Chapter 74 Dislike
In front of the hanging flower gate, the housekeeper bowed to welcome the guests, singing a clear and melodious greeting:
"Lord Wang from the Ministry of Personnel has arrived!!"
"The Third Young Master of the Pingjiang Marquisate has arrived!!"
…
Every announcement would cause a murmur among the nearby guests, and their eyes would be cast on the new guest, either openly or secretly.
This was especially true for the female guests, many of whom came not just for the Earl of Anping.
In the past, the Earl of Anping was personally conferred the title by the emperor because of his good looks and contributions to flood control.
This attracted countless young masters from noble families in the capital to make friends with him, including the third son of the Pingjiang Marquis's Mansion, who was as handsome as Pan An and had a noble status.
They wore hairpins, rings, and earrings, and were dressed in silk and satin, which made rustling sounds as they moved with light lotus steps, or they reservedly covered their faces with round fans, whispering to each other, and their glances were a silent contest and evaluation.
"Today is just an ordinary family dinner. Everyone, enjoy your meal and drink. My son will be back home soon."
The old lady spoke with a smile, her eyes full of satisfaction.
After all the guests arrived, countless delicious dishes and fine wines were served one after another, making them secretly nod in admiration at the luxury of the Anping Marquis's Mansion.
It seems that the story about the old lady snatching her ex-daughter-in-law's dowry a while ago was just a fabrication.
"The Earl of Anping is back!"
The butler shouted loudly, and immediately attracted countless guests to look in the direction of the sound.
Xun Chen was wearing a crimson official robe, which made his face look like jade. He was tall and had deep eyebrows and eyes.
Although he was a divorced man and almost thirty years old, he still looked young after all, which made most of the ladies present blush.
"Lord Anping! It's been a long time since we last met. How are you today?" Lord Wang from the Ministry of Personnel stepped forward to compliment him.
"Hello, Lord Wang. Everything is fine now. I just had some chores to deal with at the government office this morning. Please forgive me if I have been negligent."
Xun Chen bowed, spoke fluently, and behaved elegantly, looking like someone who was respected by everyone.
Jiang Ruyi followed her parents to sit at the table behind them, her eyes sweeping across the room filled with gorgeous clothes and jewels, then to the young man in a crimson official robe chatting and laughing with his colleagues.
She raised her hand, unconsciously tidied her clothes and hairpins, and winked at the maid who was standing quietly in the corner of the pavilion not far away, with an imperceptible urgency in her movements.
The maid received the signal, picked up the wine and walked towards Xun Chen, raising the tray respectfully.
Xun Chen turned around and took it naturally, and chatted with the third son of the Pingjiang Marquis's Mansion, his best friend.
"Of course you are, Xun Chen. You are indeed my good brother. As soon as my aunt hinted at choosing a daughter-in-law, half of the officials in the capital came with their families."
Yu Sheng was wearing a bright green brocade robe and a jade crown on his head, looking like he had just reached the age of marriage.
Seeing this scene, I couldn't help but feel envious. The most proud things in life are to pass the imperial examination and to spend the wedding night with your loved ones.
The family education in Pingjiang Marquis' Mansion is extremely strict. There is no rule for the family's sons to take concubines before marriage, or to send personal maids to serve as concubines.
Xun Chen gave him a teasing look and said, "You are the legitimate son of the Pingjiang Marquisate. After your two older brothers get married, it will be your turn. Why are you in such a hurry?"
Yu Sheng felt a little relieved after hearing this and nodded in agreement: "You're right, my second brother's wedding is next month, and maybe I'll have it decided by the end of this year."
"Hey, are those people from the Jiang Mansion? Aren't they your ex-wife's family? How dare they come here?"
"But the treatment of the second and third branches of the Jiang family is really different. Look at Jiang Baizhou's daughter, she is dressed in gorgeous clothes.
But…the daughter of the third house was dressed in plain green, with a simple jade hairpin on her head. She looked really pretty, and at first glance, she was a gentle woman.”
As Xun Chen listened to Yu Sheng's words, Jiang Qingning's heartless face flashed through his mind.
He hid the unnatural look in his eyes and looked in the direction Yu Sheng was looking.
When he saw the profile of the green figure, he froze in place.
When Jiang Ruyi felt Xun Chen's gaze, her heart suddenly became excited and a shy pink appeared on her face. However, after a moment, she noticed that Xun Chen was distracted.
She followed his gaze in surprise, but when she saw Jiang Yuerou the next moment, she was stunned and a hint of disgust flashed in her eyes.
"Who told you to dress so pretty? If you ruin my plans, I will never forgive you!"
Jiang Yuerou looked up at the vicious voice and met Xun Chen's gaze in an instant. She was suddenly shocked and immediately understood what Jiang Ruyi meant.
Xun Chen was the husband she had chosen. If she received too much attention from Xun Chen, she would probably suffer even more when she returned home.
"I'm going for a walk in the back garden."
Jiang Yuerou didn't want to argue with her, so she spoke to her parents. After they perfunctorily replied "hello" from the crowd, she bowed and walked towards the archway with her maid.
After getting away from the hustle and bustle of the crowd, Jiang Yuerou slowly breathed a sigh of relief.
The maid said indignantly, "Miss, Miss Ruyi from the second house has been spoiled to such an extent that she doesn't even respect you, her elder sister. If she were to marry into the Anping Marquis's mansion, she might be..."
Jiang Yuerou lowered her eyes and scolded, "Shut up, she is not someone you and I can discuss. You also said that she is just spoiled."
"It's just that she has everything she wants. She was spoiled a lot by her uncle and aunt since she was little, so that's why she's like this. You can't blame her."
It was all Jiang Yuerou's fault for being born into the wrong family. She was destined to be involved with the cannibalistic Jiang family, with her gambling father and uncle, her useless brothers, and her mother who cried all day long.
Jiang Yuerou's life is doomed to be ruined.
"Let's not think about this anymore. Let's go ahead and take a look. This is the garden of the Marquis' Mansion after all. When Jiang Ruyi becomes the wife of the Marquis of Anping, I'm afraid she won't be able to come here in her lifetime."
Jiang Yuerou chuckled softly, pulled the corners of her mouth palely, and walked towards the peony she liked.
Yu Sheng was attracted by Jiang Yuerou's elegant, polite and generous demeanor and couldn't help but praise her, "She really has a good temper. If I were treated harshly by a younger sister, I would definitely not be so good-tempered. Even if she was my biological sister, I would have to fight her to determine the winner."
"On the contrary, she was neither arrogant nor impatient, and was always courteous. Knowing her sister's feelings, she dressed herself in a simple blue shirt. Little did she know that such a gentle, beautiful and quiet beauty would look good in anything she wore."
Xun Chen has walked out of Jiang Yuerou's distant gaze. She is another woman who, like Jiang Qingning, cannot distinguish herself and is arrogant and cold.
Hearing Yu Sheng's words, he scoffed, "What a pity! Even if you like her, the wife of the Marquis of Pingjiang will not allow you to take a concubine."
"Besides, your biological sister has been in the palace for half a year now, and she is His Majesty's favorite Concubine Yu. If Concubine Yu knew about this, she would probably make a scene with you."
After he finished speaking, he looked at the ladies present one by one, and had a vague idea in his mind.
He didn't like any of these young ladies and always felt that something was missing.
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