On the tenth day of the tenth lunar month, Prince Hui had a day off from his official duties. He spent the entire morning accompanying the Princess Consort. After noon, when she took her nap, he quietly left the estate with Qingai and his guards.
Her lower abdomen was gradually showing, and Yao Huang was becoming increasingly prone to sleepiness. This afternoon nap lasted for a full two hours. In her groggy state, she felt Prince Hui moving. Yao Huang opened her eyes and, sure enough, saw Prince Hui sitting beside her, dressed in a set of white silk inner garments.
The premium tribute silk shimmered all over with a pearl-like luster, making Prince Hui's face look as flawless as fine jade.
Yao Huang lazily stared at Prince Hui for a while before asking, "Why did Your Highness sleep until this hour today?"
Prince Hui was not one to oversleep. Most of the time, he would lie down with her and leave after half an hour or so, staying in the front courtyard until she woke up and finished dressing before coming back.
Zhao Sui did not explain. Instead, he asked the Princess Consort, "Do you want to lie down a bit longer, or get up now?"
Yao Huang decided to get up so she could take a stroll in the garden while the sun was still out. The weather was getting colder and the days shorter, so she cherished any fine weather with good sunlight.
Zhao Sui extended his left hand to support his wife's shoulders, helping her up.
Yao Huang chuckled, "It's not like I'm at the stage where sitting up is difficult yet."
Prince Hui lowered his eyes.
Yao Huang sat up straight and casually reached out to throw off the blanket. As she moved, she felt something unusual on her hand. Looking down, she saw a gold ring set with a gemstone on her left index finger. It was a bright, dazzling, and pure yellow sapphire, even larger than the four the Yongchang Emperor had rewarded her with!
Yao Huang was dumbfounded. She raised her hand to her face, looking back and forth between the gemstone and Prince Hui, who still sat beside her with lowered eyes. Thrilled, Yao Huang threw herself at him.
Zhao Sui reached out just in time to catch and hold the Princess Consort steadily!
Yao Huang was overjoyed; she absolutely loved this yellow sapphire ring. "When did Your Highness buy this?"
Zhao Sui steadied her as she sat and explained, "Last time I sent someone to inform Guo Shu about rebuilding the Deer Park, I casually asked him to keep an eye on the major jewelry shops in the capital for a gemstone of this quality. After finding the right gem, I had the shop alter it into a ring with a design similar to those four you have. It was delayed until a few days ago when it was finally finished, and I only found time to pick it up today."
Yao Huang said, "You should have told me earlier! If you didn't have time, I certainly did!"
Zhao Sui remained silent.
Yao Huang stepped onto the floor barefoot, took out the four gemstone rings she frequently played with from her jewelry cabinet, and slipped them all onto her left hand in one go. She then sat back on the edge of the bed, staring at them without blinking.
Zhao Sui shifted to her side. He first picked up his wife's socks, then motioned for her to sit up on the bed so he could help her put them on.
Yao Huang took a moment to glance at him and deliberately dodged the sock Prince Hui was trying to slip on her.
Zhao Sui firmly grasped the Princess Consort's foot.
Yao Huang crawled to her knees behind Prince Hui and began kissing along the side of his neck, continuing until Prince Hui closed his eyes and leaned his head back, allowing her to kiss his Adam's apple.
When the Princess Consort's hand tried to slip into the collar of his inner garment, Zhao Sui covered her hand and said hoarsely, "Stop messing around."
Yao Huang nuzzled his face and whispered into Prince Hui's ear, "I've already asked around. It's perfectly fine to sleep together occasionally during these middle months."
Not only was she thoroughly pleased with the sapphire ring Prince Hui had given her, but Yao Huang was also genuinely craving intimacy.
When Prince Hui was too greedy, she couldn't handle it, but now she had gone without for several months. The more she wasn't supposed to think about it, the more it occupied her mind.
Zhao Sui remained silent.
He didn't believe his wife would ask the two doctors in the estate about such a thing, which meant she could only have asked her mother or Nanny Jin.
The elders' words might hold some truth, but Zhao Sui trusted the medical books he had read even more. After a woman became pregnant, she should remain calm and peaceful; extreme sadness, joy, shock, or anger could easily disturb the fetus.
When the Princess Consort saw gemstones, her eyes would merely light up, but in those moments of passion, the Princess Consort would be burning hot all over, crying out endlessly.
"Lie down properly."
When the Princess Consort's hands became restless once again, Prince Hui spoke helplessly.
Yao Huang blushed furiously at these two simple words. Prince Hui was really something—if he was tempted, he should just turn around and embrace her, yet he insisted on arranging it so solemnly.
She lay down shyly, her back facing Prince Hui.
Zhao Sui turned her around.
Yao Huang closed her eyes and wrapped her arms around Prince Hui's neck, her hands slowly moving to grip his hair.
But after only a few soft moans, Prince Hui sat up and pulled the quilt all the way up over the Princess Consort's head.
Yao Huang was speechless.
She pulled down the blanket, looking at him in disbelief.
Prince Hui had already moved to the edge of the bed. With his back to her, he said, "I'll go back to the front courtyard first. Come find me when you're done getting ready."
With that, he hoisted himself into his wheelchair and let down the bed curtains, blocking the Princess Consort's view.
If Yao Huang were truly angry, she could have easily blocked Prince Hui's wheelchair and dragged him back to continue. After all, no matter how fast he pushed his wheelchair, it couldn't outpace her feet.
But how could Yao Huang bear to be mad at him over this?
She only craved it occasionally. Prince Hui probably craved it every single night he lay beside her, didn't he?
He clearly wanted it more than she did, yet he preferred to hold it in.
On the nineteenth of the tenth month, Prince Kang sent a memorial via the four-hundred-mile expedited courier service. The memorial stated that he had spent three days inspecting every main and branch channel of the Fengyan Canal, finding the entire system solid and sturdy. Following that, they opened the sluice gates for a three-day trial irrigation. Not a single channel leaked or broke, and the water flow was unobstructed in every branch. Di Xian and the local commoners had promptly resolved a few minor flaws, showing that both officials and citizens were united in their hopes for next year's irrigation and a bountiful harvest.
The Yongchang Emperor was greatly pleased and issued an edict summoning both Prince Kang and Di Xian back to the capital to receive their rewards.
This was a joyous event beneficial to both the nation and the people. When Zhao Sui returned to the estate that evening, he told the Princess Consort about it.
Yao Huang smiled and said, "Since Your Highness doesn't care to claim credit before Imperial Father, let me divide the merits for this matter. Without Di Xian and his son, there would be no new Fengyan Canal today, so the father and son take the primary credit. However, without Your Highness's recommendation, who knows when Di Xian would have realized his ambitions, and the people near the new canal would have continued to suffer and go hungry. Therefore, Your Highness shares the primary credit."
Zhao Sui listened silently. He only wanted to make his wife happy, not to fish for compliments from her.
The Princess Consort continued, "But Your Highness's recommendation alone wouldn't have been enough. It also required Imperial Father's wisdom to accept the advice and his willingness to take silver from the national treasury to build the canal. So, Imperial Father shares the primary credit with you all."
Even those commoners who earned meager wages, waking up early and staying up late to endure the hard labor of building the canal, also deserved a share of the credit.
Zhao Sui smiled, raising his soup bowl in place of wine to toast his wife, who had distributed the merits so fairly.
The Princess Consort was pregnant and shouldn't drink tea either. Fortunately, there were two bowls of nourishing soup prepared by Master Kong and Madam Gao on the table.
Seeing that Prince Kang was about to return and receive praise, Prince Qing felt very bitter. Upon returning to his estate, he originally wanted to complain to Zheng Yuanzhen about their Imperial Father's unfairness. However, seeing that Zheng Yuanzhen had a good appetite and looking at the plump cheeks she had finally managed to regain, Prince Qing swallowed his words, afraid of ruining her mood and appetite.
Because Zheng Yuanzhen was pregnant, after dinner, Prince Qing went to the quarters of his concubine, Wei shi.
The two newly wedded secondary consorts were both beauties and daughters of officials. They had always strictly adhered to the rules. Furthermore, having just entered the estate, Prince Qing was not yet familiar with them. If he rashly complained about his imperial father to them, the two secondary consorts would surely be too frightened to utter a word. They might even act like Zheng Yuanzhen and advise him to respect his father instead, which would only leave Prince Qing asking for a snub.
Wei shi was different. She came from a lowly palace maid background, had not read many books, and only knew to treat him as her heaven.
After their intimacy, Prince Qing held Wei shi in his arms and vented the pent-up frustration in his heart. "If Imperial Father had let Eldest Brother build the canal, and he did a good job and took the credit, I would have accepted it. But Di Xian had already finished building the canal. Eldest Brother just went over to inspect and accept it, yet he got the credit for nothing. It is obvious that Imperial Father is biased. He deliberately gave me the difficult tasks, and even when I succeeded, he still picked on my faults. Meanwhile, he gave Eldest Brother the easy ones."
Wei shi furrowed her brows. "Yes, the Emperor is so biased. Your Highness is well-versed in both pen and sword, and possesses a handsome countenance. You are clearly better than the First Prince in every way."
Prince Qing kept a straight face. It was precisely because he surpassed his eldest brother in every aspect that he could not resign himself to this.
Wei shi looked at him and asked, "Does Your Highness have any good ideas to turn the situation around?"
Prince Qing did not. After returning to the capital, his imperial father still had him serve in the Ministry of Rites. What could the Ministry of Rites do?
Wei shi said, "It is difficult for Your Highness to achieve merit here, but if the First Prince makes a huge mistake over there, it will still show that Your Highness is better than him."
Prince Qing smiled bitterly. "Eldest Brother has no other strengths, but he is strictly by the book when handling official duties. He wouldn't even miscalculate a single number in the Ministry of Revenue's account books."
Wei shi said, "What about the people around the First Prince? If his cronies make a mistake, it can also be pinned on his head."
Prince Qing said, "It's difficult. The Defender Duke's estate is a family of famous generals, highly valued by Imperial Father. The maiden families of his two secondary consorts are both scholarly families. Even if they had some problems, they would be insignificant. If there was really something that could be used, I would have used it long ago."
Wei shi rolled her eyes and whispered, "Then why not start with the canal the First Prince just inspected? Secretly dig a hole..."
Prince Qing violently pushed her away and sternly said, "What a venomous woman! How dare you even think of such a heartless thing!"
Wei shi hurriedly knelt on the ground to apologize, slapping her own face continuously with her left and right hands.
Prince Qing flicked his sleeves and left. Early the next morning, he ordered someone to take Wei shi away and dispose of her. He only liked beauties; he did not dare to keep such a poisonous snake by his side.
However, Wei shi's venomous scheme had tempted Prince Qing. Unable to make up his mind alone, he went to visit his maternal grandfather, the Minister of Personnel, Shen Shiyan.
The Minister of Personnel held a high position and had many duties. It was rare for the sexagenarian Shen Shiyan to have a day off. He spent the morning with his grandchildren, and after that, just as he was about to lean back in his rocking chair to bask in the sun, he heard that Prince Qing had arrived. Shen Shiyan furrowed his brows.
A moment later, the grandfather and grandson met in the study.
Hesitantly and in an extremely low voice, Prince Qing recounted Wei shi's plan.
Shen Shiyan's face turned pale. Pointing at the crossbeam above the study, he said, "If Your Highness wants to make such a risky move, this old man will take the dozens of lives in our family and hang ourselves from the beam tonight, lest Your Highness gets into trouble next year and this old man is dragged to the Meridian Gate to be beheaded, losing face in public."
Prince Qing asked, "...Is it really that serious?"
Shen Shiyan replied, "Because right now, the only one hoping for the First Prince to make a fool of himself is you! It is fine if the First Prince's assignment goes smoothly, but once something happens, the first person the Emperor will suspect is also you! Is a canal so easily destroyed? If it is a minor destruction, once the water flow stops, an inspection of the breach will easily reveal that it was artificially damaged. A major destruction would have to be on the scale of the Yellow River breaching its dikes to wash away the breach and destroy the evidence. Think about it, Your Highness. The Emperor was furious when you lost a thousand soldiers in Jingzhou. If you dare to destroy the canal and cause tens of thousands of commoners to suffer a disaster, even if the Emperor cannot find any evidence, he will find another charge to severely punish you!"
Prince Qing broke out in a cold sweat.
Shen Shiyan waved his hand at him. "Calm down and leave quickly, Your Highness. Do not come over again in the future. It was not easy for this old man to live to this age, and I do not want to be branded with a crime in my twilight years."
He hoped that his biological grandson could take a step further, but with a wise ruler on the throne, the only righteous path for his grandson was to display his talents and achieve merit.
Prince Kang also had no great talent, but Prince Kang was upright and steady, capable of being a ruler who maintained the accomplishments of his predecessors. His grandson...
Shen Shiyan could not be bothered to mention it anymore.
