Chapter 40 Full of Fallacies
"Auntie, please give me the things. My name is Hu Si, and I am a commander under Lord Xue."
"Thank you, Commander Hu." Granny Yu breathed a sigh of relief.
Ordinary people are still nervous when dealing with the Imperial City Guard.
Seeing that Granny Yu had left, Hu Si gave one of his men a wink: "Follow her and check her identity."
The subordinate obeyed and left, returning to report: "That woman is indeed from the Yongqing Marquis's residence, surnamed Yu, and is currently in charge of instructing Miss Qiu Liu..."
Hu Si then took the things given to him by Granny Yu and went to see Xue Han.
"What is it?" Xue Han asked, putting down the case file.
Hu Si held up the box in his hand, beaming, "Sir, red bean cake!"
Xue Han glanced at him: "You opened it and looked at it?"
"No, it's the red bean cake—oops, it was sent to you by Miss Qiu Liu through her maid, to thank you for your help."
Xue Han took the box and opened it.
"Oh, you really sent red bean cakes again! Sir, could you give me a few pieces? I didn't get enough last time."
Xue Han reached out and pushed away Hu Si's large face, which was almost touching the box: "Get out."
"Fine, I'll go then," Hu Si said, quickly grabbing two pastries and running off.
Xue Han naturally wouldn't really care. His gaze swept over the pastries and landed on the two porcelain vases beside him.
Renxintang's top-grade wound medicine.
The boy reached out and took the porcelain bottle in his hand, a smile appearing in his eyes.
...
The old lady took Qiuheng to the Prince's mansion for a banquet, and on the way she kept reminding her: "Be quiet when you see the Princess Consort, and don't make any random remarks."
"Grandmother, don't worry. I met the Princess Consort privately at the Princess Jiayi's birthday banquet."
"What did the Princess Consort say to you?" The old lady was stunned.
That brat is so tight-lipped! She's only bringing up the fact that she met the Princess Consort alone now!
Qiu Heng thought for a moment and said, "The princess praised me for being beautiful and having a kind and gentle heart."
The old lady paused for a moment, then reiterated, "Be sure to speak as little as possible when you see the Princess Consort."
Which well-bred young lady would take a compliment about her looks so seriously!
Ultimately, it all comes down to this girl being orphaned at a young age and lacking proper upbringing.
When the grandfather and grandson arrived at the Prince's Mansion, they were led to the banquet hall by the steward who had been waiting there.
Ice basins were placed at the four corners of the flower hall, and maids stood by gently waving fans, dispelling the stuffiness of the carriage ride.
The old lady led Qiuheng in bowing and said, "Greetings, Princess Consort."
"Madam, there's no need for such formalities."
Princess Kang politely invited the old lady to take a seat, accompanied by her daughter, Princess Jiayi.
After saving her brother, Princess Jiayi felt even closer to Qiuheng: "Aheng, have you been resting well these past two days? Were you scared?"
"I wasn't scared. I grew up in the countryside, so I'm brave..."
Glancing at the two laughing and talking, Princess Consort Kang smiled at the old lady and said, "I've always heard Jiayi say that she and Miss Qiu get along very well. It seems they are indeed very close. No wonder Miss Qiu did such a good deed..."
The old lady listened with a smile, but she understood the other meaning.
The Princess Consort is attributing Sixth Sister's act of saving the Prince's heir to the friendship between Sixth Sister and Princess Jiayi, fearing that Sixth Sister and the Prince's heir might become involved.
It seems the Princess Consort is afraid that the Earl's Mansion will take advantage of the situation and set its sights on the position of the Crown Prince's wife.
That's understandable.
I can understand, but I'm still annoyed.
But what can she do if she's unhappy? At her age, she already knows that the gratitude of those in power is often a haughty and condescending attitude.
Qiu Heng stopped her conversation with Princess Jiayi and smiled at Princess Kang: "I pushed Prince Ling away not because of my friendship with the princess, but just a subconscious reaction. If it had been someone else instead of Prince Ling, I would have done the same."
The old lady's smile faltered.
How could this girl directly contradict the Princess Consort?
Qiu Heng smiled.
It makes no sense that she saved her son and then was criticized by the mother. She would have saved any Tom, Dick, or Harry.
The Princess of Jiayi clapped her hands: "Aheng, you are truly kind-hearted."
She showed kindness not because of the other person's status, but solely because of her kind heart. With such character, it's no wonder that Ah Heng could associate with incense; the quality of incense reflects the quality of a person.
Princess Consort Kang smiled and said, "Miss Qiu is a person of noble character, which is truly admirable."
Qiu Heng smiled and said, "You flatter me, Princess Consort."
At this moment, Ling Yun walked in, greeted the old lady, and solemnly thanked Qiu Heng.
Qiu Heng curtsied in return: "The Princess Consort has already given me many gifts, all of which I like. Prince Ling need not keep them to himself."
"I'm glad you like it. But those are all external things, and they can't compare to the kindness you showed me in saving my life."
The cry of "Aheng" startled not only Princess Kang but also the old lady.
Ling Yun, with a frank expression, said to Princess Consort Kang, "Mother, I will take my leave now."
Princess Kang nodded with a complicated expression.
After the old lady and Qiu Heng left the banquet, Princess Kang immediately turned cold: "What did Sixth Miss Qiu mean by those words? Did she sense my concerns and deliberately embarrass me?"
Beside her was Princess Consort Kang's confidante, known as Aunt Mei, who advised, "Don't be angry. That Miss Qiu comes from the countryside and hasn't received much education. She's probably just straightforward and says whatever comes to mind."
Princess Consort Kang sneered, "So, she really is of noble character, and anyone would have saved her?"
What a joke!
If Yun'er were not the heir of a prince—
If Yun'er did not possess celestial beauty—
Princess Consort Kang grew increasingly angry.
And what was Yun'er thinking, calling her "Aheng" in front of her and the old lady?
Could it be that he has really fallen for that girl?
"Go and invite the Crown Prince."
Before long, Lingyun arrived. Princess Consort Kang dismissed the servants and said, "Our Prince's Mansion and the Yongqing Earl's Mansion have very little contact. Yun'er, it's too intimate for you to call Qiu Liu Miss 'Aheng'. It would be bad if it caused any misunderstandings."
Ling Yun smiled: "We did not have much contact before, but now that Aheng has saved my son, I think our two families should be closer."
"Then we should also consider the differences between men and women—"
Ling Yun's expression turned serious: "If Aheng had been mindful of the difference between men and women at that time, Mother Consort would probably have seen her son's corpse."
The princess's face paled.
No one dared to guarantee that if Miss Qiu could survive the spies, the Prince's heir would certainly be able to as well.
As a mother, she dares not even think about the slightest possibility of her children suffering any harm.
"Yun'er, tell your mother what you really think of Miss Qiu Liu?"
She didn't want her outstanding son to have an affair with a country girl.
"My son is grateful to her and treats her like Jia Yi."
Princess Kang's heart skipped a beat: "You treat her like a younger sister?"
Ling Yun chuckled: "When my son met Aheng, she was only eleven years old, so he naturally treated her like a younger sister."
So please treat Aheng kindly and make her life in the capital easier.
With the threat of having a country girl as her daughter-in-law gone, Princess Kang felt relieved and put away her pickiness and harshness: "Mother knows, you may go."
On the way back to the Yongqing Marquis's residence, the old lady lectured Qiuheng: "You ignored your grandmother's words again and even contradicted the Princess Consort."
Qiu Heng said confidently, "That Princess Consort's words made me uncomfortable. How come I saved her son, but she treated me like a poor relative who came to beg for money, as if I was afraid to borrow money from her?"
That's right!
The old lady almost clapped her hands in agreement, but she remained rational: "You brat, what does it matter if you're unhappy? Aren't you afraid that the Princess Consort will be unhappy with what you said?"
"Whether the Princess Consort is happy or not doesn't really matter. Now the whole capital knows that our granddaughter is taking the Prince Ling hostage. If the Earl's Mansion ever needs anything from the Prince's Mansion in the future, they will help for the sake of their reputation, as long as it's not too much. But if the request is too much, the Prince's Mansion won't help just because the Princess Consort is happy today."
The gratitude wasn't genuine; it was just returning a favor. Whether the other person felt happy or not made no difference.
"You're spouting nonsense," the old lady scolded, though her tone softened involuntarily.
Qiu Heng took out a pastry from her purse and casually asked, "Grandmother, would you like some pastries? They were made by the people in my courtyard."
"Try it." Under Qiu Heng's slightly surprised gaze, the old lady took the red bean cake and put it in her mouth, frowning deeply.
That brat has such delicious snacks, how come you've never thought of giving them to her!
"Who made this dessert?" the old lady couldn't help but ask after finishing a piece of red bean cake.
Qiu Heng finished the last bite, wiped her mouth, and said, "Fang Zhou made this. I like her desserts."
Old lady: !
Who wouldn't love such delicious snacks? This heartless brat has been keeping them all to herself all this time!
The old lady was pondering how to remind her granddaughter to be more filial to her in the future when the carriage suddenly came to an abrupt stop.
What's wrong now?
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