Peerless Physician: The Path of a Foolish Eldest Daughter's Rise to Power

Princess Yi's forehead was covered in sweat as she walked, followed by the Prime Minister's wife, the Duchess of Ningguo's wife, and Yang Ziwei.

The four of them saw Princess Jingning standing there blankly, while Meng Xiaodie knelt down and kept apologizing.

Princess Yi was furious when she saw the water stains on Jingning's dress. "Madam Prime Minister, is this still my Prince Yi's residence? How can you treat people like this?"

The Prime Minister's wife was speechless. Her child had been pampered by the whole family since childhood. How could she kneel like this? Looking at her daughter's delicate and aggrieved expression, and then at Princess Jiayang who seemed indifferent, she didn't like Jiayang. But out of respect for the Empress, she couldn't refuse her daughter's and the princess's interactions, since they were cousins.

Seeing that Gu Xinyue was alright, Yang Ziwei was relieved. She whispered to Princess Yi not to be angry, as today was a special day for the princess and the prince.

“Princess Yi, Xiaodie has realized her mistake and apologizes to you. I will report back to my husband and ask him to give the Prince Yi’s mansion an explanation.”

Princess Yi instructed her maid to take Jingning downstairs to change her clothes. She disliked Meng Xiaodie and therefore did not want to pay any attention to the Prime Minister's wife.

Yang Ziwei comforted Princess Yi, saying softly, "Your Highness knows that Princess Jingning is your darling, and Meng Xiaodie is also the Prime Minister's wife's precious treasure. She is just as heartbroken as you are. You see..."

Princess Yi was displeased, but she looked at Meng Xiaodie who was kneeling and said, "Get up and answer. Why aren't you sitting in your own seat? What are you doing running to Jingning with a teacup?"

The Prime Minister's wife quickly helped Meng Xiaodie up, looked at Yang Ziwei with gratitude, and when she heard the Princess Consort of Yi ask the reason, she also wanted to know.

Meng Xiaodie had originally planned to say that she had accidentally spilled the tea, but when the princess asked her why she was running in front of the princess, she was going to spill the tea on Gu Xinyue. How could she say such a thing? Wouldn't that be a slap in her own face?

"Please, all of you, have a seat." After speaking to the noble ladies, Princess Yi turned to Meng Xiaodie and asked, "There are only two seats here. What are you doing here? Can't you sit down and talk?"

Meng Xiaodie couldn't find a suitable reason and dared not speak. The ladies also sensed something was amiss, and they slowly pieced together the truth.

"You deliberately splashed it on Jingning. Who gave you the guts?"

The Prime Minister's wife felt she was in the wrong. Prince Yi was known in the capital for being fiercely protective of his own, and he would not let his princess suffer any loss. Today, she discovered that Princess Yi was very protective of Princess Jingning, so she could only ask Meng Xiaodie to tell the truth.

Meng Xiaodie was very upset. They had planned to embarrass Gu Xinyue, and the princess had just hinted at it to her. However, she could not betray the princess or offend the princess, so she could only tell the truth.

She whispered, "I couldn't stand Gu Xinyue and wanted to embarrass her, but she dodged away. I lost my balance and splashed the water on the princess."

"This is Prince Yi's residence. You dare to bully my honored guest in my own home? Is this the kind of upbringing the Prime Minister's family has?"

The Prime Minister's wife was mortified, but she forced herself to say, "We will definitely give the Prince Yi's mansion an explanation."

Yang Ziwei felt embarrassed when she saw her daughter. Someone had bullied her daughter, but she had helped the person who bullied her. She shouldn't have spoken up earlier; she should have made Meng Xiaodie kneel for three days and three nights.

"Madam Prime Minister, the Changning Marquis's mansion is not one that can be bullied by just anyone."

The Prime Minister's wife was in a real bind. The last time the Marquis of Changning and the Earl of Chengen's family sought justice for Gu Xinyue, she was a little scared. She wondered if the Marquis would cause trouble for the Prime Minister. This time, they had been impolite.

“Second Madam Gu, I will definitely make my husband give the Marquis’s mansion an explanation.”

Gu Xinyue took Yang Ziwei's arm to keep her from getting angry.

Lady Ningguo was in a good mood; she thoroughly enjoyed the performance today.

Princess Jingning had just changed her clothes when the steward came to announce that everyone could take their seats.

Princess Jingning wanted to take Gu Xinyue with her, but Yang Ziwei declined. Princess Yi felt it wouldn't be appropriate for Gu Xinyue to come along after what had just happened, especially since Jingning was going to perform later.

One by one, everyone followed Princess Yi to the banquet hall.

The banquet hall was very large, with a glazed tile ceiling. Although the glaze wasn't very transparent, the light was excellent, better than inside.

The male and female guests were separated by a screen, and there was a high platform in front of the screen, presumably where people who wanted to showcase their talents would go to perform.

"The Crown Prince has arrived!"

"The Second Prince has arrived!"

"The Third Prince has arrived!"

"The Fourth Prince has arrived!"

"The Fifth Prince has arrived!"

"The Sixth Prince has arrived!"

"The Seventh Prince has arrived!"

"The Tenth Prince has arrived!"

Everyone bowed, and were quite shocked. The Eighth Prince and the Ninth Prince had passed away early, and the Emperor valued Prince Yi very much, so he had all eight of his living princes come.

Prince Yu followed Prince Yi to greet the Crown Prince and the other princes. Everyone sighed at the princes' demeanor.

Crown Prince Chu Yixuan possessed a gentle and refined demeanor, with a subtle humility in his eyes. He was tall and upright, with elegant manners, giving him an approachable air.

The second prince, Chu Yirun, had a delicate appearance, with clear eyebrows, bright eyes, and fair skin.

The Third Prince, Chu Yize, had sculpted features, and his deep eyes revealed determination and decisiveness. He was tall and strong, with well-defined features, exuding a masculine aura.

The fourth prince, Chu Yichen, was handsome and elegant, exuding a kingly demeanor in every gesture.

After paying his respects to Prince Yi, Chu Yize looked at Chu Hongyu (Hongyu) with a gentle and welcoming expression.

Prince Yu looked at Chu Yize, his eyes wide, and said in disbelief, "Young Master Ling Yi."

Prince Yi was puzzled by his son's expression and quickly asked, "What's wrong?"

Prince Yu said in a low voice, "The Third Prince is Young Master Ling Yi, who helped Mingyue Manor."

After a moment's thought, the shrewd Prince Yi understood that it was Chu Yize who had asked Gu Xinyue to bring Yu'er back. He not only had to be grateful to Gu Xinyue, but also had to always remember the great kindness of the Third Prince.

"Yu'er, it's inconvenient for the Third Prince to be out here, so from now on he will be the Third Prince." He patted Chu Hongyu's shoulder and said gently.

"Third Prince, your great-uncle thanks you again."

Chu Yize smiled and said, "It's good that my great-uncle knows."

Many of the ladies and noblewomen among the female guests wanted to catch a glimpse of the princes, but unfortunately, the screen blocked their view.

After all, the Crown Prince is married, the Fourth Prince is engaged, and the Second and Third Princes do not have principal wives. Moreover, the princes also need concubines.

The noble ladies wondered what the chances were of their daughters marrying into the prince's household. Many of them blushed slightly, having heard that Prince Yu was still unmarried and that Princess Yi was currently looking for a wife for her heir.

On the high platform, Prince Yi supported his wife. Princess Jingning glanced at the princes, and with that one glance, she thought she was hallucinating from being too nervous, after all, she was playing the zither in front of so many people.

“Brother, I’m hallucinating. I saw Young Master Lingyi among the princes.”

"That's right, he is a prince."

Jingning was very surprised. After thinking for a moment, she realized that when she and her brother returned to the manor, a family banquet was held in the palace, but she had not seen the Third Prince.

"He is the Third Prince, does Sister Xinyue know that?"

Chu Hongyu said dejectedly, "I don't know."

He could accept that Gu Xinyue liked Young Master Yang, but he couldn't accept that she liked Chu Yize, who was his cousin.

"Distinguished guests, thank you all for coming to Prince Yi's residence to attend the welcome banquet for my two children's return to the residence. Next, please invite the Prince Yi's heir and Princess Jingning to play a duet. Thank you all for your presence. Afterwards, I would also like to invite the talented men and women present to show their talents."