Chapter 307: Stirring Up Conflict
At midnight, a man in black sneaked furtively into a room in the Prince’s Mansion.
Her graceful figure entered the bedroom, removed her face mask, and was taking off her outer garment when suddenly the light came on and a black shadow appeared by the bed.
“Who is it?”
Hua Yan was startled and panicked, clutching her chest.
“Baby, look at you, how can you be so flustered…”
Yi?
“Why are you here? You scared me to death!” Didn’t we just part ways?
Patting her heart, she had thought she was exposed!
“Hehe, can’t I miss you?” Tuoba Yi said pretentiously.
Hearing this, Hua Yan’s cheeks flushed red. It seemed her charm was irresistible; he couldn’t hold back and came to see her right after they parted, and there was a trace of sweetness in her heart.
Tuoba Yi had been a bit fierce to her earlier, but now he came running, seeing the effect he wanted: “Of course I came because I miss you so much I can’t help myself, my baby!”
“And also to remind you not to forget, go all out, my Empress.”
This address of Empress made Hua Yan’s heart bloom with joy. It seemed he truly couldn’t bear to part with her, being so clingy, and it also gave her a guarantee!
The next day, Consort Li unexpectedly invited the two Princess Consorts to have breakfast with her.
Over there, Princess Consort Wu got up early in the morning to pay respects and serve!
Her eyes filled with contempt and disdain as she looked toward the doorway, “Your Highness the Imperial Consort Dowager, this Si Kingdom Princess sure puts on airs. It’s been all morning and there’s still no sign of her! She dares to keep our Imperial Consort Dowager waiting!”
Deep down, she despised this Si Kingdom Princess. She had heard she was a fake princess who came out of nowhere, with no imperial bloodline at all; her father was just a horse feeder.
No wonder her dowry was so subpar, it was laughable!
“Nianwei, perhaps the Princess is tired and needs to sleep more in the morning!”
“Tch, what could she be tired from? The Prince has never gone to her room to rest!”
Contempt! At least on her wedding night, he slept in her room for the whole night!
Hua Yan dawdled, having heard upon returning yesterday that Honglian had come back and gone to Jin Xi Hall.
Normally, the Imperial Consort Dowager said she liked quiet, so since coming here after marriage, there were no rules about paying respects. Why suddenly did she have to go pay respects now?
She knew in her heart that this was probably that maid going to find backing, her eyes stern. Consort Li had come specifically for her sake!
There was a trace of irritation in her heart!
Hua Yan had been tired half the night without sleeping, her eyes already puffy with dark circles.
Thinking it over, she made her makeup look a bit more haggard, gave Cui’er a look, and then arrived late at a leisurely pace!
“Greetings to Mother!”
“Mm, rise!” Consort Li looked at her faintly, her face showing no trace of emotion.
“Yo! Who is this? What time is it, and she’s still making our Imperial Consort Dowager wait? Being a princess makes her so great?” Wu Nianwei kept throwing shade at that stunningly beautiful face across from her.
“Yo, Princess, you don’t look like you’ve rested well? How come your complexion is so poor?” Grandma Zong asked.
“Exactly, people who don’t know might think our Prince’s Mansion bullied the Princess! Mother, Nianwei thinks you shouldn’t be too kind to your daughter-in-law; unlike other families that enforce rules!” Wu Nianwei said.
“Sigh, you little rascal, such a sweet mouth. Who knows how those shrewish reputations of yours got spread!” Consort Li shook her head with a smile, feeling a trace of fondness for her!
This Si Kingdom Princess did look as if someone in the Prince’s Mansion had bullied her. She had heard a few days ago that she even tried to kill herself, drawing even the Third Child over.
She was a restless one.
“Reporting to the Imperial Consort Dowager, nothing of the sort. Your daughter-in-law simply felt sad and didn’t sleep all night.”
“Oh? What matter grieved the Princess so much? You came alone to our Feng Lan, and just a few days in, you’ve harmed your health several times. That would be our Prince’s Mansion’s fault.” Consort Li spoke in a seemingly concerned tone, actually reminding her to be prudent.
“Imperial Consort Dowager, your daughter-in-law does feel a bit aggrieved. Please stand up for your daughter-in-law!”
“Oh? Speak.”
“Your daughter-in-law’s hairpin was stolen. This hairpin was something your daughter-in-law brought from the Si Kingdom as a personal item, so she especially cherished it. It was a gift from my mother, but unexpectedly it was stolen!”
“The thief you speak of, is it Honglian?” Consort Li looked at her coldly.
“Yes.”
“Outrageous!” Consort Li slammed her palm on the table!
Hua Yan was so scared she immediately knelt down!
“Hmph! Speaking of this, this Imperial Consort Dowager must address you two! I’ve always not meddled in worldly affairs, and as for how you compete for favor, I thought as high-status women you would have some sense!”
“Honglian and Zisu are girls born and raised in our Prince’s Mansion, not ordinary maids!”
At these words, both realized that their jealousy over these two girls’ closeness to the Prince, assigning them to their own courtyards—did the Imperial Consort Dowager also know about the abuse?
Wasn’t she not meddling in worldly affairs?
Why meddle in maids’ affairs too?
“Do you know that Honglian was personally selected and brought up by Grandma Zong? She’s been in the mansion far longer than you two, practically raised under her watch. Do I not know her character?”
“She’s handled my jewelry and private storeroom many times without ever hearing of anything missing. But the moment you arrive, things go missing? What arrogance! What audacity, taking people to the Li Residence to catch her?”
What Si Kingdom Princess, what virtuous reputation—in her view, it was utterly petty!
After this scolding, Hua Yan’s face burned red, especially kneeling in front of Wu Nianwei, always feeling inferior to her.
“That cheerful girl was actually driven by you to attempt suicide?”
Hua Yan lowered her head further and bit her teeth.
“Nianwei ah, Zisu, Mother will entrust to you first. When you’re done using her on your side, return her to Mother!” The Imperial Consort Dowager turned her head, her attitude softening as she spoke earnestly.
“Yes.”
Wu Nianwei replied obediently.
Glancing at Chu Yao, she knew she couldn’t trouble Zisu privately anymore!
Seeing her still sensible, Consort Li’s face sternly looked at the kneeling Hua Yan on the ground:
“As for you, do you know your wrong?”
Hua Yan, furious, gripped the hem at her knees, “Your daughter-in-law knows her wrong!”
“Don’t feel wronged. Your dowry list was sent over, and there are backups. Nothing valuable anyway; even if truly lost, it’s no big deal. Our Prince’s Mansion doesn’t lack that bit of silver. But for such a thing, leading a group of maids to shout and cause a scene at someone’s doorway—it’s simply losing the face of our Xunyang Prince’s Mansion. People will say that Si Kingdom Princess is low-class, never seen the world!”
“Why not bring a group of big men with gongs and drums, making a grand show of barging in? Do you know that the master of that Li Residence can casually make one belonging worth enough to feed you for lifetimes?”
It wasn’t that she disrespected this Si Kingdom Princess; she wasn’t the Emperor’s own flesh and blood, so presumably he didn’t care much about her private life. The Third Child said as long as it didn’t affect relations between the two countries, it was fine!
In her view, this fell under household strife; if outmatched, she deserved to yield!
The Si Kingdom Emperor sent her for diplomacy; if she couldn’t win the Prince’s heart, she could be replaced!
It was obvious Consort Li was elevating Wu Nianwei and suppressing Hua Yan, but at this stage Hua Yan had no one backing her except the Prince, whom she hadn’t won over yet!
She could only bow her head and submit.
Coming out from Consort Li’s place, Hua Yan breathed a sigh of relief. Wu Nianwei snorted disdainfully, Chu Yao mocked: “Some people are loaches from the muddy ground, see a bit of water and think they’re seafood! Still has the nerve to come out showing off, hilarious!”
“Exactly, Chu Yao, you understand this Princess Consort’s thoughts.”
Chu Yao: “No wonder the Prince looks down on her, a country bumpkin!”
Hua Yan’s face turned pale with anger.
Cui’er: “Who are you talking about?”
Chu Yao: “Whoever fits the shoe wears it!”
