Chapter 548 - 535: Shallow and Ignorant

Chapter 548: Chapter 535: Shallow and Ignorant

If they did some work, they could even go outside and dig up some shepherd’s purse that had just sprouted from the ground.

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Life couldn’t be any more leisurely!

As for Zhuang Qingning, she quite liked it.

Every day, she could converse with a handsome man about everything under the sun, and this handsome man could even help her sweep the courtyard and cut vegetables, what’s not to love about this life?

Even everyone in Qingzhuyuan found these days quite relaxing.

After all, first of all, when the master was not at home, the chores that needed to be done naturally lessened.

Secondly, it was quite obvious. Each time Chu Jinnian returned from Zhuang Qingning’s place, he seemed delighted, even wearing a smile at the corner of his mouth.

Even though Chu Jinnian was never harsh to his servants and quite generous, seeing him as somber as the God of Death every day would undoubtedly cause unease. Seeing him smile was naturally the best.

However, Fan Wenxuan was having a less enjoyable time.

His cold had already healed, and he wanted to accompany Chu Jinnian and Chu Jinzhou out to scrounge for food and drinks, but Chu Jinnian wouldn’t allow him.

Chu Jinnian insisted that he had been working hard for a long time and should rest these days, so as not to fall ill again from exhaustion. He reasoned that it would be best for Fan Wenxuan to rest at home.

Fan Wenxuan clearly knew that Chu Jinnian was intentionally excluding him, but due to Chu Jinnian’s dominating personality, Fan Wenxuan had no choice but to stay in Qingzhuyuan, waiting for Chu Jinzhou to return home and feed him.

Despite still being able to eat some delicious food that Zhuang Qingning made, the situation made Fan Wenxuan very frustrated. He wrote many moody poems during these frustrating days to pass the time, in hope that Chu Jinnian would leave soon and return to the capital city.

However, Chu Jinnian showed no sign of leaving and seemed perfectly fine with staying put.

With the way things were going, it looked like he wouldn’t leave until after the fifteenth.

Fan Wenxuan sighed heavily, day after day, wishing something would happen in the capital city that would call Chu Jinnian back soon.

“First Prince.”

Jing Zhao presented a cup of tea to the prince and placed it on his desk.

“Mm.” Chu Jinnian didn’t look up, merely flipping the pages of the book in his hand.

“The Fourth Prince has sent a letter.” Jing Zhao handed over the letter, “It seems to be about a significant matter.”

“I will take my leave now.”

“Mm.”

Once Jing Zhao had left, Chu Jinnian opened the letter to read it.

Indeed, it was a letter written by Chu Yunzhao. The densely written letter was quite thick, spanning five to six pages.

The content of the letter mainly spoke of affairs between First Prince, Chu Yunhe, and Concubine Liang.

This Concubine Liang was pregnant.

A fan of sour food, she could hardly go a day without dried sour apricots. Furthermore, the imperial doctor believed there was a high chance the baby would be a boy based on his diagnosis.

Chu Yunhe had been married for three years. His first wife had only given birth to a daughter, and the other concubine also had a daughter. If Concubine Liang were to give birth to a son, he would not only be Chu Yunhe’s firstborn son but also the first grandson of the royal family.

A prince born from the legitimate wife of the prince, the first royal grandson, although a concubine-born, would be in an incredibly honored position from birth.

Moreover, Concubine Liang possessed such good luck that she boasted the merit of promoting her husband and elders. Her pregnancy, therefore, drew a lot of attention.

In recent times, rumors spread that the baby Concubine Liang was carrying was a blessed one, and that the child would bring prosperity to the country once born.

All of a sudden, everyone’s attention turned to Concubine Liang, who was enjoying limitless glory. Not only did Chu Yunhe pay more attention to her, even the emperor showed her favor and granted her many rewards. She was even overshadowing the First Prince’s wife.

Now that Concubine Liang gained power, her ambitions gradually unveiled. Relying on Chu Yunhe’s favor, she disrespected the First Prince’s wife and provoked her at every turn.

And the First Prince’s wife, who was from the head of the prestigious Wang family, thought of herself highly compared to Liang’s lowly status. However, as the First Prince’s wife, she knew to present herself as virtuous and good. She hid her discontent well, but facing Liang’s provocations, she certainly didn’t feel like holding back anymore.

Their intentions conflicted, and sparks were bound to fly. The domestic environment in Chu Yunhe’s household became highly spirited.

One day, the argument might have been about a chestnut cake that was not promptly delivered to Concubine Liang’s courtyard, which led to accusations of the First Prince’s wife being jealous and intolerant. The next day, Concubine Liang complained of a stomach ache and didn’t come to give her respects, so the First Prince’s wife accused her of disrespect and violating the hierarchy…

Almost every day, there was an endless debate over such trifling matters. Each party claimed to be right, and they only wished for Chu Yunhe to resolve their disputes.

On one side was a wife from a prestigious family, and on the other, the mother of a soon-to-be born prince with signs of auspiciousness. Regardless of which side, Chu Yunhe didn’t want to let go of either.

This problem gave Chu Yunhe such a headache that he eventually had to hand over these household matters to the empress.

The empress quickly took care of the matter effectively.

She announced that Concubine Liang’s pregnancy was unstable and needed the imperial doctor’s care. For convenience, Concubine Liang was brought to the central palace for better care. As for the First Prince’s wife, Mrs. Wang, she had fallen ill due to the strain of managing the household affairs. The empress rewarded her with all sorts of precious medicinal herbs and ordered the imperial doctor to take care of her.

Chu Jinnian couldn’t help but chuckle when he reached this part of the letter, his mouth curving upwards into a mocking smile.

This life’s events might be different, but the empress’ vision was just as shallow as it was in his past life.

The empress’ actions were nothing more than an attempt to remind the emperor of the unborn prince whenever he visited her quarters in the central palace. She also wanted to remind the emperor of this prince who bore the luck of prosperity, in hopes that the emperor would reconsider Chu Yunhe for the position of crown prince.

The empress’ calculations were clever. Yet, she overlooked the principle of not being overly eager. Her actions would only make the emperor suspicious of her and Chu Yunhe’s ambitions, raising doubts in others’ minds.

Moreover, as the empress, taking care of a concubine’s pregnancy carefully might just worsen people’s criticisms and make them think that Chu Yunhe’s household was unstable, primarily because of her.

As for the First Prince’s wife, Mrs. Wang, despite the imperial rewards and facing apparent respect, anyone with discerning eyes could tell that the empress was favoring Concubine Liang and suppressing Mrs. Wang. Naturally, Mrs. Wang would lose face.

Although Mrs. Wang had not given birth to a son and hadn’t managed the household well, and thus, deserved some criticisms, which the empress was likely dissatisfied with, using this method of elevating Concubine Liang and suppressing Mrs. Wang would only provoke Mrs. Wang’s resentment, and the whole Wang family would also voice their complaints.

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