After the crowd dispersed, Madam Tian personally came to see Tian Jinglan.
“You really are something, only back for a day or two, and instead of resting properly, you had to entertain such a large group of people. So noisy; just listening to them talk is irritating.”
As she spoke, servants naturally stepped forward to replace the snacks on the table, all switched to flavors Tian Jinglan liked.
Madam Tian personally handed over a bowl of red-date, black-bone chicken, and ginseng soup, sighing as she did so. “You stay in the palace all day, I can’t even have a proper chat with you.”
Tian Jinglan reached out to take the soup and obediently took a sip. Hearing this, she smiled and leaned into Madam Tian’s arms in a coquettish manner. “Listen to what you’re saying, Mother, it sounds like I’ve gone to some dragon’s pool and tiger’s den.”
“Isn’t the palace exactly a dragon’s pool and tiger’s den?” Madam Tian pressed her lips together and looked at her. “You’ve always had your own ideas and have been steady since childhood. I know your ambitions, but Jinglan, you…”
She hesitated, unsure whether she should continue.
Tian Jinglan’s expression remained calm, her smile unchanged. “Mother, what is there to hide from me? Just say whatever you want.”
“I’m thinking… don’t aim too high.” Madam Tian looked at her daughter with worry. After thinking for a moment, she spoke softly. “Our family is already Duke Chengen’s residence. As long as the Empress Dowager and Gui Taifei are alive, our family will remain wealthy and secure.”
These words had been bottled up for a long time.
Madam Tian held her daughter’s hand. “Lan’er, Mother only hopes you live safely and in good health.”
Tian Jinglan released Madam Tian’s hand with a faint smile that wasn’t quite a smile. The expression soon vanished completely.
“Mother, our wealth and power are all false.” She raised her brows coldly. “The Empress Dowager is not the Emperor’s birth mother, that’s why Tian Baoci died so easily.”
The Tian family appeared prosperous and glorious, but in truth it was all a castle in the air.
They held no real power, and there were no imperial consorts from the Tian surname in the palace.
Once the Empress Dowager passed away, even this superficial prosperity would disappear.
Tian Jinglan understood this very clearly.
Madam Tian froze, her throat seeming to clog for a moment before she finally said, “So you serve the Empress Dowager…”
Tian Jinglan no longer wished to speak in circles. She raised her eyes and looked directly at Madam Tian. “Mother, I’m used to living well, and I only want to be above others. What Father and Mother cannot give me, I can only fight for myself.”
She did not think her approach was difficult to understand.
People live in this world, men die for wealth, birds die for food.
She set down the soup bowl and said lightly, “Mother, you don’t need to worry about me. I won’t do anything that puts myself in danger.”
The bird that sticks its head out gets shot first, she would never charge into battle herself.
Seeing Madam Tian still uncertain, Tian Jinglan gave a soft laugh. “Mother, rest assured. I only want to take advantage of the time while the Empress Dowager is still here to obtain what I want. There’s no need for you to worry unnecessarily.”
Madam Tian still felt something was off.
But she could never out-argue her daughter.
Tian Jinglan had always been the most decisive child in the family. She was capable as well, after entering the palace only a few times, she had deeply won the favor of Empress Dowager Tian, who personally requested that she stay in the palace by her side.
Madam Tian could only close her eyes and let out a long breath. “About Wei Qingyang’s matter, I know you…”
She abruptly stopped mid-sentence, then closed her eyes again. “That girl Qi Yuan, I’ve heard the Eldest Princess and Zhou Wangfei mention her countless times. Not everyone necessarily likes her, but everyone praises her for being clever.”
Madam Tian looked somewhat weary. “Those who oppose her rarely end well.”
Tian Jinglan merely sneered.
She immediately cut off Madam Tian’s warning. “Mother, you’re saying such baseless things again. What does Miss Qi have to do with me? And what do I have to do with her?”
Meanwhile, the one who truly had some connection, Commandery Princess Luochuan, returned to her residence and immediately began throwing a temper.
Zhou Wangfei was excitedly preparing her attire for the Eldest Princess’s banquet. Seeing her daughter return in a rage, she frowned. “What’s wrong? Who upset you?”
After thinking about it, she recalled that Commandery Princess Luochuan had gone to the Tian residence today, which confused her even more.
Her daughter had always been close with Tian Jinglan, why come back angry this time?
Commandery Princess Luochuan was already in a bad mood and found everything unpleasant. Hearing Madam Tian mentioned only made her angrier. “Has Qi Yuan come back?”
At the mention of Qi Yuan, Zhou Wangfei coughed lightly.
Then she snorted. “Whether she’s back or not has nothing to do with us.”
“How does it not?” Commandery Princess Luochuan sneered. “The Eldest Princess has always liked her. Now that she’s back, what’s the point of going to that banquet? No need to say it, we already know she’ll take all the spotlight again!”
She was so angry her chest and stomach ached. She simply could not understand how someone’s luck could be so good.
Originally just a country girl raised in the countryside for over a decade, yet in only about two short years she had become someone all the noble ladies avoided.
It was utterly ridiculous.
Zhou Wangfei set down the jewelry and sat beside Commandery Princess Luochuan. After a moment of silence, she said, “Since you already know, there’s no point hiding it.”
Commandery Princess Luochuan immediately sneered stubbornly. “I’m not going!”
What was the meaning of it?
After the matter of Tian Baoci, Commandery Princess Luochuan had stayed home for a long time without going out.
She was sick of the way people talked about it.
But once Qi Yuan appeared, her affair with Tian Baoci would inevitably be brought up again.
It was a dead knot that could not be untied.
Just thinking about it made her restless.
Zhou Wangfei frowned and sighed heavily. “No! This time, no matter what, you must go.”
“Royal Mother!” Commandery Princess Luochuan stared at her in disbelief, her face flushing red with anger.
Zhou Wangfei grabbed her hand and narrowed her eyes. “I’ve already spoken with Madam Lai. Lai Chenglong is a hundred times better than Tian Baoci. You’ve already come of age, once the engagement is set, completing the six marriage rites will still take two years. There’s no more time to delay!”
Commandery Princess Luochuan pressed her lips tightly together. After hearing this, she finally sat properly again after a long moment.
Only then did Zhou Wangfei relax and say earnestly, “First live your own life well. What’s the point of competing over momentary gains and losses?”
Commandery Princess Luochuan raised her head to glance at her mother, thinking of what Tian Jinglan had said.
If Qi Yuan truly married Xiao Yunting and became the Imperial Grandson Consort, would that still be a momentary gain or loss?
That would mean she would be suppressed by Qi Yuan for her entire life.
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