Chapter 22: Everyone Has Their Own Thoughts What does Cui Lingyan have? Does she think she can...

When Cui Linghui heard this, a look of disbelief flashed in his eyes and anger surged in his heart.

"Third sister, you grew up in another family's home. You really should learn more etiquette. How can you say such things?" Cui Linghui's voice became a little colder.

Cui Lingyan chuckled upon hearing this and said meaningfully, "Big sister is right. I should thank you. If you hadn't fallen into the water, this marriage wouldn't have happened to me."

She took a sip of the teacup in her hand before continuing, "But since Big Sister has avoided this marriage as she wished, there's no need to act like you've been wronged by me snatching your marriage away."

Cui Lingyan revealed the truth in just a few words, and these straightforward words made Cui Linghui extremely embarrassed.

Cui Linghui sneered, unable to contain herself any longer, and put down the teacup in her hand, standing up and saying with a hint of sarcasm, "Third sister, don't be so arrogant. Do you think you're so honored to have secured this marriage? Wait until you marry into the Duke of Wei's mansion, and you'll realize that not just anyone can be the Crown Prince's wife."

Cui Lingyan's expression was calm: "Don't worry about that, sister."

Cui Linghui looked at her for a long while, and having no intention of arguing with Cui Lingyan again, he walked out.

Aunt Xie hurriedly followed, also very surprised. The third young lady, Cui Lingyan, had just returned to the mansion. Seeing such a gentle and harmless person, who would have thought that he could be so tough? He didn't show any weakness in front of his own daughter, but instead silenced her with a few words.

But what the third young lady said was also true. The eldest young lady herself did not want this marriage, and it was the Empress Dowager and Old Lady Dou who chose the third young lady to marry Prince Lu. From the beginning to the end, the third young lady had done nothing wrong. To put it bluntly, she was just being manipulated.

My daughter came here thinking that she could get the third girl to accept this favor, but now it seems that she has brought shame upon herself.

Nanny Xie felt a little regretful that she had not persuaded her daughter. She sighed softly in her heart, thinking that her daughter had been spoiled since she was a child and had lived a life of luxury in the mansion, and her temperament was somewhat too arrogant.

Now that the third girl has gotten this marriage, I wonder if my daughter will regret it in the future.

I just hope that after the third girl marries Master Lu, she will not be favored by him, let alone get pregnant so that she can gain a foothold in the Duke of Weiguo's Mansion. Otherwise, they will become a laughing stock in the whole capital.

Nanny Xie was filled with worries. After leaving Chuyun Courtyard, she spoke to comfort Cui Linghui, "Young lady, please don't be angry with the Third Young Lady. As you said, the Third Young Lady grew up in the Qi family and only saw herself getting a good marriage and becoming the wife of the Duke of Wei. She has no idea of ​​the seriousness of the matter, or how difficult it is to be the wife of the Duke of Wei."

"Nowadays, the most important thing for a girl is to take good care of herself."

Madam Xie thought for a moment and then said, "Why don't you find an excuse to stay in the temple for a while, so that you don't feel unhappy in the mansion."

Cui Linghui glanced at her and said, "If I act like this, others will think I'm hiding from her, Cui Lingyan."

"I want to watch her marry into the Duke of Wei's mansion and wait for her to return home after three days to see if Lu Bingzhi will give her new wife respect."

In her previous life, she had married Lu Bingzhi, and on their wedding night, they didn't even drink the wedding wine, making everyone laugh. Although Lu Bingzhi accompanied her back to the Ningshou Marquis's residence on the third day of her marriage, his attitude was very cold. Anyone could see that they were estranged from each other, and there was no sign of a newlywed couple.

Cui Linghui had been the wife of the prince, so she knew how cold-hearted Lu Bingzhi was, and she could not tolerate even the slightest bit of injustice.

She couldn't even be a good wife of the Crown Prince. How could Cui Lingyan, who didn't grow up in the capital and didn't understand the ways of the world, please Lu Bingzhi?

She has the Ningshou Marquis Mansion behind her, her grandmother and father both love her, and she also has the Zhenguo Duke Mansion as her in-laws. But what does Cui Lingyan have? Does she think she can live better than her?

After Cui Linghui said this, he continued walking forward without saying anything else, remaining silent all the way.

Nanny Xie followed behind her. She knew that her daughter was unhappy, so she didn't dare to persuade her anymore. She just followed her all the way to Yingyue Courtyard.

In the house

Seeing Cui Linghui leave the courtyard, Bi Tao couldn't help but ask, "How dare the young lady come here? Is she expecting you to appreciate her kindness and feel inferior to her every time she sees her in the future?"

"If she hadn't fallen into the water and caught a cold, how could she have gotten married? There are so many rumors out there, and Master Lu doesn't seem to be an easy person to get along with. She doesn't know what kind of situation she'll be in if she marries him."

"I am really panicking."

Cui Lingyan was also a little nervous and confused, but things had come to this point and there was no point in thinking too much. She could only take one step at a time.

At least she didn't have to worry about Cui Linghui plotting against her and her cousin Qi Shaozhang, ruining her reputation and ending up like in her dream.

Duke Wei's Mansion, Peony Courtyard

After hearing Madam Qi's report, Cen's eyes flashed with surprise. After a long while, she said, "This Third Miss Cui is really lucky. She got such a good marriage right after returning to the capital. She must be very happy."

"Even with such a big deal, the old lady didn't even send anyone to inform me. Alas, I'm a stepmother after all. The prince's biological mother is Princess Shuning. I'm not dignified as the wife of the Duke of Wei. No wonder my sisters-in-law look down on me."

Madam Qi had served Cen for many years, so how could she not know what she was thinking? After hearing what she said, she hurriedly said, "Madam, please be more at ease. It would be better if you don't interfere in the affairs of the Crown Prince."

"Besides, it would be a good thing for Madam and the young lady if Cui Lingyan married in instead. After all, the Third Miss Cui grew up in another family. Even if she had enough food and clothing, she would inevitably be timid and petty. How could she possibly be worthy of the title of the Crown Prince's wife? Her marriage would be better than the eldest Miss Cui. In the future, Madam, as the mother-in-law, would be able to control her and wouldn't have to act like a sister-in-law in front of our young lady."

After hearing her words, Mrs. Cen's expression eased a little. She nodded, knowing that what Aunt Qi said was right.

Just as she was about to speak, she heard footsteps outside. Soon, her daughter Lu Danruo came in, a look of joy on her face. As soon as she came in, she quickly walked up to Cen and said anxiously, "Mother, have you heard? Cui Linghui has a cold and it's difficult for her to get pregnant. The Queen Mother and Grandmother are unhappy and want her stepsister Cui Lingyan to marry into our Weiguo Mansion."

"Some people outside say that Cui Linghui deliberately fell into the water to avoid this marriage and didn't want to marry my brother. My brother also said that if he knew he had a physical illness, he should have called off the engagement. Why did he force Cui Linghui, an unmarried girl, into such a dilemma that she did something like deliberately falling into the water?"

As Cen's words became increasingly outrageous, her expression darkened. She scolded him, "What nonsense are you talking about? If your eldest brother heard it, I wouldn't know how to punish you."

As Cen spoke, she waved her hand and told all the maids and servants serving in the room to leave.

After everyone left, he turned to his daughter and said, "You are just such an unstable person. You can think about these things in your heart, but you can't say them out loud. If it gets out, I don't know what Lu Bingzhi will think of you, and even your grandmother will punish you."

In private, Cen always called Lu Bingzhi by his name and never called him Prince.

Lu Danruo curled her lips and said, "They are all people that Mother trusts, and their indentures are in Mother's hands. How dare they casually tell anyone about it?"

"Besides, I just feel so happy. He is the only one in the mansion who is so high and mighty that he looks down on us mother and daughter. Now he wants to marry a girl from a lowly marquisate. This is really a huge joke."

"I think the Queen Mother and Grandmother also know that apart from choosing someone from the Cui family, no noble lady in the capital is willing to marry into our Weiguo Mansion. Now that one is not presentable and the other is ill, they are really a perfect match."

Cen felt relieved when she heard this, but she still said, "Alright, he's your elder brother. Don't dare tell anyone about this. Otherwise, even mother won't be able to save you."

Lu Danruo nodded: "My daughter is not stupid. I only talked about it with my mother in private. How could I let him know?"

Cen took her hand and said, "Looking at the situation, the wedding date will be set soon. The Empress Dowager has always loved her grandson Lu Bingzhi, and she will definitely ask the Imperial Observatory to choose an auspicious day. At the latest, Cui Lingyan will marry into our Weiguo Mansion in three months. Ruorou, you will have another sister-in-law."

Lu Danruo sneered, with a hint of disdain in her eyes: "Sister-in-law, so what? Are you still thinking of suppressing me, the legitimate daughter of the Duke's Mansion?"

"I heard that Cui Lingyan has a strong destiny and is unlucky for her younger brother. That's why her mother, Qi, dislikes her and sent her to live with her parents when she was six. She hasn't cared about her for years. Grandmother has no choice but to choose her and invite her into the family. I wonder if she will mind this in the future."

"She has no family to rely on, so marrying into our Duke of Wei's mansion means she's at the mercy of others. Mother, you must set some rules for her and tell her, as your daughter-in-law, to respect you."

They, mother and daughter, wanted to get back at Cui Lingyan, the Crown Prince's wife, for all the contempt they had suffered because of Lu Bingzhi.

Mrs. Cen knew what her daughter was thinking, so she didn't scold her anymore.

She had been holding back her anger for years, but she had no choice but to avoid Lu Bingzhi. Even as his stepmother, she sometimes had to please him and couldn't control him at all. If she could use filial piety to control Cui Lingyan, she would be happy.

Thinking of this, she felt a little relieved and was looking forward to Cui Lingyan coming in soon.