Yun Qianmeng was startled when she heard the Queen Mother's suggestion. She turned her gaze to the smiling Concubine Yuan De again, then bowed gracefully and said softly, "Your Highness greets the Queen Mother!"
"Get up!" The voice above her head was a little cold. Before Yun Qianmeng could stand firmly, Concubine Yuan De spoke again, "Sister, this girl is really good-looking. With such a face, she surpasses us!"
What was different from her tone was that Concubine Yuan De’s second sentence was actually praising Yun Qianmeng!
Yun Qianmeng's half-closed face immediately showed panic, and she quickly responded, "Thank you, Her Majesty, for the compliment. I am but an ordinary person, how can I be compared with the ladies present here!"
When Concubine Yuan De heard Yun Qianmeng's self-deprecating words, she did not show any joy. She just picked up the teacup and took a sip before saying lightly, "Miss Yun, why are you so modest? You are not like the person who refused the marriage proposal!"
From what Concubine Yuan De meant, it was clear that the entire blame for Prince Chen's refusal of marriage was placed on Yun Qianmeng!
Hearing her gentle questioning of Yun Qianmeng, the Queen Mother's smile remained the same, but she pulled Yun Qianmeng away from Concubine Yuan De and said with a smile, "It was you who clamored to see Meng'er. Now that she has seen him, you are starting to embarrass my child again! You and Prince Chen were very unhappy about the marriage that I and the late Emperor arranged for Prince Chen. Now that you are satisfied, you are turning the tables on me. Tell me, aren't you making things difficult for me?"
Faced with Concubine Yuan De's deliberate embarrassment, the Queen Mother fought back neither harshly nor softly. She neither let Concubine Yuan De lose face nor prevented her from making trouble by using the cancellation of the engagement!
However, Concubine Yuan De was slightly provoked by the Empress Dowager, especially in front of Yun Qianmeng and the Queen, two younger generations, so she was a little unhappy. She did not respond to the Empress Dowager's words, but instead examined Yun Qianmeng again!
Today, Yun Qianmeng was wearing a lake-colored long skirt with delicate golden piping and cloud embroidery, which made her look noble and elegant!
Although Yun Qianmeng did not speak at this time, she stood quietly beside the empress dowager. She still smiled appropriately in response to her deliberate provocation. The calmness in her eyes revealed an impressive self-confidence and composure, which made Concubine Yuan De feel a little surprised!
Originally, the information collected by the spies on Yun Qianmeng only showed that this daughter of the prime minister was timid and cowardly. Even the cancellation of the engagement in the Golden Palace not long ago was classified as a bad decision made because she could not bear the humiliation!
But when Concubine Yuan De saw Yun Qianmeng with her own eyes today, she immediately overturned her previous conclusion and became suspicious of the Queen Mother's actions...
The palace was completely silent, with only the crisp sound of teacups and tea bowl lids gently colliding...
At this moment, a pink figure rushed in from the outer hall, accompanied by the palace maid's gentle cry of "Little Princess, be careful not to fall!"
Before everyone could react, they saw the little pink figure rush into the Queen's arms, saying in a soft voice, "Mother, Yao'er wants you to play with Yao'er!"
The queen, who had been silent until then, now had a doting smile in her eyes. She supported the little princess and said gently, "Yao'er, how can you be so rude? Pay your respects to the elders!"
Princess Yao was the apple of Emperor Yugan's eye, born from the empress's belly, and of noble status. However, after hearing the empress's reminder, she bowed to everyone reluctantly!
When everyone saw her little beauty imitating adults to bow, and seeing that she was only four years old, they all smiled and asked the palace maids to help her up!
However, when Princess Yao saw Yun Qianmeng, confusion flickered in her clear eyes. Then she smiled and threw herself on Yun Qianmeng, clinging to her and shouting, "Mother, Yao'er likes you!" As she said that, she took Yun Qianmeng's hand and walked out of the palace!
As soon as these words came out, everyone burst into laughter. The Queen Mother didn't want Concubine Yuan De to embarrass Yun Qianmeng again, so she waved her hand and let her go. She instructed Princess Yao's wet nurse, "Bring more people to accompany the princess and Miss Yun. They can only play near the Imperial Garden and serve them carefully!"
Yun Qianmeng had no other choice, and not wanting to get entangled with Concubine Yuan De, who disliked her, she followed Princess Yao's lead and walked out of the Empress Dowager's palace...
It was afternoon now. Although it was winter, the pale yellow sunlight shining on my body was unusually warm!
Seeing that she had finally found someone to play with, Princess Yao was extremely excited. She stumbled along while dragging Yun Qianmeng along, scaring the palace maids and eunuchs behind her so much that they kept whispering warnings...
Yun Qianmeng looked down and saw that she was out of breath from running, so she gently pulled her back and then squatted down to tidy up her hair that was messed up by the wind. She said softly, "Princess, Qianmeng wants to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Imperial Garden. Please walk slower!"
The little princess felt her cheek being gently brushed, and just like her mother, she smiled for a moment. Seeing that Yun Qianmeng was even more beautiful than when she looked up at her just now, her two little arms unconsciously wrapped around Yun Qianmeng's neck. She nodded seriously and replied tenderly, "Okay!"
Seeing how obedient she was and how delicate she was, Yun Qianmeng smiled slightly and opened his arms to hug her!
The palace maids behind them were filled with surprise when they saw that the little princess, who usually didn't like to get close to others, actually let Yun Qianmeng hold her obediently. Their eyes even revealed their curiosity about Yun Qianmeng...
"Sister, that's the octagonal pavilion!" The little princess put one hand on Yun Qianmeng's shoulder, and pointed forward with the other chubby little hand, explaining the scenery of the imperial garden to Yun Qianmeng!
Yun Qianmeng followed the direction of the small hand and discovered that a silver-haired man in a silver brocade robe was sitting in the octagonal pavilion in the distance. However, the man had his back to them, so his face could not be seen...
"Sister, that's Uncle Rong!" Although the little princess was young, she was very good at reading people's expressions. Seeing some confusion in Yun Qianmeng's eyes, she quickly spoke in a flattering manner!
As soon as she heard this, some scattered memories surfaced in Yun Qianmeng's mind. This silver-haired boy must be the eldest grandson of the Rong family, the richest family in Western Chu!
At this moment, the person in the pavilion seemed to notice Yun Qianmeng's gaze and turned around. The two looked at each other, but Yun Qianmeng did not dodge. She just nodded politely to Young Master Rong and continued walking forward with Princess Yao in her arms...
But after walking a few steps, he saw King Chen standing quietly at the corner of the corridor...
Princess Yao in Yun Qianmeng's arms suddenly buried her head in her shoulders. Yun Qianmeng had no choice but to hold Princess Yao in her arms and kneel down to salute, "Your servant greets Prince Chen!"
Today, Prince Chen was dressed in a jet-black brocade robe and a cloak of the same color. His handsome face was gloomy. Not to mention the little princess, even adults would feel afraid when they saw him!
But Yun Qianmeng's voice was calm and steady. Especially since Prince Chen had seen her and Rong Yunhe gazing at each other from afar, he felt a flicker of displeasure in his heart. He immediately said in a cold voice, "It seems that Miss Yun has found a high-ranking official."
Hearing this, Princess Yao's body stiffened slightly. Yun Qianmeng raised her hand and patted her on the back. Then she raised her eyes to meet Prince Chen's cold eyes and said with a faint smile, "Your Highness, thank you for your trouble. I will take my leave!"
After saying this, he ignored King Chen's eyes that were about to spit fire, and led everyone past him and walked straight forward...
But Prince Chen was unwilling to give up. Just as he was about to block Yun Qianmeng's way, a royal blue figure quietly came in front of everyone. "Little Princess, so you are here!"
The person who came was Chu Feiyang. He was smiling, which formed a sharp contrast with the gloomy expression of King Chen. When the little princess heard his voice, she raised her head and opened her arms for Chu Feiyang to hug her!
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－－
Entering the palace wasn't easy, but strolling through the Imperial Gardens was even harder. Suddenly, I encountered three...
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