Chapter 180 What is seduction?
Upon seeing the small mole on the girl's chin, Li Nanke instantly recognized who she was.
Xue Ting.
She was the legitimate daughter of the Duke of Xue, the niece of Empress Xue, and the younger sister of Xue Shu.
In the dream, both Xue Ting and Zhao Wanqing successfully became Princess Zhaoning's study companions.
The two got along well and called each other sisters, and she did a lot of scheming against Shen Xu, who regarded her as her savior.
At least half of the time, when Princess Zhaoning beat or punished her, it was Xue Ting who instigated it.
Li Nanke recalled the events of his dream and gave Xue Ting a wry smile.
"I am Li Nanke, and this lady is..."
"Xue Ting, the third daughter of the Duke of Xue's mansion."
Xue Ting raised her chin and slapped him across the face.
Li Nanke was on guard the moment he recognized Xue Ting, and he raised his hand and grabbed her wrist forcefully.
"What is Miss Xue doing?"
Xue Ting struggled fiercely, but couldn't break free from Li Nanke's grasp.
Her fair face glared at her angrily, and she said in a shrill voice, "At such a young age, you already have the air of a vixen. Why did you have to learn to seduce men?"
Today I'll avenge my sister and beat you to death, you vixen!
The room was filled with eight- or nine-year-old girls, who were already aware of shame at that age. Upon hearing this, they all looked at Li Nanke with curiosity.
A girl with pigeon-horn hair and wearing an apricot-red silk skirt stepped forward, looking displeased.
"Xue San, didn't you rinse your mouth before going to the palace this morning? Your breath stinks! Miss Li is only a few years old, and you're already calling her a vixen. You need evidence to support your claims!"
Xue Ting's face turned bright red.
"Wang Si, mind your own business!"
Wang Si Guniang put her hands on her hips and made a face at her.
"Hehehe, I can't stand people who talk nonsense and bully others. I'm going to take care of it!"
"You... I'm not just making things up!"
Xue Ting was furious and blurted out.
"Everyone knows that my sister is discussing marriage with Prince Xie, and the two families are about to exchange betrothal gifts. I don't know what tricks Li Nanke has used."
She repeatedly got Xie Shizi to protect her, causing my sister to secretly shed tears of sorrow. Isn't this her seducing Xie Shizi?
The marriage negotiations between the Duke of Xue's mansion and the Duke of Xin's mansion were not a particularly secret matter.
The girls present had all heard their families mention Li Nanke, so their gazes toward him were somewhat subtle.
Li Nanke's gaze darkened slightly, and he unconsciously tightened his grip on Xue Ting's hand.
It turns out that Xue Ting learned to speak in a way that obscures the focus when she was so young, using ambiguous words to guide others and deliberately cause them to misunderstand.
"So this is what Miss Xue was talking about. Last time by the Bian River, Princess Zhaoning and I accidentally fell into the water, and Prince Xie led the Imperial Guards to find us."
Due to some unforeseen circumstances, I was left in the woods. Later, Prince Xie realized that this was inappropriate and took the initiative to confess his mistake to the Empress.
Prince Xie is an open and honest person, which is why he spoke so frankly about this matter. However, I don't get along with Prince Xie in private, so we haven't talked about it much.
Unexpectedly, in Miss Xue's eyes, this became Young Master Xie protecting me, and the source of Miss Xue Shu's heartbreak and tears.
Her words were clear and frank, which made the girls around her nod in agreement.
Wang Si Guniang sneered at Xue Ting.
"Some of the people present went to the banks of the Bian River to distribute porridge that day, and they all know a little about what happened."
You're clearly just creating a fuss to mislead everyone about Miss Li."
Li Nanke smiled at Wang Si Guniang.
“A lie can never become the truth. Fortunately, everyone here is as smart as Miss Wang Si, and they won’t believe a few ambiguous words.”
With a single sentence praising everyone present, the girls all smiled, and the doubt in their eyes as they looked at Li Nanke vanished.
Wang Si Guniang smiled broadly.
"I can't stand people who speak in a veiled manner. See? Not everyone will believe you every time!"
Xue Ting was furious.
"You...you all! I didn't lie, I saw my sister crying sadly after she came home!"
Li Nanke said, "I've heard that the eldest daughter of the Xue family, Xue Shu, is dignified, composed, and gentle. When the third daughter of the Xue family said these things, were you trying to say that Xue Shu is petty and sharp-tongued, or were you trying to say that the young master Xie is not sincere towards Xue Shu?"
Xue Ting was taken aback by Li Nanke's sharp tongue.
"I...I didn't mean that, Li Nanke, don't talk nonsense. It was you who seduced Prince Xie and hurt my sister. You're a vixen!"
Li Nanke shook off her hand with a stern face.
"I'm still young. I've stayed at home since I was little and rarely go out to visit others, so I don't understand the meaning of seduction."
Miss Xue keeps using the word "seduce," is she quite skilled at it? Why don't you elaborate on what seduction is, and how to seduce? Teach us!
Xue Ting's face paled as she realized she had said the wrong thing.
What respectable family's daughter would use flirting as a pretext?
"I......"
Zhao Wanqing, who had been silently observing the situation from the sidelines, remembered her mother Song Hui's instructions before entering the palace, telling her to be sure to befriend the young lady from the Xue family.
My mother said that His Majesty has promised the Empress that a place will be reserved for the daughter of the Duke of Xue's family as a companion to Princess Zhaoning.
Xue Ting will definitely be selected this time!
Being on good terms with Xue Ting can only bring benefits, not harm!
Zhao Wanqing stepped forward and helped Xue Ting up.
She whispered a rebuke to Li Nanke, "Third Miss Xue was worried about her sister and spoke a little hastily. Cousin Nanke should just explain things to Third Miss Xue. Why be so aggressive?"
Li Nanke found it funny.
"I'm being aggressive? You're allowed to smear me, but I'm not allowed to fight back? Cousin, your bias is too obvious!"
Zhao Wanqing choked and her face turned pale.
At that moment, a soft, feminine voice came from outside.
"Her Majesty the Empress has arrived, Her Highness the Imperial Concubine has arrived, and Consort Shu Wan has arrived."
The group of girls quickly stood in their places, knelt on the ground, and kowtowed in greeting.
Empress Xue, dressed in her finest attire, appeared even more dignified and graceful. After taking her seat at the head of the table, she nodded to Consort Gui and Consort Shu.
"You two, please sit down too. Today we are selecting a princess's study companion. His Majesty instructed the Imperial Concubine to help me today. The Imperial Concubine should take a good look at her later."
"Shu Wanyi is Zhaokang's birth mother. You should also keep an eye on things for Zhaokang. If you see a girl he likes, just tell me."
The Imperial Concubine and Consort Shu both curtsied and responded with a "yes," before separating and taking their seats at the lower end.
Empress Xue glanced at the kneeling girls on the ground and raised her hand.
"Get up, all of you. I heard a commotion inside when I was outside. What happened?"
Xue Ting's eyes welled up with tears of grievance.
"Aunt, Li Nanke is bullying me! Aunt, you must stand up for me!"
Empress Xue frowned almost imperceptibly, feeling somewhat displeased.
It's Li Nanke again!
But his face didn't show the slightest displeasure. "What happened? Tell me slowly."
Xue Ting stepped forward, rolled up her sleeve, and a bruise on her fair wrist caught everyone's attention.
"I was just talking about the day we distributed porridge at the Bian River, and that upset her. She... she pinched me."
"Auntie, look! She's pinched my wrist so hard it's all bruised!"
Xue Ting's eyes were filled with tears, as if she had suffered a great injustice.
When Empress Xue saw the bruises on Xue Ting's hands, her face immediately darkened.
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