Lu Wanning returned home cheerfully. She took out her clothes and stared at them intently, her eyebrows knitted tightly. The original owner had a penchant for luxury, and all her clothes were extremely gorgeous and elaborate. They were not only troublesome to put on but also inconvenient to move around in.
Although Wanning preferred simpler clothes since she came to this body, due to her status, it was not appropriate to dress too casually when going out on normal days. Her clothes were only slightly simpler and not suitable for investigations.
After rummaging for a long time, she finally found two sets of riding clothes. Although they were not very simple either, they were relatively better. Lu Wanning removed all the ribbons and decorations on them, then tried them on. They were quite good. She would surely be more agile wearing these for investigations.
Just as she was feeling proud, the princess came in.
"Ning'er, what are you doing? Are your clothes not to your liking? Your second sister - in - law is going to have new clothes made. I'll ask the tailor to come and take your measurements. You can have some new clothes made too."
Lu Wanning's eyes lit up. "Making clothes? Great! I'll choose the styles carefully. Please tell the tailor to pick out the styles of common people's clothes that are convenient for work. Oh, and they should be stain - resistant. Otherwise, they'll be too troublesome to wash."
The princess frowned and asked, "Why do you need such clothes? Are you going out?"
Lu Wanning replied, "Yes. I've made an agreement with His Highness, the Prince of Yu, to go on duty at the Supreme Court of Judicature tomorrow."
The princess quickly said, "Oh, it's okay for you to go out and have a stroll, but why do you have to go out to work? That's men's business. As a girl, you should just stay at home and learn embroidery, music, painting, and calligraphy."
Lu Wanning pouted. "Mother, let me ask you. If we weren't nobles, could we earn silver with these skills of music, chess, calligraphy, and painting?"
The princess stared blankly at her.
Lu Wanning continued, "Except for embroidery, which can earn a little money, but someone has to buy it, right? If everyone is poor, who would buy your embroidered flowers? People should know how to plan ahead in times of safety. The skills we learn should be able to protect our family and bring food to them. I don't like those arty things, so I won't do them."
The princess said helplessly, "Fine. If you want to go and have fun, go. I'll tell your second brother to send a group of personal guards to protect you. You won't suffer any losses."
Lu Wanning shook her head repeatedly. "Mother, I'm going to work, not to enjoy myself. Why do you want so many people to follow me? If everyone is like that, what's the point of working?"
"But..."
"Oh, there's no 'but'. " Lu Wanning pressed the princess into a chair. "Don't worry about me. By the way, there's a more important thing that I need your help with."
The princess asked, "What is it?"
Lu Wanning said, "A few days ago, at Aunt's birthday party, something happened. Didn't He Wenbo break off his engagement with Sister Jiang? I think Sister Jiang and Cousin are a perfect match. Why don't you act as a matchmaker and get them together?"
The princess frowned and shook her head. "This is inappropriate. Sister Jiang was engaged to your second cousin. How can she be engaged to your third cousin?"
Lu Wanning whispered, "They didn't get married. According to what you said, Sister Jiang was initially supposed to be engaged to the third cousin, then to He Wenhao, and finally to He Wenbo. Isn't she like a girl who has had three engagements with the same family?"
"That's different. Before, it was just a verbal agreement, and the final engagement was with your second cousin."
"The engagement is over now, isn't it?" Lu Wanning continued to persuade. "Moreover, Mother, I found that Cousin really likes Sister Jiang."
The princess paused. "Really?"
Lu Wanning nodded repeatedly and whispered about the incident she saw on the street between He Nanfeng and Jiang Shishi. "At that time, I thought Sister Jiang was already engaged to He Wenbo. Their interaction was just about giving medicine, so I didn't say anything. Now that her engagement is over, isn't she just a perfect match for Cousin?"
The princess thought for a while and shook her head. "You said it was just a matter of giving medicine. They've known each other since childhood, and it's normal for them to have occasional interactions. How can you say it's a secret love? Moreover, with Sister Jiang's health, how can she take good care of your cousin? Your cousin lost his parents when he was young. Life has been tough for him. After all..."
"I knew you'd say this, but Mother, I've asked Cousin, and he admitted that he likes Sister Jiang. Are you just going to separate this pair of lovers?"
The princess hesitated. If they were truly in love, she would surely be happy. But...
"Mother, you know Cousin. He's not close to the family, not close to anyone. He used to be closer to our family, but in recent years, he's gradually drifted away. It's not easy for him to find someone he likes. He's been suppressing his feelings because he's afraid the family won't approve. Now that there's such a good opportunity, won't you help them?"
The princess asked, "When did I refuse to help? Your uncle's family has fallen out with the Jiang family. They'll surely not agree. Moreover, Sister Jiang may not be willing either."
Lu Wanning shook her head. "Mother, you don't know this. I've already arranged everything. Sister Jiang gave me her hairpin and asked me to give it to Cousin."
The princess was stunned for a moment and then understood. Jiang Shishi was a steady person and wouldn't easily do such a thing. It must have been Wanning, the naughty girl, who had instigated it. But if Wanning could succeed in persuading her, it meant that Jiang Shishi also had this intention.
In this case, it really wasn't good not to step in.
Seeing that the princess's attitude was softening, Lu Wanning quickly continued to persuade. "Mother, a few days ago, it was clearly He Wenbo's fault, but Uncle blamed Cousin. It shows that Uncle doesn't really treat Cousin as a family member. If you don't step in, Cousin will miss his true love."
The princess had also heard about the Duke of He punishing He Nanfeng to kneel in the ancestral hall in a fit of anger. But as a married - out daughter, it wasn't appropriate for her to interfere too much in her natal family's affairs. Now, after hearing this, she deeply agreed. She thought that if she didn't intervene, Nanfeng and Shishi would really miss each other.
"Okay. I'll go to your uncle's house tomorrow and talk to your aunt about this marriage."
Lu Wanning immediately shook her head. "Mother, you can't go like this. If you go and talk like this, Aunt won't agree. Instead, she'll think that you and Cousin are in cahoots. She might even think that you deliberately framed He Wenbo and Lu Yingshuang last time."
Hearing this, the princess hesitated. She had never thought much about her sister - in - law's intentions before, but recently, she felt that her sister - in - law was not as simple as she seemed. At least, she wasn't as kind to her as she appeared on the surface. They had also had a disagreement because of Wanning and Shi Aohan. If she brought up this matter now, her sister - in - law might really suspect the worst.
Lu Wanning whispered something in the princess's ear and then proudly raised her eyebrows. "How about it? If we do it like this, we can surely get Cousin and Sister Jiang together."
The princess laughed. She tapped Lu Wanning's nose. "You little girl, you have so many tricks. Don't worry. We'll do it as you say!"