In Jingxiu Palace!
Princess Lin’an’s exquisite embroidered shoes tread on the soft floor covering as she held her elder brother the Crown Prince’s arm, entering Jingxiu Palace.
The interior was as warm as spring, with underfloor heating dispelling December’s cold. The elegantly dressed Noble Consort sat at the table, where a sumptuous feast had already been laid out. She waited for her two children with a smile on her face.
Noble Consort Chen, in her early forties, had long passed the prime of a woman’s beauty and was now in the stage of a woman’s fullest maturity. Her skin remained taut, her eyes still sparkled with vitality, and her well-maintained figure had not lost its shape. Time had deposited on her the charm of a mature woman.
Setting aside the stunningly beautiful Empress, among the many beauties in the imperial harem, Noble Consort Chen was considered the most attractive.
Thus, among the four princesses, only Lin’an could rival the Crown Princess… no, compete with her.
“It’s too hot. Tell the servants outside to lower the charcoal fire,” said the vivacious Princess Lin’an, frowning slightly. She usually only needed a charcoal fire burning, but the underfloor heating was too much, making one feel as if they were in a steamer.
Noble Consort Chen, with her gentle smile, immediately instructed, “Listen to Princess Lin’an, lower the charcoal fire.”
Lin’an happily threw herself into her mother’s embrace, smiling like a little girl: “Mother, may I sleep here tonight and keep you company?”
Noble Consort Chen nodded with a gentle smile.
Although this wasn’t quite proper, as the consorts might need to serve the Emperor at night, in Emperor Yuanjing’s reign, due to the Emperor’s long-term devotion to Taoist cultivation and abstinence from women, many rules in the harem had become mere formalities.
When the Emperor cared about women, the rules were strict. But when the Emperor no longer cared about the beauties in his harem, as long as no fundamental rules were broken, things could be quite relaxed.
As for fundamental rules… well, well, well.
However, Emperor Yuanjing’s state wasn’t entirely without merit. At least the harem was very harmonious, and the consorts couldn’t even find reasons to quarrel if they wanted to.
The Crown Prince chatted with his mother, while Princess Lin’an chirped in from the side.
“Today, the Spirit Dragon suddenly went berserk and almost hurt Lin’an. Father and the guards couldn’t arrive in time to rescue her,” the Crown Prince mentioned the incident that occurred in the afternoon.
The usually composed Noble Consort was shocked. She hurriedly took Princess Lin’an’s hand, anxiously examining her: “Were you injured anywhere? Let Mother see.”
The Second Princess, who loved to act coquettishly, immediately put on a pitiful expression: “Your child almost couldn’t see Mother again.”
The Noble Consort was terrified in hindsight and angrily said, “What were those slaves doing? They couldn’t even control a beast and almost hurt my daughter.”
After venting her anger, she held Princess Lin’an’s delicate hand: “What happened then? Did the Crown Prince save you?”
The Crown Prince’s status was distinctly different from the other princes. Except for the Empress, all other consorts in the harem had to address him as “Crown Prince” and couldn’t call him “my son” or “prince.”
Lin’an wrinkled her nose at the Crown Prince, complaining, “How could Elder Brother Crown Prince have such ability? Every time Huaiqing bullies me, he only uses his mouth and doesn’t help me fight her.”
The Crown Prince smiled bitterly and shook his head.
The Noble Consort became increasingly curious. She glanced at the Crown Prince and held her daughter’s hand: “Tell Mother about it?”
Lin’an’s enchanting peach blossom eyes suddenly lit up with excitement: “I recruited a little constable the day before yesterday… um, I brought him along today intending to give him tasks, and it happened to be him who saved me.”
“Constable…” Noble Consort Chen frowned slightly, “Is he a night watchman?”
“Mm-hmm,” Lin’an said, “I know Mother doesn’t like night watchmen because they’re all Wei Yuan’s men, but he’s my man.”
Noble Consort Chen nodded with a smile: “Did His Majesty bestow any rewards?”
“Of course,” the Crown Prince interjected.
“This palace should also give a reward,” Noble Consort Chen said solemnly, “Later, I’ll send someone to the treasury to fetch some jewelry to send over.”
The Noble Consort’s reward, of course, couldn’t be for a subject but should be for the female relatives of the subject.
Hearing this, the Crown Prince suddenly frowned, “When did that Xu Qi An become your man?”
Princess Lin’an immediately raised her snow-white chin proudly, saying, “I snatched him from Huaiqing.”
“Does Huaiqing know?”
“Of course she does.”
“And she didn’t teach you a lesson?”
“She dares to teach me a lesson… I… I’ll bring Xu Qi An to see her later. With his protection, I can also annoy her.” At this point, Princess Lin’an was pleased with her cleverness.
…
In the twelfth month, night falls quickly.
When they left the yamen, the sun was still hanging in the western sky, stubbornly dyeing the clouds into their shape and color.
By the time they reached the Xu residence, the sky had turned completely dark. Lanterns lit up one by one, illuminating late returners and rows of pavilions and tiled houses.
The dark sky, the bamboo lanterns, the buildings with ancient charm… Every time Xu Qi An saw this scene, he regretted not having learned to paint.
At this hour, the Xu residence had already closed its doors. Old Zhang, the gatekeeper, knew that the eldest young master never used the door.
So when Xu Qi An knocked on the main gate, Old Zhang’s face was full of surprise.
“Call the household staff to come and move things,” Xu Qi An instructed.
Move things?
Old Zhang’s gaze swept past Young Master Xu’s shoulder, looking at the three horse-drawn carts behind him, as well as the accompanying night watchmen.
…
In the front hall, the family of four was having dinner. Xu Lingyue hadn’t waited for her eldest brother to eat together again today. Missing him, she lowered her head and asked, “Elder Brother hasn’t come home on time for dinner for many days.”
The candlelight flickered, catching on her long eyelashes, her pointed oval face glowing with the luster of warm jade.
Her fair and beautiful oval face, and pure and delicate demeanor – if she were to wear a sailor uniform, she would be the school beauty that meets the public’s aesthetic standards.
Hmm, a mixed-race school beauty at that. Xu Lingyue’s features were more pronounced than ordinary girls, with more dimension.
“I’ll save some dishes for Elder Brother to eat,” said Xu Lingyin, who was opposite her sister. With Elder Brother not around, no one would compete with her for food.
Her short, chubby hands gripped the chopsticks, moving at an astounding speed, showcasing her remarkable talent.
“Isn’t it about time for the monthly salary to be paid?” Aunt glanced at Second Uncle.
Second Uncle Xu lowered his head to eat, grunting an affirmative.
He had already advanced this month’s salary. With the approach of the New Year, there were social obligations and gift-giving among colleagues, all of which required silver.
…Anyway, Ning Yan hasn’t taken a wife yet, so I’ll borrow his salary to manage for now, Second Uncle Xu thought.
“We still need to make clothes for Lingyue, Lingyin, Eldest Young Master, and Second Young Master at the end of the year. We don’t have enough silver again,” Aunt sighed.
Last month, before going to Yunlu Academy, the family still had several dozen taels of silver saved up, but upon returning, it was all gone…
Aunt nearly tore into Second Uncle on the spot, asking if he had been fooling around outside.
It was Eldest Young Master Xu and Second Young Master Xu who personally guaranteed that the silver was all used for running errands and doing proper business, absolutely not squandered on fooling around.
Aunt believed them.
Although Eldest Young Master Xu was disagreeable, he was stubborn and never lied. Second Young Master Xu was a scholar, meticulous from childhood, and a sensible child.
“It’s just a matter of a few taels of silver,” Second Uncle Xu said nonchalantly.
Aunt glanced at him: “I want to buy a bolt of cloud brocade.”
Second Uncle Xu looked up in surprise, not believing that the family’s current economic situation could afford cloud brocade at one tael per foot.
Aunt then explained to him, saying that after the Second Young Master’s spring imperial examination, if he could pass, his status would be different. He couldn’t keep wearing the old robe, no matter how precious it was. One piece wouldn’t be enough to maintain appearances.
Lingyue was reaching the age of marriage, and the clothes in her wardrobe needed to be updated.
Second Uncle Xu listened absent-mindedly, responding with noncommittal “mm”s and “ah”s.
Slam!
Aunt slapped her chopsticks on the table, and everyone looked over.
Aunt picked up her chopsticks again, expressionless, “Let’s eat.”
Second Uncle Xu said helplessly: “During the tax silver case, we emptied our savings. The rice and flour for the first month after that, I had to borrow from colleagues. Let’s wait until next year. We’ll buy it next year.”
Aunt lowered her head, not letting him see her slightly reddened eyes.
“Be careful, be careful… Don’t hit the wall. If you dirty it, this old man will skin you all,” came the scolding voice of Old Zhang, the gatekeeper.
Second Uncle Xu, in a bad mood, frowned and looked over. The household servants were carrying bolt after bolt of silk, carefully entering under Old Zhang’s direction.
Aunt opened her Maybelline big eyes wide, looking incredulously at the bolt after bolt of bright and beautiful silk being carried in.
“How beautiful…” Xu Lingyue exclaimed.
Green Moth also widened her eyes, drooling.
Only Xu Lingyin remained faithfully devoted to her food, her little face buried in her bowl, her cheeks puffing in and out.
“Where… where did all this come from?” Second Uncle Xu asked in bewilderment.
Old Zhang the gatekeeper swiftly spread out a piece of coarse cloth on the ground. While directing the servants to put down the silks, he answered: “Eldest Young Master brought it back. He said it was bestowed by His Majesty.”
Bestowed by His Majesty? Second Uncle Xu’s first reaction was that the Sangbo case had been solved.
As a Hundred-Household of the Imperial Blade Guard, he usually guarded the outer city and wasn’t clear about matters in the inner city. The Sangbo case had caused an uproar throughout the inner city, but people of insufficient rank couldn’t access related information.
Thinking of how he had been stuck in the Qi Refining realm for nearly twenty years, Second Uncle felt dispirited. But soon, this melancholy was dispersed by joy: “Where is Ning Yan?”
“Outside the gate… His Majesty bestowed a total of five hundred bolts of silk,” Old Zhang said joyfully.
Clatter!
The chopsticks in Aunt’s hand fell onto the table.