Chapter Fifty-Five Cause and Effect

  Ye Qinglan saw her expression relax and gave a signal to Zhi Xia and others. The maids quietly retreated.

  Ye Qinglan walked a few steps closer and said in a low voice: "Did Zheng brother tell your uncle and aunt something?"

  Ye Qingning nodded, a hint of gloom flashing in her eyes.

  On the day of the longevity banquet, Zheng and her aunt, Mrs. Xu, had already reached a tacit understanding. If nothing unexpected happened, they would have found someone to formally propose marriage in these few days.

  Zheng's family had already begun to prepare for her dowry, but no one could have anticipated the sudden turn of events that left everyone caught off guard.

  "This morning, my aunt sent someone to deliver a letter." Ye Qingning finally spoke up, a hint of shyness and anger flashing in her eyes: "My cousin told them that the one he likes is Xiuyu, and the only person he wants to marry is her."

  Zheng was shocked and angry upon receiving the news. He couldn't even wait for Ye Chengren to return and discuss the matter, so he came to Huancui Pavilion and told Ye Qingning about it.

  Although Ye Qingning had mentally prepared herself, she still felt ashamed and indignant when she suddenly heard the news, and replied without thinking: "He can marry whoever he likes, I don't care."

  Madam Zheng's expression turned stern as she scolded Ye Qingning a few times. The words were lengthy and need not be repeated, the key point being that she didn't have to worry about anything, just wait peacefully for her marriage to the Zheng Guo Gong Fu.

  "Did Great Aunt really say that?" Ye Qinglan felt more and more uneasy: "Then what was your aunt's attitude?" Zheng Junyan's attitude was very clear, no need to say more. What reaction did Mrs. Xu have?

  Ye Qingning twitched the corner of her lips, and a hint of mockery flashed in her eyes: "Aunt didn't say anything." Madame Xu simply wrote down the details on paper and sent it to Changyuan Bo's residence with a servant.

  Nothing was said...

  Ye Qinglan also furrowed her brow.

  If Madam Xü insists on the marriage between Changyuan Bo and their family, she should scold Zheng Junyan to dispel his thoughts. If they want to form an alliance with the Gu family, they can use this matter as an excuse to reject this side. What is the meaning of such a vague reaction now?

  Ye Qingning sneered and said, "Xiuyu is the only legitimate miss of the Dingguo Duke's Manor, with a noble status. She actually matches better with Zheng. If she were fine without any illness, Aunt would be overjoyed."

  Unfortunately, Gu Xiuyu was born introverted and timid, and when she saw strangers, she didn't even dare to say a word. With such a temperament, how could she be the eldest daughter-in-law of the Zhengguo Duke's mansion?

  As soon as she said that, Ye Qinglan suddenly understood. This Mrs. Xu was quite astute, tactfully informing Zheng Shi of the matter while not explicitly refusing her. Apparently, she wanted to observe for a while before deciding which one to choose as her daughter-in-law.

  The Zheng family was unwilling to give up such a good marriage. But Ye Qingning was so proud, how could she tolerate such humiliation. In a fit of anger, she quarreled with the Zheng family.

  Zheng's family had always doted on her and given in to her every demand, but when it came to this matter, they were unyielding and even severely scolded her.

  Ye Qingning became more and more wronged as she spoke, and eventually her eyes turned red.

  Ye Qinglan comforted her: "Don't be so sad for now. Maybe this matter will be resolved soon." Xu Madam can't keep dragging things on like this forever, right?!

  Ye Qingning's face was stubborn: "Even if my brother-in-law comes back and changes his mind in the future, I won't marry him."

  Ye Qinglan echoed her tone and added a few words: "Yes, Liu Jie's appearance and talent are all top-notch, I'm sure the people who want to marry you would line up from the east of the city to the west. Zheng Shixiong is really blind." After a pause, she suddenly smiled and added another sentence: "In my opinion, only someone like Gu Shixiong is worthy of Liu Jie!"

  As soon as Ye Qingning heard Gu Xiye's name, she suddenly blushed and glared at Ye Qinglan with a hint of shyness: "You're talking nonsense again." Her voice was soft and gentle, without any strength, but full of girlish charm.

  Yè Qīnglán batted her eyelashes coquettishly, feigning innocence: "I'm just speaking from the heart, what nonsense am I talking? Besides, there's no one else here, just the two of us. What can't be said?"

  Ye Qingning bit her lip and slapped Ye Qinglan a few times in annoyance.

  After fooling around for a while, Ye Qingning's mood had obviously improved a lot. Ye Qinglan took the opportunity to ask: "By the way, Sixth Sister, there is something that I have always been curious about, why did Gu Shixiong never get married? Is it because something happened in the past?"

  Ye Qingning's smile faded, and she didn't want to discuss the topic: "These are all old things from a few years ago, I don't know much about it either."

  Since she didn't want to say it clearly, Ye Qinglan had no choice but to stop there. But in her heart, she became more and more curious. In the future, she must find an opportunity to clarify this matter.

  "Are you feeling better now?"

  Ye Qinglan smiled slightly: "Actually, I wasn't sick at all."

  "What? Ye Qingning was taken aback: "You've been pretending to be ill?" You're really good at acting!"

  Yeqing Lan made up her mind to get closer to her, and on these small matters, of course, she had to be honest, and the more detailed the better: "I want to stay in Beijing, I have to have an excuse. So I've been pretending to be ill since a few days ago. Sixth sister, this secret I only told you one person, you must not tell anyone."

  Sharing each other's secrets is the best way to bring two girls closer together.

  Ye Qingning's expression changed slightly, and she solemnly promised: "Don't worry, I absolutely won't tell anyone else."

  Ye Qinglan smiled slightly. Although Ye Qingning had many shortcomings, being talkative was not one of them. That's why she felt at ease telling her about this matter.

  Let's take a step back, even if Ye Qingning reveals this secret, it doesn't matter. This little trick of hers to pretend to be ill, how could she really deceive the clever and astute inner house women like Jiang Shi and Zheng Shi? It's just that they're too lazy to ask about the third house's affairs, so they turn a blind eye.

  "Sixth sister, starting from tomorrow, I'll come with you to pay respects to grandmother, okay?" Ye Qinglan asked with a smile, taking advantage of Ye Qingning's good mood.

  Ye Qingning responded very quickly: "Alright, you come find me first, then we'll go see Mother together. Mother will lead us to pay our respects to Grandmother."

  This remark hit Ye Qinglan's soft spot, and she immediately smiled and agreed.

  The next morning, Ye Qinglan indeed came early. Her face was still powdered, but she hadn't applied any rouge, looking pale and weak.

  Ye Qingning didn't know the inside story, but now that she clearly knew Ye Qinglan was faking her illness, looking at her weak and sickly appearance made her want to laugh. She deliberately teased: "Tenth sister, your complexion today is much worse than yesterday's. You must be careful to take care of yourself."

  Ye Qinglan smiled without any embarrassment and replied: "Thank you, Sixth Sister, for your concern. For the sake of Sixth Sister's kindness, I will definitely get better as soon as possible."

  The thickness of their skin is simply not on the same level!

  Ye Qingning glared at her with a mixture of laughter and tears: "Stop joking around, let's hurry up!"