Jiang Shishi explained, "It was on the day of the long - life celebration. After the Empress wanted to arrange a marriage for you in front of the palace hall and you refused, your father requested the Emperor's permission to issue an edict that no one would arrange a marriage for you."
For the past month, Lu Wanning had basically stayed in her own room, eating, sleeping, and reading idle books. She truly turned a deaf ear to outside affairs and had absolutely no idea what her parents were up to.
Seeing her like this, Jiang Shishi knew she was in the dark. She smiled and said, "Well, I was just over - thinking. You're doted on by your parents. You don't need to worry about such things."
After thinking for a while, Lu Wanning still took the initiative to say, "I... I've already made up my mind."
Jiang Shishi probed, "His Highness, the Prince of Yu?"
Lu Wanning nodded.
Jiang Shishi sighed, "I didn't really take those rumors seriously before. After all, you're used to being willful. I thought if you really liked His Highness, the Prince of Yu, you would surely ask the Emperor and the Empress to arrange a marriage for you. I didn't expect it to be true."
Lu Wanning laughed, "It seems that being absurd before has its advantages. Now, people can't tell what's real and what's fake."
After noon, the two sisters went downstairs together and were about to return to the mansion. As soon as they got downstairs, they saw several men and women standing there. They were all noble people in the capital. The one leading them was none other than Sheng Chenyi.
Jiang Shishi grabbed Lu Wanning's hand. Lu Wanning patted her hand reassuringly, smiled sweetly, and gave a smile to the group.
"May Your Highness, the Prince of Chen, be in good health."
Sheng Chenyi's eyes were cold. He squinted slightly with a hint of a smile and said, "Princess Zhaoyang is in high spirits."
Lu Wanning raised her eyebrows and said, "Not as high as Your Highness."
Sheng Chenyi didn't make any other moves. He stepped back to let them pass.
When Lu Wanning passed by, she found that He Chan was actually there. Her face was pale, and she looked extremely decadent.
Although the He family had been deprived of their title and was disliked by the Emperor, how could He Chan have ended up like this in just a few months?
It must be said that although Lu Wanning didn't like this willful woman, He Chan, perhaps because the original owner had a very similar personality to He Chan, she always had a feeling of kindred spirits. Moreover, He Chan was young, simple, and easily instigated. Lu Wanning thought that He Chan had mainly been born into the wrong family. Without the scheming of Lady He and the exploitation of Shi Aohan, she wouldn't have ended up in such a situation.
However, other people's affairs had nothing to do with Lu Wanning. She wasn't kind - hearted enough to offer help to someone who had hurt her.
After leaving the door, Lu Wanning saw Jiang Shishi onto the carriage and then returned to her own. But just after making a turn, the road ahead was blocked.
The coachman explained, "Princess, there's a quarrel up ahead. Do you want to take a detour?"
This was a bustling street. If they took a detour, they would have to go through a narrow and long alley on the side. Not only was the alley deep, narrow, and long, but there were also few people there. Usually, with so many attendants around, Lu Wanning wouldn't be afraid. But after just meeting Sheng Chenyi, she had to be on guard.
"No need. Just wait here."
She had slept a lot these days, and usually at this time, she would be taking an afternoon nap. Now she was a bit sleepy. Lu Wanning gave some instructions to Jiyue and then leaned against the carriage wall and fell asleep.
She didn't really fall asleep. She heard a soft voice outside saying, "Lu Wanning."
Lu Wanning woke up immediately. She lifted a corner of the carriage curtain and saw that it was He Chan. She frowned and asked, "What is it?"
He Chan got closer and spoke in an even smaller voice, saying a single sentence.
In just a moment, the attendant outside shouted, "What do you think you're doing getting so close to the Princess?"
He Chan glanced at Lu Wanning and then turned around and disappeared into the crowd.
Lu Wanning was in a daze for a long time. She asked Jiyue, "Did you hear what she said?"
Jiyue shook her head. "The voice was too soft, and there were so many people here. I didn't catch it. But Princess, don't pay attention to such a person."
Lu Wanning put down the curtain, and her face darkened. She didn't catch it clearly either, but she heard a few words: "Be careful... the Prince of Chen... marriage alliance..."
She knew she should be careful of the Prince of Chen. Sheng Chenyi was extremely insidious. He had wanted to take advantage of the Lu family's influence, but thanks to Lu Hongxi's actions, his little schemes had been exposed. But the marriage alliance... what did it have to do with her? Did the Prince of Chen want to send her on a marriage alliance?
Lu Wanning thought it over. Among the countries on good terms with the Great Zhou, there were indeed examples of princes and princesses having marriage alliances. But because of the good relations, although the marriage alliances were political marriages, they weren't too bad. Moreover, the Great Zhou was a powerful country. Usually, other countries would send their princesses here. If the Great Zhou sent a princess, it would be similar to a princess - marrying - a - prince situation, where the other country would have to send their prince here to be the son - in - law.
Or did the Prince of Chen want to use her to win over other countries?
Lu Wanning just couldn't figure it out.
When she got home, she originally wanted to ask Lu Hongxi, but she saw that the whole family was beaming with joy.
As soon as she entered the door, an old woman saw her and immediately greeted her with a smile, "Your Highness, the Princess, you're back?"
Lu Wanning asked curiously, "What happened today? Everyone is so happy?"
The old woman opened her mouth to say something, then rolled her eyes and closed her mouth. Mysteriously, she said, "The Prince, the Princess Consort, and the Heir's Consort are all in the main hall. Princess, go there quickly. You'll know when you get there."
Lu Wanning knew it was good news and didn't hesitate. She trotted to the main hall and said, "Father, Mother, Sister - in - law, I'm back!"
The Princess Consort immediately put down the letter in her hand, got up, and walked towards her. "Oh, Ning'er, why are you running? It's so hot. Don't get overheated. Come, come, sit down and have some tea. Take a rest."
Lu Wanning couldn't hold back her curiosity and asked impatiently, "What on earth happened? Everyone I saw on the way here was smiling. Has something good happened to our family?"
Only then did the Princess Consort nod and say, "Yes, there's a letter from the Shao family."
Lu Wanning blinked her eyes. "The Shao family? Could it be that the elder brothers have won a battle? That's great!"
The Princess Consort was stunned for a moment and subconsciously looked at Lu Hongxi.
Lu Hongxi had been smiling, but when he heard this, he also stopped smiling. He was most concerned about the battle in Luocheng. He would wait for the battle reports every day. If there were none, he would be extremely anxious. The battle was currently at a stalemate, and he didn't know the specific situation.
Lady Wei quickly explained, "The battle can't end so quickly. It's your second sister - in - law who has given birth."
Lu Wanning jumped for joy. "Second sister - in - law has given birth? Do I have a little nephew or niece?"
The Princess Consort said, "It's a nephew. You have a nephew."
Lu Wanning immediately picked up Lu Cheng from the ground. "Haha, Chengcheng is going to be a big brother. Chengcheng has a little brother. Are you happy?"
But Lu Cheng wasn't happy. "I want to see my little brother. My little brother isn't coming back. I'm not happy."
Lu Hongxi immediately said, "Hey, how can you talk like that? Practice your martial arts well. When you turn five, I'll take you to Luocheng. Then you can see your little brother."
Lu Cheng counted on his fingers to figure out how long it would be before he could see his little brother.
However, when Lady Wei heard this, the smile on her face became a bit forced.