In the afternoon, the atmosphere in the flower hall was somewhat strange. The Crown Princess was facing off against several Mongolian wives, and even the Third Princess was involved. Consort Tong's face showed a hint of caution.
"Fourth sister-in-law, you be the judge. Am I wrong?" Upon hearing Dong E's challenge, the Crown Princess pulled Qingyan to her side.
In the eyes of others, Yin was considered the prince behind the crown prince. Even though he had only followed the crown prince for a year, the ministers remembered him well.
"Your Highness, I shouldn't say anything. You and the Third Prince's wife are both my sisters-in-law, so as your sister-in-law, it's really not appropriate for me to interrupt!" Qingyan quickly retorted.
Consort Tong sighed inwardly, hoping that Qingyan could get rid of the matter. Dong Eshi's face showed an anxious expression.
"Alright, shut up, all of you!" Consort Tong had a headache. "Jiya is going to enter Yuqing Palace now, Crown Princess, what do you mean by that?"
Kangxi intended for Jia to enter Yuqing Palace as a secondary consort, and it seems the Crown Prince also quite liked Jia's "personality".
The Crown Princess was taken aback: "Your Highness, what is this?"
Previously, the Crown Prince had said that if Jiya could enter Yuqing Palace, the Mongolians would also favor Yuqing Palace. That's why the Crown Princess had been helping the Crown Prince clean up the mess after the incident.
"It's His Majesty's will." Consort Tong didn't hide anything, and the Crown Princess's face darkened upon hearing this.
The Crown Princess felt as if she had been tricked.
"Your Highness, I understand!" The Crown Princess nodded reluctantly, knowing in her heart that if she resisted, Kangxi's senses would be even worse.
After the incident, Emperor Kangxi had Consort Tong issue an edict reprimanding the Crown Princess, believing that if she had taken good care of the Crown Prince, such a problem would not have occurred.
“Your Highness, Jia’s status is not low. Do you think she should enter with her status?” Princess Consort of Prince Aohan questioned the Crown Princess.
Consort Tong finally gave in, and the Mongolian wives looked smug. Even Emperor Kangxi sided with the Mongolian tribes.
The Crown Princess was speechless, and the Mongolian Princess Consort would definitely not let this opportunity pass. The Crown Prince had broken the rules, and it was time to add fuel to the fire.
“In terms of status, Jiya is qualified to be the primary consort of a prince. The crown prince is of even higher status, so we should step back and become a secondary consort!” said the wife of Prince Aohan as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
As soon as he finished speaking, Qingyan was stunned. The Mongol wives had always been very confident, believing that all women should give them face, and that even Emperor Kangxi had to be mindful of the Mongols' attitude.
“My dear mother, isn’t this going a bit too far? Currently, there is only one concubine in Yuqing Palace, Li Jia, who gave birth to Prince Hongxi for the Crown Prince. All the other women who entered Yuqing Palace started as concubines.” The Crown Princess’s face was rather unpleasant.
"This is your business, I won't offer any opinions!" Consort Tong shook her head directly.
The Mongolian wives stared at the Crown Princess, knowing they would not spare her if she dared to shake her head.
“Your Highness, the Imperial Concubine will not offer her opinion, and the position of Jia will be decided by you, the head mistress of the household,” said the wife of Prince Aohan.
Looking at the farce unfolding before her, Qingyan was glad she had refused outright; otherwise, things would have escalated into an unbearable mess.
"This matter still needs to be discussed with the Crown Prince. After all, the layout of Yuqing Palace should not be changed!" The Crown Princess wanted to prevent Jia from entering Yuqing Palace.
The Mongolian princess understood the Crown Princess's intentions and refused to budge an inch.
"Your Highness, if this doesn't work, let His Majesty handle it," the Mongolian princess said directly.
Consort Tong's face turned even uglier. If Emperor Kangxi were to handle this personally, wouldn't that imply that Consort Tong was incompetent?
"Shu, go and summon His Majesty and the princes." Consort Tong was truly too lazy to care anymore; the conflict between the Mongol tribe's wives and the Crown Princess and the Third Prince's wives was growing increasingly intense.
A moment later, Kangxi led his princes, Mongolian princes and dukes into the room. After everyone paid their respects, the wives sat down next to their husbands.
"Crown Prince, Third Prince, you're the ones who caused this trouble. Tell me, how should we handle this?!" Kangxi was extremely annoyed. These two children were such a headache.
“Father, I have been wronged. You can’t let me bring Jia back to the courtyard, can you?” Yinzhi was the first to object. “Since the Crown Prince likes her, I can do as he wishes.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the Crown Prince squinted at Yin Zhi and said, "I said I would definitely do you a favor. When the imperial concubine selection comes next year, I will personally ask for a concubine for you!"
Seeing that the Crown Prince was taking responsibility, Kangxi felt relieved. The leaders of the Mongol tribes should also be able to give an explanation.
At this moment, Qingyan kept an eye on the Mongol leaders. Prince Aohan's face brightened, and a hint of happiness appeared in his brown eyes.
The Crown Princess was rolling up a handkerchief in her hand, and her hands were turning white from the effort.
"Father, since it is my fault, I will not explain further. Jiya entered the palace as a secondary consort. She is a candidate for the imperial concubine selection. When the selection takes place next year, she will be directly assigned to Yuqing Palace," the Crown Prince requested.
“Your Highness, please reconsider. Jiya’s situation is somewhat special. If she becomes pregnant with Your Highness’s child and then waits until next year’s imperial concubine selection, wouldn’t that make her a laughingstock?” Prince Aohan quickly said.
Emperor Kangxi also found this reasonable: "I will soon issue an edict to betroth Jiya to the Crown Prince as a secondary consort."
Consort Tong understood that Kangxi had given up on the Crown Prince. Otherwise, Kangxi would have insisted on arranging the marriage next year. The Crown Prince held a very high position, and arranging a marriage midway would be clearly disrespectful.
"Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty!" Prince Aohan quickly rose and bowed.
"Alright, everyone, get up and kowtow. Let's not spread this matter any further. Yin, you should also pay more attention to your drinking habits. If you can avoid drinking, then try not to!" For the first time, Kangxi directly stated that the Crown Prince should not drink alcohol.
"Yes!" The crown prince stood up and replied.
"Third son, when the imperial concubine selection takes place next year, your mother will personally choose a concubine for you!" Emperor Kangxi finally agreed. Usually, it was Emperor Kangxi who made the appointments, but this time it was an exception.
After the matter was resolved satisfactorily, Kangxi dismissed everyone. Yin and Qingyan returned to their study. The past few days had been quite eventful, and Qingyan hadn't had much rest.
"From now on, we need to be extra careful around the courtyard. Make sure no one touches anything near the entrance," Yin said directly.
"Could it be that the Crown Prince was really tricked?" Qingyan was stunned. Kangxi and others had blocked the news, and everything about what the Crown Prince did that day had been covered up.
"More or less, there must be someone hiding by the Crown Prince's side!" Yin tapped the table, countless thoughts surfacing in his mind.
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