Qingyang City.
Qingyang Prince's Mansion.
Today is Princess Du Qingyao's birthday. She waited in the palace from dawn to dusk, until all the guests had left and all the concubines had returned to their rooms, but she still hadn't seen the prince return.
She clutched the handkerchief tightly in her hand, her eyes filled with humiliation and resentment.
Although the prince had previously been indifferent to her, on her birthday, if he was in the manor, he would have the steward deliver a gift to her. He would also grace her with his presence at her birthday banquet, pretending to be a loving couple with her in public.
This was her only solace.
On their wedding night, the prince did not consummate their marriage and then stormed out. She was not without resentment and cried and made a scene. She even held a grudge in her heart, thinking that if the prince did not like her, then why did he marry her?
Later, the princess bestowed several beautiful women upon the prince, which fueled her jealousy. She plotted to get rid of them secretly when the prince was not around.
Unexpectedly, the prince never touched those women!
She suddenly realized! The reason the prince hadn't touched her body might not be because he disliked her, but perhaps... because he was ill!
A prince, a man of such high status and privilege, would surely be ashamed to speak of such a thing! As his wife, she should understand him, tolerate him, and conceal the truth from him!
She then created the illusion in front of the other concubines that she was the prince's favorite and loved to the bone, which was why he didn't touch other women.
She thought she acted very well, and seeing the envious and jealous looks in the eyes of her concubines, she felt elated and enjoyed it immensely.
But who would have thought that since last year, the prince has never returned!
For more than half a year, he did not return to Qingyang City even once!
She longed for him, but could only wait. As the prince's wife, with him away from home, she had to take care of the household affairs and manage the palace; this was her responsibility as the princess.
Before the Lunar New Year last year, she heard that her mother had gone directly to Lianjiang City. Only then did she realize that the prince had been living in Lianjiang City for the past few months.
She had thought that her mother would bring the prince back to Qingyang City, but she waited and waited, and even after she received news that her mother had returned to the palace, she still did not see the prince return.
She remembered that the prince seemed to have a friend who lived in Lianjiang City. It turned out that the prince had gone to meet his friend!
She felt a little relieved, as long as the prince wasn't out having fun with other women!
She waited and waited until today. Her birthday banquet had passed, but the prince hadn't sent a single message back. She couldn't help but feel angry.
No matter how good Lianjiang City is, Qingyang City is still the Prince's home. How can the Prince not go home for so long!
"Granny Yue!"
"This old servant is here! Your Highness, what are your orders?"
Du Qingyao regained her dignified demeanor and said, "The weather is hot, and I am worried that the Prince will be left unattended in Lianjiang City. I have instructed my servants to make preparations so that we can depart tomorrow to visit the Prince in Lianjiang City!"
"Yes, this old servant will go and have someone prepare it right away!"
The heat is unbearable.
Du Qingyao had been traveling for several days in such weather. Although there was an ice basin in the carriage to keep her cool and a maid was constantly fanning her, she still found it unbearably hot.
Only her desire to see Gu Yingzhi as soon as possible sustained her. She hoped that if the prince saw her coming to find her husband despite the sweltering heat, he would be very moved.
She wanted to tell him that she didn't actually care about his hidden illness; as long as he could stay by her side, she would be content.
Finally arriving in Lianjiang City, Du Qingyao and her entourage's carriage came to the front of the Prince's Mansion's villa. Granny Yue got out of the carriage, vigorously wiped the fine sweat from her face and neck with a handkerchief, and went to knock on the door.
A servant opened the door and, seeing the ornate carriage parked behind Granny Yue, asked, "Who comes here?"
In the Prince's mansion, Granny Yue always relied on her position as the Princess's wet nurse to boss around the servants, and even the concubines had to be mindful of her feelings.
Seeing that a mere gatekeeper of a small villa showed him no respect whatsoever, his anger, fueled by the warmth of his presence, flared up, and he shouted, "Are you blind? The Princess Consort is here! Open the gate and greet her at once!"
Startled by her outburst, the servant paused for a moment before asking in a good-natured manner, "May I ask which family's princess you are? Do you have a visiting card?"
Granny Yue was hoping to get into the mansion early so she could rest and cool off, but now she's been blocked at the gate by a servant. Not only is she losing face, but standing in the sweltering heat is really going to kill her.
She shouted angrily, "Whose princess could it be? Your princess! Princess Qingyang! Open the door right now!"
She thought she could get in after announcing her family name, but the servant rolled his eyes and said, "Where did this crazy old woman come from? Get out of here!"
Then the door slammed shut with a creak.
Granny Yue was stunned, and Du Qingyao in the carriage was also stunned.
She lifted the carriage curtain and looked at the plaque above the gate; it was indeed a villa belonging to the Prince's Mansion!
How could even a princess like her not be allowed to enter?
She was furious and wanted to get out of the carriage to argue with him, but the maid held her back.
Bing'er, the maidservant beside Du Qingyao, was quick-witted. She fanned herself and comforted her, "Your Highness, don't worry. Perhaps the servant in the villa doesn't recognize us. I'll take Your Highness's visiting card and knock on the door. He'll surely be able to invite us in! Once Your Highness is inside the villa and sees the Prince, we'll punish this blind fool properly!"
Hearing her mention the prince, Du Qingyao's gloom vanished completely, and thinking of the prince's incomparably handsome face, her heart was filled with joy.
She took out her calling card and said in a rather relaxed tone, "Go ahead!"
Bing'er took the name card, held up an umbrella, walked to the door, and then handed the umbrella to Granny Yue.
"Granny Yue, it's so hot. That young man must be confused by the heat. He's in a bad mood and his tone is inevitably a bit harsh! Please take a rest. Let me handle this small matter of knocking on the door!"
Granny Yue had been humiliated in front of everyone and had no way to back down, but when she saw Bing'er handing her an umbrella, she immediately accepted it.
She was grateful to Bing'er for giving her a way out and for bringing her an umbrella. Touched, she moved a little and used the umbrella to cover both of them.
The door was knocked on again, and it was the same servant who had opened it earlier.
He saw that the person knocking on the door this time was a young woman. She had a delicate and refined temperament, dressed elegantly, and had a pretty and unconventional appearance.
Because Granny Yue was standing next to her and holding an umbrella for her, the servant assumed that the woman in front of him was the princess that the old nanny had mentioned.
Bing'er took out Du Qingyao's name card, but before she could hand it over, he immediately scoffed, "Where did these swindlers come from? With looks like that, they dare to impersonate the Princess? Our Princess is in the manor! You'd better go back to where you came from! Otherwise, don't blame me for sending people out to kick you out!"
"What did you say?!"
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