Chapter 976 - A Visit, An Opportunity to Meet Someone

Early the next morning, Qi Baiyu took the letter from Yujie who was waiting for him at the door, and left.

When Shao Wanru got up, Yujie had already caught up on her sleep and got up again.

Qu Le and Qing Yue helped Shao Wanru to dress up. After a while, Yujie also came. When Shao Wanru finished her breakfast, a servant girl outside reported that Luo Xiaowan and Zhang Qilan wanted to see her.

Shao Wanru invited them in.

“Thank you so much, Princess Chen!” Seeing Shao Wanru, Luo Xiaowan sobbed out in gratitude and was about to kneel to pay her highest respect by kowtowing.

Shao Wanru hurriedly stepped forward and helped Luo Xiaowan up. “Sister Xiaowan, you shouldn’t have!”

“Princess Chen, if it weren’t for you… I… I… My life would be ruined already. If he dragged out the engagement until the Empress made a move… I…” The rims of Luo Xiaowan’s eyes started to burn. Though as timid as a little weak, she was not stupid. She was clear that if they could not find Liu Xincheng yesterday, her marriage would be doomed, or she could only wait for the Empress to grant her a marriage.

Fortunately, Prince Chen’s Mansion sent a message about Liu Xincheng’s whereabouts. Lucky for her, they found him in the end, and there was still room to save her life.

“Sister Xiaowan…”

“Princess Chen, don’t call me like that anymore. Please call me Xiaowan!” Luo Xiaowan shook her head.

“Princess Chen, you’d better call her Xiaowan!” Zhang Qilan also tried to persuade her.

Luo Xiaowan and Shao Wanru were not actually connected by blood. It was not appropriate for her to call Luo Xiaowan Sister Xiaowan. It might even cause some unexpected accidents.

Shao Wanru also understood this, so she didn’t insist and nodded in agreement. They took their seats.

Until the servant girl served tea, Shao Wanru asked softly, “How is your engagement? Your grandma didn’t make things difficult for you, did she?”

“She also agreed to break off the engagement, and the Old Madam of the Marquis Xing’s Mansion also sent someone to deal with it. Now the engagement is canceled!” Luo Xiaowan said, holding a handkerchief.

“That’s good!” Shao Wanru nodded. “Then what are you going to do next?”

This marriage had dragged Luo Xiaowan into a much worse situation in her past life.

“My… my mother said… she can choose a son-in-law from the candidates of the Palace Examination…” Luo Xiaowan lowered her head with a red face. She didn’t dare to say these words in the past, but now she believed in both Shao Wanru and Zhang Qilan. She could talk about it casually, “I don’t care about his family’s condition, as long as he himself is promising!”

The Duke Yangqu’s Mansion wasn’t a declining family. They just proposed a few requirements to Luo Xiaowan’s husband-to-be because they wanted her to gain a happy life.

It could be seen that the wife of Duke Yangqu’s son was truly good to her daughter.

“The Palace Examination is coming to an end. When the time comes, you can look at those successful candidates who are not married. Take your time and choose a suitable man for yourself!” Zhang Qilan also felt that this was a good thing.

The aristocratic families in the capital had the idea of getting a son-in-law from the candidates of the Palace Examination. Considering Luo Xiaowan’s current situation, she might not get the best ones. Nevertheless, it was still possible for her to find an ordinary one. After all, Luo Xiaowan was the legitimate daughter of Duke Yangqu’s Mansion and was favored by the wife of Duke Yangqu’s son.

“That’s the best!” Shao Wanru nodded. “Has your mother begun to choose?”

Luo Xiaowan’s face became redder and redder, and she nodded gently. “Yes… She has begun to choose!”

Even though her mother did not know who would pass the examination, she could choose someone knowledgeable with a good reputation. The Madam of Duke Yangqu truly doted on her daughter. As such, she started to pick early to find the most suitable person for Luo Xiaowan.

“Don’t worry. I’ll ask my Eldest Brother to check it out and see which ones are most likely to achieve success in the examination. Then Princess can pick them up first. It’s better than doing it after the exam result is announced!”

Zhang Qilan also smiled. After that, she clapped her hand on the table and suggested, “Shall we go and have a look now? I learned the exam would be over today.”

After counting the days, today was indeed the last day of the exam. In a while, all the candidates would be released.

A few roads were especially blocked to make it easier for the candidates to get into the examination halls.

The roads were still blocked.

“This… Is it appropriate…” Luo Xiaowan blushed. She had always been timid, but she had really thrown caution to the wind yesterday. She thought that if she really had to marry him, she might as well give up her life. When she recalled it last night, she finally got scared, and her hands and feet went limp. How could she be so brave as to rush out at that time?

“It doesn’t matter. Let’s take a look first. Maybe we can find the right person!” Zhang Qilan said disapprovingly and looked at Shao Wanru expectantly. “What do you think, Princess Chen? Let’s go and take a look at them for Xiaowan. We can do it more efficiently when others haven’t yet started!”

Seeing that Zhang Qilan was in high spirits, Shao Wanru smiled and slowly picked up the teacup to take a sip. Then she gently put it down and shook her head. “I’d better not go!”

“Why? Anyway, we are free at this time!” Zhang Qilan said in confusion. In her eyes, Shao Wanru was courageous. Why didn’t she dare to go with them?

“Yesterday, when I talked with Empress Dowager, she said I should avoid going out too much. Since Prince Chen is not in the mansion now, it’s not good for me to go out often!” Shao Wanru explained with a smile.

Hearing this, Zhang Qilan no longer encouraged Shao Wanru to go out. She could only sigh helplessly. “If you don’t go out, I won’t go there either. What a pity!”

“Why can’t you go there if I can’t?” Shao Wanru was curious. Her long eyelashes fluttered as she asked with a smile.

“My mother wanted me to learn from you. She said that you had the demeanor of a Princess, but I was ignorant and bold. There must be times that I would get myself into trouble!” Zhang Qilan put on a wry face, frowning deeply.

Luo Xiaowan, who was standing by the side, was amused and laughed.

Shao Wanru smiled and said, “You will be Princess Yue in the future. When I’m with you, I should be the one who needs to learn from you, and not the other way around.”

Shao Wanru praised Zhang Qilan while bantering with her. No matter how carefree she looked, Zhang Qilan couldn’t help blushing at this time and said, “Tut-tut! Let’s talk about it later. Anyway, I can’t compare with you in my mother’s eyes. She always speaks highly of you for everything you do.”

“What did I do?” Shao Wanru’s heart gave a brief leap with joy, and she asked with a gentle smile.

“Well, it’s about what happened between you and Infanta Yuan’an. My mother said that you did it right. Otherwise, someone might make a fuss about it later on!” Zhang Qilan said.

Shao Wanru had a dispute with Infanta Yuan’an, and Chu Liuchen broke Second Young Master Qu’s hand at the palace’s gate. This matter had been spread throughout the capital city. Most people thought that Shao Wanru had done the right thing, which was the best way to vent the spleen. Why could Second Young Master Qu do whatever he wanted, but Princess Chen had to eat humble pie?

No matter what, Princess Chen’s status was far superior to that of Second Young Master Qu. No one would think it reasonable for her to endure everything without protest merely because she was a woman and Second Young Master Qu was a man.

“I was furious back then, so the servant girl took action. Prince Chen was really pissed off at that time!” Shao Wanru said softly.

She explained everything in a reserved way.

“This kind of person deserved a hard lesson. He must be a man utterly without self-knowledge! How dare he reach out his hand? In the past, Infanta Yuan’an appeared to be benign and righteous. How could she be capable of such a thing? Shame on her!” Zhang Qilan curled her lips.

This matter seemed to have nothing to do with Infanta Yuan’an, but every woman who had fought in the inner courtyard could see it clearly. She was obviously involved, but she pretended to be innocent. So, others couldn’t help despising her.

In the past, Infanta Yuan’an had built up an excellent reputation. But now, it seemed that she had nothing worth mentioning.

“Princess Chen, the shop you went to that day was really good. I had been there before and ordered a few sets of clothes. Each one was very good. Later, I ordered a few more sets, but they haven’t been sent to me yet,” Zhang Qilan said with pity. Suddenly, her eyes lit up. “Princess Chen, can you ask someone to invite this shopkeeper over? I’ll order a few more sets, and so will Xiaowan!”

It was indeed inconvenient for Luo Xiaowan to go out, considering her current situation. Hearing Zhang Qilan’s words, she was tempted, so she looked up at Shao Wanru with expectations.

Although she didn’t echo this suggestion, her desire was apparent!

“Call the shopkeeper over?” Shao Wanru hesitated.

“Yes, ask her to come over. Let’s choose the clothes carefully. By the way, she can bring us some cloth and toggle-and-loop buttons. My mother didn’t let me go out recently. She said that we should behave ourselves.” Seeing a chance, Zhang Qilan hurriedly put on an anxious look, trying to persuade her.

Luo Xiaowan called out timidly, “Princess Chen…”

“Okay!” Shao Wanru had to agree. “Yujie, go and ask the shopkeeper of Butterfly Clothing Shop to come over. Ask her to bring some cloth, embroidery, and toggle-and-loop buttons!”

“Yes, Princess. I will go right away!” Yujie understood and answered in a crisp voice. Then she turned around and left with a brilliant smile.

Since that day, Shao Wanru hadn’t contacted Madame Dong to avoid suspicion. Now, with this opportunity, she could meet her here!

Madame Dong came quickly in a carriage and soon arrived here. There were three embroidered maids coming with her. They brought some decent cloth, necessary toggle-and-loop buttons, and embroidery, which had been piled up on the table. The scene made Zhang Qilan and Luo Xiaowan excited. They gathered together and began the selection carefully.

Shao Wanru only chose one set of clothes and sat to rest. Madame Dong stood beside her with a broad smile, leaving the three embroidered maids serving by the table.

“Madame Dong, how’s your business going?” Shao Wanru asked with a smile, looking like she was chatting casually.

“We can still do business, but…” Madame Dong sighed when she said this, with a trace of worry on her face.

“If you have any difficulties, just say it. When our princess came back that day, she still felt sorry for you and blamed herself for disturbing your business for no reason!” Qu Le said with a smile.