The maidservant’s words made He Yufen’s face darken. She almost crumpled the handkerchief. The left was considered as honor in ancient times. Even if the central house was occupied, they should give her the house on the left to live. But now they asked her to live in the house on the right side. Even a few maidservants were trying to suppress her. However, she could not stay outside because she was wet all over. On the one hand, it was not decent, and on the other hand, it was very embarrassing. She simply entered the house on the right side, and intended to change it later when there was a chance.
So she gritted her teeth and contained her anger. Instead of talking much with two maidservants, she took her people into the wing room on the right. There were five rooms in a row, and it was enough for the master and servants to live together. When she came to the manor, she only brought a nanny and a maidservant. They piled up the dowry in a room alone, and made some space.
As soon as she just changed her clothes and combed her hair, she heard that there was a noise outside again. It was her maidservant and Concubine Qin’s maidservant quarreling. They didn’t stop until her nanny called her maidservant back.
He Yufen threw the comb hard on the table, and looked at the nanny who came in, asking angrily, “Nanny, should I just forget it when Mdm Qin offended me so much?”
She had thought that Mo Xuetong might torture her with thousands of ways, but she didn’t expect a concubine to dare to bully her like this. They were both concubines, and she was also the cousin of King Xuan. How dare Concubine Qin treat her like this? Wasn’t she afraid that He Yufen reported it to King Xuan, causing her who had just been promoted to be devalued?
“Concubine He, do not worry. Her Highness asked you to get along well with Concubine Qin after you come to the manor. You can’t make enemies everywhere. The most important thing now is to win over King Xuan’s heart. To be a gentle beauty in front of King Xuan. Don’t spoil your plan because of this little concubine.”
The nanny shut the door and warned with a sullen complexion.
“But Concubine Qin has gone too far. How dare she treat me like this!” He Yufen gritted her teeth out of anger. Remembering the other servants snickering while hiding in the yard, she felt that she wanted to rush into Concubine Qin’s room, pull her out, and beat her hard.
“Concubine He, The meaner Concubine Qin is, the gentler we must be. Show how generous you are to people in the manor. Don’t lose the main goal because of small gains. This is King Xuan’s Manor. Do you think no one sees what you do? If you quarrel with other concubines on the first day you come, how will His Highness think of you? Besides, if Consort Xuan punishes you, locks you up, and prevents you from seeing His Highness because of this, you won’t be able to argue back. After all, you did something indecent on the first day.”
The nanny pointed out mercilessly at He Yufen’s mistakes, as if He Yufen really didn’t understand anything. This made He Yufen very uncomfortable, as if she was restrained by words and deeds everywhere. Although she was also careful in the He family, because she was beautiful since she was a child, the people of the He family never treated her wrongly, and no one pointed her nose to teach her, and this person was a servant.
But He Yufen didn’t dare to argue back. This nanny was given to her by Consort Zhao. In a nice way, she came to serve her. In fact, she came to monitor her. If there was something out of line with her words and deeds, Consort Zhao and the He family would never spare her. So she dared not lose her temper with the nanny.
Containing her anger, He Yufen finally calmed down. A grateful and humble look appeared on her face. “Thank you for your reminding, nanny. It was my fault.”
Hearing her apology, the nanny put on a little smile on the harsh face, and nodded. “Concubine He, you should dress up to meet Her Lady. Don’t put these little things in your mind.” This time her tone was softer.
Was it a little thing that she was splashed with dirty water when she had just married into the manor? He Yufen gritted her teeth and gasped for a few breaths, barely maintaining a smile and saying, “I was thoughtless. I will dress up and go to see Her Lady.”
She dressed up again carefully, and wore some luxurious accessories. Looking at the beautiful face in the mirror, He Yufen really calmed down this time. Taking another look at herself in the mirror, she held the maidservant by the shoulder and went toward the door in a decent manner. As soon as she walked out of the room, she saw a woman in a light blue dress coming out across her room.
It was a stunning woman, whose skin was delicate and white. She dressed simply. She stood there, looking weak. However, she appeared proud and arrogant. As her eyes fell on He Yufen’s face and body, she frowned unconsciously. She was the legitimate daughter of a noble family, and she really didn’t like the way He Yufen dressed, which made her look like a vulgar woman.
“Are you Sister Qin, greetings. I’m sorry I did not know that you came first.” He Yufen had recovered her usual gentleness and calmness, and came forward to greet Concubine Qin with a smile, as if she had no idea that it was Concubine Qin’s maidservant who poured water to her.
“You’re too polite, Concubine He,” Concubine Qin said lightly, a trace of ridicule flashing across her eyes.
“I’m going to see Her Lady. Are you going there with me?” He Yufen invited her with a smile.
Concubine Qin subconsciously didn’t want to go with He Yufen, but an idea came to her mind and she nodded.
As a result, none of them saw Mo Xuetong. They were told that Mo Xuetong was still ill. Before they saw her, they were driven out. They had to go back to their yard. At this time, He Yufen could not maintain the smile on her face anymore. Concubine Qin looked down on her, and sneered at her with a smile-like expression. Without talking, He Yufen knew that she was despised.
On the first day she came to the manor, not only did she not see King Xuan, but he did not see Mo Xuetong. Remembering that a maidservant poured a basin of water over her, He Yufen only felt hatred. Then she blamed all these on Mo Xuetong. She thought that Mo Xuetong intentionally arranged her to live here just to torture her.
Now she asked people to block her halfway, saying that she was not in good health. She did not even drink a cup of tea!
What was this? As a concubine, who married into the manor, she didn’t receive the wife’s tea; it meant that she hadn’t been accepted by the wife.
Seeing she was really annoying, the nanny looked outside and lowered her voice to comfort her, “Concubine He, don’t worry. Her Highness said that as long as you have entered the manor, there are many chances for you to get close to His Highness. Her Lady must be afraid that you will get close to His Highness and capture his heart, so she deliberately treated you like this. She will not dare to treat you like that again when His Highness thinks of you.”
He Yufen only felt that she could not live up with it. She held the handkerchief and stood up, saying with hatred, “Nanny, does His Highness live in the Jinwei Pavilion? How about I go there to see him directly?” She heard that Mo Xuetong and King Xuan had not been getting along lately, and one of them lived in the central yard, the other in the Jinwei Pavilion. They weren’t inseparable like they used to be, and this was her chance.
“No, you can’t do it,” Nanny said to stop her, and persuaded with a straight face. “If you dare to see His Highness directly, Her Lady has the right to dispose of you. It’s unreasonable for a concubine to do such a thing. Her Lady is angry because of your arrival. If you do something out of the line, Her Lady will not treat you lightly. Maybe she will say something evil of you in the face of His Highness, saying that you are unwomanly, and do something like this on the first day.”
“It seems that I can’t do anything, then what should I do?” He Yufen really felt like she was going crazy. She kicked the brocade stool in front of her, and felt annoyed. She thought that after she entered King Xuan’s Manor, the big picture was settled. Consort Zhao also analyzed the situation of King Xuan’s Manor for her, and she felt that everything was under control. She never thought that she had just entered the manor, but Feng Yuran and Mo Xuetong refused to see her. What should she do?
She was gentle, generous, but her tenderness must be seen by King Xuan. Otherwise, she would only make people feel that she was weak. How could she not feel upset?
“Concubine He, just hold on. Her Highness has expected that things wouldn’t be so smooth. Just wait, she will be in trouble soon. Maybe you will become Consort Xuan in one fell swoop.” Nanny pointed to the direction of the main yard, her eyes glinting.
Consort Zhao had already arranged it?
He Yufen sighed with relief, and her eyes immediately lit up. She held nanny’s hand and anxiously asked, “Does Her Highness have a good way to deal with Mo Xuetong?”
“Of course there are ways, but now we don’t need to take action. Someone will deal with her. You just need to push at the right time.” Nanny patted her chest and assured. Seeing the nanny’s confident look, He Yufen also smiled.
It seemed that Mo Xuetong would be in trouble within a few days.
Mo Xuetong was indeed ill, but fortunately, she recovered quickly from her sudden illness. Within only one day, she was back to her former self. She refused to see He Yufen because the time was yet to come. Consort Zhao was now in favor with the Emperor, and the He family attached to her. Mo Xuetong could not act recklessly.
Everything about the He family was weird. He Yufen and He Yuxiu were not of the blood of the He family.
Consort Zhao even had something to do with Lian An of the Ministry of Works. Feng Yuran had also told her that He Yuxiu was now raised by Lian An, just like a mistress living outside. It was said that Lian An now always found a variety of reasons to see her, and stayed there for many times. He adored He Yuxiu.
This was just because He Yuxiu had a pair of eyes similar to Consort Zhao’s eyes, or similar to Consort Xian’s eyes, to be precise.
The first time Mo Xuetong met He Yufen and He Yuxiu, she felt that they both looked pretty, and that it was hard to say who was prettier. Why the He family tried to abandon He Yufen, and wanted to send He Yuxiu to King Xuan’s Manor. Maybe it was also because of He Yuxiu’s eyes which were similar to Consort Xian’s. They wanted Feng Yuran to have a good impression on He Yuxiu at first sight.
Mo Xuetong had always had a conjecture. Consort Xian was definitely not the biological daughter of the He family. Maybe she was just like He Yuxiu and He Yufen, who were specifically found by the He family. The He family wished them to marry into good families relying on their pretty appearance and thus bring great benefits to the He family. Then what about Consort Zhao? Was Consort Zhao, who was so similar to Consort Xian, surely the daughter of the He family?
If not, where did the He family find Consort Zhao!
Since Consort Zhao was not their genetic daughter and was sent to the palace together with Consort Xian, why did the He family think Consort Zhao was more useful and reliable than Consort Xian? In this way, Consort Zhao seemed to be the genetic daughter of the He family.
