Chapter 63: Even if the prince doesn’t say it, I think so too

Lu Bingzhi waved his hand, signaling Guan Yan to continue, obviously not intending to deal with the matter at this moment.

Guan Yan increasingly felt that the Crown Prince treated the Young Madam differently. If Cui Linghui had married into the family, the Crown Prince wouldn't even be able to accompany her around the garden, and he wouldn't even be able to show her the proper intimacy. Husband and wife would at best treat each other with respect, so how could he perceive any intimacy?

He glanced at Cui Lingyan inconspicuously, bowed and retreated.

Lu Bingzhi took Cui Lingyan to sit at the stone table, accompanied Cui Lingyan to drink some tea and snacks, and then sent Cui Lingyan back to Wutong Courtyard. Then he said softly: "I'm going to Songxue Hall to take care of some things. If you like anything for dinner, you can tell the kitchen or the kitchenette. You don't have to wait for me."

Cui Lingyan agreed with a smile, and personally sent Lu Bingzhi out. She watched him leave the yard, and then returned with Bitao.

Bi Tao was a little surprised and asked, "Is there something wrong with the prince that prevents him from dining with the young lady?"

Cui Lingyan glanced at Bi Tao and said, "Although the prince is married, it's not easy for him to spend all day with me, his wife. He naturally has many things to do. Otherwise, if the news gets out, others will laugh at him."

After saying this, Cui Lingyan walked to the couch and sat down with a smile.

Qiu Zhi wanted to follow in, but she remembered how Cui Lingyan usually treated her indifferently and didn't rely on her at all. She hesitated and finally didn't go in to offend him.

In the room, Bi Tao saw Qiu Zhi didn't follow her in, so she lowered her voice and whispered to Cui Lingyan, "Young lady, I've noticed Qiu Zhi's mood has been off these past few days. She seems to feel that Young lady doesn't rely on her, and she's a little irritated. Earlier, when I went to the storeroom to sort out Young lady's dowry, Qiu Zhi found out and said a few sarcastic words. I was upset, but since she came from the First Madam's household, I didn't want to start an argument and make it public, making a fool of myself in the Duke's Mansion. I just thought I'd bring it up with Young Lady when she's free and see what Young Lady has to say about it."

Cui Lingyan frowned slightly when she heard this: "She receives the share of the head maid, and she has all the proper respect. Yet she is so ruthless and feels that I have wronged her. Can the relationship between her and me be compared to ours?"

"You can't see your own identity clearly, and you feel inferior to Bi Tao. You have wronged her. You really deserve to be from Cuiwei Courtyard."

When Bitao heard this, she naturally knew that her daughter had no intention of praising Qiuzhi, and she felt relieved.

The young lady and the eldest lady were not on good terms, so Qiu Zhi had to serve her closely and knew too much. Moreover, Qiu Zhi was so proud that if the young lady relied on her, she might do something that would disrespect the young lady's dignity.

Bitao didn't dare to say this out loud, but she was a little cautious in her heart.

In a big family, there are many maids who want to climb up the social ladder. She only cares about the girl. Birou came from Madam Zhai's house and knows the importance of things, but Qiuzhi may not be the same.

Just now, the prince accompanied the girl to relax in the small garden, and she saw Qiu Zhi staring at the prince with a bit of envy in her eyes. She didn't know what she was thinking.

Bitao didn't continue talking about this. Seeing that it was getting late, she asked the girl what she wanted to eat and asked the kitchen to prepare it.

"Prepare the usual dishes. If the prince isn't coming to eat, there will be a few less dishes. Nothing will go to waste."

"By the way, ask the kitchen to prepare some of the prince's favorite dishes and send them to Songxue Hall."

Bi Tao hesitated for a moment and asked, "How about you make some cakes and send them to Song Xue Tang in person? You've been married for a few days and haven't been to Song Xue Tang yet."

Cui Lingyan shook her head. "I just got married and I'm already so attached to the prince that I'm chasing him to Songxue Hall. If this gets out, won't people laugh at me?"

"Besides, the prince has official business to attend to, so we shouldn't disturb him."

Bi Tao knew Cui Lingyan's personality, so after hearing her say this, she stopped trying to persuade her. She only muttered, "I wonder if the prince will return to Wutong Courtyard tonight?"

Cui Lingyan didn't take this matter to heart. Based on her understanding of Lu Bingzhi, there was no way he would live in Songxue Hall immediately after returning home after three days.

He treated his wife with dignity and did not put on airs or make people feel difficult to get close to him when they were together. With his personality, how could he embarrass her at this time?

"Don't worry too much, the prince will come back." Bi Tao nodded, feeling relieved, bowed, and stepped back to arrange the meal.

Song Xuetang

Guanyan then reported the news from the palace to his own prince in detail.

After hearing this, Lu Bingzhi looked very indifferent. He did not feel happy about Xiao Ze being beaten and losing face, nor did he feel relieved when he heard that Concubine Shu fainted from fright.

"He's truly incredibly stupid. He got drunk in broad daylight and beat a palace maid to death. If he wasn't really drunk, then he's just really stupid!"

"Or is it that the Emperor beat the eunuch next to him to death with a stick, and he felt humiliated by the Emperor's favoritism towards me, his nephew, and that's why he couldn't suppress his anger?"

Guan Yan replied, "The Second Prince has always been like this. Once he gets stuck in a rut, no one can persuade him. Others think the Crown Prince has been poisoned and injured, yet the Emperor has not given him an explanation. This is a huge injustice for the Crown Prince. But the Second Prince believes that not allowing the Emperor to favor him is a disgrace to him and a joke to others."

"I think the Second Prince must be truly drunk. Otherwise, he would never do such a foolish thing at this critical moment. Isn't this just adding fuel to the fire and making the Emperor even more angry? If it weren't for this, the Emperor wouldn't have ordered the Second Prince to be caned, causing him to lose face completely."

Lu Bingzhi raised an eyebrow and ordered, "Have the censor impeach him at tomorrow's morning court. Since we have such a good opportunity, we must make sure he is accused of abusing the palace maids."

"Also, the palace is in such a state of disarray. Tell the Imperial Sister to leave the palace and return to the Princess' Residence as soon as possible. The Emperor feels guilty and loves the Imperial Sister very much. He wishes she could spend half of every month in the palace. Seeing Xiao Ze acting this way, the Imperial Sister feels uncomfortable and wants to move out. Naturally, the Emperor will feel even more dissatisfied with his son, Xiao Ze."

"The Imperial Sister is a smart person. If you pass this message to the palace, she will know what to do."

Guan Yan nodded. Thinking of Princess Chun'an's temper and the emperor's indulgence and favor towards her, she naturally understood the prince's thoughts.

After saying this, Guan Yan reported some other things, and the sky gradually darkened.

At this time, footsteps were heard outside. It was the kitchen staff delivering dinner.

"Reporting to the prince, these were all made by the kitchen staff under the orders of the young lady." The maid placed the food on the table, and there were several dishes that Lu Bingzhi liked.

Lu Bingzhi recalled that he had been dining with Cui Lingyan these days, and what she liked must have caught her eye, which was why she made such an arrangement. His brows couldn't help but soften.

Guan Yan waved her hand and told the maid to leave. Seeing the food on the table, she asked with some confusion, "Why did the young lady only instruct the kitchen? Wouldn't it be perfect for her to bring the food over herself? It can also be an excuse to come to Songxue Hall. After all, Songxue Hall is where the prince has lived for many years. How could the young lady not be curious and want to come and take a look after marrying in?"

Guanyan had been serving Lu Bingzhi since he was a child, so he understood the prince's temperament best and spoke with less restraint.

Hearing what he said, Lu Bingzhi glanced at him calmly and said, "If she were like this, she wouldn't be herself anymore. She has always been steady."

Guan Yan smiled awkwardly. Although he thought that the prince had a good impression of the young lady and praised her a lot, and that whatever the young lady said was right, but when he thought about it carefully, it was really rare for the young lady to have such determination.

An ordinary bride, if she has an excuse to come here and others can't find any fault with her, and can spend more time with her new husband, will naturally not hesitate to make this trip.

But the young lady's temperament is just as the prince described, extremely steady.

Perhaps, it is because of this that the prince treats the young lady differently.

Could it be that the prince likes the young lady's personality?

Thinking of this, Guan Yan couldn't help but mutter, "If the prince stayed at Songxue Hall tonight, would the young lady still be able to sleep peacefully without worrying?"

The young lady is young, how steady can she be?

Lu Bingzhi picked up his chopsticks and started eating, ignoring Guan Yan's muttering.

Guan Yan knew his own identity and did not dare to be disrespectful to the young lady Cui Lingyan, so he said goodbye and went out to arrange the matters that Lu Bingzhi had just asked him to do.

After dinner, Lu Bingzhi read for a while before going to Wutong Courtyard.

A maid saw it and hurried to the Peony Courtyard to pass the message.

Cen's face turned grim upon hearing this: "I thought if he stayed at Songxue Hall today, Cui Lingyan would be less arrogant. I didn't expect Lu Bingzhi to really be unable to let go of Cui Lingyan. If it was Cui Linghui who came in, he would most likely have stayed at Songxue Hall tonight."

"Tell me, Cui Lingyan is really that good, why is Lu Bingzhi so concerned about her?"

The maid, Luo Mei, knew that the mistress was in a bad mood, so she quickly spoke to comfort her, saying, "The Crown Prince and the Young Lady have only just gotten married, so there's always something new going on. After a while, the Crown Prince might start finding fault with the Young Lady. After all, the Young Lady doesn't understand the etiquette of the noble ladies of the capital. Once this new feeling wears off, the Crown Prince might start comparing himself to the Young Lady and start finding faults."

Cen listened to her words with a bit of disdain and said: "It's still new, and the marriage hasn't been consummated yet, so what's new or not? Lu Bingzhi's body is not sure..."

Cen Shi finally hesitated at this point and stopped talking. Thinking that Lu Bingzhi was physically useless, no matter how much he liked Cui Lingyan, that was all. Without a child to take care of her, what future would she have in the mansion? Her expression brightened slightly. "You're right. Alright, you can go now."

Luomei replied yes, bowed, and then stepped back.

......

The next morning, Cui Lingyan got up early and had breakfast with Lu Bingzhi before she said, "Today I will first pay my respects to the Peony Courtyard, and then go to my grandmother. These are all matters related to the inner chambers, so the prince does not need to accompany me."

Lu Bingzhi nodded after hearing her say this. "Tell me everything. You are the young lady of the mansion. No one can wrong you. When you need to put on airs, put on airs. If there is anything difficult to deal with, just push it to me. You are my wife, I will support you. It is foolish to hide the grievances in your heart."

Cui Lingyan smiled and agreed: "Even if you don't say it, I think so too. Thank you, Your Majesty."

Cui Lingyan said this, stepped forward to help Lu Bingzhi straighten his collar, and then said softly: "Then I will go to the Peony Courtyard first, so as not to be late and cause people to find fault with me."

Lu Bingzhi nodded and watched her leave with the maid. After finishing the tea in his hand, he also left Wutong Courtyard and went to Songxue Hall.

Peony Courtyard

When Cen heard the maid report that the young mistress had come to pay her respects, she felt relieved, yet at the same time, she felt incompetent as a mother-in-law. She forced a smile and ordered, "Send someone in quickly. It's very cold this morning. Don't catch a cold."

After Cen gave these instructions, the maid retreated and soon brought Cui Lingyan in from outside.