jdhmnovel Chapter 237 The Legend of Zhen Huan, Consort Qi 50
Chapter 237 The Legend of Zhen Huan, Consort Qi 50
On his way back from Chuxiu Palace to the Princes' Residence, Hongxi unexpectedly encountered his third brother Hongshi and fourth brother Hongli.
"Third brother, fourth brother." Hongxi greeted them warmly, upholding the principle of brotherly love.
"Sixth brother, did you just return from Chuxiu Palace?" Hongshi asked.
Hongshi was tall, but somewhat slow in his mental development. Although he was dull-witted, he was honest and kind. After marrying his primary wife, the emperor arranged for him to study at the Ministry of Works, but his performance was always unsatisfactory, and he was repeatedly criticized by the emperor.
Ultimately, the emperor had no choice but to let him return to the Imperial Study to continue his studies. Now, Hongshi is busy with both his studies and official duties, making him extremely busy.
“Yes, Third Brother.” Hongxi didn’t have any ill feelings towards Hongshi, after all, Hongshi usually took good care of his younger siblings.
Hongxi and Hongshi talked for a while longer, while Hongli, standing to the side, was filled with jealousy and his eyes were full of calculation.
After Hongshi left, Hongxi didn't bother to say much to Hongli. He simply greeted him and went straight back to the prince's quarters.
Hongli stood alone, his eyes filled with malice, thinking to himself: "Hmph, my third and sixth brothers are just people with a favored mother. If my mother were still alive, I would definitely be living a better life."
Thinking of this, Hongli decided to go to the Empress's palace to pay his respects. He thought that if the Empress could stand on his side, it would surely make his father, the Emperor, look at him differently.
Hongli, who was fourteen years old, spent the first ten years of his life in the Yuanmingyuan Garden, where he received most of his education from wet nurses and eunuchs.
Even though the emperor hired a tutor for him, the instruction was not detailed, only aiming to get by. This limited Hongli's vision and perspective, and he lacked magnanimity.
The Fifth Prince, Hongzhou, was frail and sickly. Every winter, the Emperor dared not let him return to the palace and had to keep him in the temporary palace, fearing that he would catch a cold and fall ill. Therefore, Hongli was not familiar with this weak fifth brother.
Wen Yuan did not interfere too much in the affairs of the prince and the previous dynasty. The previous dynasty had the Jawlejia clan, and it was obvious to everyone that the Sixth Prince was exceptionally talented. Even if he could not ascend the throne in the future, he would certainly be granted the title of Prince.
……
Turning our attention back to the inner palace, Shen Meizhuang's health had been poor since she became pregnant, with extremely severe pregnancy reactions. The Emperor, feeling sorry for her, exempted her from paying her respects and allowed her to rest peacefully at Suiyu Pavilion.
An Lingrong couldn't stand seeing Zhen Huan's faction gain power, and often resorted to underhanded tactics behind the scenes. Yi Xiu was the same; both of them were eyeing Zhen Huan's faction covetously.
Zhen Huan was determined to protect the child in Shen Meizhuang's womb. On one hand, she hoped to use this to bring Shen Meizhuang back to her side; on the other hand, another child would strengthen her faction. Looking at Wen Yuan's faction, they already had four children, making them a force to be reckoned with.
In late June, the palace was like a giant furnace, unbearably hot. The emperor, naturally unwilling to remain in the palace any longer, took his concubines to the Yuanmingyuan Garden to escape the heat, and all the concubines with children went along.
During this trip, Wen Yuan stayed at Shangxia Tianguang. The Sixth Prince's residence was close to the Emperor's bedroom, which would not only make it convenient for him to study, but also allow him to be close to the Emperor and cultivate the father-son relationship.
Hongli arrived at Bitong Academy. In the past few months, he had frequently visited the Empress's palace to pay his respects, trying to curry favor with her, but the Empress ignored him.
Left with no other choice, he could only seek favor with other concubines. Among the Emperor's high-ranking concubines, Consort Jin and Consort Xuan were the most favored.
Consort Jin had two sons, and the sixth prince was already studying at the Ministry of Rites. He seemed to be more outstanding than her in every way, which aroused Hongli's jealousy.
Consort Xuan has two daughters. The third princess, Princess Longyue, is raised by Consort Duan and has a pair of twins with her. They are still young and seem like a good candidate to win her favor.
So, after finding out where Zhen Huan lived, Hongli paid his respects to the Empress and then went to Bitong Academy.
Inside the Bitong Academy, Zhen Huan looked at the two children playing with a loving expression.
Lingxi was naturally active and could crawl at eight months old, while Hongzhan was much quieter and remained largely still. Zhen Huan summoned the imperial physician, who found nothing abnormal and speculated that the child simply didn't like to move.
"Your Majesty, the Fourth Prince has arrived," Fu Jia reported softly.
Shen Meizhuang put down her needlework. She was now more than four months pregnant and the fetus was stable. When she had nothing to do, she liked to come to Zhen Huan's place to play with the two children, hoping to get some of the good fortune.
With hope for the future, Shen Meizhuang seemed to have forgotten the difficult days she spent in Suiyuxuan, and she and Zhen Huan became close sisters again.
"Why is the Fourth Prince here?" Shen Meizhuang knew of the rumors that the Emperor did not like the Fourth Prince.
“The Fourth Prince used to go to the Empress to curry favor, but she ignored him. Now he’s come to me. It’s clear this child is cunning,” Zhen Huan said calmly.
"Anyone can see through the Fourth Prince's thoughts, so don't fall for it. Besides, with such an adorable Hongzhan, do you need anyone else?" Shen Meizhuang continued.
"Don't worry, Sister Mei, I know what I'm doing. Fu Jia, let him in. It's not good if word gets out that he's always out in the sun." Zhen Huan instructed Fu Jia.
Led by Fu Jia, Hongli entered the Bitong Academy. He looked around and saw Zhen Huan and Shen Meizhuang, and quickly bowed, saying, "Greetings to Mother Xuan and Mother Hui."
"Get up, no need for formalities," Zhen Huan said gently.
"I have long heard of the virtuous reputation of Xuan'e's mother, but I have never had the chance to meet her. Today, having just arrived at Yuanmingyuan, I had some free time, so I hurried here to pay my respects to Xuan'e's mother and Hui'e's mother." Hongli wanted to please her, so he chose to say the most flattering things.
Zhen Huan naturally wouldn't give him a hard time. After chatting with Hongli for a while, she sent him back.
After Hongli left, Shen Meizhuang said with a solemn expression, "Children who can grow up in the palace are all extraordinary. The Fourth Prince is now fourteen years old, not much younger than us. If we associate with him too closely, gossip will inevitably spread."
"Don't worry, Sister Mei, I understand," Zhen Huan said.
Yunli also accompanied the Emperor to the Yuanmingyuan. Some time ago, his primary wife, Meng Jingxian, became pregnant.
Huanbi had thought she would finally have a chance to rise in the ranks, after all, there were only two mistresses in Prince Guo's mansion: his primary wife and herself. But unexpectedly, she was left behind in Prince Guo's mansion and was unable to come to the Yuanmingyuan Garden with him.
Nothing major happened during her time at the Yuanmingyuan. However, once when Shen Meizhuang went out to enjoy the scenery, she was bumped by a young eunuch, which nearly caused her to miscarry. Fortunately, the fetus was saved, but she had to stay in bed to recuperate.
After returning to the palace from the Yuanmingyuan, Shen Meizhuang focused on her pregnancy. At this time, the Emperor originally intended to pardon Zhen Yuandao.
Upon learning of this, Wen Yuan devised a plan and decided to cause some trouble. She revealed to Yi Xiu Zhen Yuandao's crimes of secretly taking in the daughter of a disgraced official, having a daughter born out of wedlock, and turning the daughter into a maid.
After the matter was accomplished, Wen Yuan gracefully withdrew from public life, much to Yi Xiu's delight. Whether Zhen Huan was happy or not was of no concern to them.
After obtaining the evidence, Yixiu contacted some marginal officials from the previous dynasty and asked them to impeach Zhen Yuandao.
Initially, only a few people impeached the group, but soon a large number followed suit. Among them, the Jaarja clan was behind the scenes, but they acted very carefully, having those with whom they had poor relations impeach the group. Even if the matter was exposed, they would not be accused of forming cliques.
When the Emperor learned of this, he was furious, feeling that he had been tricked by Zhen Huan and Zhen Yuandao. From then on, the Emperor never mentioned pardoning Zhen Yuandao again, but he did not make things difficult for Zhen Yuyin either, only prohibiting her from being promoted.
As soon as the news from the previous dynasty spread, Zhen Huan learned of it. Zhen Yu Rao was filled with anxiety. She had been in the palace for over a year, and although she would occasionally leave the palace to visit her mother, she spent most of her time inside the palace.
"Sister, what should we do? How could Father do such a thing? It must be those villains framing him. Mother is still hoping for our family to be reunited." As Zhen Yurao spoke, tears welled up in her eyes, her eyes filled with coldness.
Zhen Huan only knew the news at this time and did not know who the mastermind was. She could only comfort her sister: "Don't worry, sister. No matter who is behind this, I will not let them get away with it. I have always known that the imperial court and the harem are dangerous. I blame myself for not being careful enough. If the Emperor had revealed the news later, perhaps Father would have already returned to the capital."
After comforting Zhen Yurao, Zhen Huan sat alone on the couch, looking dejected, with an increasingly obvious ruthlessness in her eyes.
She secretly speculated that this matter could only have been done by a few people: the Empress, Consort Jin, and Consort He. Consort He had little influence in the court, so it couldn't have been her. That left only the Empress and Consort Jin.