ARTTEDSBGT Chapter 64
When Li Zhizhi entered, Madam Li had already been welcomed into the flower hall. As Li Zhizhi’s nominal foster mother, the servants in the princess’s mansion treated her with utmost respect, considering her as the mistress. They even brought tea, fruits, and snacks to serve her attentively.
Madam Li sat on the grand chair, sipping the finest Emei white tea with an air of dignity. However, upon seeing Li Zhizhi, she quickly set down her tea cup and personally came forward to greet her warmly, saying, “It’s only been a few days, and our Zhizhi looks even more refreshing. It seems that the Grand Princess’s mansion is indeed a good place for nurturing.”
Li Zhizhi felt repulsed by her words, with gooseb.u.mps rising on her skin. Seeing that Madam Li wanted to reach out and pull her, she quickly took a step back, creating a gap. Madam Li was left with an empty hand, and though there was a hint of embarra.s.sment on her face, she soon recovered. With other servants watching, she couldn’t say much and just playfully scolded, “This child, just a few days not seeing each other, why do you act so reserved?”
Suppressing her annoyance, Li Zhizhi asked, “Why has Madam come?”
Madam Li hurriedly explained, “I came to check on you. You’ve been staying in the Grand Princess’s mansion for so long without returning home. There has been no news from you. Both the master and I were mentioning you yesterday, so I specially came to inquire. When are you coming back to the mansion?”
Her tone was unusually affectionate and kind. Li Zhizhi looked at her with a strange expression, suspecting if something supernatural had possessed her. Madam Li and Master Li were thinking of her? The words gave her an eerie feeling.
With a forced smile on her face, Li Zhizhi replied, “Thank you for Madam and Master’s concern. Everything is fine in the princess’s mansion, and Mother treats me very well, just like her own daughter. Madam and Master don’t need to worry about me.”
Madam Li, hearing her address the Grand Princess as her mother, felt an uncomfortable sensation in her heart. She dryly smiled and said, “Even so, it’s not appropriate for us to disturb Her Royal Highness for an extended period. It’s better to be at ease in our own mansion…”
Xiao Rulei guarded the entrance of the flower hall, hearing that this woman was trying to persuade Sister Zhizhi to go back. She couldn’t help but feel anxious, wanting to rush in to stop it. However, she was also afraid of making Sister Zhizhi angry, remembering that she had been told to wait outside earlier.
When Xiao Rulei was at a loss, she suddenly heard a familiar voice behind him: “Why are you squatting here? Stomachache?”
Xiao Rulei was overjoyed and quickly turned around, shouting, “Brother!”
Sure enough, she saw Xiao Yan sitting on the carriage, pushed by Xu Tingfeng through the corridor. She ran over and urgently said, “Brother, a woman said she wants to take Sister Zhizhi away. Hurry up and stop her!”
Xiao Yan was surprised and asked, “Who?”
Just then, he heard the gradually approaching conversation in the flower hall. It was the voice of Li Zhizhi: “I’m fine here. The courtyard I live in is even bigger than the Three Shu Yue Pavilion. The servants of the He Fu obey my orders. They won’t dare to go east if I say west. They won’t catch a cat if I say catch a mouse. No one here gives me a hard time. I can have over ten dishes in a meal, with various desserts. They are all made by the imperial chefs. The clothes are measured by the imperial tailor. They make dozens of sets at a time, and I can’t wear them all even if I rotate them every day. There are all kinds of good fabrics like satin and silk. When I go out, I ride in an eight-lift sedan chair, and my feet don’t touch the ground. Someone serves tea, water, and fans with just a stretch of my hand. It’s even more comfortable than this.”
After listening, Xiao Yan’s face suddenly showed a faint smile. He could almost infer from Li Zhizhi’s tone how the girl’s expression was at the moment, chin slightly raised, with a bit of pride and small triumph.
In the flower hall, Madam Li was already dumbfounded by what she heard. She never expected that the treatment Li Zhizhi received from the Grand Princess was so good. It was the treatment of a real daughter. In comparison, the Li residence couldn’t compare. The Three Shu Yue Pavilion was so small that you couldn’t even turn around in it.
Madam Li struggled for a while before finally managing to laugh dryly saying, “You, this child, only think about living a comfortable life. There’s an old saying, ‘A child doesn’t find the mother ugly, and a dog doesn’t find the home poor.’ Our own home still has its own merits.”
Li Zhizhi pursed her lips and said lightly, “But I’m not a dog. The Grand Princess’s mansion is indeed better than the Li mansion. My mother even said to treat the Grand Princess’s mansion as my own home and not to be restrained.”
Seeing her eloquence and refusal to yield, Madam Li felt anger rising in her heart, but she restrained herself and patiently advised, “The princess is just being polite to you. How can you take it seriously? As a person, you should know grat.i.tude, understand when to advance and retreat, and be aware of etiquette. Otherwise, you will invite dislike from others. You’re already this old, don’t you understand these principles?”
Li Zhizhi shook her head, gazing at her with slightly widened eyes, and said, “My biological parents died early, and no one taught me. How could I understand? But it doesn’t matter. Now I have the Grand Princess as my foster mother, and she will teach me in the future. You don’t need to worry, Madam.”
She extended her hand, and immediately a maid brought in tea. Li Zhizhi casually blew on the hot liquid, saying, “Madam, if you have the time, it’s better to worry about your elder daughter.”
Madam Li, unable to contain her anger, had a dark and gloomy expression. Staring at Li Zhizhi, she said slowly, “Are you really unwilling to go back?”
Li Zhizhi didn’t even glance at her, saying nonchalantly, “No, Madam, please.”
She placed the teacup down and instructed a servant, “I’m a bit tired and want to rest. See the guest out.”
A maid immediately stepped forward, gesturing for Madam Li to follow. Speaking softly, she said, “Madam Li, please this way.”
With all the servants in the room watching, Madam Li felt extremely embarra.s.sed. Reluctantly, she stood up. Just at that moment, someone entered from outside. It was Crown Prince Xiao Yan, seated in a wheelchair. Xiao Rulei was leaning against the door, peeking in and grinning at Li Zhizhi. She even pointed at her brother, looking somewhat triumphant, as if Li Zhizhi had brought reinforcements.
Madam Li, still remembering the last time she was troubled by Prince Xiao Yan, dared not be negligent this time. She immediately knelt down and paid her respects, saying, “Your Highness, I, your humble servant, pay my respects.”
With the corner of her eye, she noticed that Li Zhizhi was still standing there. Feeling a sense of urgency, Madam Li whispered, “Why haven’t you knelt down yet?”
“She doesn’t need to pay respects,” Xiao Yan casually waved his hand, looking at Lady Li. Without asking her to rise, he only inquired, “Why have you come?”
Madam Li quickly and respectfully replied, “In response to Your Highness, Zhizhi has been in the Grand Princess’s mansion for quite some time. Your humble servant couldn’t help but worry about her and came to see her.”
“Worry?” Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow and asked, “Why would you worry about her? What business is it of yours?”
Madam Li hesitated for a moment, “Well… although Zhizhi was not raised by your humble servant, there is still a bit of mother-daughter relationship. Besides, my husband also misses her. He mentioned it just yesterday.”
She explained further, “Your humble servant is also concerned that if she stays here for too long, it might disturb the Grand Princess. Therefore, I thought of having her come back for a while. In the future, if she wants to visit the Grand Princess’s mansion again, she can still come and pay her respects.”
Madam Li was calculating in her mind. The Crown Prince seemed to attach great importance to etiquette. So, he should agree to let Li Zhizhi leave. As long as the Crown Prince gave the order, even if Li Zhizhi had any objections, she wouldn’t dare to defy him.
Unexpectedly, Xiao Yan said, “Zhizhi is doing well in the Grand Princess’s mansion. The Grand Princess likes her very much. Where does the disturbance come from? You, coming here without sending a message in advance, that’s what I call a disturbance.”
Madam Li was taken aback, and Xiao Yan looked at her with a faint smile, saying, “Speaking of which, I never saw you care much about her before. Now that she has recognized the Grand Princess as her stepmother, you eagerly come forward. What’s the matter? Madam, do you also want to find a stepmother?”
Madam Li didn’t expect that the Crown Prince, who looked talented and n.o.ble under the clear sky, would speak with such venomous words. In just a few sentences, he made her extremely embarra.s.sed. Her face alternated between pale and green as she forced a smile and said, “Your Highness is joking. I have never thought that way…”
“Is that so?” Xiao Yan sneered, clearly not believing her. Despite sitting in a carriage, his demeanor was condescending, and his words and actions exuded a sense of arrogance. He stared at Madam Li and said, “Speaking of which, there’s another matter. In a few days, she will be summoned to the palace to meet the emperor.”
“What?!” Madam Li couldn’t help but exclaim in disbelief, looking at Li Zhizhi, “The emperor is summoning her, how… how is that possible?!”
Li Zhizhi was also very surprised, but she felt that Xiao Yan was making up lies deliberately to deceive Madam Li. With a sly smile, she said, “Oh yes, Madame, you don’t know yet? I will be going to the palace in a few days.”
Madam Li’s face was full of shock. She never expected Li Zhizhi to have such an opportunity and fortune. It seemed that the prophecy of the Daoist who predicted her as a natural phoenix was indeed coming true. She had always thought that Li Suwan was the one with the phoenix fate, so she had never taken Li Zhizhi seriously. If she had known earlier…
She harbored complex emotions, regret and anger welling up within her. She hated the wicked midwife surnamed Zhou for swapping her child, causing her to miss out on so many years…
Madam Li felt a mixture of regret and resentment. Her mind was in a daze, and when she got on the carriage, she wasn’t paying attention and stepped into the air, hitting her chin on the carriage shaft. She cried out in pain.
“My lady!”
Servants quickly rushed to help her, but Madam Li forcefully pushed away the maid’s hand, saying, “Back to the mansion.”
In the flower hall of the Grand Princess’s residence, Xiao Rulei embraced Li Zhizhi’s waist, clinging to her like twisted candy, repeatedly asking, “Sister, you’re not leaving, right? A’yang doesn’t want Sister to leave. Can’t you stay, Sister?”
Li Zhizhi hugged her with a helpless expression, saying, “Alright, I won’t leave, I won’t leave.”
Xiao Rulei became happy and said, “Sister is the best!”
Seeing her like this, Xiao Yan deliberately said, “You can’t follow her all the time. If she leaves, what can you do? Roll on the ground and cry?”
Xiao Rulei hadn’t thought about this question, and couldn’t help but stare blankly, her mouth gradually pouting, looking very sad. Li Zhizhi quickly comforted her, “No, A’yang, don’t listen to his nonsense.”
As she spoke, she also gave Xiao Yan a light glare, clearly conveying a sense of reproach. Strangely, the Crown Prince suddenly felt a strangely relaxed feeling.