TPNCQ CHAPTER 42
A show of force
"Jia Fei has been under house arrest for several months, and the Emperor only released her because of the upcoming New Year. I see that Jia Fei's slender waist hasn't been of much use these past few months. You see, whether one's waist is slender or not and whether one is favored or not, it all depends on the Emperor's word, on a single thought." Su Limo smiled, her expression becoming increasingly gentle and agreeable.
"You..." Being under house arrest was a sore spot for Jia Fei recently. Now, Su Limo was publicly rubbing salt into her wound, and with several other concubines nearby watching her for amusement, Jia Fei, enraged and ashamed, changed her expression. When she saw Chen Guiren, the instigator of this, among the crowd, her anger flared up even more, and she said sharply, "Chen Guiren, you're looking well."
"Pinqie greets Chun Guifei niangniang and Jia Fei niangniang." Chen Guiren could only step forward and curtsy to the two, saying respectfully.
"Rise," Su Limo said with a smile. If she hadn't spoken, Jia Fei would have certainly bullied and harassed Chen Guiren. Therefore, as soon as Chen Guiren finished speaking, Su Limo immediately told her to rise.
"I didn't see you being so arrogant in Chunxi Palace before. Now that you've left Chunxi Palace and found a good place and climbed a high branch, you don't even come to greet me when you see me, nor do you come to serve me. Don't forget, how you used to grovel and fawn in Chunxi Palace. I am a Fei, and you are a Guiren. Your rank is lower and you are not respectful, so don't blame others for looking down on you." Jia Fei scolded harshly, looking at Chen Guiren's hesitant and weak expression, Jia Fei scolded again, "You came out of my palace, and you can never hold your head up in front of me for the rest of your life. Be respectful and polite, understand?"
Jia Fei's words were extremely harsh, and she was publicly humiliating Chen Guiren. Moreover, Chen Guiren had indeed come from Chunxi Palace, so these words were not entirely unreasonable. For a moment, Chen Guiren didn't know how to respond and stammered.
"The Emperor always likes people who are knowledgeable, courteous, and well-behaved. No wonder the Emperor favors Jia Fei more. Since Jia Fei also knows that her rank is lower, she should be respectful and courteous to her superiors. In that case, you should also be like this when you see me in the future, so as to set an example for the other sisters and teach them a lesson, so that they don't make mistakes in etiquette." Su Limo said, her soft voice carrying an authority that could not be refuted. Jia Fei was clearly targeting her, Su Limo, with her veiled insults.
Seeing Jia Fei choke and her face turn red, Su Limo smiled faintly and said, "It's not early. All of you sisters should also return to your palaces for breakfast." After saying that, she turned and left calmly.
Chen Guiren also curtsyed to Jia Fei and left this place of trouble with Su Limo.
Two other concubines and three or four palace maids who had heard the noise also dispersed.
Jia Fei stood there, fuming and glaring, saying, "There are more and more arrogant people in this palace. Does this concubine not have the time to become a Guifei?" Hmph.
"It's cold outside, Niangniang, please return to the palace." Lamei said, and helped Jia Fei walk towards Chunxi Palace.
*
“Are you alright?” Su Limo asked, looking at Chen Guiren's slightly reddened eyes.
“I’m fine. I’ve heard worse in her palace before, and I’ve suffered worse punishments. It’s just that this is the first time in public, and I’m also useless. I was so flustered that I couldn’t even retort. I wanted to say a few words for niangniang, but I had no strength to fight back.” Chen Guiren said apologetically.
“When Jia Fei scolded you, it was clearly a show of force to me. Even if you weren't there, she would have had other things to say to me. As for you, Jia Fei will definitely see you as a thorn in her side. You must be very careful in the future and pay more attention.” Su Limo kindly reminded her. Originally, Chen Guiren was only subjected to daily torment in Chunxi Palace. Her action was to allow Chen Guiren to move out of Chunxi Palace so that she would no longer have to live under the watchful eyes of others, but it also caused Jia Fei to hate Chen Guiren. However, Chen Guiren had the protection of Xian Guifei in Yikun Palace, so Jia Fei probably wouldn't dare to act rashly, at most she would use verbal abuse to torment her.
“Niangniang, please don’t worry, I understand. Niangniang doesn’t need to feel guilty. I’m already very satisfied to be able to leave Chunxi Palace. I’ll just treat those words as passing wind. I won’t waste my energy on unworthy people or unworthy words.” Chen Guiren said, her face full of peace.
Hearing Chen Guiren comfort her in turn, Su Limo felt a warmth in her heart. Sure enough, she had chosen the right person to play mahjong with!
“It’s getting late, I’ll return to Jingren Palace first. The weather is cold, make sure you have enough charcoal burning in your palace, and be careful not to catch a cold at night.” After saying that, Su Limo and Shuangjiang returned to Jingren Palace together.
The day was exceptionally cold today. After going back and forth to the palace for a long time, and then wasting some time with Jia Fei in the wind, Su Limo was already hungry when she returned to Jingren Palace. She asked Dongxue to bring her breakfast and specially ordered a bowl of small shrimp wontons with thin skin and tender meat, topped with seaweed, dried shrimp, and chopped green onions. Because Su Limo liked sour food, she added a lot of vinegar, which was very refreshing and satisfying. After eating a small bowl, her whole body felt warm. There were also freshly ground soy milk, tofu skin buns, thick rice porridge, four side dishes for porridge, a plate of fragrant taro cake, and a plate of rose nine-layer cake.
After eating the wontons, she took a little of each of the other dishes, and asked Shuangjiang to take the rest to be distributed to the palace maids and eunuchs. Shuangjiang was always fair, and she would distribute the daily meals, including afternoon snacks like pastries and soup, evenly among everyone, making sure that no one was left out. Therefore, over the past year, the palace maids and eunuchs had all been grateful for the niangniang's kindness and were also obedient to Shuangjiang, the head maid.
The leader is gentle and kind, and she never picks on others for no reason. Every day, everyone enjoys the benefit of extra meals, and during festivals and at the end of the year, there are additional bonuses. The treatment in Jingren Palace is second to none in the entire palace.
Don't underestimate the benefits of having extra meals every day. The food rations for the palace maids and eunuchs are much worse compared to Su Limo. With these extra food allowances, everyone has rosy complexions and is full of energy, and they even work harder than the palace maids and eunuchs in other palaces. Eating well and wearing warm clothes are the most basic material needs of every palace maid and eunuch, and it's also the easiest for the higher-ups to overlook. When asked about it, they would simply say, 'Why don't they just eat meat?'"
After breakfast and a short rest, Su Li'mo took Shuangjiang to the small kitchen to make red date, longan, and donkey-hide gelatin soup. She would eat some in the afternoon and take two servings to the Prince's Residence for Yongzhang and Yongqi. She also prepared two plates of pastries that Yongrong loved.
When it was time to go to the Prince's Residence in the evening, Su Limo went out with Shuangjiang carrying a food box.
As the evening drew near, the sky looked like it was about to snow, and a cold wind was blowing. Su Limo put on the rabbit fur hand warmer that Chen Guiren had sewn for her a few days ago. With her hands wrapped up, she couldn't feel the wind at all, and it was much lighter and warmer than a hand warmer.
Just as Su Limo was about to step into the sleeping quarters of the third prince, Yongzhang, she heard a noise. Yongzhang and the fourth prince, Yongcheng, had returned. They came forward to greet her, and Su Limo said softly, "I made some delicious pastries today, would the fourth prince like to come and have some?"
Hearing this, Yongcheng was eager and his face was full of anticipation, but when he was about to speak, he remembered his mother, Jia Fei's instructions, and his nanny's teachings, so he swallowed his words and said respectfully, "Thank you, Chun niangniang. I still have homework to review, so I'll go back first." After saying that, he bowed and left.
Su Limo knew about the way Jia Fei usually taught him, so she didn't insist and went into the sleeping quarters with Yongzhang.
The fifth prince, Yongqi, and the sixth prince, Yongrong, were already building blocks in the sleeping quarters. The two brothers were having a great time. When they saw Su Limo, they got up to greet her.
"E'niang is here."
"Greetings to Chun niangniang."
"It's cold outside, e'niang brought you some delicious food to try." Su Limo sat down at the table, opened the food box, and said with a smile, "These two bowls of donkey-hide gelatin soup are for Yongzhang and Yongqi, and these two plates of pastries are for Yongrong. Yongrong, remember to leave some pastries for your fourth brother, understand?"
The three brothers allowed the nanny to wash their hands and sat down at the table.
Yongzhang and Yongqi were older and didn't talk much while eating. They deeply remembered the rule of not speaking or eating. Yongrong was three years old, and he had been taught this rule many times, but he was still young and had a lot of questions every day.
"E'niang, didn't you ask the fourth brother to come in and eat with us? He refused. Why did you still leave him some pastries?" Yongrong's little head couldn't understand. Clearly, the fourth brother didn't want to eat...
"Your fourth brother has to go back to review his lessons, and he's diligent and studious, so he doesn't have time to eat pastries. It's not that he doesn't want to eat them. E'niang told you the story of Kong Rong yielding a pear, right? Brothers should be friendly and respectful. You love pastries, and your fourth brother loves them too. You leave some for him, and when he finishes his evening studies, he'll be hungry and eat them." Su Limo explained patiently.
Jia Fei was Jia Fei, and Yongcheng was Yongcheng. No matter what the adults did, it had nothing to do with the children. Moreover, after observing closely for a year, she found that Yongcheng was not as arrogant and overbearing as his mother. It seemed that he spent less time in the Prince's Residence with Jia Fei and had not been influenced by her bad habits.
This is the period when their personalities are being formed. Let the brothers be closer to each other. If their childhood friendship is deep, no matter what happens when they grow up, there will still be something in their hearts. They won't resort to any despicable means for the sake of the throne.
Su Limo knew that her actions might not yield immediate results, but she believed that she could subtly influence them through daily interactions. She didn't want to miss this opportunity.
Their innocent childhood was short, and they would have to attend to political affairs by the time they were teenagers. By then, it would be too late to communicate and build relationships.
"E'niang has said many times that brothers should be friendly and respectful. Yongrong remembers. So, Yongrong will take three pieces of each pastry and secretly give them to the fourth brother. The fourth brother's nanny is very naggy and often doesn't let the fourth brother eat too many snacks." Yongrong took out his small handkerchief, spread it out on the table, carefully picked up six pieces of pastry and placed them beside it, and then began to eat the pastries on the plate. There was a sweet-osmanthus cake that he loved, yay.
Yongqi was drinking the donkey-hide gelatin soup. Hearing the words "brothers should be friendly and respectful," he looked at Yongzhang and then at Yongrong, and nodded silently. Yes, that's right, they as brothers, were friendly and respectful. They ate pastries together, drank soup together, played tangrams together, and built blocks together. The seed of brotherly love had quietly sprouted in Yongqi's heart.