Chapter 65

Chapter 65: A Deficiency Cui Lingrong was certainly curious. But she didn't rush to ask why. Instead, she spoke calmly, "More than that, I'm curious as to why the Young Princess Consort would tell me all this? Princess Rongjia is a member of the Rong Prince Mansion. If you came to me with this, the Rong Prince Mansion surely doesn't know about it, does it?" "Yes, if I hadn't happened to run into you today, I wouldn't have said anything at all. After all, things that are deliberately planned always leave traces—nothing is as natural as coincidence." Lady Wu picked up her teacup, the tea clear and sweet with a lingering aftertaste. She continued slowly, "Rongjia is the only legitimate daughter of the Rong Prince Mansion. She's been spoiled since childhood. She's favored, and everything she wants, she must have." Cui Lingrong listened quietly as Lady Wu spoke, refilling her tea at appropriate moments. "Later, when I was pregnant, she pushed me into the water. I lost the child and was left with lasting damage. I've kept that account for many years, and I'd like to ask Marchioness Song to help me." Lady Wu summarized briefly. "You might think I'm holding a grudge, but those were the hardest years of my life—so hard that I'll never forget them for as long as I live." "I see." Cui Lingrong looked thoughtful. "Yes. I lost my child, but Rongjia got her retribution too. She'll never have children of her own." At this point, the smile on Lady Wu's face became genuine. "She was born prematurely and has always been frail. The physicians said she has a congenital deficiency and can never conceive. So now does Marchioness Song understand why she's been fixated on the child in Huadie's womb?" Cui Lingrong had entertained this suspicion before, but when the imperial physician had come to take her pulse, he hadn't mentioned it, so she hadn't pursued that line of inquiry. Thinking back now, the imperial physician must have noticed the problem, but given the tense atmosphere that day, he hadn't wanted to stir up trouble, so he'd kept it to himself. Lady Wu continued, "After Rongjia married, the Rong Prince Mansion, in order to protect her secret, arranged for someone skilled in medicine to be part of her dowry. But in the Du household, that person died." "There's one thing I don't understand. Since Princess Rongjia knew she couldn't bear children, why did she stop Elder Master Du's concubine from having one?" Cui Lingrong asked. "I told you—Rongjia has a willful temperament. She refuses to accept her fate and insists on trying. Besides, in the early days of their marriage, the couple was deeply in love, and Elder Master Du was willing to indulge her. How could Rongjia tolerate someone else bearing Elder Master Du's child?" Lady Wu couldn't say too much—she needed Cui Lingrong to investigate on her own. "But a man's heart changes easily. Later, Elder Master Du kept a concubine in a hidden residence, and all sorts of quarrels followed one after another. Rongjia was consumed by jealousy and even more determined not to let Elder Master Du have his way." These matters were largely consistent with what Cui Lingrong had already uncovered. "So then, what outcome does the Young Princess Consort wish to see for Princess Rongjia?" Cui Lingrong asked. "That..." Lady Wu smiled with her lips pressed together. "I live in the Rong Prince Mansion. As long as I do anything against Rongjia's interests, my own life won't be easy. I haven't thought about a specific outcome. I just wanted to inform Marchioness Song of this matter. How you handle it is entirely up to you." Lady Wu believed that given Cui Lingrong's position, she would never let Princess Rongjia off easily. Equal Wife? There was no such thing as truly standing on equal footing. One mountain was always higher than another. "Thank you for the reminder, Young Princess Consort. I understand." Cui Lingrong said. She couldn't very well summon the imperial physician again to take Princess Rongjia's pulse. This was simply something she would keep in mind. "Mm. I trust that you won't disappoint me." Lady Wu couldn't stay too long, so she rose and took her leave of Cui Lingrong. As she returned with her daughter, she asked, "How are you getting along with Song Yu?" Zhao Yu was a reserved person by nature, speaking little to anyone and having few friends. "She was on guard against me at first, but once she got absorbed in the storyteller's tales, she forgot to be wary. She's quite innocent and lively." After a pause, Zhao Yu asked her mother, "Do you want me to become friends with Song Yu?" "Follow your own heart. I won't force you," Lady Wu said. "Daughter understands. Mother can't easily associate with the eldest Young Madam Song, but daughter can afford to be a bit more willful. With daughter coming and going from the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion, I can also bring Mother news of Aunt." Zhao Yu's face showed no expression as she spoke. "Since Mother has need of it, daughter can also be friends with Song Yu." Lady Wu looked at her daughter and sighed. "You're so young, yet why is your temperament so old and worldly? I told you—follow your own heart. You don't need to scheme so much on my behalf." She now managed the Rong Prince Mansion and had both sons and daughters. As long as she didn't yearn for her husband's affection, her days would go smoothly. On the other side, Cui Lingrong was also discussing Zhao Yu with her daughter. "She never smiles—just keeps a cold face the whole time. By the end, I couldn't be bothered to deal with her and just played however I pleased." After finishing her account of Zhao Yu, Song Yu asked what Lady Wu had said. Cui Lingrong had no intention of hiding it from her daughter. "She told me that Princess Rongjia has a congenital deficiency and cannot bear children." "So that's it. No wonder Princess Rongjia wouldn't let you interfere in the matter of Huadie. Do you think Huadie would be willing to give her child to Princess Rongjia?" Song Yu didn't want to see Princess Rongjia get her way. "Why don't we leak the news to Huadie and let her fight it out with Princess Rongjia?" "Before this, I already had Caixia go and hint to Huadie that Princess Rongjia might want to raise her child," Cui Lingrong said. "But Huadie hasn't made any move. Since that's the case, she's probably willing to let Princess Rongjia raise the child." "If Princess Rongjia raises Huadie's child, a concubine's son becoming a legitimate son—wouldn't that threaten Xuan-ge and Jin-ge's positions?" Song Yu immediately thought of her two younger brothers. "If that's the case, it would be better if this child were never born." The moment the words left her mouth, Song Yu felt she was being a bit too ruthless. "But it is a life after all. If you take action, I'm afraid it would harm your karma." In her heart, Song Yu didn't want to see this child born. But Song Yu had never dealt with such matters before. Truly letting her mother do it stirred some reluctance in her heart. Cui Lingrong said, "We absolutely must not dirty our own hands—otherwise, if it's truly investigated, it would be easy to leave evidence behind. Our ultimate goal isn't to prevent this child from being born, but to prevent Princess Rongjia from raising this child." She said there was plenty of time ahead—Huadie still had a long while before giving birth, so there was no need to rush. Cui Lingrong brought her daughter back to the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion. She busied herself for several more days, and on the day before her brother's new residence banquet, Song Shulan came to Qiushuang Zhai. "Your brother is hosting a banquet, why didn't you tell me?" Song Shulan's words carried a note of reproach. "Didn't the Marquis say that Zeyu is merely an adopted brother, not a proper relative of the Marquis Mansion? I thought the Marquis was busy with year-end affairs, so I didn't want to trouble you," Cui Lingrong said, deliberately speaking with sarcasm, remembering Song Shulan's words from that day. Song Shulan frowned upon hearing this. "If he's not a proper relative, then why do you care about everything concerning him? Lingrong, what exactly are you still being stubborn about with me?" He had long noticed that Cui Lingrong's attitude toward him had lost its former intimacy. In the past, when he came over, Cui Lingrong would prepare tea and snacks in advance and tell him everything about her recent affairs in detail. But now, Cui Lingrong no longer shared such things with him. Hearing this question, Cui Lingrong didn't understand what Song Shulan was thinking either. Did their growing distance really need her to spell it out? "Marquis, you're overthinking things." "Let's hope it's just me overthinking. I'll find time to go tomorrow—you rest well." Song Shulan left those words and departed. Everyone in Bianjing knew the relationship between the Marquis Mansion and Cui Zeyu. If he didn't show his face, it wouldn't be proper. Song Shulan was in a bad mood and didn't want to go anywhere, so he went straight to the front courtyard. "Qingshan, do you think the Eldest Madam doesn't care about me as much anymore?" Song Shulan suddenly asked. "That can't be. You're the head of the household, the sky above the Eldest Madam. In her heart, you're naturally the most important." Qingshan thought for a moment, then added, "Perhaps it's because you've been good to the Commandery Princess that the Eldest Madam feels a bit jealous?" "That's true. She's always been someone who follows the rules, so it's more reasonable to say she's jealous. Well then, tomorrow I'll give her some face and go to Cui Zeyu's place early." Song Shulan ate a casual dinner and retired early. The next day, Song Shulan went to his post first and only arrived at the Cui residence near noon. Just as he reached the entrance, a servant boy came forward specially to greet him. "The Eldest Madam instructed that when you arrived, I should bring you over." Seeing that Cui Lingrong remembered he was coming, Song Shulan felt much more at ease. Passing through the front courtyard, as the sound of voices grew clearer, Song Shulan turned into the main hall. As he crossed the threshold, a wave of warmth rushed to meet him. He first caught sight of Cui Zeyu beside Cui Lingrong, chatting and laughing merrily. The two stood together with smiles on their faces, listening to others' congratulations—a very warm scene. For some reason, a strange feeling surged in Song Shulan's chest. He strode over quickly and squeezed himself between Cui Lingrong and Cui Zeyu.