Life is but once, like the first meeting (Part 2)

  "Father." Princess Yi Qin's consort entered with two maids carrying things.

  "How did you get here?" Yunxiang asked, and as soon as he turned his eyes, he saw the steaming medicine on Yiniang's tray, and couldn't help but smile wryly. He took the medicine from her hand and drank it all in one gulp.

  Yi Qin Wang's consort squatted down, personally lifting up Yong Xiang's robe, revealing his swollen knee. She opened the medicinal cloth on top, cleaned it with warm water, squeezed out the sticky yellow liquid inside, and then cleaned it again. Only then did she apply a thick layer of a paste-like substance that had been simmering on the charcoal stove onto a white cloth and applied it to the affected area...

  Yun Xiang couldn't help but let out a low moan, feeling a wave of heat and stinging pain in his knee. "What is this thing? Why does it feel different from before?"

  "Yunzhu used garlic, plum tree bark, ginger, honey... and some chrysanthemum leaves and flower petals to make a concoction, saying it can expel the damp toxin from the affected area. What do you think?" The Princess Yi Qin wrapped his joints with a white cloth bandage to fix them in place before putting away the other items that had been replaced.

  "My entire kneecap is hot and a bit painful... how long should I apply it for?"

  "It will be ready in just three quarters of an hour."

  Yun Xiang nodded, the main reason he couldn't cure this illness was that he was busy with government affairs and didn't have time to apply medicine, drink medicine, or rest. This prescription wouldn't take up too much time, which was the best outcome.

  "Father thinks Cloud Pearl is quite a good girl. Although he has heard Junya mention her many times, today when he saw his daughter-in-law, he really liked her from the bottom of his heart." This appearance, temperament, and gentle nature, every aspect of which he likes, if it's really... not bad at all.

  "Not bad, being the crown prince's legitimate princess is more than enough!"

  Could it be? His words made Yiqin Wangfu somewhat hesitant, and he let her post an invitation to invite the twelfth sister and her niece to the mansion. She thought he had taken a liking to her and wanted to ask for her hand in marriage to make her the legitimate wife of Hongzhen, but could there be some other reason she didn't know about?

  "What's wrong?" Yunxiang and others noticed that his wife's face had an unusual expression that naturally didn't escape his eyes.

  "Just now, Rong Er asked me about Yun Zhu -" saying 'asked' is a euphemism, in fact her son directly told her that he likes Yun Zhu and wants to make Yun Zhu his di wife.

  She had never been so directly and seriously asked for something by her son before.

  Yi Qin Wang Fu Jin Zhao Jia Shi is gentle in nature. Although she has been harmonious and loving with her husband over the years, most of it was also cultivated by herself along with her husband since he was a prince, through the glory and hardships of fighting for the throne. At the time of their grand wedding, her husband already had a deeply emotional relationship with his concubine, Guwalgiya Shi, who not only managed the household affairs but also gave birth to their eldest daughter and later their eldest illegitimate son, overshadowing Yi Qin Wang Fu Jin as the legitimate wife. Her husband was indifferent to the internal affairs of the household and couldn't understand her suffering from being restricted everywhere. Their eldest son, Hongtun, was also hurt by those underhanded tactics while still in his mother's womb... As a result, her husband turned cold towards Guwalgiya Shi and began to favor Yi Qin Wang Fu Jin, who started to remember this unforgettable lesson. On one hand, she managed the household affairs and suppressed internal conflicts; on the other hand, she worried about her eldest son's health... In the end, however, it was her second son, Hongyan, whom she protected the most.

  If it weren't for him openly and secretly targeting Hongchang's wife, who didn't know her place, her own days in the Yi Qin Wang Fu wouldn't have been so easy.

  "What nonsense!" Yunxiang stood up, then remembered the medicine on his leg and sat back down, frowning: "He's only a few years old, not even studying properly yet... when did he see Yünzhū?" His wife glared at him, making him ask another question with a sheepish expression.

  "It wasn't just today, in the garden... " said Yi Qin Wang Fu Jin with a hint of displeasure, still somewhat resentful: "What are you angry about? I like Yun Zhu, and you think she's good too, doesn't that prove that our Hong Zhen has good taste? Although Hong Zhen is still young now, there have been cases where someone his age was betrothed to a daughter-in-law, and Yun Zhu is only one year older than him, just right."

  "What's good about that!" Yunxiang said irritably. "Do you think all the good girls in the world are waiting for your son to discover them? The emperor has already made arrangements."

  What?! Won't be, Your Majesty and Yunzhu?

  "Don't think crookedly, I thought the emperor wanted to betroth her to Hong Li or Hong Yu as a di fujin... If it wasn't for the emperor's intention, could I have asked you to send an invitation? He didn't have the skill to notice whether the little girl was good or bad, he still thought that next year's selection of concubines would be easy and wouldn't need to find one for his son (in his opinion, ce fujin and qie didn't need to be particularly careful), it wasn't too late for Hong Zhen to wait until the next batch of showgirls."

  Alas, there's no way around it. Can't compete with the Emperor for a daughter-in-law after all. "How would the Emperor know about Yunzhu?" Princess Yi Qin muttered to herself, resentful that she had heard about Yunzhu's virtues early on but hadn't thought of this possibility, and now the good daughter-in-law candidate in her hands was snatched away.

  "Third Brother wasn't raised in the residence of Twelfth Brother, was he? Yunzhu also happened to be living there. When Imperial Brother went to visit, they ran into each other. You don't know, Imperial Brother originally admired Li Rongbao... This Li Rongbao, although holding an idle post now, his son is someone Imperial Brother pays special attention to. They are all good people, so why wouldn't he pay extra attention to this only legitimate daughter?"

  He noticed that this Fu Zha Yun Zhu was still not showing off?! The little girl was originally talented and beautiful, but unfortunately, she had been hidden by the Fu family for many years, and not even a hint of her existence had leaked out.

  "Let's have a good talk with Hong Zhen, how can this little girl still not be the mistress of our house?" Yun Xiang sighed, he also knew Hong Zhen's temperament, who had been strong-willed since childhood, and had a somewhat casual and lazy personality, never competing or fighting for anything, but once something was on his mind, he couldn't let go... However, as for the young lady from the Fu Cha family, he had only met her once, so it shouldn't be too much of a concern. "When you have time, let him read more books and practice martial arts, don't lose the foundation of our Aixinjueluo family..."

  "Alright." Princess Yi Qin's consort listened to him with a mixture of annoyance and resignation, thinking that it was almost time, she ordered Liu Lu outside the door to have someone bring some hot water and fetch some clean white cloth strips.

  She loosened the bandage and removed the soft ointment, slowly massaging the affected area on his leg. The swollen part above Yǔn Xiáng's kneecap continuously discharged a yellowish-greenish viscous liquid, with many clean cloths left beside it from before. She kept wiping it away, exclaiming in surprise: "This ointment is very effective! So much pus has come out!"

  It's more than usual. Yunxiang saw her rubbing her forehead and sweating, and couldn't help but say, "Next time let those servants do it, it's too tiring." Not to mention managing the household chores, she used to worry about Hongtun's health, now she worries about his, marrying him, she hasn't been able to enjoy much happiness.

  "It's hard work, but I'm happy to do my best for you. If I can bear the hardship for you... I'd be willing too." The gentle Princess Yu smiled at him. "Besides, letting the servants do it, I wouldn't feel at ease either."

  At this time, Liu Lu led a few people to bring in warm water and towels. She didn't say anything else, letting them put things down, then carefully helped him clean up.

  Poor Hong Jin returned to the courtyard after expressing his feelings to his mother, but he couldn't concentrate on reading or sleep. The image of Yunzhu's peerless beauty kept appearing before his eyes. One moment he felt joyful, thinking that he would surely get what he wanted, and the next moment he worried that his mother might think him too young and disagree...

  This kid has no idea, even if his mother wanted to intervene, it wouldn't be possible.