Chapter 59

Chapter 59: Teaching the Son "Why are you looking at me like that? It's perfectly normal that she can't conceive. If she could, why wouldn't she have had children before? It must be her first husband's problem, right?" Yuan Mingzhu said matter-of-factly. Cui Lingrong looked at Yuan Mingzhu thoughtfully. That was true. It was perfectly normal not to be able to conceive. She had previously assumed that since Song Shulan frequently visited Princess Rongjia, a man and woman sleeping together for long enough would eventually produce a child. But Cui Lingrong had overlooked one point—there were some people who could sleep together for years and never conceive. If Princess Rongjia had no child of her own, then to consolidate her position, she would need a child registered under her name. Could Princess Rongjia be trying to take Xuan-ge or Jin-ge from her? No. Even if Princess Rongjia wanted to raise a child, she could arrange concubines for Song Shulan. A child raised that way would naturally be closer to Princess Rongjia. The Xuan-ge brothers were already sensible and mature. It wouldn't be wise for Princess Rongjia to try to take her children. Throughout the entire banquet, Cui Lingrong mulled over this matter. When it was time for her to leave, Mama Tian from Lady Wu's side escorted her to the door. "Marchioness Song, please take care. The Hereditary Princess greatly enjoyed chatting with you. She said she would invite you for tea another day when she has free time, to have a good long talk." Cui Lingrong nodded. After boarding the carriage, she didn't leave immediately but waited for Song Shulan to bring the Xuan-ge brothers out. Meanwhile, in the inner courtyard of the Rong Prince Mansion, Princess Rongjia had just obtained three thousand taels of silver from her mother. As she was about to leave, she ran into her eldest sister-in-law, Lady Wu. "Sister-in-law seemed to have a delightful conversation with Sister Cui today. You seem to like her quite a lot?" Princess Rongjia said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes, then stepped forward two paces. "Are you very pleased that she's beaten me twice?" "The Princess jests. Has Lady Cui won? If she had truly beaten you, why would you still be here today?" Lady Wu let out a light scoff, looking at Princess Rongjia's arrogant face with deep disdain. Princess Rongjia raised an eyebrow. "True enough. Master Song is devoted to me with all his heart. My life is certainly much better than yours, Sister-in-law. I hear my eldest brother recently acquired another beautiful concubine. I'd advise you to focus your energy on my brother rather than meddling in other people's affairs." She gave a cold snort and swept away with her attendants in a grand manner. Lady Wu's eyes nearly dripped blood. Her relationship with the Hereditary Prince was strained—after years of marriage, they had never once had a heart-to-heart moment. The women in the inner courtyard were countless, and children were born one after another, all having to call her mother. Yet her own first child had died in her womb—and it had been Princess Rongjia who caused it. It had been a fully formed male fetus. Before her tears could even fall, the Hereditary Prince had said that Princess Rongjia was young and didn't know any better, and told her not to make a fuss. Her father-in-law and mother-in-law had also defended Princess Rongjia, blaming Lady Wu herself for standing too close to the pond's edge—otherwise, she wouldn't have fallen in. But how was she supposed to know that Princess Rongjia would be so vicious as to actually push her into the water? After the miscarriage, she was left with chronic headaches, and it took a long time to recover her health before she finally had Yu-jie. But before that, her mother-in-law had blamed her for being physically unfit and arranged two concubines for the Hereditary Prince, resulting in a concubine's son being born first. Lady Wu had worked extremely hard to stop expecting her husband's affection, devoting herself wholeheartedly to raising her children and managing household affairs. "Hereditary Princess, the wind is strong here. Shall we go back?" "Mama Tian, do you think Lady Cui can defeat Rongjia?" The hatred surging in Lady Wu's heart could not be suppressed no matter what. "Lady Cui is a clever woman, but the Princess has the Rong Prince Mansion as her backing. She won't fall easily," Mama Tian said. "You're right. Unless Rongjia commits a grave sin, the Rong Prince Mansion will always have her back. When she wanted to marry Song Shulan, the Prince petitioned for the imperial edict of betrothal on her behalf, not to mention how much the Princess Consort dotes on her." Lady Wu narrowed her eyes. "But even the most beloved daughter will eventually become tiresome enough to be cast aside. Don't you think?" Mama Tian understood her mistress's thoughts. "Yes. When Lady Cui sent people to Jinling, you deliberately guided her people to find that madwoman. Should we drop another hint to let Lady Cui continue investigating the Du family?" Lady Wu shook her head. "If I interfere again, I might be discovered by the Prince and the others. Lady Cui needs to notice something is wrong on her own. Moreover, with Lady Cui's current resources, even if she sends people to Jinling, she won't be able to uncover much more. Let me think about it." She and the Hereditary Prince only maintained surface harmony. If she made a move against Princess Rongjia, she would surely be cast aside by the Prince. Lady Wu had endured for so many years; a few more days wouldn't make a difference. She took a deep breath and went with Mama Tian to find her daughter. After the New Year, her daughter would turn fourteen. Recently, quite a few people had been bringing up marriage proposals for her. But she hoped her daughter could marry someone with whom she shared a true connection of hearts—not end up like her, spending every night alone in an empty room. While Lady Wu went to find her daughter, Cui Lingrong waited by the carriage until her two sons boarded. As soon as Song Mingjin got on the carriage, he said excitedly, "Mother, the Rong Prince Mansion is so grand! Father said this is my maternal grandfather's home and told me to be close with the cousins of the Prince's household." With that, he raised his hand to show his mother the gilt agate bracelet he was wearing. "Cousin Xu gave this to me. He said he likes me and gave it to me as a welcome gift." Cui Lingrong frowned as she watched. "Such a precious thing—how could you accept it so easily?" "Cousin Xu said it was nothing, he has plenty." Song Mingjin was still basking in the joy of receiving the gift, but Cui Lingrong ordered the carriage to turn back toward the Rong Prince Mansion. When Song Mingjin heard they were going to return it, he shielded the bracelet protectively, displeased. "I don't want to give it back. Once it's given to me, it's mine. Why won't Mother let me be happy? If Grandfather hadn't asked for leave on my behalf today, I'd still be stuck studying miserably at the Guozijian!" Cui Lingrong was taken aback. Lately her son had been studying at the Guozijian, and she hadn't spent much time with him. Only now did she realize her younger son had grown willful. "Jin-ge, if you've accepted such a valuable gift from someone, what do you have to give in return?" Cui Lingrong said patiently. "Do you know how much silver a gilt agate bracelet is worth?" She turned to look at Xuan-ge. "Did you take one too?" Song Mingxuan said he hadn't. "Your son tried to dissuade Younger Brother, but he truly liked it, and I couldn't talk him out of it." Song Mingjin pleaded, "Mother, please let me keep it. There's a classmate of mine who shows off his clothes and accessories all day long—it's so annoying. I want something precious to outshine him too. Please just say yes—" "Nonsense!" Cui Lingrong was genuinely angry now. "You're sent to the Guozijian to study and learn how to conduct yourself, not to compete with others. If you truly want such things, you should work hard and earn them through your own effort, not get them without lifting a finger. Give me the bracelet!" Song Mingjin reluctantly clutched his hand, tears streaming down his face, but he refused to hand over the bracelet. Just then Qingshan returned. "The Marquis learned that the Madam's carriage had turned back and sent me to ask what was the matter." Cui Lingrong said it was nothing and told Qingshan to go back first, then looked sternly at Jin-ge. After she had held out her hand for a long while, Song Mingjin finally couldn't hold out any longer. With a look of aggrieved resentment, he slipped the bracelet off and placed it in her hand. Only then did Cui Lingrong lead the party back to the Rong Prince Mansion. Xu-ge was a child of the Rong Prince Mansion's second branch. Cui Lingrong handed the bracelet to the gatekeeper. "I'm terribly sorry. Jin-ge was thoughtless to accept this gift, but he knows in his heart it wasn't proper. Please return it to Xu-ge." With that, she took her two sons and left. As soon as they returned to the Marquis's residence, Old Madame wanted to see her two grandsons. Cui Lingrong didn't want to embarrass her son in front of so many people. "We'll talk about the bracelet later. Go pay your respects to your grandmother first." When they arrived at Shouan Tang, Princess Rongjia and Song Shulan were also there. Song Mingxuan led his younger brother in performing the formal greetings, but Song Mingjin was still lost in his misery, his little face drooping. Old Madame Song noticed something was wrong and gathered Song Mingjin into her arms. "My dear boy, why aren't you happy?" Song Mingjin shook his head and said nothing was wrong. Seeing that she couldn't get an answer from him, Old Madame Song looked up and asked Cui Lingrong, "You tell me—what happened?" Cui Lingrong had no choice but to explain about the bracelet. Old Madame Song had just begun to frown when Princess Rongjia said with a smile, "Sister Cui is too strict. It's only a gilt agate bracelet—not such a precious thing. The fact that Xu-ge gave it to Jin-ge shows that Xu-ge likes Jin-ge. It's a good thing for the cousins to be close." With that, she beckoned to Jin-ge with a kindly maternal air. "Jin-ge, don't be upset. I have some pretty bracelets over at my place too. Come pick one out with me, and Xuan-ge can come along as well. You're studying at the Guozijian—your attire shouldn't be too shabby, or people will laugh at you." Cui Lingrong said there was no need for the Princess to go to such expense. "They're there to study. If they develop a habit of competing over appearances, how can they settle their minds and focus on their books? Xuan-ge is no longer young. The Marquis still hopes Xuan-ge can earn the xiucai degree—it would bring honor to the Marquis's household." Only when the subject turned to his sons' studies did Song Shulan speak up. "Indeed. The Guozijian is a place for learning. Lingrong is right—it's not good to cultivate extravagant habits." Song Mingjin had just started to brighten, but upon hearing his father and mother say this, his brows knitted together again in a frown. When they returned to their own courtyard and saw Mama Chen deliver a new piece of jade ornament, Song Mingjin wanted to accept it but dared not. "Jin-ge needn't worry. This piece of jade is understated and clear—ordinary people can't tell its quality, so it's very suitable for bringing to the Guozijian. And the Princess gave it to you in secret. As long as you don't say anything, no one will know." Chen De's Wife set the jade ornament on the table. "Don't blame the Madam for being strict—she only does it for your own good." Really? Song Mingjin pressed his lips together. He so wished his mother could be as lenient as the Princess. He didn't think of himself as vain—he just didn't want to be outshone by others.