As night fell, Qingyan finally got out of bed. The palace had already been decorated, with bright yellow and red colors complementing each other.
Qingyan overheard the servants outside praising each other. When she entered the palace, she had specially asked Sulan to bring a lot of custom-made gold and silver pendants as rewards for these servants. Eunuchs and nannies like Li Dequan and Sulan were given silver notes.
"Master, all the servants from the Prince's quarters have gathered. The Master said that the servants should pay their respects first before going to Chenggan Palace!" Su Lan walked in carrying a flowerpot-shaped shoe. After Qing Yan changed into it, she stood up and walked to the full-length bronze mirror. The flowerpot-shaped shoe on her court dress was shorter than the taller one.
"Let's put on the old pair again," Qingyan said with a sigh, but Sulan didn't move.
Qingyan frowned. Since entering the mansion, Yin had become more like the head of the family, and even the servants around her preferred to stand by Yin's side.
“Your Highness, you’d better wear this!” Su Lan remembered that last year, when Qing Yan returned from the Hall of Supreme Harmony, he almost had to stay in bed for several days to recover.
After changing her clothes, Qingyan helped Sulan walk outside. Yin was already seated in the seat of honor, and the servants were standing outside waiting to pay their respects to their masters.
"Little darling, sit still!" Last year, Yin wanted Little darling to sleep a little longer, so he had Su Peisheng distribute all the rewards directly.
She sat gracefully beside him, and rows of servants entered in order to pay their respects to the two of them. They kowtowed respectfully and uttered auspicious words. Su Peisheng and Su Lan personally gave these people several red envelopes.
Within half an hour, rows of servants received their purses, and smiles were on their faces.
Inside the palace, the servants loved the New Year the most. The servants with lower ranks would receive more bonuses, and many secretly hoped to save up some money to improve their living conditions.
"Little Darling, we should go!" Yin took the opportunity to memorize all the servants in the courtyard. When some unfamiliar servants came in, he still had to give them a good talking to.
As Qingyan stepped out of the courtyard, she felt several strange eyes staring at her, making her feel uncomfortable all over.
"Fourth Brother, aren't those servants the ones we left with?" Qingyan glanced at the corner of the wall and saw a few people staring at her. Perhaps these people had been hanging around her twice.
Yin smiled; Xiao Guai's observation skills were getting better and better.
The palace road was shrouded in red lanterns. Qingyan helped Suan follow behind. When they had walked halfway, they ran into Yinzhi and Dong'e.
"Fourth Prince, why are you so late?" Yin Zhi found it strange, as Yin should have gone to the Hall of Supreme Harmony with Consort Tong.
Yin nodded. The way Dong Eshi stared at Qingyan made both Yin and Qingyan feel uncomfortable.
"Sister-in-law, are your shoes too short?" Dong Eshi felt that Qingyan's height had changed, but she tried hard to recall that before leaving the palace, Qingyan's height was about the same as it is now.
Qingyan immediately looked confused. Did Dong'e say there was a problem with her height?
Probably not.
"Sister-in-law, how could that be?" Qingyan asked in return.
A single rhetorical question instantly shattered Dong E's thoughts; it seemed she had indeed been overthinking things.
"Third Brother, you go first!" Seeing that Dong E Shi wanted to cause trouble for Xiao Guai, Yin Zhi quickly told him to leave first. He didn't want to have to listen to these people arguing during the New Year.
Yinzhi nodded in satisfaction. Yinzhi still followed the rules and knew to defer to his elder brother.
The two of them left with their servants. Qingyan quickened her pace, tugged at Yin's sleeve, but didn't look very happy.
"Si Si, why are you giving in to him?" Qing Yan asked softly.
“There are Father Emperor’s people everywhere in the palace. If I pay more attention, at least Father Emperor won’t think we’re wrong!” Yin was paving the way for Xiao Guai.
This banquet is sure to be a trap. After all, the princes have all grown up, and the inner court is already able to bring them benefits. For their own selfish interests, these people, and even the censors, will not let anyone go.
Upon hearing this, Qingyan was stunned. She followed Yin to the Hall of Supreme Harmony, and the sound of the flowerpot-shaped shoes tapping on the palace road brought her back to her senses.
As the Spring Festival approached, she was aware of the problems that the wives of the commanders under her command often encountered.
"I'm not as ignorant as I used to be. Thanks to the training of the wives of the Commander-in-Chief, I can withstand it now!" Qingyan whispered to Yin.
real?!
He gave her a suspicious look. Qingyan lowered her head, wondering if she was really that weak.
"You decide what to do." Yin looked at the approaching Hall of Supreme Harmony and glanced at her.
She took two deep breaths, hoping to calm herself down.
After entering the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the court officials inside greeted the two men, but Yin waved them off with a stern face.
"Start the kowtow!" Qingyan's clear voice rang out.
"Fourth Princess Consort, come with me." Shu appeared before the two of them and led Qingyan inside.
"Greetings to Mother!" Qingyan bowed respectfully. Consort Tong was already surrounded by the ladies of the court, who hoped that their daughters could come into Consort Tong's sight.
"Come here quickly, many ladies are waiting for you!" Consort Tong beckoned to her. The others, including Lady Yin Genjue Luo, looked helpless, and Qing Yan understood.
The court ladies were all dressed in court attire and sat on either side according to their rank, while the outer room was where the court officials gathered.
"Fourth Princess Consort, before the festival, your servants and others delivered invitations. Were you... ill? You didn't even go to any of the families' homes!" Lady Hesheli immediately launched her attack on Qingyan.
Get ill!
The start of the festival was unpleasant, and several court ladies looked at Lady Hesheli with cold eyes. Even Consort Tong frowned in annoyance.
"It seems that Madam Suo is also concerned about these things?" Dong Eshi noticed that Suo'etu's wife was the first to speak up, and followed suit, "Sister-in-law, if we don't take good care of ourselves in the winter, we will definitely get sick. We can't be afraid of the imperial physicians."
Consort Rong had no intention of saving her daughter-in-law. Consort Tong frowned visibly. Did this fool really think she was on her side?
"Third sister-in-law, you've wronged me. You've been in the prince's quarters for several years, and after you established your own residence, you're very adept at managing things there. But I'm not so good at that; I need to get familiar with things." Everyone knows what Qingyan meant. In the past few years, the prince's primary wife would sometimes have some minor flaws during festivals, which was unavoidable.
Dong Eshi was immediately shut down by Qingyan, leaving her speechless.
“That’s true, Third Brother’s wife. Your mother worried about this a lot a few years ago!” Consort Tong chimed in from the side.
Qingyan's lips curled slightly; even Dong'e Shi had to consider the occasion before launching an attack. (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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