Chapter 077: What Can You Do to Me?

Chapter 077: What Can You Do to Me?

He An took a piece of iced fruit out of the bucket, picked a grape, and coaxingly said, "My lady, please calm down and don't be angry."

"I won't eat it... Hey, you..."

Before she could open her mouth, the grape was already in it. Ruan Qinghuan looked at him coldly, though the cool and refreshing sensation was quite comfortable.

Facing the ever-feared He An in the court, his wife, Ruan Qinghuan, felt a deep sense of helplessness. This man remained calm and unaffected, always trying to appease her. Every time she was furious, he remained calm and unaffected, which only deepened her frustration.

It was like hitting cotton—it had no effect.

"The second prince has been put under house arrest. Do you think Pei Chong might regret marrying Ruan Xiaoyue?" Ruan Qinghuan brought up the main topic.

"If this is part of Pei Chong's scheme, with the second prince now losing his power, he, as a fourth-rank general of the city defense army, won't be able to stir up much trouble."

"The person is confined, but not his ambitions."

Ruan Qinghuan understood. He An meant that the second prince might not give up his pursuit of the throne: "Now that the private army has been disbanded and the Wu family has fallen, it would be extremely difficult for him to make a comeback."

He An ate a grape. It was sweet, but the skin was quite sour, so he peeled it before feeding it to Ruan Qinghuan. "Or perhaps he already has a backup plan?"

"So the Ruan family can't stay out of this mess."

"Given the uncertain situation, and since they're engaged, we have to play it by ear."

Ruan Qinghuan: "..." There was no other way.

On the way back, many neighbors came out to watch. Upon learning that Ruan Qinghuan had been granted a title, they began to gossip.

"Back then, the second branch of the Ruan family always said that the eldest daughter was arrogant and unreasonable. Look at her now, granted the title of Lady."

"And she's a first-rank lady at that."

"The Ruan family's business is managed by the main branch. Who knows if the second branch, out of jealousy, deliberately slandered the eldest daughter's reputation."

"Hey, being granted a first-rank title doesn't mean much. Haven't you heard? On the day of the wedding, the Prime Minister took in a girl. She was sent away later, but who knows if something happened?"

"Really?"

"I have a relative working at the Prime Minister's residence. It's true."

Zhou Yunzhi listened with a displeased expression and wanted to step forward to argue.

However, Ruan Qinghuan, unfazed, held her mother's arm and returned to the inner courtyard. "Let them talk, Mother. When will you stop arguing with people over what they say?"

"It's all because of your second aunt. She has caused us no end of trouble over the years." Then, worriedly looking at He An, "Dear son-in-law, don’t listen to those baseless rumors. Qinghuan has always been level-headed."

He An smiled faintly and nodded. "Mother-in-law, rest assured. I know better."

Seeing his composed expression, Zhou Yunzhi relaxed.

Looking around but not seeing her grandmother, Ruan Qinghuan was puzzled. "Why isn't Grandmother here today?"

Zhou Yunzhi sighed. "Don’t even get me started. Lately, your second aunt has been constantly bothering your grandmother about increasing Xiaoyue’s dowry. Last night, she made another scene, accusing grandmother of being partial, saying that when you got married, she gave twenty thousand taels, but only five thousand taels for Xiaoyue's marriage."

Ruan Qinghuan lowered her brows. "The additional fifteen thousand taels were given by Grandfather as part of my dowry, correct?"

"Yes, I've already said that, but she refuses to believe it. She insists we are deceiving her." As she spoke, they entered the reception hall where servants brought tea and snacks. Ruan Chengfu, returning in a hurry from outside, wore a smiling expression. "I was in a rush this morning, but it seems I still came back too late."

Ruan Qinghuan glanced at her mother, assuming her father was staying with Ye Fang, her expression turning unfriendly.

Zhou Yunzhi explained, "Recently, it's been your father and Qingzhou managing the business."

Ruan Chengfu chuckled awkwardly upon hearing this, aware that his daughter had misunderstandings about him, but it was hard to explain.

Zhou Yunzhi steered the conversation back, "Actually, adding more dowry isn't a significant issue. I originally agreed since Xiaoyue is a member of the Ruan family. It's just that your grandmother doesn't approve of this marriage."

Ruan Qinghuan asked puzzledly, "Why?"

Zhou Yunzhi shook her head, unable to voice certain things, but Ruan Chengfu spoke up, "It's because of the rumors. They met in private before the engagement, which became a source of worry for your grandmother. She thinks Pei is unreliable."

Ruan Qinghuan: "..."

It was true. In the original story, Ruan Xiaoyue believed she was better than Ruan Qinghuan and found true love. She defied societal norms by secretly meeting with Pei Chong. It wasn't until half a year later, when Ruan Qinghuan was divorced and sent away from the Prime Minister's residence, that Pei's family welcomed Ruan Xiaoyue into their home.

By then, the Ruan family had lost the support of the Prime Minister's residence. Later, Liu Yueru became the concubine of the second prince. These events seemed like a long-planned conspiracy, one after another, but the original Ruan Qinghuan was trapped, unaware of the truth, ultimately dooming herself and the Ruan family.

Now, everything had changed. Ruan Xiaoyue and Pei Chong's affair had been brought forward by more than a year, and the second prince was under house arrest. Although he still harbored ambitions to compete for the throne, it wouldn't be easy for him to make a comeback. Would the Pei family still finance his ambitions?

Upon learning that Ruan Qinghuan had returned, Ruan Xiaoyue deliberately dressed up and came over. She wore a light pink silk embroidered floor-length dress with a light green satin belt around her waist, a high-quality fabric from Jiangnan, expensive and new in style, clearly freshly made.

In contrast to Ruan Qinghuan's casual and comfortable attire, Ruan Xiaoyue was dressed more extravagantly, but there was jealousy in her eyes and a hint of anger in her expression, which changed her overall demeanor.

Especially when meeting Ruan Qinghuan's calm and composed gaze, Ruan Xiaoyue felt belittled. Ruan Qinghuan's eyes showed no admiration, envy, or jealousy—only calmness, which felt like being ignored. Ruan Xiaoyue couldn't stand being ignored like this.

Feeling this way, she couldn't help but speak with some sourness, "Her eyes are so high up, how can she even see me, her cousin?"

Ruan Xiaorou, who had just entered, quickly advised, "Sister, don't talk nonsense."

"How could I be talking nonsense? She's a first-rank imperial title holder, after all. How could I, a mere person, dare to offend her?" Saying this, she bowed toward He An and sat down with Ruan Xiaorou on the opposite chair.

Ruan Xiaorou, genuinely happy for her cousin being granted the title, said, "Congratulations, cousin, for receiving a personal imperial decree from the Emperor. I've prepared a gift for you, which I'll give you shortly."

Ruan Qinghuan nodded. She had no interest in competing with Ruan Xiaoyue. She just wanted to visit her grandmother at Jingxin Pavilion. Ruan Xiaoyue followed her out, speaking in a strange tone, "Don't try to influence grandmother to reduce my dowry."

Ruan Qinghuan was speechless, "If grandmother wants to give you something, she will. Why are you so worried? Are you afraid Grandmother won't give it to you?"

Ruan Xiaoyue pressed her lips together.

She couldn't hide the rumors, but she had already been engaged to the Pei family, so there was nothing to fear. "I'm not anxious. I'm just worried that you might scheme against me. When you got married, the family gave you a lot of dowry. Are you trying to take mine too? Besides, you're already married and shouldn't interfere in Ruan family matters."

Ruan Qinghuan couldn't help but scoff, her gaze turning colder, "Just now you said it yourself. I'm a first-rank imperial title holder. If I want to get involved in the Ruan family's affairs, what can you do about it?"

Ruan Xiaoyue: "..."