Inside the hall, Madam Cao could only manage an awkward smile. She understood from Consort Tong's words that if Emperor Kangxi did not elevate the Cao family's status the next day, Consort Tong's words would forever remain a mark on them.
Lin Mama was beaten to death by Emperor Kangxi without any chance to plead for her life.
By the time Madam Cao learned of Lin Mama's affair, Lin Mama had already been beaten to death.
The powerful families of the Imperial Household Department all set their sights on the Cao family, as their every move would affect the powerful families in the capital.
"Madam Cao, these three young ladies are all well-educated, beautiful, and of good character. Are they all your daughters?" Qingyan asked Consort Tong, puzzled.
The discord between the Jue Luo family mother and daughters was a source of amusement for many court ladies, and the rivalry between legitimate and illegitimate daughters had long been known.
puff!
Yin spat out his tea in the study. Xiao Guai's words were brilliant. Madam Cao was different; she was very wary of her illegitimate daughter, fearing that she might steal the limelight from her own daughter.
"We are two servants, illegitimate daughters of the Cao family!" the eldest girl said shyly.
Qingyan smiled, it seemed that the relationship between the legitimate daughter and the two concubine daughters was not good. She turned her head to look at the three girls. The legitimate daughter was dressed the least outstanding of the three girls, while the eldest concubine daughter was dressed in a pink Hanfu, which made her look particularly charming. Men would definitely pay attention to her.
The other concubine's daughter, who was not yet of marriageable age, was dressed exceptionally well. The youngest legitimate daughter, however, wore a lake-blue Hanfu, which made her inconspicuous in comparison to her two older sisters.
"What can you do?" Consort Tong looked at the scene before her, exchanged a glance with Xiao Guai, and asked directly.
Madam Cao did not want to promote her illegitimate daughter, so today, she would give Madam Cao a chance.
The concubine's daughter is ambitious; it seems she's not after Yin.
"This servant knows a little about music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, unlike Fourth Sister, who was trained by the principal wife to be proficient in everything." The eldest daughter of the Cao family hated Madam Cao, and Cao Yin did not care about Madam Cao's methods. The women in the backyard would even use their daughters to survive.
If the eldest daughter of a concubine hadn't come of age and been able to bring benefits to the Cao family, she would probably have been disposed of by Madam Cao.
"Is that so?" Qingyan smiled. "Mother is absolutely right. I am really far from good enough. Father never lets me practice these things. As long as I can understand a little bit, that's fine. Mother, why don't we ask Aunt Shu to bring the zither over?"
Qingyan spoke in a half-coquettish tone. Consort Tong glanced at Shu. Emperor Kangxi was about to bestow marriages upon members of the imperial clan. The current Prince Ping, Narsu, was the illegitimate son of the former Prince Ping. Bestowing a marriage upon him was a headache.
Lady Cao coldly observed that Consort Tong was very interested in her eldest daughter, and a different thought began to form in her mind.
Is Your Majesty perhaps planning to let the eldest daughter of a concubine enter the Fourth Prince's backyard?
Seeing the scene at the door, Madam Cao had long since abandoned the idea of sending her daughters into the Fourth Prince's backyard. Sending her daughters out was also to secure benefits for the family, and it was clear that the Fourth Prince would be in deep trouble.
Shu brought out a guqin from the inner chamber, leaving the three Cao family women present somewhat stunned.
"Your Majesty, is this Lü Qi?!" The eldest daughter of a concubine stood up, bowed, and asked in surprise.
Consort Tong nodded. This was the guqin, Lüqi, that Emperor Kangxi had specially given to her after she entered the palace.
Emperor Kangxi once played "Phoenix Seeking Its Mate" on this zither, which eventually won the approval of Consort Tong Guolai, and Consort Tong entered the palace.
“Mother, this Green Jade is your beloved possession.” Qingyan knew that Consort Tong rarely showed this zither to others.
"I only brought this one zither with me, my little darling. You can't ask someone to play without a zither, can you?" Consort Tong didn't care. She wasn't good at playing the zither, and there were quite a few ancient zithers in the city walls. Besides, she was just using the Green Zither to test the concubine's daughter from the Cao family.
"Your Highness, how can I use your zither? Ling'er, go back and get your zither!" The eldest daughter of a concubine discovered that Consort Tong was interested in her, so she grabbed the only rope, hoping to truly escape from this family.
Qingyan coldly observed the concubine's daughter of the Cao family, who was clearly at odds with the legitimate wife.
She was someone who loved watching the drama unfold and was eager to lend a hand to the illegitimate daughter.
Since they arrived at the Cao residence, Madam Cao has been plotting against Yin behind his back. Qingyan is the most vengeful and has been waiting for an opportunity to take revenge!
A quarter of an hour later, Ling'er came in carrying a guqin. After the eldest daughter of a concubine sat down, she burned incense to cleanse her hands before she began to play the guqin.
Qingyan watched the eldest daughter of a concubine's every move, as if she had been trained a thousand times, making her exceptionally charming. However, if her appearance and talent were considered separately, the eldest daughter of a concubine would not be particularly pleasing to the eye.
"Little darling, what do you think of this girl?" Consort Tong and Qingyan were very close, so Madam Cao and the others could not hear their conversation.
Qingyan was stunned. What... happened?
"The Prince of Ping's primary wife has not yet been chosen!" Consort Tong whispered to Qingyan. The Prince of Ping's successor was of questionable status. When they were selecting wives, the nanny instructed them to be careful and not to let the ruler bestow a marriage upon this person.
She only passed the first hurdle before Emperor Kangxi bestowed a marriage upon her, and he did not pay much attention to this person.
"Mother, shouldn't the candidates be chosen through a selection process?" Qingyan looked at Consort Tong's disdainful expression and tried hard to recall the information the nanny had mentioned.
"This man is a son born out of wedlock, so marrying him to a daughter born out of wedlock is enough. The Cao family's status is also sufficient. Cao Xi's wife, Cao Sunshi, was Xuan Ye's wet nurse. Using this woman should be the best choice."
Ugh!
Qingyan was depressed. It turned out that even members of the imperial family had such tragic fates. Even Emperor Kangxi did not think highly of Narsu.
As the music ended, Xiao Guai served tea and took a sip. Sure enough, the young ladies without much backing were generally proficient in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.
The eldest daughter of a concubine is too modest. She said before that her abilities were only slightly better than others.
Consort Tong's satisfied smile made Madam Cao secretly worry. Initially, she was concerned that the girls in her family would be favored by Emperor Kangxi and given to the Crown Prince. Now, her eldest daughter, a concubine, had won Consort Tong's favor through her own abilities.
"Your Majesty, I have other matters to attend to, so I must take my leave now!" Seeing that the situation was not quite right, Madam Cao prepared to leave with her daughters.
"Very well, I won't take up any more of your time." After watching Madam Cao and her daughters bow, Consort Tong left directly.
Kangxi led Yin directly out, and when they heard the eldest daughter of a concubine playing the zither, they both felt that this woman was worthy of Prince Ping.
"Xuan Ye, this girl should be given to Narsu. I don't think Lady Cao is happy about it!" Consort Tong disapproved of Cao Sunshi and Lady Cao's methods.
Girls were given to those in positions of power as gifts by their families.
"Not willing!?" Kangxi sneered. Cao Yin had been led astray by Li Xu and was now even more obsequious. It seemed that he had to be punished.
Qingyan smiled slightly. Yesterday, the girl loitering at the door was the only legitimate daughter of the Cao family. She looked young, but her clothes yesterday were very mature.
In Jiangnan, Cao Yin's status as the legitimate daughter was certainly met with flattery; she herself was often unaware of her true identity. (To be continued. If you enjoy 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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