A Concubine's Competitive Life in the Prince's Household-Chapter 150

Cai Ping smiled and nodded cheerfully, "Alright! This servant will go handle it right away—Mistress, please don’t eat too much ice desserts, you might fall ill."

Shen Wei played with the child for a while before turning to indulge in the new ice dessert from Wei Yan’s shop.

Sweet, icy, and with a faint lychee fragrance—Shen Wei loved it so much that she had two bowls every day.

"Don’t worry, I exercise daily and won’t get sick," Shen Wei said delightedly, savoring a spoonful of the lychee ice dessert with a satisfied sigh.

After giving birth, she had developed a particular fondness for sweet treats.

Cai Ping shook her head helplessly before finishing her tasks and making time to visit Fu Gui’s small annex outside the Prince's Mansion.

...

Fu Gui had worked diligently in the Prince's Mansion for many years, earning ample rewards and accumulating considerable wealth. The residence he purchased outside the mansion was spacious and bright. The backyard vegetable patch was lush, with rows of tender sprouts thriving under the sun.

Fu Gui had a guest.

A maidservant first led Cai Ping inside and had her wait in a side room.

After about the time it took to drink a cup of tea, movement came from the main room. Peering out, Cai Ping spotted Granny Liu and a few others from the Prince's Mansion. Granny Liu’s expression was grim as she stormed off in a huff.

"Did Granny Liu come to see Fu Gui about the monthly wages?" Cai Ping asked the maidservant curiously.

The maidservant nodded indignantly, "The master is bedridden, yet the Princess Consort keeps sending people to drag him back to manage affairs in the mansion—without even bringing a decent gift. They treat him like a mill donkey, refusing to let him rest."

The maidservant then escorted Cai Ping into the main room.

Fu Gui lay weakly on the bed.

"Steward Fu Gui, are you feeling any better?" Cai Ping walked in with a bright smile, shaking the gifts in her hand. "Her Majesty the Empress bestowed this ginseng upon my mistress, who specially sent me to deliver it to you. My mistress said you’ve worked hard and deserve a proper rest."

Presented with such valuable gifts, Fu Gui couldn’t hide his smile.

After all, people had hearts of flesh and blood—they understood warmth and coldness, right and wrong. Fu Gui was loyal to the Prince and willing to work diligently for the mansion. But that didn’t mean he could be exploited and ordered around by the Princess Consort at will.

Ever since the Princess Consort bore three children, Fu Gui had shouldered the burden of managing the household for her, toiling tirelessly day and night.

Yet in the end, the Princess Consort didn’t even offer a word of thanks. When Fu Gui fell ill, she didn’t send so much as a token of concern. Instead, she had Granny Liu bring account books for him to review while bedridden.

Fu Gui was truly disappointed. Years of hard work for the mansion meant nothing to the Princess Consort—she took it all for granted.

Thankfully, there was Shen Wei.

Shen Wei was clever, decisive, and utterly devoted to the Prince, with the wits to match. Fu Gui was willing to cooperate with her, step by step, to strip the Princess Consort of her authority over the household. Then, he could retire in peace.

Fu Gui said, "This illness of mine won’t be cured anytime soon. Miss Cai Ping, please convey my gratitude to Mistress Shen for her kindness."

Cai Ping replied, "Of course, this servant will pass it along."

With their tacit agreement settled in just a few words, Cai Ping took her leave. Fu Gui lay "weakly" for a moment before happily getting up and waddling his plump figure toward the backyard.

Golden sunlight bathed the small courtyard. In the two large vegetable plots, eggplants had begun to flower, tomatoes bore tiny green fruits, and rows of cabbages grew sturdy and strong.

Fu Gui strolled contentedly through his garden. He had spent his entire life navigating the opulence of the Prince's Mansion, surrounded by jewels and extravagance.

But in his old age, he yearned for a simpler life—tending flowers, growing vegetables, and enjoying his remaining years in peace.

...

With Fu Gui "bedridden," the task of distributing monthly wages to the mansion’s servants fell to Granny Liu and a few other stewards.

Granny Liu toiled for three days, her eyelids heavy with exhaustion, before finally settling the accounts. She opened the treasury, withdrew the silver, and had maids distribute it to the various courtyards in the inner residence.

Once the wages were handed out, Granny Liu dragged her weary feet back to Kunyu Courtyard. She reported to the Princess Consort, "Princess Consort, the wages have been distributed."

Inside the prayer hall, the Princess Consort was lighting incense before the shrine. She merely gave a faint nod and a dismissive "Hmm."

A pang of bitterness struck Granny Liu’s heart.

She had worked so hard to resolve the Princess Consort’s troubles, staying up late for nights on end until she could barely keep her eyes open. She had expected at least some praise or reward.

But the Princess Consort didn’t even spare her a glance, too absorbed in her prayers.

The scent of sandalwood curled through the air. As Granny Liu gazed at the compassionate statue of the Bodhisattva, a sense of bewilderment washed over her.

The Princess Consort used to be generous and kind. But after having children, her world seemed to revolve solely around them. Even a longtime servant like Granny Liu, who had cared for her for over a decade, no longer mattered.

Just as Granny Liu’s heart ached with sorrow, a commotion erupted outside.

"Granny Liu, go see what’s happening," the Princess Consort said, undisturbed in her devotions.

Granny Liu had no choice but to step out of Kunyu Courtyard, where she found several maids lingering anxiously at the gate.

Among them was Xue Mei from Qixue Pavilion, who said urgently, "Granny Liu, I’m a first-rank maid in the mansion. According to the rules, first-rank maids with over five years of service should receive one tael of silver and one string of coins this month. But I only got one tael!"

Another maid added tearfully, "Granny Liu, I’m a second-rank maid and was supposed to receive two strings of coins, but my payment was short too."

Xue Mei said indignantly, "They messed up our wages, but Kunyu Courtyard’s payments were perfectly accurate!"

The maids chattered incessantly, giving Granny Liu a splitting headache.

The mansion had over a hundred servants, not counting the vendors, cloth merchants, and craftsmen who worked outside. Keeping the accounts straight was no easy task.

Mistakes were inevitable.

Granny Liu’s temples throbbed. She had no energy left to deal with the mess and snapped, "If your wages were miscalculated, go to the accounting stewards to fix it. If you keep causing a disturbance here and disturb the Princess Consort, you’ll regret it."

Invoking the Princess Consort’s authority silenced the maids, but resentment simmered in their hearts.

With Granny Liu refusing to help, the servants who had been shortchanged had no choice but to seek out the accountants and stewards.

The accountants were in a bind too.

Rechecking ​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌‍the accounts was a tedious task. Just as everyone was at a loss, Nanny Rong from Liuli Pavilion and the eunuch Ji Xiang happened to pass by.

Nanny Rong was an old acquaintance of Fu Gui’s and had previously helped him with the account books. She and Ji Xiang volunteered to take over, spending the afternoon recalculating everything. They corrected all the errors and compensated the servants for their missing wages without a single mistake.

Naturally, everyone was deeply grateful.

People had their own scales of judgment. After this incident, the difference in competence between Shen Wei and the Princess Consort became glaringly obvious.

...