Chapter 301

Chapter 301 After leaving Spring Mountain Court, Prince Jing went to the main courtyard to see the Princess Consort. The Princess Consort had been recuperating for some time. Once her wound healed, she was able to get out of bed, and was now slowly building up her qi and blood. Looking at her on the surface, one would never guess she was someone who had just walked through the gates of life and death. Seeing Prince Jing arrive, the Princess Consort rose to greet him with a bow. But before she could even lower herself, Prince Jing reached out and supported her. "No need for formalities." "I made a special trip today just to say one thing." The Princess Consort looked quietly at Prince Jing. Prince Jing said calmly, "I am not one to be fickle or ungrateful. This position of Empress—you are worthy of it." The Princess Consort stood frozen in place for a long moment, then said firmly, "This concubine thanks Your Highness." Prince Jing: "You have managed the prince's residence very well. In the future, my harem will still be under your charge." "Take care of your health. Good days lie ahead." Prince Jing was extremely busy these days. After saying a few words at the Princess Consort's residence, he had to enter the palace. The Princess Consort was left watching Prince Jing's retreating figure, standing in a daze for a long time. Before she knew it, tears were streaming down her face. She had never sought Prince Jing's true heart, because when she was first sent here for a political marriage, she had already seen through everything. Her parents and brothers didn't even care about her—what could she possibly demand of Prince Jing? Yet although the two of them had little affection between them, after years of supporting each other, Prince Jing had never once failed her. Everyone in the rear courtyard was keeping close watch on Prince Jing's movements. Upon hearing that Prince Jing had gone to Spring Mountain Court and then to Green Pine Court, Consort Sun assumed he would come to her courtyard next. Ever since her face had been ruined, Prince Jing had never stayed overnight at Pine Wind Pavilion. Consort Sun kept comforting herself that Prince Jing was too busy—too busy to pay attention to the rear courtyard. The maidservants around her also comforted her in the same way. Now that Prince Jing had returned from the palace and his first stop was Spring Mountain Court, Consort Sun was already feeling somewhat displeased. But then she thought—Xie Run had been ill these past few days. Since Prince Jing knew she was nearly recovered, it was only natural for him to go check on her. Then Prince Jing went to Green Pine Court. Consort Sun suddenly realized that Prince Jing's return today might be to reveal some news. The household was buzzing with discussions about ranks, and Consort Sun had her own thoughts on the matter. Although she had no children, her face had been ruined within the prince's residence by the Eldest Young Master. Prince Jing must surely harbor some guilt toward her because of that. Counting everyone in the entire prince's residence, her family background was the best. Even if she entered the palace, she wouldn't be the least bit intimidated. Consort Sun didn't dare hope to surpass Xie Run, after all—Xie Run had a child to rely on. She only wanted a Fei rank. If not that, then even the position of Zhaoyi, first among the Nine Concubines, would be acceptable. That way, as long as she could become pregnant in the future, she would certainly have the opportunity to be promoted to Fei rank. At this moment, Consort Sun somewhat regretted being too impulsive back then, scheming to cause Jiang Baobao's massive hemorrhage. At the time, she had held the moral high ground and just wanted to vent her anger, so she hadn't thought to conceal it. But with that matter out in the open, the grievances she had originally suffered no longer seemed so grievous. There was even a chance Prince Jing would feel more pity for Jiang Baobao because of it. These small emotions hadn't mattered before. But now, at this critical juncture, they affected her rank upon entering the palace. She felt vexed, but there was no way to make up for it. She wondered whether she should send someone to invite Prince Jing to come sit at Pine Wind Pavilion. But before Consort Sun's people could even go to invite him, Prince Jing had already left the residence and gone to the palace. Now Consort Sun grew anxious instead, wondering whether Prince Jing harbored some dissatisfaction with her. Why else would he visit only Consort Xie among the two Side Consorts, but not come to her courtyard? Also hoping for Prince Jing's visit were Hua Yu, Consort Li, Concubine Wu, Concubine Fang, and others. When Fang Yuan'er heard the news of Prince Jing's return to the residence, she had just come back from taking a stroll around her courtyard. Ever since that day she attended Wan Linlang's funeral, she had pulled herself together, filled with fighting spirit. Now she focused daily on maintaining her health, learning from Xie Run by walking a few laps back and forth each day, and even practicing the Five Animals Frolics once or twice. Qiuxiang had disappeared without a trace since the day of the soldier disaster. Now serving by her side was Qiuhua. But Qiuhua wasn't as capable as Qiuxiang had been, and Fang Yuan'er always found her unsatisfactory. At this moment, Qiuhua couldn't help but worry: "Mistress, do you think that since the Prince went to see Consort Xie this time, she might take the opportunity to coax him into giving her a high rank?" Fang Yuan'er was quite open-minded about it now. "What use is a high rank? We're still at the very beginning." "Being able to obtain a high rank and hold onto it steadily—that's what takes real skill." Fang Yuan'er sneered coldly: "Before, Xie Run played innocent and pretended to be naive in the rear courtyard. Let's see how well that act of hers works in the harem!" Once they entered the palace, there would be many more people attending to Prince Jing. Prince Jing would naturally come to realize that women like Xie Run—all that cloying, tea-flavored pretense—were a dime a dozen. When Xie Run grew older and was no longer special, Prince Jing could not possibly continue doting on her like this. "Right now, I only hope the Prince gives her a high rank, so she can bask in all the glory alone." "Let her first taste the flavor of flames fed with oil and flowers embroidered on brocade—only then will she know how much it hurts to fall from the heights!" Fang Yuan'er thought to herself that Xie Run was nothing more than her former self. Qiuhua: "Mistress, what rank do you think the Prince will give you?" Fang Yuan'er fell into sudden silence. She knew very well how much weight children carried in Prince Jing's heart. In the original script, Fang Yuan'er had no significant faults, relying on her son and her favor to climb to the position of Noble Consort. In this life, her son is dead, her faults are too numerous to count, and before her death, she even bore the weight of Wan Linlang's life. Let alone Noble Consort, she would be lucky to even be among the Nine Concubines. Although Fang Yuan'er could see the situation clearly, when it actually came to this moment, she still held a faint glimmer of hope. Perhaps—perhaps Prince Jing, remembering that she had miscarried one son and borne him another, would grant her a higher rank? Rarely, Fang Yuan'er burned a few sticks of incense before the Guanyin Buddha statue in her courtyard.