Concubine Lan wanted to see her. It definitely wasn't to congratulate her on becoming the Crown Princess.
Nor was it to show concern about her recent situation.
Even less was it to discuss with her the experience of consoling Princess Lingyang.
Concubine Lan was the birth mother of the Second Prince. The Emperor had already noticed the restlessness of the Second Prince.
Both the Second Prince and Concubine Lan were now people of controversy.
The Fragrant Fragrance Pavilion, where Concubine Lan lived, was a place full of troubles.
Although the open rivalry between the Second Prince and the Crown Prince was separated by the Qin family, they had already developed enmities.
Once Princess Lingyang got over her grief and accepted the marriage with Qin Ziqi, the Crown Prince would have to face the Second Prince directly.
Although Cheng Simian's eyes were calm, she was in a dilemma.
If she went, what awaited her might be a trap.
She only brought Shuyi and Qiluo with her into the Fragrant Fragrance Pavilion. There would be no one else to testify for her.
If she didn't go, Concubine Lan would seize the opportunity to criticize her, saying that she was arrogant due to the Emperor's favor, disrespectful, and didn't put any concubines other than the Queen in her eyes.
Qiluo winked at Shuyi. "Sister, I just remembered that our young lady brought something for the Queen. When we visited the Queen just now, our young lady forgot about it."
Shuyi immediately understood. "That's right. It's in the carriage. I'll go and get it. You go and deliver it to the Queen right away. And remember to apologize on behalf of our young lady."
There was nothing extra in the carriage. Shuyi had a sudden inspiration. She wrapped a plate of untouched Ruyi square cakes on the small table with a handkerchief and handed it to Qiluo.
Qiluo took it and winked at Cheng Simian again. "Young lady, this servant will deliver it right away."
The trace of uneasiness in Cheng Simian's eyes completely disappeared.
She calmly followed the maid to the Fragrant Fragrance Pavilion.
The Queen was a bit puzzled when she saw Qiluo come back.
Qiluo handed the Ruyi square cakes to Daiying.
"Your Majesty, these snacks were made by our young lady's mother. Our young lady likes them very much, so she thought of letting Your Majesty taste her mother's craftsmanship. But just now, she was so worried about the princess that she forgot them in the carriage. She only remembered when she got to the palace gate, so she quickly sent this servant to deliver them."
The Queen thought it was strange.
Not to mention that Mianmian was always thoughtful and would never forget such a thing as sending a gift.
If she wanted to make up for it afterwards, she should have come in person to show her sincerity.
But she only sent a maid.
"Where's Mianmian?"
Qiluo replied, "Concubine Lan sent a maid to stop our young lady's carriage and asked her to go and answer some questions."
She answered truthfully without any exaggeration.
The Queen suddenly understood.
Mianmian was asking for her help!
A rare sneer flashed across her gentle and virtuous face.
"Concubine Lan really has a big mouth. When Mianmian comes to this palace, this palace still treats her with courtesy. But she actually asks Mianmian to go and answer questions with just one word. Where does she put this palace's face? And where does she put the Crown Prince's dignity?"
Qiluo looked worried. "Our young lady has always been polite, and Concubine Lan is an elder. Previously, this servant heard some rumors that the Second Prince once had feelings for our young lady and even collected her poems and paintings in his villa. What if..."
She only said half of her words.
On the surface, it was because she didn't dare to continue.
In fact, there was no need to continue.
The Queen's face became even colder.
"Daiying, go to the Fragrant Fragrance Pavilion and tell them that this palace asks Mianmian to come back. This palace still has a few words to instruct her."
"Your Majesty, this servant is worried about our young lady. Can this servant go with Aunt Daiying?"
The Queen carefully examined Qiluo for a few times, and there was a look of appreciation in her eyes.
"Of course you should go with her."
After they left the Yuankun Palace, Daiying looked at Qiluo and smiled. "You're such a smart girl. Even the Queen looks at you differently."
Qiluo was more worried that her young lady would be bullied by Concubine Lan, so she walked a bit hurriedly.
"Auntie, when we get to the Fragrant Fragrance Pavilion, please don't rush to call our young lady back. Maybe Concubine Lan just wants to talk to our young lady. Let's wait outside."
Daiying pursed her lips and smiled. "You girl, you have so many ideas."
She was the most capable maid beside the Queen. What she heard and saw in the Fragrant Fragrance Pavilion could be a fair and authoritative testimony.
This was to prevent Concubine Lan from framing Cheng Simian and making her unable to defend herself.
Daiying and Qiluo entered the Fragrant Fragrance Pavilion.
All the maids and eunuchs quickly bowed to Daiying.
"The Queen still has a few words to say to the Crown Princess, but it's not urgent. We'll just wait here. You can go about your business. Don't disturb Concubine Lan because of a small matter."
Inside the hall, Concubine Lan had no idea that Daiying was outside the door.
She lazily reclined on the beauty couch, tapping her forehead with her fingertips, sizing up Cheng Simian from head to toe.
In her eyes, there was undisguised contempt and arrogance.
Cheng Simian stood there quietly.
"They say that even heroes have a hard time resisting the charm of a beautiful woman. I didn't expect that the calm and ascetic Crown Prince would also be attracted by a beautiful face."
At first glance, this sounded like a compliment.
But the implied meaning was extremely malicious.
It belittled her for only having a beautiful appearance and also slandered the Crown Prince as a lecherous person who was unworthy of being the heir apparent.
Cheng Simian had heard this kind of sarcasm many times. She had even heard more offensive words.
She replied indifferently, "Concubine Lan should say this to the Emperor and the Queen."
Concubine Lan's face changed slightly, and her eyes narrowed dangerously.
This sentence was extremely powerful. If the Emperor and the Queen were present, she would be questioning their judgment in choosing the Crown Princess, which would be a great disrespect!
She sneered disdainfully, but there was a bit of panic in her heart.
"No wonder Ming'er thinks highly of you. You're really not just a pretty face. Your mouth is quite sharp."
A sharp look flashed in Cheng Simian's eyes. "Concubine Lan, please watch your words. You may not care about my reputation, but the Second Prince's reputation cannot be defamed."
Although Concubine Lan seemed to be saying it casually, she was deliberately trying to link her with Lu Siming.
She was now engaged to be married, and her future husband was the current Crown Prince.
Linking her with any other man could be a disaster for her.
The Crown Prince knew her heart and wouldn't care about the rumors, but the rumors were enough to destroy her reputation.
A Crown Princess with a damaged reputation would hurt the dignity of the royal family.
Scandals always hurt women more than men.
Lu Siming could stay out of it, but she would have to bear the moral burden because of a baseless rumor.
Concubine Lan's heart was really vicious!
Therefore, Cheng Simian spoke very seriously.
Concubine Lan didn't want to pretend to be kind in front of her. Why should she respect Concubine Lan as an elder?
Concubine Lan looked angry, and her fingernails painted with red nail polish dug into her palm.
Cheng Simian was really a tough nut to crack.
"This palace really appreciates you, so I just said it casually. I didn't expect you to care so much about the reputation of the royal family. You will surely be a virtuous Crown Princess in the future. When the Crown Prince ascends the throne, we old people will count on you to take good care of us."
Her attitude suddenly became very gentle and even humble.
Cheng Simian thought this was a trap.
If she agreed, it would make people think that she was already overly ambitious and didn't put the Queen in her eyes.
If she didn't agree, she would be suspected of being disrespectful to her elders.