Yuan Qi thought enriching the recipes was a good option: "Great! You'll be sure to reward me then. Go ahead and get busy."
After sending Chef Liu away, Yuan Qi served food to Daoist Guangcheng: "Master, please try it. Our chef does a pretty good job."
In the afternoon, Yuan Qi returned to Peony Residence.
Green Bamboo had already arranged for hot water to be prepared for Yuan Qi's bath.
While serving Yuan Qi his bath, she recounted the events that had transpired in the manor over the past two days.
"Yesterday, the Crown Prince came to request a wedding date, setting the auspicious day as the eighth day of the twelfth month. The Fourth Miss was overjoyed."
Yuan Qi had no expression. She knew that no matter how good she was to the Jiang family or Xiangli Mingzhu, they didn't trust her. It was one thing that they didn't ask her to do something as important as setting an auspicious wedding date, but no one even told her about something as important as setting the date. Did they think she would take the initiative to do something and steal the Grand Preceptor's job?
She sneered, "This is a good thing. Jiang Bailu is finally getting married. Not everyone can be the Crown Princess. She is a lucky person."
Green Bamboo knew that Yuan Qi was upset. After all, everyone in the Jiang family knew about the Seventh Miss's abilities, and the Madam hadn't even asked her to do something as trivial as choosing auspicious dates and feng shui. Anyone would feel uncomfortable in that situation.
“Miss, please don’t mind. With the Crown Prince around, I’m afraid the Madam can’t make decisions on some matters.”
Yuan Qi sighed softly, "I know you don't need to comfort me. If I step forward, what will become of the Imperial Preceptor's reputation?"
Green Bamboo was at a loss for words.
So much had happened in just two days, but Yuan Qi didn't seem to care much.
After taking a bath, Yuan Qi hummed comfortably. Green Bamboo was drying her hair when Jiang Jiulu came in with a worried look on her face.
Yuan Qi saw her worried face in the bronze mirror and jokingly asked, "The Jiang family's young lady, whom everyone envies, still has something to worry about? Who bullied you?"
Jiang Jiulu didn't want the maid to know what she was going to say, so she took the cotton towel from Lvzhu's hand and said, "You can go now. I have something to say to Seventh Sister."
Green Bamboo bowed and withdrew, closing the door behind him.
Jiang Jiulu looked extremely distressed, and her actions of drying her hair were half-hearted and perfunctory.
Yuan Qi simply snatched the cotton towel from her hand and started wiping himself: "Tell me, what happened?"
She pointed to the seat next to her and told her to sit down.
Jiang Jiulu slowly sat down, her face full of worry: "Seventh sister, you can read faces and tell fortunes, who do you think my future husband will be? Will it be His Highness the Crown Prince?"
Yuan Qi paused in his hair-drying motion, looking at her with a strange expression: "How could you think like that? Isn't His Highness the Crown Prince Jiang Bailu's husband? How could you covet someone else's husband?"
Jiang Jiulu hurriedly accepted: "Seventh Sister, don't misunderstand. That's not what I meant. His Highness the Crown Prince and Fourth Sister's marriage was arranged long ago. Besides, Fourth Sister is the legitimate daughter. How could I dare to compete with Fourth Sister for someone else's man?"
Yuan Qi felt that Jiang Jiulu was a bit too eager to get married: "You're still young, only fourteen years old, there's no rush to get married."
Jiang Jiulu was in a difficult position: "It's like this, there's an opportunity right now for me to marry His Highness the Crown Prince, could you please take a look?"
Yuan Qi was quite surprised, but he quickly realized: "You mean, Jiang Bailu needs a concubine to marry the Crown Prince?"
Jiang Jiulu nodded somewhat embarrassedly: "That's right. My aunt said that a woman should marry up. For a family like ours, the only options for marrying up are the Xiangli family, the Feng family, the Bai family, or even the royal family. Do you think I should marry the Crown Prince?"
Yuan Qi smiled helplessly: "I told you you're being too anxious, but you still don't agree. Look at you, you're only fourteen, and you're already worrying about this and that. Didn't I tell you? Your marriage prospects are indeed a bit bumpy. If you can postpone the marriage proposal, you'll meet a suitable husband. His Highness the Crown Prince is not suitable for you, so give up on him."
Jiang Jiulu, still unwilling to give up, asked, "Why isn't it suitable? Can you explain it to me in detail?"
Yuan Qi put down the cotton towel and began to seriously advise, "You are too soft-hearted. What kind of place is the Eastern Palace? Do you know how many beauties surround His Highness the Crown Prince? Each of those beauties is shrewd and cunning. You can't compete with them. Besides, His Highness the Crown Prince isn't interested in you and won't protect you. If you go there, you'll die in less than half a year."
“There are so many good men in the world, and you are of noble birth, a young lady of the Jiang family. We are meant to be wives, not concubines. Don’t envy Jiang Bailu. The Crown Prince married her not because he loved her, not because he liked her, but simply because she was a young lady of the Jiang family.”
Jiang Jiulu nodded: "I know that, but I just think it's a pity to give up this opportunity."
“It’s not a pity at all. His Highness the Crown Prince is not your destined partner. Wait patiently for two years, and the person who belongs to you will come to you on their own. You don’t need to bother looking for them. Do you understand?” Yuan Qi patiently advised her a lot.
Jiang Jiulu listened attentively the whole time, and later she felt much better: "My aunt also advised me, not wanting me to become someone's concubine. She said that she had been a concubine for so many years, and was always being suppressed by others, which was a very unpleasant feeling. Our Jiang family is one of the four great families, and there are plenty of good young men coming to our door to ask for our hand in marriage."
She held Yuan Qi's hand and said, "Although you are young, I always feel that you know a lot and have experienced a lot. You see things more clearly than I do. I really made the right choice in finding you."
The next day, while Yuan Qi was talking with his master, He Xiang, the head maid of Xiang Li Mingzhu, came to the guest room: "Seventh Miss, Madam wants to see you."
Guangcheng Daojun snorted, clearly displeased: "Don't agree to anything once you're there."
Yuan Qi hummed in agreement: "I know, but how old am I? Why would I agree to something like this?"
He Xiang overheard their conversation and secretly admired them. As expected of someone from the Taoist sect, they had already arrived before she even said what it was about.
Yuan Qi got up and went to the front hall with He Xiang. Xiang Li Mingzhu was talking to a palace maid.
The old woman was around fifty years old, dressed in a green palace gown, with a cup of tea beside her and a smile on her face, looking very kind.
On the other side of the table, Xiangli Mingzhu had a cup of tea and a list beside her. She smiled very smoothly and politely.
When the palace maid saw Yuan Qi, she praised her, saying, "Everyone says that the Seventh Miss has a very clever mind, and I think her appearance is also top-notch. She is a perfect match for His Highness the Crown Prince."
Yuan Qi bowed to Xiangli Mingzhu according to the rules.
Xiangli Mingzhu introduced, "This is Granny Du from the palace, the head nanny who serves Consort Feng. She watched His Highness the Crown Prince grow up."
The current empress has no legitimate son; Crown Prince Xiao Yi is the son of Consort Feng.
Yuan Qi spoke coldly, his attitude very perfunctory, even showing some dislike: "Hello, Granny Du."
Du Mama was very dissatisfied with Yuan Qi's cold attitude, but both Consort Feng and the Crown Prince had their eyes on Yuan Qi as a concubine, believing that if Yuan Qi married into the Eastern Palace, the Eastern Palace would be even more powerful.
She tolerated Yuan Qi's terrible attitude, deciding to deal with him properly once she entered the Eastern Palace.
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