sjar Chapter 753 An ugly face will only get uglier.
Chapter 753 An ugly face will only get uglier.
The carriage returned to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, where Qian Zhenyun was still waiting for her in the flower hall. The silver charcoal in the brazier was burning brightly, making the room warm.
"Is it all done?" He handed over a freshly brewed cup of hot tea.
"The bait has been laid. Whether the fish take the bait or not depends on how greedy they are." Gu Qingchen took the teacup but did not drink it. He simply rubbed the warm cup.
She raised her eyes and looked at Qian Zhenyun. Her clear eyes shone with a light completely different from before, a more proactive and sharper calculation.
"However, just letting them fight like dogs in the shadows isn't exciting enough."
Gu Qingchen leaned closer to Qian Zhenyun and lowered his voice, "I want to hold a 'Children's Fun Banquet' and invite children from all the prefectures in the capital in my name. The reason is, of course, to apologize for disturbing His Highness the other day."
A knowing glint flashed in Qian Zhenyun's eyes.
Gu Qingchen's eyes gleamed with calculation: "The protagonist of the banquet is naturally the Twelfth Prince. I want him to be the most dazzling child in the entire event, with all the games revolving around him and all the prizes being offered to him."
"If the Fifth Prince and the Seventh Prince don't come, it's because they feel guilty; if they do come, the adults can't interfere in the children's banquet, and they can only watch helplessly."
"What a clever trick to flatter someone to death," Qian Zhenyun added. "Then, you can use the children's mouths to innocently spread the 'truth' about the ice skating incident to every prefecture."
"For example, how His Highness the Twelfth Prince was 'accidentally' forgotten behind by his two elder brothers."
Gu Qingchen smiled like a cunning little fox: "That's not all. At the banquet, I will arrange a 'treasure hunt' game, and the final 'treasure' will be a fine horse, a hundred times more exquisite than the one the Crown Prince took, carved from a single piece of mutton-fat jade."
She looked at Qian Zhenyun and said, word by word, "I will present this 'grand gift' to His Highness the Twelfth Prince in front of everyone. The Crown Prince takes it, I give it away. One forcibly takes it, the other gives it as a gift. Tell me, in other people's eyes, which one is more cunning?"
Looking at her radiant appearance, Qian Zhenyun's eyes were full of approval: "The expressions on the faces of the princes at that time will surely be quite interesting."
Three days later, a unique children's banquet was held as scheduled in the warm garden of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion. The garden was warm and cozy, with exotic flowers and plants vying for attention, a stark contrast to the bleak winter outside.
Every prominent family in the capital sent their children over, and the garden was filled with beautiful women and laughter.
As expected, Crown Prince Zhao Chen'an personally brought the twelfth prince, Zhao Heng. He was dressed in an ordinary brocade robe, with a gentle demeanor. In front of everyone, he once again expressed his gratitude and apology to Gu Qingchen. His words were sincere and his manners were elegant. He perfectly portrayed the image of a loving and reasonable older brother.
A moment later, the Fifth Prince Zhao Zhang and the Seventh Prince Zhao Rui arrived with dark faces.
They had no choice but to come; the invitation had been delivered to their residence. If they didn't come, it would confirm their guilty conscience and admit that they couldn't tolerate their younger brother.
The two men watched as Zhao Heng, who was being led by the Crown Prince and surrounded by a group of children, looked on with an excited expression. Their faces were so gloomy they could drip water.
Today, Gu Qingchen wore a light blue casual dress embroidered with plum blossoms, with only a simple jade hairpin in her hair. She smiled and mingled among the children, showing no airs of a legitimate daughter of the Duke's mansion. She really looked like a friendly older sister who loved children.
The games she arranged were novel and interesting, such as pitch-pot, ring toss, and riddles. They were all carefully designed so that the children could have a great time while also praising Zhao Heng.
"His Highness the Twelfth Prince is truly amazing!"
"Wow, His Highness the Twelfth Prince has won again!"
Praises rose and fell, and Zhao Heng quickly became engrossed in the game, his face flushed, and he had become the king of the group of children.
The banquet was halfway through, and the atmosphere was in full swing.
A seven or eight-year-old girl with her hair in two buns was the daughter of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
She tugged at her mother's sleeve, tilted her innocent face up, and asked loudly in a clear child's voice, "Mother, why did the Fifth Prince and the Seventh Prince leave the Twelfth Prince all alone?"
"My brother said that His Highness the Twelfth Prince cried so pitifully that day!"
Upon hearing this, the previously lively laughter and chatter in the warm garden instantly fell silent.
All eyes, whether intentionally or unintentionally, were drawn to the Fifth Prince and the Seventh Prince.
Zhao Zhang's usually cold and hard face instantly turned a deep purplish-red, and the veins on the back of his hand holding the teacup bulged as if he were about to crush the fine white porcelain.
Zhao Rui's lazy smile froze completely, and the sharp light in his eyes turned into a poisoned ice needle as he stared intently at the outspoken little girl.
The girl's mother, the wife of the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, was already deathly pale with fright. She quickly covered her daughter's mouth, her voice trembling, "What nonsense are you talking about! Quickly apologize to His Highnesses!"
The ladies of each household lowered their heads, picked up their teacups, or straightened their sleeves, seemingly unaware of the sudden change, but their exchanged glances were full of knowing meaning.
Rumors, like the pervasive warm breeze in this cozy garden, can spread throughout the entire capital with just a single word.
"Oh dear, children say the darndest things, children say the darndest things." Gu Qingchen seemed to only then realize what had happened, and quickly stepped forward with a smile to smooth things over. She squatted down and gently patted the little girl's head.
"Little sister, don't be afraid. Your brother is talking about what happened on the frozen lake that day, right? It was windy that day, and your two brothers didn't pay attention for a moment. It wasn't intentional."
Her "explanation" not only failed to calm the situation, but instead poured water into boiling oil, making the words "abandoned" and "didn't care" even clearer in everyone's minds.
Zhao Zhang suddenly stood up, and an aura of menace emanated from him, frightening the children around him until their faces turned pale.
Zhao Rui quickly pulled him back, and said to Gu Qingchen with a forced smile, "Miss Gu is right. What does a child like you know? Today is your banquet, let's continue, don't let this little thing spoil everyone's fun."
"Seventh Prince is right." Gu Qingchen stood up and clapped his hands, the crisp applause attracting the attention of all the children.
She announced with a beaming smile, "Alright, my little heroes and fairies, our most fun game is about to begin! I've hidden many treasures in this garden, and the biggest one is hidden in the most mysterious place. Whoever finds it gets to keep it!"
Upon hearing about the treasure hunt, the children immediately forgot about the earlier incident and cheered with excitement.
Zhao Heng excitedly tugged at Gu Qingchen's sleeve, tilting her little face up with expectant eyes: "Sister Qingchen, what kind of treasure is it?"
Gu Qingchen bent down and whispered a few words mysteriously in his ear.
Zhao Heng's eyes instantly lit up like stars in the sky, and he announced loudly, "Sister Qingchen said that the greatest treasure is a white jade horse that can glow! It's a hundred times more beautiful than the one my brother took!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Zhang and Zhao Rui's expressions turned even more unpleasant.