Chapter 54: Let Jinniang cook
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Qiao Jinniang saluted and said, “Thank you for the white mutton-fat jade that Your Highness rewarded.”
Prince Mediocre looked at Qiao Jinniang gently and said,
“That white mutton-fat jade is a national treasure given to me by the Beimo Kingdom. I’m glad you like it.”
Prince Mediocre looked gentle, but he couldn’t help thinking in his heart:
Qiao Jinniang came from the countryside, so she must have never seen anything good.
Now that she knows the value of this gift, she must be very grateful to me.
She might even have a crush on me.
Duke Anyuan is very powerful. If I can become his son-in-law and get his support, I’ll surely be able to replace the Crown Prince and get the throne.
He had thought that Duke Anyuan would arrange Qiao Ruoshui to marry into the East Palace.
But he didn’t expect that in the end, Lu Chen took a fancy to the concubine-born Qiao Ruoyi.
A mere concubine-born daughter certainly couldn’t be valued by Duke Anyuan.
But there were more daughters of the Qiao Family for him to choose from.
Qiao Ruofeng had already fallen head over heels for him, but unfortunately, she was not born by Duke Anyuan.
And she didn’t have any brothers, so Qiao Ruofeng couldn’t be regarded as a real miss of the Duke Mansion.
Qiao Ruoshui had a higher status. If he wanted to marry Qiao Ruoshui, he might have to marry her as his wife, but Qiao Ruoshui was too stupid to deserve to be his wife.
As for Qiao Jinniang, she was beautiful, and she didn’t grow up in the Duke Mansion, causing the Duke to feel guilty towards her.
It was perfect for Qiao Jinniang to be his concubine!
Qiao Jinniang noticed that a calculating gleam flashed across the eyes of Prince Mediocre. For some reason, she instinctively disliked this well-renowned prince.
Unexpectedly, this scene was spotted by Qiao Ruofeng, who accompanied Second Madam to the Li Family to annul the engagement for marriage.
When Qiao Ruofeng saw Prince Mediocre and Qiao Jinniang so close to each other, she couldn’t help clenching her hands.
She said to Second Madam, “Mom, it’s no wonder that Second Sister is determined to annul the engagement with Cousin!
“It’s ridiculous to do that just for the sake of that little maid, Ruyu. It turns out that Second Sister successfully seduced Prince Mediocre.”
Second Madam looked over only to see that Prince Mediocre and Qiao Jinniang were walking so close to each other, and she snorted softly.
“She has once been married and even given birth to a child in Lin’an, but she was abandoned by her husband. She should be grateful that the Li Family is willing to accept her.
“But she is still delusional about marrying into the imperial family. She must be daydreaming!”
Qiao Ruofeng said in surprise, “What? Second Sister has already been married and even had a child?”
Mrs. Qiao didn’t realize that she had accidentally spilled the beans. Although she was annoyed, she didn’t really want to ruin Qiao Jinniang’s reputation.
Now in the Duke Mansion, from the Old Madam to the Duchess and the Duke, everyone took Qiao Jinniang as a treasure.
If she or the Li Family leaked the information about Qiao Jinniang that the Duke Mansion was strictly concealing, the Duke Mansion would definitely not let her and the Li Family off.
“Ruofeng, you must not tell anyone that Jinniang has once been married!”
Mrs. Qiao lowered her voice and warned Qiao Ruofeng.
Qiao Ruofeng clenched her hands and couldn’t help but feel angry that Qiao Jinniang, a woman who had been abandoned, was shameless enough to seduce Prince Mediocre!
When Second Madam arrived at the Li Family, Mrs. Li hurriedly came out to greet her. “Sister, what did the Hou Mansion say about the marriage?”
Second Madam sighed. “The Old Madam said the engagement shall be annulled.”
Mrs. Li almost fainted. “Just because of Ruyu? That girl used to be obedient. We interrogated her, and she said that she was instigated by a noble to harass Jinniang.
“She just served Yun’er a few times when he was sixteen years old. Later, Yun’er devoted himself to studying and didn’t pay much attention to her.
“Sister, please talk to the Duchess…
“Ruyu was instigated by a noble to do such a stupid thing, and she was already willing to leave the Li Family with the compensation we gave her.”
Second Madam said, “Even if I talk to the Duchess, no one can change the decision the Old Madam has already made. Yun’er is very talented, and he will definitely find a better wife. Why bother to beg a divorced woman?”
Qiao Ruofeng echoed, “Yes, Aunt, Cousin is Prime Minister Lin’s favorite disciple. If he wins first place in the Imperial Examination, there’ll be a lot of noble girls for him to choose from. Why bother with Qiao Jinniang?”
Mrs. Li said helplessly, “Sister, you probably don’t know yet that His Majesty has granted Duke Anyuan to be the Grand Mentor of the Crown Prince today!
“The Duke is already very powerful, and now he is granted to be the Grand Mentor of the Crown Prince. The wealth and power the Qiao Family will obtain is unimaginable!
“Now in Chang’an, the Qiao Family is only slightly worse than the imperial family and the Queen’s family, the Zhou Family.
“Once the Duke becomes the Grand Mentor of the Crown Prince, I am afraid that even the Queen’s family will be no match for the Qiao Family.”
When Qiao Jinniang returned to the Duke Mansion, she found that every servant and maid in the Duke Mansion was beaming with smiles.
Back in the Jin Garden, even Hongling and her other maids saluted Qiao Jinniang with joy. “Congratulations, Miss, His Majesty has issued an order today to confer the Duke with the title of Grand Mentor of the Crown Prince!”
Qiao Jinniang didn’t understand these official titles. “Isn’t my father already the Minister of Defense and the Grand Commander? Aren’t the ranks of the Grand Mentor of the Crown Prince and the Grand Commander the same?”
Hongling prepared tea for Qiao Jinniang. “Miss, this title means that the Duke is the mentor of His Royal Highness. His Royal Highness has three mentors, all of whom are very famous scholars.
“Now, His Majesty intends to let His Royal Highness take over the affairs of the state. I heard that His Royal Highness has already processed the memorials for His Majesty, and the Grand Mentor of the Crown Prince is supposed to instruct His Royal Highness in state affairs. Isn’t this position a very powerful one?”
Yuyan said, “That old lady of the Qin Family has always refused to get rid of that concubine maid and refused to admit her mistake, right? But as soon as the imperial decree was issued today, she came over in person to ask the Eldest Miss to return to the Qin Family.”
Qiao Jinniang asked, “Has my Eldest Sister gone back?”
“Old Madam Qin has come in person. If the Eldest Miss still doesn’t go back, people will blame her.”
Qiao Jinniang felt a pity that she had not said goodbye to Qiao Ruoyun yet.
However, since Old Madam Qin came in person to ask her to go home, Qiao Ruoyun would probably no longer be bullied at the Qin Family.
There was finally a piece of good news today.
“Your Excellency.”
A maid’s voice came from the door.
Qiao Jinniang went out to greet the Duke. She didn’t see the Duke much, and she didn’t know why the Duke came here today.
“Father.”
The Duke said to Qiao Jinniang, “My daughter, you don’t have to be so polite. You have been wronged in the Tasty Pavilion today. I’ll make those women who gossip about you come and apologize to you.”
Qiao Jinniang said, “I didn’t take their words to heart.”
Duke Anyuan thought for a while and then said embarrassedly, “Jinniang, can you make some Southern-style dishes now?”
Qiao Jinniang was stunned for a while and said, “Okay.”
The matter of Qiao Jinniang going to the kitchen soon reached the Duchess’s ears, and the Duchess angrily went to Duke Anyuan.
“What kind of a father are you? You owe so much to Jinniang, yet you made her cook? Are there no cooks in the Duke Mansion? The kitchen is full of choking smoke. Do you have the slightest care for your daughter?!”
Duke Anyuan frowned and said, “His Majesty wants to taste the dishes Jinniang made. Even if I feel sorry for Jinniang, can I disobey His Majesty’s order?”
Duke Anyuan recalled how shocked he was when he heard His Majesty’s request in the Hall of Diligent Governance.
Perhaps His Majesty felt embarrassed too, so he immediately issued an imperial decree to designate him as the Grand Mentor of the Crown Prince.
He somehow felt that he got the title because of the dishes Jinniang made?
The Duchess muttered, “It’s not like there is no royal chef in the imperial palace. Why does His Majesty want Jinniang to cook?”