The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Chapter 264 The Bride's Greeting

She looked at Xiao Jingchen with gentle eyes, her gaze revealing both resentment and determination.

The Empress Dowager was already unhappy, and now she was even more unhappy. Did this daughter-in-law come so late on purpose?

"No manners at all. Didn't the palace maid I sent teach you any manners?"

"Mother, please have some tea first before we talk," Xiao Jingchen suggested from the side.

The Empress Dowager pursed her lips unhappily. It's true what they say, a son is no longer under his mother's control once he grows up. Is she already so protective of her on the very first day? But the Empress Dowager didn't make things too difficult for Gu Qingwan and accepted the bowl of tea from her and drank it.

Upon seeing this, Granny Chang presented a box, which, when opened, revealed a pair of openwork gold gemstone bracelets.

"These were originally a pair, bestowed upon me by the Empress Dowager during my wedding. One was given to the Empress, and this one is for you. I hope you will serve the Prince well in the future and also be a good sister-in-law with the Empress."

"Your daughter-in-law will heed your teachings, Mother." Gu Qingwan raised both hands above her head and accepted the bracelet.

"Oh dear, that's wonderful! Your Majesty's wish has finally been fulfilled." The Empress added from the side, "Now that we have Princess Chu, there will be someone to come to the palace to chat with your daughter-in-law, making the family even more lively."

"Your Majesty is right. This is what a family should be like. From now on, you and Prince Chu should come to the palace more often to keep me company."

"It is the Empress Dowager." This time, it was actually the Prince of Chu who responded to the Empress Dowager's words, which surprised everyone. Usually, princes are people who are sparing with their words, so it was rare for him to say a few more words for his princess.

Gu Qingwan presented the prepared gifts to everyone present.

The gifts presented to the Empress Dowager included a set of clothes and a headband. According to custom, these were things that the new bride had to make herself for her mother-in-law, firstly to show that she was virtuous, and secondly to show that she valued filial piety and respected her elders.

The Empress Dowager, seeing that the needlework was fairly skillful, did not make things difficult for the recipients. The Emperor received a painting, while the Empress received a box of pearls from the South China Sea, one of which was the size of a baby's fist and was extremely rare.

"Oh ho ho, there's something for me too? Fuming, open it quickly and let me see what good things the Princess Consort of Chu has sent me."

"It's hardly a valuable item. This is a map that my maternal grandfather obtained by chance. I'm just passing it on to Your Majesty. I hope Your Majesty won't find it offensive."

It was indeed a very large scroll. Fuming found four eunuchs to help him unfurl it and lay it out in the very center of the Empress Dowager's palace. The moment it was unfurled, the Emperor was first shocked, then overjoyed, and he immediately stepped down.

"Is this a map of Daqing's territory? Look at it, it's drawn in such detail."

“Brother, not only that, this map also includes the northern border, the southern frontier, and the western Rong regions,” the King of Chu said, pointing to these places as he stood in front of the map.

"Hahaha, that's wonderful! If all of these can be incorporated into the territory of our Daqing, my empire will be complete, and I will have the face to meet my ancestors a hundred years from now. Good, good, good, old Duke, you have such good things, why don't you offer them up sooner?"

"Your Majesty," Gu Qingwan explained, "my second brother was traveling while doing business when he came across this painting. I heard it was painted by a wandering Taoist priest. My brother bought it for a high price and gave it to my maternal grandfather. Before he could give it to Your Majesty, I snatched it away. I hope Your Majesty will not blame my maternal grandfather."

"The second young master of the Ning family has gone into business? I had heard about it before, but I didn't expect him to actually do it." The Emperor was somewhat surprised.

"My second brother doesn't like fighting and killing on the battlefield. He prefers gold and white things. My maternal grandfather said that he uses the guise of doing business to go out and eat, drink, have fun, and travel."

The emperor waved his hand dismissively, not paying much attention, but his eyes remained fixed on the painting. "I will make this painting a reality in my lifetime," he declared.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured. With your humble servant here, we will surely be invincible wherever our swords point." The King of Chu was a true general, and expanding the territory of Daqing was his lifelong wish.

"You two brothers should take a break. These are all concubines and women; who will understand your grand ambitions?" the Empress Dowager teased.

"Mother is right. Let's go, let's go. Prince Chu, come with me to the Imperial Study. Let's study this map properly."

"Even if Your Majesty is happy, there's no rush. Princess Consort Chu hasn't given the younger generation a gift yet."

"Yes, yes, I was too impatient." Only then did the Emperor let Fuming pack up his things. He was physically in Cao Ying but his heart was with Han. He hoped that Princess Chu would finish sending off the gifts to the younger generation as soon as possible.

The Crown Prince and Crown Princess accepted the gift with smiles and said affectionately, "Thank you, Imperial Aunt."

This kindness came from the bottom of her heart. Ever since she took the medicine given by the Princess Consort of Chu and followed her prescription, the Crown Princess's menstrual period has become regular, unlike before when it was sparse, infrequent, and accompanied by abdominal pain.

The Second Prince's Consort received the item. She glanced at it and saw that it wasn't anything special, but it was still quite valuable. Since the Emperor and Prince Chu were both present, she naturally addressed him obediently as "Imperial Aunt."

When they arrived at the Third Prince's side, during the ceremony where the Third Prince addressed his aunt as "Imperial Aunt," Xiao Yuheng, taking advantage of the angle from which no one could see him, made no attempt to conceal his aggressive gaze, which Gu Qingwan clearly saw. Gu Qingwan immediately felt disgusted and, without waiting for him to say anything, left on her own.

As for Gu Hanjiao, she was just a concubine, and she hadn't prepared any gifts for her, which immediately made Gu Hanjiao's expression turn somewhat unpleasant.

The Fifth Prince still lives in the palace and does not yet have his own independent residence. Like the two younger princes below him, he received a gift. The Fifth Prince's gift was a jade fan, which he held in his hand and played with with great satisfaction.

The princesses received even simpler gifts: a set of jewelry for each of them, each of which was quite valuable. The princesses all obediently accepted them, and even the second princess did not try to cause trouble, which surprised her somewhat.

After the gifts were distributed to all the concubines in the circle, it was discovered that only Consort Yu and Consort Gu had not received any gifts. Consort Yu was immediately furious.

"What, Princess Consort Chu, are you looking down on me?" Consort Yu provoked with a forced smile. Taking advantage of the fact that the Emperor had recently begun to favor the Third Prince and dote on her more, she had forgotten her past lessons and continued to be arrogant and domineering.

The Empress cursed the idiot in her heart. If the Crown Prince hadn't told her that if she wanted to live comfortably in the harem, she would have needed to set up a target. As the saying goes, a tall tree catches the wind, and only by having a big tree to catch the wind can she enjoy the shade under it.

So the Empress turned a blind eye to the Consort, but unexpectedly, she really became arrogant.

The Empress Dowager usually doesn't concern herself with matters in the inner palace. Today, it was only because Consort Yu suddenly brought Consort Gu to pay her respects and bring her the skincare products she used before that she allowed them to stay and meet the Princess of Chu. Why are they so troublesome?

"Concubine!"

Hearing the Empress Dowager mention her name with some displeasure, Consort Yu said aggrievedly, "Your Majesty, please calm down. I am just a little sad. I am, after all, one of the Emperor's concubines. How can I not even receive a small gift from the Princess? The Princess really doesn't respect the Emperor."

"Your Highness seems to have misunderstood. This is a family reunion, and it involves recognizing the principal wife and some of the children. Your Highness is so noble that I did not expect you to come in person, so I did not prepare in advance. If Your Highness wishes, I will send you a portion later."

Gu Qingwan's explanation did not make Consort Yu feel better; instead, it made her even more upset.

What Gu Qingwan meant was that even if she was a noble concubine, she was still just a concubine, someone who couldn't be brought to the table, and had no right to stand here and talk to her or ask for things.

“Your Majesty…” Consort Yu looked at the Emperor with red eyes, but the Emperor was preoccupied with the map and had no time to pay attention to a concubine.

"Alright, alright. I find Princess Chu's manners to be quite impeccable. You may stay here if you wish, or return to your own palace to rest if you don't want to. Don't cause trouble!"

What could Consort Yu say after the Emperor had spoken? However, she was unwilling to let him go back in such a dejected manner, so she sat there with red eyes and did not say anything. Gu Hanjiao, who was standing next to her, was also silent.

Upon seeing this, the Emperor immediately summoned the Prince of Chu and the other princes to follow him to the Imperial Study.

Xiao Jingchen was a little worried about Gu Qingwan. Gu Qingwan smiled at him, indicating that she could handle the situation herself.

"Go ahead, with the Empress Dowager and I here, who would dare to prey on your beautiful wife?" The Empress smiled and stood up, taking Gu Qingwan's hand, indicating that Prince Chu could go without worry.

Previously, the Empress had considered making Gu Qingwan a concubine of the Crown Prince. However, the Crown Prince himself came to analyze the situation for her. He explained that the Prince of Chu was now on his side, and Gu Qingwan marrying the Prince of Chu would be a boost to the Eastern Palace. Moreover, the Emperor was very satisfied with the Crown Prince, and she should not act rashly and arouse the Emperor's suspicion, as that would be a loss.

Therefore, the Empress's attitude towards Gu Qingwan improved. She said that nowadays, the Chu Prince's mansion only had one woman in charge, and she was favored by the Chu Prince. Being on good terms with her would definitely have benefits and no drawbacks.

"Then I'll come pick you up later." After giving his instructions, the Prince of Chu left with the Emperor, and the Crown Prince and several other princes followed the Emperor to the Imperial Study.

After the two men left the hall, only women remained. Gu Qingwan knew that the battle had only just begun.

After the Emperor and Prince Chu left, and the Empress took Gu Qingwan to sit down, Consort Yu was about to start causing trouble. She fiddled with the golden nail guards on her hands and said arrogantly.

"Our Princess Consort of Chu is really good at putting on airs. Not only does she have the protection of the Prince of Chu, but also the Emperor and the Empress. In the future, we will have to pay our respects to the Princess Consort. However, I am curious whether our little one will call the Princess Consort 'sister' or 'auntie' in the future. Oh dear, little one, maybe you should avoid the Princess Consort when you see her in the future."

Gu Hanjiao said softly, "Mother, please don't blame my sister. My sister has been the eldest daughter of the family since she was a child and was raised under the care of Old Madam Ning. She always gets the best things in the family. Father always lets her have whatever she wants. My sister is just a little spoiled, but she doesn't have any bad intentions."

The Empress Dowager had no real knowledge of Gu Qingwan. She had only met her once when Old Madam Ning brought her in. At that time, she thought the girl was well-behaved and charming. But now that her younger sister from her own family had said such things, could it be that Gu Qingwan's actions were all an act for her? If that were the case, she would be truly unlikable.

Gu Qingwan sat down unhurriedly, not even glancing at the other person, and said, "I was betrothed by the late emperor's will, and I also have the approval of the empress dowager. I am a noble lady of the highest rank. Logically speaking, it is in accordance with etiquette for the Noble Consort to pay her respects to me, but since you are the emperor's concubine, I will not make a fuss about it."

"As for Consort Gu... the saying goes, a married daughter is like water spilled from a bowl. Let alone the fact that I have no relation to the Gu family now, even if we did, Consort Gu should still address me as Princess Consort according to rank. The title of Aunt should wait until the Third Prince's principal wife enters the family. At that time, I will naturally prepare a gift for the Third Prince's wife."

Since we're going to fight head-on, we need to make a strong impression in the first battle so that they won't dare to underestimate us in the future.

Gu Hanjiao, this seemingly innocent but actually cunning woman, was quite the actress. She rose and bowed to the Empress Dowager, her eyes slightly red.

"Sister, perhaps you've misunderstood. I only came to deliver skincare products to the Empress Dowager and the Imperial Concubine. Since you're entering the palace today, I kept a portion for you as a wedding gift..."

"How dare you! What makes you call Princess Chu 'sister'? Princess Chu is the Third Prince's aunt, my sister-in-law, and the Empress Dowager's daughter-in-law. If you call Princess Chu 'sister,' what about the Empress Dowager, the Emperor, Prince Chu, myself, and the Third Prince? Besides, a concubine like you shouldn't even be here. The Empress Dowager's benevolence doesn't give you the right to be so presumptuous!"

The Empress had always disliked Consort Yu. Although the Crown Prince had repeatedly warned her, the Empress couldn't help but find fault with her. All the concubines were getting too big for her. Since she couldn't openly do anything to Consort Yu, she could at least teach that concubine a lesson.

"Mother, please forgive me." Gu Hanjiao was so frightened that she immediately knelt on the ground. In fact, she had cursed the Empress many times in her heart. This evil old society made people kneel at the drop of a hat.

"Alright, alright, get up quickly. You're still pregnant." The Empress Dowager was somewhat protective of Gu Hanjiao, as she suspected that the child in her belly might be her first great-grandson. "Empress, don't be angry. The child is still young, and she and Qingwan have been sisters for many years, so she can't change her way of addressing him. Just be more careful in the future."

Since the Empress Dowager had spoken, the Empress naturally gave her a way out and accepted it.

"What the Empress Dowager says is true. Consort Gu is currently six months pregnant and her health is very important. Your Highness should take Consort Gu back to rest as soon as possible," Gu Qingwan suggested. "The Empress Dowager is right. Consort Gu should not speak carelessly in the future, lest she bring trouble upon herself."

"Thank you for your guidance, Your Highness." Gu Hanjiao bit her lower lip, trying to suppress her emotions.

"Alright, it's getting late. Consort, you should take the child back. The Empress and Princess Consort of Chu are fine here. The children should go back and play too. It's too restrictive for them to stay here with me."

"Yes, Grandmother."

The Empress Dowager issued an order to leave, and the princesses all took their leave. Even though Consort Yu was unwilling, she had no choice but to leave with the Second Princess and Gu Hanjiao.