In the Peach Courtyard, Xiao Hezi hurriedly entered the room, bowed, and immediately said, "Master, after Master returned, he went to the Duan Courtyard."
Sitting on the mat, Jiaming didn't even look up. Holding a jade pendant in her hand, she teased Xiao Hongjing with incredibly natural movements.
"He went to the Fujin's place as soon as he got back; he must have something to discuss with her!"
Suddenly, Jiaming felt that this time of day, this visit by the master, was very familiar.
Sure enough, Xiao Hezi thought so too, "Perhaps the Emperor has given you an order to go out? Or perhaps the Emperor is going on a tour of the borderlands and has asked you to come along?"
"Maybe!" Jiaming said indifferently.
As long as it wasn't related to Peach Garden and wasn't bad, she didn't care much. As for having Xiao Hezi gather information about the people in the manor, it was partly to help her analyze things through this intelligence, and partly to follow the crowd. After all, everyone in the manor did it this way, and if she didn't want to be too different, she had no choice but to follow suit.
Of course, she would just listen to these trivial matters and forget about them, unlike Li Shi and others from the Pear Garden.
Li from the Pear Garden, Hesheli from the Plum Garden, and others like Song Gege—it's heartbreaking!
Why does it hurt? Because envy, jealousy, and hatred have caused a tightness in the chest and a pain in the heart.
The Fujin was the principal wife, and the master would consult her on matters, while she was just a concubine and could only be notified.
In the Duan Courtyard, a maidservant rushed in to report, "Madam, the Prince has arrived."
The Fourth Prince's wife, Ulanara, immediately stood up with the help of her maid, Liu Mama, and, accompanied by her maid Yao Huang, went to the door to welcome the Fourth Prince into the house.
After wiping his face and washing his hands, and drinking the cool tea that Yao Huang brought him, the Fourth Prince finally felt much better and less hot, and began to talk to his wife.
"Father is about to tour the borderlands and has invited you to come along." After saying this, the Fourth Prince, whose mouth was still a little dry, took another sip of cold tea.
The Fourth Prince's wife immediately smiled and said kindly, "Father Emperor values you highly, that's why he asked you to go with him again."
Upon hearing this, the Fourth Prince nodded expressionlessly, seemingly unsure whether the kind words spoken by his Fourth Princess Consort had resonated with him.
"Oh right, Hongxuan is going this time too." The Fourth Prince put down his teacup, his mind racing, and then he forgot to say the words he was about to utter: "Father Emperor personally selected him."
Having grown up in the palace, he knew all too well the jealousy of women who had princes. If they knew that Hongxuan was so highly regarded by his father, even the most virtuous wife would probably...
Sure enough, ever since the Fourth Prince began practicing the Shangqing Scripture, he had keenly observed a fleeting look of jealousy and displeasure on his wife's face.
In the past, he certainly wouldn't have noticed the speed at which his wife's expression changed.
See? Just because he mentioned that Hongxuan should go along, the Fujin already has this thought. If he had actually said those words just now, the Fujin would probably...
Thinking this, the expressionless Fourth Prince felt a crack appear in his image of his virtuous wife.
No, the rift began after all those past events and the discovery of the Fujin's involvement, but now it has widened.
“Your Highness, isn’t the Fourth Prince still too young? It’s not appropriate to take him on such a long journey.” As soon as she finished speaking, the Fourth Prince’s wife realized that it was inappropriate. The Fourth Prince, Hongxuan, had accompanied the Southern Tour when he was even younger, and it was a long journey, but nothing happened then.
Sure enough, Fourth Master immediately said yes, citing this as a reason.
But the Fourth Prince's wife was no pushover either, and she still refused to give up. After all, her own Honghui was the eldest son of the legitimate wife, yet he had never been able to accompany the prince on any southern or northern tours. Why was the Fourth Prince Hongxuan, a son of a concubine, so highly regarded by the prince?
She absolutely forbade it, "But back then, my sister Guarjia went too, and she had her own mother by her side to take care of her. Now, my sister Guarjia has just given birth to the Fifth Prince, and the Fifth Prince is still so young and can't be left alone. She can't possibly go with him."
The implication is that the birth mother would have taken better care of the child, but without her presence, the care might not have been as thorough, and it would be bad if something went wrong.
Of course, this couldn't be said outright, but in private, everyone understood this principle, so the Princess Consort put it more tactfully.
Fourth Prince understood, of course, but he pretended not to: "It's alright, Princess Consort, you come along. You are his legal mother, with you there, it's the same."
What do you mean by "legitimate mother"? What do you mean by "same"? They're not the same, okay?!
He is an illegitimate son, not my biological son. It's different. Honghui is my real son!
The princess was holding her breath, her anger choked her, and for a moment she had no words to refute, or rather, she couldn't utter a rebuttal.
Just then, during a break, Honghui, who had come from the front yard, entered with his personal eunuch.
Hearing the servants' reminder while he was outside the door, he knew that his father was also there. So, upon entering, Honghui naturally greeted the Fourth Prince first, and then greeted his wife.
After exchanging greetings, Honghui, who had just sat down, casually asked, "Father, Mother, what were you talking about?"
He seemed casual, but only Honghui knew that he cared.
Because when the servants reminded them, they mentioned that "it seemed to be about the tour to the border regions."
His other cousins, all of whom were legitimate sons, had accompanied the emperor on his southern tours or to the border regions. Even his fourth brother, Hongxuan, who was much younger than him, had accompanied the emperor on his southern tours. But he had never been.
Every time he heard them talk about what they saw and heard on the road, he longed to experience it for himself.
He would like to go on this tour of the northern frontier if permitted.
Sure enough, after he asked, his father replied as he wished, "Your imperial grandfather is preparing to tour the border regions and has appointed your father to accompany him."
"It's so good that you ordered it, Father!" Honghui couldn't help but reveal his joy.
Seeing Honghui's joyful expression, the Fourth Prince and his wife couldn't help but think of something.
Fourth Master, who knew Honghui's physical condition best, immediately understood his thoughts and frowned in disapproval: "You want to go? No."
Upon hearing this, Honghui and the Fourth Prince's wife were both displeased.
Honghui simply couldn't go, while the Fourth Prince's wife felt that the Fourth Prince was biased.
Although she was more optimistic about Honghui's health than the Fourth Master, she also understood that he should avoid long and strenuous travel, since his health was not very good. Just look at Honghui's thin and frail body and his overly pale complexion to know that.
The Fourth Prince's wife clenched her handkerchief tightly in anger, her smile somewhat stiff, until she heard the Fourth Prince's next words, at which point her smile became genuine.
"The road will be bumpy, I'm afraid you won't be able to handle it." Actually, it wasn't just "afraid," it was "you definitely won't be able to handle it."
However, neither Hui'er nor the Fujin knew the truth, and it was best not to let them know, so it was best not to say anything too harsh.
Honghui knew his own body was healthy, so when he learned that his father had rejected him for this reason, he was happy that the Fourth Master cared about him, but also disappointed that he couldn't go. His sickly demeanor and frustration made him look even more dejected.
The Fujin was clearly pleased that the Fourth Prince felt sorry for Honghui. Now that she had come to her senses, she was also glad that the Fourth Prince had rejected Honghui. Otherwise, she would have argued her case and refused him, since Hui'er's health was still recovering and not very good.
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