Chapter 378 Seeking an Audience
Whether Xiao Jin believed it or not, Wei Qingqing was in a good mood after chatting with a handsome young man.
She hummed a song as she returned to her courtyard, and as usual asked if any rewards or titles had been sent from the palace. When she received no answer, she was disheartened.
Seeing Miss Wei slumped over the table, looking completely dejected, her maid Xiao He offered some words of comfort:
"Aunt Wei, you may not know this, but the court is still on holiday today. The ministers will not attend court until at least tomorrow. It is estimated that His Majesty and the Princess will give the Xiao family their rewards then. You don't need to worry at all!"
Wei Qingqing gets annoyed whenever she hears the word "concubine." She's not really Xiao Jue's concubine; she's just a way to stay in the Xiao family and avoid being discovered by the soldiers and taken back to be a government servant!
"Don't call me Auntie, call me Miss Wei! How many times have I told you, why don't you remember?! You're incredibly stupid!" she cursed as she lay down.
Seeing Xiaohe tremble in fright, her round eyes brimming with tears welling up in her eyes, Wei Qingqing sighed.
She sat up and took the person's hand:
"I'm sorry, Xiao He, I didn't mean to be mean to you. It's just that you keep calling me Aunt Wei, and it's getting a little annoying... You know, I've never slept with your young master. I'm still a virgin! I'm going to be a wife, not some concubine!"
Xiao He nodded blankly, her voice low: "I understand, Miss Wei."
Wei Qingqing smiled and gently pinched the tip of her nose. "By the way, just call me that! Remember that from now on!"
"But isn't today already the seventh day of the lunar month? You... even the holidays in the capital are this long?"
Xiao He answered obediently, "Yes, the New Year's holiday lasts from the 28th day of the twelfth lunar month to the 7th day of the first lunar month, a total of ten days."
Wei Qingqing said enviously, "That's great! The benefits of being an official here are pretty good, much better than where we are."
Xiao He knew that Miss Wei came from Kuncheng, and was a little confused when she heard this: "Although Kuncheng is located on the border, the rest days should be the same as those in the capital. That's how it is throughout Qi."
Wei Qingqing quickly coughed twice to cover up her slip of the tongue: "I, I didn't mean Kuncheng, I meant... I meant other professions, like porters and peddlers, who work all year round, braving wind and rain, it's too hard!"
Xiaohe: "Oh..."
Having finally managed to fool her, Wei Qingqing breathed a sigh of relief and then asked, "So, if I want to visit Princess Chang Le at the Grand Princess's residence, what should I do?"
The last time I entered the palace, it was thanks to the male and female leads and the Xiao family.
But after they came out, the male and female protagonists never thought of her again. There were no rewards or titles bestowed upon her! Wei Qingqing even suspected that they had forgotten about her. Otherwise, how could there have been no movement for so many days?
Entering the palace again would be harder than climbing to heaven, so before the male and female leads got married, she wanted to go find the female lead again to make her face known.
Xiao He looked troubled.
Visiting Princess Chang Le?! Does Miss Wei even know what she's saying?
Who in the capital doesn't know that Princess Chang Le will become Empress and enter the inner palace in just a few days? She must be peacefully awaiting her marriage right now.
Besides, even if she were still in the Grand Princess's residence, it wouldn't be a place where Miss Wei could just pay her a visit whenever she wanted!
Xiao He moved her lips, pondering how to speak without angering Miss Wei.
Upon seeing her expression, Wei Qingqing became somewhat angry: "Is it hard to answer? Aren't you a servant of the Xiao family? You don't even know this? Or do you not want to tell me, or do you think I'm not worthy?!"
Xiao He panicked: "No, no! This servant would never have meant that!"
She hesitated for a moment before explaining the proper etiquette for visiting each other among the nobles in the capital: "...If Miss Wei wishes to visit Princess Chang Le, she must first send a formal invitation to the Grand Princess's residence, explaining her purpose..."
After she finished speaking, Wei Qingqing tapped her head in exasperation: "Why go through all that trouble? I'll just go to the Grand Princess's residence myself. The Princess will definitely see me when she knows I'm here!"
Xiaohe was about to say something to stop her, but then she thought about it and stopped herself.
Forget it, if Miss Wei really goes to the Grand Princess's residence, she will definitely be stopped. At that time, Miss Wei will surely not scold me, right?
Half an hour later.
Upon hearing that a Miss Qu had left and a Miss Wei had arrived, the Grand Princess was somewhat puzzled: "Does the Princess really have so many friends from common backgrounds?"
"Why have I never heard her mention Miss Qu or Miss Wei before? Now that she's going to become Empress, they're all fawning over her."
Her words were sharp, but fortunately, Meng Xian was alone, so he simply gave a nonchalant smile.
"Your Highness, I know you've been in low spirits these past few days, but young ladies are very affectionate, and it's normal for them to visit each other a few days before their wedding. Please be more understanding!"
"Take that Miss Qu who left not long ago, for example. Although she comes from a humble background, she was kind to the princess. She gave her so many homemade candied fruits and talked with the princess for a long time. Does Your Highness really not feel happy at all?"
The Grand Princess snorted, a slight smile playing on her lips as she picked up her teacup and took a small sip: "My son's friends certainly have good taste, don't they?"
Seeing that she was still as arrogant as ever, Meng Xian felt a warmth in her heart. She pressed her advantage and said, "Then let someone invite that Miss Wei in to wait? We can decide after the princess gives her a reply. It's freezing cold right now, so we can't let the young lady stand outside for too long."
The Grand Princess hummed in agreement, then suddenly called out to Meng Xian, "Wait."
She was more cautious: "I remember... the Wei surname is mostly found in the southwest and northwest, and is rare in the capital. You can send someone to find out their background first, and then report to the princess."
Meng Xian was taken aback, not expecting this, and quickly agreed, going to instruct the maids below.
At the entrance of the Grand Princess's residence, Wei Qingqing waited for a full hour, but the gatekeeper inside did not come out to reply.
She stood in the cold wind, rubbing her fingers which were almost numb from the cold, her expression not very pleasant.
They slipped money to the old woman guarding the side gate of the Xiao family and sneaked out.
The hired carriage only went as far as the Grand Princess's residence before leaving. They couldn't even wait in the carriage and were forced to stand in the cold wind, which made their heads buzz.
Wei Qingqing glanced at Xiao He beside her and said angrily, "It's so cold outside, why didn't you remind me to wear something warmer? You're wearing a cotton-padded coat, I'm freezing!"
It was clearly Miss Wei who specially chose a thin autumn dress before going out, saying that it would suit her skin tone better, and she didn't want to wear a cloak, saying that it would make her look bulky... Xiao He didn't dare to refute, and silently prepared to take off her own cloak and hand it to her.
"No! I don't want anything you've worn!" Wei Qingqing refused.
Suddenly, she heard a creaking sound from the side of the main gate of the Grand Princess's residence, as the small door opened a crack.
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