The Eldest Daughter Is Beautiful and Saucy
Chapter 574: paving
Chapter 574 Paving the Way
The prince thought that Old Lady Dong, Madam Dong Cui, and Young Madam Dong Cui were all ill and would certainly not be able to decorate his residence. However, when Dong Qingyue brought him into the elegant and quiet courtyard, he was very satisfied. It was obvious that great care had been put into the details of the arrangement.
After Dong Qingyue and his party left, the prince held a fish food box and stood in front of a large water jar with lotus lanterns floating on it in the yard to feed the fish. He smiled and said, “Water jar, koi, lotus lanterns, Lord Dong doesn’t seem like a person with such elegant tastes…”
The prince’s smiling face was reflected on the swaying water surface of the water jar. The wind rustled the branches and leaves of the ancient trees, bringing with it waves of extremely sad and ethereal piano sounds.
The prince looked up and listened carefully.
Quan Yu, who was standing aside, said hurriedly, “Your Highness, I sent someone to inquire about this. They said that because Old Madam Dong, Madam Dong, and Young Madam Dong are all bedridden, your Highness’s residence was carefully arranged by the two concubines of Master Dong’s house…”
“Shh!” Quanyu made a quiet gesture before the prince finished speaking, handed the fish food in his hand to Quanyu, and walked out of the courtyard following the sound of the piano.
Quan Yu held the fish food, turned around and waved to the guards standing in the corridor. The group followed the prince not too far away, following in his footsteps.
The sound of the piano was getting closer and closer, and the prince stopped by the lake.
In the octagonal pavilion in the lake, white gauze curtains fluttered and candlelight flickered. Under the bright yellow light, a slender woman in plain clothes was playing the piano with tears in her eyes. The sound of the piano was filled with inexpressible sorrow, and those who heard it wept.
A maidservant was carrying a black lacquer tray and was about to deliver hot tea to the pavilion in the middle of the lake. When she saw the prince and his entourage standing by the lake, she was so frightened that she almost dropped the teapot in her hand. She knelt down trembling and bowed: “This servant deserves death! I didn’t know His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was here. Please forgive me!”
The prince stared at the woman playing the zither in the pavilion and asked, “Who is playing the zither in the pavilion?”
“Reply…Reply to His Royal Highness, this is our girl! Our girl missed her elder brother, so she found this secluded place to play the piano.” said the maid.
“What’s your girl’s name?” the prince asked again.
“Your Highness, our girl…is called Dong Tingzhi.”
The prince nodded, looked deeply at the woman in the octagonal pavilion, then turned and left.
The maidservant became more and more terrified. She knelt with her head down and dared not say a word. She did not dare to look up until the prince and his entourage walked away. Her legs were so weak that she could hardly stand up. She did not know whether her daughter’s plan would succeed. If not… she was afraid that if the old lady knew what happened today, she would not tolerate their daughter anymore!
The prince’s eyes were full of smiles. Without turning his head, he paused, thought for a moment, then raised his hand and hooked his finger at Quan Yu who was following him cautiously.
Quan Yu hurriedly stepped forward: “Your Highness, please give your orders!”
“What did you say just now? My courtyard… was decorated by the two concubines of the Dong family? Lord Dong… has concubines?” asked the prince.
“That’s right, Your Highness. I heard that the ancestor of the Dong family’s concubine used dirty tricks to harm Old Lady Dong, so Old Master Dong set down a rule when he was alive… The status of concubines in the Dong family is extremely low, and the birth of concubines’ sons and daughters will not be announced! The concubine son is easy to deal with… As for the concubine daughter, she never goes out of the main door all year round, so no one outside knows that the Dong family has a concubine daughter!” Quan Yu said.
After hearing this, the prince thought of Dong Qingping, the Minister of the Dali Temple. If they were not in Dadu, others would probably not know that Dong Qingping had a concubine’s daughter.
The prince was worried that Dong Qingyue had no daughter and could only rely on Bai Qingyan, but he didn’t expect that someone would be delivered to his door as soon as he arrived at Dong’s house.
The concubine arranged his residence, so she knew that he could hear the piano being played in the octagonal pavilion in the middle of the lake…
The prince curled his lips and smiled. Even though concubines were not valued in the Dong family, she was still the daughter of Dong Qingyue after all, so she was still somewhat useful. He took off the jade pendant from his waist and handed it to Quan Yu: “Go… give it to the concubine of the Dong family.”
Quan Yu was startled, then he took the jade pendant and nodded in agreement.
·
Bai Qingyan had just finished bathing, and Chuntao was carefully changing the medicine on Bai Qingyan’s ears when they heard Nanny Wang, with a group of strong and powerful old women, escorting someone directly into Old Lady Dong’s upper room.
Chun Tao also heard the noise. After she changed Bai Qingyan’s medicine, she picked up the basin and walked out. She asked, “Miss, do you want me to ask Nanny Wang if there’s anything she can help with?”
Bai Qingyan used her fingers to comb her long hair on the yellow wood dressing box and said slowly, “If grandma needs it, she will definitely ask Wang Ma to come and call her. If grandma didn’t tell us, we shouldn’t ask around. This is not the Bai family, and grandma knows what she is doing.”
“Yes!” Chuntao didn’t want to pry into the Dong family’s privacy, she just wanted to help. After all, Old Lady Dong had fallen ill due to the death of her eldest grandson Dong Changlan.
Old Madam Dong went into the room.
Old Lady Dong sat under the flickering glass lamp, looking coldly at the terrified Dong Tingzhi who was gagged. She fiddled with the agarwood Buddhist beads hanging on her wrist, her face cold and expressionless: “Remember that year, when grandma wanted to choose one between you and Tingyun to keep by her side, and you designed to anger Tingyun and let her push you into the lake, what did grandma tell you?”
Dong Tingzhi’s mouth was blocked and she could only whimper. She wanted to kneel down and beg for mercy, but the strong nanny held her down and she couldn’t move.
“Grandma once told you that although your grandfather set strict rules for concubines, you are our blood after all, so Grandma never deliberately left you in the backyard and didn’t allow you to go out!” Old Lady Dong fiddled with the Buddhist beads in her hand, “Grandma also told your aunt and you clearly that no matter what… I will arrange a good marriage for you in the future. I don’t ask for wealth and honor, but I must let you be the first wife with good character and a clean family tradition! I will never take concubines for life and pave the way for the future of my Dong family, and humiliate you for life.”
Dong Tingzhi nodded while crying.
“You are smart, but you should use your intelligence in the right way.” Old Lady Dong said solemnly, “You played the piano in the octagonal pavilion today and led the prince to come. It was not because you were attractive and could make the prince fall in love with you at first sight, but because you wanted to let the prince know… Dong Qingyue’s daughter has a crush on the prince. If the prince wants to win over your father, he can take you in to serve him. Is that right?”
Dong Tingzhi lowered her head and cried, her mouth was blocked and she could not explain herself.
She admitted that what Old Lady Dong said was absolutely correct. She was unwilling to settle for being the wife of an ordinary family. If she could win the prince’s favor, as long as she was favored and the prince succeeded to the throne… she would be able to reach the top in one step.
She is now relying on the Dong family and getting close to the prince. If she is favored in the future, won’t she repay the Dong family? Can’t she become the support of the Dong family?
She thought about it and felt that this was a chance she could give it a try.
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