Upon hearing Madam Yan’s words, Madam Qin’s face instantly darkened. If looks could kill, Madam Yan would have died countless times already.
You’re the sturdy one! Your whole family is sturdy!
Using the word “sturdy” to describe a woman was highly insulting.
However, once Madam Yan said it, everyone present found that it did make some sense.
If Madam Yan had wanted to get pregnant, she would have done so long ago. After all, her twins were already five and a half years old. Thinking of this, the hostility in everyone’s eyes toward Madam Yan lessened.
The Princess Consort remained silent throughout, quietly watching the women below trade barbed remarks and veiled insults. When everyone finally calmed down a little and she was about to speak, she saw Lady Qiao and her maid appear at the doorway.
Everyone turned to look and a flash of amazement crossed their eyes.
Then they realized that Qiao Rongjin had arrived rather late, which surprised them. She had always been one of the earliest to arrive before. For her to be this late today, something must have happened.
The Princess Consort frowned, but Lady Qiao had arrived exactly at the time limit she had set, so there was nothing she could criticize. She merely sat above and watched coldly as Lady Qiao entered.
Qiao Rongjin finally caught her breath before respectfully bowing to the Princess Consort.
“This servant greets Your Highness, the Princess Consort.”
“Take a seat,” the Princess Consort replied indifferently.
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
Qiao Rongjin then walked to her seat.
Her place was in front of Lady An, Lady Meng, and Lady Ye, though still near the back, given her rank.
Only after sitting down did she notice the subtle atmosphere in the hall. With a quick thought, she roughly guessed what had happened before her arrival.
According to all the household-drama plots she knew, it was probably a group of concubines getting jealous, exchanging hidden insults and sarcastic remarks, and eventually ending up in this awkward silence.
She lowered her eyes and said nothing, quietly waiting for the leader—no, the Princess Consort—to speak.
This was her first time attending such a gathering, and she found it rather interesting.
However, before long, Qiao Rongjin’s eyes began searching for the female lead.
Since transmigrating into this world, she had never seen what the heroine of the original novel looked like. According to both the book’s description and the original owner’s memories, she was a gentle and delicate beauty.
But seeing was believing.
She wanted to know what kind of woman could make the male lead fall so deeply in love.
Soon, her gaze settled on a gentle woman wearing a pale blue gauze dress.
And then…
How should she put it?
She wasn’t exactly disappointed.
It was just that among all these exceptionally beautiful women, the heroine appeared rather ordinary.
Yet because of her calm, lazy demeanor, one couldn’t help being drawn to her. She possessed an air of indifference, as though she stood above everyone else, making her the first person one noticed.
Moreover, though her appearance wasn’t the most outstanding, her figure was absolutely remarkable.
Those breasts…
Qiao Rongjin estimated they were at least twice her own size.
For a split second, a sense of inferiority suddenly welled up within her, and she immediately stopped looking at the heroine.
She had always thought her own chest wasn’t small.
But comparing herself to the heroine and then to the other beauties around her, Qiao Rongjin felt insecure for exactly one second.
Not a second more.
She simply envied Prince Rui.
What a blessed man he was, being surrounded by so many beauties.
Qiao Rongjin had no idea that while she was observing the heroine, everyone else was secretly observing her as well.
The moment they saw her, they all thought the same thing:
How has Lady Qiao become even prettier after only half a month?
Her skin was so smooth and delicate that one could almost see the fine fuzz on her face. Her figure was curvy and graceful, utterly enchanting.
They were all green with envy.
Even her expressions and the way she walked made them wonder:
Is this really a woman who has already borne children? Or an unmarried young maiden?
To be honest, if not for the married woman’s hairstyle she wore, no one would have guessed she already had children.
Compared to Lady An and Lady Meng, who had entered the manor later than she did, she looked even younger and more girlish.
If nothing unexpected happened, she would surely regain the prince’s favor and might become their greatest enemy in the future.
That was the collective feeling and instinctive reaction of everyone present.
Of course, Madam Chen had no idea that Qiao Rongjin had been looking at her.
By coincidence, just as Qiao Rongjin’s gaze left her, she looked over at Lady Qiao.
A flash of amazement crossed her eyes.
How did Qiao Rongjin become this beautiful? This doesn’t look like the person I knew before!
She was extremely astonished.
The beauty she referred to wasn’t appearance, but rather a certain aura.
The previous Lady Qiao had indeed been beautiful, but not the kind of beauty that left people stunned.
Her eyes had always been full of calculation, and whenever she saw the prince, she acted like a lovesick fool.
Especially when she saw the prince treating Madam Chen well—her face would twist with bitterness and resentment, making her beautiful features appear terrifying and ugly.
Even Madam Chen disliked looking at her, let alone the prince.
But the current Lady Qiao…
Her eyes were clear and relaxed, her demeanor confident and composed.
There was even a youthful innocence, curiosity, and sly playfulness in them.
She was completely different from the foolish and malicious woman she had been before.
For a moment, Madam Chen’s confidence in keeping the prince firmly in her grasp began to waver.
A beauty like this…
Even she would find it hard to resist, let alone a powerful man like Prince Rui.
Moreover, Lady Qiao truly loved the prince.
Could he really remain unmoved?
Then she remembered that the prince had not visited Haitang Courtyard for over half a month, and the sense of crisis in her heart eased somewhat.
Besides, even if the prince did go to Haitang Courtyard, he probably wouldn’t stay the night.
Unless he had grown tired of her, he would surely remember her virtues the moment he entered Haitang Courtyard.
And it was clearly impossible for him to tire of her right now.
Therefore, letting Lady Qiao live in Haitang Courtyard had indeed been the right choice.
Of course, not just Lady Qiao—any woman in the prince’s harem who lived in Haitang Courtyard would have ended up the same way.
That was what Madam Chen believed.
While everyone’s thoughts were racing, the Princess Consort’s voice sounded.
“Very well. Since everyone is here, let’s begin.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
As usual, the Princess Consort first inquired about the affairs of each concubine’s courtyard, focusing especially on the children.
Compared to other princely households, Prince Rui’s line of descendants was actually doing fairly well.
Prince Rui also attached great importance to having heirs, so naturally the Princess Consort paid close attention to the matter as well.
As for the children, she merely asked about their studies and health.
“His Majesty’s health has not improved in recent days, and there have also been floods in the south. His Majesty and all the civil and military officials are overwhelmed. These are troubled times. Keep your children under control and make sure they behave properly in the palace. Once lessons are over, they are not to linger outside and must return directly to the manor.”
Hearing this, Qiao Rongjin became thoughtful.
The novel had indeed mentioned that the emperor died of illness.
He had suffered many injuries while fighting on the battlefield in his youth. In his old age, those old ailments returned, and combined with years of indulgence, his health deteriorated further and further.
She had not expected his condition to begin worsening so soon.