Chapter 427: Fu Mingzheng’s Wager (One)
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Madam Cui had no choice with Mingzhu, so she could only coax her, “Alright, alright, you can stay.” Although she said so, she still quietly sent someone to inquire with Zheng Momo, Su Lan, and others. As a result, they didn’t find out anything, only knowing that the young couple was really having a quarrel, and Mingzhu even let go of Zhou Nushi.
It wasn’t appropriate to ask Ying Wang about this matter now. Mingzhu obviously wouldn’t tell the truth, so they could only wait for the men to come home and discuss it again. Madam Cui sighed, forced a smile, and greeted Fu Mingcheng and his daughter, asking Fu Zifei, “I heard that you traveled with the women from the Li family, the commander of the central city’s soldiers?”
Fu Zifei smiled, “Exactly, that Miss Li is generous and righteous. We were in a hurry on the road, and we missed a place to rest for one night. She had the servants arrange two rooms for us to stay. When she heard that we were going to the capital, she decided to travel with us.” She also took the opportunity to make a request to Madam Cui, “I promised to invite her to come over to play after we settled in. Is it convenient?”
She was a smart person, this Fu Zifei. She had come all the way from the south and didn’t show any fear, but instead, she had already expanded her social circle. When she entered the palace in the future, she probably wouldn’t lose to Min Baoyun.
Madam Cui nodded secretly, “Of course, after you’re settled, and when they’re settled, I’ll have your aunt pick a day and find a reason to invite the families who are on good terms with our family to come over and play, so you can get to know them. It’s good to have more friends wherever you are.”
Fu Zifei again went to hold Mingzhu’s arm to show her closeness. “Will Aunt also come then?”
Mingzhu didn’t object to Fu Zifei being close to her. No matter what the Great Empress Dowager thought, Fu Zifei was a smart person, better than a stupid one. After all, they were blood relatives, which was better than outsiders. Of course, she had to do this for Fu Zifei’s face. “I will definitely come!”
Fu Zifei was satisfied, speaking with ease and humor, skillfully narrating her experiences along the way, shaping her father Fu Mingcheng into a simple and honest person.
Fu Mingcheng didn’t say a word, just listened with a smile as his daughter spoke, looking really simple and honest.
However, no one in the Fu family would believe that Fu Mingcheng was really simple and honest. If he really was, the Great Empress Dowager wouldn’t have chosen him; if he really was, he wouldn’t have secretly left with everyone and rushed into the capital suddenly.
Only Fu Mingqing really thought that this cousin from the south was a refined person. He pulled him aside and talked enthusiastically, eager to introduce him to his friends and even boasted, “So-and-so claims to be the second literary talent in the capital. Now that my elder brother is here, he definitely has to be squeezed down! Let’s see if he dares to call himself second.”
Mingzhu was drinking water and nearly sprayed it out when she heard the words. This third brother was indeed a bit foolish. Who would praise someone like that? It’s known that the top talent in the capital is none other than him. Even if Fu Mingcheng became second, he still couldn’t compare to him. Was he praising someone or boasting about himself? With a more suspicious mind, one might think he was mocking someone.
Ladi Ai hated iron for not becoming steel, blushing and whispering, “Your third brother is just a fool.” Afraid that Fu Mingqing would make a fool of himself, she quickly asked her personal maid Dongmei to go over and remind him.
Sure enough, Fu Mingcheng was curious. “Who is the first?”
Dongmei reminded Fu Mingqing tactfully, and Fu Mingqing finally felt embarrassed and awkward. He touched his head and pretended to be foolish, “I don’t know, this first has never been acknowledged by anyone else. Today it’s him, tomorrow it’s someone else. With my elder brother here this time, he should be first, steady first.”
Fu Mingcheng modestly said, “I dare not, I dare not,” but he didn’t say he couldn’t.
It seemed that this cousin was very confident in his own talents. The Great Empress Dowager had really found a strong opponent for the Fu family. Mingzhu glanced at Fu Mingzheng, who was standing at the door of the reception hall, looking as if he wanted to leave immediately. She called out to him, “Fourth brother, come and meet your cousin and niece!”
Fu Mingzheng was the most annoyed by these social interactions. He just came to observe the father and daughter, and had no intention of making friends with them. But now that Mingzhu had called him out, he couldn’t escape, so he could only walk in with a forced smile, pay his respects to Fu Mingcheng, and then accept Fu Zifei’s courtesy, casually taking out a jade pendant from his pocket and giving it to Fu Zifei as a gift.
It was common for elders to give gifts to younger relatives when they first met. Fu Zifei was surprised when she saw the jade pendant, but she quickly concealed it. However, Madam Cui didn’t miss this scene. She smiled and asked, “What’s wrong with Zifei?”
Fu Zifei hesitated, and finally said cautiously, “I thought this jade pendant looked somewhat familiar, but I must have been mistaken.”
Madam Cui then looked at Fu Mingzheng. Fu Zifei, a young girl who had been raised in seclusion since childhood, couldn’t just casually recognize a jade pendant as familiar. Clearly, she knew who the real owner of this jade pendant was, but she didn’t want to say it directly, so she tactfully said she was mistaken.
Fu Mingzheng straightforwardly said, “That’s right. I won it on the street just now. Since I didn’t have any good things with me, and I couldn’t give my niece a gift, I was afraid she would say I was stingy, so I thought this jade was pretty good and gave it to my niece as a gift.”
Fu Zifei became increasingly surprised and respectfully bowed to Fu Mingzheng, saying, “Please forgive me, Fourth Uncle. This jade pendant looks very similar to one worn by a friend of this niece. This friend has done me a favor, so I must ask Fourth Uncle about the origin of this jade.”
Fu Mingzheng had won a jade pendant in a bet on the street, and the owner of this jade pendant was actually a girl? Mingzhu suddenly became interested and joined in, “Fourth brother, you didn’t do anything to her, did you?”
As expected, Fu Zifei looked at Fu Mingzheng vigilantly, already regarding him as a bad person.
Fu Mingzheng didn’t care how Fu Zifei, the father daughter saw him. He just looked at Mingzhu with a half-smile and said, “Of course, I did. I forced her to jump into the moat.”
“What?!” Fu Zifei stood up in shock, about to question Fu Mingzheng, but a sideways glance from Fu Mingcheng made her sit back down. She pretended to smile innocently and said, “Fourth Uncle, you must be joking. Miss Li has no grievances with you. How could you force her to jump into the moat?”
Fu Mingzheng didn’t like this type of person like Fu Zifei. He jokingly said, “I’m not joking. My niece probably doesn’t know my infamous reputation. Since when do people need to have grievances to be forced to jump into the moat? Otherwise, how did I get this jade pendant?”
Fu Zifei, being young, couldn’t resist Fu Mingzheng’s malicious and cold demeanor. She shrank back, tears welling up, and choked, “Did Miss Li really jump into the river?”
Madam Cui couldn’t bear to see it and quietly stopped Fu Mingzheng, “Stop fooling around, you’re scaring the child. What’s really going on?”
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