Chapter 3
Chapter 3
In the blink of an eye, three years passed.
When the Fourth Prince was three years old, he composed a poem right in front of His Majesty the Emperor!
The news sent shockwaves through the imperial harem and left His Majesty greatly pleased.
His Majesty showered Noble Consort Xu with gifts and praised her for raising the boy so well.
Noble Consort Xu was delighted.
She had never imagined that the child she had casually brought in from outside the palace would turn out to be a prodigy!
For the past three years, she had schemed tirelessly to conceive a child of her own, but fate refused to grant her wish, and every attempt had ended in disappointment.
An imperial physician had examined her and said she would likely never conceive again.
That was precisely why the Noble Consort had begun devoting far more attention to the Fourth Prince in recent years.
She now genuinely treated him as her own son.
“Qingzhi, have you been teaching the Fourth Prince to read?”
I replied softly, “The Fourth Prince is exceptionally gifted. This servant merely read a few poems to His Highness. Who would have thought he would be able to compose one himself?”
The Noble Consort was delighted. She removed a pearl hairpin from her hair.
“This is your reward. Continue serving the Fourth Prince with the same devotion.”
“Thank you for the reward, Your Ladyship.”
As we spoke, the chief eunuch of Huaqing Palace approached with his back bowed.
He leaned close and whispered a few words into the Noble Consort’s ear.
The Noble Consort froze for a moment, then smiled. “My brother is here?
“Bring him to see me at once!”
Noble Consort Xu’s elder brother was Xu Anping, the Flying Tiger General.
He had recently returned to the capital from the frontier after defeating the barbarians and was currently at the height of his prestige.
As the Noble Consort passed me, she paused.
“Qingzhi, bring the Fourth Prince and accompany me to the main hall.”
I hurriedly answered, “Yes, Your Ladyship.”
The Noble Consort was suspicious by nature, and all the personal attendants at her side were trusted confidantes.
I had spent three years in Huaqing Palace. At long last, I had finally earned her notice.
When we reached the main hall, a burly man was already seated in the place of honor.
“Brother!”
Her Ladyship the Noble Consort hurried toward him, unable to hide her delight.
The man bowed respectfully to the Noble Consort before gazing at her with indulgent affection. “You’re already a mother, yet you still act like a little girl.”
The two of them continued talking for quite some time.
Xu Anping held the Fourth Prince with easy affection, every inch the doting uncle.
The Noble Consort waved a hand at me. “Go fetch some of the fresh tea that arrived from Jiangnan a while ago.”
She was sending me away.
I glanced at the Fourth Prince, who was sitting quietly off to the side. Without betraying the slightest change in expression, he winked at me.
Only then did I slowly withdraw.