Song Yaozhu looked at the woman in front of her. Behind her were three maids and a servant. The woman who could refer to herself as "this palace" must not be an ordinary concubine.
Before Song Yaozhu could observe further, Yongle rushed forward and said, "This princess is in a good mood today, can you please get lost!"
Now that Song Yaozhu was certain, they weren't after her, and she felt relieved.
It turned out that the spoiled woman was Yuwen Wuji's youngest daughter, named Yuwen Yan. She was a few years younger than Yongle, but the two were very much at odds.
The two exchanged insults, while Song Yaozhu stepped aside to watch. Their fight escalated quickly, soon turning into a physical confrontation.
When Yuwen Yan was about to tear off Yongle's hair ornament, Song Yaozhu decided to adopt the demeanor of an elder.
"Stop! Stop fighting!"
She stepped forward, grabbed one person's arm with each hand, and quickly separated the two.
Yuwen Yan froze, glancing at Song Yaozhu, unaware of her identity. But there were few in this world with a higher status than her, so she raised her hand to strike her.
Song Yaozhu tightened her grip on her wrist, twisting and locking her in place.
Her movements were so fluid and graceful that Yongle's eyes lit up, while Yuwen Yan's maids were completely caught off guard.
"Can you calm down now?" She looked at Yongle first.
Yongle immediately raised his hands to show that he was being very obedient.
"Who are you, you vile woman! How dare you touch me! I will exterminate your entire family! Ahhh!"
Song Yaozhu tightened her grip, causing Yuwen Yan to burst into tears from the pain.
"Let go! Let go! Are you all blind?!"
She shouted, and the maids reacted and tried to pull Song Yaozhu away, but were stopped by Yongle's maids.
“I am the Princess Consort of the Carefree Prince, and the princess should call me Aunt.”
"Pah! You're just a country bumpkin, how dare you presume to be worthy!"
She had barely finished speaking when a sharp pain shot through her calf, causing her to kneel down on one knee, followed by another excruciating pain.
"How dare you! Have all your morals been eaten by pigs?!" Yuwen Xian roared, for it was she who had kicked him earlier.
Upon seeing Yuwen Xian, Yuwen Yan immediately shut her mouth like a quail in fear. Even though this aunt was a year younger than her, the bloodline advantage was ingrained in her bones.
Upon seeing Yuwen Xian, Song Yaozhu released her grip. That girl's kick was really hard!
"Where is your etiquette instructor?!" Yuwen Xian shouted.
Yuwen Yan had already begun to weep bitterly, only able to cry and not utter a single word. Yuwen Xian glanced at the maids kneeling on the ground serving her, "If you fail to keep a close watch on the princess, I will break your legs!"
The crowd was terrified and stepped forward to pull Yuwen Yan back.
Yuwen Xian then nodded to Song Yaozhu, "I'm sorry for making you laugh, Your Highness."
Song Yaozhu thought to herself, "The Yuwen family is truly a place where bad bamboo produces good shoots. Yuwen Xian is quite good, though. But it's probably because he was raised by me since he was little—you become like those you associate with, or perhaps it's because I have good roots."
Song Yaozhu responded with a smile, indicating that she had no intention of going with Yuwen Xian. However, Yuwen Xian invited her to go to the opera, and Yongle, always eager to join in any excitement, happily dragged Song Yaozhu along.
On the way, she kept muttering to herself, "Who taught you that move? It was so amazing! Teach me sometime!"
"The next time I see Yuwen Yan, I'll definitely beat her up until she's covered in bumps!"
Such noises made Song Yaozhu's head start to buzz.
Perhaps she's really getting old; she just prefers quiet...
Upon arriving at the theater, Song Yaozhu saw many ladies and young women inside. The play "The Romance of the Western Chamber" was being performed on stage, and huge blocks of ice were placed on all four sides of the stage, making the entire theater feel cool. The ladies and young women, dressed in light gauze, even pulled their collars up.
Because of Yuwen Yan's matter, Song Yaozhu was not in a good mood today. She sat down lazily. She had gotten up early to travel and then had a quick meal after arriving here, so she was quite tired.
There would be a banquet in the evening, where they would pay their respects to the Emperor and the Imperial Concubine, and listen to some meaningless nonsense. For the next two months, the goal of these ladies and young women was simply to please the Imperial Concubine.
Song Yaozhu wasn't in the mood; coming here was already quite annoying...
Lost in thought, I heard a eunuch's shrill announcement: "Consort Song has arrived!"
The ladies and young women present who were not granted official titles all rose to pay their respects, while Song Yaozhu and the others remained seated without moving.
Perhaps it was the summer heat, but Song Yaozhu was feeling drowsy and didn't realize who it was when she heard the name "Song Zhaoyi".
When the person got closer, she realized that this Consort Song was none other than her dear younger sister, Song Wenyue.
She was just a Jieyu when she entered the palace, and now she has become the Zhaoyi, the head of the Nine Concubines. What a skillful move!
"Sister, it's been a long time."
Song Wenyue had exquisite makeup and wore gorgeous clothes. She spoke in a light and arrogant tone, which gave her a sense of superiority.
Song Yaozhu raised her chin slightly, looked down at her, and couldn't help but chuckle: "Having been confined to the inner quarters for so long, I had no idea that my sister was now a Zhaoyi."
Upon hearing this, Song Wenyue's expression stiffened slightly, and her hatred intensified.
Song Yaozhu's words were a blatant mockery, implying that even with her favor, she couldn't compare to Song Yaozhu! She had schemed and plotted, yet she was only a second-rank official. Meanwhile, Song Yaozhu was a princess consort, a first-rank imperial consort!
Upon meeting her, she still had to bow to her!
A young eunuch beside Song Wenyue chuckled, "Her Majesty has just been conferred her title and an imperial edict has been issued, but the grand ceremony has not yet taken place. Therefore, the Princess Consort is unaware of this."
"I see." Song Yaozhu looked at Song Wenyue with a half-smile. "Now that you are in this position, you must be careful and cautious. Don't be like you were before when you were outside the palace. You are childish and short-sighted and easily cause trouble."
She was referring to Song Wenyue's previous "fraudulent" activities under her name, during which many ladies present were "swindled" out of their money and had nowhere to seek justice.
Song Wenyue was so angry her scalp tingled. Others might not know, but she knew it herself! She had also been tricked by Song Yaozhu! But Song Yaozhu herself wouldn't admit it! It was also because she wasn't careful enough and just believed Song Yaozhu's words!
I didn't make any money; instead, I lost everything!
She bit down hard on the inside of her mouth, forcing herself to calm down, and said with an unchanged expression, "Sister is right. I was ignorant before, but I won't be like that now. It's all thanks to the magnanimity of you ladies that you don't hold it against me."
Those ladies who lost money naturally couldn't swallow their anger. However, Song Wenyue had just entered the palace as a Jieyu and had been promoted to Zhaoyi in just a few months. She was currently favored and wouldn't oppose her anymore.
After all, if their master were to be influenced by his wife's words a few times, his career might be ruined!
“Indeed, sister should thank them properly. If they hadn’t been so forgiving, you might have been punished by the Emperor!” Song Yaozhu laughed, making the ladies’ scalps tingle.
They now know that the two sisters don't get along! It's a pity they didn't know, and now they're caught in the middle, torn between them!
On one side is the princess with the backing of Nanshan Academy, and on the other side is the favored and glamorous Zhaoyi!
It seems like you can't gain anything by taking either side!
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