After Shen Xihe's warning today, even if Yu Sangning had more schemes up her sleeve, she no longer dared to harm the child.
She knew all too well that her every move was under Shen Xihe's watchful eye. The charge of plotting against the imperial heir was one she could not bear. Having attained wealth and status with great difficulty, she would not recklessly throw it all away.
What Shen Xihe did not expect was that when Princess Anling returned to her residence, she happened to run into her husband returning from duty at the gate. The moment Princess Anling saw him, she was reminded of the incident in the palace. She snorted coldly, turned around, and walked away.
The third consort hurried after her. This woman was someone he had willingly sought to marry. Though she had her petty schemes and a fiery temper, she was also extremely timid—so much so that she had once been frightened out of her wits by a spider falling from a tree branch, bursting into tears. Every time he recalled that scene, he couldn't help but smile.
"Who has upset the princess?" the third consort asked anxiously as he caught up with Princess Anling.
Princess Anling hurried into a small pavilion in the courtyard, flicked her sleeve, and sat down. "It's all because of my dear second sister-in-law..."
The man before her was not the one she had fancied. After various twists and turns, her father had arranged the marriage. At twenty, she could no longer afford to delay, so she reluctantly agreed. Before the wedding, she couldn't even recall what he looked like.
Yet after marriage, he treated her exceedingly well. To prevent the possibility of a consort being impotent, the palace would assign experienced maids to serve him before the wedding, and these maids would later accompany the princess to her new home, attending to the consort when the princess was indisposed. But he had not availed himself of this privilege.
Only after she married him did she learn that he had no other women and was devoted solely to her. Her in-laws never treated her with disrespect, and her life now was far more comfortable than it had been in the palace.
Princess Anling poured out the entire story to her husband, including how Shen Xihe had handled the matter.
"The princess means that Princess Consort Zhao was detained alone by Her Highness the Crown Princess?" the third consort sensed something amiss.
"She is her person, so the Crown Princess naturally wanted her to see things clearly," Princess Anling replied, also feeling that Yu Sangning's servants had been disrespectful.
The third consort fell silent for a moment before turning to send someone to inquire about when Princess Consort Zhao had left the palace and what her demeanor had been like upon departure.
"Why are you investigating this?" Princess Anling asked, puzzled.
"Since Her Highness the Crown Princess married His Highness the Crown Prince, she has never lightly interfered in others' affairs. Father says the Crown Princess is a woman of great ambition who disdains petty squabbles. The usual jealousy, rivalry, and comparisons among women are, in her eyes, beneath contempt..."
"Hmm?" Princess Anling immediately took offense. Was he implying that she was beneath contempt?
Noblewomen and ladies of esteemed families often gathered for leisure—today a small party, tomorrow a banquet. Wasn't it all just these trivialities?
But prompted by her husband's words, she thought carefully. Indeed, since Shen Xihe arrived in the capital, she had never shown interest in these gatherings of young ladies. Outsiders assumed she was arrogant and looked down on them.
Yet, upon closer interaction, Shen Xihe never put on airs of superiority. It was simply her nature—she genuinely disliked these social gatherings among women."The princess is a golden branch and jade leaf, how could she be compared to ordinary young ladies?" The third princess's consort quickly soothed her before returning to the main topic. "Although there was a minor dispute between the princess and Princess Consort Zhao today, given Crown Princess's temperament, she could have simply sent a senior palace maid to deliver a message. That would have avoided offending either of you while preventing the matter from escalating. Both the princess and Princess Consort Zhao would have had to comply and let it go. Yet the Crown Princess came personally..."
This was because Shen Xihe rarely made personal appearances. Whenever she did intervene directly, it was never for trivial matters—like the downfall of Prince Kang's household, Noble Consort Rong losing her palace authority, or the matters between His Majesty and the An family's daughter...
Were these not all earth-shattering events?
Thus, Shen Xihe had left them with the profound impression that she only appeared for major affairs. At this moment, not just him, but anyone with a bit of sense who learned that Shen Xihe had personally intervened to have Princess Consort Zhao's maid beaten to death would ponder deeply over her intentions.
The third princess's consort felt this was highly unusual but couldn't grasp the underlying meaning. He quickly took Princess Anling's hand: "Let's go see Father."
Since failing to inherit the higher peerage of Marquis, Lingwu Earl had held a grudge, resigning from his official post thereafter. He remained at home, collecting his hereditary stipend while managing ancestral properties left by his forebears. Though he spent his days amusing himself with birds and listening to operas, he was actually a cunning old man. Upon hearing his son's words, he sprang up from his armchair, gesturing for the opera performers to withdraw.
"Quickly, find your mother and prepare generous gifts to be sent to the Eastern Palace. The Crown Princess has saved our entire household!" Lingwu Earl urgently instructed the steward.
"Father? How has my imperial sister-in-law saved our entire household?" Princess Anling was bewildered.
"You all..." Lingwu Earl sighed at their lack of insight, "Every one of you is as foolish as Adai!"
Adai was a supposedly stunted pig kept by Lingwu Earl, whose favorite pastime was pig-pushing—where each side selected a pig to push against the other, usually with wagers involved. Adai was a frequent champion.
Princess Anling wasn't offended. Having been married here for so long, she had long understood her father-in-law's temperament—he only spoke this bluntly with family members: "Father is wise. We all need your guidance."
Lingwu Earl also liked this daughter-in-law. While she possessed a princess's willfulness, she understood propriety and could distinguish good from bad. He explained: "Had the Crown Princess not had that person beaten to death today, what would you have done, Princess?"
What would she have done? She would have been furious!
Unable to swallow this insult, she would certainly have sought revenge. But Yu Sangning was now a princess consort, no longer a minor concubine-born daughter of an earl's household. Knowing she wasn't particularly clever, she naturally wouldn't bother her husband with such women's squabbles, worrying he might consider her petty.
Her mother-in-law was the only person she could turn to for advice. Coincidentally, she knew there was enmity between the Yu and Lingwu Earl households, so her mother-in-law would definitely stand up for her.
"Your mother would certainly stand up for you." This outcome was obvious. Lingwu Earl sighed softly, "Given your mother's temperament, the way to make Princess Consort Zhao suffer the most would be to harm the imperial eldest grandson."
The third princess's consort suddenly froze: "If Mother harms the imperial eldest grandson, Princess Consort Zhao would have him killed. Mother would be unable to defend herself once she acted. Even if she insisted she never intended to kill the imperial eldest grandson, if he died with no traces of anyone else's involvement... Mother would become the scapegoat. Harming the imperial heir—His Majesty's only grandson—our entire household..."
Probably only Princess Anling would be able to keep her life."Truly the spawn of that old scoundrel Yu Xiang - equally vicious and ruthless! When Lady Yu the Fifth shed blood in the Hall of Diligent Governance, I knew this Princess Consort Zhao was no gentle soul. Who would have thought one so young could wield such cruel and sophisticated methods!" Marquis Lingwu sneered coldly.
"Father, are we to swallow this insult?" The Third Princess's Consort fumed with anger.
"The Princess Consort Zhao carries the imperial heir. We shall temporarily retreat from confrontation. As for Prince Zhao and the Yu residence - let them proceed as they wish!"
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