Chapter 296 The Top Scholar 3
However, the original owner had never used these two bodyguards on his own initiative before.
They were only protecting the original owner from a distance.
"Prepare water, I wish to take a bath."
Soon, a group of maids filed in. Ning Yan didn't have to do anything; she was pampered perfectly. After taking a bath, she was wrapped in a towel, and palace maids specially trained in the palace gave her skin care, massage, foot massage, and nail care. Ning Yan was so comfortable that she couldn't feel better!
After doing all that, Ning Yan went to bed to rest.
I had a good night's sleep.
The next day, Pei Chengyuan went to work after breakfast. Ning Yan ignored him and, after breakfast, summoned the commander of the guards from the princess's residence.
Wu Meng, the third young master of the Duke of Liguo's mansion.
Because he was an illegitimate son, he was not favored by the Duke and his wife.
He found himself a job as a bodyguard, and because of his good performance, he became the commander of Princess Rouyuan's bodyguards.
After the princes and princesses of the Xia Kingdom established their residences, they would be equipped with a certain number of guards.
The princess was originally supposed to be accompanied by three hundred elites.
But who made Rouyuan the favorite?
The emperor gave her a team of a thousand elite men.
They also gave her a rich fiefdom, enough to support even if she had several times more guards.
In addition, the Crown Prince also gave his younger sister many prime shops in the capital and estates in the suburbs, so Rouyuan was very wealthy.
Of course, now it all benefits Ning Yan.
Ning Yan looked at the man who didn't have a strong presence in the original owner's memories.
Perhaps because of his martial arts training, Wu Meng is very strong!
But he was strong without being exaggerated, and his features were quite pleasing to the eye. He had a resolute gaze, a high nose bridge, and thin but well-shaped lips. He looked tough with an air of unapproachable nobility.
Even if he was an illegitimate son, it was clear that he had received a good education.
"How old is Commander Wu this year? Is he married?"
Wu Meng was surprised for a moment, but still answered truthfully, "Twenty-four years old, not yet."
The mistress of the house was afraid that he would marry a woman from a high-ranking family who would put her son at a disadvantage, and his father disagreed that marrying a woman from a humble family would not benefit the Duke's mansion, so his marriage was delayed.
"Do you have someone you like?"
Wu Meng shook his head, "No!"
Because he was born out of wedlock, his aunt often told him to earn his own future. So, he diligently studied martial arts and read the Four Books and Five Classics from a young age. However, his stepmother did not want him to surpass his elder brother in reputation and did not agree to him taking the imperial examinations. He had no choice but to join the army.
The Duke of Liguo's family was at least granted titles based on military merit, so it would be easier for him to take this path.
Unfortunately, his stepmother was afraid that if he really made military achievements, he would be more successful than his elder brother, so she refused to let him go to the frontier to join the army.
He had no choice but to compromise in order to make his aunt's life easier.
Later, after many twists and turns, he became the princess's commander of guards.
In a way, he should thank the princess, because ever since he entered the princess's residence, his stepmother has dared not mistreat his concubine.
He lived in constant fear, how could he possibly have the time or inclination to think about personal matters?
Although he was called the commander of the guards, the commander of the guards in the princess's residence was only a sixth-rank military officer with no hope of promotion.
No lady of a respectable family with even a little ambition would ever consider a bastard son with no future.
But was the princess asking him these questions to arrange a marriage for him?
He couldn't help but purse his lips, secretly glancing at the princess.
But he found that she was looking him up and down with the kind of eyes that appraised goods, as if she could sell him by weight at any moment.
Wu Meng quickly looked away, a fleeting sense of disappointment crossing his mind.
"I want to send you to the military camp. Do you dare to go?"
Wu Meng was startled. He straightened his back and raised his head, looking directly into Ning Yan's eyes. "Is the princess truly telling the truth?"
Ning Yan: "Could it be that I came here specifically to joke with you?"
Wu Meng knelt down at the princess's feet with a thud. "This humble servant dares! This humble servant is willing! Please, Your Highness, help me!"
"Alright, I will take care of everything for you. I will be able to send you away in the next few days. Go back and prepare."
...
In the evening, before returning to his residence, Pei Chengyuan made a special trip to Jin Yu Man Tang and spent a fortune to buy a gold hairpin inlaid with rubies and butterflies. After returning to his residence, he went to the main courtyard and presented the hairpin to Ning Yan as if it were a treasure.
"Princess, this is something I specially picked out from Jin Yu Man Tang. Do you like it?"
He had inquired before entering the palace and learned that the princess had not gone out today, so his gift would definitely please her.
Ning Yan opened the box, took out the gold hairpin, glanced at it, and after a moment uttered, "It's alright." She then casually put the hairpin back in the box without even looking at it a second time.
Pei Chengyuan, who was eagerly awaiting the princess's praise, suddenly froze.
how so?
Why would the princess react this way?
Didn't he used to happily accept whatever princess gave him?
"Doesn't the princess like it?"
"How much silver did you spend to buy it?"
"Two hundred taels."
Ning Yan's main idea is to create something that makes others feel good. When someone asks her, she will say directly, "The butterfly is blue, the gemstone is red, and then there is gold on the hairpin. This color scheme is not up to standard. The ruby is only the size of a grain of rice or a small grain of rice. It looks like scraps."
The hairpin was made with ordinary craftsmanship and was not exquisite at all. Only a place like Jin Yu Man Tang could sell it for such a high price; elsewhere, no one would want it for a hundred taels of silver.
Pei Chengyuan's expression was somewhat unpleasant, because he had spent one hundred taels of silver to buy this hairpin. It wasn't that he didn't want to buy a better one, but rather that he felt it was completely unnecessary.
In the past, he would give away things like candied hawthorn, roast duck, or roast chicken. How much money could that cost?
He thought the princess would be pleasantly surprised to receive a gift of two hundred taels of silver!
"Then, I'll buy something nice for the princess next time."
Ning Yan hummed in agreement. "Then I'll be waiting. Next time, my consort, don't disappoint me."
No, this is very wrong!
The princess never treated him like this before!
Something must be wrong!
He regretted giving away the only jeweled gold hairpin in the Golden Jade Hall, worth a thousand taels of silver.
What good things hasn't the princess seen? Why would she be interested in something that isn't unique?
That night, Pei Chengyuan once again humbled himself before daring to utter even a simple "hmm," and he had to carefully observe the princess's expression, fearing that she might be displeased in the slightest.
Ning Yan didn't show it on her face, but in her heart she felt sorry for the original owner. She clearly had a high and mighty status, loved by her father and mother, and doted on by her crown prince brother. But after getting married, she had to be subservient to a mere consort and remained a virgin until her death.
In her opinion, one should act according to one's status. As a princess, she should be high and mighty and act like one. Otherwise, those scumbags will think she is easy to talk to and will want to climb on her head to shit and piss.
However, it can't be entirely blamed on her!
The main problem is that Pei Chengyuan is a man who hides his true feelings too well. Everyone, both inside and outside the mansion, believes that he is deeply in love with the princess. The original owner of this body lived in his gentle trap until her death.
That night, Pei Chengyuan was naturally sent to the study by Ning Yan to stay. Wasn't he supposed to remain chaste for someone?
Thank you so much, Big Eyes, for the 1500 Qidian Coins!
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