Chapter 53 Offering Food as Support The next morning, Ruoyun led her people all the way...
The next morning, Ruoyun led her entourage to the kitchen. As soon as she entered, Eunuch He hurriedly came forward, smiling as he asked, "Miss Ruoyun, does Master Cheng have any instructions?"
"Nothing else," Ruoyun said with a half-smile. "As autumn gets colder, our master is craving the taste of mutton. He specifically called me here to tell you to change today's soup to mutton stewed with goji berries."
Eunuch He hurriedly agreed, "Yes, that's right. How about our Master Cheng? This is perfect for this weather. Sprinkle some pepper in it, and after a bowl, your hands and feet will be warm all day." Seeing that Ruoyun's expression was not quite right, he continued to flatter her, "How about we add roasted mutton to lunch? I'll have someone go to Qingfeng Division to pick out the sheep later, and I guarantee it will be made with the tenderest lamb tenderloin."
Ruoyun raised an eyebrow and said, "Your kitchen staff are getting better and better at getting things done."
"That's right, that's right," Eunuch He said, bowing and scraping. But then he thought, something didn't sound right.
Ruoyun said, "Alright, let's do it your way." Then she slowly walked to the table where the food box was placed and asked, "It's getting late. Where is today's breakfast? I'd like to take it back."
With a smile, Eunuch He said, "These two are right in front of you." Before he could finish speaking, the two eunuchs following behind Ruoyun immediately came forward and lifted the two food boxes off the table.
However, Ruoyun was not in a hurry to leave. She glanced around and asked, "Where is Princess Fan's meal?"
Eunuch He said, "The second column from the back is it."
"Open it and let me see." Seeing that Eunuch He hesitated, Ruoyun continued, "What, what good things are inside that you won't even let me see them? Stop talking nonsense, I just want to take a look."
Left with no other option, Eunuch He ordered someone to lift the lid of the food box. Ruoyun approached and took a look, only to find that the contents were completely cold. She immediately scoffed, pointed a finger at Eunuch He's face, and raised an eyebrow, saying, "Eunuch He, your kitchen staff is really doing a terrible job."
This was practically a blatant reminder. Eunuch He was sweating profusely. After Ruoyun and the others left, he wondered, "Could it be that Consort Fan went to plead with Crown Princess Cheng? Hey, has the sun risen in the west?!"
Inside the room, Cheng Qianyue moved out a few dishes from her meal—four plates of sweet and savory pastries, a bowl of bird's nest soup, and red bean porridge—and said to someone, "Send these to Princess Fan."
Ruoyun let out a soft "Ah!" and swaggered out of the courtyard gate with her people and the food box. She walked straight down the alley towards the main back courtyard, encountering several eunuchs on their way to collect food from the kitchen. A smile played on her lips; she wished more people would see her. When she reached the main back courtyard, she saw Fan's maid, Biluo, coming out of her room.
Biluo had come out to order people to fetch the food. She was taken aback when she saw Ruoyun, but quickly became excited and hurriedly came forward to greet her as "Sister Ruoyun."
Ruoyun stood at the door and announced loudly, "Master Cheng has bestowed upon Lady Fan a bowl of white fungus soup, a bowl of red bean porridge, and four plates of sweet and savory pastries." Only after she finished speaking did she go in to pay her respects to Lady Fan.
Madam Fan had originally planned to continue eating cold food for breakfast and then go to pay her respects to Cheng Qianyue and have lunch at noon. But when she saw Ruoyun coming over with the gifts, she immediately stood up and said with tears in her eyes, "Thank you for the gift, Master Cheng."
At noon, Cheng Qianyue sent someone to deliver the meal, including wolfberry and mutton soup and roasted mutton. Ruoyun finished her work and ran over to report, saying softly, "Princess Fan is extremely grateful to you. If I hadn't stopped her, she would have knelt down on the spot."
Cheng Qianyue sighed deeply and said, "I just felt so sorry for her." Yesterday, when Madam Fan washed her face and put on makeup again, she noticed that Madam Fan's complexion was exceptionally bad. When it came time to eat, Madam Fan almost cried while eating, chewing each bite of food very carefully before swallowing, as if she had never eaten anything good before.
After a while, she asked again, "Did everyone see you delivering the food?"
Ruoyun smiled and said, "That's right. I simply started announcing the names of the dishes at Consort Fan's door, just in case others didn't know that you had rewarded Consort Fan with the dishes."
Cheng Qianyue nodded.
She's really blown things out of proportion. The kitchen staff will probably never dare send Princess Fan cold dishes again. As for others, let's not talk about them for now; the Crown Princess will likely find out within a day, and once she's dealt with the situation, she'll have gracefully retired.
At this moment, the Crown Princess was in a rage inside the main courtyard. She had only found out about what had happened at Xiefang Palace today, and it was only after Granny Shuang could no longer keep it from her that she told her.
For the first time, Granny Shuang knelt for a quarter of an hour without getting up, secretly lamenting her predicament. She kept it a secret from the Crown Princess for no other reason than to vent her anger on her behalf. In this Xiefang Palace, whether it was Li Jia, Liu, or Fan, none of them had ever been very respectful to the Crown Princess, so Granny Shuang was overjoyed to see them fight.
Furthermore, Granny Shuang's scheme didn't stop there. Li Jia, relying on her status as the Crown Princess, tormented Fan Shi, who was too timid to utter a sound. On the surface, this matter had nothing to do with the Crown Princess. The plan was for the Crown Princess to step in and take charge once Fan Shi was thoroughly humiliated, ensuring she could suppress everyone else.
No matter how many concubines or noble ladies there are in the Xiefang Palace, there is only one proper mistress, and that is the Crown Princess!
But despite all her calculations, Granny Shuang hadn't anticipated that Madam Cheng would actually intervene. Previously, Madam Fan had tried to curry favor with Madam Cheng but was rebuffed; why was Madam Cheng now trying to help Madam Fan when she was in trouble?
This is bad. Lady Chengjia has a lot of influence with the Crown Prince. If this gets back to him, the Crown Princess will be accused of failing to manage her household properly.
Granny Shuang had no choice but to report the whole story to the Crown Princess. Sure enough, the Crown Princess was furious and made her kneel there for such a long time that she didn't get up.
"More than three months, more than a hundred days, Granny Shuang, you've really done a good deed!" The Crown Princess's chest heaved heavily, her handkerchief clenched tightly in her hand. If word got out, what would she be considered the Crown Princess? A blind woman or a vicious woman who allowed others to torment the Crown Prince's concubines?
Granny Shuang looked bitter and kowtowed to admit her guilt, but she couldn't help but say, "This servant is truly indignant on behalf of the Crown Princess."
"Absurd!" the Crown Princess shouted angrily. "I am the Crown Princess of the Great Qing Dynasty, the Crown Prince's primary consort. What right do I have to ask you to speak up for me?"
Granny Shuang said, "Yes, you are the Crown Princess, but they take advantage of your good temper and don't treat you as their master."
The Crown Princess took a deep breath, as if she were meeting Granny Shuang for the first time. "As the principal wife, one must be tolerant and magnanimous, and must not harbor jealousy or resentment. Granny Shuang, do you still remember how you taught me?"
Granny Shuang was speechless. She truly regretted it, regretting that she had taught the Crown Princess so rigidly. But she had no choice back then. The Emperor began looking for a Crown Princess when the Crown Prince was thirteen or fourteen, but the Crown Prince didn't marry until he was over twenty. There was a gap of many years in between; she had to teach the Crown Princess the proper way. What if she hadn't taught her well enough, and the Emperor had taken a fancy to someone else? Wouldn't that leave her with a useless Crown Princess?
"My loyalty to you is as clear as day," Granny Shuang said cautiously, raising her head slightly. "Do you truly feel no resentment towards the likes of Liu and Fan?"
The Crown Princess choked on her words.
Granny Shuang's words were like a needle piercing her heart. She was indeed dissatisfied with the two new princesses. After all, she was so generous and tolerant, and she had intended to promote them, but they didn't appreciate her kindness and turned around to flatter others.
After a long while, the Crown Princess let out a long sigh, rose, and went to the bottom of the small Buddhist hall, where she knelt down devoutly. She thought that Granny Shuang must have sensed her dissatisfaction and that's why she did this. She was wrong; she shouldn't have had such resentful thoughts. She had to suppress those filthy ideas and become a perfect Crown Princess, a saint from head to toe, inside and out.
"This matter must be resolved before the Crown Prince returns to the palace. When the Crown Prince comes back..." The Crown Princess closed her eyes and said, word by word, "I will go to the Crown Prince to apologize then."
With tears in her eyes, Granny Shuang said yes, but in her heart she was thinking, "My Crown Princess, no matter how well you do, what can the Emperor do to protect your position forever? When will you finally understand?"
When Li Jia learned of the news in the West Rear Courtyard, she became anxious. She was angry at Cheng Qianyue for meddling in other people's business, worried that the matter would reach the ears of the Crown Princess, and even more afraid that Cheng Qianyue would speak ill of her in front of the Crown Prince.
Sitting next to her, Madam Liu looked worried and said in a deep voice, "Master Li, what should we do?"
"What do you mean, what should we do?" Li Jia vented all her anger on Liu.
Liu immediately fell silent.
After thinking for a while, Li Jia suddenly turned her gaze to Liu. Liu, startled by her gaze, stammered, "Li...Master?"
Li Jia snorted coldly and said, "This whole thing started because of you. Go and settle this matter yourself!"
Liu looked up in disbelief, staring at her in astonishment.
The more Li Jia thought about it, the more convinced she became that Liu was the one who had caused all the trouble. It was Liu who had come to tell her that Fan was fawning over Cheng Jia, which was why she was paying so much attention to Fan. With just this thought, Liu seemed utterly wicked in her eyes. She said, "I'll give you two choices: either you go to the Crown Princess to apologize, or I'll report you to the Crown Princess. You choose."
Liu was on the verge of tears. It was clearly Li Jia who was jealous of Cheng Jia and took her anger out on Fan Shi. How could it be her fault? But she dared not refuse Li Jia's unreasonable request. Even if the matter reached the Crown Prince, one was the birth mother of the eldest son, and the other was a newly entered princess who had lost favor. Who would he protect?
Liu, her face pale, gritted her teeth and knelt down in fear and resentment, saying, "This servant understands."
After a while, Liu staggered back to her room. After a long pause, she said in a deep voice, "Bring me a few hairpins." She took a deep breath and thought that to complete the act, she had to apologize to Fan first, and then to the Crown Princess.
Liu's movements did not escape the eyes of Lin Jia, the head of the main house. She watched as Liu was driven out by Fan's maid in a sarcastic tone, and then saw Liu hurriedly leave the courtyard. She couldn't help but sigh.
The palace maid, Songye, said, "The courtyard has been quite lively lately." There was Consort Fan being tormented, Master Cheng bestowing dishes upon her, and Consort Liu apologizing. She tilted her head and said, "Could it all be Consort Liu's doing?"
Lin Jia spoke calmly, "No one is allowed to speak ill of the master." Though she said this, she unconsciously glanced westward and murmured, "Why make such a fuss?"
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