Chapter 127: Dissatisfied, send someone to the Duke of Wei’s Mansion and ask Bingzhi to come tomorrow…
Old Madam Wu did not hide her temper at all, and for a moment, the atmosphere in the room was very solemn.
Qi Shaozhang learned yesterday that Lu Bingzhi hadn't accompanied Cui Lingyan to the banquet. Unlike his grandmother, Old Lady Wu, who was unhappy, and Mrs. Zhan, who was regretful, he felt relieved.
Now that he has entered the Imperial College and married Cui Lingyin, he will be able to secure a good official position in the court with the help of his classmates and some connections in the Yue family.
If that's the case, why bother trying to control Cui Lingyan with the grace of upbringing like my grandmother did, and thinking of taking advantage of the power of Lu Bingzhi, the prince of Weiguo.
He was also a man, so he naturally understood men's minds. Although Lu Bingzhi hadn't taken Cui Lingyan to task over the previous rumors, Qi Shaozhang didn't have the presence of mind to be so dignified in front of Lu Bingzhi. He'd better stay out of his way to avoid annoying him. In the future, if he encountered any problems and was desperate, he could always come to her for help.
Furthermore, the Qi family was not of high status, but he, the young master of the Qi family, had been raised in pampering, and his inherent nobility made him not want to be outdone by Lu Bingzhi on his wedding day.
Now, from what my grandmother said, it seems that she was plotting against Cui Lingyan behind his back.
Qi Shaozhang felt a little unhappy, but he suppressed his dissatisfaction and said to Madam Wu, "Grandma, since Cousin Yan has married into the Duke's Mansion, she is his daughter-in-law. Our Qi family should not interfere in the affairs of the Crown Prince's backyard, so as not to attract dislike."
Madam Wu couldn't help but hear the reproach and dissatisfaction in his words. Her eyes immediately reddened, and she choked with sobs and said in disappointment, "At my age, do I still have any demands? Do I want to control Yan girl just for myself? It's because of you, Shaozhang. The prince didn't come to the wedding banquet yesterday. Didn't you see the faces of those guests at the banquet who flattered the powerful and looked down on the weak? Even if they didn't say it out loud, how could they look down on our Qi family in their hearts?"
"It's said that the Crown Prince values his wife, Yan, very much. If Yan could speak a few good words for our Qi family in front of the Crown Prince and coax him to come to the wedding banquet, even if she were criticized because of the previous rumors, it would be better than being looked down upon. I raised her, and this is how she repays me and our Qi family?"
After Mrs. Wu finished speaking, she couldn't help but shed tears. She was really upset, and she wasn't pretending.
On the way to the capital, she thought that her granddaughter Cui Lingyan would marry into a wealthy family and would be able to help the Qi family in the future. However, she never expected that the greater the expectations, the greater the disappointment.
Not only did Yan Yatou not remember the favor, but she was also eager to distance herself from the Qi family.
How could she let this ungrateful man get what he wanted? So she instigated her daughter to send someone to deliver a letter to Qiu Zhi, asking Qiu Zhi to find a way to seduce the prince and take away his favor.
Who could have imagined that Qiu Zhi would be so impatient and actually take action yesterday? Unfortunately, Lu Bingzhi not only did not accept her words, but in a rage, he ordered Qiu Zhi to be beaten with thirty boards and even sold her out.
Such a chess piece was abandoned before it was even used. Old Madam Wu felt that Qiu Zhi was too useless.
Zhan was feeling upset, and when she saw her mother-in-law like this, she winked at her son.
Qi Shaozhang knelt down and apologized, "Grandma, please don't be sad. This is all my fault. I am useless and that is why I have to scheme like this for you."
Since the husband Qi Shaozhang had already knelt down, the bride Cui Lingyin naturally couldn't just stand there and watch, so she also knelt down beside Qi Shaozhang.
The happy atmosphere of the tea ceremony was ruined, and instead the young couple was asked to kneel down and apologize.
When Old Madam Wu saw this scene, she felt even more upset.
She suppressed the discomfort in her heart, waved her hand and said to Qi Shaozhang: "Take your wife back to the house to rest."
Qi Shaozhang wanted to say something else, but Zhan shook her head at him, so he stood up and took Cui Lingyin out of the house.
Qi Ruorou looked a bit dazed. Just yesterday, she had been thinking about how great it would be if Qiu Zhi could succeed and share Cui Lingyan's favor. This morning, she heard the news that Qiu Zhi had been sold out for seducing Lu Bingzhi, and she felt a little complicated.
People envied Cui Lingyan for marrying Lu Bingzhi, a man of such integrity and noble status. They also wondered why God was so kind to Cui Lingyan. It seemed that everything had gone smoothly since she came to the capital, and those who wanted to plot against her would not end up well.
Qi Ruorou was in no mood to stay and listen to her mother comforting her grandmother, or her grandmother scolding Cui Lingyan for being unfilial. It felt as if the arrival of her grandmother, Old Madam Wu, in the capital had made the house increasingly uneasy and irritating. Now that she had a sister-in-law, she was even more eager to get married.
She bowed and found an excuse to leave.
After seeing her son, daughter-in-law, and daughter all leave, Zhan said with some resignation, "Shao Zhang naturally knows that all this was planned for him. He's too grateful to blame you."
"However, now that things have come to this, Qiu Zhi is useless, and Master Lu doesn't seem to be interested in taking a concubine. You might as well put these thoughts aside for now. Stay at home and enjoy the filial piety of your granddaughter-in-law, and wait to hold a great-grandson."
Old Madam Wu also knew that she had ruined the good atmosphere, and the new granddaughter-in-law might feel aggrieved and dissatisfied. However, she had been strong-willed for most of her life, and everyone in the house listened to her, so how could she care about other people's feelings?
So even though he felt a little regretful for not controlling his temper, he said, "That Lu Bingzhi is also weird. He and Yan girl have already consummated their marriage, and she's healthy. According to his status, how could he only have one wife? He must have concubines and maids. Could it be that he will only have Yan girl for his whole life?"
Zhan suppressed her impatience and said, "Perhaps the prince dislikes being schemed against, so he sold Qiuzhi out. Qiuzhi was too clever for her own good. Besides, the prince is a noble man, so it's no wonder he's angry that Qiuzhi, a servant, is trying to get close to him. Furthermore, Yan is so beautiful, how could Qiuzhi compare to her? It's normal for the prince to look down on her."
Madam Wu sighed heavily. "Even if that's the case, he shouldn't have sold her out directly. Qiu Zhi came from the elders' quarters after all. It's better to look at the face of the Buddha than the monk. They say that these high-ranking families value rules the most, but I see that they are so proud of their status that they don't even care about the most basic filial piety and decency. It's just that they have a good background and were born into a prominent family."
"If our Shao Zhang was born in such a family, how could he be looked down upon by others?"
Zhan didn't say anything else.
Old Madam Wu noticed her daughter-in-law's dissatisfaction and wanted to teach her a lesson, but her daughter-in-law had already established a solid position in the Qi family. Even as a mother-in-law, she could not vent her anger on her at will, not to mention that she felt a little uneasy because her mood was ruined today.
"Okay, go back to your room."
Mrs. Zhan replied "yes," bowed, and walked out of the room.
As soon as she walked out of the yard, Mrs. Zhan's face darkened.
......
Glass Courtyard
Qi Shaozhang said to Cui Lingyin with a hint of apology: "Grandmother is old and her temper is inevitably a bit stubborn. Please bear with her."
Cui Lingyin smiled and shook her head. "Grandmother is doing this for my husband's own good, so how can I not understand? However, Third Sister's status is different now, and we can't get close to her. It's better not to offend her if we can."
"My husband knows that my third sister and my aunt are not close, and Qiuzhi was sent by my aunt to serve my third sister. If she really took away my favor, my third sister would be very upset. If it is found that my grandmother was involved, I am afraid that the last bit of affection would be exhausted. It is a good thing that Qiuzhi was sold now, otherwise I would be worried."
Qi Shaozhang felt unhappy when he heard her calling him "Aunt" instead of "Auntie", but thinking that she had just come in and couldn't change her tone for the time being, he still called her according to her mother's family name and did not correct her.
The couple talked for a while, and then Qi Shaozhang went to the study.
After Qi Shaozhang left, Cui Lingyin said with some emotion, "Yesterday, Auntie told Third Sister about Qiu Zhi. In the afternoon, Qiu Zhi was sold out by the Crown Prince. I wonder if Third Sister told the Crown Prince about this and asked him to deal with her while she was away. This way, she can sell her out without the reputation of being jealous and intolerant."
When the maid Luoxue heard her say this, her eyes were full of surprise.
Cui Lingyin glanced at her and said with a hint of envy, "If that's true, the prince treats Third Sister really well. It's really enviable. If the old lady doesn't restrain herself, I'm afraid Third Sister will hold a grudge against her."
Cining Palace
The empress dowager had just come out of the small Buddhist hall and returned to the main hall when a palace maid came in to report what had happened in the Duke of Wei's mansion yesterday.
After hearing this, the Queen Mother immediately frowned and said with some displeasure, "How dare a lowly servant have such ambitions for my Bingzhi? She deserves to be dragged out and beaten to death!"
After saying this, the Queen Mother sighed again, "But Qiu Zhi was sent by Qi to serve Cui. Even if Bingzhi was angry, he shouldn't have sold her out directly. If he wanted to deal with her, he should have waited until Cui returned home. This child, you say he loves Cui, but he didn't consider Cui much in this matter, and he wasn't afraid of this matter getting out and being gossiped about."
"Forget it. Send someone to the Duke of Wei's mansion and have Bingzhi bring Cui to the palace tomorrow to talk to me."
After hearing the order, the palace maid bowed, stepped back and asked someone to pass on the message.
Wutong Courtyard
When Cui Lingyan heard that the Empress Dowager summoned her and Lu Bingzhi to the palace to talk the next day, she subconsciously looked at Lu Bingzhi who was sitting next to her.
"Qiu Zhi's matter must have reached the Queen Mother's ears. I said it was my responsibility to handle. Now that the Crown Prince has intervened, I wonder what people outside will say. They'll definitely say that the Crown Prince relied on his status to sell out the maid that my mother-in-law arranged for him."
Lu Bingzhi smiled and pulled Cui Lingyan into his arms. "Why are you discussing this? I think we're more envious of you, Yan'er, for having such a good and honest husband."
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