Lu Hongxi lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.
The princess couldn't help but sit up. "Hongxi, is it because the emperor won't let you go on the expedition that you're so restless? Maybe the emperor has other plans?"
Lu Hongxi also sat up. Looking at the princess, he asked, "What do you think of the crown prince?"
The princess frowned. "Why do you suddenly bring this up? Although the crown prince is my nephew, we saw each other quite often when he was a child. But as he grew up, I guess he's too busy with official duties. It's even harder to see him than the empress. To be honest, I don't know him well. I've only heard that he's gentle and polite. Why do you ask about this all of a sudden?"
"Gentle and polite." Lu Hongxi chewed on these words and let out a cold laugh. Was it because the crown prince was too mediocre that people came up with such words to describe him? How did people describe Prince Yu? Decisive and fearless. He was able to handle things independently at a young age. No wonder the emperor favored Prince Yu more.
The princess added, "Moreover, according to Ning'er, the crown prince protected Fu Rongxuan and He Chan several times. Last time, he even made Ning'er cry because of Shi Aohan. Even though he's my nephew, I don't like him."
That was just like her. Whether she liked someone or not always depended on whether her daughter liked them.
Lu Hongxi said, "Yes, the crown prince is busy with official duties, but he's very close to the He family. He's much closer to the young lady of the He family than to Ning'er."
These words made the princess realize something. That's right. The crown prince was so busy, but in the past, when she often visited the He family, she always heard that he went there frequently, but he never came to visit her in the princess mansion.
She used to think it was because the mansion was full of women. But now, thinking about it carefully, she always felt something was wrong.
With a solemn face, she said, "He Chan of the He family bullied Ning'er several times. Although I've let it go, I don't plan to have any more dealings with the He family. As for the empress... Forget it. She's no longer the young sister who used to follow me around."
First, she adopted Shi Aohan as her adopted daughter. Then, she ignored her own sister. Clearly, she didn't take her or Ning'er seriously. In the past, she always thought they were family, so she didn't care about many things. But now, thinking about it, she really felt that the empress only showed superficial kindness to Ning'er, while she was truly good to He Chan.
The princess angrily lay back in bed and impatiently said, "Go to sleep. If you keep tossing and turning, don't sleep in my room."
Lu Hongxi knew that when she got angry, she liked to pick on people. So he didn't dare to turn over anymore and just lay there stiffly, not moving at all.
But then the princess suddenly sat up again. She picked up a pillow and threw it at Lu Hongxi's chest. "You say, why are you so useless? Our daughter was bullied, and you didn't even care. Ugh, I'm so angry."
Lu Hongxi quickly sat up and gently patted the princess on the back. "Okay, okay. It's all my fault. I failed to protect Ning'er. Don't be angry, my lady. It's not worth getting angry and hurting your body. As for those people, we'll just ignore them from now on."
The princess was still angry. Before lying down, she instructed, "Tell the Ministry of Rites tomorrow."
Lu Hongxi nodded in agreement. He didn't need his wife to tell him this. He had already informed them. If Fu Rongli wanted to be an official in peace and climb up step by step, it was just a dream. Not only Fu Rongli, but the Duke of Fu had also been having a hard time in the court these days.
As for Fu Rongxuan, if his father was in trouble, how could he be okay?
But as he lay down, he remembered what Ning'er had said to him. What if the person they should be wary of wasn't the emperor, but the crown prince?
But why would the crown prince be wary of him? The Lu family were military generals. They didn't participate in the dirty affairs in the court, so there was no problem of being political enemies.
Ning'er must have noticed something long ago. That's why she always chased after Prince Yu. Just as Han Chi said, Ning'er knew that the family couldn't protect her, so she went to look for external help. Moreover, she didn't look for help just for herself, but for the entire Lu family.
His daughter, Lu Ning'er, always thought about the Lu family, but he didn't know anything. He was really stupid.
"My lady, do you have any thoughts about Ning'er's marriage?"
The princess immediately opened her eyes and asked, "Did Ning'er tell you?"
Lu Hongxi covered his lips and coughed. "Not really... It's just that she... seems to have a crush on Sheng Jinyu."
The princess sat up again. After thinking for a while, she said, "Prince Yu is a good match. But Ning'er is too naive. How could she handle Prince Yu? What if she gets bullied in the future?"
Lu Hongxi frowned. "Who would dare to bully her?"
The princess thought for a while. "You're right. Prince Yu doesn't have a birth mother. The empress is his stepmother, but they're not close. The emperor usually takes care of Prince Yu's affairs himself and doesn't let the empress interfere. If Ning'er marries into his family, she'll only have to face the emperor as her father-in-law. And the emperor dotes on Ning'er. He definitely won't let her be bullied. Oh, thinking about it this way, this marriage is even better than the one with Sheng Li, that silly boy."
Lu Hongxi tentatively asked, "Aren't you afraid that Sheng Jinyu will control Ning'er?"
The princess was stunned for a moment, then covered her mouth and laughed. "What's there to be afraid of? Let me tell you, Ning'er's naughty temper needs to be tamed. I was wrong before. Although Sheng Li's family is well - off, he always obeys Ning'er. And he himself loves to cause trouble. If they got together, they would be out of control. But Prince Yu is very calm. And he treats our Ning'er really well."
Lu Hongxi asked, "How is he really good? He only saved Ning'er once. And he made Ning'er angry several times later. Before, when the empress dowager was around, Ning'er even got angry with him."
The princess laughed. "You men are so stupid. When have you ever seen Ning'er stay angry with someone for several days? Even in the past, her kindness to Fu Rongxuan was just for the sake of appearances. Only Sheng Jinyu is worth Ning'er's fuss. Look, even though Ning'er made such a fuss, she didn't complain to the emperor or us. It shows that she really likes Sheng Jinyu and doesn't want us to interfere."
Lu Hongxi was completely confused. Seeing his wife giggling non - stop, for some reason, he felt even more unhappy. Prince Yu was a good person, but as a son - in - law, he was too cold. Not good.
"Also, think about it. Last time, Ning'er told everyone that Prince Yu was her backer. What did Prince Yu do?"
Lu Hongxi said, "Didn't he come to our house and warn Ning'er not to talk nonsense?"
The princess was even happier. Clapping her hands, she said, "Yes, that's right. A person like Prince Yu would get angry because of Ning'er. These two are really a pair of bickering lovers."
The more she thought about it, the more excited she became. She simply lit the lamp and got out of bed. She took out several thick picture albums from the box and said to Lu Hongxi,
"These picture albums contain the portraits and information of all the eligible young men in the capital. I was really stupid before. Why didn't I think of looking for a match in the royal family? Look, Sheng Jinyu is ranked second, only after the crown prince. He's young and promising. He's really perfect in every way. Hongxi, how about you talk to the emperor tomorrow?"