Tang Qingwan shook her head slightly, a faint and breezy smile lingering on her face, as if she did not truly take this matter to heart.
Yet, everyone knew that she had feelings for the Crown Prince.
The atmosphere fell into a brief stagnation; for a moment, no one spoke.
Eventually, it was Tang Qingwan who changed the subject first. Yunchu, how are you getting along with Young Master Chen?
Old Madam Cui immediately cast her gaze over.
Cui Yunchu was currently pondering in her heart how she should phrase it so she could decline this marriage.
Old Madam Cui said, The Chen family has a noble character, so presumably Young Master Chen won't be too bad either.
...
He wasn't exactly bad, but Cui Yunchu was no fool. If one were to say that the young master of the Chen family was highly satisfied with her, that was absolutely not true either.
Grandmother, Young Master Chen... doesn't seem very satisfied with your granddaughter.
Why do you say that? Old Madam Cui knitted her brows tightly.
Cui Yunchu coughed lightly. After all, my reputation is not good.
Those are all wild speculations from outsiders. My Yunchu is as beautiful as a flower, gentle, and filial. Even the paragons of noble young ladies in the capital cannot compare to a ten-thousandth of you.
... Let alone others, even Cui Yunchu felt her face burn with shame upon hearing Old Madam Cui's words.
Everyone knew exactly what kind of character she had. Wasn't this just lying through one's teeth?
Yunchu, tell Grandmother honestly, did that Young Master Chen say something about you? Old Madam Cui's expression instantly turned cold.
Tang Qingwan and Cui Yunfeng also frowned at her, their expressions looking unfriendly on her behalf.
Cui Yunchu hurriedly shook her head, fearing that if she was even a step too slow, Young Master Chen would be settled by these three.
No, no. After all, I am a daughter of the Cui family. The Chen family has to give the Cui family some face. Especially the young lady of the Chen family, she is quite enthusiastic and treats me very well.
More importantly, Chen Miao was also Shen Xiaobai's future niece-in-law.
Hearing this, Old Madam Cui frowned. Then why are you dissatisfied with Young Master Chen?
The Chen family's character, background, and family traditions were carefully selected by Old Madam Cui from among the official families. Unless there was a major problem, she truly did not want to give them up.
Especially now, with the Emperor's suppression of the Cui family becoming almost blatant, Old Madam Cui was even more anxious, wanting to marry off the two girls as soon as possible to keep them away from trouble.
Why? How was Cui Yunchu supposed to explain?
To speak without shame, she understood men's gazes quite well. When that Young Master Chen stared at her, he showed the amazement a man has for a woman, but it was merely driven by her physical appearance.
Deep down, he was likely critical and disdainful of her.
She also knew the reason her grandmother wanted her to marry into the Chen family.
After all, when a woman marries, she doesn't just marry her husband, but everyone inside and out, top to bottom in her husband's family. Compared to all that, as long as the husband's character wasn't terribly bad, it didn't matter much.
Only with loving parents-in-law could a daughter-in-law live comfortably. She would be marrying over to be the mistress of the household. By the time her parents-in-law passed away, she would have long grasped the power of the estate in her hands. With children by her side, even her husband would have to respect her.
When official families took wives, this was generally what they sought. After all, only considering love and romance was the business of concubines.
Three people and six eyes were staring at Cui Yunchu. She could only force a smile. I just feel that the way Young Master Chen looks at me isn't very warm.
Cui Yunchu had no choice but to briefly recount the incident at the rouge shop, selectively emphasizing the sarcastic remarks Liu Wanting had made about her.
Perhaps Liu Wanting's words made Young Master Chen feel uncomfortable when he heard them.
But it was also a fact that he hadn't said much.
Old Madam Cui was very angry at first, but upon hearing that Shen Zilan had stood up for Cui Yunchu and fiercely retorted, a hint of complexity surfaced on her face.
Yunchu, the young master of the Shen family you mentioned, is it that Shen family?
Cui Yunchu nodded, looking at Old Madam Cui unblinkingly, trying to glean some clues.
But the complexity lasted only for a moment before Old Madam Cui regained her calmness. The descendants personally taught by Dowager Shen can never go wrong.
Grandmother seemed to have a very high opinion of the Shen family.
Before Cui Yunchu could think further, Tang Qingwan spoke up from the side, Yunchu, I am the one who implicated you.
Cui Yunfeng set down her teacup and said unhappily, We are family, so let's not talk about who implicated whom. If it weren't for Cousin holding the fort, how could Eldest Sister and I live such carefree days now?
Old Madam Cui nodded, strongly agreeing with Cui Yunfeng's words.
Cui Yunfeng continued, However, that Young Master Chen is so easily swayed, believing whatever he hears. I'm afraid he's not someone you can entrust your life to. We can't have him go out in the future, listen to some foul-mouthed people gossiping, and then come home to cause trouble for you, Sister, right?
How could you live like that?
Old Madam Cui nodded again. Yunfeng makes sense.
Cui Yunchu looked at Cui Yunfeng and remained silent.
This girl truly had a piercingly accurate judgment of people.
Wasn't that exactly how Young Master Chen was?
Cui Yunchu subconsciously recalled her past life. After Cui Yunfeng married him, Xiao Yi was unwilling to let go and entangled her in every possible way.
Yunfeng was not a shameless person. Although her heart belonged to Xiao Yi, after her marriage, she devoted herself entirely to Young Master Chen, intending to cut ties with the past and live a good life.
But public clamor can melt gold, and accumulated slander can destroy bone. That Chen Jiuhe didn't dare offend Xiao Yi and couldn't afford to fall out with the Cui family, so upon hearing unpleasant gossip, he would throw tantrums and make life miserable...
Just recalling it was annoying.
That was Yunfeng. If it had been her, she would have been drowned in spittle and cursed as shameless thousands of times a day.
Old Madam Cui finally spoke up, Grandmother will mull over this matter later. If it really won't work, we will just call off the marriage.
Thank you, Grandmother, Cui Yunchu said immediately.
Seeing her reaction, Old Madam Cui knew that this marriage was nine times out of ten not going to happen, and she sighed softly in her heart.
She began to consider other decent families from that small booklet.
The Chen family was not outstanding; they could even be called mediocre, a very conventional family.
And this was exactly the kind of family Old Madam Cui wanted to pick for her two granddaughters, especially for Cui Yunchu.
She was afraid that families with too high a status would be too picky. After all, Cui Yunchu was born of a concubine, loved to cause trouble, had a bad reputation, and didn't have a very good temper...
She worried that if she married into such a family, she would be made things difficult for and treated harshly.
Cui Yunchu's marriage was like a sore spot in Old Madam Cui's heart. As long as it wasn't settled, it remained a knot in her chest, making her uncomfortable.
The three sisters sat in the Songhe Garden for half the day. After Old Madam Cui gave them many instructions regarding the palace banquet tomorrow, she felt a bit tired.
The three sisters took their leave one by one.
In this season, it was already slightly hot, and the sunlight was intense. Cui Yunfeng trotted onto the bluestone path first. Wearing a peach-pink dress, she looked like a nimble fairy, the dangling hairpin on her head emitting a dazzling light under the sun.
Cui Yunchu's gaze landed on her hair ornaments.
Second Sister seems to be in a very good mood?
Cui Yunfeng turned her eyes, smiling brightly. As long as our family members are all here, I am in a good mood every day.
Is that so? A malicious smile surfaced on Cui Yunchu's lips. Then, hasn't Second Sister returned my hair ornaments to me yet?
Cui Yunfeng's smile instantly collapsed, her mood changing more unpredictably than snow falling in June.
Tang Qingwan paused in her tracks, inching backward with the intention of slipping away unnoticed.
"Cousin, once I return from Yunfeng's, I'll come find you to collect it."
She still hadn't received the second set of jewelry that was promised to her last time.
"...Didn't I already give it to you?" Tang Qingwan asked, her brows knitting into a frown.
