In the beginning, the Fourth Concubine genuinely wished to be on good terms with everyone.
Even after entering the Song family, she didn't possess any significant advantages. It was merely that when the matchmaker visited, Song Yuan found her appearance to be decent among the maids.
At that time, the Old Madam was also urging Song Yuan to continue the Song family lineage, and Song Jiayang's health had always been poor. Thus, Song Yuan decided on the Fourth Concubine and welcomed her into the household.
Compared to the Second Concubine and the Third Concubine, who was still alive then, the Fourth Concubine's looks were truly not outstanding. Furthermore, she lacked any talent, possessing only a mouth that knew how to coax people, so Song Yuan soon became less attentive to her.
Initially, the Fourth Concubine thought that as long as she could bear a child, even if it were a daughter like the Second Concubine's, she could live a stable life in the Song family by behaving herself.
However, as days turned into months, the Fourth Concubine's belly remained stubbornly empty.
Over the years, the Fourth Concubine had consulted numerous physicians.
They all stated that there were no significant issues with her health.
Moreover, although she had previously been to the Hu tribes and later "sold" herself to a matchmaker, she had actually remained a maiden before arriving at the Song family. Otherwise, the Old Madam would not have allowed Song Yuan to welcome her into the household so readily.
But the prolonged inability to conceive made the Fourth Concubine increasingly anxious.
She didn't even know when the jealousy from others had begun!
Did it start as the children of the First Madam and the Second Concubine gradually grew up? Or did it begin with the death of the Third Concubine?
She would never forget the death of the Third Concubine.
Because she possessed a certain talent, Song Yuan had doted on the Third Concubine greatly when she was alive.
Furthermore, the Third Concubine's family background was much better than the Fourth Concubine's. Her family had once been a scholarly lineage, only falling into decline later, which led her to become Song Yuan's concubine.
But the Fourth Concubine never imagined that after the Third Concubine's death, the scene would be so pathetic!
The Third Concubine died of illness. One winter, she slipped and fell into a pond, caught a chill, and then fell gravely ill, unable to recover.
She languished on her sickbed for many days, her condition worsening with each passing day, and finally passed away on a day when heavy snow was falling.
When the Third Concubine died, Song Yuan wept profusely, leading the Fourth Concubine to believe that Song Yuan truly held feelings for the Third Concubine.
However, the facts proved otherwise!
Due to her status as a concubine and the fact that she had not borne any children for the Song family,
After the First Madam consulted with Song Yuan, they decided not to allow the Third Concubine to be buried in the Song family's ancestral graveyard!
But the Third Concubine was no longer part of her own family, so her body naturally could not be sent back to her maiden home.
In the end, the First Madam simply provided a thin coffin, added some of the Third Concubine's favorite belongings, and buried her in an ordinary graveyard on the outskirts of the capital.
From then on, although everyone in the Song family knew that a Third Concubine had once existed, no one paid respects to her during the Qingming or Hanshi festivals.
After that winter, during the Qingming festival in spring, the Fourth Concubine went to pay respects at the Third Concubine's grave and found that grass had already grown on the mound.
She was buried in a corner, neglected and forgotten.
At that moment, the Fourth Concubine felt a chill colder than the misty rain of Qingming.
She did not want to end up like the Third Concubine, buried in a forgotten corner with no one to even offer a greeting!
Therefore, from that day on, she knew more than ever that she had to have a child!
In terms of family background, both the First Madam and the Second Concubine were superior to her. In terms of children, the First Madam had legitimate sons and daughters, and even the Second Concubine, however inferior, had a concubine-born daughter.
But she had nothing. She feared that if she truly died, her fate would be even worse than the Third Concubine's.
The Fourth Concubine tried every possible method, even resorting to various folk remedies, but she was still unable to conceive Song Yuan's child.
Especially since she was not favored in the Song family, it was common for Song Yuan to visit her only once every one or two months.
It wasn't until later, when Song Chaoyu and Concubine Liu returned to the Song mansion, that Song Yuan visited her even less.
Her courtyard was always empty, and she was always lonely.
Even if she suspected that the Third Concubine's death was suspicious, what use was it?
She wanted to deal with the Second Concubine, but the Second Concubine was eloquent and had a child to assist her.
She wanted to deal with the First Madam, but the First Madam had legitimate children, and no matter how great her mistakes, Song Yuan would not do anything to her.
The Fourth Concubine felt that the jealousy within her heart was expanding day by day, eventually growing so large that her heart could no longer contain it.
She heard that Concubine Liu, who had been living on the estate, was pregnant again and was to be welcomed back to the Song mansion!
When the Fourth Concubine heard this news, she was almost driven to madness.
Over the years, she had been serving by Song Yuan's side, yet there had been no sign of pregnancy.
But someone who had been kept in an outer residence, someone Song Yuan rarely saw throughout the year, was pregnant again?
The Fourth Concubine felt how unfair the world was to her!
The seeds of wickedness in her heart seemed to have taken root and begun to sprout.
In the dead of night, a voice seemed to whisper in her ear, "Kill them, let them all die! Only then will the master's eyes be on you alone! Kill them! As long as they are dead, the women in this household will be like you! You have no children, why should they have so many and live so well? Have you forgotten the Third Concubine's fate?"
She often woke up from her dreams because of this voice.
But she knew she would never be able to forget it.
As she spoke, the Fourth Concubine was already weeping uncontrollably.
She looked up and stared at Song Chaoyu before her, "Why?! I just wanted a child, why would heaven refuse to give me one?! But you people, you all live so well! Even your concubine, a mere actress, can be welcomed back to the Song mansion. Even you, a daughter from an outer residence, can become the Princess of Chang. But I... I have nothing! I have no children, no anything. Why should I have to watch you be happy?!"
At this point, it seemed no further evidence was needed.
The Fourth Concubine buried her face deeply in her palms, but tears could not be stopped from seeping through her palms, dripping onto the floor, one by one, blooming like flowers of sin in the lonely night.
Song Chaoyu merely watched the Fourth Concubine's weeping calmly and said coldly, "Perhaps you are dissatisfied, but they are innocent. You have harmed people, and you should have foreseen such consequences long ago."