The Black Chamber Dream: Daiyu's Revenge

Considering that Xichun's mother died early and her father was obsessed with alchemy in those years, and that she was sent to Rongguo Mansion by her older brother and sister-in-law at a young age, the Princess couldn't help but dote on her a little more.

Upon meeting Liu Jishan, the princess felt that the two looked very well-matched, so that very night she inquired about Liu Jishan from her husband.

The Imperial Son-in-Law Gao Zhen was very familiar with his wife's thoughts. As soon as he heard it, he knew what was going on. He immediately said, "This Liu Jishan is a good man. He is from Huaizhou, Zhili. He was orphaned at the age of five and lived with his elder brother and sister-in-law. But when he was only ten, his elder brother died of illness. His sister-in-law struggled to make ends meet with him and his nephew and niece. Fortunately, they were helped by their relatives."

Upon hearing this, the eldest princess sighed, "He really is a pitiful person."

"He lived up to expectations. At the age of thirteen, he passed the preliminary examination and became a student. He ranked first in the annual examination and became a Juren at the age of sixteen." Gao Zhen admired Liu Jishan, the young man. "Talent is secondary. What's important is that he is upright and doesn't think about scheming or currying favor. He is very calm and composed at such a young age, which is rare."

Seeing that her husband also admired this person so much, the princess became even more interested. However, after thinking for a while, Gao Zhen said to his wife, "That Miss Jia is of excellent character and very talented. It's just that I don't like her brother very much. Although you are interested, she is, after all, a daughter of the Jia family."

"If I were to speak up, the Ningguo Mansion should feel honored, shouldn't it?" The eldest princess held a very high position with two generations of emperors, so she didn't see any problem with it.

“Liu Jishan doesn’t even own a house in the capital; he’s renting one,” Gao Zhen pointed out the key point. “If he weren’t a corrupt official, with his rank, he would only have a salary of fifty taels of silver a year. If he were to marry into the Ningguo family, I’m afraid it would be difficult for him to even visit relatives.”

"Don't underestimate a young man's potential. What's there to be afraid of if he's poor right now?" The princess wasn't in a hurry. "Besides, I'm just saying it for now. It's not like I'm going to get the two children married right away. Let's see how it goes."

The Emperor, having resolved his troubles, was in an exceptionally good mood. He spent three days at Ying Shui Villa, enjoying the lake, admiring the moon, and composing poems. Liu Jishan had already returned from the capital to report back, accompanied by Prince Yi, Xiao Tingjun.

Xiao Tingjun presented the list of personnel to be sent to the southeast to the emperor, who took it and glanced at it: "Didn't I say that there was no need to send it? You decide."

"Your subject dares not act on his own initiative. This list was discussed with the Commander-in-Chief of the camp in the suburbs of the capital. They will depart tomorrow, and I thought there was still time, so I came to ask Your Majesty to take a look first," Xiao Tingjun replied with his head bowed.

"Then you'll have to rush back?" The emperor was somewhat surprised.

“Yes, it’s not too far anyway. I came on horseback, and it was the Ferghana horse that Your Majesty bestowed upon me.” Xiao Tingjun nodded.

The emperor couldn't help but think more highly of this son, realizing that he had been neglecting his third son too much. His son's steady and reliable approach to things was most like his own.

"The list is fine, so let's go with this one." The Emperor nodded and was about to continue when he saw that the Third Prince was a little anxious, so he let the Third Prince speak first.

"That's right, Qiao Ruowang is my eldest cousin, Father..." The Emperor paused halfway through his sentence, noticing that his third son seemed a little embarrassed.

The emperor laughed first: "Alright, when recommending officials for the inner court, one should not avoid relatives. Besides, you said it was discussed with the commander-in-chief, so I think there is no problem. However..."

The emperor paused deliberately, and seeing Xiao Tingjun's confusion, continued, "When the army went to war, many families thought they would definitely win, so they sent their children to the front lines early on. If they won, they would have made great contributions. Your cousin is going now, under the guise of studying, so I'm afraid he won't get any military merit."

Upon hearing the Emperor directly point out that many aristocratic families indeed believed that the Prince of Nan'an would win a great victory, they vied to send their sons and grandsons there in order to gain military merit.

"As Father Emperor said, those sent to study this time are all young talents, so that the court will have a continuous stream of generals and commanders in the future. If my eldest cousin can achieve something in his studies, he will be doing a service to the country and the family. Military merit should belong to the soldiers who risk their lives on the front lines." Xiao Tingjun's words truly touched the Emperor's heart.

"Well said." The emperor praised him, and then ordered, "You don't need to go back. I will send guards to escort you back. You and Liu Jishan will stay here with me for two days."

At this point, the emperor remembered the Wanmei Manor that he had bestowed upon his third son's wife: "I remember that the Wanmei Manor is now a gift to you. Let's go and take a look tomorrow."

Upon receiving the news, Daiyu instructed Zijuan to take people to the villa to make arrangements.

Wanmei Villa is much smaller than Yingshui Villa. It is called Wanmei Villa because it has a plum grove with dozens of varieties of plum blossoms. However, it is summer now, so there are no plum blossoms to admire.

However, Wanmei Manor possesses a treasure that is unique not only in Yingshui Manor but also in the entire capital city—Yangshan peaches.

Around the summer solstice each year, peaches ripen. They have thin skins, are juicy, and are all sweet.

Below the peach grove is a pond, where lotus roots and water chestnuts are planted. The painted boat, like a small boat, stands in the middle of the pond. There is no road; one must row to board the painted boat.

Although the villa once belonged to the emperor, he only visited it during the winter when the plum blossoms were in bloom, so everything seemed new and exciting to him now.

The pond wasn't very big, so it was filled with small boats. Xi Chun and Gao Xin were enjoying the scenery when Liu Jishan, dressed in a white summer robe, came walking by, parting the flowers and willows. Xi Chun quickly looked away.

The painted boat had already been decorated, with baskets made of finely woven green bamboo strips filled with large, ripe peaches that emitted an enticing aroma.

The emperor was in high spirits and ate two peaches in a row: "The peaches that the Imperial Household Department used to send were said to be tributes, but they tasted far inferior to these."

Liu Jishan seemed to have some knowledge about peaches: "This peach orchard is in a good location, near a pond. The lotus roots and water chestnuts in the pond nourish the water, making it abundant but not greasy, sweet but not cloying. They complement each other, which is why we have such good peaches."

The emperor found this interesting: "Then why not just take a few cuttings and plant them by the pond in the palace? Would that work too?"

"I'm afraid that won't work. I read in an agricultural book that cuttings can be propagated, but they can't be moved to a different soil. Things grow with the soil, and the soil grows with the water," Liu Jishan replied.

"Oh, you're quite familiar with farming." The Emperor pointed to Xiao Tingjun beside him. "He likes it too. You two can visit each other more often in the future."

These words made the eldest princess and her husband, who were standing nearby, think twice: Was the emperor going to give the third prince an important position? It was always taboo for the emperor to have princes associate with court officials, so why would the emperor, who admired Liu Jishan, say such a thing?

Xiao Tingjun seemed not to have thought much of it, and instead went along with Taozi's words, talking about making peach wine.

The emperor immediately said to Xiao Tingjun and Daiyu, "I'll remember that. You'll have to send me some of your peach wine later."

Hearing this, Gao Xin quickly chimed in, "Uncle and Aunt, I want one too!"

This caused everyone to burst into laughter.

Chapter 85 Grandmother Jia enters the palace to remind Yuan Chun

Upon returning from Wanmei Manor, Daiyu indeed led Zijuan, Xueyan, and others to make peach wine. They peeled the peaches, removed the pits, steamed them in a steamer, mixed them with homemade maltose, stirred them well, and then cooked them thoroughly. After cooling, Daiyu tasted it and found it delicious. She then asked Zijuan, Xueyan, Granny Gu, Granny Xu, and Xiao Tingjun, who had also returned, to try it as well.

Everyone praised it, so they expanded the scale. The carefully made peach jam, with its tempting color and rich fruity aroma, was carefully poured into antique earthenware jars. The mouths of the jars were covered with oil paper, tied with paper rope, and then sealed with wax.

Daiyu and Xiao Tingjun discussed and named it "Peach Blossoms in Full Bloom". There were only twenty jars in total. Ten jars were sent to the palace for the Emperor and Empress, four jars were sent to the Princess's residence, and Daiyu decided to leave the remaining six jars to the Rongguo Mansion. In the end, she sent four jars to Xiao Tingjun's maternal aunt, and kept only two jars for her own family.

After a flurry of activity, including celebrating birthdays at various houses and exchanging gifts, the Mid-Autumn Festival arrived in the blink of an eye. Now that Daiyu was the Princess Consort of Yi County, she naturally had to go to the palace to receive the banquet.

Daiyu encountered Grandmother Jia at the palace gate and saw that she was alone. Only then did she realize that since Lady Wang was now confined to the small Buddhist hall, Grandmother Jia would certainly not be willing to bring Lady Xing into the palace.

Thinking of Grandmother Jia's advanced age, Daiyu couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion, but she didn't dwell on it. After exchanging a few words with Grandmother Jia, she went directly to the Empress's Phoenix Palace.

As Grandmother Jia watched Daiyu's retreating figure, she was filled with countless emotions—fortunately, Yu'er had not become estranged from the Rongguo Mansion and was still willing to help.

Having regained her composure, Grandmother Jia went to Yuan Chun's Phoenix Palace.

Having not seen her mother for several months, Yuan Chun was already anxious. She sent someone to the Jia family to inquire, only to be told that the old lady said she would come to pay her respects to the Empress on the appointed day and give her an explanation.

Yuan Chun was very anxious, not knowing what had happened to her mother. When she saw Grandmother Jia, she quickly said that there was no need for formalities.

Grandmother Jia still bowed deeply to Yuan Chun according to etiquette, and thanked the Empress for offering her a seat before sitting down.

"Grandmother, what's wrong with my mother? Is she sick?" Yuan Chun asked hurriedly.

Seeing Yuan Chun's anxious appearance, Grandmother Jia couldn't help but sigh, "The Empress is becoming more and more impatient these days."

"Your Majesty, the reason I've come is to report to you on the affairs of the household." Grandmother Jia slowly recounted to Yuan Chun how Lady Wang had taken household items to sell and how Daiyu had discovered it. After finishing, Grandmother Jia deliberately withdrew from mentioning her punishment of Lady Wang, wanting to see what the Empress would say.

Yuan Chun was stunned upon hearing this and couldn't utter a single word for a long time.

“Grandmother, Mother did it all for my sake. Please forgive her this time for my sake.” Yuan Chun knew very well that she had spent a lot of money in the palace over the years, and her mother had no choice but to sell things from the mansion.

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia sighed inwardly: Yuan Chun is actually not very suitable for the inner palace.

"Your Majesty's words make me feel utterly ashamed," Grandmother Jia then told Yuan Chun. "It's not a matter of whether I want to forgive the Second Madam, but rather that the Second Madam has said she wants to pray for Your Majesty and Bao Yu, and voluntarily recites scriptures in the Buddhist hall every day. The Rongguo Mansion doesn't belong to me alone, Your Majesty, don't you agree?"

Grandmother Jia's intention was to tell Yuan Chun that the Rongguo Mansion had two branches of the family, and that if Lady Wang did this, what would become of the main branch?

Yuan Chun only realized what had happened after hearing the last sentence—her uncle, that's right, she had completely forgotten about her uncle's family.

"It's all because your household is incompetent. Nowadays, we spend more than we earn. That's why I've come today to tell Your Highness the truth: we can only give you ten thousand taels of silver a year. I hope Your Highness can understand our difficulties." After thinking for a long time, Grandmother Jia considered that with Jia Zheng serving in an official post, Lian'er holding a government position, and Wang Ziteng in the southeast, ten thousand taels of silver would still be enough to maintain appearances. That's why she made the final decision on this amount.

Yuan Chun felt both sad and helpless upon hearing this. Ten thousand taels was already a lot, but compared to before, it was a full ten thousand less. Yuan Chun now had many people to appease, especially Consort Wu and Princess Rui. Thinking of this, Yuan Chun could only nod.

Grandmother Jia continued, "Your Highness, there is another matter that I feel I should discuss with you. Princess Yi is, after all, from our household. Regarding the matter concerning the Second Madam, she didn't hold a grudge about the past and even took the initiative to help. Otherwise, selling imperial gifts privately would at least result in the household being punished, and at worst, it would implicate Your Highness. Regardless of the past, she is still your aunt's bloodline; otherwise, why would she protect us like this? Your Highness should find a way to get along well with Princess Yi. No one can foresee the future, and it's impossible to see things clearly all at once. The example of the late Prince Yizhong is right there; Your Highness shouldn't get stuck in a rut."

Grandmother Jia knew a little about Yuan-chun's close relationship with Consort Wu and thought she should give her a heads-up. It wasn't a big deal for Yuan-chun to be close to Consort Wu and the Second Prince, but she couldn't afford to lose her existing connections—Dai-yu had the Third Prince behind her, someone she could easily control. One must maintain relationships, whether they're popular or not; no matter what the future holds, there will always be a way to retreat and extricate oneself.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Chun's face showed a hint of unease. She recalled her unpleasant parting with Daiyu last time, and also thought of the peach wine that Daiyu had recently sent to the palace. She couldn't help but say, "These days, how could the Princess Consort possibly look favorably upon me, her unsuccessful cousin? She only sends peach wine to His Majesty and the Empress."

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia felt a wave of dizziness. She hesitated for a moment before saying, "His Majesty and the Empress are the most honored people in the world. Princess Yi didn't give any gifts to the other concubines, did she? If she had given a gift only to the Empress, wouldn't that give people something to talk about? Your Highness, think carefully. If that were the case, not only would Yu'er have offended the other concubines, but you would also have been made an enemy."

Yuan Chun realized that she had indeed been blinded by her own limited perspective. At the same time, she also realized that her words were indeed too petty. However, now that she was in a high position, Yuan Chun was unwilling to admit her mistake in front of her grandmother, so she immediately fell silent.

"When Her Majesty sent out the rewards for the Dragon Boat Festival that year, there were concubines among them, but your eldest uncle and aunt received nothing. What was Her Majesty thinking at the time?" Seeing Yuan Chun's attitude, Grandmother Jia, who had originally thought that some things didn't need to be said, now felt that they had to be made clear.

That year, during the Dragon Boat Festival, Yuan Chun bestowed gifts, completely ignoring Jia She and Madam Xing, which caused Jia She to complain a lot, and even many maids in the mansion were gossiping about it.

Just as Grandmother Jia was about to say a few more words, the imperial kitchen delivered lunch, and the person leading the meal was none other than Li Zhong, who served the Empress.

After bowing to Yuan Chun, Li Zhong respectfully said, "Today, His Majesty specially instructed that His Highness be given a dish of crab-stuffed orange and a dish of moon-viewing soup, which are recipes written by the Princess Consort of Yi for the Imperial Kitchen."

After Yuan Chun thanked the Emperor for the gift, Li Zhong said, "Her Majesty the Empress knows that the Old Madam of Rongguo Mansion has entered the palace. This box of Songyue is for the Old Madam."

A young eunuch presented a three-tiered box made of huanghuali wood with a relief of lotus scrolls. Grandmother Jia quickly expressed her gratitude, and then Li Zhong said, "This is also the ingenious idea of ​​Princess Yi. Unlike ordinary mooncakes, it is made with rice flour and is not baked. This year's new rice is finely ground into powder, steamed thoroughly, and pressed with a copper chime. Inside are walnuts from Shanxi, sesame seeds from Zhili, and red pine and Buddha's hand from Jinhua, a variety of flavors. His Majesty tasted it and praised it."

Upon hearing this, Grandmother Jia sighed even more: Even if Prince Yi might not be the next emperor, judging from the current situation, the emperor clearly dotes on Prince Yi and his wife. Whoever ascends the throne in the future, as long as they don't leave behind a reputation for tyranny, Prince Yi will certainly retain his title of prince.

Grandmother Jia glanced at Yuan Chun, and without saying a word, Yuan Chun understood. Before Grandmother Jia left the palace, Yuan Chun finally relented and said to Grandmother Jia, "Grandmother, your granddaughter has understood your good intentions."

Little did they know that while the grandmother and granddaughter were sighing, Consort Wu and others from Liushuang Pavilion were also sighing.

Chapter 86 Mid-Autumn Festival Reunion Hidden Crisis

After tasting a mooncake, the emperor happily remarked, "When I was studying, I read Su Shi's poem, 'Small cakes like chewing the moon, filled with crispness and sweetness.' I wondered why the mooncakes I ate never tasted like that. Today, I've finally tasted one. Today, I should give the imperial kitchen a good reward."

Hu Ju, the head of the kitchen, quickly said, "We servants dare not take credit for this; it was Princess Yi who told us how to do it."

"Oh, where did Yu'er come up with this idea?" The Emperor asked with great interest.

"Your Majesty, a few days ago I came across Wu Shi's Records of Domestic Affairs at home. I flipped through it casually and found that it contained a recipe for mooncakes from the Song Dynasty. So I asked the chefs in the Prince's Palace to try it. The taste was quite good, so I sent it to the palace for Your Majesty to taste. Your Majesty said that on the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, one should eat nourishing, light, and simple food, and felt that it should be presented to Your Majesty." Daiyu naturally did not take credit for it and gave the credit to the Empress.

The Empress smiled and said, "Yu'er loves reading the most, and she also loves to ponder the food and toys described in ancient books. I've been enjoying the good food with Yu'er."

The emperor immediately joked, "Yu'er, you're showing favoritism! Why do you always invite your mother to try everything, but not your father?"

The Empress glared at the Emperor: "Your Majesty, don't be ungrateful. You are so busy with state affairs."

The emperor burst into laughter at the glare from the empress. They had been married since they were seventeen, and it had been a difficult journey for him from being just a prince to becoming emperor. Before he became emperor, the empress would sometimes glare at him like that.

"Then Yu'er should be well rewarded. I think there are a few good books, such as 'Benxinzhai Cookbook,' 'Essentials of Diet and Nutrition,' and 'Qingyilu.' I will give them all to Yu'er." The emperor was in a good mood.

"Your Majesty isn't just trying to reward Yu'er; it's clearly about wanting to feast her." The Empress joked upon hearing that the recipes were all from the previous dynasty.

Consort Wu, Consort Xu, and others, watching the Emperor and Empress converse happily, couldn't help but become alert. Consort Wu, in particular, glanced at the quiet Daiyu, wondering if she had been neglecting her. Could it be that the Princess Consort of Yi was winning the Emperor and Empress's favor by working for the Third Prince?

Consort Wu couldn't help but glance at her pregnant daughter-in-law. Now there was no need to worry. As long as Song Huilan gave birth to the eldest grandson of the emperor, no matter how much the third son's wife tried to please him, it would be useless.

Ge Xijia shared the same thought—as the Princess Consort of Li County, Ge Xijia felt very uncomfortable seeing Daiyu being praised so much. She thought she had put in a lot of effort, but it always seemed like she was missing something.

But Song Huilan, who was sitting next to her, deliberately provoked her: "Fourth sister-in-law, look, the third sister-in-law is the most lucky. A few days ago, I had the honor of visiting her residence and tasting her peach wine. It was absolutely delicious. I heard that she gave some to Father and Mother, and they both loved it."

Song Huilan was certainly a little jealous, but she was pregnant, which was her biggest advantage, unlike Ge Xijia who was not pregnant and was not as likable as Daiyu.

Upon hearing Song Huilan's clearly provocative words, Ge Xijia immediately realized that her greatest enemy was not Princess Yi, but the pregnant Princess Rui beside her.

So Ge Xijia looked admiringly at Daiyu's back and said, "Third sister-in-law is so skillful. I was lucky enough to hear her play the zither last time. But second sister-in-law is even more radiant now. Our little nephew is already over seven months old."

Song Huilan didn't catch the implication in Ge Xijia's words, assuming she was just jealous, so she patted her stomach and smiled: "That's right, I haven't been sleeping well lately, I'm afraid it'll be a restless baby."

Ge Xijia sneered inwardly, but showed no sign of it on her face: "Let you be smug now. Once you find out that your second brother has a mistress, you won't be laughing anymore."