Chapter 37: Nurturing Love

Although Ning Fu didn't want to see Zong Si, she didn't want to delay the important matter. After thinking for a moment, she said, "Please lead the way, Sister Fu."

Fu Jiahui looked at her, with a little more understanding in her eyes, but she smiled: "It is not that easy to work for the prince. It is understandable that Sister Ning is annoyed with the prince."

Ningfu silently agreed in her heart but said nothing.

"However, the prince is always good to his own people." Fu Jiahui added.

He was nice to his subordinates, but it was not easy to make them his own people. Moreover, once the matter of Doctor Mu was settled, Ning Fu would have nothing to do with him, and she could not become his own person.

The two chatted as they went, and only when they reached Fu Jiahui's carriage did Ning Fu quiet down.

When she got on the carriage, Zong Si lifted the curtain and looked her up and down. The skirt she was wearing was narrow at the hem, making it inconvenient for her to get on and off the carriage, so he extended his hand to her.

Zong Si's hands have distinct joints, and because of his martial arts training, there are fine calluses on his knuckles.

Ning Fu bit her lip and dodged, then stepped hard and got into the carriage. Even though her movements were not elegant enough, it was better than having physical contact with Zong Si, the man she was about to get engaged to.

"Sir, do you want to talk to me about Doctor Mu?" Ning Fu explained her purpose directly to him, "He agreed to give me the antidote for Yu Furong so easily. I think he wants to test the person behind me. I just don't know which noble he is close to."

Zong Si withdrew his hand, looked at her sideways, and said in a cold tone as usual: "With his status, even if he is on good terms with several people at the same time, he is still a guest of honor for everyone."

Before Ning Fu could speak, she suddenly heard Cheng Shuang's voice coming from under the carriage: "Sister Fu, I saw Sister Ning with you just now. Is Sister Ning in the carriage now? I have something to say to her. If you want to leave, take me with you."

As soon as she finished speaking, she saw her hand had already lifted the curtain.

Ning Fu took two steps forward and blocked the door of the sedan chair with her body. She glanced at Fu Jiahui, who was about to come up to pull Cheng Shuang and whose face had changed. She then looked at Cheng Shuang and said with a smile, "Sister Cheng, I'm changing my dress in the car. What do you want from me?"

However, Cheng Shuang still saw the corner of the man's clothes in the carriage, and thought that this Nymph was really shameless and was so bold to meet with a man in private.

I don't know who the man in the carriage is, but from the corner of his clothes one can see the quality of his material. I'm afraid he is of high status. I don't think he is really sincere to Nymph, otherwise, according to Nymph's age, he could have come to discuss the engagement.

"I was in a bad mood and wanted to talk to Sister Ning, but it seemed like she was busy." Cheng Shuang collected her thoughts and said, among the female monarchs, Ning Fu was the one who didn't like to gossip.

Nymph said, "I'm afraid it's inconvenient today. My skirt is stained with dirt. I need to go to Hongxiu Pavilion to buy new clothes."

After she said this, she clearly felt the gaze of the person behind her lingering behind her for a moment.

Cheng Shuang looked into the carriage again, but this time, she could not see anything: "Then go quickly, sister."

Fu Jiahui followed closely and got on the carriage, which then drove out of the Duke Qing's Mansion.

After another stick of incense had passed, the hawking of street vendors could be heard, and they were already very far away from the Duke Qing's Mansion.

"I was not careful enough today. I didn't expect Miss Cheng to follow me." Fu Jiahui looked at Zong Si and admitted the punishment.

In fact, it couldn't be blamed for losing her vigilance. Originally, the ladies would never get close to her, but Cheng Shuang suddenly changed her temper today.

Fortunately, Zong Si had no intention of pursuing the matter.

"After getting the antidote for Jade Hibiscus, you have to be careful about how to use it." Ning Fu finally spoke.

"Even if I'm not careful, so what?" Zong Si said.

Ning Fu understood as soon as she heard it. Zong Si probably wanted to let Mu Ruoheng know that he was the one who really wanted Yu Furong. Without learning the tiger school, how could one get a tiger cub? He didn't need to bring Doctor Mu under his command. It would be enough as long as he was willing to help him.

A wise person would know the importance of not offending a miracle doctor like Mu Ruoheng, and would also know that he could not be controlled and could only befriend him, not be his subordinate.

"In Linglongtai, interests are intertwined everywhere. Even Lord Ning has spies among them. When the fourth young lady enters there, she must be careful with her words and actions." Zong Si said suddenly.

Ning Fu was startled, but she said calmly: "Thank you for your reminder, my lord. I know my limits."

Zong Si looked at her and said calmly, "If Lord Ning knew that the Fourth Miss had a male lover in Linglongtai, Lord Ning would not forgive the Fourth Miss."

Ning Fu also knew about Murong, and could not hide it from him. Zong Si's spies must be watching everywhere, but she was just playing with Murong for his sake, so he would definitely not tell his father. So she joked with him, "Your Highness, you don't know how beautiful Murong is."

Zong Si paused and said, "How can you see the beauty of a fallen young man whose face you haven't even seen?"

"Why do you look down on others, Prince?" Ning Fu looked up at him and spoke up for Murong.

"What the Fourth Miss said is very true. I shouldn't look down on others." Zong Si paused, and his bland tone seemed to carry some profound meaning, "But if you go too far in your acting, in front of a man, the one in danger is the Fourth Miss, a female monarch."

Fu Jiahui paused, and looked back and forth between the two of them several times, with a complicated look in her eyes.

Although Sister Ning didn't know, she knew who Murong was.

Nymph's intuition had a vague feeling that the danger he mentioned was not a real dangerous place. When she thought about it carefully, it seemed like a matter of loss of propriety between men and women.

Could it be that Murong is pretending to be noble?

But no matter whether Murong was pretending to be noble or not, it was not appropriate for her to talk about these things with Zong Si.

Ning Fu lowered her eyes and stopped arguing with him: "Thank you for your reminder, Your Highness."

Zong Si noticed her actions and said calmly, "Since the Fourth Miss is working for me, I will naturally pay attention to her safety."

Fu Jiahui felt that he was somewhat unhappy, but why he was unhappy was not so easy to analyze. His relationship with Ningfu was reasonable and different in every way.

The prince's attitude towards her is very complicated.

But I don’t like it either.

Instead, I felt a sense of worry that the Fourth Girl might fall.

It's like the sense of responsibility he feels when facing a concubine he doesn't like but who belongs to him.

When he met Nymph, he seemed to dislike her distancing herself from him, and his attitude was more intimate than when he was with others. For example, he did not extend his hand to help anyone getting into the carriage.

Although Fu Jiahui was confused, she would not ask about the matter and just kept it to herself.

However, if she also had a husband who was reborn, she would be able to understand Zong Si's feelings. Who could be completely indifferent to someone with whom they had a relationship in the previous life, perhaps someone who was their wife?

The carriage finally stopped at Hongxiu Pavilion. Ning Fu and Cheng Shuang had just mentioned that they wanted to buy some clothes, so naturally they had to come here.

Ning Fu originally wanted to go with Fu Jiahui to choose a dress, but unexpectedly Zong Si also got off the carriage, which made her frown and said politely, "The prince can wait for us in the carriage."

"Sister Ning, don't worry. This is also the prince's place." Fu Jiahui said with a smile.

After hearing this, Ningfu felt relieved and said nothing more.

There are three floors in Hongxiu Pavilion. The first floor is filled with jewellery, while the upper floors are filled with clothes. There are innumerable kinds of silks and satins, and a dazzling array of clothing for the ladies, including gauze robes, brocade clothes, silk skirts, and cloud satin skirts.

"Sister Ning, just pick whatever you like." Fu Jiahui looked at Zong Si and said to Ning Fu.

Any dress here is enough to buy ten outside.

"Thank you, Sister Fu." Ning Fu smiled sweetly.

In fact, the person who should be thanked is Zong Si, but it is most appropriate to thank Fu Jiahui, a lady, at this time. Although she can afford it, sometimes it is difficult to refuse a favor and lose face.

You have to give the face you deserve, so that it will be easier for you to do favors in the future.

As soon as Zong Si entered Hongxiu Pavilion, he was led away by someone.

Ning Fu followed Fu Jiahui around and said that if the clothes in the shop were too complicated and varied, it might not be a good thing, as it would easily make people overwhelmed.

"Miss, this is the new snow-colored satin skirt with butterflies and floral patterns made by Yue Niang. Please try it on." A moment later, the steward came over with a new skirt.

The silk is as light as gauze and as transparent as snow. No wonder it is called snow color. Although it is a plain color, it still stands out among all the colors.

Ning Fu finally understood that the description of "white yet gorgeous" in ancient poetry was not made up in the book.

When the skirt was worn by Nymph, it was the icing on the cake for both her and the cloud satin skirt. Nymph's waist, which was already slender, became even more slender like a willow, and even had a bit of snake-like charm.

And her already delicate skin became even more translucent, with thin eyebrows and black hair, simple yet bright.

"This is probably tailor-made for the girl." The steward couldn't help but exclaimed, praising the dress and saying it was suitable for Nymph.

Fu Jiahui smiled and said, "Sister Ning is always so impressive. It's worth the effort that Yue Niang has put in for several months."

"Who is Yue Niang?" Ning Fu asked curiously.

"She was an embroiderer that the prince brought back from the north when he was just coming of age. Her parents were killed by the barbarians and were about to die on the road. Unexpectedly, she ran into the prince, who pitied her and brought her back, giving her a chance to make a living."

Fu Jiahui did not mention that after meeting Yue Niang, Princess Xuan suggested that Zong Si take the girl into the palace as a concubine.

As for the rest, she didn't dare to talk nonsense to Ning Fu. She herself only heard it from hearsay. She only knew that Yue Niang, although three years older than the prince, was gentle and considerate, and a rare beauty.

After choosing the clothes, the two returned to the Duke Qing's Mansion, but they didn't expect Zong Si to arrive earlier than them.

At this moment, he and Young Master Xie were sitting in a pavilion not far away, and they were having a very pleasant conversation.

"Sister Ning, you're finally back." Cheng Shuang came over enthusiastically when she saw her, looked at her a few more times, and said enviously, "This dress is so beautiful. Why didn't I see this cloud satin dress the last time I went to Hongxiu Pavilion? Could it be that you have connections in Hongxiu Pavilion?"

This made Zong Si in the pavilion look over, and he looked him up and down without any change in expression. Then he looked away and continued talking with Young Master Xie.

"Sister Fu took me there." Ning Fu said, denying that she had any relationship with the couple.

Cheng Shuang didn't know what to say. She usually looked down on Fu Jiahui because she was the daughter of a merchant, but now she wasn't shameless enough to ask her for help or use her back door.

Rong Min, who was not far away, curled her lips and was about to complain to Xie Ruyi, but then she remembered what happened a moment ago. She felt so embarrassed for a moment that she reluctantly withdrew her intention to complain.

Ning Fu noticed that Cheng Shuang's mood at the moment was much better than when she left the Duke Qing's Mansion just now.

"Sister Cheng, what do you want to talk to me about?" Ning Fu was pushed by her to sit in the corner.

"When the prince arrived just now, Rongmin teased Sister Xie, but Sister Xie said that her marriage with the prince had not been finalized and asked her not to talk nonsense." Cheng Shuang said.

Ning Fu couldn't help but feel a little surprised, but then she understood. Xie Ruyi's suitor also included the Fourth Prince. If Prince Xuan's Mansion was not as sincere as Duke Qing's Mansion, this marriage would not be so easy to negotiate.

Although Ning Fu knew that Xie Ruyi had a better impression of Zong Si than the Fourth Prince, she was a queen with such a broad mind, and she would never disregard the interests of her family for the sake of a man.

"Sister Xie, even if you don't choose Prince Xuan's Palace, you can still find a good one." Ning Fu said.

Cheng Shuang didn't care about that, she just whispered, "The Duke of Qing's Mansion has always wanted to insert Fourth Master Xie into the Northern Army, to serve as a clerk to gain military merit, and then arrange an official position when he returns to the capital, so that it will be easier to get promoted in the future. However, Fourth Master Xie is not capable, and Prince Xuan's Mansion is probably unwilling to accept this proposal, so the marriage is delayed."

King Xuan fought every battle with his life, and he never liked people who took crooked paths. Ning Fu felt that this reason was not groundless, but she did not comment on it.

"I have something to say to the prince. Please accompany me later." As a female monarch, it was not convenient for Cheng Shuang to look for Zong Si, but she was not confident in other people. She could only consider Nymph, who was the most secretive.

When Zong Si and Young Master Xie left, Cheng Shuang pulled Ning Fu up.

The two blocked the way of Zong Si and Young Master Xie at the corridor.

"Prince, we have something to tell you." Cheng Shuang pulled Ning Fu in as a shield, and together they got rid of the issue of her meeting a strange man alone.

"I'll go first." Young Master Xie took a step forward when he saw this. He was very confident in Zong Si's character and believed that nothing would go wrong.

"What's the matter between Miss Cheng and Miss Ning Si?" Zong Si asked calmly, but his eyes fell on Ning Fu.

Cheng Shuang was really embarrassed, so she pushed Ning Fu out again: "Sister Ning, go wait for me at the corner."

Nymph nodded.

Cheng Shuang looked at Zong Si. In front of the man she liked, her heart was beating like thunder. She said, "I..."

"Even if my marriage with Miss Xie fails, I will not consider you." Zong Si took the lead and interrupted her distantly and ruthlessly.

"Even if I have to be your concubine, I am willing." Cheng Shuang said quickly.

"I don't have any feelings for Miss Cheng." He looked at her mercilessly.

Cheng Shuang's face turned pale and her heart broke instantly. Just as she was about to ask why, her eyes fell on the corner of his clothes. At first she felt that it looked familiar, but after a moment, she thought of the corner of clothes she had seen on Ningfu's carriage before.

Cheng Shuang felt as if he was struck by lightning.

"Miss Cheng, please go back." Zong Si turned around and was about to leave to avoid suspicion.

"If Sister Ning is willing to be your concubine, the prince will definitely agree, right?" Cheng Shuang said somewhat unwillingly.