"Brother, Your Highness, what a coincidence!"
"Siwuju is a place that sells children's toys. Miss Chen's cleverness sounds a bit awkward to me. I wonder where this cleverness comes from?"
Cen Xi turned around and gave Shen Jinchen a meaningful look before smiling and asking the person blocking her way.
"Of course it's a coincidence, sister-in-law. Qinghua is here for the birthday gift of Nineteenth Sister. Nineteenth Sister is only six years old, so naturally she likes children's toys. Sister-in-law, we sisters caused trouble at the Princess's residence last time, which was really wrong. Qinghua is in the right here."
Shen Qinghua's every move exuded the grace of a well-bred young lady, and she was also kind and warm-hearted. It was truly impossible to find a fault with her. Unfortunately, Cen Xi just couldn't bring himself to like her.
"It's alright! I don't like crowds, so I was a bit harsh on you sisters back then. You don't need to apologize. It's quite a coincidence that you were picking out gifts for the children. We have other things to do, so we won't bother you any longer."
Cen Xi felt like she was about to be entangled with a persistent pest, so she spoke quite resolutely, not giving anyone a chance to take advantage of her.
Unfortunately, even so, he was still bothered by people who couldn't understand human language.
Shen Qinghua did not answer Cen Xi's question, but instead took out a beautiful lantern and handed it to Xiaoyu.
"Your name is Xiaoyu, right? Do you like this lantern from your aunt?"
Is this a gift for me?
The little fish was stunned and a little flattered.
"Yes, I am your father's younger sister, which means I am your aunt. Little Fish is so cute, your aunt likes you very much and would like to give you this lantern. Do you like it, Little Fish?"
Shen Qinghua squatted down, speaking softly and gently like a kind older sister. Her voice was exceptionally pleasant, instantly breaking Xiaoyu's guard, and her hand naturally reached out.
"Little fish!"
Cen Xi called out to Xiao Yu the moment she was about to take the lantern.
"Little aunt, my mother won't let me take it, so I'll return it to you."
Xiao Yu glanced at Cen Xi's unpleasant expression, and the lawyer handed the lantern back to Shen Qinghua.
Shen Qinghua took the lantern and looked at Cen Xi helplessly:
"Your Highness, Qinghua only wanted to express her enthusiasm for the younger generation, is that not allowed?"
"No, Miss Shen, you should carefully choose a gift for your nineteenth sister. Husband, let's go."
Cen Xi glanced coldly at Shen Qinghua, then said this to Shen Jinchen and left.
Shen Jinchen didn't say anything, and walked past Shen Qinghua, following Cen Xi's steps into the building.
"Big brother... are you really not going back to the Shen family?"
Shen Qinghua was surprised that Cen Xi was so unyielding, and her face immediately fell.
To avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings, Shen Jinchen finally stopped six steps away from Shen Qinghua and said:
"Qinghua, I used to think you were the most sensible of all the Shen sisters, but now it seems I was too attached to appearances. Please leave! I remember you and Nineteenth Sister don't get along well. Just pick a gift to appease her. You shouldn't come to the Princess's residence anymore."
"I…"
As soon as Shen Jinchen finished speaking, Shen Qinghua's face turned red and white, and she couldn't say a word for a moment.
After giving her a cryptic look, Shen Jinchen walked off to catch up with Cen Xi.
Back at the General's Mansion, Shen Qinghua calmly stepped into Aunt Luo's courtyard, found a seat, and then recounted her entire day's experiences to Aunt Luo in a nonchalant tone.
"You mean they're like an impenetrable wall now, and no one can get in?"
After listening to her words, Aunt Luo concluded.
"Yes! That country bumpkin doesn't give me any face at all. Mother, how could my brother like someone like that?"
Shen Qinghua frowned slightly, her mind racing with thoughts, but she still couldn't figure it out.
"To be honest, I don't know either. Don't worry, I can try to find out what your father thinks."
Aunt Luo was also very puzzled. How could Shen Jinchen have such poor judgment of people? Her daughter had been raised according to the standards of an empress since childhood.
Shen Jinchen had made an agreement with them before, so how could he suddenly go back on his word and marry someone else? This is definitely not what they want.
“Mother, I think there’s no need to ask. Father is always blindly loyal, and he would never disobey my eldest brother’s wishes. We might as well go to Uncle Ji. He would definitely not allow my eldest brother to act recklessly.”
Shen Qinghua was certain she couldn't get any support from her father, so she rejected the idea without hesitation. In reality, their real backer was Ji Changming, who was Shen Jinchen's mother's older brother. His words definitely carried weight with Shen Jinchen.
"Yes, your father is kind to me, but he is kind to all the concubines in the mansion. He will help us as much as he can, but if he can't, he will definitely back down. Daughter, if you want to become the empress, you can only rely on yourself."
Aunt Luo sighed, ultimately saying helplessly.
"I know! Is Uncle Ji still in seclusion?"
Shen Qinghua thought that she hadn't seen the white-bearded old man for a long time, and it would indeed be a bit difficult to find him.
“His whereabouts are uncertain, and I’m afraid we won’t be able to find him for a while. Qinghua, I advise you to think of another way. You could try to come up with a plan to get into the princess’s residence first. Once everything is done, Shen Jinchen can’t say anything even if we leave him hanging. After all, our Shen family has done a lot for him behind the scenes. Even if we don’t consider where he is, your father would accept you.”
Aunt Luo, holding her increasingly painful forehead, couldn't resist offering Shen Qinghua some lewd suggestions.
“Ninth Sister has done this before, Mother, you shouldn’t think about it anymore. Even if he’s been poisoned, he won’t let us have our way. We shouldn’t use such methods in the future. We should think about how to trap this person with righteousness. He made the promise in front of Uncle Ji, so Qinghua’s only hope now is with Uncle Ji.”
Shen Qinghua had thought it through clearly: the only way for her to achieve her goal was through Ji Changming.
"Alright then, I will do my best to help you find Ji Changming. I hope he can really help you."
Aunt Luo's eyes flickered, and she said with some reluctance.
“As long as he still wants to rise to the throne, he will definitely listen to Uncle Ji. At that time, the position that village woman is in now will definitely be mine.”
Shen Qinghua was always a gentle, elegant, and polite girl, but unfortunately, she lost her temper because of Cen Xi's blunt words.
"Yes, Mother, there are still twelve Shadow Guards here. Do whatever you want. I just hope that in the end, we won't lose both our money and our life savings."
Aunt Luo rubbed her forehead wearily. She didn't want the cooked duck to fly away like this. After all, only if her daughter became the empress could she rise to the top and become the true mistress of this mansion.
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