Chapter One: Idle Chatter About the Dowager Consort

The path from Jingli Garden to Bright Pearl Pavilion was the closest one. Although Xiangqin wanted to take a shortcut to rush ahead and deliver the message, she was unable to do so and could only watch helplessly as Lady Luo stepped through the courtyard gate.

Nanny Li gave Xiangqin a meaningful look, signaling her to announce the visitor, but Xiangqin failed to notice. Left with no other choice, Nanny Li raised her voice and said, "Mistress, please walk a little slower. The snowy paths are slippery, so do be careful not to fall."

This reminder reached the upper floor. An Yi was startled for a moment and exclaimed, "Fang Rong, quickly help me take off my outer robe!"

Just as Fang Rong finished helping An Yi shed her outer robe, she saw An Yi dart swiftly toward the bedroom. Rushing after her in a panic, Fang Rong found that An Yi had already kicked off her embroidered shoes and climbed into bed.

"Fang Rong, help me pull up the quilt."

Fang Rong complied accordingly.

Outside, the sound of Lady Luo ascending the stairs could be heard. When she reached the doorway, Taoren greeted her respectfully, "This servant pays her respects to the Mistress."

"Very well, rise. Has the Young Miss eaten her dinner yet?" Lady Luo asked.

"The Young Miss has not yet had dinner; Xingren has gone to the kitchens to fetch the meal," Taoren replied.

Lady Luo walked inside. Fang Rong stepped out from the bedroom and said, "Mistress, you have arrived."

"Where is the Young Miss?" Lady Luo asked.

"The Young Miss is resting in bed," Fang Rong answered.

"Why has she gone to sleep without eating dinner? She must have caught a chill and fallen ill. Hurry and summon a physician to examine the Young Miss," Lady Luo said, quickening her pace as she walked further in.

"Mother, I am not ill, and there is no need to call a physician. I simply did not sleep at noon, and now drowsiness has overtaken me," An Yi said. Seeing that Lady Luo had entered, she feigned sleepiness and let out a yawn.

Lady Luo walked over to the bedside, reached out to touch An Yi's forehead, and then felt her own. "She is not feverish."

"I told you I am not sick, I am just feeling drowsy and want to sleep," An Yi said through narrowed eyes.

Lady Luo sat down on the edge of the bed. "Even if you want to sleep, you must wait until after you have eaten. Going to sleep with an empty stomach is bad for your health."

At that moment, Xingren returned with the evening meal.

"Mother, feed me." To prevent Lady Luo from discovering that her hands were injured, An Yi had no choice but to act spoiled and ask Lady Luo to feed her.

"My, my, how old are you now, and you still want your mother to feed you? What a shame!" Although Lady Luo scolded her verbally, her hands nevertheless reached out to take the bowl handed to her by Taoren.

"No matter how old I am, I am still Mother's obedient daughter. I want Mother to feed me. It has been such a long time since Mother last fed me," An Yi pouted, two patches of rosy blush spreading across her cheeks. It was too embarrassing, yet she still managed to speak such words aloud.

Lady Luo smiled, fine wrinkles crinkling at the corners of her eyes. "Alright, alright, Mother will feed you. Won't Mother feeding you do?"

With a thick skin, An Yi accepted the meal fed to her by Lady Luo while keeping her hands hidden beneath the quilt the entire time, finally managing to muddle through and deceive Lady Luo.

After watching An Yi rinse her mouth and settle down to sleep, Lady Luo rose and left Bright Pearl Pavilion. On her way back to Jingli Garden, she encountered An Kang.

"Mother, how is younger sister?" An Kang asked with concern.

"She went out for the entire day and exhausted herself. She just fell asleep after eating, so do not go and disturb her," Lady Luo said with a smile.

An Kang had already learned what had happened from his personal guards. Seeing that An Yi had successfully fooled Lady Luo, he naturally had no intention of exposing the truth, and he accompanied Lady Luo back to Jingli Garden.

Early the next morning, An Yi unwrapped the cloth bandages on her hands and discovered that they were not as red and swollen as the day before. The medicine from the Jiuhuaitang Pharmacy was indeed effective. After washing her hands cleanly, she reapplied the ointment and rewrapped them neatly with fresh bandages.

"Young Miss, your hands will need at least another six or seven days to heal completely. During this week, how do you plan to keep this from the Mistress?" Fang Rong asked while tidying up.

"Xiangqin, bring me the hand warmer." An Yi tucked her hands inside the hand warmer cylinder. "Like this will do."

"What about when it is time to eat?"

"For these few days, I will simply find an excuse not to join Mother for meals," An Yi said with a smile.

Lady Luo felt no suspicion whatsoever when An Yi suddenly abandoned her hand-warming stove in favor of a hand warmer cylinder. Nanny Li, however, had already guessed that An Yi's hands were injured, though she wisely chose not to mention it.

In the afternoon, Nanny Li came to Bright Pearl Pavilion alone. The Flower Appreciation Banquet had concluded, and now that An Yi had some free time, it was the proper moment to tell her about Tang Qinian.

"How did the Young Miss's hands become injured?" Nanny Li asked with concern.

"There was a slight accident on the way back. It is nothing serious and will heal in a few days. Please do not mention this to my mother, Nanny," An Yi said.

"This servant understands and will not speak of it. A few days ago, the Young Miss asked this servant to inquire about Miss Tang, and I have already found out the details," Nanny Li said with a smile.

"Nanny, please sit down and speak," An Yi said.

Nanny Li accepted a seat, and after serving tea, Xiangqin withdrew from the room.

"Miss Tang's father was born to the second wife of the Earl of Changlesheng, and he ranks fifth among the brothers. He serves as the Left Supervisor in the Upper Forest Directorate. The peerages of our current dynasty are divided into four ranks: Prince, Duke, Marquis, and Earl. The peerage of the Earl of Changlesheng is inherited with a decreasing rank, and by this generation, the Tang family no longer holds an actual fief or active title," Nanny Li explained. Knowing that An Yi had not been in the capital for long, she surely knew nothing of these matters, so she patiently provided detailed explanations. This also served to remind An Yi that once the current Earl of Changlesheng passed away, the Tang family's status would plummet drastically.

"Why doesn't Noble Consort Li find a way to preserve the Tang family's peerage?" An Yi asked.

Nanny Li hesitated for a moment before replying, "Noble Consort Li does not actually enjoy the Emperor's favor. She was chosen by the Empress Dowager, and the Empress Dowager strongly favors the Fourth Prince."

An Yi understood. "I now grasp the situation of the Tang family. What kind of person is Miss Tang herself?"

"Miss Tang is indeed consistent inside and out, but..." Nanny Li frowned, trailing off mid-sentence.

"Does Nanny mean to say that if the An and Tang families were to intermarry, it would be equivalent to the An family standing on the side of Noble Consort Li? Is that correct?" An Yi finished the sentence for Nanny Li.

"Correct." Nanny Li's gaze flickered. "This servant will speak beyond her station: the Emperor is currently in the prime of life and has never once revealed any intention of naming a crown prince. The various consorts in the palace are all daughters of prestigious clans, and the princes they have given birth to are close in age, each possessing the qualifications to contend for the position of Crown Prince."

An Yi pondered in silence. They had not yet extricated themselves from the troubles involving the Huang family; to embroil themselves with the Tang family as well would bring no benefits whatsoever, only multiplying their troubles twofold. Furthermore, an An family trying to ride two horses with one foot in each stirrup would find themselves in even greater peril. Even if Tang Qinian's romantic affection for An Kang contained a measure of genuine feeling, one could not deny that calculation was mixed into it as well.

"Young Miss, there are still many eligible young ladies in the various noble households of the capital," Nanny Li noted.

"It is my eldest brother who is taking a wife, so I will not interfere in this matter any further. Let us leave it at that." An Yi had only intervened because she saw that An Kang also held a certain fondness for Tang Qinian. Now that the Tang family was in such a state, it was better to leave the decision entirely to An Kang. If he was determined to marry no one other than Tang Qinian, then the whole family would face whatever came together.

"Eldest Young Master is such a fine person; he will surely marry a wonderful young mistress," Nanny Li said with a smile.

"Mmm." An Yi firmly believed this to be true. "By the way, Nanny, do you know of the Dowager Princess Consort Dun?"

"No one in the capital does not know of the Dowager Princess Consort Dun. She is a daughter of the Tong clan of Liaodong. Years ago, the Late Emperor sought her hand in marriage for the then Prince Dun, but the Princess Consort was unwilling to marry into the imperial family, and the Tong family politely declined the Late Emperor."

"The Tong family members were certainly bold to dare refuse the Emperor," An Yi remarked.

Nanny Li smiled. "The Tong family is a prominent and wealthy household in Liaodong, with fortunes rivaling a state. Although the Tong family was unwilling to contract this marriage, destiny is ordained by heaven. The following year, Prince Dun traveled to Lingnan on official business and encountered danger on the road, where he was saved thanks to the Princess Consort. The two traveled back to the capital together, and the Princess Consort finally agreed to marry Prince Dun. After they married, many years passed without children, so the Late Emperor bestowed two secondary consorts upon Prince Dun. Prince Dun could not refuse and accepted them. Yet on the very day those two secondary consorts entered the residence, the Princess Consort left behind a letter of divorce—requesting to sever the marriage herself—and walked out of the prince's estate."

"Well done! How can one tolerate another snoring beside one's couch?" An Yi highly approved of the Dowager Princess Consort Dun's actions.

"Prince Dun abandoned the two new brides and a hall full of guests, rushing out of the city to search for the Princess Consort. It took him three years to find her, but the Princess Consort was unwilling to return to the capital, and Prince Dun refused to return either. It was not until the Late Emperor reassigned those two secondary consorts in marriage to others and promised never again to cram people into Prince Dun's residence that the two of them finally returned to the capital. Several years later, the Princess Consort conceived and gave birth to the present Prince Dun. Later on, Prince Dun sustained severe injuries while saving the current Son of Heaven, and despite exhausting all their skills, the imperial physicians were unable to save Prince Dun's life."

An Yi's gaze shifted as she asked, "Between Prince Dun and Imperial Son-in-Law Qing Ke, who enjoys greater favor and trust from the Emperor?"

"That is something this servant dares not presume to guess."

"What kind of person is Prince Dun?" An Yi inquired.

"Prince Dun achieved prominence at a young age, yet his temperament is gentle. Though his status is exalted and he formerly held military power, he has never made things difficult for anyone and remains modest and courteous. The only thing is that he is somewhat fond of female beauty; to this day he has not taken a primary princess consort, yet his estate already houses seven or eight concubines."

An Yi was slightly startled. "Does the Princess Consort simply allow him to carry on like this without managing him?"

Nanny Li sighed. "People are simply like that; they cannot bear for their own husband to take concubines, but whether their son takes concubines or not is something they cease to control."

An Yi let out a cold laugh.

After exchanging a few more casual remarks, Nanny Li returned to Jingli Garden.

Shortly before the *shen* hour (3:00 PM to 5:00 PM), An Kang returned early. After paying his respects to Lady Luo, he went to Bright Pearl Pavilion to see An Yi. Seeing her hands wrapped in cloth bandages, he asked with distress, "Younger sister, are your hands feeling better?"

"Much better, nothing serious," An Yi waved her hands lightly and smiled. "Why did Eldest Brother return so early today?"

"I already learned about what happened yesterday. I never expected that you would run into Prince Dun's convoy and nearly meet with disaster," An Kang surmised that yesterday's assassination attempt had indeed targeted Prince Dun.

"At first, I even thought it was some underhanded trick pulled by the Huang family," An Yi said with a smile.

"The Huang family is currently in a state of utter chaos and unable to even protect themselves." The Huang family was precisely one of the reasons An Kang had been so busy.

"Once the Huang family falls, I shall have Father send Lady Huang away to the outskirts of the city. I want to completely redecorate Brocade Brocade Courtyard."

An Kang asked in astonishment, "You are not going to live in Bright Pearl Pavilion anymore? Are you moving to Brocade Brocade Courtyard instead?"

"Of course not. I am tidying it up so my future eldest sister-in-law can live there," An Yi blinked and teased with a mischievous smile.

"What are you talking about? Stop spouting nonsense." An Kang turned his face away in embarrassment.

Seeing that his face had turned completely red, An Yi raised an eyebrow, thinking how wonderfully innocent her eldest brother was. Shifting her gaze, she said, "Oh, that's right, the Fourth Young Master has become engaged."

An Kang's expression shifted slightly. "How do you know?"

"Someone told me."

"Who told you?" An Kang asked anxiously, pressing for an answer.

"The eldest granddaughter of Minister of War, Lord Li, told me."

"Did she tell you of her own accord?"

"Mmm," An Yi nodded.

An Kang frowned. "What else did she say?"

"Nothing else."

"Didn't she tell you whom Young Master Songyan is engaged to?" An Kang asked probing.

"No."

An Kang picked up his teacup, took a sip of tea, and called out, "Younger sister."

"Mmm."

"Ah," An Kang rubbed his forehead. "Well, the person Young Master Songyan is engaged to is none other than Miss Li."

This book was first published on Xiaoxiang Academy; please do not reproduce it elsewhere!