am-books Chapter 188
Chapter 188
The children ran around playing, and Wei Xinglu followed behind with envy, shouting, "Wait for me, let me join in! Spread some of that luminous pearl powder on me too!"
"Haha, then run faster, I have the most on me..."
"Zong Jincheng, wait for me."
The children went on to create more chaos, while Xu Wan looked at her little finger and turned to the Old Marchioness, saying, "This time, I think I've finally been taken off the grudge list."
The Old Marchioness laughed heartily at her remark, feeling several years younger all of a sudden. "Let’s go, let's go see the lanterns. In my opinion, the lanterns during the Mid-Autumn Festival are the most beautiful, all of them red."
Xu Wan raised an eyebrow and said, "That's because you like red. The lanterns during the Lantern Festival come in all colors, a real 'hundred flowers in bloom.'"
"Red is the most beautiful, nothing can compare," the Old Marchioness argued.
"As your daughter-in-law, I think purple is nice, blue is also good, and yellow is so bright and lively..."
Elsewhere at the palace banquet.
Pang Jing was dragged away, feeling wronged to the point of tears: "Why are you pulling me away? I want that piece of clothing, why didn't you help me get it back!"
"Wah wah wah..." Pang Jing continued crying.
General Pang approached and asked, "What's going on? Why is Jing crying?"
Madam Pang recounted the situation to him, and General Pang's face turned cold: "Ever since the Grand General left, they’ve been acting so arrogantly, not giving us any face. They must be licking the boots of the Crown Prince."
Before leaving for the frontier, Luo Jingfeng had instructed him to keep an eye on the Crown Prince's every move. Then he noticed that the Crown Prince had visited Marquis Manor three times in the past month, indicating a close relationship.
"General, the Grand General has sent a message back to the capital," a guard ran in from outside, handing General Pang a note.
To avoid disturbing General Pang, Madam Pang took Pang Jing to another part of the palace.
General Pang opened the note, his eyes widening in shock as he read it. He turned to the guard and said, "The Grand General has received a tip that the Third Young Lady might have had a child before her death!"@@@@
The guard was equally shocked: "That's impossible! No one ever heard of the Third Young Lady being pregnant. She was bedridden for the last half year before her death. How could she have had a child? Half a year... half a year... half a year!"
"Oh, no need. I can see by the moonlight," Xu Wan replied, still refusing.
Zong Jincheng finally got annoyed. "Are you trying to pick a fight again?"
Xu Wan: "...Yes, you caught me."
However, the wise stepmother decided to change the subject. "Don’t hold onto me so tightly. You’re making it hard for me to walk."
"I’m not holding on tightly! I’m just holding your sleeve. Why are you being so dramatic?"
"Am I being dramatic? Look at what you're doing!" Xu Wan was deeply impressed by his ability to turn the tables.
"Hmph, meanie." Zong Jincheng accused her, though his grip on her sleeve remained firm as he pulled her along.
When they finally got into the horse carriage, and there were no more curious onlookers, Xu Wan’s racing, embarrassed heartbeat finally began to return to normal.
"Wan, you take the same carriage as them. Your father and I have some things to discuss," the Old Marchioness kindly gave Zong Jincheng an excuse to stay close to Xu Wan.
The Old Marchioness and the Old Marquis, taking this chance to leave the young couple alone, got into their own carriage and started exchanging gossip about their son and daughter-in-law, feeling increasingly excited about the prospect of seeing them as a loving family.
Xu Wan was then escorted back to Zong Jincheng's carriage.
This made Zong Jincheng secretly overjoyed.
He climbed into the carriage and sat close to Xu Wan, trying to act casual about it.
Xu Wan’s lips curled into a smile as she thought to herself, "Little idiot, so naive."
He Zheng and Zong Wenxiu were sitting across from them, both a bit tired from playing all evening, dozing off in the carriage.
During that moment, He Zheng opened his eyes just in time to see Zong Jincheng scoot a bit closer to Xu Wan on the right. Xu Wan was leaning against the carriage window, eyes closed, completely oblivious.
He Zheng's eyes widened in realization. So it was true, just as Wei Xinglu had whispered to him earlier, Jincheng was definitely getting closer to his stepmother lately, and He Zheng had just caught him in the act.
When Zong Jincheng noticed his brother's shocked gaze, he suddenly felt his neck heat up, as if blushing. He glared at He Zheng, who quickly shut his eyes tightly, pretending he hadn't seen anything.