Lu Jinshuang sat on a chair nearby, watching the two sisters with a smile, and asked in a lazy tone, "So? How's the food at my place?"
Xi Weilan's mouth was stuffed full, and she nodded as she chewed, "Mhm, the food at the princess's place is delicious, much better than the restaurants."
Hearing this praise, the corners of Lu Jinshuang's lips curled up. She really was just a child, comparing her princess manor's cooking to outside restaurants.
"As long as you like it. If there's anything you want to eat, just say the word, and they'll make it for you."
Xi Qingyue gladly accepted her kindness. After all, Lu Qianning had said the gates of the princess manor were always open to them, and this woman was Lu Qianning's sister, so eating and staying here felt about the same.
Once they were full and satisfied, Lu Jinshuang stood up before Xi Qingyue could even speak. "Come on, big sister will take you out of the manor to watch the street performances."
Xi Qingyue and Xi Weilan were naturally delighted, as they had planned to go out and play anyway.
She pulled Xi Weilan along and followed behind Lu Jinshuang. When they reached the exit of Qiuju Courtyard, Lu Jinshuang stopped, turned around, and scooped Xi Weilan up into her arms. The little doll, as delicate as carved jade, was simply adorable no matter how you looked at her.
Xi Weilan, held in her arms, stared curiously at her face for a good while. "Princess, why don't you look anything like Big Sister Lu at all?"
Lu Jinshuang's smile deepened at this. "That's because we both take after our own mothers. One day, I'll let you meet my mother; she'll definitely adore you too."
Hearing this, Xi Qingyue felt quite surprised. Since the Seventh Princess and Lu Qianning were so close, and her mother was still alive, why would she just stand by and let Lu Qianning go off for a political marriage?
She had never asked Lu Qianning about the marriage alliance, because it involved family betrayal and she didn't want to poke at old wounds. But asking the Seventh Princess was a different matter.
Once they were all in the carriage, Xi Qingyue couldn't help but ask curiously, "Princess, since you and Big Sister Lu are so close, why didn't you stop her when she went to marry far away?"
At the mention of this, Lu Jinshuang was furious.
"She was set up by her own little brother. That wretched brat worked together with the Fourth Prince and staged a play, pretending to be poisoned and on the verge of death. The Fourth Prince told her that if she agreed to the marriage alliance, she'd get the antidote, and only gave her half an hour to decide. She agreed for the sake of saving a life. Afterward, I advised her to back out, but she said a move made cannot be taken back, and that once she'd accepted the imperial decree, going back on it would be defying orders. She also said that when she got to Bei Yue, she'd fake her own death and escape, since she didn't want to stay in the capital anyway. And then what happened? She got tricked again."
At first, Lu Jinshuang didn't know that the Tenth Prince was in league with the Fourth Prince. She merely vented her anger on the Tenth Prince and stopped talking to him.
Later, one night when she went to Xingzhu Tower to listen to music, she happened to see the Fourth Prince and the Tenth Prince drinking together. Both were drunk and bragging smugly. She overheard the entire truth on the spot and immediately beat the Fourth Prince into a serious state.
As for the Tenth Prince, she'd leave him for Lu Qianning to deal with personally when she returned.
After listening to her account, Xi Qingyue felt that Lu Qianning wasn't worth it. Raising such a brother was worse than having none.
Luckily, Lu Qianning knew martial arts and had loyal people, and she woke up to the truth quickly. When she comes back this time, even if someone killed the Tenth Prince right in front of her, she probably wouldn't bat an eye.
Xi Weilan raised her little fist. "Big Sister, next time we run into the Tenth Prince, I'll get back at him for Big Sister Lu!"
Lu Jinshuang's mood lifted at this sight. That little fist wasn't even enough to scratch an itch.
She couldn't help but pat Xi Weilan's head and smile with pursed lips. "Little Lan'er, the Ninth Prince has to call me Seventh Sister, so isn't it only right that you two call me eldest sister too? You know, there's a long line of girls in the capital wanting to be my little sisters."
This time, Xi Qingyue didn't refuse. She nodded with a smile at Lu Jinshuang. "Alright then, we'll call you Sister Jinshuang. After all, the jade pendant has to have an owner eventually. Just don't regret it later."
With that, the two said in unison, "Sister Jinshuang."
Lu Jinshuang's eyes sparkled even brighter at the call. Taking out two such obedient kids would surely make all those sisters of hers jealous.
Just then, a guard's voice came from outside the carriage curtain. "Your Highness, we've arrived at Drunk Moon Tower."
Dongxue immediately got off and lifted the curtain. Lu Jinshuang carried Xi Weilan down from the carriage, with Xi Qingyue following closely behind.
Lu Jinshuang pointed at the signboard of Drunk Moon Tower and introduced it to the two with a smile. "They have all kinds of street performances here, different every day. Lots of kids in the capital love coming here, watching the shows while snacking. You're bound to enjoy it."
Xi Qingyue also broke into a smile. "Mhm, Big Sister Lu told us about this place. We already know all the fun spots and good food in the capital."
At this, Lu Jinshuang felt a strange twinge, as if something was off, but she couldn't place it for the moment.
She held Xi Weilan in her arms and pulled Xi Qingyue by the hand toward the entrance of Drunk Moon Tower. Many others had also come to watch the performances, and there were already several lavish carriages parked at the door.
Those who saw her actions all looked taken aback, especially those who had dealt with the Seventh Princess before.
The Tenth Prince happened to witness this scene, and his brows furrowed so tightly they could crush a fly. The Seventh Princess had always been good to him before, but after his sister left, she stopped paying him any attention. Now, she was getting all cozy with two kids she'd picked up from who knows where. He had no idea what she was thinking.
The young wastrels following him noticed his displeasure and eagerly offered their services. "Your Highness, do you need us to do something?"
The Tenth Prince eased his expression and put on a warm, refined smile. "No, I just worry the Seventh Princess might be fooled by those two children. Unfortunately, she's been in a bad mood lately and doesn't really want to see me. Sigh."
With that, he strode into Drunk Moon Tower. The wastrels behind him exchanged glances and quickly formed a plan.
They didn't believe the Seventh Princess truly cared about two random kids. It must just be a passing novelty to keep them around. Since the Tenth Prince didn't like them, they'd take care of the problem themselves by getting rid of the two little brats.
Many others also spotted the Xi sisters. The Duchess An arrived at the same place with her young grandson.
After Duke Anguo had been flogged, he'd gone home and thrown a mighty tantrum. Her little grandson had been scared to tears, and it had taken a while to calm him down before she brought him out for some fun.
"Grandmother, it's because of them that Grandfather got flogged. If they hadn't bought out all the pastries, Grandmother wouldn't have sent people to investigate, and the princesses wouldn't have gone to the palace to file complaints, and Grandfather wouldn't have been punished. It's all their fault, those two."
Song Qian pointed angrily at the backs of Xi Qingyue and the others, his three-year-old face full of indignation.
Ever since the Seventh Princess had made a grand return to the capital yesterday with the two children, the households that had been stripped of their salaries learned that the two kids who had bought up the pastries were staying in the princess manor. Every one of them harbored a bellyful of resentment toward the two children, mainly because they didn't dare to take it out on the Seventh Princess, so they redirected their anger elsewhere.
The Duchess An's expression wasn't very pleasant either. She had brought her grandson out to watch performances to ease his mind, and yet they ran into the two pastry-buying culprits again. She couldn't help but feel it was an ill omen.
"Qian'er, there's no need to get worked up over people like these. It's not worth it."
