Chapter 308: The Crown Princess's Banquet
At the Eastern Palace banquet, nearly all the invited guests had arrived.
Yun Chu spotted Du Ling seated among the crowd immediately and was about to approach when someone came over from the side.
It was Fang Xinyan, who was visibly pregnant, her small belly protruding prominently.
"Princess Consort of the Pacifying West."
Fang Xinyan, supported by her palace maid, curtsied respectfully.
Before the Crown Prince ascended the throne, as a Side Princess Consort, she was obliged to pay respects to Yun Chu, the principal consort.
But once the Crown Prince became Emperor, she would undoubtedly become one of the Four Consorts, and Yun Chu would then have to greet her instead.
Yun Chu maintained her usual smile: "Consort Fang, given your condition, there's no need for formalities."
Fang Xinyan straightened up, paused for a moment, and said, "I've heard that after marrying into the Prince of Pacifying the West Manor, the Princess Consort dismissed many long-serving staff, even expelling the Prince's wet nurse... Surely someone as kind-hearted as you wouldn't do such things?"
The surrounding ladies pricked up their ears.
The capital wasn't overly large, and news from the Prince of Pacifying the West Manor had reached every one of them.
It was said that several elderly women who had served for over a decade were caned nearly to the point of broken legs before being expelled. But more shockingly,
the Prince's wet nurse was reportedly sent away to a distant estate by this new Princess Consort.
Within just a few months, she had turned the Prince of Pacifying the West Manor upside down. Would the Young Son be her next target?
Everyone was curious about these matters, but since Yun Chu rarely attended banquets, they had no opportunity to inquire.
Today at the Eastern Palace, they never expected the Side Princess Consort to confront the Princess Consort directly, satisfying their curiosity.
The Crown Princess frowned slightly.
This Consort Fang truly lacked tact, asking such questions right to Yun Chu's face.
Fang Xinyan curled her lips.
She wasn't being thoughtless—she had deliberately chosen to question Yun Chu before everyone.
Yun Chu would certainly deny expelling the Prince's wet nurse, and Fang Xinyan wanted everyone to witness how hypocritical she was.
"Who told you these things, Consort Fang?" Yun Chu glanced at Fang Xinyan before continuing, "It seems you're the type to believe such rumors. Oh, I don't mean to imply you're foolish—pregnancy affects one's judgment, as they say 'one pregnancy costs three years of wit.' I understand."
Before Fang Xinyan could respond, she turned to the others nearby, "Those baseless rumors—I trust sensible people like yourselves wouldn't believe them."
With that remark, who would dare admit to believing the gossip?
Wouldn't that be admitting they lacked sense?
Fang Xinyan paled with anger: "You—"
"Enough!" the Crown Princess interrupted coldly. "Consort Fang, you shouldn't stand too long in your condition. Please take your seat."
Turning to Yun Chu, she said, "Sister-in-law, pay her no mind. This way, please."
Yun Chu walked over and sat beside Du Ling.
She glanced back at Qiutong, who retreated slowly, her figure soon disappearing from the banquet hall behind the green trees.
"Since your wedding, you've barely stepped outside, yet rumors about you are everywhere. You're remarkably composed," Du Ling shook her head. "Other consorts host banquets immediately after marriage—when will you hold one?"Yun Chu quickly said, "Spare me, I have no patience for this sort of thing."
Du Ling, knowing her temperament, whispered, "Do you remember when the Crown Prince brought someone back from the imperial mausoleum last time? I heard that palace maid has become a low-ranking imperial concubine in the Eastern Palace."
Yun Chu nodded. "She saved the Crown Prince, so it's only natural he would give her a position for protection."
"The Eastern Palace has two Side Princess Consorts and four low-ranking imperial concubines. When the Crown Prince ascends the throne, that maid will at least become a pin," Du Ling clicked her tongue. "From a lowly servant to a noble lady in one leap—her life has completely changed."
Yun Chu fell silent.
Soon after, Qiutong appeared silently behind her and whispered, "Princess Consort, I've just checked. That newly appointed low-ranking imperial concubine is the eldest daughter of the Xie family, Xie Ping."
Yun Chu's expression showed this was exactly as she had expected.
Ever since hearing about Xie Ping's death, she had suspected Xie Ping had switched identities to enter the Eastern Palace. The truth matched her speculation.
Not long after, the Emperor and Empress arrived. After all, the magnificent sight of the poppies was rare, and the imperial couple wanted to join the excitement and chat with everyone.
Yun Chu noticed a lady accompanying the Emperor and Empress, around fifty years old, extremely well-maintained, with demeanor and appearance no less impressive than the Empress standing beside her.
"You rarely attend banquets in recent years, so you probably don't know this lady," Du Ling whispered. "She is Guogong Furen."
Yun Chu understood.
There was only one Duke in the entire Great Jin Dynasty, but he had died twenty or thirty years ago, leaving only his widow.
Because the late Duke had performed great services, even after his death, the honor of the Duke's residence did not fade. The new Duke was highly valued by the Emperor, so this prominent family remained firmly established in the capital.
"Did you know, this Guogong Furen never had children of her own in her lifetime," Du Ling's voice grew even softer. "The current Duke was an adopted child she selected from a collateral branch of the clan."
Yun Chu indeed knew little about this Guogong Furen and asked, "Did the late Duke leave no illegitimate sons?"
"There were many illegitimate sons, but..." Du Ling pursed her lips, "they all died or went mad for unknown reasons."
Yun Chu fell silent.
Most matters in the inner quarters couldn't bear the light of day.
She hadn't expected this Guogong Furen to have dealt with all the illegitimate sons like this...
However, not knowing what others had experienced, she wouldn't casually judge.
"What are the Princess Consort of the Pacifying West and Madam Ji discussing?"
A steady voice came from the side.
Du Ling started, immediately stopping her words and forcing a dry laugh. "Greetings, Guogong Furen."
Yun Chu smiled and said, "Madam Ji and I were saying how beautiful these poppies are. We were thinking of asking the Crown Princess for some seeds to plant back home."
Guogong Furen replied, "I also took some poppy seeds from the Eastern Palace to plant before. Strangely enough, these poppies grow sparsely everywhere else but flourish so abundantly in the Eastern Palace. I wonder what the reason is."
The three chatted for a while about the poppies.
When the banquet officially began, their conversation finally ended, and everyone began dining.
Du Ling felt somewhat apprehensive, keeping her head down and eating voraciously.
She resolved never to gossip about others on such occasions again—if overheard, it could bring serious trouble."I still remember the grand wedding of the Princess Consort of the Pacifying West and Prince Pingxi as if it were yesterday," Guogong Furen suddenly spoke. "The Princess Consort's former husband died, yet she remarried so quickly and still found such an ideal husband. It truly makes one envious."
Yun Chu's hand paused briefly.
OpenNovel