Knowing that saying too much at once would be too much for the child to process, Ye Zhen stopped there. After drawing a portrait of Helian Qing, he had Fu Guang lead him out to wait for Cui Yihuan and the others.
Cui Yihuan, Cai Yueya, and the others had received Ye Zhen's secret instructions, and upon seeing Helian Qing, they all feigned astonishment.
Cai Yueya, in particular, circled Helian Qing several times, her big gold teeth gleaming. "My goodness, you look like a little fairy descended from heaven in this outfit! You're even more handsome than usual, this old woman can't take her eyes off you..."
Cui Yihuan quickly echoed, and Helian Qing's initially uncertain heart gradually lost itself amidst the praise from the two.
When Prince Ning arrived, although he didn't say anything, the amazement in his eyes was too obvious. Helian Qing was completely convinced that his attire today was indeed more suitable than when he used to pile mountains of gold and silver on himself.
Satisfied, he rode his horse with great pride and led his entourage toward the Prime Minister's residence.
Watching the departing figures, Yin Yue smiled and said, "Miss and His Highness are so kind."
The young lady said that the dress was designed by the Crown Prince. In fact, the young lady and the Crown Prince asked the embroiderers to work together to figure it out. In order to gradually correct Helian Qing's distorted aesthetic sense, the young lady and the prince really put in a lot of effort.
Ye Zhen laughed, "Alright, in your eyes, there's nothing wrong with your young lady."
She took out a stack of silver notes and stuffed some into Yinyue's and Fuguang's hands, instructing Fuguang, "Be frugal on the road, don't skimp on me. Be careful on the road and take good care of Yinyue."
Today, Fu Guang and Yin Yue rode swiftly to Jiangnan to secretly bring Ye Yunheng's wet nurse back to the capital.
After being reborn and reunited with Yin Yue, this was the first time Ye Zhen had parted ways with her. Feeling somewhat reluctant, he could only slip her extra silver notes to prevent them from mistreating him on the road.
Unlike Ye Zhen's melancholy, Xie Jinyao was riding high on her success.
Xiao Shi's facial injuries had not yet healed, and the shadow of being pinned to the ground and stripped by Madam Shen had not completely dissipated, so she kept a low profile, which gave Xie Jinyao the opportunity to steal the spotlight.
The eldest son's wife divorced and left the mansion, the second son's wife, Madam Su, was sent away, and Xie Jinyao became the de facto mistress of the Prime Minister's mansion.
The guests only heard that Madam Su felt guilty for not being able to leave an heir for the Li family and asked to leave the family to go to a nunnery for spiritual practice. Madam Xiao then insisted on making the concubine who was pregnant with Li Chenghai's child her legal wife.
This concubine was a first for everyone, but she was wearing a veil, so no one could see her true face. They only heard that she was a distant niece of the Xiao family. Today, seeing her acting as the mistress of the house, they showed her some respect because of Prime Minister Li.
After all, Li Chenghe had severed ties with Prime Minister Li, and now the Prime Minister's mansion only had Mingyue's unborn child left.
Xie Jinyao hadn't been fawned over in a long time, and the feeling of that long period made her a little arrogant.
When she saw Helian Qing and his entourage arrive, she put on airs as an aunt, saying, "Qing'er is here. Your maternal grandfather was just talking about you. He asked his aunt to prepare more of your favorite foods for you."
"Whatever you like to eat or play, Qing'er, just tell your aunt. Don't be shy."
Helian Qing tilted his head back and asked, "Where is my aunt? Didn't she move out with my maternal grandmother?"
He doesn't even acknowledge Li Heng, so why would he acknowledge this woman?
Xie Jinyao didn't expect him to be so disrespectful, but considering the Prime Minister's desire to get close to Helian Qing, she thought that if she could build a good relationship with Helian Qing, the Prime Minister would definitely value her more.
He suppressed his displeasure and smiled, "You've just arrived in the capital and don't know me yet. I'm the wife of your second uncle, Li Chenghai, so I'm also your aunt."
Worried that Helian Qing might say something unpleasant, she quickly said, "Your maternal grandfather has arranged for a courtyard to be prepared for you. This Prime Minister's residence is also your home. You can stay as long as you want."
The Prime Minister is in the main hall right now; he'll be very pleased to see you. Why don't you go and see your maternal grandfather first, Qing'er?"
She thought to herself, with filial piety pressing on him, this brat will surely not refuse to see the Prime Minister.
But Helian Qing looked at Prince Ning blankly, "The invitation from the Prime Minister's residence only said to attend the banquet, not to make random kinship claims."
And is it common practice in the capital for fathers-in-law to explain everything to their daughters-in-law? Isn't this the daughter-in-law of the Prime Minister's household? She looks more like the Prime Minister's wife to me.”
After he said that, many people realized what was going on. Someone said, "I was wondering why something felt off. Now I know what was wrong."
The mother-in-law is still there, and the daughter-in-law acts as the mistress of the house. Previously, when Princess Zhaoning was in charge of the Marquis's mansion, she never mentioned the Marquis Zhongyong in every way.
Even when referring to the Marquis of Loyalty and Valor, he respectfully calls him "father," while this person keeps referring to you as either your maternal grandfather or the Prime Minister, which is bound to cause misunderstandings.
Xie Jinyao spoke that way originally only to show that Prime Minister Li valued her, but she felt guilty and embarrassed after Helian Qing said that.
Upon seeing this, the steward of the Prime Minister's residence immediately stepped in to smooth things over.
Helian Qing was there with the intention of causing trouble, so he couldn't let the banquet be peaceful. He pretended to be generous and said to the steward, "I am not a petty person. This lady is talking nonsense, and I will not hold it against her."
"But since the Prime Minister's residence invited you, sir, and you didn't dress up carefully to show your sincerity, you, as the host, are being secretive and evasive."
He looked at Xie Jinyao and said, "I must see your true face before I dare to enter this Prime Minister's residence. I am a coward. If I don't even know what the head of the household looks like, I will not dare to attend this banquet."
Xie Jinyao never intended to hide her true identity forever. She planned to reveal her true face only when Prime Minister Li held absolute power. That way, even if people recognized her, they wouldn't dare to point fingers at her.
At the very least, she should have been able to establish herself firmly in the Prime Minister's residence by now, but who would have thought that Helian Qing would make this request now.
Among the dignitaries attending the banquet today, there are several who do not recognize her; she cannot allow herself to be recognized at this moment.
Unexpectedly, Helian Qing seemed to have no patience and pulled Prince Ning back, saying, "That's enough. This Prime Minister's residence has no sincerity at all. I will never come here again."
How could he not come? If he ruined the Prime Minister's plans, she would be in deep trouble. In her anxiety, Xie Jinyao pulled Helian Qing away, "Qing'er, wait and hear what your aunt has to say..."
She prepared to sing, recite, act, and fight, first fabricating a story about disfigurement to fool Helian Qing, but unexpectedly, Helian Qing ripped off the veil from her face...
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