RPAGF Chapter 428 Apology
Chapter 428 Apology
Chapter 428 Apology
Consort De led the Fourth Princess to the Empress Dowager's place. The Empress Dowager was talking with her personal nanny and did not give the two a friendly look when she saw them arrive.
Consort De and the Fourth Princess naturally saw it. The Fourth Princess had never been treated like this by the Empress Dowager before. In the past, the Empress Dowager would always be very welcoming whenever she came, but now she acted as if she didn't see it.
Consort De was also somewhat displeased. Qing'er had only said a few words, was her aunt making a mountain out of a molehill? However, she did not show any dissatisfaction.
After the two women bowed to the Empress Dowager, Consort De picked up a teacup from the table and poured her a cup of tea.
“Aunt, Qing’er is young and said the wrong thing. I have already disciplined her severely. Please don’t be angry with a child.”
The Empress Dowager glanced at the Fourth Princess, who was standing behind Consort De with her head bowed, and said, "Hmph, she's not young anymore."
Upon hearing this, Consort De knew that the Empress Dowager was still angry. She could only chuckle and pull the Fourth Princess to her side, gently patting her on the back to signal her to apologize quickly.
The Fourth Princess looked up at Consort De and saw her wink at her. She then pouted and said, "Grandmother, it was all my fault just now. Please don't be angry. I apologize to you."
The Empress Dowager had witnessed what had just happened and knew that the Fourth Princess had no remorse whatsoever, so she remained silent.
Consort De immediately became anxious and chimed in, "Yes, Aunt, this girl really knows she was wrong. She was just crying and telling me that she wanted to personally repair a screen for you as an apology, but it will take some time before the screen is finished."
Upon hearing Consort De's words, the Fourth Princess looked at her in disbelief. She had no intention of embroidering a screen. Although her needlework skills were quite good, she didn't want to do it.
Consort De kept blinking at herself, so she could only reluctantly shut up.
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager softened slightly, but still said, "Forget it, I can't afford the Fourth Princess's screen."
Consort De gave the Fourth Princess a wink, signaling her to speak quickly.
"Grandmother! Your granddaughter truly knows her mistake! In a moment of impulse, she uttered those outrageous words without thinking, which was utterly disrespectful and has failed to live up to your love and expectations for her! Your granddaughter is filled with remorse and wishes she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into immediately."
"Granddaughter promises that she will never act so rashly again, and will think carefully before speaking, and will never disappoint or hurt you, Grandmother, again."
"Grandmother, although I dare not hope to gain your immediate forgiveness, I hope that you will not refuse this small token of my appreciation. Please consider it as a chance for me to make amends."
Hearing the Fourth Princess's sincere words, the Empress Dowager, who had already softened somewhat, was no longer angry. After all, she was her most beloved granddaughter, and since her granddaughter had sincerely repented, she decided not to hold it against her.
"It's good that you know you were wrong. But you mustn't cause trouble again. You need to know that you are a royal princess."
"I understand, Grandmother." The Fourth Princess quickly ran to the Empress Dowager's side, tugged at her sleeve, and said some funny things, making the Empress Dowager laugh heartily.
Seeing the Empress Dowager as before, he thought of his purpose, but it seemed inappropriate to say it now. He then looked at his mother.
Consort De immediately understood, and after thinking for a moment, she said, "Aunt, Qing'er is not young anymore, shouldn't we find him a husband?"
The Empress Dowager's smile faded, and she glanced at the mother and daughter sideways: "You're not young anymore, so you've already chosen someone?"
“Aunt, our Qing’er is a princess, so her husband naturally cannot be an ordinary man. I have looked at the young talents in the capital, and there are not many who are a good match for Qing’er. After looking at them, I still think that General Lu Zhijin from the Duke of Dingguo’s mansion is the most suitable. Aunt, what do you think?” After speaking, Consort De stared intently at the Empress Dowager, watching for her expression.
The Empress Dowager held the teacup without even raising her head.
Both mother and daughter were somewhat uneasy, and the fourth princess was even more anxious, wondering if she was unwilling.
After a long while, the Empress Dowager finally put down her teacup: "Is this Qing'er's idea or yours?"
Consort De smiled and said, "Aunt, Qing'er does have that idea, but I also think Lu Zhijin is quite good."
"Did you know that the Lu family is looking for a matchmaker to propose marriage to Lu Zhijin?"
"What?" the fourth princess exclaimed in surprise.
"Grandmother, Mother, you must help me! We must get this done before they do." It will be difficult once they've actually agreed to the marriage.
"Qing'er, what are you shouting about? Sit down." Consort De quickly scolded her daughter when she saw the Empress Dowager's displeasure.
"Mother." What time is it now?
"sit down."
"Yes." The fourth princess sat down again, unwilling to give up.
“Aunt, I know that Lu Zhijin and Princess Zhaoning seem to be in love, but they haven’t arranged a marriage yet. I was thinking we should ask them first, maybe the Lu family would prefer to marry our Qing’er.” How could she not know? But her daughter was in love with that family, and she herself was quite satisfied with Lu Zhijin.
"Mother, this won't do," the Fourth Princess said anxiously. She knew that Lu Zhijin and Xiao Siyue were in love, but she wasn't confident that they would agree. What if they didn't want to be together?
"Oh? Then what do you want to do?" The Empress Dowager looked at the Fourth Princess.
"Grandmother, why don't you just issue an imperial decree to the Lu family to bestow a marriage upon them?" Once the decree is issued, Lu Zhijin will have no choice but to marry her, and no matter how deep his feelings for Xiao Siyue are, he will not dare to disobey the decree.
The Empress Dowager was so angry she laughed. This was her good granddaughter. She certainly had the airs of a princess and knew how to use her power to intimidate others.
Do you really think the Duke of Dingguo's family is some insignificant family? For generations, the Duke of Dingguo's family has risked their lives for the Great Zhou Dynasty and holds a pivotal position in the emperor's heart. Of course, they also have some privileges.
If the emperor were to issue an imperial decree against their wishes, the Lu family might accept it, but it would alienate the officials. In that case, the emperor might abandon his daughter to appease the officials.
"I would never do such a thing! As the emperor's daughter, your marriage should be decided by your father. I am now old and have no strength to interfere in these trivial matters! You should go and see the emperor as soon as possible and let him decide your life's important matter!" The Empress Dowager said, gently rubbing her temples, her face showing exhaustion.
"Grandmother?" The Fourth Princess was incredulous and somewhat frightened. Her grandmother had actually abandoned her.
She dared not go to her father, the emperor; she always felt a sense of fear towards him.
"Alright, all of you may leave. I'm tired." The Empress Dowager waved her hand.
"Mother." The Fourth Princess looked anxiously at Consort De.
"I'm sorry to have bothered you, Aunt. I'll take Qing'er away now." With that, she pulled the reluctant Fourth Princess away.