She had already lost enough face during the day. If she lost again, her mistress would definitely not let her off when she got back. She had worked so hard to get the chance to attend the banquet... how could she lose to someone like Anfeier!
Her hesitation and nervousness were seen by others as an inability to compose poetry, and she frequently received questioning glances...
Finally, Ma Xinyue took a deep breath and spoke slowly.
"Wading across the river to enjoy the autumn waters, I love the fresh red lotus. I pluck the lotus leaves to play with their pearls, but they ripple and never form a perfect circle."
After she finished speaking, a series of surprised gazes were cast upon her. Ma Xinyue felt a sense of relief and looked up at An Feier with more confidence when she looked up again!
This is it! If she wins, she will be Ma Xinyue, the talented woman from Beijing who was once madly in love; if she loses, she will be the infamous, shameless woman!
"Slap! Slap!"
Just as everyone was whispering and hesitating, the eldest princess on the stage suddenly burst into laughter, her already radiant face becoming even more dazzling! She clapped her hands and showered the two of them with praise!
"Excellent! This is wonderful! As expected of a lady from a prominent family in my Heavenly Dragon Kingdom, your poetry skills are in no way inferior to those of men! In my opinion, the two are almost evenly matched. Perhaps... we should choose one of them to judge and see who is better!"
After speaking, without caring whether others agreed or not, she looked directly at Qin Qing with a malicious smile on her lips.
Here it comes! Qin Qing felt a wave of helplessness. She knew she would be targeted sooner or later. Wang Yan! He really knows how to cause her trouble.
"Is this old lady the new maid of the General's Mansion? Why don't we ask her to judge? After all, the General's Mansion under Madam Wang is known for its fairness and impartiality, so I'm sure the maid will be just as fair."
She kept saying "mwah" and her face was full of disdain. She even called her "aunt" without saying anything. Even though she was indeed more than ten years older than the princess, she looked to be only in her twenties. The princess said that just to humiliate her!
Qin Qing didn't care, but Old Madam Wang frowned and stood up to speak.
"Your Highness is mistaken!"
Madam Wang had remained silent the whole time, and even the eldest princess thought she didn't like this old woman. Who knew that the first person to contradict her would be Madam Wang! The eldest princess knew all too well how difficult it was to talk to this old lady!
"Oh? I wonder where I went wrong?"
She refused to believe it! This difficult old woman would actually say that this nearly forty-year-old woman was Wang Yan's woman!
Everyone present remained silent, watching the spectacle unfold. The young princess on the side of the stage suddenly changed her expression and reached out to grab the eldest princess, but it was too late. The eldest princess had already asked the question.
Grandma Wang smiled upon hearing this, but the eldest princess's face immediately turned ugly.
"I've said it before, old woman! That Qin woman is my son Wang Yan's fiancée! She'll be added to my Wang family genealogy in the future!"
As soon as she finished speaking, the eldest princess stared wide-eyed at Qin Qing in disbelief, her expression extremely ugly!
"That's impossible! How could Brother Wang possibly be interested in such an old woman! She's already a grandmother!? Is the old lady getting senile? How could such a filthy old woman be worthy of him?"
The more she spoke, the louder her voice became, and the harsher her words grew. When Old Madam Wang heard her say that she was confused, her face turned even uglier! Qin Qing also changed her expression, looking at her with a deep gaze, and then stood up.
"What does the eldest princess mean by that? So what if she's old? Isn't the eldest princess also an old woman in her twenties who hasn't married yet? As far as I know, the Wang family has devoted themselves to protecting the Tianlong Kingdom, showing their utmost loyalty! Now, only Wang Yan is left, and his mother is being insulted like this in public by the eldest princess. It's truly heartbreaking!"
The chilling remark immediately sent shockwaves through everyone! They looked at Qin Qing with stunned expressions. Although what she said wasn't wrong, publicly contradicting the eldest princess could easily lead to punishment, especially since she wasn't yet the Queen Consort…
The eldest princess's face stiffened, seemingly realizing the inappropriateness of her words, but an apology was out of the question! She then glared at Qin Qing with a livid expression, her eyes filled with murderous intent!
Qin Qing remained calm and continued speaking with a composed expression.
"Furthermore, shouldn't General Wang's marriage be decided by Old Madam Wang and himself? Why is the Eldest Princess so agitated? After all, it's someone else's family matter. Isn't it too much to interfere? Does she expect the royal family to meddle in her private affairs while serving His Majesty the Emperor? Ha! That would be suffocating!"
Her words were utterly treasonous! To sow discord between the emperor and his ministers deserve the death penalty for her entire family!
The eldest princess seemed to have found a weakness in her, and roared angrily!
"Insolence! Guards! Beat this bastard who is spouting nonsense to death!"
Seeing that someone was about to die, Old Madam Wang's expression changed, and she quickly protected her to her side.
"Let's see who dares!"
Qin Qing looked at the old lady protecting her and felt a little amused and exasperated. The old lady must have been a martial arts expert when she was young, but now she could barely walk steadily, so why was she blocking her way...?
The eldest princess was even more furious upon seeing this. She had been trying to please that old woman for two years! But the old woman was completely unyielding and a real tough nut to crack, while this old woman had only known her for a short time! Yet she had actually protected her with her own body! She was simply not taking her seriously at all!
"What are you all standing there for! Arrest them all!"
She had given up entirely; the man she had liked for years was with another woman—how could she bear it!
Hearing her command, the group of guards hesitated for a moment, but then leaped forward...
Upon seeing this, Qin Qing's expression suddenly turned serious, her brows furrowing. She quickly pulled Old Madam Wang aside and kicked the foremost guard away. The flying guard then knocked down seven or eight more guards, and the scene immediately descended into chaos...
The old lady was pulled away by a force. When she came to her senses in shock, she was both surprised and delighted. She hadn't expected that Madam Qin was so skilled. No wonder her son had taken a liking to her!
Before Qin Qing could make another move, a deep, angry, and authoritative voice suddenly rang out from the hall!
"Who dares to hurt my mother!"
The ladies of noble families and mistresses were already terrified and had nowhere to run. Hearing this voice, they were startled and looked up to see a menacing figure at the entrance of the hall.
The eldest princess was also terrified. She gripped the chair tightly, biting her lip, staring blankly at the man who had suddenly appeared. She was filled with fear, nervousness, and shyness all at once…
The guards, who were about to leap up, suddenly stopped in their tracks. Upon seeing the figure at the door, they hurriedly knelt down and cried out in unison.
"Greetings, General!"
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