Chapter 285: Why Does Prince Su Still Delay Proposing?

"Your Highness, this matter… could it remain just a secret of the common girl herself?"

She naturally cannot turn over Pan Li now.

She also cannot deceive Duan Rongshi.

So she simply said as follows.

Duan Rongshi, after a moment of silence, surprisingly agreed: "Fine."

Li Qingluo looked up at him, eyes full of joy yet disbelief.

The two exchanged glances for only a few blinks when a cough suddenly sounded from inside the room: "The night is deep; I, the old minister, will not step out of my chambers to escort Your Highness today."

Li Qingluo heard her grandmother's voice and suddenly felt a flutter of panic.

She hurriedly suppressed the panic, looking apologetically at Duan Rongshi.

"Your Highness, the common girl presents you…"

Before the words finished, her grandmother's voice came again: "Luo'er, come here a moment; Grandmother has something to tell you."

Li Qingluo's gaze suddenly didn't know where to land.

Duan Rongshi gently whispered, "Go. The night is deep; rest early."

After speaking, he turned away first and hurried out.

Li Qingluo came to Pei Lao Furen's window and said, "Grandmother?"

Pei Lao Furen called her, but actually had nothing urgent to say.

After thinking, she said, "Help Grandmother close the window."

Li Qingluo looked inside at Zhang Mama, now as helpless as a decoration: …

After closing the window, Li Qingluo waited a moment, still hearing nothing from Pei Lao Furen, and called again, "Grandmother?"

Pei Lao Furen, surprised, said, "Eh? Why are you still here? The night is deep; shouldn't you go back to sleep!"

Li Qingluo:?

So the grandmother's "has something to tell you" was just to have her close a window?

Isn't the grandmother's intention too obvious?

Even Li Qingluo, however slow, now perceives the grandmother's meaning.

She doesn't want her to have overly close dealings with Prince Su.

"Grandmother, Luo'er has already pledged allegiance to Your Highness; from now on, our Xiuli Jiangjun Fu will be considered Prince Su's people."

Pei Lao Furen remained silent.

Li Qingluo, fearing a misunderstanding, added, "Grandmother, your granddaughter made this choice out of helplessness, but… the wise choose a wise lord. From now on, Luo'er will spare no effort to protect Xiuli Jiangjun Fu, to protect you, and the two of us, grandmother and granddaughter, will be safe and sound."

Pei Lao Furen: "Alright, Grandmother understands. Go down!"

Is the grandmother now tacitly accepting her own decision?

Li Qingluo finally wore a hint of joy on her face and then stepped down.

After she left, Pei Lao Furen let out a deep sigh.

Could it be that you didn't tell her, and Grandmother still doesn't know that you may never escape Prince Su's grasp in this lifetime?

Zhang Mama, both delighted and puzzled, said, "Granny, you… are you now consenting to the girl interacting with Your Highness? Then just now you…"

Pei Lao Furen, with a hint of anger, said, "What, not driving him away, yet you expect me to watch them cozy up in my courtyard!?"

Zhang Mama chuckled, "Granny, you jest. This servant sees the girl hasn't awakened yet, perhaps she still doesn't understand Prince Su's thoughts."

Pei Lao Furen snorted, "It should be so. Perhaps Luo'er never looks down on him at all?"

Thinking of that, Pei Lao Furen couldn't help but burst into a few hearty laughs.

"Now that's truly satisfying! Luo'er looks down on the illustrious Prince Su, making him unable to obtain her, hahaha… and then Luo'er will bring me a son‑in‑law, and we can live an ordinary, happy little life."

"Hahaha…"

The more Pei Lao Furen thought, the happier she became, and Zhang Mama couldn't help but retort, "Granny, that seems impossible. Prince Su's reputation, you are not unaware of…"

Pei Lao Furen's smile froze, then vanished in an instant.

"Old Zhang, you really spoil the mood."

"I'm not blind; can't I see Prince Su's feelings toward Luo'er?"

"Although rumors claim he's a bloodthirsty, raging, brutal man, from my few encounters with him the rumors are largely false. At least now he treats Luo'er fairly well, even humbling himself to cajole the little girl."

"The point is, he has intentions, yet why does he delay proposing to my Xiuli Jiangjun Fu?"

"You say, what exactly does he mean? Could his attraction to Luo'er still be insufficient to make him resolve this matter?"

"Or perhaps, now he also looks down on Luo'er's background after she left the Jiangjun Fu?"

"After all, although our Xiuli Jiangjun Fu is called a Jiangjun Fu, I am no longer an official, just a useless old woman without power or influence; might he also look down on us in his heart?"

"If he only allows Luo'er to be a secondary consort, how could Luo'er's temperament become a concubine?"

"If this truly means he intends to give Luo'er such humiliation, then even as a villain I would never consent!"

"If forced to that extent, I will personally go to the palace to plead with his father, using my past military merits to secure a proper marriage for Luo'er!"

Anyway, if we enter Prince Su's residence, we will probably never have a peaceful life in this lifetime.

Luo'er is still slow and unawakened; this matter is not difficult to handle.

Zhang Mama, seeing Pei Lao Furen overthinking, couldn't help but advise: "Don't be anxious, Granny; perhaps Your Highness is merely waiting for a better moment. Maybe he also waits for the girl to awaken or has other concerns."

"Honestly, I never imagined Prince Su would treat a girl so gently, even just now running to check her injuries; clearly he cares deeply."

"Granny, you forgot that when Your Highness occasionally visited Qingsong Temple, we were always afraid of disturbing him."

"Even knowing you reside here, he never set foot to visit."

"He is of noble birth, a lofty aristocrat; who would think he'd one day lower himself to do such petty deeds?"

"It shows he truly cares about our girl…"

Pei Lao Furen: "Ah... but his fate also leaves him with no choice..."

"The paths of these two children may not be easy in the future."

The next day.

Li Qingluo went to the small courtyard on the back mountain of Cang Song early that morning.

On the way up the mountain she encountered Ling Fengzi.

"Daoist."

Li Qingluo called out to him.

The last time she came to Qing Song Guan, Li Qingluo had not met him face to face, but Ling Fengzi had seen her from afar, so he knew she had changed greatly.

Seeing Li Qingluo, Ling Fengzi was delighted: "Miss Li, it's been several months; you have risen like a phoenix from the ashes, getting better and better."

Li Qingluo: "Daoist, you flatter me. I don't know if Daoist Qingyang's health has improved greatly."

Ling Fengzi: "Our abbot is doing well; he went to see Your Highness early this morning."

Li Qingluo smiled: "So he really is fine?"

Ling Fengzi's smile stiffened, then he burst out laughing 'haha': "Miss Li, you're now using these tricks to test this poor Daoist. Indeed, anyone who has mingled in Jinling City is not simple."

Li Qingluo bowed slightly: "Daoist, don't be annoyed. What would you like to eat? I've made something; shall I treat you?"

Ling Fengzi's eyebrows and eyes instantly smiled: "I've heard the stewed gourd chicken in Jinling City is not bad; I've eaten it a few times and it's just okay. I wonder how yours turns out, Miss."

Li Qingluo: "Then why don't you hurry and go kill a chicken?"

Ling Fengzi: "Oh, how can we Daoists kill living beings? Although we raise dozens of chickens on the back mountain, we keep them only to cultivate our Dao heart."

How about letting Your Highness's people help? We'll make sure nobody notices!

Li Qingluo let out a 'puchi' laugh: "To keep your Dao heart undisturbed, then I'll go beg Your Highness?"

Li Qingluo and Ling Fengzi came together to the rear courtyard.

Ling Fengzi had been to this small courtyard before, but each time he dared not go inside.

This time, following Li Qingluo, he walked in boldly, basking in her reflected glory.

Just as they entered, they bumped into Qingyangzi coming out of the house; Qingyangzi felt no embarrassment and nodded at Li Qingluo as usual.

However, this person's temperament has changed greatly since the death of Pei Shierniang.

Now his whole person is gloomy and silent, terrifying……

Qingyangzi then left with Ling Fengzi.

Li Qingluo went to find Duan Rongshi, and overheard him telling Po Feng: "Do as she said. Go!"

Seeing Li Qingluo arrive, Duan Rongshi asked her: "Have you had breakfast?"

"If not, join me for a meal."

Li Qingluo wanted to say she had already eaten with her grandmother.

But seeing that Duan Rongshi's breakfast had already gone cold, for some reason she obediently sat down.

Li Qingluo could hardly eat anything.

She merely moved her chopsticks a little.

Seeing her like that, Duan Rongshi asked: "Is it not to your taste?"

Li Qingluo: "Of course not. By the way, Your Highness, would you like some stewed gourd chicken? I'll make it for you at noon today."

Duan Rongshi looked at her palm: "Is the wound healed?"

Li Qingluo: "It's just a minor injury, no big deal. To be frank with Your Highness, I want to personally prepare a proper meal so that my grandmother and the late State Duke can enjoy a reunion feast."

At that time, when Li Qingluo initially asked her grandmother to come down from the mountain, she had personally promised her grandmother this.

She did not want to be someone who broke her promise to her grandmother.

So she has always kept it in her heart.

Now that she finally has the opportunity, she naturally wants to seize it and get this done.

Duan Rongshi firmly refused: "No. Your wound hasn't healed yet; you can't go into the kitchen."

He put on a stern face, showing he would not allow her to argue further.

Li Qingluo: "Your Highness, stewed gourd chicken is really delicious. I've made it once in the mansion; even my master praised it endlessly, saying it's no match for the signature dish of Fukumanlou."

Duan Rongshi narrowed his eyes slightly: "……"

So, he hasn't eaten it yet?

Li Qingluo hurriedly added: "I guarantee I'll use only one hand if I can move; if I can't, I'll have Zheng Mama and Zhang Mama do the work. Please agree, Your Highness."

Of course, the stewed gourd chicken is the least important.

Releasing the late State Duke to have a meal with the grandmother is what Li Qingluo truly aims to achieve!

Duan Rongshi looked at her pitiful yet coquettish expression and snorted: "No tricks allowed!"

"I have already agreed to Zayina's request, sending someone with her token to lure her sister out in two days."

"Then, when the time comes, the sisters will settle their grudges, so you must not provoke them during these two days."