Chapter 37: Beauty is Short-Lived

  "Eldest sister, can't you let the old lady wait? I've been here for a while now and finally waited for you to arrive. Old lady, don't you think she should be punished?" Madame Chen said with a tone of resentment, no other reason than Su Ying's mourning attire was particularly eye-catching to her.

  Madam Chen was resentful in her heart. Why did Su Ying, this elder sister-in-law, have to suppress her everywhere? Not to mention that she wasn't as well-born as herself, but after marrying into the Hou family for five years, she still hadn't given birth to a single child, and now she had become a burden. The more Madam Chen thought about it, the more suffocated she felt in her heart. Just wait, the Hou family would eventually belong to their second branch!

  Fu's mother ignored Su Ying's arrival, and seeing Su Ying politely greeting her, she couldn't help but feel annoyed. This eldest daughter-in-law was just like her eldest son, one with dead fish eyes and the other a wooden lump, how could they compare to her second son and niece whom she had raised since childhood? So she let Mrs. Chen take advantage of Su Ying's politeness to bully her.

  No matter how ambiguous Mrs. Chen was, Su Ying remained nonchalant and simply adjusted her clothes without leaving any traces, which made the tearful Mrs. Chen shut up in frustration.

  About the same time, Su Ying spoke up and invited Fu Mu to get in the carriage and head to the Shou'an Duke's estate for dinner.

  Fu's mother didn't think Chen's status and dress were inappropriate at all. She and her niece sat in the front of the jade-covered, pearl-ornamented eight-treasured carriage, and Su Ying expressed her disdain for Chen's smug gaze.

  There is such an imaginary enemy, what a huge pressure.

  Shou'an Old Princess Consort is the paternal great aunt of the new emperor, the elder princess of Emperor Taizong, and has gone through four dynasties. She is highly respected in the imperial family and the royal clan, and even the Empress Dowager does not dare to show off in front of her. Therefore, her birthday celebration was grand, with carriages and sedan chairs arriving at Shou'an County Prince's Mansion in droves, making it extremely lively.

  The carriage from the residence of Marquis Yongwu arrived not too late, and among the male guests, Fu Xueyang, the son of Marquis Yongwu, came relatively early. Fu Xueyang was proud and refused to lower his face - even though his mother had intended for him to come and make connections with the younger generation of aristocratic families, Fu Xueyang swore that he would only deign to notice them after he had obtained a high-ranking official position and made them look up to him. He would rather stay in his study reading books than mingle with those people. His mother listened to his reasoning and did not force him - so he never showed his face.

  。

  Fu's mother did not wait to see Su Ying, she had already made up her mind that even if they arrived at the Duke's mansion, she would not introduce Su Ying to the noblewomen who came with the imperial edict. It seemed that she was certain that someone from a humble background like Su Ying would not be treated with courtesy even if they had an imperial edict.

  This trip, Madam Fu's main goal is to make a good impression in front of the old princess and hopefully establish a good relationship. Additionally, she wants to bring Mrs. Chen to get familiar with the ladies in the capital city, broaden her horizons, and eventually come out and socialize more often.

  After paying respects to Old Man Shou, Madame Fu led Madame Chen away, leaving Su Qing behind. Originally, Madame Chen's attire was not particularly eye-catching among the noblewomen who had arrived earlier, but surrounded by all these formally dressed madames, she became somewhat conspicuous.

  Fu's mother and Madam Chen were completely unaware, the wives of several high-ranking officials who were chatting with Fu's mother couldn't help but glance at Madam Chen, who was wearing casual clothes, before turning their attention to Su Ying, who was engaged in conversation with the wife of the Minister of Rites and was dressed elegantly. They all had a plan in mind, although they continued to chat with Fu's mother, they didn't pay any attention to Madam Chen.

  Fu's mother made it clear that she didn't welcome Su Ying as the mistress of the Hou Mansion, but this didn't mean others would follow suit. Even if the noble ladies gathered, Su Ying's status here wasn't low, and Fu Yeyang was deeply favored by the Emperor and held real power, unlike those families with only empty titles. Naturally, there were people who wanted to get along with Su Ying.

  At the very least, Su Ying had been the mistress of the Hou Mansion for five years. Except for the year after the death of Madam Fu's grandmother when she did not go out or receive guests during the mourning period, she normally socialized with other ladies in aristocratic families and had some acquaintances among them. Therefore, it was impossible for the scene that Madam Fu imagined to occur - Su Ying being ostracized, ill-treated, and losing face.

  Su Ying had done her homework before coming, and she was well-behaved in every way. She wasn't foolish enough to speak ill of Fu Mu in this setting. When others asked her questions, she replied with ease and poise, exuding a sense of clarity and purity. She even came up with excuses for Fu Mu and Chen Furen, and didn't bring up her own family's embarrassing matters in public.

  She did this and unexpectedly gained a good impression, in a short while she had won the praise of several ladies. It's not ruled out that Su Ying specially wore the eight treasure pearl hairpin distributed by the system 【once worn, affinity increased by 20%】.

  Su Ying was at ease among the many wives, but Chen's wife, who was being ignored, felt both envy and jealousy. What made her even more embarrassed was that in the past, when she was still in the inner chambers, those who were not as good as her had already gotten married and were following their mothers-in-law, all dressed properly. Even if they were of a lower status, Chen's wife still felt that others were looking down on her with disdain, which made her feel very uncomfortable and uneasy, as she had always thought highly of herself.

  Madam Chen is not sociable, others will not flatter her either, she only socializes with Mrs. Fu.

  。

  Su Yingyu saw this situation in the remaining light and couldn't help but laugh inwardly.

  Just as the lady of Pingyang Hou was speaking, a commotion broke out outside. The county princess, surrounded by maidservants, came out from the main hall to greet the noble guest in front. Everyone wondered who it could be that caused such a big stir. Then they heard a little maid loudly announcing: "Princess Zhongrui has arrived!"

  Su Ying initially didn't pay much attention, wondering if she was being too sensitive, after all, it's just that the Wang Fu in the game shared the same name as her own. However, upon hearing the surrounding people's discussions, she swallowed hard and unconsciously clenched her fists hidden in her sleeves.

  "Is this the first time Queen Zhongrui has appeared in public since the New Year?"

  "It wasn't because one of Zhong Rui Wang's favored concubines died for no reason, which made Zhong Rui Wang fly into a rage, and countless servants in the palace were killed. In the end, even the Empress Dowager was shocked."

  "Beauty is short-lived, it seems that this concubine has a humble background, doesn't even have a child, yet she can become the first concubine, it's clear that she's quite formidable."

  “……”

  At this time, the wife of Shou'an County King and several other wives of dukes and marquises accompanied a noblewoman who was approaching slowly, surrounded by pearls and jade, with bright and resplendent embroidered silk.

  Su Ying couldn't help but look up, and in the middle was Princess Wang, Han Shi, who was only twenty-four or five years old. She wore a queen's formal attire that made her look elegant and noble, with a refined temperament, and a small beauty mark at the corner of her eye added a touch of charm to her dignified appearance.

  Su Ying's mind was buzzing, and the smiling face of Zhong Rui Wang Fei floated in front of her eyes. She felt terrified, puzzled, and annoyed, as if she were dreaming, and for a moment, she couldn't tell whether this was reality or inside the game!

  Until Lady Pingyang pulled her and saw that her face was pale, she asked: "I see your complexion is not very good, what's wrong?"

  Su Ying finally came back to her senses, her rationality gradually returned, and she coughed twice to calm down the laughter of Princess Yang Hou: "It's nothing, just a minor illness."

  The Marquise of Pingyang's wife didn't suspect anything, so Su Ying made an excuse to go wash her hands and quietly left the flower hall. She leaned against a pillar and slowly let out a breath. With so many coincidences adding up together, Su Ying wouldn't think it was just a coincidence. [System, don't you think you should say something?]

  "Calm down, you are no longer a character in the game, you are the real-life wife of Marquis Wu, Fu Su. The system has a sense of mission that 'can't leave Master Xiao', it also understands Su Ying, and with a bloody tone says"

  。

  From another perspective, it can be said that it indirectly acknowledged Su Ying's conjecture. Su Ying had a mix of emotions in her heart, she felt like she had been shocked, this feeling was just like the people from the two-dimensional world suddenly appearing in front of you.

  Yè Gōng loved dragons, but when a real dragon arrived, he was frightened out of his wits.

  Su Ying's expression was similar to Ye Gong's, what's going on? Su Ying smiled wryly and suddenly had an epiphany, smiling brightly as she said: "So, you've known all along, haven't you? But you've been keeping it from me, wanting to surprise me?"

  You, how did you know? The two of us really have a spiritual connection. Hehe. The system was stupid and automatically jumped into the pit dug by Su Ying, and after realizing something was wrong, it continued to "hibernate" with its tail between its legs.

  Su Ying gritted her teeth, "You're really something, don't think this is over."

  When Su Ying reappeared in front of Zhong Rui Wangfei, she had already restored her dignified and calm image as the wife of the Marquess of Yongwu. Her eyes did not dodge or flash, and when she paid respects to Zhong Rui Wangfei, Su Ying couldn't help but think: From a nameless concubine who had to humble herself in the past, to a secondary consort without a foundation, to a side consort who could share power with the main consort, and finally to a main consort who remained unchanged from beginning to end. Now, when they met again, she had become the legitimate wife of the Marquess of Yongwu, while Zhong Rui Wangfei was still elegant and noble. Fate is indeed unpredictable.

  Although the surface was calm, the sumptuous feast on the table also became tasteless, and the singing and acting on the temporary outdoor stage in front of the hall were not heard. Su Ying's mind was absent-minded, so she didn't notice the situation of Fu Mu and Chen Furen - the inner room female relatives were seated according to their rank and identity, Su Ying was arranged at a table on the right side, and those who sat with her were all relatively young noblewomen with similar identities. Fu Mu was arranged at a table on the left side, and Chen Furen followed in and took her seat, causing the other imperial concubines at the same table to frown secretly and glance sideways without leaving any marks, but due to their identity and the occasion, no one spoke out.

  Mrs. Fu didn't seem to notice and deliberately introduced Mrs. Chen to all the ladies.

  Madam Chen also gained confidence, straightened her back, and saw Su Ying being ignored at the table opposite, she couldn't help but feel triumphant in her heart. Now everyone knows, doesn't it? The wife of the Marquis of Yongwu is not favored by her mother-in-law! Hmph!

  Su Ying raised her eyes and saw Madame Chen's undisguised triumphant little eyes, lowered her head and rolled her eyes, the lady of Pingyang Hou beside her came over to talk to her, Su Ying immediately noticed that Madame Chen had changed from a small triumphant to a small disappointed, her eyes sparkled with joy, and her smile deepened, transform into Madame Chen!

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