Lady Wu

Yinzhen sat down on the round chair with Yu Yan in his arms. Madam Li, seeing the fine beads of sweat still dotting his forehead, hurriedly took a silk handkerchief to wipe his face.

Though there were ice basins placed in Madam Li’s chambers, the temperature inside was only just enough to keep one from sweating while sitting still, since Hongfen’s frail health could not bear the cold.

Those who did not do manual labor naturally did not find it hot, but Yinzhen had just returned from outside and must have been feeling stiflingly warm.

He set his daughter on his lap and took the chilled melon juice handed over by a maid, draining it in one go. The restlessness within him faded nearly entirely. “Of all the women in this courtyard, only you are truly to my liking.”

Madam Li pursed her lips in a smile. “It’s only because I have had the fortune to spend so much time with you.”

Yinzhen gave a wry chuckle. By that measure, the Consort in the palace had spent the longest time with him, but today, no matter how long he stayed in her chambers, he could not feel at ease.

Watching the two adults veer off into their own conversation, Yu Yan could not help but tug at Yinzhen’s sleeve and boldly called out, “Food!”

“This time, when I accompanied the Khan to inspect among the common people, I saw many children the same age as E’linzhu already sitting at the table with their parents, eating together—though the food was a little more refined.” With a mischievous tug at Yu Yan’s pigtail, Yinzhen added, “You know, all those children were plump and fair.”

Indeed, under normal circumstances, a three-year-old could eat most things as long as they weren’t too strongly flavored—there was absolutely no need to be drinking milk all the time!

Perhaps it was being trapped in a child’s body, but Yu Yan could not help but pout, casting a look of accusation at the mischievous Yinzhen.

Madam Li’s eyes lit up at the words “plump and healthy.” “If that’s so, Pearl, have the kitchen fry an egg pancake, cut it into small pieces, and feed it to the young lady.”

The thought of finally escaping the misery of endless milk made Yu Yan let out a long sigh of relief. She then glanced at Yinzhen, who was quietly eating his meal, and couldn’t resist wrapping her slightly plump hand around the one he used to pick up food. “Papa, meat!”

She had just noticed that her conveniently acquired father was a picky eater: with cucumber and egg stir-fry, he only ate the cucumber; with celery and shredded meat, he picked out only the celery.

Looking at his thin, tall figure, he was probably just past his teens. How could he go without meat?

It reminded her of what people said in later times: that Yongzheng, in his youth, was always at the bottom among his brothers in riding and archery—perhaps because of his picky eating, he lacked muscle on his arms and thus had no strength.

Yinzhen, gazing into his daughter’s bright, black eyes, felt a wave of warmth in his heart. The chopsticks that had been reaching for cucumber suddenly veered, and a slice of the kitchen’s tender fried egg found its way to his mouth.

“Our E’linzhu now knows how to care for her father,” Madam Li said, covering her mouth with a laugh. “She really is growing up.”

Yu Yan nibbled at the egg pancake fed to her by Nanny Chen, her eyes darting around and her ears perked up.

“Children change every day—they grow with the wind,” said Yinzhen, putting down his chopsticks after finishing his meal. “I heard Hongfen has recovered from his illness. Why haven’t you brought him out for me to see?”

Just thinking of her son’s pitiful appearance filled Madam Li with unease.

She had wanted to wait until Hongfen was a bit healthier before presenting him to the Fourth Prince. Otherwise, in his current state, even his own mother found herself feeling a bit of distaste.

Especially since the Consort’s eldest son, Honghui, though born frail, now looked no different from other children. With such a legitimate heir as a shining example, if the Fourth Prince now saw her Hongfen, wouldn’t he pale in comparison at once?

Yu Yan guessed what her mother was thinking, so she wriggled about on Yinzhen’s lap, intent on distracting him and steering his thoughts away from seeing his son.

---

Nanny Chen, who’d been quietly pretending to be mute all this time, immediately stepped into the green silk screen and soon returned, carrying a bundle swaddled in red cloth.

She had wrapped Hongfen tightly, exposing only a small portion of his sleeping face. Perhaps because he was still dreaming, a touch of color had appeared on his usually pale cheeks. Yinzhen had never held his son himself, so from his vantage, Hongfen was just a slightly frail infant.

Madam Li breathed a long sigh of relief—thank goodness for her reliable cousin, otherwise, she wouldn’t have known what to do.

“Hongfen is delicate, take good care of him,” Yinzhen said with satisfaction. “Today, I’ve just returned from outside the palace, so by custom, I should rest in the Consort’s chambers. But don’t worry—I’ll come to your rooms tomorrow.”

At these words, Madam Li could not hide her delight. Two shallow dimples appeared on her face, putting even spring flowers and autumn moons to shame.

Yinzhen pinched her cheek hard. “Silly girl.”

Truthfully, it seemed that in these early years, Madam Li was indeed favored in Yongzheng’s household.

Yu Yan smacked her lips, feeling a little envious.

After Yinzhen left, Madam Li finally relaxed, her previously tense back sinking softly into the rosewood chair. “It’s strange—whenever the Fourth Prince enters the room, I feel just as I did when Mother invited a palace matron to teach me the rules. I can’t relax at all.”

Nanny Chen quickly covered Madam Li’s mouth. “Miss, you can say such things at home, but not in the residence.”

In her anxiety, she treated Madam Li as though she were still an unmarried girl. When she realized her mistake, her face turned ashen and she knelt on the floor, silent.

Madam Li was startled and hurried to help her up. “There are no outsiders here. Pearl and Jewel were carefully chosen by my aunt and are trustworthy. Cousin, there’s no need to frighten yourself.”

Yu Yan played with the rattle Pearl handed her but listened closely to their conversation.

“The Consort, as chief wife, must be most proper. But mutual respect alone does not make a marriage,” Nanny Chen said, knowing her cousin was sheltered and sometimes slow to catch on. “To be blunt, no man doesn’t like a lively beauty. You mustn’t be too reserved or fearful before the Prince; just on the strength of your looks, your prospects will never be too poor.”

“Aunt told me just yesterday to run everything I say to the Prince through my head first, lest I say something wrong.”

Nanny Chen laughed. “You’re too straightforward. Your mother worries you might blurt out something inappropriate that would upset the Prince.”

Madam Li knew her own limitations. In truth, she was just a beautiful but unworldly woman. She planned to make the most of her looks while she was still young and charming, to win the Prince’s favor and bear him more children. Even if she aged and lost her beauty, with his temperament, life would not be too hard.

Yu Yan listened with delight, but her two-year-old body could not keep up. Her eyelids grew heavy, and at some point, she drifted off to sleep.

Half-conscious, she felt herself being carried into a familiar, warm embrace, and then she knew nothing more.

When she awoke again, the dawn was just breaking, and Yuetao and Shanzhi were quietly preparing for the day.

Nanny Chen was the first to notice her waking. Smiling, she dipped a handkerchief into the warm water at hand and helped Yu Yan wash and dress.

“Today is the first of the month. We must go to the Consort’s chambers to pay our respects,” Nanny Chen said, dabbing a little fragrant balm onto Yu Yan’s face. “You must be on your best behavior today.”

Yu Yan nodded obediently.

---

The Consort’s main quarters were much larger than Madam Li’s. Even the idle servants stood in strict lines, so still that Yu Yan thought they looked like wooden dolls that breathed. She shivered.

A woman sat in the center of the room on a luohan bed. Though still young, she wore a deep grape-purple silk coat embroidered with hydrangeas. Her skin was not fair—almost sallow—and the stately, dignified attire made her seem older than her years.

Standing to either side of her were two women: one was Yu Yan’s birth mother, Madam Li; the other, though unfamiliar, was a gentle beauty with thick brows and almond-shaped eyes full of tenderness.

In contrast, the Consort’s features seemed even more plain.

“Second Young Lady pays respects to the Consort.”

Nanny Chen curtsied with Yu Yan in her arms. Unsure what to say or do, Yu Yan balled her fists and played at being a child, greeting loudly with a smile, “Greetings!”

Laughter broke out in the previously silent hall—even the Consort, who had been keeping a straight face, couldn’t help but smile.

Yu Yan was now the oldest child in the household. The eldest young lady, born of Concubine Song, had died within a month; Honghui and Hongyun were both two years younger than her. So, regardless of any undercurrents among the three women, they all looked at this adorable, harmless girl with some affection.

Nanny Chen set Yu Yan on a small couch and handed her a string of linked rings to play with.

The Consort, seated above, took a sip of Jin Junmei tea and signaled her chief maid, Wintergreen, with a glance. Then she put down her cup and said, “When I paid respects to Mother two days ago, she remarked that our household is still too small. Though the Fourth Prince is not overly indulgent in women, we must still consider heirs.”

Was she planning to bring in a concubine for her father?

Below, Madam Li could not help but clench her handkerchief and ask, “Has Her Highness bestowed someone upon us?”

Yu Yan’s ears perked up at this, even as she played with the linked rings.

“They’ve been drilled in etiquette for two days and are now waiting in the rear rooms,” the Consort nodded. “She’s Miss Wu, daughter of the Taizhou magistrate, from the Bordered Yellow Banner of the Han Army. She left her name at the last selection but was never given a marriage. Mother thinks she is lovely and clever, and since the Fourth Prince has few children, she was assigned to us.”

Miss Wu entered alongside Wintergreen. She had been sixteen at the time of the selection and was now eighteen, having waited two years. Even the loose Manchu robes of the Qing dynasty could not conceal her slender waist and rounded hips. No wonder the Imperial Consort had chosen her for Yinzhen—perhaps believing the old saying that wide hips meant easy childbirth.

She knelt softly in the center of the room, her greeting as gentle and sweet as her appearance—truly a rare beauty.

Yu Yan tilted her head, inwardly rolling her eyes to the heavens.

To think these girls were chosen like objects by those in power, shuffled from place to place, finally sent to a stranger’s home. She could not help but feel grateful that her own reincarnated identity had spared her such humiliation.

Damn this feudal system.