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Su Hong looked at Xiao Yao's dignified and amiable demeanor, and was quite surprised.
Just a moment ago at the Xuanping Prince's Mansion, she was still a spoiled girl, but now she stood there with the full presence of a princess, receiving the Duchess of Wei's greeting. The rapid change was something she found hard to adapt to.
However, Madam Meng was naturally unaware of this. She was also quite astonished; she had heard that this girl came from the southern region and thought she had never seen much of the world. Yet, unexpectedly, the princess's dignified and noble demeanor was perfectly grasped. This was no ordinary girl from a common place; she clearly resembled a refined young lady. Of course, this was not the time to dwell on such matters. Madam Meng quickly smiled and said, "Your Highness, your presence truly brightens our humble abode. Please, take a seat."
"Please guide me, Madam Meng. Otherwise, this Duke Wei's Residence is my first visit, and I might get lost," Xiao Yao replied with a smile.
"Your Highness is indeed humorous," Madam Meng quickly responded. "This Duke Wei's Residence is not even half as large as the Xuanping Prince's Mansion. To you, it is merely a courtyard; you certainly won't get lost."
Everyone laughed upon hearing this. After some pleasantries, Madam Meng led Xiao Yao and Su Hong onward. Before long, they arrived at the flower-viewing area. Madam Meng smiled and said, "Our master loves to arrange flowers and plants. Just last month, he acquired some rare chrysanthemums and thought to invite everyone to see them. It just so happens that this is also the season when crabs are at their fattest; enjoying crabs while admiring chrysanthemums is indeed a delightful affair."
Xiao Yao and Su Hong both nodded in agreement with Madam Meng's words. Xiao Yao glanced at the young lady standing behind Madam Meng; she must be the eldest daughter of the Meng family. She appeared quite serene and seemed to be a talented girl as well; Xiao Yao wondered what her talents might be.
The ladies in the courtyard noticed that Madam Meng personally brought someone over and understood that this person's background was not simple.
Indeed, they heard Madam Meng say, "Please take your seat, Consort Xuanping; Sister Su's seat is over here." She personally led Xiao Yao to the main seat while Su Hong was guided by the Meng family's eldest daughter to sit at the lower end of the main seat.
The women immediately understood: one was Consort Xuanping and the other was a prospective consort!
For a moment, although the entire venue fell silent with no one speaking, everyone was inwardly astonished. The Duke Wei's influence was indeed significant; it was no small feat to invite these two distinguished guests.
If it were a banquet hosted by any prince’s family today, it would not be surprising for these two to attend since they were brothers from the palace. However, Duke Wei was merely a noble family with an inherited title; it was truly remarkable that he could invite these two ladies. In an instant, the thoughts of the ladies present began to stir as they contemplated whether to return home and discuss with their husbands about showing goodwill towards the Meng family.
Madam Meng looked at the various expressions on the ladies' faces and felt quite pleased.
With today's events, Duke Wei's status in the capital would surely rise significantly since both the Crown Prince and the prince had shown him favor.
Xiao Yao did not stand on ceremony with Madam Meng but walked directly to the main seat and sat down. Although this was Duke Wei's Residence, looking around, her status was indeed the highest; sitting in the main seat was only fitting. Once settled, Xiao Yao smiled and said, "Why so quiet? The prince told me this place would be lively today; if it's not lively, I might just leave."
With that, she displayed a playful expression that perfectly eased the atmosphere. The tension in the room relaxed as everyone breathed a sigh of relief; Consort Xuanping seemed easy to get along with. At this moment, Madam Meng signaled for a maid to bring two crabs for Xiao Yao. Immediately, a maid came over to stand beside Xiao Yao and served her crab meat.
As Xiao Yao enjoyed her crabs while eating fruit and admiring the scenery of Duke Wei's Residence, she realized that she had seen most of these chrysanthemum varieties before. For instance, that green one might be quite novel for this era but could easily be found at autumn chrysanthemum exhibitions in modern times—and there were even more beautiful colors than this one—so Xiao Yao appeared somewhat disinterested.
Su Hong sat in her seat, watching Xiao Yao, her eyes darting around, unable to suppress a smile.
Although she sat properly and appeared dignified, her expression clearly revealed that she was still a child.
Su Hong was seventeen this year and would turn eighteen in two months. She heard that Consort Xuanping was not yet sixteen; indeed, she was still a child. However, considering Xuanping Wang's age, he was just over eighteen himself, which made Su Hong sigh at how early this couple had married.
Nonetheless, Su Hong did not think there was anything wrong with marrying early; starting a family could be seen as completing one of life's milestones.
However, thinking about the rumors surrounding Xuanping Wang's romantic escapades, Su Hong couldn't help but sigh deeply. Looking at Xiao Yao's lively and bright eyes, she lowered her gaze, hoping that before Xiao Yao truly understood the ways of the world, the prince would not take any concubines.
With a heavy heart, Su Hong lamented that women like them were born as accessories to men, relying on them for survival. Once married, daughters were like water poured out; no matter how prominent their families were, how much help could they provide? This thought brought a wave of sadness over Su Hong.
These men held high positions; taking concubines was only a matter of time. By then, Xiao Yao would surely no longer be able to maintain her childlike innocence. Reflecting on her own mother’s struggles through numerous internal household battles to reach this point, Su Hong feared that matters within the prince's household and the crown prince's harem would only worsen. Currently, the prince could still wholeheartedly favor Consort Xuanping alone, but what would happen over time? It was too frightening to contemplate.
However, ultimately, it was someone else's affair. Su Hong sighed and thought it best to focus on her own matters first.
At that moment, it seemed a young unmarried girl mustered her courage to say, "Your Highness, your dress buttons are really beautiful!"
The scene immediately fell silent; in fact, more than one lady had noticed the buttons on Xiao Yao's dress but no one dared to mention it. After all, this style was unfamiliar; what if the princess took offense?
Xiao Yao was also taken aback by the comment. Looking at her dress buttons, she smiled and said, "Oh, these were specially made for me by the prince. I thought they looked nice, so I wore them."
"Truly beautiful!" A lady immediately praised and added enviously, "Xuanping Wang really does love his princess as rumored; this dress style must have been specially designed for her by the prince."
"Ah, yes," Xiao Yao smiled.
In truth, this was one of her own creations made during her leisure time. But at this moment, she didn't want to embarrass her husband; since everyone assumed He Yu made it for her, then He Yu had indeed made it. After all, they were married now—why quibble over such things?
The ladies began to compliment her in unison, and soon the courtyard became lively.
However, there were always some discordant voices that emerged to stir trouble. Sure enough, a sharp voice rang out: "The prince loves his princess so much that he even had special clothes made for her. This truly shows that the prince has seen countless women and is quite knowledgeable; in just a few months he has come up with new ideas. As the emperor said, the prince really does have a wide range of concerns."
The scene was silent, and no one dared to speak up at this moment. After all, this person had even brought up the Emperor; if they were to refute, wouldn't that mean contradicting the Emperor as well?
Xiao Yao followed the voice and felt it was somewhat familiar, but she couldn't recall where she had seen the person before. Su Hong also looked over, furrowing her brows, and coldly said, "Madam Sun, your words are excessively sarcastic. The Prince's affection for the Princess is a matter of the Xuanping Prince's Mansion. As for whether the Prince is doing serious business or not, Madam Sun is not a relative of the Prince; how would you know if he is not doing serious business?"
"You..." Madam Sun was infuriated. "This was said by the Emperor himself! Are you saying that Sister Su is about to become a Consort and doesn't even regard the Emperor?"
Upon hearing Su Hong, Xiao Yao suddenly remembered that this person must be Sun Ruoyun's mother, Sun Ruoxue. Thinking of this made Xiao Yao less angry; she sneered inwardly. Were the people of the Sun Family really all idiots? Sun Ruoxue was about to marry the Fourth Prince; didn't they know what it meant to keep a low profile? Did they really think that gaining fame required making a fool of themselves?
On the other side, Su Hong clenched her fists and was about to retort when Xiao Yao stopped her. Xiao Yao cleared her throat and smiled, saying, "May I ask Madam Sun, when did our Prince neglect his duties? Was it in public at court?"
"This..."
"If it was in public at court, then please tell me the exact year, month, day, and time. I would appreciate Madam Sun providing me with an accurate answer so I can verify it with the Emperor, right?" She feigned a look of grievance that almost made Su Hong laugh out loud, while other ladies present stifled their laughter.
Originally intending to mock Xiao Yao and humiliate her, Madam Sun was suddenly at a loss for words, her face flushed and lips trembling without uttering a single word. Xiao Yao continued, "If Madam cannot provide an answer, then it means this is something private between the Emperor and my Prince. So how did Madam come to know about this private conversation? If you cannot clarify today, then I must insist that you stay at my Xuanping Prince's Mansion for a day until you leave; otherwise..."
Xiao Yao narrowed her eyes and threatened as she looked at Madam Sun, who was already sweating profusely from fear. "My Xuanping Prince's Mansion will not let go of the Sun Residence; this matter will not end here!" (To be continued)
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