Crowned by the Treacherous Big Shot
Chapter 122 - 120 Her Mother is Still Alive_2

Chapter 122: Chapter 120 Her Mother is Still Alive_2

The old lady thought for a moment and agreed. No matter what, Lin Wan’er was still marrying off as a young lady of the Duke Mansion.

The old lady then asked, "Why isn’t Steward Li here?"

Steward Qian smiled and said, "The chief steward had some matters to attend to. The mansion is too busy, and he couldn’t come."

To only send a lower steward—it displeased the old lady even more.

Pretending not to notice her displeasure, Steward Qian continued with a cheerful smile, "The Duchess thinks the marriage should be expedited. Miss Wan’er will arrive at the mansion two days in advance, and then marry off from the Duke Mansion."

The old lady asked in confusion, "Only two days in advance? Why not bring her over now?"

Lin Wan’er sat behind the screen, clutching her sleeve tightly as she listened to the conversation outside.

Steward Qian continued, "The Duchess is also concerned that Miss Wan’er might not adapt well immediately. Please rest assured, Old Madam, the wedding gown, accompanying maids, bridal sedan chair... everything related to the wedding will be properly arranged by the Duke Mansion. We will ensure that Miss Wan’er marries off in a grand and glorious manner. As for the bride price and dowry, the Duchess has said that since the Lu Family is currently struggling, these matters can be kept simple."

The earlier part was quite reasonable, but what was that last part?

"Simple"? Not only is the bride price simple, but the dowry too? In other words, the Duke Mansion doesn’t intend to give a dowry at all!

What was originally agreed upon? Consort Li herself would lead the efforts to arrange extra gifts for Lin Wan’er—

When Lu Lingxiao married Meng Qianqian, though no bride price was given, Meng Qianqian brought a dowry worth tens of thousands of taels to the Capital City!

The old lady would not accept this and slammed the table with her palm: "Is this how your Duke Mansion marries off its daughters?"

Steward Qian’s smile faded slightly. "We are also considering the Lu Family’s situation. Traditionally, a bride’s dowry matches the bride price given by the groom’s family. If the Lu Family can afford something substantial, our Duke Mansion can match it with a comparable dowry!"

The old lady, fuming with anger, shouted, "You—"

Steward Qian, still smiling faintly, said, "If you are displeased with this marriage arrangement, once Miss Wan’er’s child is born, we can have the child listed in our Duke Mansion’s family register. We will take responsibility for raising the child."

That won’t do! The old lady could never let her precious great-grandchild become part of someone else’s family!

"Mother, don’t be angry. Let’s talk this out calmly. We’re all family, after all!"

The second wife couldn’t care less whether the Yao Family gave a dowry. The old lady’s tight control left her with no opportunities for benefits, so she might as well lean toward the Duke Mansion’s influence to secure better prospects for her two sons studying at the Imperial College.

"Has the wedding date been set?"

She asked with a smile.

Steward Qian replied agreeably, "Next month has several auspicious days—the sixteenth, nineteenth, and twenty-seventh..."

"Next month..." The second wife glanced at Lin Wan’er’s growing belly. "Then the sixteenth. The sooner, the better."

Steward Qian said with a smile, "The sixteenth is the Emperor and Empress’s grand marriage day. Perhaps you could choose another date."

Consort Li had quietly arranged for the Astronomical Bureau to designate the sixteenth as the grand day of the year.

The second wife was momentarily stunned. "The Emperor is getting married? And the Empress is—?"

Steward Qian smiled with pride. "Our second young lady."

Everyone drew in sharp breaths.

The Duke Mansion already had a Consort Li, and now there would soon be an Empress as well. Truly, they were heaven’s chosen aristocracy.

Even though Lin Wan’er was a descendant of the Twelve Guards, she could not compete with the Emperor and Empress to claim the most auspicious day.

After the people from the Duke Mansion left, Lu Luo grumbled discontentedly, "What’s the meaning of this? The Duke Mansion is clearly showing favoritism, leaving us with days leftover by Miss Yao, and even picking up scraps for the dowry. They talk about a grand marriage, but where’s the grandeur?"

Lin Wan’er remained silent.

Greed is insatiable. At first, she didn’t even dare to dream of becoming the legal wife. Now, not only would her wish be fulfilled, but she also carried the status of a young lady from the Duke Mansion—yet she still felt disappointed.

It was only a fleeting sense of disappointment. Miss Yao was a legitimate daughter of the Yao Family and the Emperor’s first cousin, so it was only natural that she couldn’t compare.

All that mattered was that her situation was better than Meng Qianqian’s.

Unfortunately, the Meng Family had come to the Capital City and would likely soon take Meng Qianqian back to You State, depriving her of the chance to witness Lin Wan’er marrying Lu Lingxiao with her own eyes.

In Feng Shui Alley.

"Miss, don’t you think the wedding is being rushed a bit?"

Nanny Li asked.

Meng Qianqian replied, "I think it’s just fine."

Tan’er propped her chin with a tiny fist. "I also think it’s great! The Governor Mansion’s braised pork is sooo delicious!"

Nanny Li gave her a reproachful glare. "You gluttonous girl!"

Nanny Li was worried that the date was too soon, leaving many details unprepared, which might cause some grievance to her mistress.

Meng Qianqian smiled. "It’s my second marriage. Keeping it low-key is just right."

Nanny Li sighed softly.

Tan’er bounced to Meng Qianqian’s side, asking excitedly, "Sister, are we going to have the wedding attire made tomorrow?"

Customs varied by region. In You State, women of the family often embroidered the wedding attire personally, while in the Capital City’s elite families, it was typical to hire professional embroiderers.

Meng Qianqian said, "Steward Cen mentioned they would hire embroiderers to come to the house."

The wedding attire was traditionally the bride’s family’s responsibility, but Steward Cen had taken care of everything.

Tan’er pouted. "But I wanted to go out and explore..."

Meng Qianqian chuckled. "Alright, let’s go explore."

Tan’er giggled gleefully. "Sister, you’re the best!"

Nanny Li gazed at her mistress with both tenderness and pride. Five years ago, her mistress was still a child—it didn’t even feel like a wedding, more like she had been adopted into someone else’s family.

Now, she had grown into a beautiful, poised young woman, truly looking like a new bride.

"If Madam knew the young lady has come of age..."

"Ahem!"

At the doorway, Meng Tianlan cleared his throat heavily.

Nanny Li quickly lowered her gaze to hide her fleeting unease. Standing up, she said, "Third Master, Seventh Uncle, Steward Meng, you’ve arrived. Please, take a seat."

The three men entered the room.

Nanny Li forced a sheepish smile and said, "Miss, it seems the grandmother next door fell early this morning."

"Is that so? Tan’er, come with me to check on her."

"As you command!"

Meng Qianqian led Tan’er out of the room.

Meng Tianlan asked, "Nanny Li, what was all that about earlier?"

Nanny Li replied apologetically, "Seeing the young lady now grown, I lost myself for a moment."

The Seventh Uncle asked curiously, "After all these years, you still haven’t told the third girl?"

"How could we dare?" Meng Tianlan sat in a chair, took a sip of tea, frowned at the fact it wasn’t wine, then set it down disdainfully. "The old master forbade it."

The Seventh Uncle said, "But what if, one day, the third girl finds out on her own? Aren’t you afraid she’ll resent you?"

Meng Tianlan spoke earnestly, "It’s for her own good. Besides, we’ve kept this secret for so many years. If we suddenly tell her now that her mother is still alive, do you think she could handle it?"

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