Chapter 104

Chapter 104 If the household truly gained a legitimate eldest son, the hopes of other concubine-born sons becoming Heir Apparent would likely be utterly shattered. Even though the Princess Consort had already sent word that Consort Li would raise her own child, no one really believed it. On the twenty-eighth day of the second month, Consort Jiang was welcomed into the household with great fanfare. The celebration was quite lively, but Prince Jing was so busy with the snow disaster that he barely showed his face, and his smiles were far from sincere. The entire prince's residence was shrouded in a strange atmosphere of joy mixed with oppression. Xie Run was now eight months pregnant. With the lesson of Princess Ruyi's birthday banquet fresh in mind, the Princess Consort simply excused all the pregnant women from attending, saving a great deal of trouble. The newly arrived Consort Jiang took up residence in Songya Courtyard. As luck would have it, this courtyard was quite close to Xie Run's. This was not deliberately arranged by the Princess Consort. There were only two courtyards of Side Consort rank—one was Lanxiang Courtyard, and the other was Songya Courtyard. Someone had just died in Lanxiang Courtyard, and the ill fortune had yet to dissipate, so it naturally couldn't be assigned to Consort Jiang. Though Xie Run couldn't leave her quarters, she still watched some of the commotion from the Half-Mountain Pavilion. She had assumed life would be peaceful for a while, with chaos only erupting when the first woman went into labor. Who would have thought this new Consort Jiang would be so restless? After entering the household, Prince Jing spent five consecutive nights in her chambers. She had entered the household priding herself on her merits, came from an excellent family, had received personal praise from the Emperor, and now enjoyed the Prince's favor—of course her tail was raised to the heavens! The only person in the entire residence who met her standards was the Princess Consort. But because the Princess Consort was a princess from a neighboring kingdom, she looked down on her all the more. Following the advice of her old nursemaid, Consort Jiang sought to establish her authority by making an example of someone the moment she entered the household. Jiang Baobao was by nature willful, arrogant, and proud. She took one look around and immediately set her sights on Xie Run. If she could suppress the one with the most prominence, who would dare not show her, a Side Consort, proper respect? At that time, Xie Run had no idea danger was about to descend upon her. Though she was eight months pregnant, she couldn't very well sit in her courtyard doing nothing every day. So she would take walks in the courtyard or just outside its gates each day to prepare for childbirth. Prince Jing doted on her and had a small grove of green plum trees planted outside her gate, giving her at least something pleasant to look at. That day, the area had just been cleared. Xie Run had walked less than ten meters when Consort Jiang arrived with her entourage in full force, clearly looking for trouble. Seeing her posture, Xie Run knew things were about to go badly and quietly signaled Yueya'er with her eyes. Taking advantage of her small stature, Yueya'er slipped away without a sound. Consort Jiang wore a flamboyant red dress, and a whip was actually tucked into her waistband. These days, dark colors were reserved for the imperial family, and there was no rule against wearing peony patterns or red in informal settings. But there were still strict conventions regarding hair ornaments. Consort Jiang's attire wasn't out of line, but she wore a Five-Tailed Phoenix Hairpin in her hair! According to the dynasty's regulations, the Empress wore the Nine-Tailed Phoenix Hairpin, the Noble Consort wore the Seven-Tailed, and Princess Consorts and favored consorts could wear the Five-Tailed, with others decreasing according to rank. Within this prince's residence, only the Princess Consort was permitted to wear the Five-Tailed Phoenix Hairpin. Yet Jiang Baobao, a mere Side Consort, dared to wear it in violation of protocol—wasn't that a blatant provocation against the Princess Consort? Xie Run had long known this woman thought herself above everyone else. After entering the household, she had attended to Prince Jing for five days and hadn't gone to pay her respects even once in all that time. Even Concubine Ning at the height of her favor had never been this arrogant. Everyone in the residence knew she was not to be trifled with, but no one imagined she would be so audacious as to come directly to Xie Run's door looking for trouble?! Even if Xie Run herself, a mere Concubine Consort, was worthless, if anything happened to the imperial grandson in her belly, wouldn't Jiang Baobao be afraid at all? As it turned out, Consort Jiang truly wasn't afraid! Xie Run, supported by Dantao, bowed to Consort Jiang. "This concubine, née Xie, pays respects to Consort Jiang." Jiang Baobao lifted her chin slightly and said coldly, "Concubine Xie is an old hand in this household, yet you don't even know how to perform a proper bow?" Xie Run said softly, "This concubine is with child and truly cannot kneel. I beg the Side Consort's forgiveness." "You're not the only one pregnant in this household. You can't even perform a simple bow—are you that precious?" Jiang Baobao snorted. "Don't tell me you're getting arrogant just because you're with child." "Everyone says Concubine Xie is the most honest and unassuming person, but from what I see, that may not be the case." "I suspect you're honest on the surface, but harbor treachery within!" Dantao wanted to defend Xie Run, but Xie Run grasped her hand to stop her. Xie Run lowered her eyes submissively. "This concubine would not dare!" Seeing her cowering demeanor, Jiang Baobao felt like she had punched a ball of cotton. She hated these spineless dough-like people—they were repulsive just to look at. She couldn't understand what the Prince saw in this wretch! Finding no fault with the bowing matter, Jiang Baobao continued, "I've been in the household for several days now. Why haven't you come to pay your respects to me?" Xie Run was momentarily stunned, then found herself at a loss for words. Still speaking in her gentle, soft tone, Xie Run said, "I beg the Side Consort to forgive this concubine's ignorance. I was not aware the household had a rule requiring one to pay respects to a Side Consort!" "How dare you!" Jiang Baobao glared with her beautiful eyes, her lips red as flames. "Are you saying this Side Consort is unworthy of your respect?!" Xie Run smiled and asked curiously, "May I ask who in the household has come to pay their respects to the Side Consort?" The Princess Consort is not dead yet—what fool would specifically come to pay respects to a Side Consort?!