The Devious First-Daughter

Chapter 506 Commandery Princess Xianyun’s Invitation

Mother Ruan didn’t stay long in the Pear Flower Garden. Having stopped by Commandery Princess Xianyun’s Great Wisdom Garden earlier, visiting Ning Xueyan’s courtyard was considered part of her job as the steward of the inner courtyard. Today, she had managed to meet the two new mistresses of Prince Yi’s Manor.

Everything in the manor had been taken care of and there was nothing wrong with the inner courtyard either. Besides, with the Princess around, Ning Xueyan didn’t think that any task would land on her hands. She decided to hide in her room and take a comfortable nap.

She thought that she might develop insomnia after moving to a new place but she quickly got used to her new environment and was able to sleep well. Back when she was nursing her health in the Bright Frost Garden, her doctor had advised her to take frequent naps. Sleeping more would help her regulate her already weak body.

So, Ning Xueyan developed a napping habit!

To her surprise, she slept particularly soundly after just turning over the pillow once or twice.

Two hours had passed by the time she woke up.

“Master, the Princess has sent her maid to invite you to her place. I told her that you’re taking your nap because of your poor health. Surprisingly, she’s very understanding and said that you can head to the Great Wisdom Garden once you’re awake. The Princess wants to discuss some household matters with you.”

Lanning came over to help her stand and freshen up.

Princess Commandery Xianyun wanted to talk to her about some household matters? Ning Xueyan frowned. It was her first day in the manor and she was still unfamiliar with many things. She didn’t want to play along with the Princess and waste her time and effort.

“Was that all her maid said?” Ning Xueyan asked.

“Yes.” Lanning hesitated for a moment before putting a smile on her face. “The maid didn’t actually come in. She was stopped at the door by the two eunuchs, who told her that you’re usually sleeping at this hour. They said that this is the master’s rule and that no maid is allowed to enter and disturb you. There was a little argument between them and I had to go out to talk to the maid.”

There was such a rule at the manor? Ning Xueyan was initially dumbstruck but a smile soon appeared on her face. Before she and the Princess entered the manor, he was the only master of the manor. To think that he would just lie about having a napping habit. Even if the Princess wanted to kick up a fuss about this matter, she couldn’t.

Now that she thought about it, would Ao Chenyi have such a habit? He was such a busy person, with so many departments under his control to boot. He didn’t seem like a person who would have a napping habit. Still, he had already admitted as such, so the Princess naturally wouldn’t doubt him.

“Tell her that I’m unwell and need more rest. Once I feel better, I’ll visit the Princess again,” Ning Xueyan said expressionlessly. After allowing Lanning to put her hair up in a simple bun, she leaned sideways on the couch and started reading a book.

No matter what the Princess was up to, she knew it wasn’t a good idea to get involved at this time. Although she had promised Ao Chenyi to help him manage his inner courtyard, now was clearly not the best time.

After all, she had just fainted before entering the manor yesterday, making it completely reasonable for her to be in poor health. It might be an excuse if it came out of others’ mouths, but if it came from her, people would just say that she was frail.

Lanning was the one who went to the Great Wisdom Garden to pass on the message. After entering the courtyard, she stood in the corridor as per the rules and waited for the Princess to summon her. She didn’t wait for long before a maid invited her in.

Inside the room, an elegant-looking Commandery Princess Xianyun was sitting in a chair while drinking tea. When she saw Lanning coming in, she went out of her way to ask after Ning Xueyan’s health in a kind manner.

“Your Highness, yesterday... my mistress has truly hurt her health yesterday. She woke up early this morning too, and she can longer take it anymore. She is a little out of it after napping and we have to feed her pills that we’ve prepared. She won’t be coming here this time so as to not spread the illness to you. Once she feels better, she’ll surely come here to greet you, Your Highness.”

Lanning’s words were polite. Although she had stammered a little, it was only natural that a maid was hesitant to speak about her mistress’ affairs so openly. Ning Xueyan had even fainted before her wedding ceremony yesterday. It was quite a shameful thing to happen right before her marriage.

Naturally, the Princess was well-aware of yesterday’s event as well. Upon hearing that Ning Xueyan was too ill to come over, she frowned. “To think that Sister Ning’s health would have deteriorated to this point. Should we summon the manor’s physician?”

There were two physicians in Prince Yi’s Manor. One of them stayed with Ao Chenyi at all times, following him wherever he went, to ensure that he wouldn’t suffer from a sudden illness outbreak. The other stayed in the manor.

The two imperial physicians were awarded by the previous Emperor when he was still alive.

“My mistress said that there’s no need to trouble you, Your Highness. It’s her old illness acting up and she’s been having these problems since her childhood. She has recovered from a lot of her illnesses, but she still often feels weak. She’ll be devoid of energy if she tires herself even just a little, but she’ll get better after a few days of rest,” Lanning said, repeating Ning Xueyan’s response.

When she glanced at the Princess’ expression, she felt surprised that her mistress was right. The Princess was indeed determined to force her mistress to come out.

Ning Xueyan’s response left the Princess with no room to argue. Ning Xueyan’s health was notoriously poor, and after what had happened yesterday, everyone in the manor understood that the mistress of the Pear Flower Garden was a frail one. The Princess had also seen her earlier.

Although Ning Xueyan’s complexion had improved, her face and even her lips were still paler than most people. It took just one glance at her to know that her health was poor.

“All right, I’ll let Sister Ning have a good rest then. Go back and tell your mistress that she must come to my place once she recovers. That’ll put my heart to ease, too,” the Princess said softly, appearing as if she was truly concerned about Ning Xueyan.

“I understand. I’ll take my leave now.” Lanning nodded and respectfully curtsied to the Princess before leaving the room. Xiangrong went out of her way to see her off at the door.

After leaving Commandery Princess Xianyun’s Great Wisdom Garden, she slowly disappeared at the intersection of the road under Xiangrong’s watchful eyes.

Once she had disappeared out of sight, Xiangrong returned to the room and found her mistress contemplating while sipping the cup of tea in her hand.

“Your Highness, Consort Ning isn’t willing to come here. What should we do next?” Xiangrong asked quietly, taking a careful look at the Princess’ face. Consort Ning had neither a proper status in the manor nor the favor of the prince. Since it was the Princess’ invitation, she thought that the unwell consort would surely come, even if she had to crawl here.

After all, the Princess had extended an olive branch to her!

Unexpectedly, the consort didn’t know how to appreciate such favor and ended up ruining the Princess’ plans instead.

Qiuhuan couldn’t help but try to persuade her mistress. “Your Highness, why don’t we wait for a while? These things can’t be rushed. Who knows, the Prince might come over tonight. By then, you can do whatever you want with justification.”

The fact that Ao Chenyi had visited his concubine in the Fragrance Garden instead of the Princess on their wedding night had made her position in the manor rocky, but she would be to reaffirm her status if he came here tonight.

Ao Chenyi coming over? The Princess’ eyes became filled with anger. Judging from Ao Chenyi’s words this morning, she knew that he wouldn’t be coming over. She had also spoken privately to the Empress today; the Empress told her that once someone like Ao Chenyi developed malice towards someone, it would take some time for him to change his mind.

He was suspecting her just because she was Commandery Princess Xianyun, a lady from the Lord Peace’s Manor and the Empress’ niece! This made her feel both helpless and furious.

In the past, she was very satisfied with her title of Commandery Princess. Although her family was declining, it didn’t mean that they wouldn’t rise again in the future. They had once flourished when the Empress Dowager was still around, but such good times didn’t last. She passed away just a few years after becoming the Empress Dowager. Later, the honor of her family gradually faded after failing to produce any outstanding talents.

They were a marquis’ family and the maternal family of the Empress Dowager at that. Few families could compare to them. As the most outstanding lady of her generation in the family, it was only natural for her to inherit the duty of honoring the family.

She had married into Prince Yi’s Manor out of her own will. It was also a place where her family was willing to let her marry into.

She knew that Ao Chenyi would have misgivings about her identity and that he was disgusted with her because of her confession to the Empress. Still, she truly wanted to marry him. She didn’t want to enter the imperial harem and marry the elderly Emperor.

Although she was confident that Ao Chenyi would slowly change his mind and fall for her, the process was too long for her. She couldn’t afford to wait anymore upon realizing that everything was an endless loop.

If she wanted to win Ao Chenyi’s heart, she must let him discover how great she was, such as her generosity and management methods. She would make him feel that she was the only one worthy of standing beside him, taking on the world side by side with him. Only she could keep his inner courtyard, even his harem, harmonious for him.

The first step was the most important, and this step had been perfectly delivered to her. How could she not accept it?

If she didn’t take this chance, would Ao Chenyi think that she had no means or ability? Would he think that she couldn’t even manage the inner courtyard, much less accomplish other things?

It had only been a day that Ao Chenyi hadn’t visited her courtyard. The people in the manor were still watching and wouldn’t dare to ignore her. She decided that she must use this chance to demonstrate her might and earn the respect of the manor’s servants. That way, even if Ao Chenyi would never visit her again, the servants wouldn’t dare to disrespect her.

This would also allow Ao Chenyi to witness her capabilities. She believed that he had seen many beauties in his life and wasn’t so shallow that he would judge someone by their appearance. As a person who was ambitious for the world, what he lacked the most was a woman who was capable, courageous, and skillful.

As long as Ao Chenyi wasn’t blind, she believed that he would find her more suitable compared to the consort who was so weak that she would faint at the first sign of tiredness. Moreover, she was also very confident in her appearance. Ning Xueyan was undoubtedly beautiful, but she was still young and so pale too. There was no way that she would win Prince Yi’s favor.