An ugly girl starts off, then becomes a beauty

Two days before New Year's Eve, Nie Ce finally sent a letter home after two months, but this time was different from the past. He only sent one letter to Grandpa Nie, but in the letter, he also asked about his mother and his wife.

The bamboo slip first came into the hands of Grandpa Nie, and then Lady Zhaoyu brought it to Sang Ling. After the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law read it together, Lady Zhaoyu said, "I'm afraid the war is getting intense. In fact, it's good that he is safe."

The news about the south is now known to everyone in the country. Even Liu Qing, the daughter of King Cheng, is no longer in the capital. It is said that there was action in the south in the middle of the month, but it was suppressed at the time. However, it is estimated that they can only spend this new year in peace, and will really fall out next year.

Sang Ling held the bamboo slips and looked at them for a while. He had read the contents several times before, but he just wanted to see if the handwriting had improved.

In fact, she still preferred the letters he sent to her individually.

But since we were busy with the war, we didn't care about these things.

Because the Empress Dowager passed away this year, the palace New Year banquet was not extravagant. Even so, Madam Zhaoyu still brought Sang Ling to the palace to meet the nobles. They set out early on New Year's Eve and greeted the Empress in Chengfeng Hall. After chatting for a while, they did not plan to eat - Empress Wu herself had to go to Tianmen Hall to have dinner with the Emperor.

However, when he was leaving, he met the Prince and Princess Dongping who also came to pay a visit.

This was the first time the two sisters met after Sang Mei got married. It was such a coincidence that just as they came out, Empress Wu called Madam Zhaoyu in again. Sang Ling and the couple were waiting outside. Dongping Wang looked at her a few times, as if he wanted Sang Mei to introduce them.

Sang Ling caught a glimpse of him and after thinking for a moment, he took the initiative to step forward and greet him.

It's nothing more than basic etiquette.

Only when he came forward could he clearly feel the mismatch between Sang Mei and the Prince of Dongping - the mismatch in appearance. The Prince of Dongping seemed to be the same age as Gao Heng, but he was not as well maintained as his cousin. His figure was a bit like that of the emperor, with fat cheeks, sagging eyes, and a bit fierce look. Sang Ling thought of a word to describe him in his mind - a fat man who looked a bit fierce.

Looking back at Sang Mei, although she didn't like Ma's daughter very much, she still had to admit that she was a pretty girl. Especially with her current face, no matter how you looked at it, she looked like a junior high school girl.

She couldn't help but twitch her lips, and then she heard the King of Dongping in front of her speaking with a smile.

"I have heard of your sister's name a long time ago. I used to think she was not very pretty. But after she entered the palace several times, the palace maids all said she was stunningly beautiful. Even the crown prince was amazed. This made me curious for a long time."

This man is quite casual when he speaks.

"Is my sister pretty?" Sang Mei's face didn't look good.

Sang Ling would naturally not respond to such words, and smiled, "It was A-Mei's wedding day, but my aunt was ill, so I didn't have time to go and have a drink at the wedding. I will definitely make up for it with a gift another day, and congratulate Prince Dongping and A-Mei on their wedding."

"No need..." Sang Mei's voice had just come out when Prince Dongping interrupted her, "If sister comes to the mansion, ask someone to come and let her know so that I can entertain her."

Sang Ling smiled and said, "If we come to visit, we have to wait for the Marquis to come back and go together."

It is not possible for a young woman like her to go to the mansion of a marquis or a prince by herself? Although such things were not uncommon in this ancient era, the Nie family was still a noble family after all, and sending a gift was considered a great courtesy on her part.

"Xuanwen has been in the south for some time." Dongping Wang was obviously provoked. "The prince was still muttering yesterday, saying that the south was not stable. But with Xuanwen's ability, it's not a big deal. He will be able to return to the capital next year at the earliest and in two or three years at the latest. By the way, Xuanwen and I have raced horses several times, and we got along very well. At that time..."

He was mumbling something and Sang Ling became distracted halfway through. He originally wanted to hear some useful information that could come out of his mouth, but he didn't expect it was all gossip.

He just responded with a few "hmm" and "ah" sounds, and his impatience was almost visible on his face.

Sang Mei smiled coldly, but listened for a while, remaining docile and silent.

Fortunately, many people came to see the Queen today, and then two princes came. Sang Ling had quietly retreated to the porch on the west side of the palace - he was too lazy to socialize with people he didn't know.

It might be a good idea to go over there and warm yourself by the fire, right?

The palace servant outside Chengfeng Palace had just reported that "Madam Zhaoyu is still talking to the Empress inside." The Fifteenth Prince and the Seventeenth Prince were talking to Prince Dongping at the door. Sang Mei did not follow them all the time. She walked outside the palace for a while, looked at the sky above the imperial city, and unknowingly walked to the porch where Sang Ling was resting temporarily.

Today is New Year's Day. Although the frost and snow on the roads in the palace have been cleared, the snowflakes are still falling from time to time. Some snow seeds are stuck to her hair. The maid brushes them off for her. She takes off her outer robe and goes inside. The two sisters inevitably meet each other.

Sang Mei snorted coldly, walked in by herself, found a soft mat and sat down, right next to Sang Ling.

The two of them were silent for a while. Sang Ling stretched out his hands to warm himself by the fire. Suddenly, Sang Mei said, "Are you feeling better now?"

"Why?" She looked back.

"I have lost my mother and my brother now. Like you, I only have my father. Aren't you happy?"

Sang Ling didn't know where Sang Mei came from with this logic, but after thinking about it, she could only feel sarcasm in her heart. She didn't want to compare herself with Sang Mei, but Ma's death did make her feel more at ease.

I can’t say I’m happy, I just feel refreshed.

"My condolences." After thinking it over, he finally said it calmly.

"Did you know that my father brought back a son from his mistress, who is the same age as Ah Xiao?" Sang Mei's eyes were red, but she still raised her chin. She was obviously sad, but she wanted to hide these emotions - but she didn't hide them well enough. So her expression was very contradictory.

Sang Ling looked at the burner in front of him, and couldn't help but sigh that Sang Wu still had some brains, as he actually used this method to make Sang Xiao public.

"It's well hidden. We weren't even asked to meet the new brother. The concubine was asked to take him with her." Sang Mei smiled again. "But I don't care about it anymore. I'm the queen now. I don't have to watch the dirty things at home anymore. It doesn't matter how many brothers and sisters he has. It has nothing to do with me."

She seemed to be talking to Sang Ling, but not really. Instead, she was talking mostly to herself, and Sang Ling couldn't help but admire her.

"Logically speaking, you should kowtow to me when you see me." The young lady of the Sang family raised her head and snorted.

"Yeah, okay." Sang Ling responded immediately, and his tone was so perfunctory that even Wei Chu beside him could hear it. He subconsciously wanted to laugh, but fortunately he pursed his lips in time to stop laughing.

Two palace maids appeared at the door at the right time, leaning forward to pass on a message, "Madam Mu Wuhou, Madam Zhaoyu has come out and is calling you over."

Sang Ling nodded in response, stood up and walked to the door. The voice behind her came again, "You won't be so proud for long. My husband said privately that the war has already started in the south, and it has not been smooth at the beginning. It is not known whether Marquis Mu Wu can come back."

The cool breeze from the door blew away the heat in the porch, and the echo seemed to be still lingering in the room.

"What's wrong?" The person in front of him finally turned his face cold and looked back.

Sang Mei was stunned by this look. No matter how much she hated this sister, she knew that the age difference between them was there, and if Sang Ling got angry, she would really fight. She couldn't help but take a step back, "They all said so." She gritted her teeth and forced herself to look over, "King Cheng's army is strong, and Marquis Mu Wu was ambushed."

Sang Ling took another step closer, "If you want to provoke me, then you are wrong. It is hard to say what is true and false. It is just speculation. But it is true that I have a bad temper. Sister -" She lowered her voice, "You have experienced it a long time ago."

Suddenly there was a scream from the porch, which made the palace servants inside and outside the door look up. They saw Queen Dongping picking up her skirt, spreading her legs and running out.