Upon hearing his lover's detailed account, Nan Yi's lips twitched. As expected, the situation was one-sided. Only Li Shi said she would give birth to a son, while the others all said they would give birth to a daughter. It seemed that they were all dissatisfied with Li Shi and hoped that she would give birth to a daughter.
Li's complexion also worsened, and she changed the subject, asking, "Who will be the dealer?"
Nan Yi said, "If it's a daughter, and they're right, I'll make each of them a set of clothes, and you'll owe me a favor."
"What if you have a son?"
"If you have a son, the gambling money is yours, and the four sets of Xiangyun Butterfly Playing with Flowers long dresses are yours."
Li slapped the chair, her face slightly excited, and said, "It's a deal," secretly praying that her belly would cooperate, as this was a very profitable opportunity.
Nan glanced at her sideways, then said, word by word with a meaningful tone, "It's a deal."
The people in the hall were eager to get started, but before they knew it, a clear male voice rang out, "What do you mean by 'a deal'?" Everyone turned around and saw that Yinzhen had arrived, leading his primary wife, his new secondary wife, and two concubines from the doorway, walking inside.
The hall fell silent instantly; you could hear a pin drop. Those of lower rank hung their heads and remained silent. Lady Li stood up with a light laugh, clearly in a good mood. She quickly greeted Consort Yinzhen, and the others followed suit.
After they sat down, three beautiful women in palace attire stood in the hall, the first of whom was a woman in a peach-colored palace dress.
She was stunningly beautiful, slender and petite, standing with a shy smile on her face.
Everyone felt threatened. Another beautiful woman who could rival Consort Tong was standing shoulder to shoulder with her. The two beauties behind her, who were originally quite pretty, paled in comparison to her.
When the woman walked in, Nan Yi was slightly taken aback. He already knew who she was. It turned out that they were a couple and had long been in love. It was Nan Yi who was being unreasonable.
Nan cursed himself inwardly, "Serves you right for being so reckless and making a fool of yourself."
However, her mind was now at peace. Getting angry was bad for her health, and no one cared anymore, so why bother? After that night at Xiao Xi's house, she had come to a realization and wanted to live her life well from now on. Men were just that—men—not necessities for life. To her, he was still, as always, the most familiar stranger.
If she's willing, she can stay in the manor; if she's not, she can go out and wander around. Anyway, he knows she's sneaked out of the manor.
When Yinzhen entered the hall, he caught a glimpse of her out of the corner of his eye. His heart was slightly unsettled. Three months had passed since they last met; it felt like an eternity. When he couldn't see her, every day felt like a year.
As he slowly sat down in the main seat, he glanced around at everyone, indifferently glancing at Nan Yi before looking away and focusing on the three people in the hall.
Nan pretended not to see them. Ever since recognizing the new concubine, she had been watching the three women. She imagined that three more female warriors had joined Yinzhen's harem, all of them powerful and the three most important women in Yongzheng's life. The women before them were like extras, mere passersby, including the primary consort Nara and herself.
Thinking that the master was looking at her, Lady Nian gave him a shy smile. He also raised the corners of his mouth slightly and said in a cool tone, "Serve the tea."
"Your humble servant obeys."
After the three newlyweds served tea and paid their respects to the Fujin (the wife of the deceased), Lady Nara said, "These are the newly arrived Nian, Geng, and Niu Gulu. From now on, we are all family. All of you sisters, please greet each other."
Nara forced a smile, her heart filled with anxiety. It was true that she was caught between a rock and a hard place. The new Consort Nian, though seemingly gentle and delicate, was probably more difficult to deal with than Consort Tong.
Tong Shi disliked communicating with people, avoided trouble, and always preferred to stay in her courtyard. She was also upright and honest, disliked hypocrisy, and was not good at scheming or plotting. When it came to matters, she would fight it out openly. If such a person was not her opponent, she would want to befriend her. But life is unpredictable.
As for Nian, she appeared gentle and weak, with a delicate and pitiful appearance. However, there was often a calculating glint in her eyes; upon closer observation, she was not a cunning person.
Lady Nian was originally standing on the right, but she walked to the south on the right. In any case, the people on both sides of her head were concubines of equal rank, and there was only a difference in order of arrival.
The first woman Nian noticed was her; she was stunningly beautiful, comparable to Nian herself. This was the second woman she had encountered whose beauty could rival hers, a chance encounter indeed.
The first one was someone she met on the night of the Lantern Festival. That person should be the master's concubine, but she didn't see her in the hall, and felt a little disappointed. Judging from the master's behavior that night, he must care about her a lot.
The woman before her looked familiar, as if she had met her before, but she was quite annoyed. The inner court of the prince was indeed extraordinary, with countless beauties. Her original confidence was now slightly discouraged.
"Younger sister greets elder sister. It's our first meeting. I don't know what elder sister likes. This is a purse that I embroidered myself. The pattern is currently popular. I hope elder sister won't find it distasteful." Nian's voice was clear and soft, like the sound of gold and jade clashing. Her expression was also very appropriate, with relaxed eyebrows, bright eyes, and a gentle smile.
She seemed genuinely sincere. If anyone else had done this, they might have been moved. But Nan Yi was the best at ruining the atmosphere. With a thought, she said casually, "It's not like we've never met before."
Ms. Nian was taken aback. Had they met before?
Nan Yi chuckled, concealing the melancholy in his eyes, and counted on his fingers, saying, "At the Lantern Festival, Master and Sister Nian strolled hand in hand, making everyone envious."
Upon hearing this, Yinzhen realized something was wrong and tried to stop him, but it was too late.
Ms. Nian was stunned. She looked Nan Yi up and down and exclaimed, "It's you..." She felt that the face was familiar, but she didn't expect it to be the same person. She wondered where all the beautiful women came from. That night, she was clearly a charming and enchanting fairy-like woman, but now she was a graceful and elegant woman. It was as if they were two different people.
Her exclamation confirmed something, something very important, and trouble ensued.
Listening to their conversation, Li thought to herself, "Yuanxiao and Nian haven't even married into the family yet, how can they be enjoying such a sweet time together?" She glanced at the master in the main seat and saw him awkwardly drinking tea to cover up his discomfort. Could it be...?
Everyone in the hall seemed to understand perfectly, and when they looked at the Nian family again, their gazes were filled with disdain and contempt.
Upon suddenly seeing her rival, Lady Nian lost her composure and stumbled to the other side, intending to greet Lady Li.
Li rose to leave, whispering, "I am a daughter of a respectable family, I cannot accept such a grand gesture from you." After saying this, she lowered her head and muttered, "In the inner chambers, such private exchanges are unacceptable."
Upon hearing this, Madam Nian's mind went blank. Her face turned deathly pale, and tears instantly welled up in her eyes. A daughter of a respectable family, engaging in illicit relations—was this referring to her? What a shameful accusation! If it were true, how could she ever hold her head high in the household again? It was clearly...
She hurriedly explained softly, "No, it's not like that. My lord and I are mutually attracted, and we couldn't help ourselves. There was no intention of giving or receiving anything in private." After saying this, she turned to Yinzhen, tears streaming down her face, looking at him with a wronged expression, hoping that fate would help her defend herself.
Yinzhen glanced at her, feeling a pang of pity, as if he couldn't bear to see her tears, and said softly, "Sit down."
These words angered everyone in the hall, who all looked indignant and openly or secretly harbored hostility towards Consort Nian. They thought that only she and the prince were truly in love, and that the other sisters were just decorations. They also cast resentful glances at Yinzhen. Yinzhen did not speak up to defend himself, so everyone took it as his admission of Consort Nian's words, and their hearts were filled with even more jealousy and hatred towards Consort Nian, a mixture of shock and anger.
Lady Nian seemed oblivious to everyone's expressions. After hearing Yinzhen's words, she intended to sit down, but upon looking at the seats on both sides, she realized that, whether intentionally or because someone had forgotten, all the seats except for a few empty ones near the door were occupied.
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