Chapter 203 The Crown Prince Favors Her?

What?

Xiao Ce knew that Meng Anxian was an outrageous person, but he never expected that someone could be this outrageous!

He looked at the trembling Meng Anxian and felt a headache coming on. Then he said irritably, "How dare you! What nonsense are you spouting?"

"Yes, it's all my fault. I offended the Imperial Preceptor. But... this is the inner quarters of my Meng family. Why is the Imperial Preceptor here?" Meng Anxian looked up at Ling Xiao, still somewhat puzzled.

With such a noble status, why would he be entangled with Meng Yanzhi? Could it be that he has really taken a liking to Meng Yanzhi?

"Xiaoyue said she missed the pastries made by Sister Meng, so I brought her here to see them. But when we got here, we found that in the huge Meng family mansion, there were only a handful of people in the kitchen?"

"I'm telling you, if your Meng family can't afford servants, then don't hold a banquet. Who are you going to exhaust yourself with this?"

Ling Xiao spoke with a disdainful expression.

Well……

Meng Yanzhi had long known that Ling Xiao was very sharp-tongued, and now, seeing him so ruthless, she suddenly felt that sometimes it wasn't so bad for someone to have a bit of a sharp tongue; at least for now, she felt happy just watching him.

Seeing this, Xiao Ce also noticed something was wrong. The kitchen was full of outsiders, dressed in a very messy manner, who must have come temporarily to help. What was going on?

Meng Anxian had considered many possibilities, but she never expected that someone like this would suddenly appear out of nowhere!

Her eyebrows were tightly furrowed, and her face was terribly gloomy. Then she said in a muffled voice, "It's probably because the servants are lazy. It's alright, they're just some trivial matters in the inner quarters. Why don't you two go to the front courtyard for the feast?"

"Rouge, you come too." Ling Xiao said directly, leading Meng Rouge forward.

At this moment, even Xiao Ce noticed something amiss; Ling Xiao's attitude towards Meng Yanzhi was quite unusual!

His eyebrows furrowed tightly as he watched Meng Yanzhi follow closely behind Ling Xiao, and his expression turned rather unpleasant.

"If the Meng family doesn't have enough people, I'll give you some. Why make things so difficult for them?" Xiao Ce looked at Meng Anxian with displeasure.

Meng Anxian never expected that Xiao Ce would say such a thing to embarrass her at this time. For a moment, she didn't know how to respond and could only awkwardly smile.

Fortunately, Xiao Ce did not pursue the matter further and simply continued walking forward.

Meng Anxian turned around, looked at Aunt Chen who was still busy in the kitchen, spat out a vicious look in her eyes, and then followed Xiao Ce's footsteps.

As soon as she stepped out of the inner courtyard, Meng Yanzhi sent the light knife beside her to Aunt Chen's courtyard, telling her to keep a close watch on Nian'er. With the house in such a mess today, it wasn't impossible that they might try to harm the child.

No matter what, we can't let anything happen to Nian'er.

"How come I didn't know you were such a worrier?"

"I don't think you act like this even in the palace. Are you taking advantage of A-Yuan's good temper?"

Ling Xiao glanced at Meng Yanzhi, a hint of resentment creeping into his eyes.

Is there something wrong with this person's brain?

"Imperial Advisor, would you like to speak louder so that everyone can hear what you're saying?"

Meng Yanzhi could no longer tolerate it. What was wrong with this person? Whenever he saw her, he always spoke to her in such a sarcastic and strange way. She felt like she owed him a lot of money!

Thinking of this, Meng Yanzhi felt even more dissatisfied. She snorted, stepped past Lingxiao, and strode into the front yard.

There wasn't originally a place for Meng Yanzhi in the front courtyard, but a seat was immediately arranged for her after she arrived.

"Miss Meng, why are you so late? I've been waiting for you!"

The Jade King raised his wine cup and looked at Meng Yanzhi with a half-smile.

Meng Yanzhi stood up and gave a proper bow, then said, "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. I was helping out in the kitchen, which is why I'm late!"

"Lord Meng, you are utterly wasting such a beautiful girl! Why are you hiding her in the kitchen instead of keeping her in the courtyard?"

The Jade King looked at Meng's father with amusement.

Meng's father didn't think there was anything wrong with having Meng Yanzhi cook, but his expression changed immediately after hearing what the Jade King said. He was a little embarrassed and gave Meng Yanzhi a reproachful look: "You child, I told you not to lift a finger, why don't you listen?"

"Yes, it's all my daughter's fault. I just wanted to host a banquet at home and show off my cooking skills to everyone."

"Please don't be shy, everyone. I made all these snacks myself. Please have a taste."

Meng Yanzhi smiled gently, raised her wine cup, clinked it against the Jade King's cup, and then drank it all in one gulp.

Her words eased Meng's father's embarrassment somewhat: "You're such a sensible child. Now that you're working in the imperial kitchen, you don't come home often. You mustn't work so hard in the future."

"Yes, Father, I will listen to you!" Meng Yanzhi immediately agreed without hesitation, and even made a face at her father, showing her playful side.

Even though he knew that the two of them were just putting on an act, the Jade King was still charmed by Meng Yanzhi's cleverness. At first, he only mentioned wanting this girl casually, but now he really meant it and really wanted her.

Seeing Meng Yanzhi sit down, Meng Anxian felt a sharp pain in her heart. Now, whenever she saw Meng Yanzhi, she would feel a tightness in her chest.

Especially seeing Xiao Ce enjoying the pastries so much, her expression turned even more unpleasant. She knew perfectly well what was going on with the flour. Seeing that Xiao Ce had eaten one piece and still wasn't satisfied, Meng Anxian became a little anxious: "Your Highness, you should eat less of these. They're too sweet and not good for your health."

"My sister isn't even married yet, and she's already so fond of His Highness?"

"Your Highness, you must treat your sister well. Look how much she cares about you!"

Meng Yanzhi immediately teased, her eyes sparkling with an indescribable mischievousness.

She is Meng Anxian's older sister, and will be part of the Crown Prince's family in the future, so it's normal for them to joke around now, which actually shows the harmony of the family.

But for Meng Anxian, it was a different story. She frowned and looked at Meng Yanzhi with some displeasure: "What do you mean by that, sister? Are you blaming me for meddling?"

"Sister, what are you saying? Today's family banquet was just me joking with my future brother-in-law. Even His Highness the Crown Prince can't completely shut people out, can he?" Meng Yanzhi put down her wine cup and looked at Meng Anxian with a somewhat aggrieved expression. "Or is it that you, sister, as the future Crown Princess, look down on me, a mere third-rank female official?"