Chapter 91: Precognitive Dream (Qin Lie)

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The carriage entered the Prince's Mansion and stopped at the hanging flower gate connecting the inner and outer courtyards, where servants were already waiting.

Lingyi and Qin Lie first went to the old lady's place. Because her father had lost both his son and grandson, a white-haired person burying a black-haired one, the old lady did not make things difficult for her. Although they were not close, she was still polite and courteous, and even gave her a pair of jade bracelets as a gift for her first meeting with her granddaughter-in-law.

The more she acted this way, the more guilty and uneasy Lingyi felt.

As they left the old lady's courtyard, the maids from the princess's courtyard were already waiting to lead them to see the princess.

The maid had a long face, thick eyebrows, and large eyes. She was also tall. Although she was a servant, she only gave Lingyi a perfunctory bow, her eyes scrutinizing her from head to toe with utter disrespect. Lingyi immediately understood the princess's attitude and guessed that this person might be trying to intimidate her. She needed to be more careful not to make any mistakes. However, the maid walked too fast. Lingyi was already a slow walker, and now that she was pregnant, she could only manage to keep up at first. But after walking for a short while, her forehead was already beaded with sweat. The maid's pace was getting faster and faster, and she feared she would have to jog to keep up. She had no choice but to stop.

Sure enough, when the maid turned around and saw her standing still, she immediately raised her eyebrows. "The Princess Consort spends her days worshipping Buddha and doesn't concern herself with worldly affairs. Today, she specially waited for her in the courtyard, but the Third Young Mistress is dawdling like this. What? Does the Third Young Mistress think she is a princess of noble birth, waiting for the Princess Consort to come and pay her respects in person?"

Lingyi stopped Pearl from speaking and politely explained, "How could I dare to delay the Princess's Buddhist worship? It's just that I'm feeling a little unwell..."

Before she could finish speaking, the maid launched into another round of sarcastic remarks: "I was wondering why the young mistress was dawdling so much knowing the princess was waiting. Turns out she's taking advantage of the situation. Forgive my bluntness, but our third young master has no shortage of children. The previous third young mistress, a proper lady carried in through the main gate of the manor in her phoenix coronet and wedding gown, had two children, yet she never treated the princess with such disrespect. How come you, just because you're pregnant, think you're so precious?"

The princess was the daughter of General Qin's subordinate, and she was from a prominent family in Jizhou when she was still unmarried.

Later, she married Qin Shiyan and gained the favor of the old general, bearing him three sons. In his youth, Qin Shiyan spent most of his time stationed at the border, and the old lady wasn't one to torment her daughter-in-law, so the princess held absolute power in the general's mansion. Later, when their eldest son got into trouble, Qin Shiyan could only endure it, feeling guilty towards her, and indulged her even more, fostering a self-centered personality in the princess. She couldn't act freely in front of the old lady, and disregarded everyone else.

Her trusted confidantes also felt superior to others in the household. Even Qin Xu and Qin Lie had to give them some face on a daily basis, which only made them feel even more superior.

This maid was the most shrewish and mean-spirited one by the princess's side; otherwise, she wouldn't have been sent to pick up people.

These words made Lingyi extremely embarrassed. She was not good with words to begin with, and now she was even more speechless with shame and embarrassment.

Throughout the entire process, Qin Lie watched quietly from the sidelines. In reality, he had been waiting since she fell behind, waiting for her to ask him for help.

She was used to doing things on her mind, but he insisted that she beg him, shattering her facade of indifference.

Even though her face was so pale it was almost transparent, she never once looked at him.

Seeing her so weak, and with Qin Lie not protecting her, the maid became even bolder, "To say that the Third Young Mistress is neglecting the Princess Consort is not entirely unfounded, after all, you have such great abilities, entering the house with a large belly without a word..."

These words became increasingly harsh, and Lingyi's face immediately flushed red, tears welled up in her eyes, and she abruptly lowered her head.

The maid's name was Qiuyue. She entered the manor at the same time as Chunying, Qin Lie's head maid. They had served together in the Princess's courtyard since they were seven or eight years old. Later, Chunying was assigned by the Princess to be Qin Lie's head maid. Although they were not in the same place, they often saw each other and never lost their childhood friendship. A few days ago, Chunying was expelled from the manor by Qin Lie. Although he kept the specific reasons a secret from others, Qiuyue, being close to Chunying, naturally knew the inside story.

She volunteered to come, not only to save face in front of the princess, but also to vent Chunying's anger. Besides, how many people in this world have the opportunity to belittle a princess of the imperial family like this? Qiuyue became more and more unrestrained as she spoke, and the more she spoke, the more unbearable it became.

"Enough," Qin Lie said coldly.

"You keep calling her the Third Young Mistress, yet you speak so arrogantly. Who gave you the audacity? Such a servant walking around outside will only make others think that the Prince's mansion is poorly managed and will tarnish the Princess's reputation."

He didn't need to say anything more; with just a glance, Qin Xiaoshan behind him understood.

Pearl, her face pale, watched as the once arrogant maid was dragged away with her mouth covered. She didn't notice the fleeting smile that escaped the lips of the princess, who was looking down, before she returned to her previous embarrassed expression.

Since entering the manor, Qin Lie had been observing her, and she had also been testing Qin Lie.

Although the maid's words were unpleasant, she already knew that she would be mistreated after entering the manor, so she didn't take it to heart.

Now, she can only rely on Qin Lie. Therefore, from the moment she stepped into the Prince's mansion, the most important thing is not how others treat her, but how much Qin Lie can tolerate others treating her.

She guessed right. Qin Lie was indeed hard-hearted, but he was also protective of his own. He would not allow others to insult or ridicule his wife, as that would be a loss of face for him.

What surprised her even more was that Qin Lie was so domineering that he dared to dispose of even the people around the princess at will.

Tears welled in her eyes as she gently grasped his hand, her voice low and soft: "Thank you, General, for saving me from this predicament."

That beautiful face was full of gratitude and admiration. Qin Lie was too lazy to distinguish between truth and falsehood at this point, and his face was terribly gloomy.

He was often away on campaigns, and needed a wife who was calm, upright, and capable to stabilize the household. The princess's performance just now was utterly terrible. He was about to reprimand her, but before he could speak, he noticed that her hands were icy cold. She was dressed quite warmly, so she must have been frightened by his treatment of the servants. She was already so afraid, and now that she was going to see the princess, he didn't want to cause any more trouble, lest he bring up more tears, delay her arrival at the princess's place, and further annoy the princess.

The only thing to do right now is to comfort her, Qin Lie told himself, and took her soft hand in his palm, leading her slowly forward.

When they arrived at the princess's courtyard, the princess was already waiting there, furious.

She was already deeply grieving the loss of her eldest son, and Qiuyue's incident just now was like adding fuel to the fire.

Looking at the shards of porcelain scattered on the ground, Lingyi could roughly guess the princess's temperament and how she had just become so furious. She immediately put on a look of fear and panic, while inwardly wondering if Qin Lie would protect her in front of his mother, and to what extent.

The princess always vented her anger directly, never needing to beat around the bush or use sarcastic remarks, but Qin Lie spoke first.

"...That maidservant, disregarding her place, dared to speculate about her son's private affairs in public. She deserved to die, but considering she had served her mother for many years, her life was spared, and she was sent to the estate to reunite with her good friends. I heard that this maidservant is the daughter of the steward in my uncle's household, which shows that my uncle has been idle at home for many years, becoming complacent and losing much of his spirit. Even his servants have become increasingly unruly."

The princess couldn't stand anyone speaking ill of her family, not even her own son. Her anger flared even more, but he changed the subject, "It just so happens that the army needs to purchase a batch of cotton-padded clothes. I remember that my cousin's family is a merchant with a fairly large business. Why don't we entrust it to them and let my uncle and cousin coordinate it? That way, they'll have something to do. What do you think, Mother?"

"Is this really true?" Upon hearing this, the princess, forgetting her anger, quickly stood up and asked in surprise.

Qin Shiyan and Qin Xu had both given them opportunities, arranging official positions for the Zhen family. However, they looked down on the less lucrative ones and desperately tried to take advantage of the more lucrative ones, causing several troubles. As a result, the entire family, young and old, ended up unemployed at home.

The Zhen family felt no shame; on the contrary, they believed that the administration of Jizhou was honest and efficient, and there wasn't much opportunity for personal gain in the government offices. They simply didn't want to waste their talents. If they wanted to make money, they should go to the army. After all, Qin Lie always returned from battle with cartloads of spoils.

No matter how much the princess pleaded and reprimanded, Qin Lie refused to allow the Zhen family to interfere in military affairs.

If he doesn't budge, the Jizhou army will be an impenetrable fortress, and no matter how the Zhen family tries to intimidate and manipulate, it will be to no avail.

Now that Qin Lie has suddenly relented, how could the princess not be overjoyed? She was so focused on confirming with Qin Lie again and again that she completely forgot about Qiu Yue, who was just a lowly servant.

He didn't make things difficult for the princess anymore, but simply accepted her greeting and drank the tea she offered before letting her leave.

After leaving the princess's courtyard, Qin Lie instructed Qin Xiaoshan to go to his cousin's wife's house.

After he finished explaining, he realized that only Qin Xiaoshan was behind him.

Turning around, I saw the princess and two palace maids lagging far behind, stopping beside a rockery.

Without pausing, he walked back to her side and asked, "What's wrong?"

Lingyi explained, "Perhaps I walked too much today, and my stomach feels a bit heavy. General, you don't need to worry about me. You can go back first, and I'll rest for a while."

She had gotten up early today. The Prince's mansion was quite large, and the courtyards were not close to each other. She was already not very active, and she was pregnant. How could she not feel weak and tired? Normally, she could just push through it, but since it concerned her child, she dared not take any risks, but she also dared not let him wait for her here.

"Too delicate." He was indeed displeased.

Lingyi was about to explain when he suddenly picked her up in his arms. She gasped and hurriedly hugged his neck in fear.

Even if she doesn't consider herself a princess, this is only her first day in the palace. Even if there's a reason for it, this behavior still seems reckless.

She pleaded with him earnestly, "General, I just need to rest for a bit, and I'll be able to go back by myself soon!"

He scoffed, "You know the way?"

They had never been to his courtyard before, so naturally they didn't know the way, let alone how to get back on their own.

Lingyi suggested, "General, you can also send someone to pick us up after you return."

Qin Lie grew increasingly impatient. "Do you think our Prince's Mansion is a royal palace, where we keep a lot of idle people?"

Lingyi was speechless and did not want to offend him, so she could only remain silent.

This was indeed not the palace. If it were, there would be palace servants within ten steps. Qin Lie carried her for a long time and only encountered three or four maids and servants. Even so, Lingyi was still extremely embarrassed. She buried her face in his chest. Qin Lie looked down and only saw one of her small ears, which was bright red as if it had been scalded. Even the white skin on the side of her neck was now tinged with pink, extending all the way to her collar.

His eyes darkened, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he hugged the person tighter as they walked towards his courtyard.

[Author's Note]

I've been very busy these past few days, I had to squeeze in this time, I'll book three days next time.