mtl008 Chapter 221 A Gentle Probe
Chapter 221 A Gentle Probe
"Greetings to Madam Ning, Madam Ning."
"Good child, I didn't bring any gift with me, so I'll just offer this as a token of my appreciation. This bracelet was a gift from the Empress Dowager years ago, and it's my most prized possession. I'll give it to Miss Wen now."
Wenrou glanced at the bracelet. With the Empress Dowager's necklace in front of her, she naturally looked down on it, but she didn't show it on her face. Instead, she glanced at the Empress Dowager and saw that the Empress Dowager nodded. She stepped forward and shyly accepted the bracelet.
"Wenrou thanks Madam Ning very much."
"Oh, you old fool, using the things I gave you to my niece, you're the only one who can come up with such a clever scheme, hahaha."
The room was immediately filled with the Empress Dowager's laughter.
Gu Qingwan simply smiled slightly, conforming to the appropriate atmosphere. Of course, no one else dared to laugh out loud, lest they be charged with blasphemy, which would be a greater loss than gain.
Wenrou was no pushover. Seeing how much the Empress Dowager treated Gu Qingwan, she couldn't calm down. She stepped forward and said something seemingly casually.
"Miss Gu, look how good your aunt is to you. Even the princesses in the palace don't receive such treatment. You are the only one in our palace to receive this."
Gu Qingwan smiled politely. Seeing that the Empress Dowager was looking over, she said, "Miss Wen, you are too kind. The Empress Dowager is naturally the best to the princesses. Now, Qingwan is fortunate to have gained the Empress Dowager's favor. It is all because the Empress Dowager dotes on the younger generation. Besides, Qingwan has heard that when it comes to affection, no one can compare to Miss Wen who is so beloved by her children."
"Hehe, Miss Gu is indeed quick-witted. Indeed, otherwise how could she have won over Prince Chu?"
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager's eyes flickered, and she asked, "What, does Qingwan know the Prince of Chu as well?"
"Your Majesty, who in this world does not know the Prince? He fought for the country and became famous at a young age. He is a role model for us all."
The Empress Dowager didn't think much of it and simply nodded.
"Is it really as Miss Gu says? If they weren't old acquaintances, why would the Prince give his pastries to Miss Gu? No wonder, Miss Gu is so fresh and lovely, I couldn't help but take a second look too. I heard that Miss Gu and the Third Prince's wedding is imminent, I wonder about Miss Gu..."
Most of the people present could more or less sense the provocation in the gentle tone, but it was all self-evident.
Lady Ningguo then spoke up to explain, "Miss Wen probably doesn't know, but the Prince and the Duke practiced martial arts together in their younger years. They had met once or twice in the manor, so it's not accurate to say they were very familiar with each other, but it's also unrealistic to say they were strangers."
"Yes, Madam Ning is right. Wenrou, you don't know, your cousin's martial arts skills were all taught by the old Duke. Back then... we owe a lot to the old Duke." The Empress Dowager seemed to be thinking of something from the past, and paused before continuing, "By the way, I almost forgot if Wenrou hadn't mentioned it. The Third Prince's marriage is coming up soon. Qingwan is the eldest daughter of the Gu family. Has her marriage been arranged yet?"
Madam Ning didn't really want her granddaughter to have any shady dealings with the royal family, so she added, "As the Empress Dowager knows, my granddaughter has been in poor health since she was little, so I had her learn martial arts from my husband to improve her health. I didn't teach her much about etiquette. You know what happened back then. This child lost her mother when she was young, so we two old folks made the decision on our own. We don't expect her to marry into any wealthy family in the future. It's good enough that she's raised in our own home."
This statement, though not entirely definitive, clearly conveys what the speaker intended to express.
Madam Ning's meaning was very clear: the marriage of my child is naturally to be decided by my husband and me. She is spoiled and we have no intention of marrying her out of the family, let alone marrying into the royal family. We have never even thought about that.
The Empress Dowager nodded and said, "Don't say that. Children and grandchildren have their own blessings. When their time comes, we elders shouldn't interfere too much. After all, we all hope that they will have a good life in the future."
The Empress Dowager was unaware that she was about to be rendered speechless by her own words. If she had known, she probably wouldn't have spoken so lightly.
Meanwhile, Wenrou also knew when to stop. Even if the prince was interested in Gu Qingwan, it was impossible for the Ning family elders not to agree. Moreover, judging from Gu Qingwan's expression and attitude, it didn't seem like what Aning had said. So, whether it was true or false remained to be seen, and she couldn't afford to lose her composure.
After figuring it out, Wenrou stopped talking and quietly sat down to listen to the Empress Dowager and Old Madam Ning reminiscing.
However, not long after, other noblewomen came to pay their respects to the Empress Dowager, and the Ning family did not linger and quickly took their leave.
Wenrou said gently, "Then I'll see the old lady off."
The Empress Dowager nodded and said, "Go, go, let Wenrou see her off. Sigh, I wanted to talk to my elder sister, but who knew..."
"Her Madam is becoming more and more childlike," Old Madam Ning couldn't help but tease. "Then we'll have to trouble Miss Wen."
"You're too kind, Madam. This way, please."
After seeing the Ning family off, Wenrou deliberately said to Gu Qingwan, who was walking behind, "Miss Gu, you won't blame Wenrou for being abrupt just now, will you? Wenrou just felt like we had known each other for a long time and wanted to get to know you."
"Of course not, Miss Wen is too kind. Qingwan grew up in the border region and is a rather uncouth person. It is truly an honor to be regarded with such special favor by Miss Wen."
Wenrou understood Gu Qingwan's refusal, smiled awkwardly, and politely asked Gu Qingwan to leave.
The Ning family had been gone for a long time, but Wenrou was still staring at Gu Qingwan's dignified and elegant back, unable to come back to her senses for a long time.
She couldn't tell yet whether Gu Qingwan had feelings for the prince, but it was obvious that the prince was interested in her. Thinking of what A Ning had said to her, Wenrou found it hard to let go of her resentment.
This woman, who claimed to be uncouth, exuded elegance and refinement in every way, even more so than a young lady like herself who had been raised in a sheltered family. For some reason, she felt a sense of unease.
"Miss, what's wrong?" asked Xiaoxin, the personal maid who was following Wenrou.
"It's nothing, I'm just a little worried..."
Shin-chan followed her mistress's gaze and naturally knew what she was thinking, but she felt that her mistress was overthinking things.
“Miss, you are overthinking it. This servant doesn’t think Miss Gu is anything special. Even if the Prince does take a liking to her, she’ll just be one of the many in the inner court. Even if it’s not Miss Gu, there will be Miss Wang or Miss Li, so Miss…”