"Is this the place?" Nanny Fan covered her nose and mouth with a handkerchief as she made her way through the narrow path into the main courtyard.This was a separate courtyard in the southeast corner of the prince's residence. She had heard that Lady Zheng had assigned it to the newly arrived Miss Xun, a cousin of the family. Upon entering, there was a faint scent of fresh incense mixed with a musty odor, and the furnishings were simple—they hadn't even spared a rosewood screen for her.She distinctly remembered that Lady Zheng's own main hall displayed a large ivory-carved screen of three goats symbolizing auspicious beginnings, and her inner chamber had a rosewood screen inlaid with treasures and butterflies and flowers. Yet for Miss Xun, all she had was a pastel landscape screen.It was indeed decent enough, but Miss Xun had been sent here on behalf of the old consort dowager.The servants Xun Rou had brought were helping her make the bed, while she herself sat by the window, pondering slightly. This Lady Zheng's methods were too crude—directly arranging for her to stay in such a place, handing her a ready-made handle to grasp for lodging a complaint.Seeing Nanny Fan arrive, she quickly stood up: "Nanny, why have you come? I haven't finished tidying up here yet. I had planned to invite you over once everything was in order."Nanny Fan smiled: "I just came to take a look. If I may be so bold as to say, I've watched Miss Xun grow up since you were young."Now that forming an alliance was paramount, Nanny Fan's words were naturally a gesture of goodwill.Xun Rou invited her to sit down and propped her chin on her hand: "To be honest, I didn't really want to come. My cousin has his wife here, and I can see everything is managed quite well. But my great-aunt was worried and insisted I come. You know, I hate dealing with these troublesome matters the most.""Previously, when the young prince was away leading people to pledge allegiance to Prince Wei, wasn't it all managed by your careful planning behind the scenes? If I may say something I shouldn't, this current young princess is far inferior to you," Nanny Fan said, putting on an air of speaking bluntly.Xun Rou lifted her eyelids slightly and couldn't help but smile: "Nanny Fan, how does my cousin treat her?"That was the most important thing. If her cousin favored her, then even a trivial matter wouldn't topple her. Someone who could get Nanny Fan to personally send word back couldn't possibly be foolish.Nanny Fan said: "The young prince is a kind-hearted man. Even if he had married a woman as ugly as Wu Yan, he would still treat her with courtesy."Xun Rou sighed: "That's true."There was an old general under Prince Wei who often made things difficult for her cousin, yet her cousin never complained and never held a grudge. He truly was magnanimous.Nanny Fan also knew when to stop and had someone bring over a bowl of ginseng soup: "Miss Xun, you must be tired from the journey. This is red ginseng soup this old servant had prepared. Drink it to restore your vitality.""Then I thank you kindly," Xun Rou said.That night, Xun Rou slept restlessly. By Consort Dowager Wu's side, she had slept under kesi silk quilts, and she had never stayed in such a room before—especially when Lady Zheng's own quarters were extravagantly luxurious."Miss, are you unable to sleep well?" asked Xun Rou's maid, Meixiang.Xun Rou turned over and nodded: "Yes, I truly can't sleep well. But what can I do about it? The old consort dowager sent me here—how could I refuse?"Meixiang pressed her lips together: "Actually, if the old consort dowager truly has the young prince petition to have you named as secondary consort, wouldn't that be acceptable? You're seventeen this year, and you've been at the prince's residence for ten years now. You can't keep delaying any longer."“Meixiang, if I become a secondary consort, I’ll be nothing more than a secondary consort for the rest of my life. If the primary consort dies, my cousin will marry another. Have I waited all these years just to become the secondary consort of Prince Huaiyin?” Xun Rou was truly unwilling to accept this.Meixiang feared her mistress would end up with nothing after all her efforts, but she also understood that after waiting so long, having the prize slip away at the last moment would make anyone resentful.If that Lady Zheng had been gentle, kind, and docile, it might have been bearable, but she had barely arrived before being housed in such a place.Complaining was useless—the Grand Dowager Consort was too far away, and the young prince was not present. She would have to rely on herself.She had been quietly observing this Lady Zheng. The woman rose late each day but handled matters with remarkable speed, punishing any mistakes according to household rules and preparing for the Mid-Autumn Festival gifts. She seemed capable enough, but one thing stood out: she never once sought Xun Rou’s advice, even after Xun Rou had stated she was sent by the Grand Dowager Consort. Lady Zheng remained utterly silent on the matter.Nanny Nan was also somewhat uneasy. “My lady, Miss Xun is, after all, sent by the Grand Dowager Consort. Shouldn’t you…”“That’s exactly why this Grand Dowager Consort only ever rose to the rank of Jieyu in the palace. She was lucky to bear Prince Wu, yet she doesn’t appreciate her blessings. Who is this Xun Rou? She’s not even comparable to Nanny Fan, who at least has the legitimate title of being the Grand Dowager Consort’s instructing nanny to teach me proper conduct. Xun Rou is merely the young prince’s cousin, yet she expects to manage my household for me. She has no standing or justification, no matter how much she protests. Besides, I am the primary consort that Prince Wei requested for Prince Huaiyin. Why should I let some dependent cousin of the family point fingers at me?” Huiyin was not one to be bullied.Back when Li Heng had outwardly favored her, she had already held a high position. Now that she was a consort, why should she fear some cousin?If she started pandering to the girl, the servants would think she was afraid.Moreover, she had no idea whether this Xun Rou had come to stake a claim in the household or to find fault with her.“My lady, yesterday I got Nanny Chao drunk and managed to pry something out of her,” Qiufeng said as she approached.Huiyin smiled. “Oh? Whether she revealed it intentionally or not, do tell.”Qiufeng continued, “Miss Xun came to the Grand Dowager Consort’s side at the age of seven. I heard she has always considered herself the young prince’s betrothed and helped the Grand Dowager Consort manage household affairs. Both the Grand Dowager Consort and the consort of Prince Wu favored her. When the consort of Prince Wu fell ill, Miss Xun even copied scriptures using her own blood. But then Prince Wei suddenly arranged a marriage for the young prince.”“Could it be that sending her here this time is to make her a secondary consort?” Nanny Nan asked urgently.Huiyin shook her head. “If she wanted to be a secondary consort, she would try to curry favor with me. But after I wrote to the young prince, he replied today, saying the Grand Dowager Consort wants him to help find a suitable young man for Xun Rou as a husband, and that she must not be wronged in any way.”It was clearly a ploy to lull her into complacency, to make her drop her guard—she wouldn’t even know how she’d been deceived.Just as she finished speaking, a voice came from outside: “My lady, Miss Xun suddenly fainted today. Nanny Fan has sent Steward Qiao to fetch a physician.”“Fainted so suddenly? In this sweltering heat, I had her specially placed in a quiet spot. Well, I’ll go see for myself.” Huiyin led her attendants and quickly made her way to Xun Rou’s courtyard, where a crowd had already gathered.After entering, Huiyin saw Xun Rou lying on the bed, her face pale, and asked Meixiang, "What has happened to your young lady?"Meixiang sobbed, "This servant does not know either. These past few days, the young lady has said she could not sleep well. Today, after finishing her meal, she stood up and suddenly fainted.""Sigh, she is but a frail young woman. She traveled six hundred li on her own to get here, and on top of that, she has to worry about the affairs of our prince's household. It is only natural that she would be weary at heart. Once the physician has seen her today, I will choose a better place for her to stay. I must say, the Grand Dowager Consort dotes on our young prince far too much. He is already the Commander of Xuzhou, yet she still wants the young lady to come and look after him, treating him like a child." Huiyin ended with a helpless expression.These words infuriated Nanny Fan and Meixiang to the point of grinding their teeth. They had deliberately made a scene, hoping to have the physician come as a witness so that others would know how Huiyin mistreated the young lady. Little did they expect that this Lady Zheng would be so skilled at twisting black into white.This was all because Xun Rou had kept her windows wide open for a day and a night, deliberately exhausting herself to the point of fainting. If everyone took it lightly, would she not have harmed herself for nothing?
Chapter 15
Rebirth of the Empress