Chapter 236

Chapter 236

Xie Run's gut told her tonight wasn't going to be a quiet night.

Sure enough, once night came, Jiang Baobao suddenly claimed to feel unwell and deliberately sent someone to Songfeng Court to summon Prince Jing.

Songfeng Court used to be Lanxiang Court, but it had since been renamed with a new plaque.

Lanxiang Court was still a fair distance from Chunshan Court. By the time the news reached Xie Run, Prince Jing had supposedly already left Songfeng Court.

Dan Tao said softly, "Shufei Jiang also called for the household physician. So far, there's been no commotion. It's likely she's deliberately trying to send a message to Cefei Sun, not wanting the Prince to have a peaceful night at Songfeng Court."

Xie Run didn't get it. "What beef does she have with Cefei Sun that she has to stir up trouble today? She's no longer the concubine who was married into the household by imperial decree."

And she still has the nerve to act so high and mighty?

Dan Tao hesitated. "This... this servant can't guess Shufei Jiang's intentions either."

Perhaps no one in the entire manor could guess Shufei Jiang's intentions.

Smart people are hard to handle, but their thoughts and schemes leave a trail you can follow.

A fool doing foolish things doesn't need logic—just their temper and mood.

Sometimes she acts on a whim, and you can't do anything about her.

Xie Run was a little disappointed. "It's a pity you're not allowed to wander around the back courtyard after dark. Otherwise, I'd love to know whether the Prince will stay at Jiang Baobao's place tonight."

Now every courtyard was probably just waiting to see the drama play out.

The next morning, after Xie Run woke up and played with her son, Dan Tao came with news.

"My lady, last night the Prince stayed at Qiufeng Court."

Xie Run froze, thinking she must have misheard. "You said the Prince stayed where last night?"

"Qiufeng Court." Dan Tao looked at Xie Run, eyes wide. "When I first heard the news, I thought I'd misheard too, and I even double-checked with the maid who brought the info."

"Last night, the Prince went to see Shufei Jiang. Knowing she deliberately claimed stomach discomfort to win his favor, he scolded her and left."

"On his way back, he probably passed Qiufeng Court, stopped in to see Shufei Hua, and ended up staying there?"

The two really did live close by, both on the same path.

Xiaoshu said quietly, "But isn't Shufei Hua... still in mourning?"

Xie Run said calmly, "She was provoked by a single remark from Wan Linlang and lost her cool. She's already been in mourning for eight months, with only three months left... and now it's all for nothing."

Strictly speaking, Huayu should mourn her biological father for three years.

But since she'd been brought into Prince Jing's household as a married woman, the mourning period could be shortened—from three years to one.

Huayu came into the prince's household in July and had already been mourning for eight months. But at the last critical moment, she lost it.

"Now she's slept with the Prince, but during her mourning period for her father—her reputation is going to take a hit."

If she'd known this would happen, she should've just kept her mouth shut about mourning in the first place.

Now, having mourned halfway and suddenly stopped, it really invites gossip.

Xie Run asked, puzzled, "She did something so stupid—didn't anyone around her warn her?"

Dan Tao said, "Perhaps after hearing Shiqie Wan's words that day, it wasn't just Shufei Hua who got rattled, but those around her as well."

"Forget it." Xie Run stood up. "Do my makeup. Today the new concubine serves tea, so we need to go to Qingsong Court."

"Yes."

Fang Yuaner was under house arrest. When Xie Run arrived at Qingsong Court, she took the seat right below the Princess Consort.

Also, Shufei Li, Shiqie Fang, Shiqie Lu, and Wan Linlang had all shown up.

Shufei Hua was a no-show.

Was she already acting all high and mighty on her first day of serving the Prince?

Xie Run took a small sip of tea and suddenly had a feeling the prince's household was about to get lively again.

Of the women who'd come to pay their respects, they were all quiet types, except Shiqie Lu, who could actually hold a conversation.

But she couldn't easily chat with Xie Run in the Princess Consort's courtyard, so an awkward silence fell over the room.

After a while, news came that the newly arrived Cefei Sun had brought the other two concubines with her.

Yesterday, Xie Run had been so focused on the gossip that she'd forgotten the Emperor had also gifted Prince Jing two pretty girls along with Cefei Sun.

Cefei Sun had come in with a grand ceremony, while the other two were gifted concubines, both brought in quietly by sedan chair.

Hearing footsteps, Shiqie Lu and the others quickly stood and bowed: "We pay our respects to Cefei Sun."

Cefei Sun looked dignified, with a gentle smile and no hint of emotion on her face. "No need for formalities, sisters. Please, rise."

The other two concubines also curtsied to Xie Run and Shufei Li.

Xie Run said lightly, "Both sisters are so gentle and pretty. But which one is Sister Wu and which is Sister Ye?"

A woman in a goose-yellow dress stepped forward. She had delicate, pretty features, a hint of boldness in her brows, and a slightly tanned complexion.

"I am Concubine Ye. I pay my respects to Cefei Xie."

Xie Run placed her, remembering that this Ye was the granddaughter of the governor of Minzhou.

Another woman with an oval face, a teardrop mole at the corner of her eye, and a mouth that seemed to smile naturally also stepped forward to pay her respects. "I am Concubine Wu, paying my respects to Cefei Xie."

This one was the daughter of the magistrate of Shuimeng County, Yunzhou.

Xie Run gave a slight nod. "Each of you has your own charm—the Prince is a lucky man."

Even as she said it, Xie Run was surprised at herself.

That those words would ever come out of her mouth.

Both beauties lowered their heads shyly, blushing.

The Princess Consort came out after a while, her face heavily powdered, looking like she wasn't feeling well.

Shufei Li couldn't help asking worriedly, "Is the Princess Consort tired? You look more worn out than the past couple of days."

Shiqie Lu and Shiqie Fang also looked over.

Everyone noticed that the Consort's complexion was clearly off.

At this point, no one was guessing it might be pregnancy.

After all, among the few pregnant women in the household, apart from Fang Yuaner, who had been the one to fall pregnant earlier, no one else looked this worn out.

Some even suspected the Consort had come down with something serious, which was why she kept feeling bad.

The Consort waved her hand and said calmly, "It's no big deal, I just didn't sleep well last night."

"Sorry to keep you all waiting—let's get the greetings out of the way first."

As soon as the Consort finished speaking, serving maids immediately came forward with tea.

All three of them, led by Cefei Sun, paid their respects to the Consort at once, offering words of reverence.

After hearing this, the Consort responded with well-wishes, giving each a red envelope, giving Cefei Sun a bracelet and each of the two concubines a pair of jade hairpins.

For matters like this, Xie Run and the others were merely going through the motions—showing their faces and then taking their leave.

Given the Consort's condition, it was obvious she wouldn't be able to keep them for long before sending everyone off.

But then, out of nowhere, the Consort brought something up: "Yesterday, the imperial physician told me I'm two months along, but the pregnancy is a bit fragile and requires bed rest."

"I went out of my way to ask the Prince to hand over household affairs to Cefei Xie and Cefei Sun. If there are decisions that cannot be made, they are to report to me."

The Consort's words stunned everyone in the room.

This was far more astonishing than Shufei Jiang announcing her pregnancy.

The Consort had been in the prince's household for eight years with no pregnancy in all that time.

Everyone had assumed she would never bear a child, either raising only the Third Miss or eventually adopting a child from the rear courtyard to raise as her own.

Who would have thought she was suddenly pregnant!