Emperor Jingming, having made his decision, felt increasingly that he couldn’t delay: “Come to think of it, Seventh Prince’s wife hasn’t even come to the palace for the New Year. I’m a bit worried…”
The Empress silently twitched the corner of her mouth.
During the reunion banquet, when the Seventh Prince’s wife didn’t appear, the Emperor praised her for her loyalty. Now he was worried… Indeed, the heart of an emperor was as unpredictable as a needle at the bottom of the sea.
“Empress, who do you think we should send?”
Hearing Emperor Jingming ask this, the Empress was somewhat prepared.
If there wasn’t a matter at hand, the Emperor wouldn’t have come to Kunning Palace. This meant that Pan Hai wasn’t a suitable candidate.
After some thought, it wasn’t surprising. The Seventh Prince’s wife had publicly announced that she was secluding herself to pray for the Seventh Prince’s safe return, which was now common knowledge. If the Emperor suddenly sent his trusted eunuch to the Seventh Prince’s mansion, it could easily lead to speculation.
It’s worth noting that once something involves the Son of Heaven, it becomes a different matter entirely.
The Empress pondered for a moment before suggesting, “Why don’t we send Fuqing?”
“Fuqing?” Emperor Jingming hadn’t initially thought of his beloved daughter.
The Empress smiled, “Yes, Fuqing gets along well with the Seventh Prince’s wife. She even mentioned missing her at the New Year’s banquet. If a young princess wants to get some fresh air outside the palace and visit a sister-in-law she’s close to, no one can say anything about it. What do you think, Your Majesty?”
Emperor Jingming nodded repeatedly as he listened, “The Empress makes a good point. Let’s send Fuqing then. This way, we can all be at ease.”
As for what they would be at ease about, Emperor Jingming didn’t specify, but the Empress understood perfectly.
It just so happened that while the Seventh Prince’s wife had been staying indoors for a long time, a Wu Miao Holy Maiden who bore a striking resemblance to her had appeared. This naturally led to speculation, and the Emperor suspected a connection between the Seventh Prince’s wife and the Wu Miao Holy Maiden.
Although this suspicion seemed far-fetched, it was better to be safe than sorry. Of course, sending someone to check would put their minds at ease.
“Has Fuqing returned from the Empress Dowager?”
“She has.”
Emperor Jingming didn’t want to appear too eager, but then he thought, since the Empress even knew about Yang Consort’s infidelity, what was there to hide? He straightforwardly urged, “Then let’s send Fuqing over.”
The Empress paused for a moment, then nodded slightly, “I’ll inform Fuqing right away.”
Faced with the Emperor’s blunt approach, what else could she say?
Princess Fuqing was delighted when she heard she was to visit the Seventh Prince’s mansion: “Can I go out of the palace to visit Seventh Sister-in-law?”
The Empress smiled gently, “Go ahead. It’s been a while since you’ve seen your Seventh Sister-in-law. I’ve been thinking of her too.”
Princess Fuqing’s eyes twinkled as she made a request, “Mother, can I bring Fourteenth Sister along?”
The two princesses had originally had a distant relationship, but after spending time together in Cining Palace accompanying the Empress Dowager, they had grown closer.
Princess Fuqing was pure-hearted and kind, while the Fourteenth Princess was cautious and perceptive. Being of similar age, they naturally got along well.
Hearing Princess Fuqing’s request, the Empress hesitated.
“Mother, please say yes. I rarely get the chance to leave the palace, and the Fourteenth Sister gets even fewer opportunities… She can keep me company.”
Seeing her beloved daughter’s soft plea, the Empress nodded and instructed, “Then visit your Seventh Sister-in-law and return to the palace early. Don’t cause any trouble outside.”
“Mother, I’d like to look around the streets too—” Princess Fuqing said, lacking confidence, knowing her request might be excessive.
Thinking about how her father only had one chance a year to go out, she realized she had more opportunities to leave the palace, and felt a bit greedy for asking.
The Empress saw her daughter looking at her expectantly and couldn’t help but feel both amused and exasperated.
Fuqing was too honest; she didn’t know to just sneak out after leaving the palace, instead of asking for permission.
The Empress felt even more affectionate towards her daughter and sighed, “You can go shopping, but don’t stay out too long—”
Princess Fuqing immediately agreed happily.
Although the two princesses left the palace with a small entourage, they were accompanied by quite a few guards. The group headed straight for the Seventh Prince’s mansion.
When Nanny Ji received news of the princesses’ visit, her eyes rolled back, and she nearly fainted.
She couldn’t faint!
She pinched herself hard to stay conscious, but her heart was racing, and she didn’t know what to do.
The maid who brought the news looked confused, “Nanny, should we inform the Princess Consort—”
“Of course!” Nanny Ji blurted out, feeling increasingly anxious.
Oh, that troublemaking Princess Consort! She had truly put the entire prince’s mansion in a difficult position!
It was impossible not to receive the princesses, but the Princess Consort wasn’t in the mansion. What were they to do now?
Nanny Ji was so anxious that sweat appeared on her forehead.
At that moment, she deeply regretted not immediately informing the Chief Steward about the Princess Consort’s reckless behavior, instead of keeping it a secret.
What? Would telling the Chief Steward solve the current predicament?
Not necessarily, but at least there would be one more person to share the anxiety and fear.
“Nanny, what’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”
Nanny Ji came to her senses and composed herself, “First, invite the two princesses to wait in the flower hall. Have Manager Wang attend to them carefully. I’ll go inform the Princess Consort right away.”
Recently, Nanny Ji had been directly reporting to the Princess Consort for all matters, so the maid didn’t think much of it and hurried to make arrangements.
Nanny Ji ran to Yuhe Court, out of breath from the rush.
A’Man saw her state and covered her mouth, laughing, “Nanny Ji, what’s the hurry—”
“Princess Fuqing and the Fourteenth Princess have come to visit the Princess Consort!” Nanny Ji exclaimed, gasping for air.
A’Man’s laughter stopped abruptly, her voice rising, “Who’s here?”
Nanny Ji stamped her foot, “Princess Fuqing and the Fourteenth Princess! Princess Fuqing is the Emperor’s daughter, here specifically to see the Princess Consort. The Princess Consort can’t possibly avoid meeting them. What do we do now?”
Seeing A’Man and A’Qiao, the two senior maids, looking at each other in dismay, Nanny Ji’s eyes started to roll back again. She clutched her chest, saying, “I told you the Princess Consort was being reckless, and you two just made things worse. Now we’re in trouble!”
A’Man was displeased and spat, “It’s the New Year, what trouble are you talking about? Nanny, do you even know how to speak properly?”
If it weren’t for the shared secret of deceiving their superiors, she would have kicked the old nanny to tears long ago.
A’Qiao appeared much calmer, saying coolly, “Don’t panic, Nanny Ji. Go tell the two princesses that our Princess Consort is in the small Buddha hall praying for the Prince’s safety. She’s taken a vow not to leave the Buddha hall until the Prince returns. If the princesses wish to see the Princess Consort, they’ll have to come to the small Buddha hall.”
Nanny Ji couldn’t move her feet, “But what if the princesses do come?”
A’Qiao replied calmly, “Then please escort the two princesses there, Nanny. A’Man and I will be waiting there.”
Nanny Ji opened her mouth, feeling completely lost.
What would happen after escorting them there? How would they explain not being able to see the Princess Consort?
These two senior maids were just causing more trouble.
“Hurry along, Nanny Ji. We can’t keep the princesses waiting too long, or they might think our prince’s mansion is being disrespectful,” A’Qiao urged.
Nanny Ji felt like she was being roasted over a fire with no escape. She had no choice but to steel herself and head to the flower hall.
When Princess Fuqing heard that the Seventh Prince’s wife was in the small Buddha hall, she politely said, “We shouldn’t disturb Seventh Sister-in-law if she’s earnestly praying, but I miss her. Let’s go see her then.”