Chapter 100 Hairpin I take this hairpin as a wedding gift

The atmosphere was frozen for a moment, and even the air was filled with a sense of weirdness.

Cui Lingyan showed a hint of surprise in her eyes. She hesitated for a moment before stepping forward, bowing to Madam Zhai and calling her "Grandma".

She smiled again and called Cui Linghui "big sister".

Lu Bingzhi followed beside her with a calm expression. He also bowed to Madam Zhai, and his eyes did not even fall on Cui Linghui who was standing beside her.

Old Madam Zhai felt a little embarrassed and sighed secretly in her heart. If Cui Linghui had not come to find her a few days ago and said that the Second Prince Xiao Ze wanted to invite her to attend her great-grandmother's birthday banquet, she would have been concerned about the Second Prince and thought that if Hui girl entered the Second Prince's mansion as a concubine, she might not have a good future. Now she had to be more careful not to offend the Second Prince and Hui girl, her own granddaughter, so she reluctantly agreed and brought Cui Linghui to attend the birthday banquet today.

Because of this incident, Qi, who had always been sensible and filial, was so angry that she fell ill. She even sent someone to apologize, saying that she had been exhausted from managing the household affairs for many years, and it was not appropriate for her to attend the birthday banquet while she was ill, so as not to make people think she was unlucky.

She knew what her daughter-in-law was thinking, but it was not easy for her to scold her. Even for the sake of her granddaughter Cui Lingyan, she had to give Qi some face, so she brought Cui Linghui to the house herself.

But she felt a little guilty in her heart, and was afraid that Cui Lingyan and Lu Bingzhi would think that she brought her eldest granddaughter here on purpose to embarrass them. She was a little nervous all the way in the carriage. After all, Lu Bingzhi's temper was not a very good one. Just look at how cruel he treated the old man of the Cen family, which was enough to prove it.

The only thing that made her feel at ease was that Lu Bingzhi was of noble status and was very concerned about his reputation. Even if he hated his ex-fiancée Hui Yatou, he would not embarrass Hui Yatou in front of everyone.

However, Madam Zhai still wanted to explain a few words, but Cui Lingyan didn't give her the chance. She just smiled and said, "There are many guests for the old lady's birthday celebration today. We shouldn't block the door and attract attention. Let's go in quickly."

As she spoke, she turned to Cui Linghui and said, "Mother isn't here today, so I have to take care of Grandmother. Grandmother is old, so please don't fall or get hurt again."

Cui Linghui's eyes instantly turned cold as she heard her words. She wondered if Cui Lingyan knew something, but when she looked at her grandmother's face, she saw that she looked normal. And she wondered if her grandmother would tell Cui Lingyan about the scandal she and Xiao Ze had at Guangfu Temple. Only then did she feel a little relieved.

She didn't want to stay here and be laughed at, so she nodded and helped Madam Zhai in.

Lu Bingzhi, Cui Lingyan, He and others also walked in together.

The two families were originally relatives, but there was an indescribable weirdness because of Cui Linghui's presence.

He frowned, feeling rather angry, thinking that Madam Zhai had brought Cui Linghui here deliberately to discredit the Duke of Wei's mansion. Didn't she, as a grandmother, know how Cui Linghui had caused her fiancé, Lu Bingzhi, to be disgraced by fabricated rumors?

If my mother-in-law, Mrs. Dou, knew about this, she would be furious.

She suppressed her anger and looked at Cui Linghui again. She felt that this Miss Cui was really shameless. Others would have to avoid such occasions at this time, but Cui Linghui was not afraid of people's talk at all.

How could she have the nerve to come to such an occasion?

She glanced at Lu Bingzhi and Cui Lingyan, who were whispering to each other from time to time, and her mood calmed down a little.

In fact, Cui Linghui is not as calm as he seems.

Ever since she got off the carriage, Lu Bingzhi didn't even glance at her and treated her like air.

At this moment, Lu Bingzhi was so close to Cui Lingyan again, talking in a low voice, which made her think of the estrangement and indifference between Lu Bingzhi and her in her previous life.

This time, when she returned from Guangfu Temple, the maids under her command also told her about the recent major events in the capital. She then realized that Lu Bingzhi had actually attacked the Cen family to vent his anger on Cui Lingyan, exposing the scandal between Old Master Cen and the young prostitute, causing the Cen family to lose face. Even the Cen family's wife, Xue, had angered the Empress Dowager, who ordered her out of the palace to reprimand Xue and make her kneel down to listen to the lecture. The Cen family was truly humiliated. This was not like the Lu Bingzhi she knew. He was so devoted to Cui Lingyan, his newly married wife, that even his temperament had changed. Even though Cui Linghui was now Xiao Ze's lover, she couldn't help but feel sour and jealous, and an indescribable resentment.

She tightly grasped the handkerchief in her hand, with a faint smile on her face, not daring to let anyone notice that she was not as calm as she seemed at the moment.

She was afraid that if she showed even a hint of jealousy or discomfort, others would only laugh at her even more.

The group went all the way to the garden where the banquet was set up.

When they came over, many guests had already arrived.

Lady Liao, wife of Duke Cheng'en, and Princess Chun'an had both arrived. Princess Chun'an was sitting on the main seat, talking to Lady Cheng'en.

Seeing Lu Bingzhi and his group approaching, Princess Chun'an said to Liao, "Grandmother, that's Cousin Lu and the third daughter of the Ningshou Marquis's mansion. They've only just gotten married. Grandmother was worshiping Buddha in the temple before, so I'm afraid you haven't seen Cousin Lu's new wife."

As they were talking, Lu Bingzhi and Cui Lingyan stepped forward, performed the junior's salute to Liao, and then saluted Princess Chun'an.

Although Liao Shi didn't know Lu Bingzhi was her daughter's son, she had been close to the Duke of Wei's mansion when Princess Shuning was still alive, so she often saw Lu Bingzhi, the Duke of Wei's heir. However, in recent years, she had been living in a temple, worshipping Buddha, and her encounters with the child had become less frequent. However, she had heard the ins and outs of Lu Bingzhi's marriage, and even learned that he had been poisoned by the Second Prince Xiao Ze at a palace banquet, which had injured him. This was why Cui Linghui disliked him and even fell into the water and caught a cold to cancel the marriage. She was deeply saddened by this and felt a little sorry for this young man.

Now that he had met her, he felt relieved to see that Lu Bingzhi looked very well, without any sign of illness, and that he and his new wife, Cui, seemed to be getting along well.

She smiled and said, "No need to be so polite. I happened to be in the temple worshipping Buddha at the prince's wedding and couldn't attend in person. Today, the prince brought his new bride home, so I have to give him a wedding gift as well."

As she spoke, she took off a hairpin inlaid with colorful gemstones and tourmaline from her hair, waved to Cui Lingyan, and said, "Good child, come here, I will put it on you."

The hairpin was brightly colored and very luxurious, and Cui Lingyan subconsciously looked towards Lu Bingzhi.

Liao smiled and said, "Let's see what he does. I gave this hairpin as a wedding gift. Can I give it to the prince?"

After hearing her say this, Cui Lingyan naturally didn't know what to say. She stepped forward obediently, bowed slightly, and asked Liao to pin the hairpin in her hair.

She was naturally beautiful, and this hairpin complemented her beauty, making her look even more noble and radiant.

Liao praised, "It really suits you." As she spoke, her eyes fell on the hairpin in Cui Lingyan's hair, and she said with a hint of nostalgia, "This hairpin was given to me by the late Queen on my birthday one year. Now that I'm old, there aren't many younger generations who can give it to me as a gift, so I'm giving it to you now. I wish you and the Crown Prince a happy and long life together."

Cui Lingyan was slightly surprised, and then she thought that maybe this was God's arrangement. Liao actually gave this hairpin to her.

She looked at Lu Bingzhi and saw that his expression was gentle and he didn't show any abnormality. She didn't think much about it and just bowed and thanked Liao.

At this time, Princess Chun'an said, "Cousin, please go to the men's room. Let Cui accompany my cousin today."

Lu Bingzhi nodded to Cui Lingyan, then turned and left.

Madam Zhai and her family and He also joined the party, each sitting at a table.

Seeing Cui Lingyan sitting in front of them and talking with Liao and Princess Chun'an, some people were happy while others were annoyed.

He said to her daughter Lu Danyan, "Your sister-in-law is so lucky. She and Princess Chun'an only met once in the palace, and yet Princess Chun'an liked her so much that she even asked her to stay by her side on such an occasion. This is clearly to support her, as she's afraid that others will think she was bullied because she didn't grow up in the capital."

Lu Danyan was somewhat envious, but she was also happy that her sister-in-law Cui Lingyan had caught the eye of Princess Chun'an. After all, everyone in the capital knew that among the princes and princesses, Princess Chun'an was the most favored by the emperor. The princess even had some resentment towards the emperor because of the incident with the former queen, and they had frequent disputes. However, the emperor had never blamed the princess once, and even punished her for being disrespectful. Instead, he held the princess in his hands, and even had some intention of trying to please and compensate her.

How can others have such grace?

My sister-in-law is blessed with the protection of Princess Chun'an. Who would be so ashamed as to embarrass her in such occasions in the future?

Seeing the two of them happy, Lu Danruo felt particularly uncomfortable. She had expected Cui Lingyan to be awkward and uncomfortable in such an occasion. After all, even if she had come with Lu Bingzhi, the closeness he had shown to her at the doorway would inevitably lead to people pointing fingers at her, and looking down on her because she had been sent away to her maternal family since she was a child.

Moreover, in such occasions, it would be difficult for Lu Bingzhi to stay among the female relatives to protect his wife. Cui Lingyan would always meet some noble ladies who wanted to weigh her up.

After all, there were countless noble ladies in the capital who wanted to marry Lu Bingzhi, the prince of Weiguo. However, Lu Bingzhi had been engaged to Cui Linghui before, and later Lu Bingzhi was poisoned. Even Cui Linghui, his fiancée, was disgusted and broke off the marriage out of fear. Even though they felt a little unhappy that Cui Lingyan had taken advantage of this opportunity to become the prince's wife, they would not jump into the fire.

But he is in good health now, and he has even consummated his marriage with Cui Lingyan. Those who used to laugh at his new wife and wait for her to become a widow are now only filled with jealousy and envy.

A girl from a marquisate who did not grow up in the capital, not only became the wife of the prince of the Duke of Weiguo by accident, but also made a man as cold-natured as Lu Bingzhi treat her so closely. Who wouldn't envy her and feel jealous?

Lu Danruo thought this way, feeling that Princess Chun'an was simply meddling. She and Lu Bingzhi were only cousins, not particularly close, so why was she so protective of Cui Lingyan and backing her up? No wonder everyone said Princess Chun'an had a strange temper. Even after marrying and becoming the wife of Duke Dingguo, her temper hadn't changed at all. This was why she had never been liked by the Duke's wife, and they were probably just a couple in name only. Otherwise, how could they have been married for so many years without even having a child, prompting the Duke's wife to arrange a concubine for him?

Lu Danruo felt sour in her heart and thought Princess Chun'an was meddling too much. Cui Linghui, who was sitting at another table, also felt that the hairpin on Cui Lingyan's hair was particularly glaring.

In her previous life, Lu Bingzhi had never brought her to meet Liao, and Princess Chun'an was indifferent to her, her cousin's wife, and even had some disgust. Once, she even embarrassed her in public at a banquet.

So, why is Cui Lingyan so lucky?

Cui Linghui tightly grasped the handkerchief in her hand, unable to conceal the jealousy in her heart.

At this time, a maid wearing a blue jacket came over and whispered a few words to Cui Linghui.

Cui Linghui's expression changed slightly. He glanced at Old Madam Zhai who was sitting beside him and explained to her, "Cousin Zhen asked her granddaughter to go over and enjoy the flowers."

At this time, many female relatives were also enjoying the flowers in the garden, so Cui Linghui's words were not wrong. However, Madam Zhai had brought Cui Linghui here because of the Second Prince. She had lived so long, how could she not guess that Cui Linghui was going to see the Second Prince, Xiao Ze.

She was both angry at Cui Linghui's frivolous behavior and her willingness to be lowly, and happy at the fact that Xiao Ze treated Cui Linghui so attentively. She felt that this eldest granddaughter who had been raised by her since childhood might not be a useless chess piece, and might have a good future if she married into the Second Prince's mansion.

Thinking of this, Madam Zhai nodded and said, "Go ahead. There are so many people at the banquet, so be sensible and don't let others think you are being disrespectful."

Madam Zhai was implicitly reminding Cui Linghui not to do something as shameful as what he did in Guangfu Temple.

Cui Linghui was so ashamed and angry that the smile on his face froze for a moment. At least he didn't show any abnormality. He smiled and replied "yes" to Madam Zhai, then stood up and walked away slowly.

Cui Lingyan was talking with Princess Chun'an and Liao. She saw Cui Linghui leaving with the maid out of the corner of her eye and was a little surprised.

She quickly recovered, but her expression still caught the eye of Princess Chun'an. Following her gaze, she saw Cui Linghui walking away and said with a hint of disdain, "Your stepsister is incredibly shameless. She didn't even shy away from such an occasion and actually came. I wonder what her intentions are. Is she trying to find a wealthy husband and marry into a wealthy family? I think she's dreaming. Who among the wealthy families in the capital doesn't know her true colors?"