Chapter 327: Four For One, Princess Mingya’s Intentions

“No change!” The languid voice resolutely extinguished Mingya’s thoughts.

“Cousin, I’ll trade four peerless beauties for one of your concubines. Won’t you agree, Cousin?” Mingya was also prepared. She clapped her hands, and the doors of the hall opened wide. The music was melodious, and everyone couldn’t help but look outside the door. They saw four women appear before everyone.

One was playing the zither, one was playing the flute, and two were dancing as they came in.

Whether it was the one sitting and playing the zither, the one leaning to the side and charmingly playing the flute, or the two beauties with graceful dance steps, their skills in music and dance were superb. What surprised everyone the most was that these four people looked exactly the same, whether they were cute, elegant, charming, or cold. The expressions on their faces were different, but their facial features were the same.

They were equally beautiful, equally moving, and equally pitiful. Seeing the same faces, they displayed different expressions. Moreover, they were so beautiful that they absolutely deserved the meaning of Princess Mingya’s “peerless.”

These are quadruplets.

Twins were already rare, let alone quadruplets. The rarest thing was that these four were all women, and they were all beauties. There were no mistakes at all. It was difficult to find one beauty like this, let alone four. Trading four for one, any man would be tempted.

Moreover, these four looked like they each had their own unique charm, surpassing beauty.

“Cousin, do you think this is suitable? Use these four of mine to exchange for this one of yours?” Princess Mingya proudly pointed at the four beauties who were performing enthusiastically and raised her head, saying. In her opinion, no matter who looked at it, it was a bargain. She hadn’t missed the interest that flashed in Ao Chenyi’s eyes.

They were all playthings. The four in her hand were obviously several levels higher than the one in Ao Chenyi’s arms.

“Your Highness…” Ning Xueyan, nestled in Ao Chenyi’s arms, seemed frightened. She wailed, raised her head. Although she couldn’t see the expression on her face, everyone could tell the sadness, fear, and panic from her voice.

“Mingya intends to trade these four beauties for this King’s beloved concubine?” Ao Chenyi’s gaze did not fall on her face. He looked askance at her, his gaze shifting from the beauties in the field to Princess Mingya on the side. The corner of his mouth curved slightly, and he said languidly, “Why?”

“Cousin, Mingya is Cousin’s cousin. Naturally, she can’t bear to see Cousin’s reputation being influenced by a lowly woman. Moreover, Cousin will soon be marrying a principal wife, and the concubines are all people who have been recorded on the royal family’s list. You can’t treat those real noblewomen poorly because of this woman.” Princess Mingya looked proudly at Princess Xianyun and County Princess Yuanyun sitting on either side of her, saying with an implied meaning, as if she was making decisions for others.

She and Princess Xianyun were bosom friends in the inner chamber, and County Princess Yuanyun was also her cousin. Naturally, she couldn’t bear to see them before they were even married, and their attention was taken by a lowly woman. Now, many people were talking about Prince Yi’s favored concubine, and it was said that she was favored greatly. With Sister Xianyun and Younger Sister Yuanyun’s temperaments, they wouldn’t be the ones to suffer losses when they entered the mansion.

Compared to this woman who didn’t know where she came from, these four she found were much harder to deal with.

That’s why she was so generous and sent out the four beauties she had collected. This was still a coincidence when she found them. She just happened to use them to trade for this mysterious “favored concubine.” The Third Prince said that Prince Yi doted on this woman so much that it was almost limitless. She didn’t believe it before, but now she believed it for the most part.

But looking at this woman, as if she had no bones, leaning in Ao Chenyi’s arms, she knew she wasn’t a good person. She must be a vixen. It was better to get rid of such a woman as soon as possible, so that there wouldn’t be an unharmonious family in the future, and also to avoid having to deal with Sister Xianyun and Younger Sister Yuanyun in the future, so that they wouldn’t suffer losses.

Ao Chenyi didn’t respond, his gaze constantly roving between the woman in his arms and the four women performing. An expression of interest appeared on his face. It seemed that the next expression would be to push the person out. And he didn’t care as much as usual about the cherished favored concubine in his arms.

“Your Highness, Your Highness.” A charming voice was softly calling out with a pleading tone, trembling with a hint of charm. One look would tell that she was scared half to death. If she was treated as a commodity and sent to Princess Mingya, she shouldn’t even think about surviving. Everyone present knew this clearly. Listening to her trembling voice and seeing her trembling shoulders, Ao Mingyu’s eyes flashed with an inexplicable darkness, but it was immediately covered up by an extremely natural gentleness.

It was Princess Mingya who was making trouble now, and it had nothing to do with him. The smile at the corner of his mouth was gentle.

Wen Xueran’s gaze turned from Princess Mingya to Ning Xueyan in Ao Chenyi’s arms. On his handsome face, which was as beautiful as a woman’s, a hint of a smile appeared. His peach blossom eyes blinked, and he stared at Ning Xueyan without missing a beat. Her shoulders trembled, and he heard her wails. No one saw the slightest hint of interest in his eyes.

In the current situation, it would be strange if Ao Chenyi didn’t agree. Would a man resist these beautiful, identical beauties? Mingya looked at Ao Chenyi with confidence, waiting for his reply, and looked askance at Ning Xueyan. As for the vixen in front of her, after she got her hands on her, she would immediately have her killed, so that Cousin wouldn’t have to trade her back after a while.

“I really have to thank Mingya for going to great lengths. It’s a pity, this King is really a little reluctant…” Ao Chenyi didn’t finish his words, because at this moment, Princess Xianyun’s displeased voice rang out.

“Younger Sister Mingya, what are you doing? Don’t tell me Younger Sister Mingya still wants to interfere in His Royal Highness, Prince Yi’s family affairs!” Princess Xianyun, who was sitting on the side, seemed to have realized what was happening at this moment and asked with displeasure. She was indeed a gentle beauty, and even now, she still carried some anger, but she was still dignified and gentle. She was indeed the best candidate for the principal wife.

Her angle seemed to be towards Ao Chenyi, or perhaps towards Ning Xueyan.

No one noticed the timing of her words, which was when Ao Chenyi said the words “It’s a pity.” It was just that because the two people spoke at about the same time, everyone didn’t notice it, of course, except for Ning Xueyan, who was nestled in Ao Chenyi’s arms, openly wailing, but in fact indicating the crowd, a faint smile appeared on her face under the thin silk.

This was the principal wife that Ao Chenyi was going to marry. She seemed to be very aware of the “overall situation,” and she was also a magnanimous woman. Compared to County Princess Yuanyun, who was obviously a little disgusted with her, she was far better.

“Sister Xianyun, I…” Mingya didn’t expect it to be Princess Xianyun who came out to stop her, and she stomped her foot, which was quite regrettable.

“Younger Sister Mingya, Prince Yi’s family affairs are not something we should be meddling in. Younger Sister, sit down and watch the singing and dancing.” Princess Xianyun reached out and pulled Mingya, who had involuntarily stood up, and gently interrupted her.

“You…you really…” Princess Mingya was furious and glared at her, sat down with a cold face, waved her hand, and told the four beauties to go down. Since she couldn’t trade them, she couldn’t give them away for nothing.

The news that spread from the Imperial Palace said that Sister Xianyun was the principal wife, and Younger Sister Yuanyun was the concubine. But Princess Mingya was quite dissatisfied with the fact that Prince Yi’s Mansion already had a favored concubine, so Princess Mingya decided to stand up for them. It was about to be successful, but it was actually ruined by Princess Xianyun. How could Princess Mingya not be angry? Her good intentions were treated like a donkey’s lungs. She simply didn’t speak to Princess Xianyun and just turned her head to chat with County Princess Yuanyun.

She indicated her dissatisfaction with Princess Xianyun.

The next banquet went smoothly. Ao Mingyu was also prepared. The singing and dancing enlivened the atmosphere. Although Ao Chenyi didn’t say much today, he still gave face. From time to time, he chatted with people. Of course, he neglected the beauty in his arms a few points. He didn’t know if it was because of the previous shock. Everyone found that this favored concubine was particularly quiet at this time.

She wasn’t as arrogant as she was when she first entered the door, and she didn’t even take the initiative to speak. She was much more well-behaved.

After the third round of drinks, Ning Xueyan suddenly whispered something in Ao Chenyi’s ear. Ao Chenyi was talking to Ao Mingyu and nodded. He let go of her hand. Ning Xueyan stood up and looked around. She didn’t bring a maidservant with her. At this moment, she could only look for a maidservant here. She saw a maidservant standing in the corner and hurried over, whispering to ask where the changing room was. But under the guidance of the maidservant, she walked out of the side gate.

After she left, County Princess Yuanyun on the other side also stood up and walked out accompanied by one of her maidservants.

Ning Xueyan followed behind the maidservant and took a long detour before arriving at the place. The maidservant guided her in. Ning Xueyan tidied herself up a bit inside and came out to find that the maidservant waiting outside was already gone. She could only walk back the way she came. The road wasn’t complicated. Ning Xueyan remembered that when she came in, she had been walking inwards, passing through a garden, and then turning a corner.

As soon as she turned past the flower arbor, she suddenly heard someone talking. She vaguely heard the words “favored concubine” or something. Ning Xueyan couldn’t help but stop.

“It was really just a little bit, and Prince Yi was going to trade this “favored concubine” for someone else.” Someone was teasing, with a bit of mockery.

“That’s right. This isn’t the first time. How can His Highness be a man of long-term affection? Previously, Prince Yi’s Mansion would also occasionally have a “favored concubine” appear. What was the final result? Either sent away or missing. As for a woman with such a lowly identity, how could she really want a rank?” Another contemptuous voice said with disdain.

“County Princess, please rest assured. Even if the prince is now too embarrassed to say the word ‘change’ because of what Princess Xianyun said, but later, the prince will definitely privately ask Princess Mingya to trade. That woman is just a plaything. Does she really think she can become the prince’s concubine? If she could, she would have become one long ago. How could she wait until now?”

“A plaything, yet she dares to appear so high-profile. She doesn’t even know how to write the word ‘death.’ Does she really think the prince will like her?” With a cold snort, Ning Xueyan heard the tone. Wasn’t it the County Princess Yuanyun just now? It was said that she was the niece of the Grand Princess’s husband’s family. Because her father and her husband died together in battle, she was specially granted the title of County Princess.

Just now, while they were talking at the seat, Ning Xueyan had figured out everyone’s identity.

She just left, and she followed her immediately, and between the words, it was all disdain for herself. It seemed that this one should also marry Ao Chenyi. She sighed helplessly. Ao Chenyi really made her come to find trouble today, and she seemed to be specifically here to attract trouble…