The seventh princess had just woken up when she saw her father, the emperor, and greeted him happily.
She didn't even put on her outer clothes, just clung to her father and wanted a hug.
He wouldn't let go, clinging to his father's neck and acting all cute and affectionate. Only after his father promised him many favors did he finally let the wet nurse take him to change his clothes.
By now, the wild geese returning south have already finished washing and grooming themselves.
Shu Chengfeng turned around and was stunned: "You're quick."
"Hmm, although she is my daughter, His Majesty's doting on her seems to indicate that he's tired of her. You two have been cuddling for half an hour. In that time, I could have used it to comb my hair and wash my face."
"Haha, Bao'er is so well-behaved, shouldn't I dote on her? You're really something, being jealous of your own child." Shu Chengfeng laughed.
"Your Majesty has nothing else to do? I, however, still have matters to attend to. The people from the Imperial Household Department will be here soon." It's about the weddings of several princes. Although they are all to be held next year, why wait until next year to start worrying about them?
"You go about your business, I'll just watch you busy yourself," Shu Chengfeng said.
When the wild geese returned south, he ordered tea to be served, and soon the people from the Imperial Household Department arrived.
The one who came was a head eunuch, someone who often worked in the inner palace, surnamed Qian. He also brought two children with him, presumably to help with memorizing things.
He was somewhat surprised to see His Majesty there as soon as he entered. He quickly paid his respects.
"Give him a seat," Yan Nangui waved his hand.
Someone brought over a small stool, paid him money, and then took charge.
The steward thought to himself, "I'm a little hesitant to sit down," but His Majesty didn't seem to care.
He was leaning back on the soft couch, reading a book.
Manager Qian calmed himself down and quickly sat down to get down to business.
"Everything else has precedents to follow, but how should the princes' residences be decorated, and what should the wedding ceremonies be like? Should we follow the precedents, or should we make some differences? That depends on Your Highness's opinion. Although in general, we are following the rules, there are still details to discuss."
Manager Qian meant that, since the princes' mothers held different ranks, shouldn't some details also be different?
“These are all remnants left over from the late emperor’s time,” Yan Nangui frowned.
“I have carefully reviewed the weddings of princes and princesses over the years, and I have not seen such a rule. The status of princes is different, and it is only a matter of whether they are born of the principal wife or a concubine. How can there be different treatment based on the status of the mother? Even if there is no distinction, all kinds of differences will arise because of the status of the mother. Can it be stipulated from the beginning?”
Even if everyone is treated the same, when it comes to getting things done, subordinates will still treat people differently based on their background – that's human nature.
If you had stipulated these rules from the beginning, wouldn't that have only exacerbated the infighting among the princes?
"Your Majesty is absolutely right. I was too naive." Steward Qian glanced at His Majesty subconsciously, but His Majesty did not react.
"The gifts given to the three principal wives should all be the same. When a prince marries, his own family should prepare a dowry, and the Imperial Household Department should also contribute some." Otherwise, what family's dowry could compare to the royal family's betrothal gifts? It would never look good.
“Lord Ding used to be His Majesty’s personal guard, so naturally he’s a bit different. When you make arrangements, please take care of him a little. There’s no need to make him too special, just make things convenient for him,” Yan Nangui added.
"Yes, Your Highness, rest assured, we will definitely be careful," said Steward Qian.
"That's all. This autumn, the princes will move out. But it won't just be them moving out then. We've already started looking for servants for the princes. Those who serve from the beginning, as long as the princes are satisfied, will all be given a rank. Whether they're good or not, they'll still be serving from the start. You should also think about this. If you have servants, treat them like masters. Don't let young ladies serve the princes and then live like maids," Yan Nangui said.
"Yes, I understand. I will give the order as soon as I get back. I will take good care of you."
"That's settled for today. You can go back and take care of things now. We can figure out the rest later."
Manager Qian hurriedly agreed, got up, and took his leave.
Shu Chengfeng then put down the book he hadn't been able to read for half a day.
"You certainly know how to please me."
"You're overthinking it. I simply like the girl from the Ding family."
Jiang Xiang thought to herself, "Even His Majesty's seemingly random remark is understood by the Empress."
"Do you think I'm saying this?" Shu Chengfeng stood up.
"I don't care who you're talking about. You asked me to manage your harem and arrange your son's marriage. Naturally, I'm in charge. Do I have to be mindful of your feelings every time I say something? I might as well not do anything at all." Yan Nangui snorted.
"Hahaha, very well, I can't argue with you." Shu Chengfeng laughed, in a very good mood.
He liked Yan Nangui's straightforward and decisive approach to doing things.
However, this woman had put in a lot of effort behind the scenes, and indeed she had looked at many past cases.
This made him feel that she was taking responsibility.
"Goodness, everyone says Her Majesty is amazing, and she really is." A young eunuch who had just come out of Zhaochun Palace whispered, "You mean, she said everything in front of His Majesty without even asking for His Majesty's opinion?"
Steward Qian wiped his sweat: "Who says otherwise? I can't help it, I always want to see what His Majesty thinks. But the Empress, she makes every decision on her own, without ever asking His Majesty's opinion. And His Majesty, he just keeps reading books..."
The three of them walked away while talking.
Now, people from the Imperial Household Department have arrived and are heading straight for Zhaochun Palace.
Although Consort Xiangxian still holds the title of managing affairs alongside the Empress, the amount of work she actually manages is decreasing.
She also knew that Zhaochun Palace was the most popular spot right now, and who wouldn't be eager to get in?
She was just really upset. In the past, Wanchun Palace was always the most lively place. How could it have changed so much in just a few years?
However, the emperor's mind is unpredictable, and no one can do anything about it.
From dusk that day onwards, the Eighth Prince became listless.
I initially thought it was just because I was tired and weary.
Unexpectedly, he refused to eat dinner either. He wouldn't say anything when asked, and he just seemed listless.
His wet nurse was frightened and rushed to the main hall to report to Consort Xiangxian.
Consort Xiangxian dared not delay and hurriedly summoned the imperial physician. Before the physician arrived, and before it was even completely dark, the child began to vomit.
Vomiting and diarrhea—something was clearly wrong.
When the imperial physician arrived, he initially said it looked like heatstroke.
However, it wasn't quite the same, so they asked in detail what the child ate for lunch and what the child ate for the afternoon.
That question revealed the problem.
It turned out that they had eaten something that clashed with their food.
Consort Xiangxian was immediately taken aback. How could she possibly keep something like this a secret?
Before long, His Majesty was alerted. Yan Nangui naturally came as well.
Thankfully, none of them have gone to sleep yet.
"At noon, there was a dish of braised rabbit on His Highness's table. Since His Highness always likes it, he...ate quite a lot. In the afternoon, His Highness ate two oranges, and that was it. Because oranges are rare and uncommon at this time of year, and His Highness wanted to eat them, we servants thought that fruit wouldn't be a problem, and they weren't very big. We really didn't know he couldn't eat them." The wet nurse who served His Highness knelt down and cried.
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