Springtime Affairs in a Noble Family

Song Shulan frowned, his eyes dark and unfathomable; he was extremely annoyed at the moment.

He felt relieved when he confirmed that no one else was in the room.

He had always believed in Cui Lingrong's character, after all, Cui Lingrong's upbringing would never allow her to do anything against human ethics.

My previous suspicions stemmed from the feeling that Xie Yunting harbored ill intentions.

Upon seeing Cui Lingrong and Wang Guokai, Song Shulan moved her lips and said, "As long as you explain yourself clearly, we will apologize to you."

"An apology is fine, but if I explain that it was a misunderstanding, deduct six months' worth of expenses from Wutong Garden." Cui Lingrong now felt that many things could be measured in money.

Just like the old lady was dissatisfied with her, but dared not criticize her, because the old lady herself felt guilty about the money and was afraid that the whole town would know.

Now she's going to cut back on Princess Rongjia's expenses, meaning she won't give her a single penny and will make Princess Rongjia pay for her own expenses.

She knew that Princess Rongjia was actually very short of money.

Princess Rongjia's face paled. "Sister Cui, is this really necessary?"

"As for what, if I were to rush to catch you cheating, would you still be able to calmly say, 'It's alright, you're innocent anyway,'" Cui Lingrong smiled, then slowly recounted the matter of Caixia and Commander Xu's matchmaking. "A few days ago, General Xie came to my residence, wanting to ask me to help arrange a marriage for Commander Xu. Commander Xu has taken a liking to Caixia, so I had to arrange for two people to speak to him, that's all."

Seeing that Princess Rongjia did not believe her, Cui Lingrong continued, "After Caixia and Commander Xu went out, General Xie went to see a friend. If you do not believe me, you can send someone to find him."

Seeing that Song Shulan didn't move, Cui Lingrong simply sent someone to look for him herself.

Song Shulan then said, "Why didn't you inform your household before bringing Caixia here for a consultation?"

"My lord, this concerns a young lady's reputation. What can I say? Look, even now when I bring this up, everyone else is leaving," Cui Lingrong said. "Besides, Caixia is my maid; her marriage is my decision. Why should I need to consult anyone else?"

She went to see Princess Rongjia, "Just like how Princess Rongjia arranged for Lanxin and the other two to enter the mansion, but she didn't tell me."

Generally speaking, before arranging someone, you have to first inform Cui Lingrong, the person in charge.

The county magistrate of Rongjia acted first and reported later, bringing the person back before allowing Cui Lingrong to be registered, without even going through the formalities.

Moreover, Lanxin and Zhuqing were the maids arranged by Princess Rongjia for Song Shulan.

For a moment, Song Shulan felt her face flush and couldn't say a word.

Not long after, Xie Yunting arrived with a friend, who was also a military officer. The friend said that Xie Yunting had been drinking tea with him and asked what was going on here.

Family scandals should not be aired in public. How could Song Shulan let anyone know that his two wives were at odds? He had no choice but to go out and send the person away.

Xie Yunting knew the inside story. After arriving in the courtyard, he deliberately teased Song Shulan, "Lord Song is truly blessed. Even when offering incense, he brings his two wives. I wonder what Lord Song has come to ask for today?"

Song Shulan didn't want to talk to Xie Yunting any longer, but fearing he would pester her, she changed the subject to Caixia and Xu Shuanzi, saying, "I heard that Commander Xu took a liking to Caixia at first sight?"

Xie Yunting chuckled twice, seeing that Song Shulan had said it in front of his friends and hadn't given Song Shulan a good look, "Lord Song really has a thick skin."

He put his arm around his friend and left without looking back.

Song Shulan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

In the meditation room, Cui Lingrong smiled faintly at Princess Rongjia, "If you walk by the river often enough, you're bound to get your shoes wet. Princess, you're always trying to scheme against me. Aren't you afraid that one day you'll be caught off guard and never be able to recover?"

Princess Rongjia's face flushed red as she retorted, "You should think about that more carefully. Owning something that doesn't belong to you will inevitably backfire one day!"

"Not mine? I was lawfully married into the Marquis's household. No one can accuse me of stealing from others. It's the County Princess who, since marrying into the family, hasn't even offered me tea. Who is illegitimate, and who is like a bedbug hiding in the light?" Cui Lingrong deliberately paused, approaching County Princess Rongjia step by step. "Even a rabbit will bite when cornered. County Princess, be careful at night; who knows, one day I'll be there with the Marquis to catch you red-handed!"

Thinking about Yu-jie and her brother, and since there was no one else around, she vented all her old and new grievances at once, and felt much better.

As Cui Lingrong reached the door, she saw Song Shulan return and said proactively, "Lord Marquis, aren't you concerned about Caixia's marriage? Why don't you come with me to take a look, so you won't misunderstand anything?"

Song Shulan looked into the meditation room.

"Let it go. The princess said she accepts the punishment, so I won't bring it up again. Consider the six months' worth of expenses as compensation to me. The marquis wants to subsidize her privately, just don't let me know." Cui Lingrong took two steps forward. She didn't really want to travel with Song Shulan, but she knew that taking Song Shulan away would anger Princess Rongjia.

After hesitating for a moment, Song Shulan followed Cui Lingrong.

Princess Rongjia, who was in the meditation room, had come up empty-handed today. She gained nothing and had her allowance withheld by Cui Lingrong for six months.

When Chen De's wife came in, she went berserk, smashing things, yelling, "Why? Why did you let her escape unscathed again?"

Not only did her status decrease from that of a princess to a county princess, but during her time at the Jiangyuan Marquis's residence, she was constantly being manipulated by Cui Lingrong.

Six months?

How could Cui Lingrong come up with such a thing?

She uses her own money to subsidize Shou'an Hall, and now she has to pay for half a year's worth of food, clothing, and accommodation in Wutong Garden herself.

Princess Rongjia lost her temper, especially after hearing that Song Shulan did not refute Cui Lingrong's words and even followed Cui Lingrong.

Chen De's wife tried to calm her down, saying, "Don't get agitated. The eldest mistress is really good at talking; she can make even white seem black. The Marquis won't hold a grudge this time. You can coax him a bit, and things will be back to normal."

"I'm angry at Cui Lingrong, and all of you—you're utterly useless. Every time you come up with such a brilliant plan, Cui Lingrong always manages to turn the tables on you." Princess Rongjia grew angrier with each word, her anger unabated. "Now even one of her maids has managed to curry favor with Xie Yunting. If her daughter and son grow up, will there still be a place for me in the Jiangyuan Marquis's mansion?"

child!

She desperately needs a child!

Before she married into the family, she was very confident in herself.

Thinking that Cui Lingrong was merely the daughter of a minor official, she believed she could easily defeat her, yet she lost to Cui Lingrong every time. Meanwhile, Cui Lingrong's three children, Yu'er, grew increasingly beautiful with age. Xuan'er had even passed the county and prefectural examinations; if he passed the provincial examination, he would become a scholar.

Cui Lingrong's children are all grown up, but she still hasn't seen any hope.

Princess Rongjia was extremely anxious at the mere thought of this. "Go, let's go find You Shuyi and ask her to prescribe more medicine for me. Prescribe some for Lanxin and Zhuqing too!"

She wiped away her tears and hurriedly led Chen De's family and others away.

Little did anyone know that not long after Princess Rongjia left, Ershun went to the eldest mistress and the Marquis to deliver a message: "Eldest mistress, the princess has boarded her carriage and left. It's not heading in the direction of the Marquis's residence; I wonder if she's going to the Rong Prince's residence."

Upon hearing that Princess Rongjia had not returned, Song Shulan did not think of the Rong Prince's Mansion, but rather the courtyard that Princess Rongjia had been frequenting recently, and his face immediately darkened.

Cui Lingrong said casually, "If Your Excellency is worried, why don't you go and take a look?"