"The Prince Ling's Mansion?"
Wasn't it the residence of her elder brother?
Speaking of the Prince Ling, he was really one of the more unfortunate among her many brothers and sisters.
When he was young, because his mother - concubine had made a mistake, the late emperor disliked this son as well and granted him a fiefdom and the title of prince at an early age.
But she really didn't think Meng Ruxue would take her to a banquet for no reason.
Sure enough, as soon as Wen Qianyue left the mansion, she saw Meng Ruxue waiting outside early.
"Miss Wen is here. I wonder if there was anything inappropriate in the County Prince's Mansion. Please tell me if there was, sister." Meng Ruxue said softly with a smile, gently stroking the embroidered pattern on her cuff, fully acting like the mistress of the mansion.
Wen Qianyue's gaze casually swept over her and she said indifferently, "Everything was fine."
Xie Yunxiao beside them frowned slightly and his gaze fell on his mother. "Why are you here too?"
Meng Ruxue explained in a soft voice, "I sent someone to invite Miss Wen. She is your honored guest, Your Highness. Naturally, it's not good to leave her alone in the mansion."
Xie Yunxiao never liked to disappoint her, so he said no more. But he still couldn't help worrying. From time to time, he lifted the curtain of the carriage to look back.
Meng Ruxue looked puzzled. "Your Highness, what's wrong?"
Xie Yunxiao replied absent - mindedly, "It's nothing."
"That's good." Meng Ruxue said with a gentle smile. She opened her mouth, just about to say something.
Xie Yunxiao hesitated for a long time, but finally said to the outside, "Stop the carriage."
After getting off the carriage, Xie Yunxiao walked towards the carriage behind. Meng Ruxue, who had been ignored, was a bit stunned. A flash of emotion passed through her eyes, and then she regained her usual gentleness.
Seeing Xie Yunxiao coming, Wen Qianyue couldn't help smiling in her heart. "What's up?"
Xie Yunxiao was still worried and wanted to make it clear. "If I remember correctly, the Prince Ling should be your elder brother, right?"
Wen Qianyue asked, "So?"
Xie Yunxiao said, "Then he must have seen your face. What if he recognizes you?"
Wen Qianyue remained calm, but was slightly touched in her heart. "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing."
After saying that, she took out a veil from somewhere.
Hearing her words, the restlessness in Xie Yunxiao's heart seemed to be soothed by a clear spring. He inexplicably trusted this calm mother in front of him.
As expected, the Prince Ling's Mansion, being one rank higher, was much more magnificent than the County Prince's Mansion.
Wen Qianyue looked at the gilded plaque on the vermilion - painted gate tower. The remaining snow on the eaves was dripping down along the third stroke of the character "Wang".
It was very cold in Lingzhou, but there were still flowers blooming brightly in the mansion, which was quite rare.
Xie Yunxiao looked at Wen Qianyue, hesitated for a while, and finally said, "You go first. I'll go and congratulate Uncle Emperor."
"Yes."
Looking at the spring scenery in the garden, Meng Ruxue's smile became more obvious on her face. Even her sickly look of many days seemed to be better.
"Isn't this Sister Meng? Why did the young County Prince finally agree to bring you out today?" A blue - dressed woman in the distance said with a smile.
As she got closer, she saw Wen Qianyue beside Meng Ruxue. A flash of amazement passed through her eyes and she couldn't help asking.
"Hey? Who is this beside you?"
Meng Ruxue replied softly, "She is an old friend of the County Prince. She came with us today."
"Humph!" Wen Chengzi shook her gold bracelets and laughed out loud. The gilded hairpins on her head rattled against the stone railing. "I wondered who it was. Isn't this the 'living Bodhisattva' from the County Prince's Mansion?"
She sized Wen Qianyue up and down, and pointed her red - painted fingernails straight at Meng Ruxue's nose. "It's already a stretch for you with your status to come to the Prince's Mansion. Now you even dare to bring an unknown woman into the mansion! That bastard Xie Yunxiao is becoming more and more unruly."
These words were so mean. If it weren't for the first half of the sentence, Wen Qianyue might not have cared. She turned around, her eyes as cold as a knife quenched in ice.
How dare she call her son a bastard?
"Staying in the County Prince's Mansion is bad enough, and now you come to my Prince's Mansion to show off. How shameless!" The woman's eyes were full of contempt.
Meng Ruxue's eyes instantly filled with tears, looking as if she had suffered a great deal of grievance. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone coming from behind. She bit her lip and said no more, looking so pitiful that anyone would want to protect her.
"All you did was save that little bastard Xie Yunxiao's life by being shameless. After staying in the County Prince's Mansion for a few years, you really think you're a young lady from a noble family? You're just a low - class peasant girl who doesn't know any rules."
"Fourth Sister, today is the one - hundred - day celebration of my little brother. Don't spoil Father's mood. Stop making a scene here and shut up." Wen Chengen's voice came from the moon - shaped gate. His black brocade robe glowed dimly.
The Prince Ling had a total of six children. The rather domineering one was the Fourth Miss Wen Chengzi, and the one who stepped forward to persuade was the only son of the Princess in the mansion and the legitimate eldest son of the Prince Ling.
"Brother, why are you protecting this bitch? Could it be that you, like that Xie Yunxiao, have been seduced by her?" Wen Chengzi said, still not satisfied, and wanted to take action.
"On weekdays, you act like the County Princess, but all you've done is get involved with a bastard in an unclear way. Who knows what kind of dirty things you've done? Maybe your innocence was given to some wild man long ago..."
Wen Chengen had no choice but to ask someone to hold her back and order someone to take his fourth sister away by force.
He was quite polite and said with a hint of apology, "I'm really sorry. My little sister was being reckless."
Meng Ruxue's eyelashes trembled slightly. Her fingertips brushed the stray hairs by her temples, but a tear slid down her cheek, making her look extremely pitiful.
Wen Qianyue was a bit stunned after hearing these words. So, the banquet she was attending today was the one - hundred - day celebration of the Prince Ling's youngest son?
But... something wasn't right...
She vaguely remembered that in her dream, it was mentioned that the Prince Ling had been given a child - lessening drug.
These were all the Prince Ling's children?!
How could this be...
Her elder brother was so energetic. Who on earth had helped him have so many children?
Wen Qianyue shook her head and sighed, her heart extremely excited.
Wen Chengen had a faint smile on his lips and asked gently, "Miss Meng, the purse you gave my mother the other day was really liked by her. She was very happy to hear that you were coming today and specially ordered me to invite you to have a chat."
So that's it. Everyone around suddenly understood.
No wonder the Crown Prince of the Prince Ling's Mansion came so coincidentally today. It turned out that it was for the Princess of the Prince Ling.
The Crown Prince of the Prince Ling was well - known for his filial piety and always took good care of his mother, the Princess of the Prince Ling.
Meng Ruxue lowered her eyebrows and said softly, "Thank you for making this trip, Crown Prince."
The two of them walked one in front of the other, behaving very properly. Anyone who saw them would not say anything bad. Instead, they would praise the Crown Prince of the Prince Ling for his filial piety, as he took care of even the smallest things related to the Princess of the Prince Ling personally.
Wen Qianyue was a bit suspicious. Looking at the gradually disappearing backs of the two,
Judging from this situation, it was very likely that the Crown Prince of the Prince Ling was also involved in Xie Yunxiao's poisoning.
It seemed that this had been going on for a long time, but her silly son hadn't noticed anything at all!
Wen Qianyue looked up and met the blue - dressed woman's eyes with an innocent look. The woman felt a bit embarrassed. "How about I take you to the banquet?"
Wen Qianyue would never go with her. She declined with a smile and motioned that she wanted to take a stroll around.
She had to go and see the fun.
Wasn't the most interesting thing in life gossip?
Wen Qianyue was brought up by the late emperor himself.
Her mother had passed away early, leaving only one child. As the child of the late emperor's beloved woman, Wen Qianyue had been favored since childhood. Even her martial arts skills today were taught by a master invited by the late emperor after she had begged for several days.
Wen Qianyue squinted her eyes and followed the direction the two had left at a slow pace, making sure not to be noticed.
At first, the two behaved quite properly. As they went to a more and more secluded place and walked behind a rockery, blocked by a huge boulder, they finally stopped.
"My Lord Crown Prince, you've made me wait so long." The woman's voice was anxious and faintly came from afar.
Wen Chengen stood with his hands behind his back, looking unconcerned. "What's the hurry?"
Meng Ruxue said worriedly, "How can I not be in a hurry? The medicine is almost used up. The County Prince has found many famous doctors for me these days. What if it gets exposed?"
They had been pretending for so many years and couldn't afford to make a mistake on such a small matter.