Suppressing the turmoil in her heart, An Lingrong's eyes turned red as she returned to her bedchamber and sent everyone away.
She had no desire to become a lazy, good-for-nothing concubine after the emperor died.
She spent her whole life circling around in the tiny harem, eating and sleeping all day long, like a caged canary.
Living a life that's predictable and stagnant.
The silk handkerchief, made of double-layered lotus brocade, was twisted into a rope one moment and stretched into a straight line the next. The delicate embroidery on it was also snagged by fingernails, and it was ruined just like that.
In just a short while, An Lingrong had thought of many things. Now, there were no more of her mother's children in the palace, only the Fourth Prince Hongli.
If the Emperor is unable to have children, she will have no choice but to try to take Hongli and raise him. However, she has only been granted the title of Noble Lady, and she will need to make many plans to obtain the title of Imperial Concubine.
Secondly, Hongli and Zhen Huan have a mother-son bond. If she were to take Hongli away and raise him, what would Zhen Huan do?
To be fair, Zhen Huan hadn't wronged her at all. If Zhen Huan hadn't invited her to stay at the Zhen residence for a while...
She could only receive the imperial decree at the inn, where she was ridiculed. She couldn't even come up with the silver that had been given as a reward when she entered the palace.
If she tried to raise the Fourth Prince, she would be letting Zhen Huan down; if she didn't take the Fourth Prince away and raise him, she would be letting herself down.
An Lingrong felt her heart was in turmoil. Even though she had no son, Sun Miaoqing would surely treat her well, but ultimately she could not leave the palace...
After much deliberation, An Lingrong still couldn't make a decision.
She knew she wasn't a good person, and Zhen Huan didn't know any of this either. So many things destined had already been changed, so one more wouldn't make a difference!
No one would know that she stole her best friend's future, but...
For some reason, An Lingrong suddenly remembered the red mandarin duck bodice she had heard about a long time ago.
Based on her understanding of the Emperor after entering the palace, she doesn't seem like the type of person who would do such a thing with the concubines in the Imperial Garden.
Could it be...?
An Lingrong blushed with embarrassment, then realized she had been overthinking things and wondered how she could have such terrible ideas.
She might not care about An Bihai's life, but surely she could care about her mother's life too!
Forget it, we're about to return to the capital soon, so there's no point in thinking about this now. I'd rather try to raise my rank again.
Otherwise, once all twelve palaces are filled with principal seats, even if she is granted the title of concubine, she will still only be able to live in a side palace.
Any further attempts to gain anything will only be a waste of effort.
"Chrysanthemum Green".
Hearing An Lingrong call her, Juqing hurriedly came in from outside, "What can I do for you, my lady?"
An Lingrong said, "I have a set of fine writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones on my desk, as well as several calligraphy works by famous people. Go and pack them up and secretly send them to the Fourth Prince."
Juqing was stunned. Why did the young mistress suddenly think of the Fourth Prince?
Although he was one of the emperor's only three sons, this fourth prince had virtually no presence.
The palace maids and eunuchs with even a modicum of influence didn't take the Fourth Prince seriously. The Emperor didn't care, and without a birth mother to care for him, even as a prince, he was still largely ignored.
Juqing said, "Yes, this servant will go and prepare right away. Does Your Highness feel sorry for the Fourth Prince? But if the Emperor finds out about this, he might be unhappy."
An Lingrong said, "The Emperor is the Emperor. Even if he doesn't like him, he's still his son. He may not value him, but that doesn't mean others can disregard a prince, understand?"
Juqing said, "This servant understands. Please rest assured, Your Highness, this servant will handle it properly."
*
Changchun Immortal Hall
"Your Majesty, the Madam has arrived in the capital with her two young masters and sent a message with them."
Linglan handed the newly delivered letter to Sun Miaoqing, curiously waiting for her to finish reading it, wanting to know how the master and mistress were doing now.
Sun Miaoqing said, "My brother has already taken office as the prefect of Tongzhou. He also said that since I was granted the title of concubine, many people have been asking about the marriages of my nephews."
"However, he and his sister-in-law both declined, thinking they should ask me first. Knowing that I had this intention, I asked his sister-in-law to bring her two nephews to the capital."
"One reason is to find a good teacher for my two nephews so that they can take the imperial examinations and enter officialdom in the future, thus securing a good future."
"Secondly, if there's anything I need, it's convenient for me to ask someone to help me."
"My brother and sister-in-law really think of me in everything. I also need to make proper arrangements for my two nephews."
Linglan asked, "Has Your Highness already decided which company to cooperate with regarding the cosmetics and perfumes?"
Sun Miaoqing said, "I do have an idea. One is the Fuca clan, and the other is the Niohuru clan. Both are prominent surnames."
During the reigns of Emperors Yongzheng and Qianlong, the Fuca clan produced a great number of talented individuals, including Fuheng and Fukang'an, both of whom were famous generals of the Qing Dynasty.
The Niohuru clan is one of the oldest surnames among the Manchu people. From before the Manchus entered the Central Plains until the end of the Qing Dynasty, they produced many famous figures, including six empresses and the primary consort of Emperor Huang Taiji.
(Eidu's daughter, Huang Taiji's first wife and first primary consort, who died young.)
Even if she were to become a concubine now, such a large family would still be insufficient to arrange marriages for her two nephews with daughters from the main branch of the family.
Once the cosmetics shop achieves some success, we'll offer 20% of the shares as a dowry.
The benefits are plentiful. If my two nephews are more ambitious and find someone influential to act as a go-between, it should be worth a try.
But before that, it would be great to see my sister-in-law and nephew.
Sun Miaoqing said, "Go ask the Emperor what he is doing right now, whether he is at the Jiuzhou Qingyan."
"Yes, this servant will go and inquire right away."
After agreeing, Linglan hurriedly left the Changchun Immortal Hall and returned shortly after finding out the details.
Sun Miaoqing rushed to Jiuzhou Qingyan. She had no choice but to hurry, as seeing her sister-in-law was easy and could be done anytime.
Although her two nephews were from her maternal family, they were now considered outsiders. It was easy to see them at the Yuanmingyuan Garden, but things were different after they returned to the palace.
Su Peisheng saw a concubine coming this way from afar, and upon closer inspection, he realized that it was none other than the newly appointed Consort Cheng.
It was the time when the Emperor was reviewing memorials, a time that Consort Cheng usually avoided. She wouldn't have come in such a hurry unless she had something to ask of the Emperor.
While thinking about these things, Su Peisheng hurriedly went to greet her, saying, "This servant greets Your Highness, may Your Highness be blessed with ten thousand years of happiness and peace."
Sun Miaoqing said, "Please rise, Eunuch Su. I had some snacks prepared and brought them over for His Majesty to try."
Su Peisheng replied, "His Majesty is inside reviewing memorials. Please wait a moment, Your Highness, while I go in and inform him."
Sun Miaoqing nodded, "Thank you for your trouble."
Su Peisheng bowed as he went in, and came out again a short while later.
"Your Majesty invites the Imperial Concubine inside."
Sun Miaoqing turned around and took the food box from Liuli's hand, carrying it inside alone, leaving the two of them to wait outside.
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