Ituma Shushu smiled and said, "I see. Then Consort Ning and the Sixth Princess may continue your stroll. I will take my leave now."
Consort Ning hurriedly said, "Respectfully seeing off Consort Shu."
Ituma Shushu nodded and continued walking forward, surrounded by a group of servants.
Consort Ning gazed at Ituma Shushu's retreating figure, a sense of gratitude welling up within her.
In any case, both Yu Pin and I had secretly received a favor from Consort Shu.
This matter is actually somewhat related to Ituma Shushu.
In order to help the Seventh Prince Hongzhao get used to the journey to the Imperial Study in advance, and also to make it easier for her to sign in and collect life points, she spent a month taking the Seventh Prince Hongzhao to visit the Old Summer Palace.
Upon hearing the news, Consort Yu looked at the four-year-old Fifth Princess, Flora, and thought that she shouldn't restrain her any longer.
I should also take Princess Franna around and travel with her.
So in the days that followed, Consort Yu began to take the Fifth Princess, Flora, to visit the Yuanmingyuan.
It was during this process that Consort Yu discovered that the wet nurses were secretly interfering too much in the princesses' daily lives.
They would even secretly sow discord between the princess and her own birth mother.
Consort Yu went from being shocked to furious, but eventually calmed down.
Currently, the wet nurses have not mistreated the Fifth Princess, Flora. What they teach the Fifth Princess does indeed include some of the rules and regulations of the harem.
So on the surface, they really couldn't be found to be wrong, and the wet nurses were under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Household Department, so even if they managed to send them back, they could still do so.
The next batch of wet nurses sent over will most likely be similar.
The more Consort Yu thought about it, the more her brows furrowed. At this moment, she couldn't help but think of Consort Ning and the Sixth Princess, Taifeng.
So she immediately took the Fifth Princess, Flora, to Consort Ning's palace.
Seeing that Consort Yu's expression was not right, Consort Ning immediately ordered, "Lvhe, you may all leave."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Green Lotus and others bowed in response.
Consort Yu also instructed Meihua, who was waiting beside her, and said softly, "Meihua, you may also step down."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Then, Consort Yu took the hand of the Fifth Princess, Falana, and came to the Sixth Princess, Thai Princess Font, who was sitting in a baby chair. She said softly, "Falana, why don't you stay here and play with your sister?"
Fifth Princess Flora obediently replied, "Yes, Mother."
Consort Yu patted the Fifth Princess's head and said softly, "Franna is such a good girl."
Then she took Consort Ning's hand and led her to sit down on the couch.
Consort Ning hurriedly asked in a low voice, "Consort Yu, you don't look well. What happened?"
Consort Yu looked very unwell. Then, she quietly told Consort Ning about how she had heard Consort Shu take the Seventh Prince Hongzhao to visit the Yuanmingyuan Garden, and how she herself had taken the Fifth Princess Flana to visit the Yuanmingyuan Garden and then discovered the wet nurse's behavior.
After hearing this, Consort Ning's face darkened, and she lowered her voice and said, "If it weren't for Consort Yu discovering it so early, I really wouldn't have thought that the wet nurse would have made a move when the child was so young."
After all, I had no experience in taking care of children and was worried that I wouldn't be able to take good care of my sixth princess, Taifeng. So after observing that the wet nurse did not mistreat the child, I gradually felt at ease.
We Han Chinese also have wet nurses, but generally our mothers hold a contract of indenture for the wet nurse.
Or they might keep the wet nurse's family under their watchful eye, so even a wet nurse with ulterior motives wouldn't dare to go too far.
Consort Yu nodded and lowered her voice, saying, "Some wet nurses who have lost their own children still treat the child they nursed as their own, caring for the child even more than the child's mother."
My mother's wet nurse was such an example. She treated my mother like her own child, nursed my mother until she was old enough to be married, and then followed my mother into marriage.
She helped our mother manage the affairs of the household and always cared deeply for us siblings.
She is now living a long and happy life in our household, and my mother has even sent servants to take care of her.
So I was blinded by my own limited perspective and didn't see the difference between the wet nurses in the palace and us wet nurses.
Consort Ning let out a breath and continued in a low voice, "The palace maids in the harem are all of Manchu origin, and some of them already have complicated relationships with the Imperial Household Department."
Furthermore, it was stipulated that palace maids would be released from the palace after ten years, so I dared not fully trust any of the palace maids in the harem who were dissatisfied with Consort Yu.
The selection of wet nurses was even more stringent. They were generally selected from women from households under the jurisdiction of the "Upper Three Banners" (Plain Yellow, Bordered Yellow, and Plain White Banners) and their husbands and children were usually required to be alive.
So, Consort Yu, it's fortunate you didn't act impulsively and directly expose them.
Consort Yu's expression changed, and she lowered her voice and said, "So there are so many intricacies involved. Consort Ning, you know so much more."
I simply thought that even if I got rid of this batch of wet nurses, the other batch sent by the Imperial Household Department would probably be just as good.
At this moment, Consort Ning seemed to have thought of something, and her expression suddenly changed. She continued in a low voice, "Consort Yu, you and I are both from the Han Banner Army. Those wet nurses consider themselves to be from the 'Upper Three Banners,' and some of them may secretly look down on us."
Since they look down on even us two concubines, they will look down on the princesses we have given birth to even more.
You should know that princesses were usually married off for political reasons, unlike princes who might bring benefits to their husbands and sons in the future.
So as long as they teach our princess according to the palace rules and she doesn't commit any major mistakes on the surface, that's enough.
Consort Yu gritted her teeth and said in a low voice, "So they can't take care of their own children at home, and they want our princess but she can't bring any benefits to their families."
Are you going to treat our princess like this? Everything is so proper and orderly. The princess is so young, yet you expect her to be so well-behaved every day? And you want to teach her to become estranged from her mother?
Consort Ning sighed and lowered her voice, saying, "These wet nurses and the subsequent governesses all treat people differently based on their social status."
Consort Yu, think back to the Emperor's three adopted daughters...
Princess Heshuo Shushen, Princess Heshuo Hehui, and Princess Heshuo Duanrou.
Of the three princesses, only Princess Heshuo Shushen did not grow up in the palace due to special circumstances.
Princess Heshuo Hehui and Princess Heshuo Duanrou were the daughters of Prince Yi and Prince Zhuang, respectively.
The two of them grew up in the palace; no maid would dare to neglect them in the slightest.
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