Chapter 170 - Princess Yushan’s Birthday

You Qingchun said after hearing that, “Madam, I am so grateful for your taking me in, and I feel unworthy of the simple errand you arranged. Therefore, when I had time, I thought of giving a hand. But unexpectedly, I neglected my son, which offended His Highness. Please forgive me!”

Song Yixiao said, “That’s your fault, Qingchun! There are only two masters in this house nowadays, and how much work is there? Since there are already people on duty everywhere, what will they do if you do their work? Did I buy them to watch you work?”

“Madam, it’s all my fault!” Ms. Zhao was already ashamed when she heard this, mumbling, “I didn’t teach her clearly to follow the rules…”

“Anyway, from now on, you just do your share of the errand and don’t do other things!” Song Yixiao waved her hand, signaling to Ms. Zhao to be quiet, and said to You Qingchun, “If they are really too busy, told me, and I’ll buy other servants to share the burden. You have only one child. If anything happens to him because of your carelessness, what should you do?”

You Qingchun blushed and kept saying yes.

Song Yixiao sent her away and turned to Ms. Zhao, saying, “Qingchun is easy to communicate and good-tempered. But you should pay attention to your grandson, too! My husband just told me that the place where he bumped into him is not far from the lotus pond!”

“I thought that she had been depressed since her divorce, and could do something to distract herself, so I didn’t care if she helped out everywhere.” Ms. Zhao had always been respected and relied upon by her and considered herself loyal. Unexpectedly, her own daughter made trouble to her, causing Song Yixiao to be disgraced in front of her husband. So she was guilty and ashamed, saying with a slightly choked tone, “I didn’t think she was so confused that she wouldn’t even take good care of the kid!”

Song Yixiao couldn’t say anything else about the situation, she just said, “Ms. Zhao, when you go back, try to comfort Qingchun. She is still young and pretty. It is not impossible to meet a good companion in the future. How could she be so downhearted in such a young age? In the earlier years when I was with Madam Liu, I was also in a hard time. But I have overcome it, have I?”

After Ms. Zhao left, Song Yixiao saw that Jian Xubai hadn’t returned yet, she pinched her brow, and summoned Jinxun and Qiaoqin, “Do you have anything to tell me about the matter just now?”

She didn’t mean to suspect her wet nurse by asking like this. However, in order to know the news immediately when anything happened，she tried hard and all the servants was arranged to be from her own side in the backyard. Finally? In order to repay her kindness, You Qingchun let her only son, who was three to four years old, wander around the courtyard. And she even didn’t find out until Jian Xubai told her himself.

Inevitably, Song Yixiao had to take this chance to warn these servants.

But when she asked them, Qiaoqin and Jinxun looked at each other for a moment, and pour out their woes, “Qingchun is hard-working, but she’s too hard-working. She tries to do almost everything as long as she sees it. She even wants to help wash your clothes. We are not trying to avoid the work, but she was so enthusiastic that we couldn’t stop her. However, she’s being kind, which…”

After all, Qiaoqin once was Wei Mengying’s maid, so she stopped talking right away without finishing her words,

Jinxun was always straightforward and outspoken, so she continued without any hesitation, “What she did have long been considered inappropriate, but I’m afraid that after reporting to you, When Ms. Zhao finds out, she’ll think we’re picking on her deliberately. So, how dare we tell you?”

“It seems what Ms. Zhao said is right. You can’t be spoiled!” Song Yixiao laughed in anger, “Ms. Zhao is controlling you so much that you’re afraid of her; I’m protecting you, but you hide it from me!”

Jinxun was shocked at the words and knelt down to ask for forgiveness instantly, “Madam, it’s my fault!”

Song Yixiao was about to say something when she heard a noise outside. It was probably her husband returning from the study, and she didn’t want to say more to them, so she just said, “I will deduct one-month salary from both of you. If you do something similar later, I won’t talk to you anymore and find you another master before it’s too late. So that you’ll be free and never have to worry about offending Ms. Zhao again!”

Jinxun and Qiaoqin nodded shamefacedly.

After they went out, as expected, it was Jian Xubai who came in with a book. He had a glance at the two maids, sat beside his wife and asked in a low voice, “Have they all been warned?”

“Um.” Song Yixiao nodded with a bad look.

Jian Xubai didn’t ask in detail and said, “Then set up dinner. It’s dark.”

Over the next few days, Ms. Zhao and the others were pretty careful when reporting things, and You Qingchun didn’t dare to neglect her son anymore. The rules of the backyard were straightened out indirectly.

In the blink of an eye, it was the ninth day of the first month of the Lunar New Year.

Because of what happened on the Qianqiu Festival on the fifth day of the first lunar month, Princess Yushan, as a concubine’s daughter in a young age, wouldn’t make a banquet that was larger than her legal mother, Empress Su.

“The small feast is placed in the imperial harem, and the ones who received the invitation are all women of the same generation, so I won’t go.” Jian Xubai had told his wife before, “Just congratulate Yushan for me!”

Although he was raised by the Empress Dowager as a child, it did not mean that there were no taboos for him in the harem.

In fact, apart from the Palace of Mingren where the Empress Dowager lived, he had only been to Emperor Xianjia’s Palace of Xuanming and the Empress’ Palace of Weiyang. Regardless of Emperor Xianjia’s bedchamber, the Empress was his aunt, it was reasonable for him to pay a visit.

He had never set foot in the other concubines’ palaces, including the Palace of Xifu where the Crown Prince’s own mother, Noble Consort Cui lived.

And that was when he was a child, but now that he had been married, he should follow the rules even more strictly.

After all, the small feast was held in Virtuous Consort Jiang’s Palace of Mingguang!

Although it was said that to avoid constraint of the juniors, both Empress Su and Virtuous Consort Jiang did not show up purposely, but it did not mean that any men could enter.

The only man personally presented on that day was Princess Yushan’s youngest brother, the Prince of Shu, whose mother was Concubine Xu. His Highness was just eight years old and after being brought over by the chamberlain to congratulate her sister, he left without sitting there for too long.

Luckily, Princess Yushan was not like Nie Wuying, who didn’t feel being neglected. After sending off Prince of Shu, Princess Yushan was still in a good mood, and chatting and laughing with everyone. Her focus was on the Su sisters, and she even set aside Princess Changxing, her own sister.

Her cousin-in-law, Song Yixiao was even totally forgotten. Song Yixiao was happy to take the opportunity to take a break, bringing Nie Wuying with her to meet people everywhere. She also talked with her friends she hadn’t seen for a long time, such as Xie Yiren, about their recent news, which made her happy.

When the small feast was bustling, Princess Yushan stood up suddenly and said loudly, “Let’s see how difficult it is! Let’s go make one now”

She took the first to go out after saying that. The maids beside her promptly persuaded her. They pulled and pushed for a while before the crowd understood what was going on: When chatting with the Su sisters, Princess Yushan asked about Qingzhou, Su Shaomo said, “Qingzhou is almost snow-free in winter, but the imperial capital is not. I really want to make a snowman recently!”

So Princess Yushan, with the idea of pleasing her future sister-in-law, decided on the spot to make one outside the door!

The maid could not persuade her, and it was not right to blame the Empress’s own niece for being too talkative, so she had to say, “Her Highness Virtuous Consort Jiang had ordered the servants to clean the snow early in the morning, so as not to cause the guests slip and fall. Now that there is no more snow in the palace, how can you make one? It’s better to talk about it later.”

Princess Yushan felt that this was not a problem, “It is just in Palace of Mingguang where there is no snow. It’s not like there is no snow all over the palaces. Anyway, few people live in the next door, Palace of Lanqiu. We can surely find a suitable place. Let’s make a snowman there!”

“But Lady Nuan who lives in Palace of Lanqiu has just had a miscarriage…” the maid was interrupted in mid-sentence by Princess Yushan’s carelessness, “She’s not the head of that palace and just lives in Pinglan Building! Let’s just not go to her door!”

The princess took the lead to build a snowman, her reliable maids could not stop her, and the others would not go up to spoil the fun considering the situation. So whether willing or not, the crowd took warm stoves and wore fox fur robe, going out of Palace of Mingguang. They rushed to Palace of Lanqiu and find a place to play with snow.

Song Yixiao was one of those who didn’t really want to go. She was on her period recently and was afraid of the cold. Just now, in the side hall of Palace of Mingguang, with brazier, she was drinking the warm rose syrup, feeling comfortable. Now, she had to go out in the northern wind, and make some snowman in such a cold day. She was not really fond of it.

So after following the crowd into Palace of Lanqiu, she lagged behind, which could be either accidental or deliberate.

A few moments later, Princess Yushan found a satisfactory place, pulling up her sleeves and started to build a snowman together with Su Shaomo. A number of people also gathered around to help. Seeing a few people joking around, and just looking at them without giving a hand, Princess Yushan held her warm stove and pretended not to notice it.

After a while, the snowman under the hands of Princess Yushan had been piled up a little without outline. Nie Wuying pulled Song Yixiao’s sleeve and whispered, “Yixiao, I want to change my clothes.”

Song Yixiao thought that this was a good opportunity to leave there, so she walked over to Commandery Princess Qingjiang and told her, “I’ll accompany Wuying back to Palace of Mingguang, OK?”

“No need to bother so much.” Commandery Princess Qingjiang didn’t know what was on her mind, just said, “I’ll have someone take you to a nearby place so that you don’t have to walk too far back to Palace of Mingguang.”

Song Yixiao had planned to come back to Palace of Mingguang and not return, but her elder sister-in-law was uncooperative, so she could only say, “Fine.”

Commandery Princess Qingjiang asked a maid to lead them to turn left and right, and a short while later, they arrived at a building, which was inhabited. The people inside were very surprised to see them, and the maid who led the way said, “This is Lady of Yan and Miss Nie, who came to the palace to congratulate Princess Yushan for her birthday. Her Highness Princess Yushan is playing with the snow over there now, and these two would like to find a place to change clothes!”

She got instant reply from the loft. A repeated voice invited them in, and said, “Her Highness had a miscarriage a few days ago, and could not welcome from afar, please forgive her!”

Song Yixiao forgot to look at the plaque before entering the door and asked subconsciously, “May I ask who is here?”

“It’s Lady Nuan.” The maid replied her submissively, which made her think, “What a coincidence!”

However, Song Yixiao didn’t want to see Lady Nuan right now, so she gave some concern and didn’t take it to her heart.

After she and Nie Wuying had changed clothes and came out, she was about to express her gratitude and leave. But what she didn’t expect was that the curtain in the inner room suddenly moved and two maids helped a sickly woman out!

When Song Yixiao heard the noise, she looked over and her eyes suddenly glazed over. Although Pinglan Building was exquisite, it was not big, even narrow. Naturally, there was insufficient light in many places, especially the place where the woman came out.

However, even though she was standing there with a sickly face and knitted brows, she was like a piece of moonlight that had suddenly fallen in the dark of night in a dense forest, so beautiful that those who saw her couldn’t look away.