She accidentally flirted with the villain and was fiercely criticized as the regent for forcibly mar

A young gentleman said to her, "It should be possible. I saw that the Dowager Princess of the Prince Heng's Mansion used to raise rabbits. They were very well-behaved and never pooped or peed indiscriminately. I heard that she was trained by animal trainers from the Royal Zoo."

"Really? Thank you for telling me!" Jiang Ruining thanked him for informing her, her smile bright and sunny: "Winter is almost here, and having that chubby, fluffy little guy in my arms is much more comfortable than carrying a hand warmer!"

The young man gazed at her ethereal beauty, his heart pounding, his cheeks flushing, and he chuckled sheepishly, "No, you're welcome."

It's rare to have such a large group of people out together, and unlike when attending a banquet at someone's house, there's no need to separate the men's and women's areas. Everyone is gathered together, chatting and playing games, and everyone is very happy.

The elders who didn't participate in the match would sit in the stands not far away, chatting with the dignitaries and glancing at them from time to time, while a group of guards and servants attended to them.

In any case, we must not let these young men and women make any mistakes.

The Empress Dowager, dressed in casual clothes, still exuded elegance and nobility. She watched as a group of young men surrounded Jiang Ruining, their eyes shining brightly, eager to exchange a few words with her. Jiang Ruining, confident and poised, radiated composure and grace in every gesture, like the sun itself.

"A pampered young lady from a noble family is just different."

The Princess Consort of Jing, seated to the lower right, held a cup of hot tea, her right hand pinching the lid and gently stirring the tea leaves that rose and fell on the surface.

She was the eldest sister-in-law of the young emperor and the regent.

Prince Jing died young, and his children were still young. The Prince Jing's wife's household never participated in court disputes.

No one would make things difficult for the orphans and widows. To show their benevolence, they would even be given orders to take care of them. The three of them were actually the most comfortable in the royal family.

"The county princess wasn't raised pampered. Her mother was a fool who took everything from her and gave it all to her niece, ignoring her and allowing the servants to bully and mistreat her."

"To make room for her niece, Madam Jiang feigned illness and conspired with a Taoist priest to lure the county princess to pray for her. Secretly, she ordered her men to create chaos en route and, in the confusion, push the princess off a cliff!"

The Empress Dowager was surprised.

Many people present knew that Madam Jiang mistreated her own daughter, but few knew that she had plotted to kill her.

Gasps of surprise followed one after another upon hearing this.

"I knew it! The county princess was perfectly fine, so why wasn't she home? Instead, she came to the hot spring resort with the Regent! Turns out she was afraid to go back!"

"No wonder Madam Jiang left the manor to recuperate as soon as Grand Secretary Jiang returned; it turns out she was sent to the estate to reflect on her mistakes!"

"Having such a hateful birth mother is the worst luck imaginable!"

……

"The county princess is too kind; she never says a bad word about her birth mother in front of outsiders."

"If you weren't kind, you wouldn't have been tricked out of the mansion and pushed off the cliff!"

……

Knowing the truth, Mrs. Chen lowered her head, not daring to utter a single word about the topic.

The power of the father and son in the family has been stripped away, and there are still many unmarried children. It is already very difficult to find a good marriage. If outsiders find out that the person who killed Jiang Ruining was Chen Anran, then everything will be over!

The lady next to her noticed her nervous expression and nudged her, asking, "Mrs. Chen, what's wrong?"

Madam Chen felt guilty and was startled.

Noticing many eyes on her, she broke out in a cold sweat and quickly changed the subject, saying, "No, nothing! I was just thinking that the county princess had a miserable few years ago, but by pretending to be impulsive and brainless, she fooled everyone and survived until Grand Secretary Jiang returned to the capital. Not only that, she also gained the favor of the Regent."

"She's quite cunning!"

The Empress Dowager glanced at Jiang Ruining again, a hint of admiration in her eyes.

Because she was born out of wedlock, and both she and her aunt were exceptionally beautiful, and she was also incredibly clever and quick-witted, learning everything instantly. As a child, she was ignorant and her behavior in front of her father often led to her being schemed against and suppressed.

Even after she gained wisdom, she continued to feign injury and disfigurement, and pretended to be sick and have her brain damaged by a fever. She pretended for years, which saved her from being harmed by the main wife. Finally, she got the chance to rise above others and entered the palace to serve the late emperor in place of her eloped eldest sister.

Women like them are born extraordinary!

It is precisely because we know this young lady is extraordinary that we cannot keep her. Otherwise, wouldn't another empress dowager who holds power in the court emerge in the future?

Doesn't that mean the Regent will win?

"The county princess protected herself with her wisdom and never plotted to harm anyone, so how can that be considered scheming?"

Lady Chen sensed the Empress Dowager's displeasure and quickly knelt down, saying, "It was my fault for speaking out of turn."

The Empress Dowager ignored her and instead smiled at the extremely noble lady, saying, "Princess Fu Ning is intelligent; any young man who marries her will be truly blessed. I see that the Regent and Grand Secretary Jiang have no intention of arranging a marriage. If you have any suitable young men in your families, you should seize the opportunity!"

The ladies responded with smiles, but none of them dared to make any rash moves.

Although the Regent and Grand Secretary Jiang did not express their opinions, who knows what they said in private?

Even if we're going to take action, we need to find out the details first!

The topic continues.

Another new protagonist.

The Empress Dowager remained silent for a while, listening intently, as if she were thinking about something else.

She placed her hands on her knees, her right hand, with its nailed fingers, lightly touching the back of her left hand. The rubies on the nails were dazzling, shimmering with a needle-like red light in the sunlight.

Madam Jiang, who would scheme against her own daughter to the death, is quite interesting!

Princess Jing continued to leisurely sip her tea, gazing down at the clear tea water, the surface reflecting the faint smile in her eyes.

The task assigned by the Regent was simple, and she completed it.

……

night.

Bonfire feast.

A huge bonfire was set up a hundred feet away from the camp. When everyone went over and sat down, the fire was already burning very brightly, and the flames almost illuminated half the sky.

The young emperor and empress dowager were positioned directly north of the bonfire platform, flanked by two rows of people arranged in order of their official rank and title, forming a large circle.

The palace servants who arranged the seating didn't know who Jiang Ruining wanted to sit with, and since it wasn't convenient for them to ask, they prepared seats and set out dining utensils next to the Regent and Grand Secretary Jiang, so she could sit wherever she wanted.

The regent thought she would come and sit with him, but she had already moved to sit next to her elderly father and was chatting happily with the boy at the next table!

Suddenly, without her chatter and commands, even amidst the surrounding noise, he felt uneasy in the quiet and found everyone particularly irritating!

"If I had known, I wouldn't have kept Grand Secretary Jiang in the capital, would I?"

A sly teasing came from Xinyang beside him.

Xiao Che's eyes were not surprised that she saw through him. He didn't say anything, but the slightly pursed lines of his lips betrayed his thoughts.

Xinyang then deliberately engaged in affectionate interactions with her husband right under his nose.

You feed me tangerines, I feed you jujubes.

You call me Little Glutton, I call you Little Mischief.

Even glutinous rice mortar wasn't as sticky as the two of them.

This made the regent look all alone and pitiful.

Unfortunately, the Regent had excellent hearing and, out of the corner of his eye, saw it: "Gongsun Changming, you've rested long enough. You can pack up and leave the capital to take up your post!"

Xin Yang was not afraid of his threats. Holding his weakness, she said leisurely, "I certainly can't bear to be separated from the Prince Consort. I can only go with him to the frontier. However, I am about to give birth. I just hope that my brother can bear the arduous journey for me..."

Xiao Che took a deep breath: "Shut your mouth."

Xin Yang covered his mouth and laughed.

People who pretend to be cold-hearted even when they are actually soft-hearted are the ones who suffer the most!

The young emperor said a few words to start the banquet, then consulted the Empress Dowager and the Regent Queen before announcing the start of the banquet.

The sound of string and wind instruments began.

The dancers enter.

To match the bonfire scene, they danced exotic dances, which were more passionate and unrestrained.

The warm firelight shone on her beautiful face and alluring figure. As she spun around, her eyes seemed to hook with a seductive charm that could steal one's soul.

Such a scene is rare; not only were the men mesmerized, but the women were also captivated.

But once there's a dazzling woman around, who's going to watch the dance?

Then the Regent saw Jiang Ruining rise and be surrounded by a group of people as she walked towards him.

Just when the Regent thought the girl would definitely invite him to come along, she walked right past him arm in arm with her friend, chatting and laughing, without saying a word to him or even giving him a glance!

The Regent's brow twitched several times.

As expected, we couldn't let her out. Once she was free, she wouldn't remember him at all!

Xin Yang's delicate sigh, illuminated by the bright campfire, was particularly poignant: "Chang Ming, I always thought you were so young, but compared to those seventeen or eighteen-year-old boys, you're still... a bit old~"

Xiao Che's brow twitched even more violently.

old?

He's only twenty-one, still young, how can he look old? Where is he old?

Although Gongsun Changming knew she was being mischievous and deliberately trying to provoke his elder brother, he, being the same age as his brother, still felt as if he had been deeply stabbed.

He looked at his wife with a resentful gaze.

Xin Yang glanced at him lightly.

Gongsun Changming, understanding her perfectly, immediately knew what he should say: "If a nineteen-year-old looks at a twenty-one-year-old like me, then a fifteen-year-old like Jiang Ruining looks at a twenty-one-year-old like me—shouldn't we be considered different generations?"

Does Ning need to see him?

of course not!

What needs to be observed is the regent, who is also twenty-one years old!