The fake Commandery Princess did not feel the least bit guilty upon hearing this. Upholding the principle of looking out for the legitimate daughter of the Wuning Marquis’s Residence, Cheng Nianying even nodded solemnly.
“Mm. I don’t want to become a widow.”
She was so frank and forthright that Fu Yi nearly found himself at a loss for words.
He changed tack and asked, “When you offered tea to my parents this morning, did they prepare a gift for you to mark the change in how you address them?”
“They did.” Cheng Nianying had not thought much of it and genuinely assumed he was asking about the gift. She added, “I haven’t looked to see what it is yet.”
“When you came to find me afterward, was it because they treated you unfairly?” Fu Yi asked just as bluntly.
Cheng Nianying shook her head. “No.”
Mu He and the others naturally did not believe her.
Yet they truly could not detect the slightest trace of a lie on Cheng Nianying’s face.
Her expression was astonishingly calm.
Fu Yi rubbed his fingertips together. “Then you came here to…”
Cheng Nianying could not understand why he had to get to the bottom of even this.
She pressed her lips together. It would hardly do to say that she had come because she had nothing to do and was afraid of giving herself away.
So she could only force out, “I… just wanted to see you.”
Those nearby drew in soft breaths.
What a sweet tongue.
Even if they had only just been married and could not bear to part, young women were generally reserved. Never had a wife of the main household behaved like this…
Unwilling to let him keep pressing her, Cheng Nianying took the initiative to raise another topic. “Princess Kang asked me whether I should go to pay my respects to her every day.”
A dark gleam passed through Fu Yi’s eyes. “Mm. How did you answer?”
There were only two possibilities: she had swallowed her grievance and agreed, or she had thrown a tantrum befitting the legitimate daughter of the Wuning Marquis’s Residence on the spot.
Cheng Nianying was perfectly open about it. “I told her that if the commandery prince said it was appropriate, then it was appropriate.”
Fu Yi: “…”
Mu He’s face was full of astonishment, and she clenched her teeth at the side.
She had actually managed to ingratiate herself so cleverly, striking precisely at her master’s temperament!
Cheng Nianying sensed that the atmosphere was strange, but still said, “I don’t think I said anything wrong.”
Fu Yi said, “Mm, you didn’t.” Her words sounded obedient, yet they also revealed a great deal of decisiveness.
How novel.
“Serve the meal,” Fu Yi said, turning his head.
The others had no choice but to come back to themselves from their complicated emotions, answer him, and go about their respective duties.
Cheng Nianying’s appetite was just as good today. She was utterly unlike the woman described in the intelligence reports—a woman unwilling to marry Fu Yi, who had threatened to kill herself and made a great fuss over it.
Wu Xun stared at her in bewilderment.
Even when the moon had risen above the treetops, he was still somewhat lost.
“It’s getting late.” Fu Yi glanced out the window.
Cheng Nianying washed her hands. The water had not yet been wiped off when she answered, “Mm.”
Seeing her head lowered, Fu Yi seemed to realize that she had not yet understood the hidden meaning in his words.
So he put it more directly. “Tonight, I’ll sleep in the same place as my Wife as well.”
Cheng Nianying stiffened.
Sleep in the same bed again.
She was not opposed to being physically close to someone. It was simply that she would remain on guard and wary for long periods, and her sleep was shallow. If this continued for too long, her body would not be able to bear it.
But she could not put it that way.
She raised her face. “That would be fine, but I’m worried the commandery prince won’t rest well again.”
The words sounded as though the two of them would be entangled until dawn once more.
The young maids serving nearby could not help blushing.
Only the two people involved remained as unruffled as ever, each more indifferent than the other.
Fu Yi had no intention of “insisting.” He had merely been testing her.
In a gentle voice, he asked, “You have only just arrived at the Commandery Prince’s Residence. Everything is unfamiliar to you. Can you sleep well by yourself?”
Cheng Nianying met his eyes without dodging or retreating. “The bed I slept in last night doesn’t count as unfamiliar anymore.”
Fu Yi: “…”
The corners of his lips curved slightly. “Good.”
Fu Yi left.
There was no trace of reluctance on Cheng Nianying’s face either. She hardly seemed like the same person who had said all those cloyingly sweet things moments earlier.
What a masterful feigned retreat! Wu Xun thought to himself.
If it were me, I’m afraid I really would fall into her trap!
He followed Fu Yi out of the courtyard, but could not help looking back once more. Still, he had to admit that this daughter of the Wuning Marquis’s Residence truly was beautiful. There was also something about her that seemed untouched by the ways of the world.
By rights, she should not have possessed such an air…
After leaving Quiet Bamboo Court, Fu Yi called out to Nanny Shi. Nanny Shi stood there properly and reported everything Cheng Nianying had done and every word she had spoken throughout the day.
“The Princess seemed somewhat displeased with her and did not accept her tea when she offered it. The Commandery Princess then said, ‘If the Princess won’t drink the tea, how am I supposed to change the way I address her?’”
“She dared to say something like that?” Wu Xun exclaimed in shock.
That was far too bold.
What ordinary young lady from a respectable family would dare say something like that upon meeting her mother-in-law for the first time?
Fu Yi asked with a smile, “Isn’t she rather interesting?”
“Yes…” Wu Xun answered, then felt that was inappropriate and awkwardly corrected himself. “No, she’s, she’s not particularly interesting.”
After thinking it over, he concluded, “The Wuning Marquis’s Residence has raised her to be utterly fearless.”
Nanny Shi did not know how many deeper secrets were connected to the legitimate daughter of the Wuning Marquis’s Residence.
She simply performed her duty and immediately began praising her master. “The Commandery Princess even said today that you, Master, are truly very good.”
Fu Yi said, “Oh? She really thinks that?”
Nanny Shi nodded. “This servant saw no trace of pretense in her.”
“Also, when she heard that you were ill yet still had to handle official business, she actually said that you had it hard too.”
Wu Xun was once again stunned.
As Fu Yi’s trusted aide, he had seen most people fall into one of two categories. Some worshipped his master, praising his noble character and unparalleled virtue. Others hated his master to the bone, resenting him for wielding too much power and bearing the appearance of a treacherous minister.
They either regarded him as a god or as a demon.
In short, no one had ever thought, “Even the Commandery Prince Danshuo has it hard too…”
“Good. I understand. Nanny, you have been thoughtful.” Fu Yi smiled and waved Nanny Shi away.
When his gaze shifted to Mu He, he found her looking deeply dazed, as though her thoughts had wandered far away.
“Mu He.”
“…Master.” Mu He lowered her head awkwardly. “From what Nanny Shi has said, the Commandery Princess handled everything very well and has no need for… no need for anyone else to teach her.”
Fu Yi made no comment on that. He only said, “You may go.”
“Master?” Mu He wanted to say, I haven’t yet served you as you retire for the night. But remembering how the Commandery Princess had ingratiated herself today, she felt even more strongly that she could not neglect her duty. Thus, she lowered her head and withdrew obediently.
Only after everyone around him had been reduced to his trusted aides did Fu Yi ask casually, “Tell me, does this daughter of the Wuning Marquis’s Residence seem as if she has become a different person?”
Wu Xun said, “She does!”
He gripped the hilt of the knife at his waist, remaining firmly determined not to be swayed by the appearance the Commandery Princess was presenting now.
He said, “She’ll be returning to her family home soon. By then, the Wuning Marquis’s Residence will reveal its flaws of its own accord. How could they be lightly forgiven for daring to pass off someone else as her and deceive us?”
*
The pillow was soft, the bedding was soft, and there was no one beside her, nor any flashes of blades or swords. Thus, Cheng Nianying slept soundly.
She had just sat up and stretched when she saw someone furtively poking their head through the bed curtains.
Cheng Nianying’s hands itched. She wanted to slam that person onto the floor.
She managed to restrain herself with all her might.
She asked, “Who is it?”
The person straightened immediately. “Miss.”
With her hair arranged in twin buns, she was a young maid.
Cheng Nianying tilted her head. “And you are?”
The girl gave her a speechless look. “I’m a maid from the Wuning Marquis’s Residence. I came along with Miss as part of your dowry. My name is Caidie.”
Cheng Nianying had left the residence with her head covered and, upon arriving at the Commandery Prince’s Residence, been surrounded by yet another heap of maids and matrons. How could she possibly remember everyone?
She leaned against the headboard. “Oh. What are you being so furtive about?”
“Marchioness instructed us first thing this morning to carefully tell you about our young lady’s habits and preferences, what may be done and what may not…” Caidie’s expression became solemn as she struck a commanding pose. “Yesterday, Nanny Shi was with you the entire time, so we never found an opportunity to speak. Today, you must listen carefully. You absolutely must not make any mistakes and bring trouble upon the entire Wuning Marquis’s Residence!”
Cheng Nianying asked, “Did the Wuning Marquis’s Residence hire me and pay me?”
Caidie was taken aback. “No.”
“Then why are we discussing this seriously?”
Cheng Nianying said, “Since you didn’t hire me and pay me, why do you have so many demands of me? Wasn’t it you who begged me to resolve the Wuning Marquis’s Residence’s temporary predicament?”
Caidie was rendered speechless.
This was rather different from what she had imagined.
The young woman before her had clearly been nothing more than a maid just a few days ago. The world she had seen might not even be broader than Caidie’s own! Now that Marchioness had given her instructions, everything was for the sake of the Wuning Marquis’s Residence. How could Cheng Nianying put on airs like this, without distinguishing what mattered from what did not?
Caidie said anxiously, “You’re also Marchioness’s daughter, and the legitimate sister of our young lady. How can you start talking about money?”