A Foodie Transmigrated into the Palace-Chapter 794 Frustration

"Hmm, take your time writing!" Xia Ruqing closed her eyes and fell asleep.

After the first and second days of the Lunar New Year had passed, the festivities came to a temporary halt. In the palace, everyone could finally rest. This year’s celebrations had been particularly exhausting, not just for the consorts, but especially for the Empress Dowager. When the Empress was still present, the Empress Dowager had little involvement, as her position lacked official sanction. But now, with the Empress gone and Noble Concubine Shih in power, she seized the opportunity to control the entire Harem through Noble Concubine Shih’s authority.

Everyone, including the Ladies of Enjoin from outside the palace, dared not disrespect the Empress Dowager and Noble Concubine Shih. Although some astute individuals were skeptical about the prospects of this aunt and niece, given they only had the Third Princess, it didn’t stop them from currying favor with the Empress Dowager. After all, she still held power, and offending her was out of the question.

Truthfully, most people favored Consort Xian, as her three sons provided a very stable foundation. The Emperor had only four sons in total. Even if more children were born in the future, they would still have four elder brothers ahead of them. The position of Crown Prince was determined by lineage: the son of the Empress had first priority. If the Empress had no son, the Emperor’s eldest son would be chosen. These were the rules passed down by the ancestors. Otherwise, how could the current Emperor, who was third in line by birth order, have become Crown Prince and eventually ascended the throne?

Therefore, unless Noble Concubine Shih managed to become Empress and bear a legitimate son, she was undoubtedly bound to lose.

Thinking this way, the Ladies of Enjoin grew restless again. Noble Concubine Shih could not be offended, but neither could Consort Xian, the mother of the Crown Prince. Consequently, after the second day of the New Year, these Ladies of Enjoin sought connections to request an audience with Xia Ruqing in the palace. However, she unequivocally rejected them all, stating, "I am indisposed and will not meet with anyone!"

What a joke! I am neither the Empress nor in charge of the Harem, so why should they come to see me?

If I agreed to meet them, Noble Concubine Shih and the Empress Dowager would probably skin me alive! So, are they really not trying to harm me?

Undeterred by the rejection, these individuals shifted their focus to the Marquis of Xiahou’s Mansion. One day it was an invitation for tea, the next to admire flowers. The day after that, it was for wine tasting, and then a gathering to discuss poetry, chess, calligraphy, and painting. Invitations flooded the Marquis’s residence like snowflakes.

Ni Manxue, looking at a table laden with invitations, was completely bewildered. "What... what does this mean?" she asked. "Marquis, has our family received more good news?" Ni Manxue turned to Xia Tingfeng.

He casually picked up an invitation, flipped through it, and frowned in thought for a moment before saying, "It’s likely this crowd wants to hedge their bets, trying not to offend either side!"

"Then..." She wasn’t from a prestigious family, so she was unaccustomed to so many formalities and had never received so many invitations before. Ni Manxue was unsure how to handle them.

Xia Tingfeng thought for a moment and then smiled. "We are, of course, sworn to follow Her Highness. Since Her Highness won’t see them, we won’t see them either!"

"Mm!" Ni Manxue looked up at him with adoration, her clear eyes devoid of any doubt. She glanced at him gently and then instructed the servants to start writing replies.

The reasons given were all the same: citing ill health and the severe cold weather as unsuitable for going out, and requesting their understanding. Hundreds of identical letters were dispatched from the mansion to various residences throughout the Capital City. Ni Manxue then put the matter aside. Since they were unable to gain favor either inside or outside the palace, those individuals, however unwilling, had no choice but to accept the situation. Thus, the issue was temporarily dropped, and no one mentioned it again.

「In the Xia Residence of the Prefect of Anzhou, a thousand miles away」

Old Master Xia had experienced a rather frustrating New Year. The first source of his displeasure was his performance assessment, where he received a mere ’C’, barely scraping by the passing line. If he hadn’t suppressed the incident where several dozen commoners drowned in a flood, he probably would have received a ’D’. Only those with an ’A’ or ’B’ grade had a chance at promotion; a ’C’ meant stagnation. If it was a ’D’, then he could expect demotion. The unfortunate prefect before him, for instance, had been demoted two ranks to a Seventh Rank County Magistrate. This was a vivid and grim example. Now, whenever he thought about it, a chill ran down his spine. Having been a County Magistrate for most of his life, he truly did not wish to regress.

Another concern was his youngest son’s education. Xia Weifeng would turn nine after the New Year. Raised under Lady Yao’s doting care, he had grown utterly ignorant in both literature and martial arts. He had been trying to memorize a passage from the "Juvenile Qionglin" since he began his studies at five, yet even now at eight or nine years old, he still stumbled and could not recite it fluently. In a fit of rage, Old Master Xia had dismissed the private tutor from the mansion. He had intended to teach the boy himself, but to his dismay, his son’s academic progress regressed instead of improving. Upon closer observation, he discovered that the problem lay with Lady Yao.

After lessons, the boy should have been diligently reviewing his studies, reinforcing what he learned. But Lady Yao, on the contrary, always felt her son was too tired after a day’s study and adamantly refused to let him read at night, claiming she feared it would damage his eyes. Instead, she would have the kitchen maid prepare all sorts of rich meats and fish to "nourish" him. As a result, he hadn’t absorbed much knowledge, but he had certainly consumed a lot of food, turning into a little fatty.

Looking at the chubby child before him, he increasingly felt that Xia Jingfeng’s lean and sharp appearance was preferable.

Thinking of Xia Jingfeng, Old Master Xia felt another wave of disappointment, like trying to forge good steel from poor iron.

Despite achieving the rank of Third Place Scholar in the imperial examination, and his sister being the Emperor’s Favored Consort, he had the potential to go somewhere with much better prospects!

Yet, in the end, he went off to that Godforsaken place, Yongzhou!

Is he an idiot?

As Xia Jingfeng was his legitimate eldest son, he couldn’t help but care. He reluctantly sent several letters inquiring about his situation. Xia Jingfeng replied, but each time it was with the same few words: ’All is well, do not worry!’

Reading such a letter, Old Master Xia was so angry he felt smoke could billow from his nose. "Fine, fine, fine! What exactly is so fine about it?!"

"To think that the Xia Family had finally managed to rise, only to face decline once more?"

The legitimate eldest son excelled academically but was a fool in officialdom. The legitimate second son was simply a failure academically. The son born of a concubine, on the other hand, was decent; he had secured a marquisate through military merit. But a son born of a concubine was still a son born of a concubine, and a military man was still a military man. It was never as good as being a scholar-official! The more he thought about it, the more stifled and frustrated he felt.

His only consolation was his legitimate eldest daughter, Xia Ruqing. She had borne three Princes for the Emperor, become a high-ranking consort, and was deeply loved by His Majesty. Not only had she brought glory to the family name, but more importantly, if His Highness the Crown Prince were to ascend the throne in the future, the Xia Family might produce an Empress.

Although this was good news, this daughter of his didn’t seem to care much for her natal family. It was his own fault; he had wronged both her and her mother. Regardless, relying on her to promote his younger son in the future seemed unlikely. Alas!

Old Master Xia sighed deeply. "I’ll just take it one step at a time! At least there’s still Lady Wen!"

Lady Wen also had the merit of having helped raise Her Highness in the palace. As long as he treated Lady Wen well, even if Her Highness didn’t act out of consideration for him, she would surely honor her bond with Lady Wen. That wouldn’t be too bad. With this thought, Old Master Xia finally felt a sliver of comfort.

As for Lady Yao, that venomous woman, he truly had no feelings left for her. Initially, he had valued her because she was young and beautiful, possessed a clever tongue, and had given birth to a pair of dragon and phoenix twins shortly after entering his household. For these reasons, he had held her in high regard, even becoming infatuated.

But now, it seemed the woman was capricious, malicious, and evil-hearted. Even a concubine like Lady Wen was a hundred times better than her. He had truly misjudged her!