Consort Zhuang doesn't want palace intrigue; she just wants to raise her child and live a caref

"Your Majesty, I humbly beg you, may I request permission for the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion to send another wet nurse into the palace? After all, the little princess is already under my care, and there must be no discrimination in her treatment, would you please, Your Majesty?" Su Nuannuan carefully held the newborn, exquisitely beautiful little princess, and respectfully bowed to the Empress, who was seated on the chair, speaking softly.

The Empress nodded slightly, a hint of weariness on her face. She raised her hand and gently rubbed her temples, saying slowly, "Of course you can. You should quickly take the princess back and take good care of her! I still need to handle the funeral arrangements for Consort Mei. The princess is still young, and such a solemn and sorrowful occasion is not suitable for her."

Upon hearing the Empress's approval, Su Nuannuan was overjoyed. She quickly curtsied again and thanked the Empress, saying, "Thank you for your grace, Your Majesty." After speaking, she hugged the little princess tightly in her arms and led her personal maid, Jinse, out of the palace.

After stepping out of the gate of Meixiang Pavilion, Su Nuannuan couldn't help but turn back and look at the palace where Consort Mei once lived, and sighed inwardly.

Regarding the prematurely deceased Consort Mei, Su Nuannuan could only lament her unfortunate fate, lamenting that she was truly unlucky. However, when the little princess grows up and becomes sensible, she will surely tell her the truth, letting her know who her biological mother is. In this way, even though Consort Mei is gone, at least there will be someone in this world who will remember her.

Then, while holding the little princess, Su Nuannuan turned to Jinse and instructed, "When the palace gates open first thing tomorrow morning, you must return to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion immediately and inform my mother that she must select another reliable wet nurse to send into the palace, and explain that I have now adopted a princess. This matter must not be delayed, understand?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Jinse quickly replied.

"Your Majesty, let's go back quickly! Although it's early summer, it's still a bit chilly at night."

Su Nuannuan nodded in response while holding the little princess, and then boarded the sedan chair and returned to Cuiwei Palace.

When Su Nuannuan returned to Cuiwei Palace, she saw Su Yueniang and the others anxiously waiting in the main hall, while the Fifth Prince lay quietly asleep on the couch. Because the Empress had not yet returned, everyone was truly uneasy, so they dared not rashly take the Fifth Prince to his bedchamber.

At this moment, the sharp-eyed Yaoqin spotted Su Nuannuan first. She quickly stood up and called out softly, "Your Majesty is back." Then, Yaoqin noticed that Su Nuannuan seemed to be holding something in her arms, so she quickly went to greet her.

Upon getting closer, she finally saw that the person her mistress was holding was actually a beautifully sculpted baby.

Yaoqin looked surprised and hurriedly took the little princess from Su Nuannuan's arms, asking in astonishment, "Your Majesty, why did you bring a child back?"

Su Nuannuan replied calmly, "This is the little princess born to Consort Mei. His Majesty has entrusted her to my care."

Upon hearing this, Yaoqin couldn't help but feel puzzled. She frowned slightly and asked, "Why would Consort Mei agree to this?"

After all, in the imperial harem, a mother's status depends on her son, and which concubine wouldn't want to raise her own child? Moreover, this is the first princess; if she were to gain the Emperor's favor in the future, it would be an immense honor and source of security for her birth mother. Yet now, Consort Mei is willing to entrust her own daughter to others for upbringing, and the reasons behind this are truly perplexing.

"Yaoqin, Consort Mei has passed away," Jinse whispered to Yaoqin cautiously. Her tone carried an undisguised sorrow.

Upon hearing this, Yaoqin froze on the spot as if struck by lightning, her entire body seemingly frozen in place. After a moment, she slowly came back to her senses, but her eyes were still filled with disbelief and grief.

Immediately afterwards, she subconsciously looked down at the little princess sleeping peacefully in her arms, and felt a pang of pain in her heart, filled with tenderness.

Su Nuannuan walked towards the main hall, asking as she went, "It's so late, why aren't you all resting yet?"

Yaoqin hugged the little princess tightly and quickly got up to reply, "Your Majesty, we are so worried about you that we can't sleep peacefully. So we thought we would bring the Fifth Prince to the small couch in the main hall to sleep first, while we will stay here to take care of the Fifth Prince and wait for Your Majesty to return to the palace."

After Su Nuannuan entered the main hall, Su Yueniang, Zhixiang, and Tingxue immediately curtsied. When they raised their heads, their gazes fell on the little baby Yaoqin was holding, and they were startled.

After calming down a bit and listening to Yaoqin's explanation, Su Yueniang asked thoughtfully, "Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, should we have the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion send a wet nurse to the palace to take care of Her Highness the Princess?"

After listening, Su Nuannuan nodded gently, then sat on the small couch and asked with a smile, "Moon Lady, do you already have a suitable candidate in mind to recommend to me?"

“I do have someone in mind, but he is of average appearance. However, his character is impeccable, and he is also a servant born into our household.” Su Yueniang bowed slightly and said respectfully.

"Oh? You're not talking about Red Lotus, are you?"

Su Nuannuan knew her family quite well, so she could immediately recognize them when Su Yueniang mentioned them.

“It is indeed Honglian. If Your Majesty has no particular requirements regarding appearance, then Honglian is undoubtedly the most suitable candidate.” Su Yueniang bowed again and answered earnestly.

"Hmm... Jinse, when you return to the manor tomorrow, remember to have my mother ask Honglian if she is willing to come to the palace to be the little princess's wet nurse. If she is unwilling to come, then I will trouble my mother to choose another suitable candidate." Su Nuannuan nodded gently and gave her instructions in an orderly manner.

"Yes, this servant has remembered it." Jinse quickly replied, and also bowed, indicating that she had kept the matter firmly in mind.

Su Nuannuan slowly stood up and said, "It's getting late, everyone should go back and rest! Tonight, I will personally take care of the little princess and let her sleep peacefully with me."

“Your Majesty, in my humble opinion, it would be more appropriate for me to take the little princess back. After all, once she passes her meconium, she will be able to breastfeed, which will be more convenient.” Su Yueniang quickly stepped forward and softly offered her suggestion.

"Very well, Zhixiang and Tingxue, I'll trouble you two to assist Yueniang tonight. Once the new wet nurse arrives tomorrow, you'll be able to relax a bit."

"Your Majesty is too kind. This is all our duty, and we don't find it tiring at all." The women smiled as they spoke, carefully holding the two children in their arms and respectfully bowing to their mistress.

These two little ones are only a month apart in age. Those who know the inside story will naturally know that they are not born of the same mother, but those who do not know the truth may mistake them for a pair of cute twins at first glance!

The main problem was the little princess, who was quite large, almost the same size as the fifth prince who was only a month old. Otherwise, Consort Mei wouldn't have faced the danger of a difficult childbirth and ultimately passed away.

Consort Mei's funeral should have been conducted according to the rites befitting her rank as a consort, but considering the special circumstances of the Empress Dowager's return to the palace the next day, in order to avoid offending the Empress Dowager, the funeral had to be simplified.

So, under the cover of night, people hurriedly carried Consort Mei's coffin to the solemn and dignified imperial mausoleum. The entire funeral procession appeared unusually quiet and rushed, lacking the grand pomp and circumstance that usually accompanied the funerals of imperial concubines. Only a few dim lanterns swayed in the night breeze, as if they too were mourning this prematurely deceased concubine.