Marrying a royal playboy and becoming a glamorous matriarch

As Emperor Longxing ate, he felt that his mouth didn't taste right.

Sweet on the outside, bitter on the inside.

“This Prince Dun is truly blessed. Although his eldest son is rigid and stubborn, and his youngest son is a notorious playboy, this daughter-in-law… is a truly pleasing match.”

Emperor Longxing muttered to himself, "They're all sisters from the same family, so why did she have to fall for that philandering playboy?"

Seeing this, the eunuch serving nearby promptly offered a cup of warm tea and continued speaking in accordance with Emperor Longxing's words.

"Your Majesty is quite right. It's a pity that Prince Dun has always been in poor health, and he looks pale today as well."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Longxing felt instantly at peace and resumed chewing.

Yes, Prince Dun looks old and sickly, no longer useful.

"Prince Dun's health has been poor since he was a child."

It was also because Prince Dun was in poor health that he was not included in the struggle for the throne from the very beginning.

Therefore, the two got along fairly well.

Thinking of Prince Dun's health, Emperor Longxing sighed and said, "Have the Imperial Household Department select a batch of good medicinal herbs and send them to Prince Dun's residence tomorrow."

The eunuch immediately bowed and said, "Yes."

As night fell, Qin Ping'an, still recovering from his illness, insisted on going out to work, causing great concern among the concubines in the back room of the west courtyard.

The group huddled together doing needlework and then discussed, "Should we continue delivering soup today?"

Seeing the others say this, Jiu Ying's eyes flickered, and she haughtily smoothed her hair, saying disdainfully, "What's there to send? Your soup has already been given to the servants by the mistress. It's pointless to make it; it won't even reach the Second Master's stomach."

The aunt paused for a moment, then smiled again.

"That's a real shame. Since Second Master doesn't like it, let's not do it anymore?"

The other concubines chimed in, "Yes, yes, let's not make it. It's too much trouble to cook it."

Fifth Aunt looked up at Jiu Ying pitifully and asked, "Did he give my candy to someone else? I've been saving it up for a long time, and I'm never giving him candy again."

What candy? Is Fifth Brother an idiot?

When Jiu Ying saw that her attempt to sow discord had failed, she glared at him angrily.

"You lot are all so pathetic, still pretending to be saints now?"

"Don't you know that it's always the mistress who stops the second master from drinking, for fear that you will share his favor?"

After saying this in a sarcastic tone, Jiu Ying adopted a posture of watching a good show.

She wished that her concubines would immediately run to the main courtyard and start arguing with Wei Qingrou.

However, the next second, she was disappointed.

The eldest aunt still had a smile on her face.

"The mistress is kind and benevolent, and treats us extremely well. If the people around the mistress like the soup we make, we can make it every day. They work hard serving the mistress and the lord."

Second Aunt, Third Aunt, and the others nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, yes, serving others is hard work."

The group chatted and laughed, ignoring Jiu Ying.

"Seriously? Are you guys out of your minds? Why are you just letting yourselves be bullied like this? You have no fighting spirit at all."

"If Aunt Jiu is so ambitious, why doesn't she go and fight herself? Why is she stirring up trouble with us bunch of crazy people?"

"That's right, that's right, you're up to no good."

"Aunt Jiu, this is not right."

Fifth Aunt was furious and rolled her eyes at her.

After taking turns scolding Jiu Ying, the group left.

Left behind, Jiu Ying, whose nose and eyes were neither there, nearly fainted from anger.

They're all so pathetic.

Why are you all scrambling and fighting? What are you doing all day?

This minor disturbance in the inner quarters vanished without a trace before it even reached Wei Qingrou's ears.

Even if Wei Qingrou heard it, she wouldn't care.

We can't just start fighting over a few idle words from our aunts; it's really not worth ruining our mood.

What's more, she's been busy lately. That Princess Heyun who loves looking at muscular men's abs is actually pregnant.

Before Wei Qingrou could even think about whether there would be a cuckold incident, the princess instructed her to prepare gifts, as she would be visiting the princess's residence in a few days.

You must be very careful when giving gifts to pregnant women.

Wei Qingrou selected calligraphy, paintings, and antiques, along with some festive and pleasing items.

As for clothing, jewelry, cosmetics, food, and medicine, none of these will be given away.

These things are easy to wear close to the body and are prone to errors, so it's best to stick to the rules.

The princess was quite satisfied with Wei Qingrou's arrangements; as long as the sentiment was there, that was enough.

On the day of their visit, the princess took Wei Qingrou with her.

Upon arriving at the Princess's residence, they learned that the Princess's parents, Prince Su and Princess Su, were also at the Princess Heyun's residence that day.

Although Prince Su was not as close to the Emperor as Prince Dun was, who was born of the same mother, he was still a trusted and important minister.

As is customary, Princess Consort Dun and Princess Consort Su are prominent figures. After meeting Princess Heyun, the princess consort was to pay her respects.

So, Princess Consort Dun left Wei Qingrou with Princess Heyun and said with a smile, "You are about the same age, so you can chat together."

He Yun smiled and took Wei Qingrou's hand, "Don't worry, Auntie, I won't lose your daughter-in-law."

The princess beamed with joy, "That's fine then. If you lose it, you'll have to replace it with one exactly the same."

After the princess left, Wei Qingrou helped Princess Heyun lie down on the soft couch.

In ancient times, news of a pregnancy would usually arrive after the first three months of pregnancy.

Although Princess Heyun's lower abdomen is not showing, she is already pregnant, and she always walks carefully, protecting her waist and abdomen.

Compared to her previous arrogant demeanor when she was embracing a handsome man, she now exudes a richer maternal glow and a touch of gentle charm.

After Princess Heyun sat down, she said to Wei Qingrou, "Sister-in-law, do you like children? Why don't you want children yet?"

Wei Qingrou glanced sideways, not expecting to be pressured to get pregnant while visiting someone's home.

It seems that the entertainment options available to people in ancient times were quite limited.

Wei Qingrou thought for a moment and then replied, "I'm still young and I'm worried that I won't be able to teach the children well. Let me learn for another two years and then have them."

Princess Heyun covered her mouth and giggled, "That makes sense. I thought the same thing when I was sixteen or seventeen. Young people are always a bit playful."

Seeing her smiling so amiably, Wei Qingrou breathed a sigh of relief and nodded obediently, "Yes, yes, I'm not in a hurry."

Princess Heyun glanced at her meaningfully.

"You're not in a hurry, but someone else is."

“My mother is a showy person. As soon as I was settled in my pregnancy, she spread the news that I was pregnant.”

"Think about it, your mother will be very anxious after hearing what she said, so you'll have to get busy from now on."

Princess Heyun remained as mischievous as ever, her gaze towards Wei Qingrou carrying a hint of teasing, but in reality, it was a gesture of goodwill.

She gave Wei Qingrou the news in advance, firstly to curry favor, and secondly to help her mother, Princess Su, smooth things over, so that Wei Qingrou wouldn't offend people everywhere because of her personality.

Wei Qingrou said calmly, "It's only a matter of time. Mother can urge us if she wants."

Princess Heyun giggled, her eyes filled with admiration as she looked at her.

“You are so magnanimous, with the demeanor of royalty. You are a perfect match for my carefree cousin.”