The legitimate daughter returns to the capital and embarks on a splendid life, tearing apart the fak

Upon hearing Chu Wanqing's question, Yun Jin blushed instantly. She lowered her head and whispered, "Mother, Jin'er doesn't know, the Prince never mentioned it."

Although I cannot reveal the engagement with Prince Yu, it would be good to give Chu Wanqing a heads-up.

Looking at her expression, Chu Wanqing understood everything. She asked solemnly, "Jin'er, when you told your mother, were you in love with Prince Yu?"

Yun Jin lowered her head, twisted her body, and said shyly, "Mother..."

Chu Wanqing's heart tightened immediately. Grabbing Yun Jin's hand, she said urgently, "Jin'er, you said a few days ago that you didn't want to get married. Is it because of Prince Yu? No, Jin'er, haven't you heard about Prince Yu's reputation? He has a bad temper, and there are many women in his household. If you marry him, you can only be a concubine. Jin'er, your mother doesn't want you to suffer even the slightest grievance."

Yun Jin: ...Prince Yu has a very good temper. He has never lost his temper with me. As for the women in his mansion, there's no need to mention them.

But there was no need to tell Chu Wanqing these things now. She pouted like a little girl and said, "No, Mother, don't think so much. You should rest first. Jin'er will go back now."

After saying that, she got up and walked out. When she reached the door, she turned back and said, "Jin'er is going to the estate tomorrow. Ask Zijuan and the others again and let them know. I'll leave early tomorrow morning."

After saying that, without waiting for Chu Wanqing to nod, he fled from Qingshui Garden as if he were escaping.

Chu Wanqing watched her retreating figure and couldn't help but feel anxious. She would rather Yun Jin marry an ordinary man as his principal wife than marry Prince Yu as his concubine.

Once Yun Jin left Qing Shui Yuan, she was no longer shy at all. She knew Chu Wan Qing was worried, but since the imperial decree for the marriage hadn't been issued yet, there was no point in saying anything more.

She brought Chunxi back to Jinshu Pavilion, where Dongxue greeted her and whispered, "Miss, the eldest young master has arrived. He's been waiting for you for quite a while."

Yun Jin nodded, lifted the curtain and went in. Sure enough, she saw Yun Lang sitting at a small table, holding a book in his hand and flipping through it absentmindedly, clearly distracted.

Hearing footsteps, he looked up and his eyes lit up immediately: "Sister! I heard that His Majesty has bestowed upon you the title of County Princess, is that true?"

Seeing his eager expression, Yun Jin couldn't help but smile and nod, "It's true."

"That's wonderful!" Yun Lang exclaimed with delight. He then rummaged in his sleeve for a while before pulling out a silver hairpin, which he handed to Yun Jin. "Sister, this is my gift to you. I saved up two months' worth of monthly allowance to buy it. Please don't find it too expensive."

The silver hairpin wasn't particularly exquisite; the head of the hairpin was adorned with a small plum blossom. The design was simple, but it was clear that it had been carefully chosen.

Yun Jin took it, stroked the plum blossom on it, and said softly, "Thank you, Lang-ge'er, I like it very much."

Yun Lang grinned and then urged, "Sister, hurry up and put it on and see if it looks good."

Yun Jin did as he asked, placing the silver hairpin in her hair and tilting her head to ask him, "Does it look good?"

Yun Lang looked at it carefully for a couple of seconds, then nodded vigorously: "Beautiful!"

Yun Jin pulled him down to sit and asked him a few questions about his studies.

Yun Lang answered them one by one. After talking for a while, Yun Jin suddenly got up and went to the inner room. A moment later, she brought out two oranges and an apple and put them into Yun Lang's hands.

Yun Lang looked down and his eyes widened in surprise: "Where did these oranges come from in the middle of winter? And apples too!"

Yun Jin raised a finger to her lips and said mysteriously, "This is my secret, you're not allowed to tell anyone."

Yun Lang nodded vigorously: "Okay, I won't even tell my mother."

After saying that, she stood up and said, "I'm going back to study now. Mother said she'll send me to the Imperial Academy after the New Year. Second sister, you should rest early."

Yun Jin smiled and agreed, then asked Dong Xue to see him out.

……

Inside the Snow Pavilion, Yunxiu entered with a sullen face, dismissed the maids, and turned to call out to Liu Zhixue, "Mother..." Before she could finish the word "mother," Liu Zhixue covered her mouth.

Liu Zhixue then pulled her quickly into the inner room, before letting go and whispering, "Xiu'er, you must never call me 'Mother' again."

Yunxiu was startled and asked in confusion, "Why? This is my courtyard, and there are no outsiders here..."

"What do you mean, 'no'? Meixiang is the Fifth Prince's woman, and Granny Su is Consort Shu's woman. Aren't they all outsiders?" Liu Zhixue interrupted her, her voice extremely low, her eyes full of vigilance.

"Both of them are by your side now. If they overhear even the slightest hint of this and it reaches the Fifth Prince's ears, have you considered what will happen?"

Yunxiu paused, still unconvinced: "But aren't you and Consort Shufei good friends?"

Liu Zhixue looked at her, remained silent for a moment, and slowly shook her head: "Xiu'er, you must know that times have changed. Now she is Consort Shu, and her son is the Fifth Prince, someone who has the potential to ascend to that position. The relationship between her and me is no longer what it used to be."

She reached out and gently brushed a stray hair from Yunxiu's temple, her voice tinged with a sigh. "Xiu'er, don't be so naive. In the eyes of the royal family, all old feelings are meaningless. You must learn to be wary of people, even those closest to you."

Yunxiu bit her lip, and after a long while, she whispered, "Xiu'er understands. Mother... Mr. Liu, now that you're back, I'll have someone prepare a room for you to stay with me at Xuezhai."

Liu Zhixue thought for a moment, then shook her head: "That's not appropriate. Your wedding is set for March. It's not suitable for me to live in your courtyard after you're married. I'll go ask the old lady first and see what she thinks."

Although Yunxiu was somewhat reluctant, she nodded nonetheless.

Liu Zhixue gave her a few more instructions before taking Si Hua to the old lady's courtyard.

Grandma Yun was sulking on the soft couch.

She had pretended to be unwell, thinking that Chu Wanqing would at least come to visit her, but to her surprise, this daughter-in-law only sent Qinghe to ask a question and didn't even show her face.

Yunheting has been entertaining guests in the front yard, and there's still no sign of him.

As soon as Liu Zhixue entered the room, she saw that the old lady looked listless and knew that she was upset about not being able to drive Yun Jin out.

She stepped forward slowly and asked softly, "Grandma, are you alright? I heard you weren't feeling well, so I came to check on you."

Grandma Yun grabbed her hand, angrily saying, "Zhixue, tell me, I've only been away from the manor for a few years, how has this family become like this? Chu Wanqing doesn't respect me at all. She didn't even tell me about such important things as recognizing me as an adopted daughter and adding me to the family genealogy! And that Yun Jin, I don't know what tricks she used, but she actually won His Majesty's favor and was bestowed the title of some county princess. Will there still be a place for me in this family?"

(I was mocked today; a colleague asked me why I'm updating so infrequently...)

I'm helpless. All I can say is that my readers are just as lazy as I am, too lazy to urge me to update.

Big babies, little babies, boys, girls, and even the older folks, wouldn't it be great if you could give a thumbs up after reading this? It's really embarrassing~)