Pei Jinting took the little stuffed doll and looked at it over and over.
That's right. He has only seen such a puppet in one person's arms for all his life.
This one is the same as the one in Chen Zhao's hand but different. Same style and fabric.
The difference is that Chen Zhao's was very old and the fabric was already too old to look good.
Pei Jinting's Adam's apple rolled.
In fact, a few months ago, he was secretly asking people to inquire about the person who saved him in the mansion.
It was just a small incident at a banquet, and not many people would still take it to heart after so many years.
Besides, the person who saved him had still lived in their house for so many years.
He just thought he was overthinking it.
But I can't say why.
When he looked at Sister, he always felt that there were many differences between the person in front of him and the little, stubborn girl in his memory.
When I was a little girl, I cried so sadly because I missed my mother-in-law.
When I heard someone falling into the water, I went to save him without saying a word.
Knowing that he couldn't pull the person in the water, he waved his arms and threw the kite into the water.
At that time, she was so witty at a young age.
Later, I just thought that a person would always change, not to mention she was so young at that time.
No matter what, the favor must be repaid.
Pei Jinting put the little stuffed doll in a box containing gems and went to the main courtyard of Mrs. Cheng'en.
In the main courtyard of Duke Chengen's palace, Mrs. Chengen and Chen Zhao were talking.
This was the first time Chen Zhao came to visit Mrs. Chengen after moving to another courtyard.
"I originally asked you to live in the mansion. What are you afraid of? The mansion is so big, how can it be without you?"
Mrs. Chengen sighed with emotion.
Chen Zhao lowered his eyes slightly,
"Auntie, after all, you are in harmony. There are still sisters in the house who are waiting to be married, so why bother them. It's good to live in another courtyard."
When he said this, Chen Zhao's fingertips curled up almost imperceptibly.
If it were normal, Chen Zhao would definitely cater to Mrs. Chengen.
But today, she was really in no mood, so she moved her eyes and just took a sip of tea.
"Auntie, why don't you see Ayuan come to greet you?"
This time is just before dinner time, and it is usually the time when the younger generation goes to their elders’ place to have a meal.
Mrs. Cheng'en rubbed her eyebrows, as if she felt extremely uncomfortable when she heard Gu Qingyuan's name.
After all, I still have to protect Pei Jinting's face.
"I didn't let her come. As you know, it was hard for Jing Heng to get married. As long as she can take good care of Jing Heng, that's all."
Chen Zhao crossed his hands and rested them on the handles of the seat, as if he didn't care, and said lightly,
"My aunt is kind and loving. A-Yuan has such a good mother-in-law like you. It is a blessing she has cultivated in three lifetimes..."
"Maybe this is the good marriage that A-Yuan has been asking for so long for."
Calculation can come from deep scheming and calculation.
Or maybe it was obtained from the Bodhisattva in front of the temple after asking for it over and over again.
Sometimes people will seek advantages and avoid disadvantages, but sometimes they will demonize a problem.
Mrs. Cheng'en was in a high position and was always very suspicious. She was used to holding everything in her hands tightly and never allowing others to destroy it.
The honor of the family is even more important.
She turned her face to Chen Zhao and smiled,
"Zhaozhao, you are staying in another courtyard these days. Did the servants serving you leak something, or did you meet someone else?"
At this time, Mrs. Chengen didn't think about anything else.
I just thought that Pei Jinting would disregard face and steal the bride because Gu Qingyuan seduced Pei Jinting in advance.
However, Mrs. Cheng'en also knew Chen Zhao's little thoughts, although she had regretted that Chen Zhao could not become her daughter-in-law.
She also knew very clearly what she was thinking about Chen Zhao.
He just wanted to drive Gu Qingyuan away and return to Jingheng's side.
However, Mrs. Chengen knew that it was absolutely impossible.
When Chen Zhao was unmarried, nothing happened, let alone now that she is in harmony.
She agreed, but His Majesty and the Empress in the palace would not agree either.
After all, she still remembered that when her husband came back one day, he said that His Majesty was very interested in Gu Qingyuan as his daughter-in-law.
Therefore, to clarify the matter, she had to quietly beat Chen Zhao and ask her not to spread it around.
"Zhaozhao. Speaking of which, when you were unmarried, my mother often let you enter the palace. At that time, I always thought that you would be my daughter-in-law. I never thought...why did you marry into the Yu family later?"
Chen Zhao sweated slightly on his forehead, pinched the sweat in his palms, and lowered his head consciously.
She knew that it would not be easy to make Gu Qingyuan's scandal known to the public.
This matter required the help of Mrs. Chengen, so she pursed her lips and whispered,
"The empress called me into the palace once and mentioned that the time has come for me to get married. There are many children from aristocratic families in the capital for me to choose from."
"Hint me not to get entangled with my cousin."
In the final analysis, it was because her family background was not good and she was a girl with a foreign surname who was dependent on others. How could she be worthy of Mr. Pei, who was held in the palm of the hand and loved by the empress?
Thinking of this, Chen Zhao became more and more angry. Gu Qingyuan was worse than her. At least she had a reason for being born.
And Gu Qingyuan is just a wild girl of unknown origin. Who knows if her biological mother is a prostitute in a flower house?
Covered by Tong Yu's shadow, Chen Zhao's eyes flickered, inadvertently revealing a hint of ruthlessness.
"Auntie, speaking of which, did my cousin know A-Yuan before? Why did he immediately decide to steal his bride?"
"I heard that Mr. Lu rushed back quickly on his wedding night, but Ayuan didn't go back with him."
None of her words revealed that Gu Qingyuan knew anything about the bride-kidnapping.
But not a word, not a sentence, all points to this.
Mrs. Chengen frowned,
"It's not something to talk about casually. Zhaozhao, your health is not fully recovered yet. I won't let you eat today."
At this moment, she had no intention of chatting with Chen Zhao. She just wanted to arrange for people to go and find out the authenticity of the news.
Chen Zhao suppressed the smile on her lips. She didn't need to elaborate, Mrs. Cheng'en could complete the truth of the matter.
In short, she couldn't be by Jingheng's side, and Gu Qingyuan couldn't even think about it.
Chen Zhao stood up obediently and said goodbye to Mrs. Cheng'en, preparing to come again in two days to hear the good news.
As she was stepping out the door, a voice suddenly came from the corridor not far away.
"Sister, are you leaving?"
It turned out that Pei Jinting was here.
He walked steadily and held a box in his hand.
"Isn't it almost time for dinner? Why don't you leave after dinner?"
"It just so happens that I got some gems here. If I have any you like, you can take some away."
Chen Zhao was so eager that he immediately covered his lips with a handkerchief, "Then it would be better to obey orders than to be respectful."
Mrs. Cheng'en originally thought that business was more important, but she thought that Pei Jinting had left someone behind again.
Pei Jinting sat down and did not hand the box to the servants in the main courtyard. Instead, he looked at Chen Zhao and raised his eyebrows.
"Sister, do you still remember what you used to rescue me from the Fu Po Pond?"