After being demoted to a noble lady, Concubine Yuan Shu still lived in Cunshan Palace, but moved from the main hall to the side hall. However, because Emperor Tianwu was indifferent to the harem, no new concubines moved in. She still had the final say in this huge Cunshan Palace. Although she was not very confident, she was at least much better than Concubine Li.
When Zhu Kongshan arrived, Concubine Yuan was asking the maid Yuexiu to apply nail polish on him. Seeing Zhu Kongshan coming slowly and bowing in front of her with a beautiful face, Concubine Yuan nodded and said, "You are indeed a good-looking girl. When I entered the palace, your mother had not yet married. You know, once you enter the palace, you can never leave again. So although you are my niece, I have never seen you. A few days ago, I always heard Mo'er say that the cousin who was far away in Pengzhou was a sensible child with a kind heart, and she won a lot of good reputation for the Zhu family in Pengzhou. I thought it was a pity to raise such a good niece in Pengzhou, so I asked Mo'er to write a letter to bring you over, so that I, as your aunt, can get closer to you." After she said a few words, she signaled the servants to help Zhu Kongshan up. Seeing that Zhu Kongshan was well-mannered, not deliberately close, nor nervous and distant, she liked him even more. "There are no outsiders in this palace, sit down!"
Zhu Kongshan bowed and said, "Thank you, aunt." Then he sat on the edge of the chair, very polite. Yuan Guiren nodded again, very satisfied.
The maid Yuexiu brought tea and brought it to Zhu Kong's head, and said politely, "Miss cousin, please have some tea."
Zhu Kongshan thanked her quickly but did not stand up. This was neither a loss of status nor a win-win for the people. Even Yuexiu looked at this young lady of the Zhu family in a different light.
Of course, being good-looking and having good manners was not enough. What Yuan Guiren wanted was her intelligence and scheming, but she didn't know how capable her niece was in this aspect. She thought about it and asked directly, "Kongshan, do you know why your aunt asked you to come to Beijing this time?"
Zhu Kongshan didn't know at first. The Eighth Prince didn't mention it in the letter. He only said that the two aunts missed her and invited her to Beijing to play. In addition, she didn't see her cousin after returning home yesterday. It was said that he was busy with official business outside and didn't come back until midnight. In the morning, he just threw down his waist card and went to the palace for the morning court. She didn't have a chance to ask. However, she was a smart girl. She had guesses in her heart and thought about it in her mind. In addition to what happened on the street yesterday, she thought about the reactions of the people when she mentioned that she was the cousin of the Eighth Prince. She pondered in her heart and figured out a general meaning. She asked tentatively: "But do you want Kongshan to help your cousin redeem his reputation?"
Concubine Yuan's eyes lit up and she was overjoyed, "Great! It's worthy of my sister's child. Everyone in our Liu family is really smart!" As she spoke, she took the initiative to call Zhu Kongshan's mother her sister. In order to win over this niece, she went a step further and said, "Although your mother is my half-sister, we sisters had a very good relationship when we were in the mansion. It's just that I entered the palace early and didn't take care of her for a few more years. In addition, the palace has strict rules. Once you enter, you can never leave. Naturally, we gradually have no contact with her mother's family. Speaking of which, Kongshan! Is your mother doing well in the Zhu family?" She no longer mentioned the eighth prince, but showed concern for the situation of the Zhu family. She successfully played the family card.
However, even if Zhu Kongshan wanted to say a few more words, there were two maids with ulterior motives standing behind him. After thinking it over, he could only say: "The Zhu family knows that my aunt is protected by my two aunts, so they treat us mother and daughter well." After thinking about it, he specifically mentioned: "The mistress and two elder sisters in the family also take good care of us." But his face was indifferent when he said this, and he could not show any emotion related to family affection at all.
Yuan Guiren had been in the palace for many years and had a lot of thoughts. When she heard this, she immediately felt something was wrong. She always said "your mother", but when Zhu Kongshan said it, it became aunt. It can be seen that this girl was considerate when she spoke. But where did this consideration come from? She turned her eyebrows and quickly stared at the two girls behind Zhu Kongshan. Seeing that the two of them were of good appearance, she couldn't help but laugh in her heart, thinking that the Zhu family was also on guard!
So she stopped talking about the Zhu family, but with these two maids standing here, it was inconvenient for her to talk about the Eighth Prince. The maid Yuexiu beside her also saw the clue, and she said quickly: "Master, you haven't seen your cousin for more than ten years. I think you want to say something intimate. We servants don't want to disturb you, so we will withdraw first. Your Majesty, please call me if you have anything. I will wait outside the door." After speaking, seeing Yuan Guiren nodded, she said to the two maids behind Zhu Kongshan: "You two, come with me! The rules in the palace are strict. The masters are talking about intimate things, and we servants are not convenient to stay any longer."
To put it bluntly, the two girls were just servants of a small sixth-rank official. How could they have any knowledge? When they walked in the palace, they had the courage to look around a few more times, but once they entered the Cunshan Palace, their momentum immediately wilted. Especially towards Shangyuan Guiren, they only thought that she was the emperor's woman. No matter whether she was a concubine or a noble, she was a proper master, different from those in the Zhu Mansion. Besides, this is the imperial palace, where you can lose your head if you take a wrong step or listen to one more word. They would rather not listen to anything and report nothing to the Zhu family, and they don't want to stay in this palace for a while. Hearing Yuexiu say this, she immediately nodded and hurriedly retreated.
It was not until the two of them left and the palace door was closed that Zhu Kongshan breathed a sigh of relief. He dared to look up at Yuan Guiren, and then called out with great emotion: "Aunt!"
Concubine Yuan nodded repeatedly, then stretched out her hand and called the person to sit next to her. While holding Zhu Kongshan's hand, she said: "Good boy, you must have suffered a lot in the Zhu family. I was thinking about you and your mother in the palace!"
The two of them expressed their longing for each other. Regardless of whether it was true or false, it at least looked a bit touching. Zhu Kongshan talked about the origins of the two girls and the Zhu family's attitude towards them. However, she was a smart girl after all. She did not ask Yuan Guiren to make the decision for them. Instead, she took the initiative to change the subject and talked about the Eighth Prince. She said: "What Kongshan and my aunt said were all trivial matters. Cousin Mo's matter is the serious matter. Kongshan saw the attitude of some people when he came to Beijing yesterday, and he was very worried. If he can help Cousin Mo solve his worries and relieve his aunt's worries this time, this will be the happiest thing for Kongshan and his aunt at home."
Concubine Yuan nodded repeatedly and patted her hand to promise: "Kongshan, you are one of us. As long as you help your cousin wholeheartedly, the highest position in the harem will definitely be yours. Your aunt can make the decision for you right now. Only when you hand over the position to her can your aunt rest assured. No one else can do it. Your cousin Mo always listens to me, so you don't have to worry."
"What are you talking about, aunt?" Zhu Kongshan said quickly, "Kongshan is only trying to help my cousin, but he doesn't ask for anything in return! When my aunt was in the mansion, she often told Kongshan that she didn't mind that she was a concubine's sister, and she took good care of her. There was even one time when my aunt fell into the water, and it was my aunt who pulled her out. Kongshan can help my cousin now, and this is what I should do as a cousin, and I really don't ask for anything."
The more she said this, the more Concubine Yuan liked her, especially when she thought of the incident when she was a child, she couldn't help but sigh: "Thinking back to when I was still in the Liu Mansion, I was the happiest." Although she didn't love her concubine sister in every way, she did take good care of her, and she really didn't alienate her because she was a concubine's daughter. Although she entered the palace later, she was older, understood more things, and had a deeper understanding of the legitimate and illegitimate daughters, so she gradually became estranged, but fortunately, there was the imperial palace as a cover, and the other party couldn't find anything to complain about. Now think about it, fortunately, she had a good foundation when she was waiting to be married, so she got such a niece to help her son. She heard about Zhu Kongshan's deeds in Pengzhou. She was a female bodhisattva praised by everyone, and her Mo'er was missing such a person.
"Aunt." Zhu Kongshan said, "Kongshan came from Pengzhou. My father brought some good things for Kongshan to give to the two aunts. Kongshan brought them all into the palace today. But I always feel that no matter how valuable those things are, they are not as good as those in the palace. So I made my own decision and added some more vegetables to those things. They are all vegetables that Kongshan picked himself on weekdays, dried them and tied them together. I want to give them to the aunts to taste. There should be a small kitchen in the palace, right?"
"Good girl, you are so thoughtful." Concubine Yuan really liked her niece more and more. "There are indeed all kinds of things in the palace, but there is nothing like what you said. I ate it when I was at my mother's house before, but I haven't eaten it again in the past few decades. I really miss it. But your second aunt..." She waved her hand, "You will know when you go to deliver the things. She is now imprisoned in Jingsi Palace and cannot leave the palace. I can help you meet her, but you just have to take a look, no need to say anything. You are a smart person, there are some things I don't say, you should understand in your heart."
Zhu Kongshan nodded and said, "Kongshan will give the gifts to the second aunt and leave without saying a word." She certainly understood that the two aunts each had a prince, but there was only one throne. She could help the eighth prince but not the sixth prince. Although they would not become enemies, they could not get along. "In addition to the things for the two aunts, Kongshan also brought a lot of gifts. They were not expensive, but some specialties of Pengzhou. They were all left with the aunt. The aunt would decide which palace to send them to. There is a saying that a small gift is more valuable than a big one. Kongshan thinks that such a gift is better than gold and silver, and it shows that we are not flattering."
Concubine Yuan nodded and said, "You are right. The women in the palace have everything, but if the emperor doesn't come, nothing is of any use. Giving them jewelry would make them feel uncomfortable. It would be better to give them some food. Kongshan is really thoughtful."
The two of them got along very well. Although they had never met before, they were blood relatives after all. In addition, one of them had a plan and the other was smart, so the atmosphere of this meeting was very harmonious. As they chatted, the topic became more and more focused. Zhu Kongshan suddenly said to Yuan Guiren: "Aunt, you are in the harem, and the master of the harem is the queen. Since you can't find a breakthrough with the emperor, you should pay more attention to the queen. Cousin Mo's plans outside are important, but you should also find a way to return to the position of concubine as soon as possible. A mother's status depends on her son, but the son also needs the mother's help to live a better life..."
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