The Emperor might not value the Former Emperor that much!

But the Empress Dowager valued the Former Emperor very much. After all, he was her eldest son and an outstanding one. The Empress Dowager would obviously think highly of his children.

Chu Qing had always been holding grudges against the Empress Dowager’s favor over Chu Liuchen. If he could also win the Empress Dowager’s favor, the Emperor would definitely treat him differently, and he could realize his aspirations. But at present, the Emperor had always been indifferent to him. His identity and status had alienated the officials.

In addition, without the Emperor’s favor, Chu Qing had to go on a path that was more difficult than he had imagined.

And now there was an opportunity to show that the Empress Dowager made the decision for him and cared about him. Even if it was just a small matter, it would gradually change the officials’ views of him.

He stood up, knelt in front of the Empress Dowager, and said, “Empress Dowager, please make the decision for me!”

He let the Empress Dowager take charge of his marriage without reservation, as if he would listen to whatever she said.

This showed his full trust.

The Empress Dowager kept silent for a while, and then said slowly, “No matter what the Marquis Xing’s Mansion has in mind, it should be done as planned!”

“I understand!” Chu Qing said respectfully, completely obeying the Empress Dowager’s words.

Seeing that he was so respectful, the Empress Dowager sighed and said, “Get up first. In the future, you can also call me Imperial Grandmother like other princes!”

“Yes…” Chu Qing’s eyes turned red with excitement. He turned his head in case the Empress Dowager would see his excitement. He hurriedly wiped a tear and said, “Thank you, Imperial Grandmother!”

This was the first time he called the Empress Dowager “Imperial Grandmother” in front of her. This meant that she recognized him.

After Chu Qing sat down, the Empress Dowager asked, “Since this matter has been settled, you should make a proposal. What about the family that you have engaged with before?”

“We have been engaged very early and that family is not a powerful one. We were just holding the past commitment,” Chu Qing said gently.

The Empress Dowager got more and more satisfied with his attitude. “How is the preparation for the wedding going?”

The Empress Dowager had never asked about it before.

“We’re choosing the date. When the date is chosen, we will let Imperial Grandmother know,” he said.

“That’s good. A concubine is different from a legal wife. The concubine could only marry into the family after the legal wife marries into the family. You can send the betrothal gifts to Marquis Xing’s Mansion first. She is just a concubine, so you can be casual. Besides, Marquis Xing’s Mansion should thank you for this matter…” the Empress Dowager said meaningfully.

Shao Wanru glanced at Chu Qing calmly and saw that there were still traces of tears in the corners of his eyes. He looked at the Empress Dowager with the kindest eyes. Anyone would believe that this grandson was deeply devoted to his grandmother and would agree to whatever his grandmother said. He was a very filial child.

Sure enough, Chu Qing acted exactly as what Shao Wanru had imagined. He nodded repeatedly like a normal grandson in front of his grandmother and said, “Yes, Imperial Grandmother! You are right. I will listen to you!”

They seemed to be close to each other. Although their relationship couldn’t compare with that between the Empress Dowager and Chu Liuchen in the past, they were definitely close!

As for who to engage with, Old Madam of Marquis Xing’s Mansion still hoped that Shao Wanru would volunteer to nominate Shao Caihuan. But Shao Wanru didn’t think it was a good thing.

Although Shao Caihuan had intended to hurt her, she was just going with the flow. In the current situation, it seemed that Shao Caihuan had indeed given up on Chu Liuchen. But even in this case, Shao Wanru was unwilling to give her a hand.

Chu Qing was definitely not a good match for Shao Caihuan. That nominal Second Uncle wanted to marry Shao Caihuan to a better man, Shao Wanru would not let them succeed.

The Empress Dowager made a decision for Chu Qing, so this matter was set in stone. No matter how hard Old Madam and Shao Jing tried, they could not change this matter.

She wanted to see who else would come on board at this time. Would that be Prince Cheng or someone else?

After the Empress Dowager talked with Chu Qing for a while, she sent him out and specially asked Shao Wanru to stay.

After Chu Qing left, the palace maids served tea again. The Empress Dowager held the teacup and fell silent. She looked at the tea in the cup thoughtfully and frowned slightly.

Shao Wanru sat quietly aside and waited for the Empress Dowager to speak.

After a long time, the Empress Dowager asked, “How is Chen’er now?”

“Empress Dowager, Prince Chen is much better now. He is fine!” Shao Wanru answered in a soft voice. Her attitude was very gentle, decent, and calm.

“Chen’er has always been in poor health. Although he is getting better now, you must be careful. He has always been willful and doesn’t pay attention to his own health usually. Now you have married into Prince Chen’s Mansion, you should pay more attention to his health and care about him. Don’t be reckless!” The Empress Dowager looked up at Shao Wanru and said.

As she looked at Shao Wanru’s beautiful face, her eyes involuntarily darkened. Her beauty might not be a good thing, but since Chen’er liked her, she certainly had to protect her.

The Empress Dowager said, “I have long known that you are the granddaughter of Rui’an Great Elder Princess and the fourth legitimate daughter of Marquis Xing. Even though your father used to be the heir of the former Duke Xing, he is nobody now. But now you have a new identity. You are Princess Chen and have a close relationship with Prince Chen. As long as Prince Chen is fine, you will be fine!”

“I understand. I will definitely take good care of Prince Chen and won’t get him involved in the affairs of Marquis Xing’s Mansion!” Shao Wanru answered without hesitation in a soft but firm voice. She stared at the Empress Dowager with her watery eyes. They were amazingly beautiful and convincing.

“You were not so close to Marquis Xing’s Mansion, which was not a good thing for you in the past. But in the future, you should keep an eye on matters concerning Marquis Xing’s Mansion, and don’t get Prince Chen’s Mansion involved in it. Chen’er is in poor health, so he can’t be too worried!” A smile appeared on the Empress Dowager’s face, and her expression became gentle.

“She is different,” the Empress Dowager thought to herself, “although all the Princesses are beautiful, it is obvious that she is more responsible. There are many weak women in the imperial family, especially those who have no opinions at all. It is not a good thing to be overly obedient, especially when the woman is supposed to be a legal wife.”

Her worries about Shao Wanru’s beauty gradually fade away. “At least such a thing would not happen to Chen’er!” The Empress Dowager thought to herself.

“Imperial Grandmother, don’t worry. You know that although I had come from Marquis Xing’s Mansion, I’m closer to my maternal grandmother. She truly cares about me.” Shao Wanru lowered her head, with tears in her sorrowful eyes.

The Empress Dowager had heard about the hatred between Marquis Xing’s Mansion and Shao Wanru several times. How could she not know it? She disliked the stupidity of the Old Madam of Marquis Xing’s Mansion.

In terms of bloodline, Shao Wanru was indeed the noblest one.

However, Old Madam of Marquis Xing’s Mansion attached more importance to the second branch. In the past, the Empress Dowager could not intervene in this kind of thing. After all, these were internal affairs of Marquis Xing’s Mansion. No matter how powerful the Empress Dowager was, she had to be unbiased, and she could not be partial to Shao Wanru because of Rui’an Great Elder Princess. But the situation was different now.

With Shao Wanru’s current identity, people knew she was nobler than anyone in Marquis Xing’s Mansion now.

Marquis Xing’s Mansion’s position had begun to decline. The Empress Dowager didn’t want Shao Wanru to be dragged down by Marquis Xing’s Mansion. At present, it was best for Shao Wanru to stay away from Marquis Xing’s Mansion.

“Your second sister will marry into Commandery Prince Qing’s Mansion in the future, but she is just a concubine, which is different from you. You are a legal wife!” The Empress Dowager reminded Shao Wanru again.

“Imperial Grandmother, I understand. In the husbands’ family, only the legal wives can be sisters. As for the concubine…” Shao Wanru paused and then added with a smile, “As for the concubine and the legal wife, of course, they can’t be sisters. The concubine should behave like a concubine!”

Before marrying into Commandery Prince Qing’s Mansion, Shao Jie’er had already pissed the Empress Dowager off, which was to the delight of Shao Wanru.

Shao Jie’er had never known her place, neither was that nominal Second Uncle. Shao Wanru wanted to know what they would do when they found that Chu Qing insisted on marrying Shao Jie’er. Shao Wanru was really looking forward to it.

The Empress Dowager increasingly felt that Shao Wanru was smart. She had thought that she would have to spend more effort to teach Shao Wanru how to behave. Unexpectedly, Shao Wanru could draw inferences about other cases from one instance. She smiled more and nodded repeatedly while looking at Shao Wanru. Although she lacked the support of Marquis Xing’s Mansion and was therefore not so resourceful, she was chosen by Chen’er himself after all. Moreover, she was smart, and that could compensate a lot.

“It’s good that you think so. If you need anything in the future, you can come to me. Prince Chen is going to the border in a while. You should pack the luggage for him and make sure he lives comfortably when he is away from home. As for you, after Chen’er leaves, you can come to the palace and spend some time with me if you have time!” The Empress Dowager was satisfied, so she naturally intended to protect Shao Wanru.

“Thank you, Imperial Grandmother!” Shao Wanru said with a big smile. She stood up and bowed deeply to the Empress Dowager again with gratitude on her face. She was really moved. The Empress Dowager reminded her of Old Madam Qin. It felt so good when someone paid attention to her and wanted to protect her.

Different from Chu Qing’s affectation, the admiration in Shao Wanru’s eyes was more obvious and sincere. Although Shao Wanru didn’t cry and had a slight decent smile on her face, the Empress Dowager felt that she really felt close to her.

“She is also a poor child.” The Empress Dowager couldn’t help but think so…