Lu Hongxi was overjoyed. After pondering for a long time, he said, "Let's wait for Han Chi to come back. Let him name her himself."
The princess consort asked, "Why is that?"
Lu Hongxi smiled and said, "I still remember that back then, Father named both Han Chi and Han Nian. As for Ning'er, Father originally wanted to name her Han Jiao. Fortunately, Her Majesty the Empress Dowager didn't like it and said I should name her when I got back."
Hearing this, Lu Wanning secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It was really lucky that Her Majesty the Empress Dowager was sensible. Otherwise, the name Lu Han Jiao would have been extremely ugly.
The princess consort said with a coquettish smile, "It's just a name. Are you afraid the name you choose won't sound nice?"
Lu Hongxi shook his head. "I think a father must hope to name his own child. I named Chengcheng, and I named Zhi'er too when I was asked to do so by letter. This is a girl, so let Han Chi name her when he comes back."
The princess consort nodded. "That's fine. But we can give her a nickname."
Lu Hongxi thought for a while. "How about calling her Jiao Jiao?"
The princess consort was unhappy. "Just now you disliked the name Han Jiao that your father wanted to give Ning'er. Now you want to use the character 'jiao' too?"
Lu Hongxi rubbed his hands. "No wonder Father thought of the character 'jiao'. Even I think my granddaughter should be the most delicate and tender girl in the world."
The princess consort ignored him. Looking at Lu Wanning, she asked, "Ning'er, what do you think we should call your niece as a nickname?"
Lu Wanning thought for a while and said, "The character 'jiao' is associated with being spoilt. I don't like that. I hope she can have a sweet and happy life. How about calling her Tang Bao?"
The princess consort was overjoyed. "Tang Bao, Tang Bao. Good. Let's call her Tang Bao."
Lu Wanning quickly added, "But she was born after her mother went through so much hardship. We can't just decide on our own. Let Big Brother name her formally, and we should ask her mother's opinion about the nickname."
Even so, the princess consort had already started calling the baby Tang Bao.
The next day, news came from the palace. The previous day, the Prince of Chen had staged a coup but was suppressed by Lu Hongxi with the imperial guards. Today, the emperor had issued an edict, stripping Sheng Chenyi of his princely title and imprisoning him in his mansion for life, never to leave. The empress was demoted to a low - ranking concubine and sent to the cold palace.
The old case of the Yan family was reopened, and it was found out that it was the doing of Lord He. Normally, his whole family should have been executed and their property confiscated. But the emperor was nostalgic. Coincidentally, it was also discovered that the death of the He family's heir and his wife was also related to this case.
After the truth was revealed, the emperor was furious and ordered the confiscation of the property and execution of all the direct descendants of the He family. However, He Nanfeng, the former heir of the duke, was exempted from punishment and was allowed to inherit the title of earl.
As for the families related to Sheng Chenyi, they were either having their property confiscated or being demoted. The capital was like a completely different place.
Lu Hongxi had made another great contribution, but the emperor didn't reward him. He just said that since the first battle of the campaign in the northern desert was a great success and coincided with the birth of the daughter of the Prince of Zhennan, it showed that this girl was like Princess Zhaoyang, a lucky star of the Great Zhou. So she was enfeoffed as the Princess Mingzhu.
This was exactly the same as when Lu Wanning was born. Being enfeoffed as a princess at birth, it was truly boundless glory.
After that, the emperor, who had been listless before, became energetic again and could focus on governing the country.
However, there was no news about the actions of the Prince of Qishan's mansion. Lu Wanning was curious, so she invited Jiang Shishi to visit Zhen Yan at the Zhen mansion.
Zhen Yan was practicing martial arts at home. When she heard that her two friends had come, she wasn't formal at all. Without changing her clothes, she pulled them into the flower house.
"Look, this is my newly - built flower greenhouse. It's like spring all year round here, and there are all kinds of flowers. If you like any, just take a few pots home."
Lu Wanning wasn't interested in flowers. She just asked curiously, "Sister Zhen, you're actually taking care of flowers? You didn't like these things before, did you?"
Zhen Yan's ears turned slightly red. She said, "It's just that... I've been so bored all day long. I just wanted to try something different."
Jiang Shishi flicked her on the forehead. "You're such a nice girl, but you always talk nonsense."
Zhen Yan stuck out her tongue. "Sister Jiang likes peonies. I have two top - grade ones here. Do you want to take them home?"
Jiang Shishi did like them. She looked at them carefully with joy, but still shook her head. "I don't have a greenhouse as big as yours at home. If I take them back, I won't be able to keep them alive. It would be a pity if they died."
Normally, wealthy families would have their own flower houses. But Jiang Hanlin was thrifty, and everyone in the Jiang family was like that. They wouldn't spend money on such things.
Lu Wanning said, "Anyway, Sister Zhen won't be going to Daihe this year. We can come here often to see the flowers."
Zhen Yan immediately said, "I won't welcome you. Sister Jiang, if you like them, take them away quickly. One day when I'm in a bad mood, I might destroy them all."
Jiang Shishi asked curiously, "These flowers are so beautiful. Why would you destroy them?"
Zhen Yan didn't answer. Instead, she teased, "Besides, there's no room in the Jiang family, but there is in the He family. Lord He is so young, and he has the whole fortune of the He family. Can't he afford a flower house for you?"
Jiang Shishi's face immediately turned red. She pushed Zhen Yan. "You're just talking nonsense."
It wasn't really nonsense. Now, except for He Nanfeng, there were hardly any direct descendants left in the He family. Although most of the He family's assets were confiscated by the state, there was still a lot left. He Nanfeng was not only an earl but also had a position in the Ministry of Revenue. With the emperor's rewards, his life was very good.
Even better, when Jiang Shishi married into the He family next year, she would be the mistress of the house. There would be no mother - in - law to boss her around, no sisters - in - law or younger sisters - in - law. It would be so easy.
Everyone in the capital said that Jiang Shishi was extremely lucky. Fortunately, she hadn't been betrothed to the second son of the He family. Lu Yingshuang, who had married into the He family, hadn't had a good life. Not only did she make a mess of the family, but in just a short time, the He family members had lost their heads.
The Lu family had also been demoted and expelled from the capital. They would never be able to come back for generations.
Jiang Shishi not only survived the disaster but also would smoothly marry into the He family to be the countess.
Zhen Yan asked with a big smile, "Sister Jiang, in the past, your heart was always in turmoil because of He Nanfeng. Now your heart can finally settle down. You're just waiting to get married smoothly, right?"
Jiang Shishi turned her face away. After a long time, she said softly, "When did I ever care about his status?"
This was true. In Jiang Shishi's eyes, even if He Nanfeng was an unknown person, she would still be willing to be with him for a lifetime.
Lu Wanning propped her chin and looked at Jiang Shishi, which made Jiang Shishi blush.
"Why are you looking at me?"
Lu Wanning said, "I'm just happy that you've found such a good match. He Nanfeng is an honest man. He will surely never let you down."
A trace of worry flashed in Jiang Shishi's eyes. "I... I'm actually afraid that I'll drag him down."
Zhen Yan said impatiently, "Tsk, tsk. Enough, Sister Jiang. Among the three of us, you're the happiest one, but you're still talking nonsense here."
Jiang Shishi felt embarrassed herself. She just smiled. "Okay, stop talking about me. A Yan, Shishi and I came today just to ask you. Sheng Songyan's case has been rehabilitated. Has he come to look for you these days?"