The princess had already recovered and said with a smile, "What's so difficult about this? Marriages are always decided by parents. Since the children are inexperienced, the adults should help them make the choice. I see that sister-in-law, you've been singing praises of Fu Rongxuan. You must be extremely satisfied with him. I think this match is quite good. If sister-in-law is willing, when I go to exchange the betrothal records later, I'll act as the matchmaker for Chan'er."
He Chan was extremely anxious and immediately shouted, "Lu Wanning, what do you mean? Are you just foisting off what you don't want onto me?"
Lu Wanning burst into laughter. "I've seen you and your mother singing praises of Fu Rongxuan non - stop. How come now it's something I don't want? Fine, don't worry, Mother. Later, don't forget to make it clear to the lady of the Fu family. Since their family looks down on Shi Aohan, they should know that the legitimate daughter of the He family also looks down on their son."
This really angered Lady He. She said with a cold face, "I originally thought the two children were quite fated, so I wanted to play the matchmaker. But I didn't expect that you would treat your guests like this. Chan'er is still unmarried and in the boudoir, yet you've been gossiping about her like this. Little sister - in - law, you're really a great aunt to her."
The princess also put on a cold face and said, "Thank you for the compliment. I also originally thought Lady He had good intentions, but now it seems like just a joke. But Lady He, don't forget what happened to my daughter at her uncle's house last time. Why did the doctor from your He Mansion prescribe the medicine that left her with a scar?"
Lady He was extremely shocked. She looked at Lu Wanning. Although Lu Wanning's forehead was covered by her hair, she could still vaguely see some scars. They weren't very serious and seemed to be healing. She originally wanted to say that the princess was being unreasonable, but suddenly remembered something. She looked back and saw He Chan's evasive eyes. She knew that things were not that simple.
Since it was her own daughter's fault, she couldn't scold the others in person. She had to hold back her anger and say a few conciliatory words. Then she hurriedly left with He Chan.
On the way back, He Chan pulled Lady He and said, "Mother, don't be angry. I know Lu Wanning best. She's always like that. She simply can't let go of Brother Fu..."
"Slap!"
A slap landed on He Chan's face, and she was stunned.
Lady He rubbed her chest and warned, "He Chan, in the future, don't get too close to your cousin!"
But He Chan didn't understand her mother's thoughts. She just looked at Lady He with tear - filled eyes, covering her face in disbelief. As soon as they returned to the mansion, she immediately jumped out of the carriage and ran back to her own courtyard.
As for Fu Rongxuan's thoughts, they were exactly the same as He Chan's. Although the Lu family had made a big fuss about breaking off the engagement, in all these days, they had only come once and were immediately sent away by his mother.
He guessed that it was just Lu Wanning's scheme of feigning indifference to gain his attention.
Fu Rongxuan was sitting upright in front of the desk. He looked up at the snow in the yard. The snowflakes on the branches were as pure and innocent as his beloved. That day, Shi Aohan had written to him, saying that her maid had let something slip and made Lu Wanning angry. She was also very remorseful. She said that regardless of her status, as long as he remembered her occasionally and was willing to see her and be with her, that would be enough.
What a pure feeling it was. If he weren't the heir of the duke, he really wouldn't want to marry any other woman. He just wanted to be with Aohan forever.
The snowflakes were falling on the red plum blossoms. The red plums against the snow were extremely beautiful, which made Fu Rongxuan hold his pen in the air for a long time. Such red plums were like that fiery - tempered girl, charming and lovely.
For just a moment, Fu Rongxuan quickly shook his head. What was he thinking? That was Lu Wanning, the vulgar Lu Wanning. How could he think she was like the gorgeous red plum? It was impossible.
Although that day at the He Duke's Mansion, she was wearing a long goose - yellow dress and following Prince Yu. Her silver - white fur cloak made her look pure and charming. But thinking carefully, she usually liked gaudy clothes. That kind of dressing must be because she knew he hated vulgarity and deliberately dressed in a refined way.
How affected she was. She was not even half as natural as Aohan.
Fu Rongxuan picked up his pen and quickly drew a picture of a beautiful woman looking at flowers on the paper.
The servant came in to tidy up. He took a glance and asked curiously, "My lord, who is this in the picture?"
"Of course it's..." Fu Rongxuan originally wanted to say it was Miss Shi, but he stopped himself. The clothes and ornaments of the woman in the picture were simple plain clothes, but her eyes and mouth on that face were amorous.
It was Lu Wanning, not Shi Aohan.
Fu Rongxuan was very angry. He angrily tore the picture into pieces, balled it up. When he was about to throw it away, he hesitated for a moment and then threw the ball of paper into the drawer.
"What's the matter?"
The servant quickly reported, "My lord, someone from the Prince Zhennan's Mansion is here. They said it's about... breaking off the engagement."
Fu Rongxuan's eyelids twitched. Breaking off the engagement? After all these days, Lu Wanning still wanted to break off the engagement. Was there a mistake?
Seeing that his master was in a bad mood, the servant quickly said, "My lord, I think the princess is deeply in love with you. But last time, it was you who angered the princess and the young lady. It's possible that the princess can't save face. Moreover, our Fu family and the Prince Zhennan's Mansion have never gotten along well. Maybe it's the Prince Zhennan who forced the princess to break off the engagement."
After hearing this, Fu Rongxuan took out a new piece of paper and started to draw seriously. "Don't worry about it."
It wasn't a court session day. Duke Fu was reading in his study, while Lady Fu was holding a tea cup, making tea and telling him about the recent happenings in the various noble families in the capital. As they were talking, a maid came to report that Prince Zhennan was visiting.
Duke Fu's beard twitched. He angrily glared at his wife. "Lu Wanning is the apple of the Lu family's eye. I've already told you to go to the prince's mansion and try to reconcile. But you just wouldn't listen. Now they've finally come to our door."
Lady Fu was also angry. "Didn't you see the overbearing attitudes of the princess and Lu Wanning? Although our son did make some mistakes, he's a man. How could he always be humble and submissive? Moreover, this whole thing was clearly the fault of that vixen, Shi Aohan. The He family is acting as if nothing happened. Do we in the Fu family have to take all the blame?"
Duke Fu changed into his outdoor clothes and said, "Women's opinions. You don't want that Miss Shi as your daughter - in - law. What does it have to do with the He family? Stop being so long - winded. Hurry up. Prince Zhennan and I have always had different political views, and he has a bad temper. It'll take a lot of effort to turn this situation around."
When they reached the reception hall, Duke Fu found that all the members of the Lu family had come: Lu Hongxi and his wife, Lu Hanchi and his wife, and Lu Hannian and his wife. Six masters were in the hall, and there were more than a dozen maids, old nannies, and attendants standing in the yard. This didn't include the guards waiting at the gate of the duke's mansion.
Duke Fu's eyelids twitched. He forced a smile and said, "Your Highness came so early in the morning without sending a message in advance. I'm completely unprepared..."
"No preparation is needed." Lu Hongxi was tall and had a booming voice. He didn't even sit down. He said coldly, "Previously, my wife came here to retrieve Wanning's betrothal record. But I heard from someone in your esteemed mansion that my wife, not being the head of the family, couldn't make the decision. Of course, I just took such a joke as a joke. So today, I've brought my family here to ask for the betrothal record."