Chapter 7

Chapter 7

I simply could not understand why Qin Yunnong insisted on wading into these muddy waters. Her pregnancy had not been an easy one, and she had suffered terribly throughout it. On the day she gave birth, she labored for an entire day. Her recovery had never been good, yet she still kept summoning me over to comfort and counsel me, telling me that the Crown Prince was actually a very good man.

She would have been better off saying all that to Hu Mianmian. Hearing it only made me impatient.

That day was the hundred-day celebration for the Imperial Grandson, Gu Zhiyi. Because the Crown Princess had never fully recovered, I helped organize it.

It seemed I had done a fine job of it. The Empress summoned me privately and praised me for a long while.

As for the Crown Princess, she showed her gratitude openly. She dragged her sickly body over in person to thank me. Seeing her pale face, my heart ached, and I hurriedly escorted her back.

Perhaps she still felt uneasy, because she sent people over with gift after gift, round after round. The generosity of it was no less than the rewards bestowed by the palace on New Year’s Eve.

Rong Niang directed my palace servants to store all the gifts in the storeroom. She bustled about for quite some time, and that night, as she laid out my bedding, her brows remained tightly furrowed.

Seeing Rong Niang like that, I found her rather adorable and could not help laughing. I teased her, “Didn’t you vow to become the grand steward of this place? What, you’re already tired after just this little bit of work?”

Rong Niang did not answer right away. She went to check that the doors and windows were shut, then muttered softly, “Sending so much over makes it look as if our lady was hired to handle the affair.”

I froze for a moment, then laughed and asked where she had gotten such notions.

She stopped smoothing my bedding, her tone suddenly turning anxious. “My lady has a good heart, but that doesn’t mean everyone in the Eastern Palace does!”

Rong Niang and I had grown up together since childhood. We were more like close friends, like sisters. If anyone else had said such things, I would have punished them eighty times over by now.

I soothed her gently. “All right, don’t overthink it. Do you think I don’t understand these things? I truly don’t care. What use is it for me to fight over empty reputation? It isn’t something I must fight for in order to survive. Besides, if I were her, I would be frightened too. And most of these things were likely taught to her by her mother. I understand all of it. We just need to peacefully guard Chan’er and live our own lives.”

Rong Niang’s eyes were filled with the exasperation of someone watching iron fail to turn into steel.

How could I not know these things? My grandmother and mother both came from prominent families, and I had been taught by them since I was young. I had heard enough about the ways of the world to understand them thoroughly.

It was just that I truly did not care. What good would fighting do me? Would fighting give me a happy, complete life? The Crown Prince would rather stay by the side of Qin Yunnong, who was ill and unable to serve him in bed, than take a single step toward any of his other women. The hierarchy of the Eastern Palace had long since been set according to the Crown Prince’s wishes.

Besides, Qin Yunnong’s illness was growing more serious. What was there for me to fight her over? The things we wanted were different. She wanted the status of a proper wife and the Crown Prince’s love.

I only wanted to pass this life in peace.

If only things could remain this peaceful forever.

Time slipped by, and another year passed. Chan’er had reached the age where she was beginning to babble. My daily life was still taking care of my child, with Hu Mianmian thrown in as a side responsibility. The Crown Princess’s health had improved somewhat, so I visited her often as well.

Recently, I had gone to see the Crown Princess a little more frequently. I worried Mianmian might feel jealous, so I often went to chat with her too.

During one of our idle conversations that day, I realized her spirit was far worse than before. I tried changing the subject several times, but only when I spoke of the Crown Prince did she show any interest.

“Mianmian, do you know what happened the first time Chan’er called the Crown Prince ‘Father’? The Crown Prince was so happy he lifted Chan’er into the air and ran several laps around my courtyard with her. My heart nearly leaped out of my chest. I wanted to throw him out. Is that any way to play with a child?”

After I finished speaking, I waited for her reaction. Hu Mianmian lowered her head and smiled, then said in an inexplicably shy tone, “Father and daughter are both equally adorable.”

Seeing that she seemed a little happier, I continued, “Mianmian, Yunnong is doing better now. You could say she has made it through the worst of it. The Crown Prince won’t need to keep looking after her all the time anymore. I believe the Crown Prince will certainly come to see you.”

When she heard this, she shook her head with a bitter smile. In a voice that sounded almost despairing, she said to me, “He won’t come.”

I had never seen Hu Mianmian like this before. I was shocked and afraid. I was terrified that her once-bright life had been firmly shrouded in darkness, with not even a single ray of light able to shine through.