Chapter 156: The tooth marks, neither too deep nor too shallow, make people feel dreamy...
After the nanny beside Old Madam Yin reported the news of the matching horoscopes to the old lady, the two families quickly decided on the marriage.
A few days later, Old Lady Yin sent out an invitation, inviting the old lady to come to her house with the young ladies and the young lady.
When Cui Lingyan heard this news from Birou, she showed a hint of surprise. She leaned lazily on the couch and asked nonchalantly, "Just take the older girl with you. What am I going to do there?"
Birou knew her young mistress wasn't particularly active, especially now that she was pregnant and feeling lazy. She'd rather not even leave Songxue Courtyard. Every day, besides paying respects to the old lady, she'd simply relax in the gardens behind Songxue Courtyard. So, upon hearing her young mistress's words, Birou simply said, "Just treat it as a trip to the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion to relax. I hear the mansion is beautiful, too. It was extensively renovated for Princess Chun'an's marriage. The young mistress hasn't even seen it yet."
"Okay." Cui Lingyan nodded. Although she was reluctant to go, she knew that since Old Madam Yin had spoken, she would be refusing to go if she didn't go.
Birou continued, "I wonder if Princess Chun'an will be there tomorrow. I heard she's now living in the Princess's Residence with Duke Dingguo and hasn't been back for quite some time. But since this is about the Second Master's marriage, Princess Chun'an, as the sister-in-law, should make an appearance and give the Second Master's wife enough respect. The Princess is also very close to the Young Madam. If the Princess is around, no one will dare to bully you."
Cui Lingyan knew what Birou meant. In her heart, Birou still felt that it was inappropriate for Old Lady Yin to send her to the Peony Courtyard to apologize to Cen and Lu Danruo. It had caused her, the young lady, to get angry at Cen and hear a lot of unpleasant words.
I don't know whether Mrs. Yin didn't think about these things or she disliked Cui Lingyan and deliberately gave her this task.
Cui Lingyan knew what was going on and could vaguely sense that Old Lady Yin disliked her. After thinking about it carefully, she probably guessed that it was because Princess Chun'an was close to her and was willing to give her some respect, so Old Lady Yin disliked Princess Chun'an and also disliked her, the young lady of the Duke of Weiguo's Mansion.
Cui Lingyan thought this was probably the case, but she didn't take it to heart. After all, the two families didn't visit each other often. Even if Lu Danyan married Pei An in the future, it would be Lu Danyan's own business. Her cousin-in-law wouldn't often go to the Dingguo Mansion.
Thinking of this, Cui Lingyan smiled and looked at Birou and said, "What's the point of bullying? Old Madam Yin sent me on a mission once, so why would she do it again? Whatever she has in mind for disliking me, this kind of thing can't happen again. Otherwise, it would be a joke. So don't worry."
As the two were talking, Lu Bingzhi came in from outside. Hearing that the Duke of Dingguo's Mansion had sent an invitation, Lu Bingzhi frowned slightly and stepped forward and said, "If you don't want to go, don't go. Tomorrow I will take you to the palace to pay your respects to your grandmother."
Cui Lingyan's eyes lit up when she heard this. Compared to going to the Duke of Dingguo's residence, she felt it would be more comfortable to go to the Cining Palace to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager. She hadn't been to the palace for some time, so a visit would be a way to show her filial piety, and it was better than wasting time at the Duke of Dingguo's residence.
Thinking of this, Cui Lingyan nodded, a smile on her face. She pulled Lu Bingzhi's sleeve and said with a smile, "Then it's settled. I was thinking that I didn't have a suitable excuse not to go. No one will say anything when we enter the palace."
Lu Bingzhi laughed and shook his head, then followed her lead and sat down next to her, asking her what she had done in the morning.
Cui Lingyan picked up the travelogue in her hand and handed it to him. Lu Bingzhi opened it and saw that it was actually a travelogue.
He said, "There are also quite a few travel notes in the study."
After spending so many days together, Cui Lingyan had already understood Lu Bingzhi's personality. What he said definitely did not just mean what it seemed on the surface.
She smiled and asked, "The prince asked me to go to the study to read it. He wasn't afraid that I would disturb his peace. It would be disgraceful if the news got out."
Lu Bingzhi said indifferently, "How could you be disturbing me if you were just sitting there quietly reading without making any noise? Besides, isn't it more proper for a wife to be in the study than for someone else to be surrounded by beautiful women?"
Cui Lingyan knew clearly that he had no other intentions, but her cheeks flushed when she heard this. She quickly glanced at Birou beside her, and seeing Birou retreating with a smile, she gently punched Lu Bingzhi's shoulder and said to him, "What do you mean by red sleeves adding fragrance? Aren't you afraid of being misunderstood, Prince?"
Lu Bingzhi let her hit him for a bit, and when she was about to retract her fist, he pulled her hand down and held it in his own.
"What's the big deal? There was no misunderstanding in the first place."
Cui Lingyan's cheeks turned redder when she heard him say that. She looked away and warned him, "I'm pregnant, so don't do anything stupid."
Lu Bingzhi was amused by her words. He held her in his arms and chuckled a few times, then whispered in her ear, "Don't worry, I wouldn't do anything stupid. Yan'er is really overthinking it."
His words made Cui Lingyan even more embarrassed and angry. She couldn't help but pinch Lu Bingzhi's waist.
Lu Bingzhi groaned in pain, held her hand, leaned forward, and pressed her down on the couch.
With her body pressed down by Lu Bingzhi, Cui Lingyan's cheeks flushed and she felt a little nervous.
Lu Bingzhi leaned over and whispered in her ear, "How dare you lay hands on your husband? You really deserve to be punished."
Before Cui Lingyan could react, Lu Bingzhi bit her earlobe.
Cui Lingyan felt a tingling sensation in her earlobe and a strange feeling.
Afterwards, Lu Bingzhi held the other person down and played around for a while. When the two of them stood up, Cui Lingyan's lips were red, her eyes were watery, and there were teeth marks on her earlobes, some of which were neither deep nor shallow. It was very tempting to look at them.
Seeing her glaring at him with shame and anger, Lu Bingzhi chuckled, without any guilt for bullying her.
Cui Lingyan went to the dressing table and tidied herself up before calling Birou in. She told her to tell the old lady that she would accompany the prince to the palace to pay her respects to the empress dowager tomorrow, which meant that she could not go to the Duke Dingguo's Mansion tomorrow.
Birou looked at the teeth marks on her daughter's earlobe and her swollen lips, and quickly looked away, her cheeks a little red. She nodded in agreement, bowed, turned around, and walked out of the house towards Qingdeyuan.
Cui Lingyan turned to look at Lu Bingzhi: "I don't know what Birou is thinking."
Lu Bingzhi curled his lips: "Let her think whatever she wants. She is someone close to you. Do you think she wants you and me to mess around like this or behave properly?"
Cui Lingyan naturally knew it was the former, but after hearing what Lu Bingzhi said, she couldn't help but put her hand over his mouth, not wanting to hear any more blushing words from him.
This man is really not as aloof and reserved as outsiders say, especially in front of her.
I don’t know if it’s because my true nature was revealed in front of her that I’m becoming less and less willing to pretend.
Her accusations were all written on her face, and her eyes seemed to speak, allowing everyone to know what she was thinking at a glance.
Lu Bingzhi bit her finger, and when Cui Lingyan blushed and quickly let go of the hand that was covering his mouth, he explained with a smile: "I'm not Liu Xiahui. Yan'er has thought too highly of me in the past. I don't deserve it."
Cui Lingyan: “…”
She felt that the image of Lu Bingzhi in her mind was slowly shattering. If she said that Lu Bingzhi had such a side, others would definitely think she was talking nonsense.
However, this man seemed noble and aloof on the surface, but when he interacted with her in private, especially when he wanted to bully her, Cui Lingyan felt that he was like a different person, and she wanted to ask him to copy the Heart Purification Mantra a hundred times.
......
Qingdeyuan
Birou reported to Old Madam Dou that the Crown Prince would bring the young lady to the palace to pay respects to the Queen Mother tomorrow.
After hearing this, Madam Dou opened her mouth to say something, but in the end she didn't say anything. She waved her hand and told Birou to leave.
After Birou left the room, she sighed, not knowing whether to laugh or be annoyed. "Look at how concerned he is. He's worried that Yan will suffer any injustice at the Duke Dingguo's mansion. It's a pity he could come up with this idea. I didn't know Bingzhi would become like this after getting married."
Hearing what the old lady said, Nanny Sun couldn't help but laugh. "It's a good thing that the prince is so concerned. At least someone has entered his heart. Otherwise, he would still be as cold and reserved as before, unwilling to get close to anyone, and that would be what worries me. Now that the prince is so close to the young lady, who knows when she will be pregnant. I can only wait to hold my great-grandson."
Nanny Sun's few words made Madam Dou's smile deepen. She said, "Forget it. If you don't want to go, then don't go. It wasn't very kind of Madam Yin to send Yan to the Peony Courtyard to apologize on her behalf. I don't believe she doesn't know what the situation is like in the Duke Ding's Mansion. She doesn't know that Yan and Cen's relationship is very tense. She is doing this on purpose. Most likely, she sees Princess Chun'an being so close to Yan, and she can't get angry with Princess Chun'an, so she is just using her status as an elder to bully Yan."
"She was just like that when she was young, always thinking about herself. No wonder she hasn't gotten along well with the eldest son over the years, and has only driven him further away from her. I heard that Duke Dingguo has been living in the princess's mansion with Princess Chun'an. Don't people outside laugh at her? Don't they say that because she doesn't like Princess Chun'an as a daughter-in-law, she's forced her son to not want to stay in the mansion anymore?"
Nanny Sun has served the old lady for most of her life, so how could she not know what the old lady is thinking.
She began to speak, "The Emperor is now in good health. As long as he is here, no matter what Madam Yin has in mind, she must get Princess Chun'an's approval. Although Princess Chun'an's belly has not moved, it is not something that Madam Yin, as her mother-in-law, can control. Our eldest daughter is very sensible. At least she wouldn't have any thoughts after just one or two years of marriage. Although the eldest daughter and the second wife have their own little thoughts, they are also very thoughtful. When the time comes, you, Madam, can give them a few more suggestions to avoid discord between the eldest daughter and Princess Chun'an. The marriage between the two families is a happy event, and it is not based on adoption or not. Who knows, Princess Chun'an may be pregnant in the next six months?"
Madam Dou nodded, and just at this moment He and the eldest daughter Lu Danyan came over.
He was a little disappointed to hear that Lu Bingzhi would bring Cui Lingyan to the palace to pay respects to the Empress Dowager tomorrow, but she also knew that the Crown Prince's decision could not be easily changed, so she just smiled and said, "The Crown Prince hasn't been to the palace to pay respects to the Empress Dowager for some time. Naturally, it is important for him to be filial to his elders."
Despite this, He was surprised that Lu Bingzhi was so protective of his wife, Cui Lingyan. She wasn't stupid; how could she not see that this was an impeccable excuse? She was simply surprised that Lu Bingzhi would protect Cui even in such a small matter? It was truly unexpected.
He and Lu Danyan chatted with the old lady for a while, and then stayed in Qingdeyuan to have lunch with the old lady at noon.
The old lady knew that Lu Danyan was going to the Duke Dingguo's Mansion the next day, so she asked someone to open her private vault to find some valuable jewelry for Lu Danyan, and also asked someone to send two hairpins to Cui Lingyan.
Seeing that the old lady always thought about Cui Lingyan, He felt that Cui was really lucky.
Thinking of Cen and Lu Danruo who were still living in the Cen family, she shook her head in her heart. If Cui Lingyan couldn't get along with anyone in the mansion, it would only be her mother-in-law and sister-in-law.
In the final analysis, it was Cen and Lu Danruo who were not satisfied. One wanted to act like a mother-in-law, and the other wanted Cui Lingyan, her sister-in-law, to be humble and give in to her sister-in-law.
There are quite a few daughters-in-law like this in the wealthy and powerful families, but Cui is not someone who can be manipulated. Lu Bingzhi protects her so much, and the old lady loves her granddaughter-in-law because of her love for her. Therefore, Cen and Lu Danruo failed to see the situation clearly, and ended up in this situation.
He secretly thought that she must not offend Cui in the future. Although the old lady was the most influential person in the Weiguo Mansion, in fact, the most honorable person in the mansion was the prince Lu Bingzhi.
After leaving Qingde Courtyard, He Shi warned Lu Danyan, "Look at how the Crown Prince protects your cousin's wife. Even if you marry into the Duke Dingguo's Mansion in the future, you must get along well with your cousin's wife. Don't think that your grandmother is being nice to your cousin's wife and have any complaints in your heart."
Lu Danyan remembered that her grandmother had just sent jewelry to her sister-in-law. She smiled and walked forward with He's arm in arm, saying, "Am I that short-sighted? Grandmother's own things can be given to us granddaughters, so why can't they be given to my cousin's wife, my granddaughter-in-law? Where did this rule come from? I'm not the second sister. I'm offending people by getting so hung up on these trivial matters. Besides, my cousin's wife is quite easy to get along with. She's not afraid of displeasing my eldest aunt by interacting with our second branch. Sometimes I envy her such boldness."
Hearing her daughter say this, He smiled and said, "She didn't have a good life before she got married. After she got married, perhaps she and the prince were destined to be together, so she lived a smooth and comfortable life. Without the prince as her husband to protect her, you could be so comfortable as your cousin's sister-in-law in the Duke of Weiguo's Mansion, and you wouldn't be afraid of offending your eldest aunt, who is her mother-in-law, and your second sister, who is her sister-in-law. Now it is your eldest aunt and your second sister who have fallen on hard times. They are too embarrassed to live in the Duke of Wei's Mansion and have to go back to the Cen family. In fact, your eldest aunt and your second sister think they have such great face. How can a woman go back to her parents' home to live permanently after getting married? Her husband's family is a real home. If it were me, I would definitely not ruin the good cards I got. It was obviously such a honor to marry your uncle as his second wife, but she was so greedy and unsatisfied that she ended up in such a mess now."
The two of them went to their residence while talking.
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