Chapter 128: When their eyes met, Cui Lingyan saw her...
Old Lady Dou also heard that the Empress Dowager had summoned Lu Bingzhi and his wife to the palace the next day. Knowing that the Empress Dowager valued her grandson Lu Bingzhi the most, she only gave Lu Bingzhi a few instructions, asking him to protect Cui Lingyan more after entering the palace.
When Cen heard the news, she felt very upset and thought that Lu Bingzhi was really lucky. However, it was such a small matter that the person in the Cining Palace was so concerned about it and even specially called him into the palace.
She only has Danruo as her child. If she really had a son, and her stepson Lu Bingzhi was so successful that he surpassed her son, she would probably feel even more upset and unwilling than she does now.
Although she was unwilling now, the last time she took action against Lu Bingzhi, he had embarrassed her natal family. Now she was a little more wary of her stepson and really didn't dare to offend him easily. She couldn't even act like a mother-in-law in front of her daughter-in-law Cui Lingyan because of what happened before. Among the mother-in-laws of the noble families in the capital, there was probably no more cowardly one than her.
After sending away the maid who came to report, Mrs. Cen even felt a little annoyed when she saw her daughter muttering beside her, so she found an excuse to ask her to go back to her own courtyard.
......
In the carriage, Lu Bingzhi saw Cui Lingyan sitting upright. He couldn't help but chuckle and said comfortingly, "Grandmother loves me the most. As the saying goes, love the house and the people in it. Naturally, she will love you, her granddaughter-in-law, too."
"Besides, it was my idea to sell Qiu Zhi yesterday. Grandmother will only say, as Grandmother did, that I acted arbitrarily and sold the maid sent by my mother-in-law to serve me without asking your opinion. How could she blame you?"
Cui Lingyan looked at him, a little uneasy, and said, "While that's true, Qiuzhi is, after all, a maid in the Marquis's mansion. For her to behave so frivolously and despicably is due to my lack of discipline as her mistress."
Hearing her insincere words, Lu Bingzhi couldn't help laughing.
Cui Lingyan's cheeks flushed slightly, and she hit him lightly, but he pulled her into his arms.
"Alright, alright, when Yan'er is nervous, she won't say what she means. She actually wants me to protect you in front of Grandma. I know that."
Cui Lingyan actually didn't mean that, but after hearing Lu Bingzhi say this, she felt that what she had just said was a bit pretentious.
Perhaps it was because she was sent to live with the Qi family as a dependent since she was a child that she developed this habit of always assuming the worst, mentally preparing for every unfavorable situation before feeling safe. She was aware of this shortcoming and tried to change it, but sometimes, when faced with difficulties, this side of her personality would surface again.
But Lu Bingzhi knew her so well that after just a few words from her, all the tension in her heart disappeared when he teased her like that.
She leaned in his arms and felt a sense of security.
The carriage drove on Zhuque Street and stopped at the gate of the palace after about half an hour.
Cui Lingyan helped Lu Bingzhi get off the carriage, and the two of them walked into the palace together and headed towards the Cining Palace.
In the Cining Palace, the Queen Mother had been waiting since early morning. When she heard the palace maid report that the Crown Prince and his wife had arrived, she asked someone to bring them in.
After the two of them paid their respects, the empress dowager offered them a seat and the palace maids served them tea and snacks.
After chatting for a while, the Queen Mother asked about Lu Bingzhi selling Qiu Zhi yesterday.
Before Lu Bingzhi could speak, Cui Lingyan stood up, bowed, and apologized, "It was all because of my failure to discipline Qiu Zhi that I allowed her to act so frivolously and offend the Crown Prince. I am truly ashamed."
Although Cui Lingyan knew that Lu Bingzhi would protect her, she also knew the thoughts of an elder. The Queen Mother loved her grandson Lu Bingzhi, so naturally she always considered Lu Bingzhi's best interests. After the news of Lu Bingzhi selling Qiu Zhi spread yesterday, outsiders inevitably started to make up stories about Lu Bingzhi. Whether it was that he was a self-disciplined person or that he, as a man, had interfered in the affairs of the inner chambers, even if Qiu Zhi was wrong, she was originally a maid in Qi's room. Lu Bingzhi's selling her out was simply disrespectful to Qi, his mother-in-law. I think these stories would be unpleasant to the Queen Mother's ears, and she would think that she was not strict enough in managing her servants and that this was the reason for such a scandal and the damage to Lu Bingzhi's reputation.
As expected, when she pleaded guilty, the Queen Mother looked at her with more pity and kindness. She said to Lu Bingzhi, "Bingzhi, why don't you help your wife up?"
Then, he turned to Cui Lingyan and said, "My dear child, I sent you and your wife to the palace, but I never meant to blame you. You should not take it too seriously."
"I heard that Qiu Zhi was originally the head maid in your mother Qi's room. She was assigned to serve you after you came to the capital. So even if she made mistakes, it was because your mother didn't discipline her well and chose such a maid for you as a dowry."
After hearing what the Queen Mother said, Cui Lingyan naturally showed gratitude and stood up with the help of Lu Bingzhi.
The Queen Mother then turned to Lu Bingzhi and said, "I don't blame Yan girl, but I do want to say something about you. You were angry about Qiu Zhi's inappropriate behavior and you should have sent her back to Qi. Why did you sell her out and spread these rumors?"
"What's more, I heard that your wife went to the Qi residence to attend the wedding banquet, and you were angry and punished her, not even waiting for her to come back to ask her opinion. Husband and wife are one, and matters outside the home are one thing, but matters within the home are Yan's responsibility. If you treated her like this, people who know will say that you are chaste and envy Yan, but those who don't know will make up stories behind your back, saying that you didn't give Yan a decent wife."
Lu Bingzhi remained calm and unfazed by the Empress Dowager's rebuke. After the Empress Dowager finished speaking, he said with a hint of disdain, "How dare a lowly servant like her have such thoughts? If I hadn't cared about my mother-in-law's reputation, I would have had her beaten to death long ago. Selling her off is already giving her a chance to live."
"As for those fabricated words outside, is there anyone brave enough to say them in front of my grandson?"
The Empress Dowager knew her grandson Lu Bingzhi's temperament best. He stayed away from women and kept himself chaste. Now that he was married, he only had Yan as his wife. Qiu Zhi's thoughts were offensive and disgusting to Bingzhi, and he didn't think too much about them when he was angry.
Besides, Bingzhi has a noble status, so he doesn’t have to worry about the Ningshou Marquis’ Mansion, let alone his mother-in-law Qi.
Thinking of this, the Queen Mother sighed softly: "You, you have always had your own ideas. Well, I asked you to come to the palace because I wanted you and your wife to avoid any rift because of what happened yesterday. Now that I see you are fine, I feel relieved."
After chatting for a while, the Queen Mother said to Lu Bingzhi, "Go to the Qinzheng Palace to pay your respects to your uncle. As for Yan, you can stay in the Cining Palace and talk to me."
Lu Bingzhi nodded, glanced at Cui Lingyan, then stood up and left.
When the queen mother saw his look, she naturally understood how much this boy cared about his wife Cui.
The Queen Mother secretly sighed in her heart, thinking that her grandson had been away from women for so many years, had no servants around him, and had a marriage with Cui Shi and all the other secrets. Who could have thought that after the marriage, Bingzhi would be so satisfied with Cui Shi.
If it were Cui Linghui, I'm afraid Bingzhi wouldn't take it so seriously.
Thinking of Cui Linghui, now Xiao Ze's concubine, the Empress Dowager felt a surge of disdain. Using such despicable means to compete for favor was truly beneath the dignity of a legitimate daughter of a marquisate, making people look down on her. It was clear that she wasn't a good person at heart.
Although the empress dowager disliked Cui Linghui, she was particularly satisfied with Cui Lingyan, who was also the eldest daughter of the Ningshou Marquis's family.
Not only is she outstanding in appearance, but she is also gentle, considerate, knowledgeable and interesting. What is rare is that she has won Bingzhi's heart and made Bingzhi care about her.
These are things that Cui Linghui cannot do.
Thinking of this, the Queen Mother looked at Cui Lingyan with even more loving eyes.
Cui Lingyan is also sensible. As long as she wants to, she can please the elders without making people feel that she is trying too hard to please them or making them feel annoying.
The Queen Mother, after spending some time with her, increasingly felt that Cui was a better match for Bingzhi. Bingzhi, with his aloof temperament, was destined to marry someone as gentle as him. Even if Cui Linghui hadn't made the foolish move of breaking off the engagement, now that she thought about it, her inherent pride made her unsuitable for marrying Bingzhi and becoming the Crown Prince's wife.
Not to mention the undignified things Cui Linghui did after entering the palace as a concubine.
Compared to this, the Empress Dowager's last bit of criticism about Cui Lingyan being raised in the Qi family instead of growing up in the capital disappeared.
Just at this moment, a palace maid came in and reported that Concubine Shu had come to pay her respects.
The empress dowager showed some surprise in her eyes when she heard the report. She didn't want to see her, but Cui Lingyan happened to be in the palace at this moment. If she didn't see Shupin, it would make people think that Yan, the prince's wife, had done something wrong and was shameful.
Thinking of this, the empress dowager nodded and asked someone to bring Shupin in.
The curtain was drawn, and Concubine Shu walked in wearing a lake green palace dress embroidered with peony flowers, followed by a woman in a light blue palace dress. It was Cui Linghui, who had not been seen for a long time.
After Shupin bowed and paid her respects, she saw the Empress Dowager frowning and smiled as she explained, "Don't blame me, Your Majesty. It's not that I intentionally mistreat Cui by treating her like a maid. It's just that the maid who used to serve me has been suffering from a rash these past two days and can't stand the wind. Coincidentally, Cui has been serving me diligently these days and knows my preferences, so I kept her by my side. I brought her to the Cining Palace today, hoping to get some praise from the Empress Dowager, so that Cui can also feel a little more proud."
"What a coincidence! The Crown Prince's wife has come to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager today. It's a great opportunity for the sisters to meet and talk."
As Concubine Shu finished speaking, Cui Lingyan's gaze fell on Cui Linghui. After not seeing him for many days, Cui Linghui had become much thinner, and his clothes could hardly fit him. It was obvious that his life in this palace was very hard.
When their eyes met, Cui Lingyan saw the embarrassment and hatred in her stepsister's eyes.
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