The Devious First-Daughter

Since being proclaimed as the commandery princess, Commandery Princess Xianyun had never been so rebutted by a person who was much inferior to her.

“What do you mean, Consort Ning?” she said word by word as she stared at Ning Xueyan with some sharpness in her eyes.

Ning Xueyan raised her head to look at Commandery Princess Xianyun, with unseen light running in her eyes, had a small smile, and said, “Princess, my grandma has already made the rule about the marriage of my eldest brother. I’m afraid that she will take an official wife’s daughter as his wife.”

“He…the son of a concubine who is nothing even has a delusion of marrying an official wife’s daughter. The Lord Protector’s Manor daydreams so wildly!” Commandery Princess Xianyun pursed her lips and had apparent ridicule in her eyes.

“My grandma thinks like that. As her granddaughter, I can’t do anything about it!” Ning Xueyan said smilingly with her peaceful watery eyes.

As if she had not seen the wrath in the eyes of Commandery Princess Xianyun, she still spoke gently, looking neither humble nor arrogant, and behaved generously. She said these words extremely reasonably, giving Commandery Princess Xianyun a powerless feeling that she had punched cotton with a powerful fist.

It was not fair to claim that Ning Xueyan looked down upon the Lord Peace’s Manor, the family of the Empress Dowager’s parents. After all, this was the idea of Madam Dowager of the Lord Protector’s Manor, and the Lord Peace’s Manor also knew that Ning Huaiyuan had been the son of the official wife of the Lord Protector’s Manor and was an official wife’s outstanding son. Of course, he would marry an official wife’s daughter.

Speaking of the current powers, the Lord Peace’s Manor without the support of the Empress Dowager was not comparable to the Lord Protector’s Manor, the new rising star. It was unsuitable to build a marriage bond between a concubine’s daughter of the declining Lord Peace’s Manor and the son of the previous official wife of the Lord Protector’s Manor. Although the son of an official wife had now become the son of a concubine, the Lord Protector’s Manor would not easily give up such an outstanding child when the situation of the manor was taken into consideration. Thus, the daughter of a concubine was far from qualified to match this son.

It was fair to say that if Commandery Princess Xianyun had not been proclaimed as the commandery princess and had not won the favor of the emperor and the Empress Dowager, she would have had no chance to secure her position of being the princess of Prince Yi’s Manor. Compared with Commandery Princess Xianyun, Ning Xueyan, who was now the daughter of the official wife of the Lord Protector’s Manor, was even more suitable than Commandery Princess Xianyun for serving as the princess of Prince Yi’s Manor if factors, apart from the situation that she was not a commandery princess, were taken into account.

“Sister Ning, could you go and say it for me?” Suppressing her anger forcefully, Commandery Princess Xianyun calmed down again.

“Sister, I’m really sorry. The previous candidates in my grandma’s place were all daughters of the official wives of the officials on the fourth rank or above. If…” Ning Xueyan said with an embarrassed expression.

Speaking of the officials on the fourth rank or above, the Lord Peace’s Manor had already failed to meet the standard. Now all those in the same generation as Commandery Princess Xianyun’s father only held the positions with very little to do, and none of them was on the chief fourth rank.

Commandery Princess Xianyun almost spurted blood when hearing these words, which meant that the Lord Peace’s Manor had not reached a certain high level, but Ning Xueyan still maintained an embarrassed expression. Commandery Princess Xianyun felt that if she continued her talk, she was likely to truly spurt blood. Instantly, a little bit of sharp coldness appeared and vanished in her eyes.

Then she did not want to talk about it anymore. “Sister Ning, tomorrow is the end of the imperial examination. One of my younger brothers is also on the examination site. When the list of successful candidates is published in a few days, let’s go and take a look.”

This was very normal. In a family, if someone was an imperial examination attendee, those who cared about him would naturally pay attention to the publishing of the list of successful candidates. So, if Ning Xueyan had not heard the words that were said just now, she would think that Commandery Princess Xianyun especially invited her to see the list of successful candidates because she did care about her younger brother.

But now, her behavior was really suspicious.

“Okay, princess, you may notify me by sending someone to me by then!” Ning Xueyan said with a smile.

Since she had said what she wanted to say, Commandery Princess Xianyun stood up, and her expression had regained the peacefulness and quietness she had a while ago. “Then I’m going back now, Sister Ning. When I get the news, let’s go out together.”

Ning Xueyan also stood up and saw her off to the entrance of the courtyard. Seeing that Commandery Princess Xianyun had left with her retinue, she returned to her room and sat down.

“Is the prince back?” Ning Xueyan took the tea newly brought by Xinmei and asked.

“The prince returned after lunch. Now he is in the Moon-embracing Tower. Mistress, you want to see the prince for something, right?” Xinmei had been paying attention to the affairs of Ao Chenyi. Originally serving as the secret guard of Ao Chenyi, she was very familiar with these few secret guards of Ao Chenyi. Of course, she was not like Commandery Princess Xianyun, who had no people to use other than her servants when she came to live in the mansion in the beginning.

This was the reason why Commandery Princess Xianyun believed so eagerly in the older female servant of the Bright Garden at that time. If no one told her this, she would really have no clue about the whereabouts of Ao Chenyi.

Ning Xueyan looked outside and found that it was dark at this time. After thinking for a while, she stood up and making up her mind, said, “Let’s go to the Moon-embracing Tower and take a look.”

“Are you going to see the prince, mistress?” Xinmei said with a smile.

“Yes, I want to see him for something.” She had to ask him for a guard. Truly, Xinmei alone was a little not enough for her to use, and she had to get someone to manage the external affairs.

“Mistress, please sit down first. The prince said he was coming in a while. Today you went out and returned for a whole day, and you’d better rest for a while. The prince is afraid that you haven’t eaten your fill and especially asked the little kitchen staff to prepare a few dishes. Mistress, if you are hungry, let me ask someone to prepare a few more for you,” Xinmei said with a look of joy.

She had never seen the prince treat any woman differently until now. Treated like this, her mistress was completely different from other women, of course. Seeing that her mistress could be loved by the prince, she was surely happy. After living with Ning Xueyan for a long time, now she had already regarded herself as her real maid.

No doubt, she was happy that her mistress and the prince got on well with each other.

“Indeed, I didn’t eat well at the ‘family feast’ held in the Lord Protector’s Manor. Of course, the so-called perfect happiness was done to show to others. Ao Chenyi is very clear about that, so he prepared new dishes for me?” Feeling warmth in her heart, she lowered her eyes and sat down again. “No need. Now I’m not hungry yet. When the prince comes, ask him if he is hungry, and then we will eat together.”

Both in her courtyard and the courtyard of Commandery Princess Xianyun, there were little kitchens, which were built by those sent by Ao Chenyi when the courtyards were whitewashed in the past.

“Okay, let me ask the kitchen staff to wait a little more while. When the prince comes, let’s order again,” Xinmei replied with a smile and then retired to pass on the message.

When Ao Chenyi came, Ning Xueyan was reading something in the candlelight. It was a few pieces of spice recipes, which were passed to her by Aunt Xiang from the palace before her wedding. In the past, she always had no time to read them. Now when she picked them up, she made records as she read them. It was extremely good to put the fragrances recorded on these few pieces of recipes into the balsam.

This was what Ning Xueyan wanted to make in the new powder.

The only problem was that although the flowers recorded on them were many in the season, there would almost be no such flowers in the following two seasons after the summer. Possibly, it would be hard to find the flowers recorded in the recipes. Even if they could be found, the amount would not be much. Then she was afraid that she would not be able to make so much face powder in a short time.

A dark shadow merged into the shade of the candlelight. Ning Xueyan raised her head and saw Ao Chenyi’s handsome face that looked a little enchanting and tempting. He cast a sidelong glance at the paper in her hands and asked, “What? You have problems?”

“It’s not a big deal. It’s things for women to make fragrances.” Ning Xueyan did not think that Ao Chenyi would pay attention to such things and folded the recipes.

“Let me take a look.” Ao Chenyi snatched them from her. When he came in just now, he saw Ning Xueyan with beautiful knitted curved brows, who looked irresolute.

“It’s not worth looking,” Ning Xueyan said coyly. She extended her hand and wanted to take them back subconsciously. Unexpectedly, his arms were a little too long indeed. No matter how high her hand reached, she could not reach them. On the contrary, the corner of her sleeve was hooked by the chair on the side. Instantly, she fell into the arms of Ao Chenyi in a way that she seemed to have thrown herself into his arms.

“What? You miss me?” Ao Chenyi raised his brows and held the thin waist of Ning Xueyan, with an arrogant smile, looking a little complacent.

“Prince!” Remembering the posture she took just now, Ning Xueyan truly blushed. When she tried to tear away the hand on her waist, she could not get rid of it. Then she raised her black jade-like eyes and glared at Ao Chenyi unhappily. The expression looked lovely and also aggrieved in a way that she had been bullied. Her long eyelashes flapped twice, making her look more charming and beautiful.

Ao Chenyi touched Ning Xueyan’s delicate face with his hand as if it had its senses. He tore her face gently and then directly sat in the chair Ning Xueyan occupied just now while holding her in his arms. A room of maids had already left the moment he waved his hand as he entered the room.

Holding Ning Xueyan tightly, he pushed her head into his arms. Seeing that she was pouting slightly unhappily and looking at him with her beady eyes, he could not help but kiss her lips lightly and then turned his eyes to the paper in his hands.

“Is it that you want to make these few kinds of fragrances but lack materials?” he said lazily with a smile after glancing sideways at Ning Xueyan.

Ning Xueyan was bashful. The moment Ao Chenyi finished kissing her, she became bashful. Now she was sitting dazed in Ao Chenyi’s arms with her hand covering her mouth, only feeling that she was burning from head to toe so that she did not even know how to react. At this time, she could only glare at Ao Chenyi with a red face, which made him have a stronger idea of wanting to bully her.

“What? You don’t want to make them?” When Ao Chenyi saw that Ning Xueyan did not reply and even looked like she had been bullied, his heart became softer. He bowed his head with his forehead almost reaching hers and had a joking smile on his thin lips.

“There, there are no flowers during the two seasons.” Ning Xueyan suddenly turned her head and avoided the handsome face coming to her. She always knew that he was incomparably handsome, but when this extremely handsome face came to her face so near that she could even see his eyelashes clearly, Ning Xueyan only felt that her heart was almost about to slip out of her chest, and she even had difficulty in breathing.

She turned her head hurriedly, changed the subject, and cursed inwardly, “Sure enough, you are an evildoer. You are so handsome, but you came to me so near. How can I bear the temptation?”

Fortunately, he usually wore a cold sullen face that others did not dare to look at him; otherwise, he would have attracted so many beautiful women with this face. Not to mention it was Prince Yi’s Manor, even if it was a place twice as big, it could not have accommodated them. Of course, Ning Xueyan knew that if Prince Yi had not killed a few of those concubines who did not act dutifully in the current Prince Yi’s Manor, she was afraid that this manor could truly not have accommodated all his concubines.

“Don’t worry. There are many courtyards in my manor. Find one near the Pear Flower Garden and build a greenhouse in it. Even if it is in the whole winter, you can have whatever flower you want.” Ao Chenyi caressed Ning Xueyan’s beautiful hair very naturally, with some smiles in his thin, long eyes. The unvented resentment he got earlier when he had to accompany Xianyun back to her parents’ home, the Lord Peace’s Manor was completely gone.

Of course, he was unwilling to accompany Ning Xueyan to the Lord Protector’s Manor, either, because he clearly knew how the Lord Protector’s Manor had treated Ning Xueyan. He found it in him to think that since Ning Xueyan had married him, she would be his woman from now on, that relying on his protection, she would have no relations to the Lord Protector’s Manor, and that she’d better end the relationship completely.