"Ah Jiu..." Seeing Yang Mengchen's face bearing a smile that was not quite a smile, Long Xuanmo panicked, eager to explain that he truly did not know that woman.

Unfortunately, Yang Mengchen had already turned away her eyes, wearing a slight smile as she stepped in.

Upon her sudden appearance, Lady Hua dropped the incessant Ms. Bei, greeting her with a kind smile, "Ms. Yang has arrived, each of these dresses has its own unique charm, and I've become quite dazzled by the choices. Perhaps Ms. Yang could help me see which suits me best?"

Ling Fei and Yuyu had escorted her here, but to avoid any impropriety, they soon found an excuse to leave.

Mengchen was just fine picking out clothes, but after Ms. Bei entered, she ignored everyone else and instead took the initiative to enthusiastically bring several outfits for Mengchen to try on.

This was all well and good, but as Ms. Bei complimented her with flowery words, she used the clothes as a pretext to belittle Mengchen. Not to mention that Mengchen had saved Yuyu's life, but simply based on the fact that Mengchen was the daughter-in-law she had approved of, she could not tolerate others slandering Ms. Yang like this.

But as a senior, she couldn't really scold Ms. Bei, who was a young lady, and since she hadn't specifically named Ms. Yang, she could only drop a few hints and find an excuse to leave.

Was Ms. Bei too thick-skinned, or did she have a wooden head? Not only did she fail to take the hint, but she also clung to her even more, and what's worse, she kept bringing up Momo. It dawned on her that Ms. Bei was smitten with Momo and, out of jealousy, kept slandering Ms. Yang.

If it wasn't for her upbringing, if she weren't aware that Sir Bei was one of Momo's men, if it weren't for the presence of so many people, she would have made Ms. Bei lose face for such shamelessness. Pining for Momo was ridiculous and delusional.

Seeing the relief in Lady Hua's eyes, Yang Mengchen's lips curved into a nearly imperceptible smile as she nodded gently.

After a moment of stunned silence, Ms. Bei glared at Yang Mengchen with intense jealousy and resentment flashing in her eyes, clenching the clothes in her hands so tightly, she almost seemed ready to tear them apart.

If Lady Hua wasn't Prince's maternal aunt, and if it wasn't for the Prince, she wouldn't have put aside her pride and gone to such lengths to curry favor with Lady Hua.

To think that Lady Hua not only failed to appreciate her gesture but also brushed her off and scolded her, favoring instead that low-born wretch, with others even praising the wretch for her cleverness and capability.

She was the daughter of an official, why couldn't these people see her excellence, her nobility?

Especially the Prince, who publicly defended the wretch, who stayed by the wretch's side every step of the way. How could she not be infuriated and jealous?

Looking at the man before her, growing more handsome and valiant, more calm and restrained by the day, Ms. Bei felt as if her heart were being cut by a knife.

At the age of eight, when the ten-year-old Prince led his troops past her father's governed Yulin Prefecture, she, out of curiosity, had secretly followed her father to the army's temporary encampment. The moment she unexpectedly saw the Prince, she was deeply attracted by his elegant demeanor and vowed to become his wife for life.

Over the years, she diligently studied music, chess, calligraphy, painting, and needlework, sought to befriend the legitimate daughters of influential families, amassed a good reputation, and even studied the histories that only men were expected to read, as well as the art of strategy... all to assist the Prince with various social relations, to give him counsel, to become his wise consort.

She firmly believed that only she was worthy of the Prince.

She yearned to grow up quickly so she could marry the Prince, but unexpectedly a Cheng Yaojin appeared out of nowhere and stole her man.

What baffled her was how such a wise and sagacious Prince could fancy a farm girl of humble origins, someone not fit to be seen in public?

After all, a farm girl with base blood and a lack of personal cultivation could never effortlessly integrate into the circles of noble ladies in the capital, could not be an asset to the Prince.

Even if trained by a Sister palace maid (earlier, her mother told her that the Sister Jin beside that wretch came from the palace), it would be futile, for the wretch was already eleven years old, habits firmly set, not even qualified to be an inferior concubine to the Prince.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.