With Lady Gioro once again confined by Fei Yanggu, the noblewomen began to speculate whether Lady Gioro had been abandoned by Emperor Kangxi. Lady Dong'e's demonstration at the Ulanara residence further troubled Emperor Kangxi, who worried that Lady Dong'e would ultimately not care about her daughter.
On this day, Qingyan was obediently practicing calligraphy in the study, with the governesses standing on both sides. They had received news from the palace that Qingyan must not be disturbed by outsiders, not even the governesses around the Jueluo clan.
"Princess, someone from the old mansion has arrived. They say Princess Qingya is here!" Qingyan looked at Sulan, her half-sister?!
She was very good at talking to Qingyan, and she was even more proud of being favored by the Jue Luo clan. Sometimes, she would provoke Qingyan.
"Tell her to go to the main hall." This study is where Fei Yanggu Eshuo and others discuss private matters; the study in the front yard is only used in public.
Qingya's identity cannot be revealed, so she can only wrong Qingya.
Back in the inner chamber, she changed into a light pink cheongsam embroidered with water lilies, and replaced her hair ornament with a mutton fat magnolia hairpin personally designed by Yin, before stepping out of the room.
Following Jue Luo's orders, Qingya arrived early in the morning with her maid. Looking at the courtyard that Fei Yanggu had meticulously prepared for Qingyan, she felt increasingly resentful.
She sat on a mahogany armchair, surveying the layout of the hall. In the treasure cabinet on the left, many of the decorations were made in-house, which made Qingya extremely envious.
In the old house, many servants said that Qingyan was the most favored female servant of Emperor Kangxi and other high-ranking masters. On Qingyan's birthday, she would receive a lot of rewards from the palace and various princely residences, which made Qingya very jealous.
They are clearly the same, except that they share the same father but have different mothers. She wasn't raised under the Jue Luo clan's name. What difference is there between their statuses?
"Qingya, what brings you here?" Qingyan saw Qingya sitting obediently in the armchair, but her eyes flashed with resentment. This...
"Hmph, since you won't go back to see your mother, I have no choice but to come and see you in her place. Your mother cares about you a lot. She's been confined to her quarters by your father and even sent a nanny to inquire about you. Before the nanny could return, your father gave her forty lashes with his cane," Qingya said angrily.
After Jue Luo was confined to her quarters, Qingya received an invitation from her best friend. Many noblewomen, upon hearing that she was an illegitimate daughter of the Ulanara clan, did not look at her with much respect. Some even felt that among Fei Yanggu's lineage, only Qingyan was somewhat respectable.
When Qingya was ridiculed by the noble ladies, her hatred for Qingyan intensified. If it weren't for her existence, she and her half-sisters wouldn't have been hated by those people, and they wouldn't have harbored resentment towards Qingyan because of this incident...
"Little darling, why are you so slow?" Qingya looked at Qingyan's rosy little face, her clothes and hair were all made of imperial makeup, and she could no longer suppress the jealousy in her heart.
If Qingyan is gone, will the Fourth Prince be yours?
Every time Qingyan received praise from everyone, Qingya would think the same thing.
"Third Princess, you are a concubine's daughter, you should pay your respects to Princess Qingyan, but your maidservant didn't even teach you this basic etiquette?" After respectfully bowing to Qingya, Granny Liao questioned her directly.
In the Eight Banners, the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate daughters was clear. As long as a daughter was legitimate, she could enjoy the same greetings and etiquette as a daughter from a concubine, regardless of whether the daughter from a concubine was of higher rank.
Qingya was stunned. It seemed that the nannies around Qingyan had been replaced by palace governesses. These two were handpicked by Lanya, who was afraid that Qingyan would be misled. Before the nannies left the palace, Yin made sure to control their families. He had to make the nannies think twice and absolutely could not let them be bribed.
"You..." Qingya glared at Qingyan with resentment. These two old women were clearly instigated by Qingyan, and they actually dared to lash out at their master.
"Granny Liao has been a maidservant who has served the Imperial Concubine for many years. It is said that she was sent by Empress Dowager Tong to teach the Imperial Concubine manners." As Qingyan finished speaking, Qingya's hatred grew even stronger.
Fei Yanggu's actions—getting to the palace to plead for Qingyan's safety, hiring a tutor for her, and cutting off all of Jue Luo Shi's escape routes to bring Qingyan back—were utterly incomprehensible to Qingya. They were both her father's daughters, so why was there such a vast difference between them?
"Granny Liao, is this the rule in the palace? How can a servant speak so presumptuously in front of the master?" Qingya was annoyed and wanted to severely punish Granny Liao in front of the servants she had brought with her.
Otherwise, will she be able to have a good life after she goes back?
"Granny Liao only taught me manners. After I participate in the imperial concubine selection, Granny Liao should return to the side of the Imperial Concubine. I am not considered Granny Liao's master!" Qingyan smiled. Qingya's words had no effect on her. Fei Yanggu and Kangxi had already arranged Qingya's future, so she would not take Qingya's words to heart.
Qingya stared at her in astonishment. Didn't Emperor Kangxi and Consort Tong dote on her? How come they wouldn't even give her a governess?
Granny Liao didn't say much. Emperor Kangxi had instructed the two of them that the truth must not be revealed before Qingyan married into the royal family.
"Qingyan, you don't even have a trustworthy nanny by your side. After you enter the palace, who can help you? I should ask your mother to find one for you." Qingya implied to Qingyan that the royal family's attitude towards her was nothing special, and that once she married into the royal family, she would probably be abandoned.
"No need, Father has already refused Mother." When Fei Yanggu arrived at the new residence, the first thing he did was to send away all the wet nurses around Qingyan. These people kept passing messages to Jue Luo Shi, which made Fei Yanggu very annoyed.
"Little darling, when you get married, your mother will come to do your hair and makeup." Qingya's words were full of threat.
"Third Princess, only elders like His Majesty can address you as that. You are not qualified." Granny Liao was extremely disgusted that Qingya did not recognize her place.
Qingya's face turned deathly pale. She hadn't expected to be lectured by a nanny so many times.
"Granny Liao, why are you interrupting when I'm just chatting with Qingyan!" Qingya, who also had a temper, couldn't understand why Qingyan would often give her a hard time.
Qingyan smiled indifferently. Qingya was like a sulking child. The nanny had already made her position clear, but she still wouldn't let it go.
"Qingya, no need for further words. I will tell Father that these two nannies around you need to be replaced. How can they be so ignorant of etiquette?" Qingyan sneered. "Mother, why did I call you here? Let's get down to business!"
Qingyan didn't have time to chat with her. Jueluo didn't come out, but instead sent Qingya. There must be some secret that she couldn't reveal.
"Mother, I hope you can go back and see her." Qingya said aggrievedly, as if Qingyan was an unfilial daughter who had not gone back to see her own mother.
Qingyan smiled. Her mother really wasn't going to spare any effort in tarnishing her reputation. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
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