She rubbed her brow and could only try to persuade her: “Alright, why bother lowering yourself to their level? Lai Chenglong failed to recognize a gem; sooner or later there will be a day when he regrets it!”
As for Qi Yuan…
Commandery Princess Xianning let out a cold, disdainful snort: “A fickle wretch like her, if you stoop to argue with her, you’re only lowering your own status.”
Originally, Commandery Princess Xianning hadn’t disliked Qi Yuan that much.
But now, she had to admit that Qi Yuan really was a troublemaker.
How is it that she manages to stick her foot into everything?
If she had any self-awareness at all, Qi Yuan should have kept her head down and stayed out of sight.
But Qi Yuan refused, not only that, she insisted on pushing herself to the forefront in everything.
What a fool.
Commandery Princess Luochuan clenched her teeth and lowered her head, gripping the tassel on her purse so tightly that she soon tore it apart, the strands scattering all over the ground.
Without saying a word, she suddenly strode forward.
Afraid that she might act impulsively, Commandery Princess Xianning hurried after her. “Where are you going?”
Commandery Princess Luochuan suddenly laughed.
Grinding her teeth, she said softly, “Doesn’t she like showing off? Today I’ll make it happen for her, let her show off to her heart’s content!”
Wasn’t Qi Yuan favored by the Eldest Princess?
If not for relying on the Eldest Princess’s protection, could Qi Yuan be so smooth-sailing now, could she even have caught Xiao Yunting’s attention?
Then she wanted to see, once she lost the Eldest Princess’s protection, whether Qi Yuan could still remain as glorious as she was now.
A lowborn wretch like her shouldn’t even have appeared in the capital in the first place!
Commandery Princess Xianning could only hurry after her.
At this moment, Qi Yuan also looked up at Lai Chenglong. “Lord Lai, I need to take Ah Chan back.”
She herself didn’t really fear others’ verbal attacks, but Wang Chan could not withstand any more rumors.
If they were seen talking with Lai Chenglong, who knew what unpleasant gossip might spread.
Lai Chenglong felt a little disappointed.
For the first time, he understood that liking someone felt like this.
Worried about gains and losses, wanting to meet, yet fearing the meeting.
After meeting, he even felt it might have been better not to meet at all; at least then some longing could remain.
He gave a self-mocking smile and finally stepped back, making way.
Wang Chan couldn’t help but glance back at him. On the road, she couldn’t help asking Qi Yuan, “Yuan Jie’er, he…”
Qi Yuan looked at her. “What about him?”
“The way he looks at you is the same as how the Imperial Grandson looks at you,” Wang Chan lowered her voice. “He likes you.”
Qi Yuan couldn’t help laughing. “You seem to understand quite a lot.”
Wang Chan replied confidently, “The Imperial Grandson really does look at you like that!”
“Is that so?” Qi Yuan smiled at her. “Then how do I look at the Imperial Grandson?”
Wang Chan was stumped. She stared at Qi Yuan for a while before suddenly realizing: “When you look at the Imperial Grandson, sometimes you’re angry, sometimes you’re happy…”
Yes, exactly so.
When Qi Yuan looked at others, her gaze was always calm and without ripples. Only when she looked at Xiao Yunting did her eyes carry emotion, she would get angry, worry, be happy, be sad.
Wang Chan covered her mouth as she looked at Qi Yuan, surprised at her frankness.
At the same time, she couldn’t help but feel a surge of courage.
Yuan Jie’er could face love and hate so openly, so decisively.
She looked at Qi Yuan for a long time before suddenly saying, “Yuan Jie’er, I really want to become someone like you.”
Qi Yuan was not polite at all. “Sure. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
Being more straightforward would save a lot of trouble.
She patted Wang Chan’s head and raised her brows thoughtfully.
They rounded the corridor and saw a figure standing by the pavilion ahead, with her back toward them.
Wang Chan subconsciously let out a soft exclamation. “In such cold weather, why is she standing by the lake?”
Qi Yuan also looked over and saw that the figure seemed to stumble, and the thin layer of ice on the lake instantly cracked.
Wang Chan cried out.
The ice on the lake hadn’t frozen solid yet, if someone fell in, it would be a matter of life and death!
She froze. “Yuan Jie’er, that seems to be the young madam!”
Qi Yuan had already leapt into motion. She kicked off a nearby tree, and after a few swift bounds reached the lakeside, grabbing Zeng Wenxiu’s hand and pulling her up.
But just as she dragged her onto the bank, Zeng Wenxiu suddenly wrapped her arms tightly around Qi Yuan’s waist. The two of them instantly fell heavily back into the lake, crashing onto the ice.
The ice shattered in all directions with cracking sounds.
Zeng Wenxiu clung tightly to Qi Yuan’s waist, almost recklessly dragging her downward.
Very quickly, the hole in the ice widened, swallowing the two of them.
Wang Chan on the shore was already terrified out of her wits. She rushed to the lakeside and began shouting for help.
She was quick, at first she instinctively wanted to jump into the lake, but she stopped in time.
She knew very well that with her mediocre swimming skills, if she jumped in like this, she wouldn’t save anyone, she would only die along with them.
Thinking this, she forced herself to calm down and ran off to call for help.
Fortunately, today was the plum-blossom appreciation banquet, and the servants were all nearby keeping warm.
At her shout, they were immediately alarmed and rushed over in a swarm.
When several older maids heard that their own young madam had fallen in, their faces turned pale. Without another word, they jumped in one after another to rescue them.
The rest hurried to inform the Eldest Princess.
The Eldest Princess had originally been mediating a misunderstanding between Zhou Wangfei and Madam Lai. When she heard that Zeng Wenxiu had fallen into the water, she thought she must have misheard. “How could that be? Just now Wenxiu was still in her room!”
But the servants wouldn’t joke about such a thing. Supporting herself on Jiang Mama’s arm, the Eldest Princess shouted sharply, “Quickly summon a physician! Hurry and rescue them!”
Then she hurried toward the lakeside.
The pavilion at the center of the lake was already crowded with people.
The young ladies who had been painting all came out upon hearing something had happened.
Wang Chan sat collapsed by the lake, her face drained of color, crying and calling for Yuan Jie’er.
Commandery Princess Luochuan watched from afar, her expression fierce as she curled her lips.
Commandery Princess Xianning felt somewhat uneasy. “Nothing will happen, right?”
Commandery Princess Luochuan yawned. “If something really happens, wouldn’t that be a good thing? She’s just a wretch, if she dies, the world will be quieter.”
As she spoke, she saw several figures rushing over in the distance, her eyes growing even darker.
Commandery Princess Xianning looked over and saw Lu Jintang and Xiao Jingzhao running toward them.
Behind them was another figure, Lai Chenglong.
She frowned as well.
Lai Chenglong had already run to Wang Chan’s side. Naturally, he knew who Wang Chan had been with just now and couldn’t help asking, “Where is Miss Qi?”
Wang Chan couldn’t care about anything else. Crying, she pointed into the lake. “She fell in, she fell in with the young madam.”
Without another word, Lu Jintang plunged into the lake.
But the lake water was freezing cold. He couldn’t hold on for long before his leg cramped, and the older maids nearby dragged him back to the shore.
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