His daughter was suddenly granted the title of Princess Mingxiu and was betrothed to the Crown Prince. His status in the court rose accordingly, and those who used to look down on him began to fawn over him and try to please him.
Look at him now, his daughter has prepared a chrysanthemum appreciation banquet, and not only has the Princess of Nanqing come, but even Princess Yongchang has come specially. Marquis Dingguo is extremely proud; his daughter is truly remarkable.
Upon entering the mansion, Lady Dingguo and Ren Nuanyun led Qu Qingxi and Princess Yongchang inside. Since the Marquis of Dingguo was an outsider, it was somewhat inconvenient for him, so he quickly left.
Almost everyone had arrived. Since Qu Qingxi and Princess Yongchang were the highest-ranking among them, they were given the seats of honor. The other noble ladies from the mansion sat down according to the rules.
“A few days ago, my father acquired several rare chrysanthemums, so he specially held a small chrysanthemum appreciation banquet and invited everyone to come and admire them. Some food has been prepared here, please rest for a while, and then Nuanyun will lead everyone over to admire the chrysanthemums.” Ren Nuanyun stood up, looking at the noble ladies present with a smile in her eyes, appearing virtuous and generous.
Others looked at Ren Nuanyun with either envy or jealousy. Today, Ren Nuanyun was wearing a pale yellow dress and a golden hair ornament in her hair, which made her look elegant without being gaudy.
A concubine's daughter from the waning power of the Marquis of Dingguo's mansion managed to win the favor of the Crown Prince, who was willing to ask the Emperor to grant her a marriage decree and make her the Crown Princess. Not only that, but in order to match her status with the Crown Prince, he even made an exception and bestowed upon her the title of Princess Mingxiu, which was a great honor and face for her.
People started chatting in twos and threes. Ren Nuanyun gave a look to the person behind her, and soon a maid brought tea to each table.
Looking at the hot tea placed in front of her, Qu Qingxi lowered her eyes. She was sitting with Princess Yongchang, and she noticed that the maid who came to pour tea poured the same tea for her and Princess Yongchang, and the cups were also the same, which seemed quite normal.
Princess Yongchang is the Crown Prince's younger sister, so Ren Nuanyun would not harm her.
The tea itself wouldn't be tampered with, but the cup might be. If something were to be tampered with, Ren Nuanyun could very well have put something in her cup.
Out of caution, Qu Qingxi did not drink tea, but simply chatted with Yongchang while smiling.
Yongchang was not on guard. He took a sip of tea and then looked at Qu Qingxi.
"Aunt, how is Uncle's health lately? I heard a few days ago that you and Uncle encountered assassins on your way back to the manor, and Uncle was even injured?" Yongchang asked worriedly.
When she was a child, He Liufeng treated her and the Crown Prince very well, and Yongchang always admired this powerful imperial uncle.
"It's alright, Your Highness is much better now, and your wounds are almost healed." Qu Qingxi smiled gently.
"That's good, but it's strange. The people from the Jingzhao Prefecture have been investigating for so long, but they still haven't found out the identity of the assassin from that night." Yongchang looked puzzled.
"Yes, I don't know if those assassins were too skilled, or if the people in charge of the capital city didn't investigate properly." Qu Qingxi shook her head helplessly.
"Hmph, it must be that the people in charge of the Jingzhao Prefecture didn't investigate properly. In my opinion, I should ask Father to investigate the Jingzhao Prefecture thoroughly. Those people are getting lazier and lazier."
Several major thefts have occurred in the capital, and after so long, there's still no clue. "Yongchang complained under his breath, clearly dissatisfied.
Princess Yongchang was referring to the thefts of the Dingguo Marquis's mansion treasury and the national treasury some time ago. Although the "culprit" who stole the national treasury had been caught, Yongchang was no ordinary person and naturally understood that the real culprits were not members of the Wang family at all; the Wang family had simply taken the blame.
Although Princess Yongchang only mentioned it briefly, Qu Qingxi knew that she was referring to the theft of the Marquis of Dingguo's property and the theft of the national treasury.
“We should investigate this thoroughly. It’s been so long, and we still haven’t found any clues.” Qu Qingxi nodded in agreement, looking indignant.
“Exactly.” Yongchang nodded. The Wang family was her mother’s maternal grandparents’ family. When the Wang family got into trouble, her mother was unhappy, and so was she. She also hated the thief who stole from the national treasury. However, the Prefect of the Capital had not been able to find anything. Yongchang even suspected that the Prefect of the Capital was deliberately inactive.
"Uncle's health was already poor, and now he's been injured by an assassin. He needs to take good care of himself. Aunt, after I return to the palace, I'll send someone to give you and Uncle some ginseng and other tonics so that Uncle can recover properly."
"Alright, then I'll thank the princess on behalf of the prince." Qu Qingxi hadn't expected Princess Yongchang to care so much about He Liufeng.
"Auntie, you're too kind. We're all family, there's no need for that." Yongchang smiled.
After Ren Nuanyun finished arranging the flower viewing in the garden, she came over and saw Qu Qingxi and Princess Yongchang chatting happily. Ren Nuanyun sneered inwardly, "Let you laugh your fill first, and see if you can still laugh later."
"The chrysanthemums over there are ready. The weather is perfect now, why don't we go take a look?" Ren Nuanyun said with a smile to everyone.
Everyone understands the purpose of today's chrysanthemum appreciation banquet: it's simply to solidify Ren Nuanyun's status after she was bestowed the title of Princess Mingxiu.
Everyone knew the truth but didn't say anything. After all, Ren Nuanyun's status was indeed much higher than before. Moreover, it was said that yesterday, the Marquis of Dingguo specially promoted Ren Nuanyun's birth mother to the rank of concubine. Now, Ren Nuanyun could be considered a legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Dingguo's family.
Everyone got up and followed the maid's footsteps toward that direction.
Ren Nuanyun walked at the back and, taking advantage of everyone's inattention, glanced at the teacup in front of Qu Qingxi. There was no tea left, so she knew that Qu Qingxi hadn't drunk any tea at all.
"Hmph," Ren Nuanyun sneered, staring at Qu Qingxi's back. "You may have dodged this time, but there will be a next time. Qu Qingxi, do you know what it means to be caught off guard?"
Ren Nuanyun did add something to Qu Qingxi's cup, but she really didn't expect Qu Qingxi to be so cautious, refusing to drink the tea or eat the pastries.
Upon arriving at the garden, everyone immediately noticed the chrysanthemums displayed there. Sure enough, they saw many rare and precious chrysanthemums, such as Green Cloud, Ten-Foot Curtain, and Mane-Dan Buddha Dust. The rest were some less rare chrysanthemums, but they were also very beautiful.
These four varieties are excellent, and everyone's eyes lit up as they stepped forward to admire them closely.
Qu Qingxi raised her eyebrows slightly. These chrysanthemums were said to have been obtained by the Marquis of Dingguo by chance, but in fact they were bestowed upon Ren Nuanyun by the Emperor. The Crown Prince also added some, which is why these precious chrysanthemum varieties exist.
"Oh, there's even Green Cloud! Your Highness is really generous," Yongchang muttered, clearly knowing where all the chrysanthemums came from.
This Green Cloud chrysanthemum was cultivated for a long time by the people in the Imperial Palace, but it was very difficult to cultivate. The gardeners had only managed to cultivate two pots successfully, one in the Empress's palace and the other in the Crown Prince's residence.
This potted plant must have been specially sent by the Crown Prince to give Ren Nuanyun face.
Qu Qingxi and Yongchang were very close, so they naturally heard her mutterings.
It seems the Crown Prince has truly fallen in love with Ren Nuanyun.
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