Chapter 35: Is Xiao Fengze Really That Person?

Tang Mi personally saw Tang Feng off onto the carriage, then headed to Mingchun Courtyard.

“Madam, the young lady is here,” reported Nanny Gui as she entered the room.

The Old Madam of the Tang family waved her hand, and Nanny Gui immediately understood to go out and invite Tang Mi in.

“Grandmother,” Tang Mi greeted respectfully with a curtsey.

“Come have some tea with Grandmother,” the old lady smiled, beckoning Tang Mi over.

Tang Mi obediently sat down beside the Old Madam.

The Old Madam handed her some snacks, while Nanny Gui quickly served her tea.

“Feng’er has gone to the academy?” the old lady asked.

“He just left. I personally put him on the carriage,” Tang Mi replied.

Hearing this, the Old Madam nodded with satisfaction. “Seeing how close you and your brother are, Grandmother can rest easy.”

Tang Mi’s eyes flickered, and she spoke with guilt: “It was my fault before. I misunderstood things and only knew to push him to study, without ever asking his wishes. It was all my fault. I won’t do it again.”

Seeing her remorseful expression, the Old Madam quickly comforted her, “It’s not your fault. You did it for his own good.”

Tang Mi raised her eyes, “But he might not see it that way. I put too much pressure on him, and it might have hurt him instead.”

If, in her past life, she had cared for him properly instead of forcing him to study, he wouldn’t have gotten so close to Tang Song, nor would he have been harmed by him.

“Our Mi’er has really grown up,” the Old Madam lovingly patted her cheek, looking pleased.

She used to only worry about the relationship between Mi’er and Feng’er, but now she had no more worries. This child had always been steady and was her favorite grandchild, her pride.

Tang Mi blushed and smiled, “I’ll soon come of age, of course I’ve grown up.”

The Old Madam was momentarily dazed, then sighed heavily, “Yes, you’ll come of age next month. Grandmother will host you a proper coming-of-age ceremony.”

“Thank you, Grandmother.” Tang Mi smiled, but her mind drifted to her coming-of-age ceremony in her past life, only her grandmother was with her, and besides a mysterious gift, there was no real celebration.

“Once you come of age, talks of marriage can begin,” the Old Madam said as she stroked Tang Mi’s hair. “Soon, our Mi’er will be leaving Grandmother.”

“No, I’ll never leave you,” Tang Mi suddenly threw herself into the Old Madam’s arms, hugging her tightly.

Seeing her act so clingy like when she was little, the Old Madam chuckled and gently patted her soft hair. “Silly child, of course you’ll have to get married someday. You can’t stay with Grandmother forever. Besides, Grandmother can’t be with you your whole life either.”

She didn’t know how many more years she had left. The most important thing now was Mi’er’s marriage.

Hearing this, Tang Mi’s eyes reddened. In this lifetime, she would never let her grandmother leave so early again. She would not let anyone harm her.

Speaking of marriage, the Old Madam suddenly thought of someone. “Did you happen to meet the heir of the Marquis of Chang’an at the lantern festival yesterday?”

Tang Mi froze and immediately looked at the Old Madam.

The Old Madam grew a little uneasy, explaining instinctively, “Nanny Gui told me about it yesterday.”

Tang Mi raised her eyebrows, of course she knew it was Nanny Gui who told her. But for Grandmother to bring him up now meant she favored him.

That man…

Tang Mi’s eyes narrowed coldly.

Seeing her expression change, the Old Madam grew nervous. “What? Did he bully you?”

Snapping out of it, Tang Mi quickly responded, “No, I just don’t particularly like him.”

This was a warning to her grandmother. Regardless of whether Xiao Fengze was thatperson or not, she didn’t want to marry him.

The Old Madam sighed in relief and gave her a reproachful look. “What does a young girl know about liking or not? The heir of the Marquis of Chang’an is from a prestigious family, the only son of the Grand Princess. He’s raised and taught well.”

Tang Mi lowered her eyes. She didn’t deny he might be a good person. If he were truly uneducated or had poor character, her cousin wouldn’t have befriended him. So clearly, he wasn’t as frivolous or improper as he appeared.

But that wasn’t enough reason for her to like him, especially if he turned out to be that man. If he was, she would never accept him.

The Old Madam glanced at her and realized perhaps it was too early to talk about such things. After all, the Grand Princess’s household hadn’t shown any signs of interest perhaps they didn’t even regard Mi’er as suitable.

Still, a marriage alliance with the Grand Princess’s household was a great opportunity. She had to try for Mi’er’s sake.

Then, as if remembering something, the Old Madam took out an invitation from a box and handed it to Tang Mi.

“What’s this?” Tang Mi looked at her curiously.

“It’s an invitation to a poetry gathering from Princess Lengyu of the Yong’an Marquis’ household,” the Old Madam replied.

Tang Mi’s eyes shifted as she took the invitation and looked it over. So this was the poetry gathering he mentioned?

The Old Madam smiled at her. “Grandmother knows you don’t like going out, but now that you’re about to be of marriageable age, it’s good to socialize more. Besides, this poetry event is hosted by the Yong’an Marquis’ household. The Yong’an and Chang’an Marquises are brothers, it won’t hurt to get closer to them.”

Tang Mi lowered her eyes. She understood everything her grandmother said. In her past life, she knew nothing of these relationship networks at this time. But as someone who had once been empress, how could she not understand now?

Originally, the title of Yong’an Marquis should have belonged to the Marquis of Chang’an, the eldest legitimate son. But since he married the Grand Princess and was given the Chang’an Marquis title, the Yong’an title went to the legitimate second son of the other household.

Although the titles went to two different households, the two marquisates were very close. Xiao Fengze had good relationships with both the heir and the princess of Yong’an, which explained why Princess Lengyu sent her the invitation.

The Old Madam, fearing she might feel nervous, added, “Although it’s Princess Lengyu who sent the invite, it’s essentially a matchmaking banquet hosted by the Yong’an Marchioness for her son. But the Marchioness probably won’t attend, Princess Lengyu will likely be the one entertaining you girls. It’s all young ladies, so no harm in having fun.”

Tang Mi’s eyes shimmered slightly. “Then I’ll take Sixth Sister with me.”

She wanted to find out once and for all, Is Xiao Fengze really thatperson?

The Old Madam didn’t care much for Tang Ning, but didn’t object either. “Alright, it’s better to have someone with you. I’ll be more at ease.”

As the two chatted intimately, Nanny Gui returned, leaning close to whisper something into the Old Madam’s ear.

The Old Madam’s expression immediately changed. “She came back crying?”

Tang Mi frowned and perked up her ears.

Nanny Gui nodded quickly. “The servants at the gate said so. As soon as she returned, she went straight to Second Miss’s room.”

Tang Mi’s eyes flickered. Were they talking about Madam Qin or someone else?

Just as Tang Mi and the Old Madam were puzzling over it, the outer curtain was suddenly flung open. “Grandmother…” Tang Ying burst in, crying, and threw herself at the Old Madam’s legs.