The Garrison Commander's Wife saw The Prefect's Wife return to her seat with a poor complexion.
She cleverly guessed that the woman must have hit a wall.
No matter how worthless the son of The Prefect's Wife was, he was still a legitimate son born of the main wife.
If the Princess Consort of Pingyang looked down on him, then she would certainly look down even more on her own illegitimate son.
She was somewhat unwilling to just give up like this.
However, she only had one legitimate son of her own, and he was already engaged.
She had just overheard that the Prince of Pingyang favored scholars.
She suddenly remembered her nephew from her maiden family. He was ten years old this year, said to be quite good at his studies, and had passed the county-level imperial exam early on.
Her nephew was also preparing to take the provincial exam in the second half of the year to try his luck.
If he could pass, and then secure a marriage alliance with the Princess Consort of Pingyang, wouldn't it be a double blessing?
Thinking of this, The Garrison Commander's Wife walked over with a beaming smile.
"The Princess is so smart, lively, and adorable. She truly makes people adore her just by looking at her," The Garrison Commander's Wife said, singing praises non-stop as soon as she arrived.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang smiled faintly but did not reply.
She wanted to see what kind of flowery words The Garrison Commander's Wife could come up with.
Not receiving a response from the Princess Consort of Pingyang, The Garrison Commander's Wife did not feel embarrassed in the slightest.
She covered her mouth and chuckled to herself first.
"Your Highness, I would like to play the matchmaker. What do you think?"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang had not expected The Garrison Commander's Wife to be so straightforward.
"Oh? Just now, The Prefect's Wife was looking to arrange a marriage for her son."
"And you, The Garrison Commander's Wife, just happen to want to be a matchmaker. Look at how perfectly this works out!"
"Why don't you help arrange a marriage for the son of The Prefect's Wife?"
"This is like finding a pillow just when you want to sleep. It's such a wonderful coincidence; let's consider it settled!"
"The Garrison Commander's Wife, I'll be waiting for you to finalize the match so I can attend the wedding banquet at the Prefect's estate!"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang looked at The Garrison Commander's Wife with a beaming smile, while cold sweat began to drip down the latter's forehead.
She hadn't even finished speaking, yet the Princess Consort of Pingyang had already completely blocked her path of retreat.
What was she supposed to say now?
Should she say she wanted to propose a match between her nephew and the Princess?
However, although the Princess Consort of Pingyang was smiling, she could clearly see the chilling gleam in Her Highness's eyes.
She was absolutely certain that if she dared to utter the rest of her words, the Princess Consort of Pingyang would definitely have her thrown out!
The Garrison Commander's Wife lost her nerve and gave an awkward smile.
"You must be joking, Your Highness. The Prefect's Wife has very high standards; she wouldn't look favorably upon any of the families I know."
"Marriage is all about forging a good bond between two families. As long as the character is good, it should be fine."
The Princess Consort of Pingyang stared unblinking at The Garrison Commander's Wife.
"I don't have any suitable young ladies around me, so it seems I won't be able to play the matchmaker after all."
The Garrison Commander's Wife forced a smile and found an excuse to leave.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. You are still too gentle," Xu Jinxin said, shaking her head continuously.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang restrained the smile on her face.
"Today is a big day, and I don't want irrelevant people to ruin our good mood."
Yingniang watched the retreating back of The Garrison Commander's Wife, then tugged at Xu Jinxin's sleeve.
"Mother, the Princess and I just ran into the Madam of the Song residence."
The Princess Consort of Pingyang was startled and looked Duoduo up and down.
Duoduo smiled at her, indicating that she was fine.
"Did she say anything? No matter what she told you, you must not believe her, understand?"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang was worried that Madam Song had spoken harshly to Duoduo and hurt her feelings.
Duoduo shook her head.
Yingniang also shook her head.
"She ran over and blurted out a couple of mindless sentences. I thought she was crazy at the time, so I pulled the Princess away and came back."
"What did she say?" Xu Jinxin asked.
"She said that the son of The Prefect's Wife has a cruel and violent temperament, and the maids in his room have been replaced several times over, so she told Duoduo not to marry him."
"She also said that the illegitimate son of The Garrison Commander's Wife is a fool, and she shouldn't marry him either."
"The Princess is still so young, and even I haven't been betrothed yet, so how could it be possible for her? That's why I thought she was crazy."
"So, I didn't bring it up, but I never expected that what she said was actually true."
"This is outrageous!"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang slammed her hand on the table in anger.
Duoduo trembled in fright, and the Princess Consort of Pingyang hurriedly pulled her into her arms.
"I'm sorry, Mother is just too angry! I'm not mad at you!"
Duoduo nodded obediently and reached out to stroke the cheek of the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
"Mother, don't be angry. Extreme anger harms the body, it's not good for your health."
"That's right, Su Xian. Look at how well-behaved your daughter is. Why be angry? It's not worth it!" Xu Jinxin also advised.
"It's exactly because Duoduo is so good that I'm this angry!"
"I had only heard a little bit about the son of The Prefect's Wife being somewhat worthless, but I never imagined he was this worthless!"
"Having such a son, instead of educating him properly, she actually wanted to ruin my Duoduo. I cannot swallow this insult!"
"And that Garrison Commander's Wife! Her illegitimate son, let alone being a fool, even if he were a dragon among men, I wouldn't look twice at him. How dare she even open her mouth?"
"He is nothing but a son born of a concubine, yet he dares to covet my daughter? This is utterly disregarding the Pingyang Prince's estate!"
The more the Princess Consort of Pingyang thought about it, the angrier she became.
"Someone! Take the exact words of The Prefect's Wife and The Garrison Commander's Wife from just now and pass them to the Prince, word for word!"
Unable to let it go, the Princess Consort of Pingyang decided to complain to the Prince of Pingyang.
Duoduo was their child now; looking down on Duoduo meant looking down on the Pingyang Prince's estate!
"Yes, Your Highness." Lianxin curtsied and hurriedly left.
"They are bullying us too much! If the Prince of Pingyang were still the man he used to be, how would these people dare to harbor such thoughts?"
Xu Jinxin sighed deeply.
"Our Prince was merely injured; it's not like he will be like this for the rest of his life!"
"They dare to trample on the Prince's dignity so casually now. If one day the Prince is no longer here, wouldn't I be bullied to death?"
The Princess Consort of Pingyang felt a profound sense of sorrow and vulnerability.
"Pah, pah, pah, what are you saying? Won't you still have me when that time comes?" Xu Jinxin comforted her close friend.
"Mother, when that time comes, I'll protect you!"
Duoduo snuggled tightly against the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
Duoduo could feel the deep sorrow and anger emanating from her mother.
"Look, the child is so sensible. You just worry too much, which is why your health is so poor."
"Just now, I was praising you for being strong as a mother, and now look at what you're saying."
"Hurry, wipe your tears quickly. Today is a happy day, you need to smile, understand?"
Xu Jinxin frantically searched her person for a handkerchief, but unfortunately, after checking everywhere, she couldn't find one.
Finally, she simply extended her arm in front of the Princess Consort of Pingyang.
The Princess Consort of Pingyang looked at her in astonishment, not understanding what Xu Jinxin meant.
Xu Jinxin blushed, a rare sight.
"I don't have a handkerchief, so you'll have to make do with borrowing my sleeve to wipe your tears."
The Princess Consort of Pingyang was amused and burst into laughter. She pushed Xu Jinxin's hand away, took a handkerchief from her own bosom, and wiped the corners of her eyes.
Duoduo looked at Xu Jinxin with a face full of admiration.
This aunt was too amazing; with just a few words, she could make her mother laugh.
She wanted to be just like her.
Suddenly, golden words appeared before Duoduo's eyes.
