After a period of resistance, Yun Xi finally succumbed to her craving for meat and agreed to practice martial arts with Qi Rong.
True to his promise, Qi Rong instructed the kitchen to prepare all kinds of meat dishes for Yun Xi in different styles every day. He fulfilled all her food requests.
This became the only consolation for Yun Xi after her hard - training sessions.
However, rumors still spread in the prince's mansion that Prince Xian Qi Rong was mistreating his concubine, Yun Xi.
Every morning, the sounds of Yun Xi's wails, pleas, or angry shouts would come from the martial - arts training ground in the prince's mansion. The servants, who didn't know the real situation, mistakenly thought that their prince was torturing this new "lady" in a disguised way!
They were so sure that Qi Rong was "torturing" Yun Xi because they all knew that Yun Xi was the famous Princess Yongning in the capital and the legitimate daughter of the prime minister. If the two had no grudges, why would the prince take her as a concubine?
With Yun Xi's peerless beauty and noble status, she was more than qualified to be their princess!
Moreover, some of them had heard that the current crown prince was infatuated with Princess Yongning, but their prince had got her first! Otherwise, Yun Xi might have become the crown princess and would rule the country in the future!
Due to the servants' preconceived notions, they didn't think about the deeper reasons. Once the news of "Qi Rong mistreating Yun Xi" spread, it immediately became a hot topic in the capital.
In addition, some people had witnessed Yun Xi's public argument with Qi Rong at Fumanlou and her subsequent visit to the prime minister's mansion. They then used their talent for exaggeration and spread the following version:
Prince Xian Qi Rong, in order to take revenge on the prime minister, deliberately forced his beloved daughter, Princess Yongning, to be his concubine and even made things difficult for her in every possible way.
Unable to bear the torture from the prince, Princess Yongning had tried to escape back to the prime minister's mansion several times but was caught and taken back to the prince's mansion. After that, the prince tortured Princess Yongning even more severely. Even now, heart - rending wails and pleas from Princess Yongning could still be heard in the prince's mansion.
It was really pitiful! A peerless beauty was about to meet her end in the hands of the notorious Prince Xian...
When the old lady in the prime minister's mansion accidentally heard the servants discussing this for the first time, she was so heart - broken that she almost fainted!
Although she had mistreated Yun Xi before, after seeing Yun Xi's great sacrifice for the prime minister's mansion, she had long since realized her mistake.
Remembering what Cook Li had reported to her last time, saying that Yun Xi had returned to the prime minister's mansion a few days ago, desperately looking for meat, the old lady immediately believed the rumor.
She thought that Yun Xi must have been wronged in the prince's mansion.
Maybe she couldn't even get enough to eat, so she sneaked back to her natal family to find food!
When her son, Yun Sheng, returned to the mansion after court, the old lady's eyes were already red from crying. She urged Yun Sheng to go to the prince's mansion to check on Yun Xi. If necessary, he should just take her back!
If worse came to worst, they could go to the emperor and force Prince Xian Qi Rong to release her!
However, Yun Sheng, who had always been very protective of his daughter, was not as excited as the old lady. He comforted the anxious old lady:
"Mother, this is obviously a false rumor."
Then he analyzed quietly:
"If Prince Xian really mistreated Xi'er as the rumor said, he would surely confine her and not allow her to leave the mansion. As far as I know, Xi'er went to an embroidery shop yesterday and was managing the shop left by her mother as usual."
Moreover, although he had not wanted his daughter to be with Qi Rong before and still hadn't given up on this idea, he had to admit that Qi Rong seemed to be serious about his daughter.
It wasn't as he had deliberately told his daughter, that "Qi Rong just wanted to get the military amulet".
The reason he had tried to stop their relationship was that he saw Qi Rong's ambition. Qi Rong was no ordinary person. Sooner or later, he would rise to great heights and his achievements would overshadow the emperor!
By then, he would surely arouse the vigilance of those people, and they would gang up to punish him!
For Yun Sheng, he was already tired of the imperial power struggle. His father's fate was a good example! And the death of the former emperor had left him completely disheartened.
It wasn't that he was afraid of death. He just thought that it didn't matter who was the emperor, as long as the people lived in peace and his daughter was happy. He could be a "big traitor" forever and even be spat on by future generations!
However, the only thing he couldn't tolerate was that his daughter, Yun Xi, would be involved in this political whirlpool!
The struggle for imperial power was like a ferocious beast that ate people without spitting out the bones. He didn't want his daughter to be affected by Qi Rong and end up badly!
Thinking of this, Yun Sheng couldn't help but sigh and said:
"Maybe Prince Xian's actions are actually better for Yun Xi." It also suited his wishes.
If everyone knew that Prince Xian Qi Rong cherished his daughter Yun Xi, then Yun Xi would surely be pushed into a very dangerous situation.
In that case, Qi Rong's countless enemies and even those in the royal family would use his daughter Yun Xi to counter Qi Rong. Yun Xi would be even more unsafe!
Not knowing what her son was thinking, the old lady stared at Yun Sheng reproachfully and said:
"What's so good about it? Are you out of your mind?! Yun Xi has been bullied like this by the prince's mansion, and you, as her father, can still say it's 'good'?!"
Every time she remembered what Yun Xi had said to her on the day she was taken away by Qi Rong from the prime minister's mansion, the old lady's heart ached.
She wiped away her tears and said sadly:
"She said that for the sake of saving you and preventing the prime minister's mansion from having a feud with the prince's mansion, I should just pretend that I didn't have her as a granddaughter. But everyone has a heart. How could I abandon her after all her sacrifices?"
"Don't forget that you were saved from the imperial prison because of her. We owe Yun Xi!"
The old lady had been unkind to Yun Xi before. Now seeing his mother defending his daughter so much, Yun Sheng felt very gratified. He patiently comforted her:
"Mother, don't worry. I'll go to the prince's mansion right now and ask Yun Xi what's really going on."
Coincidentally, he also had something to say to his daughter.
Even if Qi Rong didn't like him, he couldn't refuse to let him in!
"Hurry up!"
The old lady urged repeatedly, thinking that at least after her son went, Prince Xian Qi Rong, no matter how overbearing he was, wouldn't dare to bully Yun Xi anymore!
On the other side, in Fumanlou, Princess Ba had sneaked out of the palace again and was enjoying the famous dishes in Fumanlou. By chance, she heard the people at the next table discussing Yun Xi.
Hearing about Yun Xi's current situation, Princess Ba was extremely delighted!
She had never liked Yun Xi, who was too beautiful. Coupled with Yun Xi's previous over - prominence, she had wanted to teach her a lesson but had failed in her scheme and was confined by her mother for several months. Just thinking about it made her angry!
The last time she saw Yun Xi, she had intended to teach the latter a lesson, but unexpectedly, she had been outwitted.
She felt like a fool, while Yun Xi had taken the opportunity to slip away!
She was so angry that she had wanted to pester her mother to arrange a random marriage for Yun Xi as revenge.
But unexpectedly, her seventh brother had taken Yun Xi as his concubine. Although she was shocked, she also felt very pleased!