As evening approached, Yin accompanied Qingyan and the twins back to their suburban villa from the street. Fei Yanggu and his two sons had been waiting for a long time. Seeing the happy smiles of the family of four, they finally felt relieved.
"Father, why do you look so pale?" Qingyan asked curiously.
The twins had already been taken away by the nannies to rest. They had been playing outside all day and were exhausted.
"Little darling, the Third Princess Consort made a huge scene at the entrance of the Fourth Prince's villa. We had the servants persuade her to go back, but the news still got out." Fei Yanggu came out just in time to hear what the Third Princess Consort had done, which had clearly brought trouble to Qingyan.
Qingyan was dumbfounded. It turned out that the Third Princess Consort actually dared to plot against him behind his back.
It wasn't enough for them to hide; if they made too much noise, Emperor Kangxi would definitely take notice.
"Father, let's not concern ourselves with this." Qingyan didn't care. The Third Princess Consort was ruthless, and many women had suffered at her hands.
Now that the Third Prince's wife is embroiled in a scandal, they will naturally fan the flames, and soon the story of the Third Prince's wife causing trouble at the Fourth Prince's residence will spread like wildfire.
Those who spread the rumors were still discreet, separating the Yin family and pointing out that the Fourth Prince's family was not in the mansion. The servants kept urging the Third Princess to go back first.
Who would have thought that the servants' advice would become an excuse for a commotion? Whether she had gone mad or was under extreme pressure, Dong Eshi kept saying that Qingyan was avoiding her.
"We can't ignore this; it involves Xiao Guai's reputation." If the Third Princess Consort were to complain in front of the other women, Qing Yan would likely be put in a difficult position again.
The Empress Dowager would certainly not listen to the Third Prince's words. After all, Consort Dong'e was the Empress Dowager's Achilles' heel, a problem she could never resolve in this lifetime.
Yin pondered for a moment. It seemed he needed to handle this matter carefully.
“Father-in-law, Yinzhi has taken in two more Han women. The Third Princess Consort is in a bad mood and may inevitably do something rash.”
Su Lan prepared a delicious dinner and brought it in with her maids.
"Father, let's have dinner first." Qingyan turned on the screen in his space, which had been monitoring Third Master's villa.
As expected, after Dong E returned, Yin Zhi immediately ignored her, believing that Dong E was doing it on purpose.
Fei Yanggu rarely ate the dinner prepared by Qingyan. The chefs in the mansion were all trained by Qingyan, and the taste of the food was similar to that prepared by Qingyan. Since Qingyan got married, his state of mind has changed, and the taste has also changed.
"Just like before." Saito was very happy, having a rare opportunity to get close to Qingyan.
Yin kept a straight face. Qingyan was doted on by her two older brothers. Before she got married, Saito and Eshuo protected her. Yin wanted to get close to them, but the two brothers rarely gave him the chance.
“Yes, how wonderful it would be if we could dine like this anytime.” E Shuo nodded in satisfaction.
On ordinary days, only the father and his two sons lived in the new house, which lacked the warmth that Qingyan used to have.
"No!" Yin refused decisively.
Normally, Qingyan has to take care of the twins, so she pays less attention to him. In addition, with Fei Yanggu and his two sons, Yin can hardly imagine that his future days will definitely not be easy.
As Yin spent more and more time with Qingyan, he increasingly hoped that all her attention would be focused on him alone, without her needing to pay attention to other men, even his offspring. His jealousy was unstoppable.
"Fourth Prince, Father is nearsighted and hopes we can have a gathering every seven days." Qingyan was troubled. Yin was a jealous man. He had promised that Fei Yanggu could dine at the Fourth Prince's residence when he was alone in the new house.
After the birth of the twins, Fei Yanggu became increasingly busy and rarely had the opportunity to spend time with Qingyan, so such gatherings decreased.
"Alright." Seeing Qingyan's expectant little eyes, Yin finally gave in.
Meanwhile, rumors had already spread throughout the city that the Third Prince's wife had gone to the Fourth Prince's wife to complain. Normally, Qingyan rarely went out to socialize, and the other wives believed that Qingyan did not get along well with her sisters-in-law. But reality often proves them wrong.
After dinner, Qingyan accompanied Yin to the study. She sat on the soft couch, watching the screen in the room, which showed the farce at the Third Master's mansion.
After Lady Dong'e returned, Yinzhi barged into the main courtyard, his face filled with rage. Lady Dong'e sat on the grand chair, staring blankly at Yinzhi.
Since entering the royal family, Dong Eshi understood her responsibilities: as long as she helped Yin Zhi manage the inner court, that would be enough.
However, she could not suppress the jealousy in her heart. Qingyan could do whatever he wanted. Even the daughter sent by Cao Yin's family was sent to another place by Yin. Yinzhi and Yin were clearly brothers, but they treated their female relatives in two different ways.
"Why did you go to the fourth prince's place? Tell me!" Yin Zhi looked coldly at Dong E Shi. "Don't you think your mansion is already a disgrace?"
Yin Zhi had just returned and was enjoying the company of his beloved concubine in his study when he heard this devastating news.
The people in the city were talking about it, and it greatly damaged Yinzhi's reputation in the royal family and official circles.
Yin Zhi's face was extremely ugly. Dong E Shi was already disheartened and decided not to say anything more to Yin Zhi.
However, Qingyan's happiness became a thorn, always stuck in her heart.
"Heh, you still have the nerve to ask why the Fourth Prince could send the Han women away for the sake of the banquet, but you kept them by your side. Do you really think Father Emperor wouldn't care?" Dong Eshi felt a sense of disappointment and frustration. Yin Zhi was originally an excellent person with high literary attainments. Kangxi had always been proud of Yin Zhi.
There were many Manchu Eight Banners warriors, but in terms of literature, only Nalan Rongruo could compare with the Han Banner slaves. Among the princes, with Yinzhi as such a role model, Kangxi believed that all the scholars in the world would submit.
As Yinzhi grew older, in addition to studying with the great Confucian scholars, he also picked up the affectations and bad habits of a scholar.
One example is the presence of a beautiful woman adding fragrance to one's sleeves.
Emperor Kangxi bestowed many concubines upon Yinzhi according to his preferences. Dong Eshi did not worry too much about this, as these women were all daughters of officials. Even if they were born out of wedlock, they had been taught proper etiquette.
The women sent by officials from the south were generally the "thin horses" type, completely ignorant of palace rules. After gaining favor, they became somewhat arrogant and unruly.
“Send her away?! How can I be the same as the Fourth Prince? How can Ulanara be the same as Dong E? Father Emperor appoints women to his residence every year, and I haven’t seen you react with such disgust.” Yin Zhi was somewhat confused as to why Dong E was so resistant.
Lady Dong'e gave a wry smile. Didn't Yinzhi know? What were those women after?
"The women whom Father Emperor has arranged marriages for are all well-educated, but those women in the south have no manners at all. How can I be at ease?" Dong E said with a bitter smile.
Yinzhi, however, didn't care at all; as long as the women were beautiful, he could accept them.
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