Harem Daily Life

It took Jing Mubai a long time to persuade He Qian to stop. When the two arrived at the mansion, they did not show any anger on their faces.

The mansion was filled with the emperor's men, so the two dared not say anything more and were led directly to the front hall.

"Greetings, Father Emperor, Greetings, Mother Empress," He Qian said respectfully, accompanied by her four sons-in-law.

He Linzhang offered them seats. He Yinuo, He Xiaobao, He Xiaoliu, and He Qian weren't very close, so they just greeted each other briefly before the three little ones went to play in the backyard.

He Qian glanced around, wondering why the Empress Dowager hadn't shown herself despite her presence. However, she was clever enough not to ask anything, lest she give herself away.

"Unexpectedly, Princess Yanran's marriage to the Xia Kingdom has resulted in a good match, marrying a prince of the Xia Kingdom and becoming a prince's consort. Father and Mother have traveled thousands of miles to escort her, they must have worked very hard."

Tao Yanyan smiled and said, "The new emperor of Xia Kingdom has ascended the throne and invited me and your father to attend the ceremony. I'll also be sending Yanran along the way. This person's fate is truly amazing. I originally thought it was just an ordinary marriage, but who would have thought that Xia Kingdom would have a new ruler."

After she finished speaking, she glanced at Jing Mubai and saw that he looked a little embarrassed, so she stopped talking.

"It's been more than half a year since the Fourth Princess got married. Is she settling in well in Yanzhou?" Although Tao Yanyan, as the Empress Dowager, didn't care, she still pretended to ask.

He Qian smiled faintly and replied, "Your Majesty, I am well. My husband's family treats me well and always puts me first."

"Then your father and I can rest assured." After saying that, she gave Xianglan a look, and Xianglan brought over a box.

"This is a specialty from the Xia Kingdom. I prepared a portion especially for you. Take it back and let your husband's family try it."

He Qian quickly thanked her and asked Li Mama to accept the gift, but in her heart she scoffed. The Empress was as stingy as ever, giving away such a low-class local specialty.

For dinner, Tao Yanyan specially ordered a table full of Da Zhou's specialties. As soon as Jing Mubai saw this arrangement, he knew that Empress Tao was thoughtful, at least considering He Qian's homesickness as a princess who had married far away.

At the dinner table, opposite him was He Yinuo, a cute little girl with exquisite features. She ate with more appetite than anyone else, looking like a lucky baby under the seat of Guanyin. She was not as unremarkable as He Qian had said.

He felt that He Qian's biased thinking was due to her lack of attention over the years and her resulting inner imbalance. He thought that she would be able to have a more fulfilling and composed life when she got older and had her own children.

But then he thought of Zhao Shu, and his heart sank. Zhao Shu was going to be a menace sooner or later; he had to get rid of her, or even eliminate her.

Recently, Zhao Shu and Zhou Chen have been spending a lot of time together, which has displeased Jing Yuwei, who has already made a scene several times. If it weren't for He Qian constantly sending money to Jing Yuwei, telling her not to expose the matter to Lord Jing, Zhao Shu would probably have been exposed and punished by Lord Jing long ago.

Jing Mubai made up his mind that he must find an opportunity to get rid of Zhao Shu soon, and do it behind He Qian's back.

Dinner lasted very late. When the two left the mansion, it was snowing heavily outside. They hurriedly got into the carriage, and He Qian relaxed completely.

“The dishes in Da Zhou are indeed more refined than those in Yan Zhou, and they’re not as greasy. I see you’re quite satisfied with your meal. I’ll have the chefs in the manor learn to cook for you a few more times in the future,” Jing Mubai said as he covered He Qian with a thin blanket.

"It's nothing special, just average." After saying that, she turned to the side and opened the Xia Kingdom specialty gift that Empress Tao had given her. Seeing that it contained some dried meat and candied fruit, she said disdainfully, "Does she think she's never eaten anything good before? She actually has the nerve to give away this kind of rubbish!"

After saying that, he closed the lid without even glancing at it.

Jing Mubai frowned: "I heard that Xia Kingdom's dried meat and candied fruit bring in more than 200,000 taels of revenue for Xia Kingdom every year. They have become an industry, so they are not exactly shameful, are they?"

Yanzhou is arid and receives little rainfall, resulting in limited crop production, making it relatively difficult to obtain candied fruit.

He Qian glanced at him, too lazy to argue with him on such a matter, and changed the subject, saying, "By the way, you went for a stroll in the mansion courtyard along the way, did you see anyone?"

Jing Mubai was there to catch the parrot for He Xiaobao and He Xiaoliu. The fat parrot flew to the treetop and squawked, laughing at He Xiaobao for not being able to catch it, so He Xiaobao asked him for help.

Jing Mubai thought for a moment and shook his head: "Aside from the maids and guards, I didn't see anyone else. However... I did see the backs of an elderly couple in the distance, but I didn't get a good look at them. I suppose they were the nannies and palace maids who served His Majesty and the Empress."

"An elderly couple?" He Qian frowned. Could it be the Empress Dowager and Eunuch Qin?

After the two returned to the manor, Jing Mubai asked again if he really didn't want the local specialties that Empress Tao had sent. He received a glare from He Qian, and then he took the specialties to find Lord Jing and reported on the matter that Lord Jing had asked about when they left.

"So you really were just passing by, and there was no other reason?" Lord Jing pressed.

Jing Mubai nodded: "After attending the ceremony in Xia Kingdom, if they want to return to the capital, they will have to spend the New Year on the road. That's why His Majesty detoured through Yan Prefecture, where they can at least have a good New Year."

Lord Jing was slightly relieved. He hadn't had a good night's sleep for many days since he learned that His Majesty was coming.

"Alright, go ahead. You had a falling out with the princess before and hid in the study for a month, and I didn't say a word to you. Now that His Majesty is here, even if you have any disagreements with the princess, you should go along with her. Don't let His Majesty think that our Jing family is treating the princess badly, understand?"

Jing Mubai nodded: "The princess and I have long since reconciled, and we made up during the day, so please rest assured, Father. But... but what about Yuwei? The New Year is in a couple of days, and it would be bad if she offended His Majesty. Perhaps we shouldn't let her family come to the reunion banquet this year."

After pondering for a moment, Lord Jing agreed with his son. That daughter was a troublemaker, and it was best to keep her out of the way at this critical juncture.

"Tomorrow I'll have the steward prepare some festival gifts for you to take to her. Tell her a few words: don't quarrel with that concubine recently, and don't cause any trouble. I've heard that Concubine Hua's sister is very favored and was married into the palace with the honors due to a crown princess. Although she is now just a concubine, she has a complicated network of relationships behind her. If she causes any trouble, it won't be good if she attracts the attention of Empress Tao."

Jing Mubai agreed and was about to leave with the local specialties when Jing Hou stopped him, saying, "Leave this box of local specialties; I will need it."

Jing Mubai was taken aback; he had been thinking of moving it back to his study to eat slowly.

Reluctantly putting the box down, Jing Mubai left.

A moment later, a dark figure entered Lord Jing's study. Lord Jing pointed to the box containing local specialties and said, "Take this box of Xia Kingdom specialties to that person in the temple. The festival is coming soon, let him be happy and savor the memories. Don't let him lose his fighting spirit and forget the great cause of restoring the kingdom."