One Went Crazy
In this world, the person that Noble Lady Li cared most about was not the Emperor. Instead, it was her son, the sixth prince, Xuan Tian Feng. When she had been younger, she had tried some things to earn favor, but it was not simply for the sake of obtaining the Emperor’s favor. Instead, it was for the sake of having the Emperor’s blessing to ensure that she did not suffer too much bullying in the harem. Later on, she had a son, and all of her affection was turned toward her son. In addition to this, after Imperial Concubine Yun’s appearance in the palace, the Emperor no longer visited the imperial harem, thus her feeling grew even fainter.
The sixth prince was her treasure, and he was a filial child. He was well-read and very studious. She had once had great hopes for that child, and the support that she had sought from the Emperor to not be bullied in the imperial harem was now sought from the sixth prince. Unfortunately, the sixth prince, while indeed filial to his birth mother, was fully devoted to his books and had absolutely no desire to be distracted from them. Later on, when he had been pushed to the brink, he simply fled to be stationed at the border, which caused Noble Lady Li to feel quite displeased.
Now that she heard Feng Fen Dai suddenly mention her son, she could not help but be startled! Being locked up in Jing Si Palace meant that it was very difficult to see anyone else. The sixth prince was permitted to enter to speak, but he did not visit frequently. She fell silent for a while and asked her palace maid: “How long has it been since His Highness the sixth prince last came here?”
It was clear that the palace maid knew something. Glaring at Feng Fen Dai, her gaze was filled with complaints. Following this, she helplessly replied to Noble Lady Li: “It has been a few months.”
“A few months…” Noble Lady Li’s brow was furrowed tightly, as a bad feeling washed over her.
The palace maid quickly advised: “Noble lady, don’t take it to heart. Even for His Highness the sixth prince, Jing Si Palace is not a place that can be visited often; moreover, His Highness still has rights to command an army and has many things to do. As this servant sees it… he should have returned to the Northeast’s military camp to take care of matters.”
Noble Lady Li did not believe it. If he had only returned to his military camp, Feng Fen Dai would not have deliberately come over here to say those strange things. She looked at Feng Fen Dai and directly asked: “What do you want to say?”
The corners of Fen Dai’s lips curled up, as she began to laugh with some dissatisfaction, “Noble lady, how is it that you aren’t even clear on what your own son is doing?” She glared at the palace maid then very rudely said: “When the master asks a question, you should respond directly, yet a servant like you doesn’t just hide the truth, you’re actually deceiving her. What sort of crime do you think that is?”
The palace maid had been filled with anger by Feng Fen Dai, but she could not vent it. The Feng family had fallen, but Feng Fen Dai still had her engagement to the fifth prince as his official princess. With this, it was very possible that with any small misstep, a misunderstanding would occur between the fifth prince and the sixth prince. She did not want such a thing to happen, thus she could only kneel and admit her crime: “This servant was wrong. Would Noble Lady please hand down punishment.”
Noble Lady Li was also filled with anger but could not vent it on Feng Fen Dai, thus she could only vent on her own servant. Seeing the palace maid kneel to admit her mistake, she swung a slap at her: “Speak! What exactly is going on!”
The palace maid gritted her teeth, knowing that the situation could not be hidden, thus she frankly revealed the truth: “It was all this servant’s fault. I was worried that master would worry, thus I kept it hidden. In truth… in truth, the sixth prince is indeed not in the capital. Although he also went to the Northeastern Army, he did not bring them back to the capital. Instead, they were brought to Yun Province and left in Ji An Prefecture.
“Ji An Prefecture?” Noble Lady Li rarely inquired about the situation in court. When she heard mention of Ji An Prefecture, she really did not react to what sort of place that was. But she was all too familiar with Ji An. The Feng family had produced Imperial Daughter Ji An. Could it be that Ji An Prefecture was…
Feng Fen Dai sneered: “Noble lady really is forgetful. Of course, Ji An Prefecture would be the piece of land that my second sister, Imperial Daughter Ji An, has in her hands! His Highness the sixth prince really has bright prospects. I have already sent people over to investigate. Not only did he go to Ji An Prefecture with his army to deal with Feng Yu Heng’s problem, but he himself also remained there. Noble lady, do you want to guess what His Highness the sixth prince is doing in Ji An Prefecture?” She spoke to this point then began to giggle. If that laughter had been heard by members of the Feng family, they would definitely be able to recognize is as being the same as the late Han shi. “His Highness the sixth prince remained in Ji An Prefecture to be a school teacher.”
Noble Lady Li was completely dazed upon hearing this. Her son had actually gone to Feng Yu Heng’s territory? To be a school teacher? Although she understood that her son had always liked books, and had mentioned more than once that if he was not part of the imperial family, he would have definitely become a teacher, but of all the places, he had to go to Ji An Prefecture? She felt a bit flustered. Her son had gotten together with Imperial Daughter Ji An. What exactly was it for?
Feng Fen Dai was able to understand what she was thinking and snorted coldly: “Does noble lady not understand why? Then I will tell you. It’s for love! The sixth prince earnestly likes Feng Yu Heng, thus he simply chose to ignore his own birth mother, heading straight for Feng Yu Heng’s Ji An Prefecture. I heard that he was even living in Feng Yu Heng’s residence in the prefecture. The two were very close! Fen Dai knows a bit more and could tell noble lady about it. The sixth prince headed to the Northeastern Army first to bring back tens of thousands of troops; however, they did not return directly to the capital. Instead, they went to Ji An Prefecture to help deal with Feng Yu Heng’s problem. After that, he himself did not return, simply sending the troops to the seventh prince. Now, His Highness the sixth prince is not just a normal school teacher in Ji An Prefecture, but he does not even have his right to command troops. Say, shouldn’t a son that forgot his mother after having someone in his heart be punished?”
Noble Lady Li nearly coughed up blood, but Feng Fen Dai did not hold back in the slightest, as she continued, her words becoming crueler and crueler: “This is not all. Noble lady, think about it. Now that Feng Yu Heng and the ninth prince have already gotten married, if the ninth prince found out about His Highness the sixth prince’s feelings and found out that His Highness the sixth prince was yearning for his wife, what sort of ending would that be? If noble lady doesn’t do something, His Highness the sixth prince will eventually die at the ninth prince’s hands! Fen Dai definitely is not just saying things for the sake of causing alarm. His Highness has handed over his troops to the seventh prince. The seventh prince and the ninth prince are on the same team. It’s the same as His Highness the sixth prince being in complete isolation. Is that not just waiting to be taken advantage of?”
Of course, Noble Lady Li understood Feng Fen Dai’s logic. There were no men that would allow others to yearn for their own wives; moreover, it was that ninth prince, who had always been extremely conceited. But since her son no longer had anything, what had Feng Fen Dai come to Jing Si Palace for? Of course, she recalled when Feng Fen Dai had advised her to have the sixth prince join forces with the fifth prince. What she had been looking for was the military rights that her son had. Now, he had already given up on those rights. What value did she have?
Noble Lady Li looked at Feng Fen Dai in confusion, asking her: “What are you still wanting to do?”
Feng Fen Dai did not beat around the bush, frankly saying: “Military rights! Although His Highness the sixth prince has handed over his military rights, the military tally is still in his hands. That is to say that those tens of thousands of troops are still his. At present, he is living in Ji An Prefecture. Based on the ninth prince’s feelings, how could he not know what sort of thing is happening. There is already conflict. If nobly lady does not advise His Highness the sixth prince to make a decision, there might come a day when the ninth prince suddenly becomes upset. At that time, not even some bone shards will be left.”
Noble Lady Li trembled and immediately recalled the ninth prince’s, Xuan Tian Ming’s, devilish appearance, as well as Imperial Daughter Ji An’s, Feng Yu Heng’s, ferocity, and she could not help but become afraid. But fear was just fear. For some reason, when she heard that her son had taken an interest in Imperial Daughter Ji An, she actually had a different thought come up. That thought began to move a bit and seemed to be hard to hold back.
Feng Fen Dai could see that there was a change in Noble Lady Li’s mood, but she just thought that she had been shaken by her words. She also knew that His Highness the sixth prince was not in the capital. If Noble Lady Li wanted to communicate with him, she would need to send a letter. Thus she did not rush and only reminded: “Noble lady should make some arrangements.” She then stood up and patted her dress to get rid of some non-existent dust. She then looked at Jing Si Palace’s side hall with disdain once more then said: “By making a decision sooner, noble lady will be able to leave this damn place sooner. Don’t look at how the eighth prince and ninth prince are currently in the midst of a fierce battle. When two tigers fight, it’s possible that both will come out in bad shape!” After saying this, she giggled for a while then left on her own.
The palace maid stood up and directly took the teacup that Fen Dai had used and threw it away. When she returned, she advised Noble Lady Li: “Imperial Concubine* must not take that Feng family’s fourth young miss’ words to heart. Why would His Highness the sixth prince have to help His Highness the fifth prince?”
“Who is helping whom?” Noble Lady Li suddenly asked this: “As it is now, the troops have been given to the seventh prince to help old seventh and old ninth?”
“This…” The palace maid was also a bit puzzled. After thinking a bit, she said: “Can we just not help anyone? Just live our own lives? His Highness is not that sort of person. In the past, His Highness has told Imperial Concubine many times not to forcefully push His Highness down that path.”
“I am his mother. I will not harm him.” A flash of resolution flashed through Noble Lady Li’s eyes, “But what you said about not helping anyone is correct… Go and find that box with the head ornaments. I recall that there should be a pair of jade earrings left from the previous dynasty. It was something that His Highness the sixth prince gave me when he returned to the capital the year before last. Go and find it. Find a way to send it to Feng Yu Heng. Just say that it’s my gift to her and His Highness the ninth prince for their wedding.”
The palace maid did not understand it. Her master had never gotten along very well with Imperial Daughter Ji An. During the winter hunt, there had been that sort of event. Although Imperial Daughter Ji An had pled for her life, she had never seen her master express her gratitude? Why did she suddenly think of sending a gift? The pair of jade earrings from the previous dynasty were the most valuable things that Noble Lady Li had. She had always treasured them dearly. Now, they were being given away just like that. Could it be…
The palace maid was shocked and urgently said: “Noble lady, don’t take fourth young miss Feng’s words to heart! His Highness the sixth prince is not a foolish person. How could he possibly set his sights on his younger sister? Also, even if there is such a thing, Imperial Concubine should be advising against it. You must not help His Highness with this sort of thing.”
“Why not? I had heard long ago that the Feng family had a daughter with the aspect of the phoenix. In the past, everyone had said that it was the extremely beautiful Feng Chen Yu, but Feng Chen Yu had died long ago. Now, there were only three remaining. No matter how she looked at it, it should be Feng Yu Heng that was it. If Feng’er really took an interest in her, I want to think of a way to help him. So what if she has already married someone? All that matters is if Feng’er likes her!”
The palace maid was so frightened that she did not even dare breathe loudly. Intuition told her that her master… had gone crazy!
*TN: The maid is addressing her with the wrong term.