The last time those four people dined, it was extremely awkward.
The most awkward one was the emperor.
Mei Qingxue took her carefree nature to the extreme and enjoyed her meal to the fullest. Seeing that her son was much better, the happiest one was Concubine Qin. However, as her son was about to embark on a long journey, she couldn't bear to part with him.
"By the mandate of heaven and the prosperity of the state, the imperial edict proclaims that the Sixth Prince is well - endowed in both appearance and character. He is hereby granted the region of Jiangnan as his fiefdom. With his noble virtue and talent, he is conferred the title of Prince Rui, enjoying the privileges of a prince."
...
From then on, the Sixth Prince had a title and was no longer just a numbered prince.
Mei Qingxue had a great appetite. First, she feasted in the palace. Then, she had a small gathering with her parents, elder brother, and sister - in - law at home. It was also on that day that Mei Qingxue understood Mei Haoxuan's ambition. A good man should strive on the frontier.
She prepared an assistant for her elder brother, who would always be by his side. Mei Haoxuan was deeply grateful for his sister's thoughtfulness. Only Xia Ruolan shed tears again and again.
Although they said they were about to set off, the preparation work had been going on for nearly a month without any progress.
"Who do you think this mysterious grand steward is?"
Mei Qingxue asked curiously. Last time, Concubine Qin had left her guessing. She had thought it might be Eunuch Tang for a long time, but considering his power, it couldn't be him. So Mei Qingxue ruled him out. No matter how hard she racked her brains, she couldn't figure out who it was.
Mei Qingxue thought Du Guqing might know, but Du Guqing just shook his head. "If you, such a smart person, can't guess it, I surely can't either."
The two of them had been tormented by this mysterious grand steward for a long time. Since it was a settled fact, they simply stopped thinking about it. The entourage for the journey to Jiangnan had already been decided. Xuan Qiao and two new maids from the prime minister's mansion would go. Yue Ru was pregnant, so she wouldn't be taken this time. Han Zhao could take care of her while shuttling between the two places. Not all the guards in the mansion here could be taken away.
They were all left to Yue Ru and Uncle Fu.
Knowing that his younger sister and brother - in - law would soon set off on a long journey, Mei Haoxuan came more frequently. He planned to personally escort his younger sister to Jiangnan because she had never been to such a far - off place.
Mei Haoxuan didn't know that Mei Qingxue had the souls of nine previous lives and was now living her tenth life as a human. She had been to far - flung places. However, Mei Qingxue couldn't refuse her elder brother's kindness at all.
"What are your plans for the Blue Sea Pavilion?"
"I'll leave it to An Ying to manage. From now on, the Blue Sea Pavilion will only have one branch in the capital. Wherever I am, that's the headquarters." Mei Qingxue was extremely domineering, but unfortunately, no one could appreciate it.
"I have an organization in my hands..." Du Guqing stammered, about to reveal his secret. Originally, he had planned to leave it to Mei Qingxue, thinking that if something happened to him, she would have some power to protect herself.
"Stop!" Mei Qingxue cried out in an old - fashioned tone. "Do you want me to shoulder everything? What will you do if I do everything?" She even wanted to hand over her Blue Sea Pavilion to Du Guqing. Now that he had a prince's title, he wanted to shift his responsibilities to others. No way. It seemed that she, Mei Qingxue, was not just anyone, but now she had a heavy responsibility and no spare time. They had to move here, and she would have to settle things when they arrived at their destination. What could men do? Just don't cause any trouble.
She heard that it was Concubine Qin's hometown, which meant it was Du Guqing's maternal grandfather's home. She wondered if Du Guqing's relatives there would be easy to get along with. If not, she could find something to do, but she couldn't go too far. After all, they were family.
It was said that the scenery in Jiangnan was beautiful, so she could feast her eyes on it.
Seeing Mei Qingxue's eyes rolling around, Du Guqing had a bad feeling. Every time he had this feeling, his precious princess would surely stir up some trouble.
"Du Guqing, why don't you dress up as a woman?"
Sure enough, Du Guqing let out a wail. Why was it always him? Why was his premonition so accurate just now? He hoped he had misheard.
"Xue, what did you... you say?"
"I said, you... dress... up... as... a... woman," Mei Qingxue said word by word. Du Guqing was extremely good - looking. If there were bandits, it would be just right. They could let the bandits kidnap Du Guqing to the mountain and then they could suppress the bandits on the mountain. How interesting!
Du Guqing's face showed a complex expression. Mei Qingxue thought he was scared. "Not now," Mei Qingxue said soothingly, patting Du Guqing on the back.
When they reached an unstable place, she would release the unstable factor.
"Okay!" Du Guqing let out a sigh of relief. How could he escape this disaster? He, the dignified Prince Rui, dressing up as a woman. How could he show his face?
"My lord, my lady, Yue Ru requests an audience."
Just as the two were having a silent battle with their eyes and Du Guqing was about to lose, Yue Ru's voice came from outside the door.
"Yue Ru, it's so late. Why aren't you going back to rest? What do you want?"
"My lady, please don't leave Yue Ru behind."
It was Yue Ru's pleading voice from outside.
"Your belly is big, my lady is afraid that something might happen to you on the way. Leaving you in the capital is for your safe delivery on the one hand. On the other hand, you are someone my lady trusts. My lady can rest assured leaving the mansion to you," Du Guqing said. He and his wife were just about to have some intimate time.
"Really? As long as my lady doesn't abandon Yue Ru. Yue Ru has been with my lady for so many years and has never been separated from her."
It was Yue Ru's hesitant voice from outside. Without hearing Mei Qingxue's personal promise, she was always uneasy. She had heard about the arrangement from Han Zhao today, and her heart had immediately become filled with panic.
"Yue Ru, what the prince said is what I said. Take good care of my mansion. When I come back from Jiangnan to pay my respects, I still need to live here. If I find a single speck of dust on my table, you'll be in trouble."
Mei Qingxue pretended to be fierce. She had a cleanliness fetish and couldn't stand even a little dust on her table. Yue Ru would wipe it many times a day.
"Yes, my lady. Yue Ru will surely live up to your trust."
Yue Ru knew that it wasn't that her lady was abandoning her, so she felt relieved. "It's only about two or three months until I give birth. You should just focus on having a safe delivery first. It's not too late to deal with the affairs of the mansion after you've recovered. You can discuss and make decisions with Uncle Fu about the affairs of the mansion."
"Yes, my lady, my lord. Then Yue Ru will take her leave."
"Go!"
"Your maid is really loyal," Du Guqing praised. He always had a special fondness for loyal people. Now that Yue Ru was the wife of his guard, he didn't treat her like an ordinary servant, so he spoke to her quite politely.
"The quality of a servant often depends on the master. I can't explain this to you clearly. What should we do about Rong Yu'er?" Mei Qingxue had clearly seen Rong Yu'er's admiring look last time. She had always wanted to take action but didn't know how to give the little girl a warning. Although she knew this was something she had to do, she didn't know how to go about it.
"Just say what you mean directly. Don't beat around the bush," Du Guqing glanced at his woman. He knew Mei Qingxue had something to say, but he didn't know what it was.
"I think Miss Yu'er has a crush on you," Mei Qingxue looked into her husband's eyes. He had caused this trouble, so he should be the one to solve it. So she decided to start with Du Guqing.
Du Guqing was stunned. "How could that be? She's just a child." He hadn't even looked at her appearance carefully. The most impressive thing about her was how thin and bony she was when he first saw her.
"So what if she's a child? She's already twelve. In two years, she'll be a beauty," Mei Qingxue said. Even she could hear the jealousy in her own words, and her face blushed involuntarily.
It turned out that his little woman was jealous. Du Guqing happily hugged Mei Qingxue into his arms.
"Silly girl, you're the only one in my heart. Don't you know that?" His hand gently brushed across her chest, where the purple butterfly seemed to be fluttering.
"I'm just worried. You may not have that intention, but the little girl does. What if she falls in love with you?"
Mei Qingxue persisted. Du Guqing skillfully avoided answering her question because he didn't know what to do either. That girl was still so young. She shouldn't have such thoughts, right?
Mei Qingxue didn't want any unfavorable factors to exist. Their carefree days were about to begin, but now there was someone else in between them, which made Mei Qingxue extremely uncomfortable.
She had clearly seen that girl's gaze. She didn't like others interfering in her life. Women in ancient times matured early and could get married at a young age. Although that little girl wouldn't be as beautiful as she was when she grew up, she wouldn't be bad either. If Du Guqing only saw her every day, even if he got tired of looking at her, problems would arise.
It took a long time to pack their luggage. Rong Yu'er was another burden.
No one knew how long the emperor could play the role of a kind father. It was better to wait until they reached Jiangnan, a place far away from the emperor's control.
Xia Ruolan was busy sewing undergarments for her daughter. Mei Qingxue had grown up wearing the clothes sewn by her mother, and the materials were specially selected. She didn't know if her daughter could adapt to the climate in the south. It was said that it rained often there.
There was a season every year when even the clothes trunks in the house were damp.
They had to be taken out to dry on sunny days. Xia Ruolan wasn't sure if it was true, so she sewed clothes for her daughter with materials that wouldn't fade easily.
"My lady, don't strain your eyes. Xue'er will come back," Mei Zhenguo said lovingly.
"After all, she'll be living there for a long time. As her mother, I should think of everything so that Xue'er doesn't have to worry."
"Xue'er is already married."
"Even if she becomes a mother herself, she's still my Xue'er. You heartless old man. Are you going to say that a married daughter is like spilled water again? I'll ask Xuan'er to take me to Jiangnan. I'll go and live with my daughter!"
Xia Ruolan didn't stop her work but complained about Mei Zhenguo. Her son and daughter were both the flesh and blood that had fallen from her body. How could she not miss them? Her daughter hadn't even left the capital yet, and she was already thinking about her. If her daughter lived in Jiangnan all year round, what would she do?
At that time, she would ask her son to take her there and let that old thing Mei Zhenguo live alone.