace. She was lucky to give birth to Prince Wu, but she doesn't appreciate her blessing. Who is this Xun Rou? She is not even as good as Nanny Fan. Nanny Fan can legitimately be the disciplinary nanny beside the dowager to teach me the rules. Xun Rou is only the cousin of the young prince, but she wants to be my housekeeper. It's not legitimate and no matter what she says, it doesn't make sense. What's more, I am the principal wife that Prince Wei asked for on behalf of Prince Huaiyin. Why should I let a cousin who lives under someone else's roof point fingers at me?" Huiyin doesn't like to be bullied.
Even if Li Heng favored her on the surface back then, she was of a high status. Moreover, she was already a princess now, so why would she be afraid of a cousin?
If she started to please others, the servants would think they were afraid of her.
Furthermore, she didn't know whether Xun Rou came here to break into her house or to find something to hold against her.
"Princess, I got Mother Chao drunk yesterday and learned something from her." Qiu Feng came over and said.
Huiyin smiled and said, "Oh, whether she revealed it intentionally or unintentionally, just tell us."
Qiu Feng said, "Miss Xun came to the old concubine at the age of seven. I heard that she had always claimed to be the young prince's fiancée and helped the old concubine with household chores. Both the old concubine and Princess Wu liked her. When Princess Wu was sick, she even copied scriptures with her own blood. Later, the King of Wei suddenly arranged a marriage for the young prince."
"Then they didn't send her here to be the second concubine, did they?" Mother Nan asked anxiously.
Huiyin shook her head: "If she wants to be the second concubine, she must please me. But after I wrote to the little prince, he replied today, saying that the old concubine wanted him to help find a young talent as a husband for Xun Rou, and she must not be wronged."
It was obvious that he was deliberately trying to numb himself and let himself down. He didn't even know how he was deceived.
As soon as she finished speaking, she heard someone outside say, "Little Princess, Miss Xun suddenly fainted today. Nanny Fan asked Steward Qiao to call a doctor."
"Why did she suddenly faint? It's such a hot day, didn't I arrange for her to stay in a quiet place? Well, I'll go and take a look." Huiyin and her men quickly went to the yard where Xunrou lived. There were quite a few people gathered there.
After entering, Huiyin saw Xunrou lying on the bed, her face pale, and asked Meixiang again: "What happened to your cousin?"
Meixiang cried, "I don't know. The young lady has been complaining about not sleeping well these days. Today, she suddenly fainted when she stood up after dinner."
"Alas, she is such a weak woman, and she has to rush here a distance of 600 miles by herself, and she still has to worry about the affairs of our palace. She must be tired for a while. After the doctor sees her today, I will choose a good place for her to live. It’s also because the old empress dowager loves our little prince too much. The little prince is already the governor in charge of Xuzhou, and she still wants the cousin to come and take care of him, and she treats the little prince like a child." Huiyin looked helpless at the end.
These words made Nanny Fan and Meixiang so angry that their teeth itched. They had originally intended to make a big fuss and ask a doctor to come as a witness to let others know that Huiyin treated her cousin harshly. They had never expected that Zheng was such an expert at distorting right and wrong.
It was Xun Rou who left the window open all day and all night and deliberately tired herself out. If no one takes it seriously, wouldn't it be all in vain?