Fu Kui laughed.
“It’s not the same. Palace Attendants only look after a Princess’s daily life, and there can be several at once. If one makes a mistake, they can be replaced at any time. The Prince Consort, however, is a husband chosen for the Princess by the Emperor himself.”
“There can only be one. The Prince Consort doesn’t handle daily chores, but cares for the Princess as a wife, has children with her, and grows old together. At the same time, the Prince Consort also serves the Emperor as an official and fulfills his duty as a subject.”
Qingyang finally understood what a Prince Consort was, but then grew confused again.
“Father Emperor has an Empress, a Noble Consort, and an Imperial Consort. Why can a Princess only have one Prince Consort?”
Fu Kui: “……”
Yongkang: “……”
Qin Bing burst out laughing.
“Because women can only have one husband. Unless the first husband dies, you can’t get another. If you have a husband and still flirt with other men, that’s unchaste. At best, you’ll get scolded; at worst, you’ll be thrown in prison.”
Yongkang knew her second brother was telling the truth, but she didn’t like hearing it and couldn’t refute him.
She could only pull her little sister close and say to the Crown Prince, “You three go walk with the Prince Consort. I’ll take my sister to sit in the pavilion.”
Qin Hong nodded and took the three boys away.
In the pavilion, Qingyang sat next to her eldest sister and asked, “What is ‘wifely virtue’?”
Yongkang snorted, “Something men made up to control women. Ordinary women have to follow it, or they’ll get into big trouble. But we’re Princesses—we don’t need to learn that.”
Qingyang asked, “So, will Eldest Sister choose several Prince Consorts?”
Yongkang replied, “…The Prince Consort is a husband. Whether it’s a wife or a husband, there can only be one with the proper title. Unless the first dies, you can’t get another.”
Qingyang had heard her Imperial Consort Mother explain the difference between “Empress” and “Consort”—that is, the distinction between wife and concubine—so she nodded knowingly.
“A Princess can only have one Prince Consort, but can have several concubines.”
Yongkang had a headache.
How could her little sister’s imagination run so wild?
She didn’t want to explain, but was afraid her sister would take this as gospel and repeat, “Eldest Sister said so!” if Father Emperor ever asked.
With no choice, Yongkang continued, “Princesses can’t have concubines. If they did, their reputation would be ruined. Why? You don’t need to worry about that—just remember, Princesses can’t have concubines.”
“At most, they might secretly keep a male favorite, who is like a concubine but without status. But if a Princess has a male favorite, the Prince Consort will be hurt, so only Princesses who don’t get along with their Prince Consort keep male favorites.”
The Little Princess stared ahead, not blinking.
After a while, having apparently sorted out her sister’s words, she asked, “Will Eldest Sister keep a male favorite?”
Yongkang glanced at Fu Kui’s faintly visible figure in the distance and smiled mysteriously.
“Not for now. As for the future—let’s wait and see.”
Consort Mother was the purest, most virtuous woman, a model of female virtue.
But aside from a good reputation, what else did Consort Mother gain?
Because of their age difference, Qingyang didn’t often play with her eldest sister.
She had cried when she saw her leave the palace, but after a nap, the three-year-old Little Princess could barely remember.
She went as usual to the Chongwen Pavilion to study or wandered around the outer court with the Kirin Waist Token Father Emperor gave her, stopping wherever something interesting caught her eye.
Once November arrived, Qingyang heard of another wedding.
It started after a half-hour literacy lesson. Qingyang ran out to find her imperial brothers but didn’t see Zhang Su, so of course, she asked about him.
Qin Ren said, “His eldest brother is getting married today. He took a day off and will return to the palace tomorrow morning.”
Qingyang’s eyes widened.
“His eldest brother is getting married, so why didn’t he tell me?”
Qin Bing teased, “Why should he tell you? You’re not his little…”
Qin Hong pushed him to cut off his nonsense.
Qingyang didn’t care and decided to skip the remaining three-quarters of the arithmetic lesson, running straight outside.
Her three imperial brothers didn’t dare leave the Chongwen Pavilion, so they watched as Jie Yu chased after her, feeling either worried or envious.
With Jie Yu in tow, Qingyang ran all the way to Qianyuan Hall.
The Little Princess was so spoiled that she ignored He Yuanjing and rushed right in; He Yuanjing didn’t dare truly stop her.
“Father Emperor!”
The Little Princess, eyes brimming with tears, threw herself into Father Emperor’s arms as he was reviewing memorials, and complained, “Zhang Su’s big brother is getting married, and he didn’t tell me!”
Emperor Xingwu: “……”
Why should he tell you?
But seeing his daughter crying so sincerely, Emperor Xingwu naturally had to comfort her.
He picked her up and wiped her tears, asking, “If he told you, what would you do?”
Qingyang said, “I want to go to the Duke of Wei State Manor for the banquet, watch them set off firecrackers, and see the bride!”
Emperor Xingwu understood.
His daughter just wanted to join the fun.
As he hesitated, the Little Princess spoke up for herself, “Father Emperor, I want to leave the palace. Please send a carriage for me. Eldest Sister left in the afternoon, so Zhang Su’s big brother’s bride hasn’t been brought home yet.”
Now, Emperor Xingwu had no way to bluff his daughter.
He told He Yuanjing to make arrangements and, in Consort Li’s name, prepared a gift for the Zhang Family. Since Zhang Su was the third prince’s study companion, and it was his elder brother’s wedding, Consort Li was under no obligation to send a gift, and doing so wouldn’t attract undue attention among the guests.
Once the carriage was ready, Jie Yu helped the freshly washed Little Princess into the carriage.
At the Duke of Wei State Manor.
Zhang Jie was a high-ranking but taciturn minister.
For his eldest son’s wedding, he invited only a few founding heroes whom he’d met after surrendering to Emperor Xingwu, and only out of courtesy.
Normally, Zhang Jie rarely socialized, making him one of the New Dynasty’s most reclusive figures.
Even the Heir Apparent, Zhang Jian, only invited a few low-ranking military officers he was close with in the Imperial Army.
By the time the palace carriage arrived, the guests at the Duke of Wei State Manor had already gathered, and the midday banquet was about to begin.
Upon learning that Princess Qingyang had arrived, Zhang Jie and his wife hurried out with their guests to greet her.
Qingyang stood on the carriage, looked at Zhang Jie, and without a word, spread her arms.
Zhang Jie obligingly lifted the Little Princess down.
Qingyang asked, “Where’s Zhang Su?”
Zhang Jie replied, “My son went with his elder brother to the bride’s family to fetch the bride. He’ll be back at dusk.”
Qingyang asked, “Who are the bride’s family?”
Zhang Jie: “……”
The Lady of the State, Lady Xu, smiled and took over the conversation, exchanging pleasantries before leading the Little Princess to the women’s banquet.
Though Lady Xu was over forty, she remained beautiful, and Qingyang liked her very much.
At the banquet, she felt right at home, listening with delight to the women’s chatter.
Once she was full, Lady Xu personally took her to the best guest room, soothed her to sleep, and left her in Jie Yu’s care before returning to entertain the other women.
At dusk, the Zhang family’s wedding procession returned.
The Little Princess had woken up earlier and was already in the front courtyard with Jie Yu, eager to watch the excitement.
While watching, she made a few new playmates.
When the firecrackers went off, Qingyang, holding hands with two older children, ran toward the gate, blending in perfectly with the other noble children.
The firecrackers sent up billows of white smoke, swirling and curling through the air.
Jie Yu had to stoop low to keep close to the Little Princess.
The wedding procession was still waiting at the neighboring house.
Only after the firecrackers here had burned out and the smoke had half-cleared did they proceed to the Duke of Wei State Manor, accompanied by music.
Zhang Su dismounted alongside his second brother.
Before he could steady himself, a small figure burst through the smoke from the gate and ran toward him.
“Zhang Su!”
Before the words faded, the Little Princess had already thrown herself at him, tilting her head up, her familiar black eyes shining as she looked at him.
Zhang Su was stunned, but the unusually quiet surroundings soon brought him back to his senses.
He saw the ceremonial procession, guests, and even his elder brother, the groom, all watching him and the Little Princess.
Though he was only nine, Zhang Su already strictly observed etiquette.
Now, his face turned red, and he instinctively tried to push the Little Princess away, but couldn’t bring himself to do it when he saw the joy in her eyes.
“Le—let’s watch the ceremony together.”
Unable to push her away, Zhang Su, for the first time, took the Little Princess’s hand.
Qingyang nodded obediently, her curiosity drawn to the veiled bride, and the wedding ceremony continued from there.
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