That night, Uncle Ling went out to socialize and didn’t come back until midnight.

According to usual practice, Sun Shi generally went to sleep if Uncle Ling came back late. Uncle Ling rested in the study for the night.

Tonight, Sun Shi stayed awake, especially waiting for Uncle Ling to return home.

They had been husband and wife for many years and were very familiar with each other’s temperament. Looking at Sun Shi’s expression, Uncle Ling knew that Sun Shi had something important to discuss with him, so he immediately asked the servants to withdraw.

Only the husband and wife were left in the room, and Uncle Ling asked: “Ah Xiao went to Huichun Hall today. Did he see Dr. Wei? Can the eye disease be cured?”

“He saw Dr. Wei. Dr. Wei examined him. He administered acupuncture and prescribed medicine, saying there is a 30% chance of a cure.”

Sun Shi immediately recounted the course of events carefully, saying, “However, there is a difficult part in this. I was waiting for Master to return, intending to tell you about this matter and hear your opinion…”

The difficulty Sun Shi mentioned was that she had to go to the Crown Prince’s Mansion tomorrow to beg for mercy.

After hearing this, Uncle Ling not only did not frown, but he slapped the table happily: “What’s so difficult about this! This is a good thing!”

A good thing?

Sun Shi was stunned and didn’t understand what Uncle Ling meant: “Master, what do you mean by that?”

“In the past, I wanted to visit the Crown Prince’s Mansion, but I never had the right opportunity. Isn’t this a good opportunity gifted by God?” Uncle Ling’s eyes flashed, and he stroked his beard proudly and said, “Speaking of which, Ah Shu and Ah Xiao are our lucky stars. Although they caused some trouble on the way to the capital, it also let us meet the Imperial Grandson. The Imperial Grandson is famous for being cold-faced and ruthless, and he actually took the initiative to give the name cards to the siblings. This shows that Ah Shu has caught the eye of the emperor’s grandson.”

“This time she goes to the Crown Prince’s palace to plead for Ah Xiao’s illness, just in time to show her face in front of the Imperial Grandson and establish a friendship. We will often interact with each other in the future, and the benefits are endless…”

Uncle Ling became more and more proud as he talked.

Sun Shi interrupted Uncle Ling with a look of helplessness: “Master, you misunderstood. Tomorrow I will take Ah Shu to the Crown Prince’s Mansion, not to find the Imperial Grandson, but to ask for an audience with the Crown Princess.”

Uncle Ling squinted. He glanced at her and said, “It’s true that a woman’s vision is shallow. As long as you go to the door of the Crown Prince’s Mansion and ask to see the Crown Princess, how can the Imperial Grandson not know about it? If the Imperial Grandson is serious, he will naturally show up.”

“To say the least, Even if the Imperial Grandson doesn’t show up, it would be a good thing to see the Crown Princess. The Imperial Grandson was getting older and was about to get married. I don’t know how much the Crown Princess cares about his marriage. With Ah Shu’s beauty and temperament, and the fact that she is acquainted with the Imperial Grandson, the Crown Princess will definitely pay more attention to Ah Shu when she sees her.”

Wasn’t this carefulness a good opportunity?

If she was not qualified to be a tàisūn fēi ^[1]main wife of an imperial grandson, being a tàisūn cèfēi ^[2]secondary wife or side-wife of an Imperial Grandson would be a lifetime of prosperity and wealth.

When Uncle Ling thought about his success, he couldn’t help but sigh secretly.

It was a pity that Ah Yan didn’t have such a blessing…

Sun Shi suddenly realized, nodding repeatedly, “Master is right. I have been negligent in my thinking, it’s better to consider Master’s thoughts thoroughly. Please rest assured, I will go to the Crown Prince’s Mansion tomorrow and make sure to mention the matter of Imperial Grandson saving Ah Shu.”

Uncle Ling nodded approvingly: “Yes! You must say it, and you must say it clearly and carefully. Also, prepare a more generous entrance ceremony.”

Sun Shi agreed repeatedly.

The couple stayed up all night to talk again, and after discussing it carefully, they stopped talking.

…

The next morning, Ling Jingshu and her brother got up early to pay their respects as usual. Uncle Ling was also here today. He asked Ling Xiao pleasantly about how was his eye treatment going, and Ling Xiao answered them one by one.

Sun Shi looked at Ling Jingshu and was a little dissatisfied with her plain clothes: “Ah Shu, today we are going to the Crown Prince’s Mansion to ask for an audience with the Crown Princess. It’s not okay for you to dress like this. Hurry up and change into a bright new dress. Wear something more refined. Also, wear some jewelry. If you don’t have new clothes or jewelry, go to Ah Yan’s place and pick some…”

She was simply too enthusiastic.

When did Sun Shi become so concerned about her dress?

Ling Jingshu pursed her lips to smile and responded: “Thank you for your concern, dà bómǔ. When I came to the capital this time, I brought a lot of new clothes and jewelry. It will be my first time to visit the Crown Princess. If I dress too simply and casually, I could indeed be disrespectful to the Crown Princess. But I don’t know if Ah Xiao’s eye disease can be cured. I’m so worried that I really don’t want to dress up. I don’t think the Crown Princess will blame me for such a trivial matter.”

Sun Shi still refused to give up persuading, saying, “You and A Xiao have a deep sibling bond, so, understandably, you’re not interested in dressing up. However, there should still be proper etiquette. If by any chance the Crown Princess is displeased and blames you, wouldn’t it be a loss outweighing the gain?”

After a pause, she added meaningfully, “This time when you go to the Prince’s Mansion, you might encounter familiar faces. As a young lady, it’s better to be spirited in your appearance, which is more pleasing to others.”

… Were there any familiar people in the Crown Prince’s Mansion?

After all, it turned out that the real purpose was this!

Ling Jingshu frowned slightly, then quickly returned to normal, and said calmly: “I am going to the Crown Prince’s Mansion today to treat Ah Xiao and ask to see the Crown Princess. It would be bad if I dressed up in a fancy way and caused the Crown Princess to misunderstand me. Let’s forget it!”

Her tone was indifferent, but her attitude was firm.

Sun Shi couldn’t say anything more.

If it were Ling Jingyan, it wouldn’t matter if she said it softly or harshly.

After all, Ling Jingshu is a zhínǚ ^[3]daughter of a brother, in this case, husband’s brother and a very independent person. Even if she said something, she may not be willing to listen, which will only make each other embarrassed.

…

Sun Shi was full of enthusiasm, but it was all in vain, and the atmosphere became cold for a while.

Jiang Shi was the smartest person. When she saw something was wrong, she hurriedly smiled and smoothed things over: “Ah Shu is naturally beautiful, and it didn’t matter whether she was wearing heavy makeup or light makeup. She is just as beautiful even if she wears a sarong. Mother-in-law doesn’t have to worry about her.”

Suppressing some of the unhappiness in her heart, she said with a smile: “What you said makes sense, but I worry too much. It’s getting late, and it’s time for us to set off.”

The only people who went to the Prince’s Mansion today were Sun Shi, Jiang Shi, and the siblings Ling Jingshu and Jingxiao.

Sun Shi went ahead. Jiang Shi intentionally or unintentionally slowed down and walked side by side with Ling Jingshu. She lowered her voice and said, “Mother-in-law said that for your own good. Why not appreciate it?”

Just now, Sun Shi encountered a setback, which was quite embarrassing!

In fact, there was nothing wrong with following Sun Shi’s wishes. It was just a matter of changing into new clothes and wearing some jewelry. It didn’t take much time!

Ling Jingshu did not pretend not to understand what Jiang Shi was saying, and said softly: “I have no intention of climbing a high tree.”

In this case, it would be better to make her position clear from the beginning.

It would also prevent misunderstandings between Sun Shi and Uncle Ling, which may lead to confusion in the future.

Jiang Shi was dumbfounded and secretly surprised.

It turned out that Ling Jingshu really had no desire for the Imperial Grandson…

(To be continued.)