The peasant girl has a private space, and her husband is handsome.

The birthday banquet at the Duke of Anguo's mansion was more lively than ever before because of the gorgeous dress Meng Baozhu wore.

In the flower-filled Langxiu Garden, all the noble ladies gathered around Baozhu, particularly curious about Sister Su who had given Meng Baozhu the gorgeous dress.

"Baozhu, which household does your Sister Su belong to?"

"It's from Qinghe County."

Meng Baozhu was simple-minded and straightforward; she answered whatever was asked and immediately gave the address.

The noble ladies looked surprised. They had always believed that the capital city where they lived was the most prosperous and advanced place in the entire Great Qi Dynasty, but they never expected that it would be surpassed by a remote small county town.

This is truly incredible.

The noble ladies secretly memorized the name Qinghe County, guessing that the clothes that Miss Su gave to Meng Baozhu were most likely from an embroidery shop or a ready-made clothing store in Qinghe County.

But the name Qinghe County sounds too unfamiliar, and it might be very far away, so going there to buy clothes is not realistic.

The noble ladies then focused their attention on the gorgeous dress Baozhu was wearing, wanting to note down more details in order to replicate the most similar garment.

They came from prestigious families, and learning the arts was essential for them. They planned to observe carefully and then draw a rough sketch of the design when they returned home, so that the embroiderers in the mansion could use it as a reference to make a similar dress.

Princess Zhaohua smiled sincerely: "I really like Baozhu's straightforward personality."

Many girls who approached her had various ulterior motives, but this Baozhu was as simple as a blank sheet of paper. Dealing with a girl like her was straightforward, effortless, and very comfortable.

"Baozhu, I'll come to the Meng residence to visit you later, and we can chat about your interesting older sister Su."

People love to hear nice things. If you want to get closer to someone, the best topic is to praise the people and things they like.

Princess Zhaohua is wearing a dress made of flowing brocade, a gift from the Empress. Although it is quite outstanding, it is still a bit less original than the gorgeous dress worn by Meng Baozhu.

So I wanted to go to the Meng residence to see the other set of embroidered ginkgo leaves that Baozhu mentioned, and to see how dazzling it was.

While we're at it, we can also try to find out from Baozhu which girl surnamed Su is the one who made this gorgeous dress, so we can send someone to buy it.

Buy one for her older sister, who is the empress, too, so that she can seduce the emperor.

"Okay." Baozhu thought that Princess Zhaohua had good taste, just like her, when she heard Princess Zhaohua praise Sister Su for being interesting.

Meng Yushuang stood at a distance, twisting her handkerchief tightly in her hands, her heart burning with jealousy.

Before they left, the First Madam instructed them to try their best to befriend Princess Zhaohua, but Princess Zhaohua only had eyes for Meng Baozhu.

Moreover, the other girls ignored them and only lingered around Meng Baozhu.

It's truly unexpected that Meng Baozhu won everyone's favor and attention with just a beautiful dress.

Many girls deliberately tried to get close to and please Meng Baozhu in order to find out where the clothes came from.

That's so enviable.

The women of the Meng family had lunch at the Duke of Anguo's residence and returned home before sunset.

The First Madam had all three daughters—the Third, Fourth, and Sixth Misses—summoned before her. Her own eldest and second daughters were already married, while these were the legitimate daughters of the other branches of the family.

The First Madam wanted to hear what the young girls had done and who they had befriended at the Duke's mansion, mainly because she was afraid of any slip-ups that might offend other households.

I was shocked when I heard the answer.

Over the years, she had thought that many of the young ladies in the manor were close in age to Princess Zhaohua, and she hoped that the young ladies could befriend Princess Zhaohua, but she had not made any progress all these years.

However, the fifth daughter of the main wife, who returned from the small town of Qinghe County, managed to get on the good side of Princess Zhaohua after only attending one banquet, and was even sought after by the noble ladies of other households.

The fifth branch of the family, without saying a word, gave her a huge surprise.

The sixth sister, Meng Yuqing, complained, "It's really not our fault for not being capable. The main problem is that we don't have a gorgeous dress like the seventh sister. Otherwise, Princess Zhaohua would have befriended us too. The seventh sister's connection with Princess Zhaohua wasn't based on her personal abilities at all; it was all because of that beautiful dress."

Meng Yushuang quickly chimed in, "Yes, it's all because of that damned dress, and that girl surnamed Su or something."

Managing such a large mansion must be exhausting. When the First Madam went to the Duke of Anguo's mansion, she rode in a separate carriage and was busy checking accounts with the head maid. She didn't even notice what Baozhu was wearing.

I just thought what the girls were saying was too exaggerated, and I thought that no matter how pretty they were, they couldn't be that good-looking.

The First Madam had developed many fine lines around her eyes, and there were also silver threads in her hair.

As she listened to the chattering of the young girls, the image of Fifth Madam came to mind. So many years had passed, yet Fifth Sister-in-law seemed to have not aged at all, looking remarkably young, on par with the young girls before her. It was truly enviable.

She was the only one who looked the oldest, as she held the power of housekeeping.

There are gains and losses. Although she held the entire wealth of the Meng family in her hands, she did not live as comfortably as her fifth sister-in-law.

The fifth sister-in-law not only looks younger than her, but is also very much loved by the fifth brother. The fifth branch of the family has no concubines, but the first branch has three concubines, and her husband has recently become infatuated with an actress.

Fourth Miss Meng Yushuang said dismissively, "It's just a new and pretty dress. Princess Zhaohua will surely forget about it soon."

Immediately, a servant delivered a note, sent by Princess Zhaohua, saying that she would be visiting Miss Meng the next morning.

The First Madam was having a headache from the noise of the young girls, and there was still a pile of account books waiting to be checked, so she waved her hand at the girls.

"Go back now and get ready. Princess Zhaohua will be coming to the manor tomorrow, which will be your opportunity. You and Baozhu should treat the princess well."

\

In the Duke of Anguo's mansion, Princess Zhaohua lay on the soft bed, unable to sleep. Her mind was filled with the gorgeous dress Meng Baozhu had worn during the day. She could only imagine how dazzling the other dress embroidered with ginkgo leaves must have been!

She couldn't wait to see the long dress embroidered with ginkgo leaves.

Unable to resist her curiosity, Princess Zhaohua went to the Meng residence early the next morning, despite having dark circles under her eyes.

Princess Zhaohua stared wide-eyed at the magnificent dress embroidered with ginkgo leaves that Baozhu had mentioned, her eyes wide with astonishment.

She noticed that the crystal pebbles sewn on the gorgeous dress sparkled, and its overall golden hue made it even more luxurious and suitable for her status as a princess.

Baozhu's previous dress embroidered with four-leaf clovers looked too cute.

Who designed this outfit? They are incredibly talented; I'd love to meet them.

"Sister Baozhu, can I have this dress? I have many treasures in my storeroom. In exchange, you can go to our Duke's mansion and choose whatever you like."

"No, this is a gift from Sister Su."

Sitting in the same room, Meng Yushuang pouted. She had never seen the princess speak to anyone so ingratiatingly, yet this seventh sister was so ungrateful that she refused.

"Seventh Sister, how could you refuse Princess Zhaohua?"

As soon as she finished speaking, she was scolded by Princess Zhaohua, "Meng Yushuang, this is none of your business. Go do what you're supposed to do."

Meng Yushuang covered her mouth with a handkerchief and ran away crying.

She was clearly speaking up for Princess Zhaohua, but Princess Zhaohua scolded it instead.

It's all that fancy dress's fault.

After Meng Yushuang left, Princess Zhaohua spoke softly to Baozhu, saying, "It's alright if we don't exchange them. Could you lend me this beautiful dress for two days? I'll have an embroiderer make one, and then I'll send someone to return the original to you."

Princess Zhaohua spoke to her like she was coaxing a child, saying all sorts of nice things.

"Baozhu, it's mainly because your Sister Su is so amazing. The clothes she gave me are so beautiful, I can't wait to have a similar one."

This time, Princess Zhaohua gained Baozhu's approval by praising Baozhu's sister, Su.

In Baozhu's heart, everyone who likes Sister Su is a good person.

"Alright, Princess, you must be careful to protect this dress and not damage it."

Princess Zhaohua patted her chest and assured her, "Baozhu, you can rest assured, even if I hurt myself, I won't ruin this gorgeous dress."

Meng Baozhu verbally agreed to lend it, but she clung to the gorgeous dress, unwilling to let go.

"Princess, please take good care of this beautiful dress, otherwise Sister Su will definitely be angry."

Princess Zhaohua became increasingly certain that Baozhu cared most about her sister Su.