Chapter 843 The Duke Shows Up!

Behind the screen wall, Shao Wanru soundlessly laughed and pushed Chu Liuchen away. Because of leaning in Chu Liuchen’s arms, her face was in a blush.

“What are you laughing at?” Chu Liuchen let go of her and asked in confusion. She was standing beside him.

“Nothing!” Shao Wanru shook her head and said. Of course, she wouldn’t tell Chu Liuchen that she longed to see Old Madam’s aggrieved face.

Though she didn’t tell him, Chu Liuchen knew what Shao Wanru was thinking in her mind. He reached out to flick Shao Wanru’s forehead gently and then said in distress. “Time is moving so slowly!”

“Your Highness, do you have something urgent to deal with?” Shao Wanru touched her forehead with her hand, looked at Chu Liuchen with her watery eyes, and said with discontent.

“Of course I have! Though I’m not young anymore, I haven’t got a wife yet! I can’t sleep at night because of that!” Chu Liuchen teased her in a serious tone.

Shao Wanru blushed in the face as if it were bleeding. “This man has no sense of shame! How can he say words like that? Where is the mysterious elegance he showed when we first met? Was this man really Prince Chen whom I know?”

“Your Highness, you’d better go back early! It is getting late,” Shao Wanru reached out to give a slight push on Chu Liuchen and said with a blush.

Chu Liuchen burst out laughing when he saw that she had been shy but still pretended not to understand his teasing words. He wanted to hold her hands again, but this time Shao Wanru was on guard. She stepped back with her hands hiding behind her back.

“When will you follow me back to my mansion?” Chu Liuchen asked and smiled. He was more and more pleased with the shyness of the girl in front of him.

“You should go, Your Highness! I have to go to meet my grandma.” Shao Wanru was anyway a bashful girl, so she couldn’t bear to be teased anymore and could only try to persuade him to go.

“Okay, okay! I am leaving. Alas, what a hard life I am living! I was just abandoned after being used!” Chu Liuchen shook his head, pretending to be helpless.

And Shao Wanru became shyer and shyer due to his boundless jokes. “Does this guy lose all his sense of shame?”

“Do you want me to accompany you there?” Seeing that she was too shy to look at him, Chu Liuchen changed the topic and asked with a smile.

“No! You go back first and I’ll go there in a while!” Shao Wanru shook her head and pouted to say.

“You sure? I am an excellent escort. Are you sure that you are not going to employ me?” Chu Liuchen asked.

Shao Wanru felt that if she continued to answer his serious nonsenses, she would probably lose her control and take action to stop them.

She reached out to make him turn around and said to him, “Your Highness, please go back. And I am not going to see you off because I have something to do!”

As she said, she pushed Chu Liuchen on the back with a few strengths. He took a few steps forward but then turned around again, asking in confusion. “Are you sure that you don’t need me anymore?”

Shao Wanru felt so happy that everyone could sense it from her eyes. She bit her lip, thinking that she was wrong about his personality just now. The person in front of her was still the naughty Prince Chen.

As Shao Wanru stared at him without saying anything, Chu Liuchen stopped teasing her and said with a smile. “See you!”

“Take care, Your Highness!” Shao Wanru pouted slightly, stamped her feet, and said with a bit of temper.

“Okay, I’ll just leave. Do you want to know more about First Miss Zhao?” Chu Liuchen narrowed his eyes and said. He had stopped making fun of her.

“Of course I do!” Shao Wanru answered after thinking for a while. But she had a decision.

First Miss Zhao showed a very indifferent attitude towards what had happened today. She seemed to be an onlooker, on which Shao Wanru had some doubts. This morning in the flower hall, First Miss Zhao did not behave like a bride who was about to marry into the family. She didn’t feel shy in front of either Shao Wanru or Old Madam. She looked too generous!

In other words, she was not generous. She seemed a bit indifferent!?

It was said that her Eldest Brother was very fond of First Miss Zhao, which was also the reason why the marriage of the two could be finally decided though it had been delayed for such a long time.

She had thought that First Miss Zhao must be fond of her fiance too. After all, she still agreed to marry Shao Hua’an in the end after they suffered from lots of troubles in their marriage for three years! Shao Wanru did not believe that there was no affection between the two of them.

But it seemed that the truth was not as she had imagined. Then why was First Miss Zhao willing to marry Shao Hua’an though she didn’t love him? Was it to become the wife of the Heir of Duke Xing?

Shao Wanru could not conclude. After Chu Liuchen left, she continued thinking about it for a while. She didn’t know Zhao Xiran well, so it was in vain for her to keep digging it now. It would be better to just wait and see after getting Zhao Xiran’s personal information from Chu Liuchen. She didn’t bother to waste her mind on it anymore and went to Old Madam’s Chuntang Courtyard with Yujie.

She had to go and inform Old Madam that Chu Liuchen had gone back.

When they arrived at Old Madam’s, Old Madam was sitting in the main room and drank tea quietly. Seeing Shao Wanru, she waved her hand asking her to come in.

Shao Wanru walked into the main room, bowed to Old Madam, and then sat down.

“Your Eldest Brother’s bridal chamber was burnt, which was caused by your Second Sister. And I was also to blame. At that time, I shouldn’t have asked your Second Sister to stay in that courtyard and copy the Woman Precepts. Otherwise, such an incident wouldn’t have happened. However, we have to let it go. I will punish your Second Sister. Anyway, there are still many vacant courtyards in the mansion. I was thinking that the Qiuhui Courtyard which is relatively close to yours is a good one. What do you think?”

In fact, Qiuhui Courtyard was not close to Shao Wanru’s courtyard, but it was located at the edge of the first branch’s territory. It could be a courtyard of the first branch, or the second branch.

“I also think it good!” Shao Wanru replied softly.

Shao Hua’an’s last courtyard was actually burnt by Old Madam on purpose, and that’s why she had chosen a bad courtyard for him first. Now Shao Hua’an wouldn’t feel wronged even if he didn’t get the Quhuan Courtyard because any other courtyard to be chosen was better than the burnt one. On the other hand, although Duke Xing’s Mansion was simply divided into three parts, the first branch, the second branch, and the third branch, their boundaries were not clear-cut. It was hard to say that Qiuhui Courtyard certainly belonged to the first branch, so she had no reason to object, and she was doomed to fail if she did.

She herself and Hao’er belonged to the first branch, and the latter was still living in Great Elder Princess’s Mansion. So there were lots of vacant courtyards in the first branch. It was unreasonable if she said no to Old Madam. What’s more, it was the people of the second branch who was in charge of the whole mansion. Strictly speaking, she, as a niece of them, was living under someone else’s roof.

Since she had no other choice but to agree on it, Shao Wanru didn’t say anything more.

Old Madam was quite satisfied with Shao Wanru’s tact. And then she asked a few more questions about what Chu Liuchen had said before letting Shao Wanru go back.

Shao Wanru walked back to her Piaoyun Courtyard after going out of Old Madam’s, contemplating in her mind that she might get herself out of what would happen next.

It was urgent to prepare the marriage, but she believed that Old Madam had started the preparation for it early, and so had her elusive Second Uncle. Everything burnt must be of low quality so it was easy to deal with their ruins. Then it would be quick to arrange things that had been well prepared by them.

She also believed that she would not get involved in another trouble from the time being. At least before she got married, there would not be any conspiracy of taking up Quhuan Courtyard, especially after Chu Liuchen’s coming today. Though Old Madam and Shao Jing still didn’t give it up, it would take them ages to make a new plan.

“Fifth Miss, the Duke wants to see you!” An old maid was coming to her in a hurry and said as soon as they met at an intersection. When she saw Shao Wanru, she bowed to her with happiness.

“Second Uncle wants to see me?” Shao Wanru asked in surprise.

Chu Liuchen did go to Shao Jing’s courtyard just now, but she didn’t go. So Second Uncle shouldn’t call her over. “Wasn’t it better for him to see Old Madam and Shao Caihuan?”

“Yes, Fifth Miss. Duke wants to ask Fifth Miss something. He wants you to go to his courtyard!” The old maid said with a smile.

Shao Wanru nodded, turned around, and went to the outer court, during which she asked the old maid in a casual voice. “When did Second Uncle come back? Did he come across Prince Chen?”

Chu Liuchen didn’t tell her, and nor did she ask. She didn’t know whether they had met or not.

“Duke Xing has just come back and he didn’t meet Prince Chen.” The old maid gave a clear and concise reply. It was obvious that she was a clever servant.

Then Shao Wanru remained silent and followed the old maid to the outer court. They did not go to Shao Jing’s courtyard, but to Shao Jing’s other study. In the past, when Shao Jing needed to talk with Shao Wanru, he always met her at that study.

When they reached the door of the study, Shao Wanru was asked to wait for a while by the old maid, who then went in to report to her master. Before long Shao Wanru was summoned.

Shao Jing, who was with a dignified face, was sitting behind the writing desk in the study and fixing his examining eyes on Shao Wanru. He thought in his mind that whether he had underestimated this niece.

Shao Wanru stepped forward and bowed, and then stood aside with her head and shoulders down.

“Sit down!” Shao Jing said gently.

Shao Wanru nodded her head, sat down on a chair, put her hands on her knees, and kneaded the handkerchief in her hand with anxiety. It could be seen that she was not calm.

Shao Jing cast a glance at her hands, from which he could see that she couldn’t calm down at once. So the smile on his face became more friendly. “I heard that the people of Minister Zhao’s Mansion came today. Did they make things difficult for our mansion?”

Shao Wanru didn’t think it necessary for him to ask her about it. Since Shao Jing had asked, she had to answer it. She nodded at once and said softly, “Nothing serious. They just came and talked to Grandma about something for a while. Grandmother has just decided to take Qiuhui Courtyard as Eldest Brother’s wedding room!”

Of course, Shao Jing had already known about Qiuhui Courtyard. He looked at Shao Wanru again with emotionless eyes. He couldn’t see how fierce his niece was! “Was it all because of Prince Chen? Did he care so much about Shao Wanru?”

“Qiuhui Courtyard is a good courtyard. When I was a child, I once lived there with your father. But after that, it has always been vacant.” Shao Jing sighed softly with a trace of relief in his eyes. He had a look of happiness, which showed a gentle feeling and made people have a good opinion of him at this time.

It was hard to believe that he was such an evil man!

However, one should never judge a book by its cover. Shao Wanru lowered her head slightly to hide the coldness in her eyes. Thinking of her father, she felt infinitely sad.

“Honestly speaking, this courtyard is your father’s. Now you have given it to your Eldest Brother, so I have to compensate you with something anyway. We should originally prepare some dowries for you to celebrate your wedding day. At that time, we will present you two more loads of dowries, which you can regard as my guilt to you,” Shao Jing said with a sigh.

“Second Uncle, you don’t have to do that. Duke Xing’s Mansion has already prepared a lot of presents for me, so you don’t have to give me more.” Shao Wanru refused with politeness. But what she said was true. Because of Great Elder Princess’s tough attitudes, Duke Xing’s Mansion didn’t dare to covet her dowries anymore.

She had owned most parts of her dowries, and the missing part had been compensated with money. Although the compensation was not adequate yet, it seemed that it would be fully paid.

But why did Shao Jing mention the dowry matter at this time? Hadn’t he always avoided it…?