Feng Xin pouted, "I really don't understand why my mother would arrange such a marriage for my brother. Isn't this pushing him into a fire pit?"
Upon hearing this, Rong Qingqing and Shangguan Yanran didn't say much.
"If only you could be my sister-in-law," Feng Xin suddenly said, hugging Rong Qingqing's arm. "Breaking off the engagement with you is truly a loss for my brother."
Rong Qingqing was quite displeased with what she was about to say, and quickly pulled her arm away, coughing lightly, "You're not your brother, how do you know that breaking off the engagement with me isn't a good thing?"
Feng Xin choked for a moment, "But I like you now."
"What good is it if you like it? Can you decide your brother's preferences?" Shangguan Yanran said with amusement.
“Why not?” Feng Xin said defiantly, “My brother, the Emperor, will listen to what I say.”
Shangguan Yanran narrowed her eyes slightly, "So, you were partly responsible for your brother's dislike of Qingqing back then?"
Feng Xin immediately felt a little guilty, "Qingqing wasn't popular to begin with, how can you blame me?"
"Just because she keeps chasing after your elder brother, you think she's unlikable? What about when you were always chasing after His Highness the Crown Prince?" Shangguan Yanran looked at her sharply.
Feng Xin frowned, then suddenly said angrily, "Why do you keep bringing up those old stories? The past is the past, and the present is the present."
Shangguan Yanran shrugged and didn't argue with her.
Rong Qingqing pulled the two of them back, "Alright, stop talking, the Empress Dowager is coming."
The two looked over and saw the Empress Dowager walking towards them.
As she passed the three people, she paused, her gaze falling on Rong Qingqing, her brows furrowing almost imperceptibly.
"Let's go to Ganlin Palace," the Empress Dowager said calmly, taking Lin Mama's hand as they left the garden.
The group immediately followed.
Rong Qingqing naturally noticed the Empress Dowager's gaze upon her, and she always felt that the Empress Dowager held her in rather low regard.
However, she didn't take it to heart, because she had Feng Xin and Shangguan Yanran by her side who were always busy arguing about everything. Her attention was on the two of them.
The Ganlin Hall was a place for banquets to be held for officials and foreign envoys. It was magnificent and resplendent with gold.
As the group walked to the gate of Ganlin Palace, they ran into Emperor Zhaojing and Xie Jingrun's entourage.
Upon seeing the Emperor and the Crown Prince, the Empress Dowager smiled and said, "Emperor."
"Empress Dowager!" Emperor Zhaojing immediately stepped forward, personally took her hand, and led her into the Ganlin Palace.
Xie Jingrun lagged two steps behind, his gaze falling on Rong Qingqing. He saw her whispering and laughing with Shangguan Yanran, not even glancing in their direction. Xie Jingrun frowned slightly, a hint of displeasure in his eyes.
Rong Qingqing seemed to sense something and looked at him. When she met his gloomy and displeased gaze, she was stunned for a moment.
What's wrong with him now? Did she offend him somehow?
When she looked again, Xie Jingrun had already turned around and entered Ganlin Palace, leaving her with only his back view.
At this moment, Shangguan Yanran leaned close to Rong Qingqing's ear and said teasingly, "Haven't you seen enough yet?"
Rong Qingqing withdrew her gaze and saw that the woman was looking at her with a knowing expression. She raised an eyebrow, then suddenly pointed to the right with her chin and said with a smile, "That gentleman has been watching you for a long time. What, do you two know each other?"
Upon hearing this, Shangguan Yanran assumed she was deliberately changing the subject, "Stop trying to dodge the question, I won't fall for it..."
"Yanran".
Before she could finish speaking, a gentle voice rang out.
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