On this bitterly cold day, beads of cold sweat oozed from his forehead.
Concubine Yu's refusal to let the eldest young lady enter through the main gate was clearly an attempt to embarrass her.
If the eldest young lady entered the Marquis's Mansion through the side gate, it would mean her submission to Yu Qiao'er's management. From then on, Yu Qiao'er and the second young lady could lord it over her.
Steward Liu never expected the eldest young lady to be so unyielding.
How could a country bumpkin who had been coarsely raised in the countryside for eight years have such courage?
Cheng Simian called Nanny Chen back into the carriage.
"Since there are those who don't want me to enter my home through the main gate, then this home is not one I must return to."
She ordered the coachman to turn the carriage around and head towards the Eastern Palace.
Steward Liu and the several maidservants panicked.
The maidservants rushed into the Marquis's Mansion to report to Yu Qiao'er.
Yu Qiao'er and Cheng Siyi were greatly shocked.
"She just left? Just like that?" Cheng Siyi couldn't believe it. "Where did she get the nerve to challenge you, Mother?"
Although Mother was still a concubine, she had been in charge of the household for eight years and had long established her authority and won over everyone in the Marquis's Mansion.
The half - dead woman in the Buddhist hall didn't even know that Cheng Simian was returning home today.
But the Marquis was waiting in his study, saying that he had something important to discuss with Cheng Simian.
Yu Qiao'er had intended to put Cheng Simian in her place, to show her who the real master of the Marquis's Mansion was and to make her recognize the situation and obey in the future.
But Cheng Simian simply didn't take the bait!
"Mother, what should we do now? What will we tell Father when he asks?"
Just then, Cheng Yong waddled in, his brows knitted with impatience. "Haven't you fetched her yet?"
Liang Yuchuan had sent someone last night to inquire when Cheng Simian would return.
It seemed that he was quite fond of her.
Cheng Yong was eager to arrange a meeting between them and finalize the marriage.
Yu Qiao'er immediately changed her expression, squeezing out a few tears as she complained pitifully. "Your servant sent people to the main gate to welcome the eldest young lady, but they were all scolded by her. It seems that the eldest young lady looks down on your servant and just left..."
Cheng Siyi also reddened her eyes. "Father, it was you who personally gave the power to manage the household to Mother. If the eldest sister looks down on Mother, does she also not take you seriously?"
Cheng Yong flew into a rage, slamming the table so hard that the teacups rattled. "Outrageous! Just because she's been in the south for eight years, she's become so disrespectful! When she comes back, I'll surely teach her a lesson with the family rules!"
...
Cheng Simian's carriage stopped at the east gate.
Without an announcement, she couldn't enter, so she got out of the carriage and waited at the gate.
Two guards went in to report.
The Crown Prince had just returned from the home of Grand Tutor Wen and was having lunch. Little Anzi came out to see the two guards and inquired about the journey.
"Eunuch An, we safely escorted Miss Cheng into the capital."
The two guards reported in detail how Cheng Simian had been attacked last night and how she had been harassed by the servants today and was not allowed to enter through the main gate.
"Miss Cheng is waiting outside the gate, hoping to meet His Highness the Crown Prince."
Little Anzi couldn't help but sigh. Miss Cheng had really had a hard time, facing one obstacle after another.
She had encountered lecherous thieves twice on the way, and before even entering her home, she had been given a hard time.
He told the two guards to return to their posts.
Entering the palace hall, when the Crown Prince had almost finished eating, Little Anzi said with a smile, "Your Highness, Miss Cheng is grateful for your life - saving grace. She came to the Eastern Palace to express her gratitude as soon as she entered the capital today. It shows her sincerity."
The Crown Prince put down the teacup for rinsing his mouth. His cold eyes showed no trace of emotion. "When did I ever save her life? She took down those three lecherous thieves herself. Her coming today is just for some ulterior motive."
Little Anzi realized that the Crown Prince must have equated Cheng Simian with the Cheng family.
The surname Cheng had made the Crown Prince prejudiced against Cheng Simian from the very beginning.
"Will Your Highness see her?"
"No. Send her back. Tell her to stop trying to curry favor in the future."
The Crown Prince picked up the "Collection of Mingxi's Poems" beside him and started reading.
Daoist Qiu had advised him to read the poems of this remarkable woman, and he had readily taken the advice.
Reading her landscape poems, the Crown Prince was shocked by her broad - mindedness and far - sighted vision.
It was admirable that a woman could travel all over the country in just a few years, something that many men couldn't achieve.
What was even rarer was the love for the vast land of the Great Zhou Dynasty that she expressed in her poems.
The Crown Prince regretted deeply. During his one - year inspection in the south, why hadn't he thought of meeting this Master Mingxi?
It would have been such a wonderful thing to sit down and have a profound conversation with her!
Seeing that the Crown Prince was fully absorbed in the poem collection, Little Anzi knew that he had no intention of helping Miss Cheng.
He came outside the main gate. Cheng Simian was still standing there.
In the cold wind, she stood there proudly, with fair skin and elegant demeanor, truly having the air of a noble young lady.
Little Anzi felt a bit sorry. He politely said to Cheng Simian, "His Highness the Crown Prince is aware of your good intentions, but His Highness is very busy with state affairs and has no time. As you are a young lady from a noble family, His Highness is not in a position to invite you in alone. He sent me to convey his message. Please go back."
He knew Cheng Simian's intention. Expressing gratitude was not her only purpose. She had been harassed by the Marquis's Mansion and couldn't even enter through the main gate. She came to the Crown Prince hoping for his help.
Even if the Crown Prince sent someone with her back to the Marquis's Mansion or gave her one of his tokens, the Marquis's Mansion wouldn't dare to harass her anymore.
But the Crown Prince showed no sign of concern and coldly refused.
Cheng Simian gave a faint smile. She was neither disappointed nor dejected. She gracefully curtsied. "Thank you for your kindness, Eunuch An."
With just this one sentence, Little Anzi knew that Cheng Simian had guessed that his words didn't represent the Crown Prince's real intention but were just to comfort her.
She was truly a smart girl who could read between the lines.
Cheng Simian took out a scroll from her bag and presented it to Little Anzi with both hands.
"To express my gratitude to His Highness the Crown Prince, I offer this humble work."
Little Anzi knew that the Crown Prince wouldn't care, but he still smilingly accepted it.
Cheng Simian left with Shuyi and Nanny Chen.
Once in the carriage, Shuyi whispered, "Miss, you spent six years on that painting and put so much effort into it. And you just gave it away..."
She had given such a precious gift but hadn't even seen the person!
Shuyi felt it was not worth it for her young lady.
Cheng Simian didn't seem to care. She just smiled and told the coachman to drive slowly. There was no need to rush back to the Marquis's Mansion.
Little Anzi presented the scroll to the Crown Prince.
"Your Highness, Miss Cheng sent you a painting. Don't you want to take a look?"
The Crown Prince was engrossed in reading the "Collection of Mingxi's Poems" and didn't even lift his eyelids.
"Little Anzi, you're getting bolder. You even dare to make decisions for me."
His tone sounded casual, but there was an imperceptible pressure in it.
Little Anzi felt a chill run down his spine. His hand trembled, and the scroll fell to the ground.
The scroll unfurled, and a scroll of Chinese ink painting slowly came into view.
The Crown Prince casually glanced at it and was deeply shocked.