kvmb Chapter 137 Doting
Chapter 137 Doting
The snow was heavy and the wind was strong. Xie Bohuai sat in the carriage, his thoughts drifting far away.
Only when Qingshan mentioned it did he get off the carriage. Upon hearing from the gatekeeper that Old Master Xie had arrived, he frowned. "Don't let him in next time. Make him wait. Qingshan, let's go to the town government office."
He doesn't even go inside his own home. People say he's disobedient and unfilial, but so what?
He has nothing to fear.
Except for... one weakness.
After the carriage stopped again, the snowstorm also stopped.
Xie Bohuai entered the town government office, and the steward of the Prince Cheng's mansion also entered the Ye family.
"Tomorrow is the day our Princess Consort is hosting a banquet. We didn't know Miss Ye was alive before, but now that we do, we've specially sent me to deliver this invitation. We urge Miss Ye to attend." The steward held up the invitation.
Just as Madam Lin was about to speak, Jiang Si sensed something was amiss and spoke first, "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness, but Wan Ning has just returned home and hasn't recovered yet. In addition, Grandmother is seriously ill and needs Wan Ning to stay by her side to take care of her. Please help us apologize to Your Highness."
The person in charge still smiled faintly, "If Miss Ye wants to show her filial piety, half a day won't make a difference. What are you afraid of that prevents Miss Ye from going? Or is it that your Ye family is so arrogant that you don't even give face to the Prince's Mansion?"
As he spoke, the person in charge slammed the invitation down on the table. "Whether you go or not is up to you. Think about the men of the Ye family and whether they still want to work outside."
After saying these words, the person in charge left.
He wasn't speaking politely, so the Ye family naturally knew it was a trap. When Madam Lin asked what to do, Jiang Si frowned deeply.
"No matter what, we can't let Wan Ning go. As for the rest, we have nothing to hide." Jiang Si had just finished speaking when she saw Ye Wan Ning arrive.
Ye Wanning didn't want to go to Prince Cheng's residence, but she had caused trouble for her family and couldn't let her brothers get into trouble too. "Since Prince Cheng's residence has sent an invitation, I will go. I have already sent someone to tell my adoptive mother that Jiang Mama will accompany me tomorrow. Jiang Mama represents the Princess's residence, and Prince Cheng will consider it carefully."
Hearing that Granny Jiang would be accompanying her, Jiang Si felt a little relieved. "Be careful when you go, and come back after a short visit. Pei Xu is dead, and Consort Pei will definitely hate you and make things difficult for you."
Ye Wanning said she knew, and that since she had returned to the capital, she should be prepared to face these troubles.
The next day, she arrived at Prince Cheng's residence at the appointed time. As soon as she entered the garden, she attracted countless stares.
Three years ago, everyone knew that Ye Wanning was dead, but now she has suddenly come back to life with a child. Everyone is curious about what happened to Ye Wanning.
"Tell me, it's been three years, how come she's even more beautiful now?"
"What's so beautiful about her? She looks like a vixen to me, not pretty at all."
"Are you being sarcastic? If she weren't pretty, would Xie Bohuai still be so hung up on her?"
"Hehe, Xie Bohuai is different from ordinary people, who knows what he likes. Anyway, I don't think Ye Wanning is pretty, a natural vixen, maybe her child was born with some other man. Who knows how she made a living in the past three years?"
"That's true. She's a weak woman, and her man hasn't returned. It's unlikely she can support herself. But with her looks, getting a man to pay for her services... or... what are you doing?"
Before the woman could finish speaking, Granny Jiang slapped her across the face. "This slap is on behalf of Princess Longyu to teach you a lesson. Our young lady married properly, but you, a gossip, are spreading rumors. If you're not satisfied, you can go to the princess's residence to argue!"
"I!"
"If you don't have the guts, then shut up and don't say anything more, lest you get another slap!" Granny Jiang was full of domineering power, and with one glance, no one dared to speak again.
At this moment, Xie Lingxian arrived. After learning what had happened, she had someone help the beaten woman downstairs first, and then went to see Ye Wanning. "It's been many years since we last met. I thought Miss Ye would want to see these old friends from the capital, and everyone would want to hear your story. I never expected it would cause such a stir. I'm truly sorry."
"I am just an ordinary person, thank you for your concern, Your Highness," Ye Wanning said.
"It's nothing, I just like lively atmospheres. Since you're here, please sit down." After saying this, Xie Lingxian left without making things difficult for her.
Ye Wanning understood perfectly well that Granny Jiang had just hit someone, and now everyone disliked her. If she sat there, she would be the subject of everyone's gossip; if she left, they would only spread more rumors about her.
Her reputation is completely ruined.
Xie Lingxian's trick really worked.
Granny Jiang also realized what was happening and said regretfully, "Miss, I..."
“No need to apologize, Granny. If you don’t hit her, they’ll become even more arrogant. People fawn over the powerful and bully the weak. We’re in a lowly position now, so naturally we’ll be talked about everywhere. Anyway, we won’t gain any good reputation, so it’s better to slap her and feel better. Look, we’re sitting here, and no one dares to say a word.” Ye Wanning calmly drank her tea and even gave Yunzhi and the others some snacks.
They come, the security.
She's not embarrassed; it's others who are feeling uncomfortable.
Seeing Ye Wanning's calm and composed demeanor, everyone sighed inwardly, marveling at her thick skin and how she could endure this situation.
Regardless of what others think, Ye Wanning has decided to return, and she won't care about other people's opinions like before. What others say, good or bad, won't affect her.
The pastries at Prince Cheng's residence were excellent. Ye Wanning was so engrossed in eating that a maidservant came to serve tea and accidentally spilled some on her skirt. She quickly knelt down to apologize. The others then came to take Ye Wanning to a guest room to change her clothes.
Ye Wanning had already seen this kind of trick before. "No need to trouble yourself. I didn't bring any change of clothes. I had some snacks and went out for a while today. Since my skirt is dirty, I'll head back first."
Seeing that she was about to leave, the maids of the Prince Cheng's mansion were anxious to stop her, but they were blocked by Granny Jiang, and none of them could get close.
Ye Wanning walked very fast. By the time the old women in the courtyard realized what was happening and tried to chase after her, Ye Wanning had already walked quite a distance. When they went to catch up, Ye Wanning had already reached the gate.
"Thank you for the invitation, Your Highness. Today was an accident, so please don't take your anger out on that maid." After saying this, Ye Wanning gave Yunzhi and the others a wink and then left the Prince Cheng's residence.
The old woman was so angry when she saw Ye Wanning leave that she slapped her thigh, but she didn't dare to delay and ran back to report to the Princess.
When Xie Lingxian heard what had happened and learned that it was Consort Pei's maid, she immediately put on a cold face. "A stupid fool from a humble family! The Prince set up this scheme not for Pei Xu! She's so stupid she could be thrown into a pond to feed the turtles. Ye Wanning was going to suffer a lot of criticism, but now that she's gone, the best effect won't be achieved. Tell the steward that Consort Pei's maid has done a poor job. Give her twenty lashes and send her to the estate."
The nanny relayed the message and arrested the person. When Consort Pei heard about this, she came to find Xie Lingxian with red eyes.
This time, however, Xie Lingxian didn't give her any face. "I'm doing this for my sister's own good. Your people are incompetent. If word gets to the Prince, he might suspect that you're trying to avenge Pei Xu and did this on purpose."
"No, no, I..."
"Whether you have such thoughts or not is one thing, but you don't want to arouse the prince's suspicion, do you? After all, the reason why my sister can stand firm in the prince's mansion is because of the prince's favor, right?" Xie Lingxian raised her red lips slightly, passed by Consort Pei, and snorted softly.
Xie Lingxian has the Xie family behind her. Even if the Xie family is not as powerful as before, it is still one of the four major families. No matter what, Prince Cheng still has to give Xie Lingxian some face.
What about Consort Pei?
She had no family background, and her only brother was dead.
All she could rely on was the King's favor. And what she couldn't afford to lose was that same favor.