Chapter 58
Chapter 58: Driving Away Bai Ci Rong
He looked at the Buddhist prayer beads.
“These Buddhist prayer beads are not ordinary. Wear them well. Being Princess Consort Yong is not easy. Many Prestigious Clans would love nothing more than for you to die before your wedding so they can swap in their daughters.
You must be careful. After taking this wealth and honor, you also need real ability. Always remember, the pay and fief of a Commandery Princess are not things that come easily.” Prince Yong’s tone was cool.
It was a reminder and also a warning.
Luo Ning said: “Yes. Generals only earn their titles by risking their lives on the battlefield. I know what is important and what is not. Please be at ease, Your Highness.”
“I have found a female instructor who can use the whip. She will enter the capital in a few days.” Prince Yong finally let go of her hand and said: “Madam Luo, A’Ning, I have placed high hopes on you. Do not let me down.”
Luo Ning promised solemnly: “Please be at ease, Your Highness.”
Then she added: “Thank you, Your Highness.”
“Even with an instructor found for you, you still have to work hard yourself. You do not need to thank me. I am still waiting to see what you can do.” His voice was very?.
Luo Ning said: “It is not just the female instructor. There is also the betrothal gift. So much silver and so many gold leaf ingots!”
Prince Yong: “…”
Maybe people hardly ever spoke so bluntly to him. For a moment, he did not even know how to answer.
Luo Ning also told him: “Imperial Mother has sent two nursemaids to teach me. Tomorrow I will probably have to recite the names, tempers, looks, and deeds of everyone from the Great Houses, so that in the future, if I meet them, I will not fail to recognize them.”
Prince Yong said: “This is a small matter, but you must pay attention to it.”
“I will not fail Your Highness and Imperial Mother,” Luo Ning said.
Prince Yong was not in the mood for small talk.
Yesterday, when he had someone beaten, her brother had been involved too, yet he had not asked another question. He disdained chatting with her about family matters.
Not long after they left the Imperial City, their carriages had to part ways.
Luo Ning’s coachman had been driving along behind them. Prince Yong had his carriage stop so she could get down.
After saying goodbye to Prince Yong, Luo Ning took a nap in her own carriage.
She had eaten a bit too much and felt drowsy.
In her dream, she even saw the new emperor, Xiao Huai Feng, ascend the throne and, together with Empress Madam Zheng, perform the ritual sacrifice to Heaven and Earth.
She could get close to the altar, and it felt quite comfortable. She did not see any other ghosts, only herself.
That ritual sacrifice had been extremely grand, with incense thick in the air. As a ghost, Luo Ning had roamed freely through it and had been very happy.
The emperor and empress had been an excellent match.
It was also very much like today: they were doing big, serious things, and Luo Ning was quietly eating her meal.
She woke herself up laughing.
When she woke up, the maidservant Qiu Hua asked her: “Eldest Miss, what good dream did you have?”
Luo Ning felt a bit embarrassed.
After returning to the Marquis of Zhen Nan Manor, Luo Ning first went to see the marchioness, Madam Bai, to tell her she was back.
She then asked the marchioness for the key to the corner gate.
The marchioness naturally refused: “You have already been granted the title of Imperial Prince’s Consort and are now a daughter-in-law of the imperial clan. You should be even more careful from now on. If I give you the key to the corner gate, others will think you are going in and out in secret. It will harm your reputation.”
She added: “Did you see the Empress Dowager today?”
“Yes. I also saw His Majesty and the empress, and Prince Yong,” Luo Ning said.
The marchioness’s smile grew even more gentle: “I have gone into the palace to offer New Year’s greetings three times and still have not met His Majesty. I heard from other madams that if you are lucky, you might meet His Majesty in the palaces of the empress or the Empress Dowager inside the imperial palace.”
Luo Ning smiled.
Then the marchioness asked her: “What does His Majesty look like?”
[What does he look like?]
Very weak, overly pale. From the looks of it, it was from taking too many alchemical pills.
Luo Ning always felt that the emperor did not take alchemical pills to seek immortality.
How old was he, anyway?
He probably wanted to strengthen his body and improve his memory, so he turned to “immortal medicine.” It was said that since he was young, whether in his studies or in mounted archery, he had always been suppressed by Prince Yong until he could not lift his head.
And a smooth-tongued Daoist priest had coaxed him into it.
He would die suddenly next year.
“He looks a lot like Prince Chen, also gentle and refined,” Luo Ning said.
Prince Chen’s fairness was a healthy, clean white and did not look sickly. The emperor, however, was pale. Even Luo Ning could tell that he lacked energy.
“I have not seen Prince Chen either. His consort only just passed away. Has the Empress Dowager chosen a new princess consort for him?” the marchioness asked again.
Luo Ning said: “I did not hear Imperial Mother mention it.”
The marchioness gave her a surprised look.
Luo Ning only smiled.
The marchioness felt an unexplainable discomfort in her heart.
On one side, Bai Ci Rong’s reputation had been ruined and she had no chance to socialize. The noble girls of the capital did not care to associate with her. On the other side, Luo Ning had become an Imperial Prince’s Consort.
That one phrase “Imperial Mother” from Luo Ning was something the marchioness could not bear.
How could she show off her status like that?
In what way was Bai Ci Rong worse than her? In terms of looks, Bai Ci Rong was even three points more beautiful.
The marchioness had always felt that if a person suffered a little, they would later have good luck. Bai Ci Rong had grown up without her mother by her side. She had suffered, so why had her good fortune still not come?
But Luo Ning had suffered a bit, taken one knife, and now her luck could not be stopped, with good things all falling on her.
“You can go back first,” the marchioness said, her expression cooling.
Luo Ning answered and left.
Later, Wan Xi and Bai Ci Rong came to keep the marchioness company at a meal and asked about Luo Ning as well.
Bai Ci Rong was just as well informed.
The inner courtyard belonged to her aunt, which was the same as belonging to her. She had more “power” than Luo Ning.
“Sister A’Ning went into the palace today, right?” she asked.
The marchioness nodded: “Yes.”
“I wonder if she saw His Majesty?” Bai Ci Rong said with a bit of longing. “Aunt, we should have a chance to see His Majesty too, right?”
“Of course.”
“Will he like me?” Bai Ci Rong asked.
The marchioness said: “How could he not like you? There is no man who would not love you. Look at Yu Zhuo. With just a few little tricks, he has already fallen deeply for you.”
She added: “All the men in this world will submit as long as you crook your finger, even the Son of Heaven.”
Bai Ci Rong’s eyes lit up.
“Then I will wait for my chance,” she said with a smile.
While the two of them were talking, the Marquis of Zhen Nan came.
He was actually happy, but he deliberately put on a stern face.
In front of Bai Ci Rong, he went straight to the point: “I have arranged for people to send A’Rong back to Yuhang.”
It was like a bolt from the blue.
The marchioness, Madam Bai, and Bai Ci Rong were both stunned and stared at him blankly.
“Why?” the marchioness asked, her voice anxious and sharp.
The Marquis of Zhen Nan said: “A’Rong is getting older. She should go back to Yuhang to get married. If we delay her, that would be a sin. The Marquis Manor cannot be such villains.”
“But Lord Marquis, we clearly agreed otherwise,” the marchioness said in disbelief.
The Marquis of Zhen Nan did not want to waste words and said directly: “My mind is made up.”
“Is it because of A’Ning? Is it her, forcing you to drive A’Rong away?” The marchioness started crying, questioning him in a heartbroken voice.
The Marquis of Zhen Nan frowned: “Stop making a scene. From now on, everything in our family will depend on A’Ning. Think about it. Will it do you any good to offend the real daughter of the woman who will be an Imperial Prince’s Consort?”
The marchioness’s tears fell as she glared hatefully at the Marquis of Zhen Nan: “I absolutely do not agree. When A’Ning was not at home, it was A’Rong who kept me company. You cannot just burn the bridge after crossing the river. It will kill me!”
Bai Ci Rong did not cry.
She only knelt to the Marquis of Zhen Nan and said softly: “Uncle, as long as the Marquis Manor can have peace at home, I am willing to go back to Yuhang and scrape by under my stepmother’s hand, even if life is a bit harder.”
“I do not agree!” The marchioness pulled her up. “Your father is away doing business all year round. At home, it is your stepmother who holds all the power. If you go back, she will torment you to death.”
When the Marquis of Zhen Nan saw Bai Ci Rong being so reasonable and selfless, he felt a bit guilty: “Send Nanny Zhen to go back with her. Nanny Zhen has some ability and can protect her.”
The marchioness still wanted to say more, but Bai Ci Rong gripped her hand tightly: “Aunt, do not make things hard for Uncle. I am willing to go back.”
She added: “I have lived a few good years here. Even if I die, I will remember the kindness of the Luo family and of Uncle.”
The marchioness held her and cried bitterly.