"Marchioness, please come in," said Granny Li, opening the door to welcome her. "Our Duchess is waiting for you inside!"
Little Madam Qin took a deep breath, forcing herself to appear composed before stepping into the room.
In the carriage, Qi Mingzhu was puzzled. "Granny Qin, who would arrange to meet Mother at the Temple of Supreme Harmony? Mother seemed to know who it was, but she didn't seem very eager to meet them."
Granny Qin had already guessed who the visitor would be. The Duchess had coincidentally met their Madam at the Temple of Supreme Harmony last time, and it was likely her again.
"We'll know once Madam comes out and asks. It's not good to speculate who it might be right now," Granny Qin replied.
They waited in the carriage for about fifteen minutes before seeing Little Madam Qin's figure.
Granny Qin quickly went down to help Little Madam Qin. "Is it the Duchess?"
Little Madam Qin nodded slightly. "Let's talk after we get in the carriage."
After the carriage had traveled back for a while, Little Madam Qin finally spoke. "The Duchess asked me how the negotiations with the Marquis were going."
"Are they pressuring you now?" Qi Mingzhu's almond-shaped eyes widened in annoyance. "Mother, what did you tell the Duchess?"
"Strictly speaking, we're not in the right on this matter. Whether we were willing or not, we should have given them an answer long ago. It's not normal for the Duke's mansion not to seek us out now that we've dragged it on this long," Little Madam Qin grumbled. "I agreed to this matter today. The Duchess will choose an auspicious day to send a matchmaker to the Marquis's mansion to propose."
Qi Mingzhu became anxious and stood up abruptly, forgetting she was in a carriage. She bumped herself hard.
"You silly girl, why are you so impetuous? Come, let Mother see if you're alright," Little Madam Qin said anxiously.
Qi Mingzhu clutched her head. "Mother, how could you agree to this matter with the Duke's mansion? Are you marrying me off to Gu Sinian? I don't agree, I don't agree! Didn't you say you wouldn't marry me to Gu Sinian? Is it that my father is trying to please the Duke's mansion and acting stubbornly? I'm going to find my maternal grandmother and ask her to be my advocate. You can't force me!"
Qi Mingzhu spoke somewhat incoherently.
"Oh, my dear little princess, don't get so agitated. I agreed to let the Duke's mansion propose, but I didn't agree to marry you off," Little Madam Qin said in a low voice. "Don't worry, Mother will handle this matter properly."
Qi Mingzhu's expression gradually calmed. "Mother, what do you mean?"
"If we swap the two engagements, won't everyone be happy?" Little Madam Qin said. "This way, it's not like we're mistreating Qi Zhenzhen."
Qi Mingzhu's mouth fell slightly open, her face filled with disbelief.
"Can this matter succeed? Does my father agree? What about the Old Madam? And Gu Sinian, marrying him would ruin Qi Zhenzhen's life," Qi Mingzhu shook her head. "Although I don't like her, doing this... Mother, this is unfair to her."
Little Madam Qin patted Qi Mingzhu's hand. "Mother knows you have a good heart. But think about it, her three years of hiding in the countryside with Yun Shi cannot be concealed. Do you think she can find a good marriage when this is revealed? Although the Duke's mansion's heir has a bad reputation and likes men, his status is there. It's not like she's being wronged!"
"But..."
"Your father and I have this matter handled, so you don't need to worry about it," Little Madam Qin said. "Your father said that the Lu family's young master seems to be a good match for you."
Qi Mingzhu fell silent. Compared to her own happiness, Qi Zhenzhen's plight was no longer so important.
On the twentieth of July, a matchmaker arrived at the Changping Marquis's mansion.
The matchmaker was there to propose to a young lady of the Changping Marquis's mansion on behalf of the Duke's mansion's heir. Since both sides had already discussed it, the matchmaker's visit today was to exchange horoscopes. The matchmaker brought Gu Sinian's horoscope, and the Marquis's mansion gave Qi Mingzhu's birth details to the matchmaker.
After seeing the matchmaker off, the Marquis of Changping asked Madam Qin somewhat nervously, "Will your plan go smoothly?"
Madam Qin replied with certainty, "Of course, it will. We've timed it perfectly. After three days, the name and birth details on that horoscope will become Qi Zhenzhen's. Then we'll just insist that we gave Qi Zhenzhen's birth details at the time. If the Duke's mansion comes to demand an explanation, we'll say that Mingzhu has been betrothed to the Lu family's young master since childhood, and how can one daughter be promised to two families?"
The horoscopes had already been exchanged, and Qi Tianming knew there was no room for regret. He could only see how things unfolded.
At the Duke's mansion, Madam Qin brought Gu Sinian the horoscope sent by the matchmaker. "I had the horoscope matched at the Temple of Supreme Harmony, and Master Yuanjue personally matched them. It's a match made in heaven."
A match made in heaven? Gu Sinian scoffed at the statement. What master? He was merely being lauded by others.
His horoscope contained his name and birth details, but the one provided by the Changping Marquis's mansion was fraudulent. The message from Erxi stated that the Prince of Qin's mansion had sent a medicinal solution to Little Madam Qin. First, Qi Zhenzhen's name and birth details were written on the horoscope, then they were erased with the medicinal solution, and then Qi Mingzhu's name and birth details were written. Once the medicinal effect wore off, both the solution and the newly written characters would disappear.
By then, the person matched would be him and Qi Zhenzhen.
The first step in arranging a marriage was the exchange of horoscopes. If the birth details did not match, the two families would discuss canceling the engagement. However, if they matched, the marriage was essentially a done deal.
Although he had already facilitated the Lu family's choice of Qi Mingzhu, he had devised other methods to ensure no mishaps, but they were not needed. Did this mean he and Qi Zhenzhen were destined to be together?
Three days passed, and nothing untoward happened.
The Duchess personally took the horoscope to the Changping Marquis's mansion. When she presented the horoscope again, Madam Qin was stunned. She clearly remembered that it was Qi Mingzhu who had exchanged horoscopes before. Now, how had it become the second young lady of the mansion?
"Marchioness, what is going on? Shouldn't you provide an explanation? Our Duke's mansion proposed to the legitimate daughter of your mansion, and the horoscope we took back was Qi Mingzhu's! Now, how has it become the second young lady of your mansion?" Madam Qin suppressed her anger. Her son had finally wanted to get married, had found a girl, and it was a match made in heaven, yet now she had been inexplicably replaced?
Little Madam Qin put on a smiling face. "The legitimate daughter of our mansion was betrothed from a young age. How could I possibly marry her off to the Duke's mansion? When the Duchess met us, she only said she was interested in the legitimate daughter of our mansion. Although Zhenzhen is of concubine birth, she is registered under me, her legitimate mother, so she is considered a legitimate daughter. Therefore, I thought the Duchess was interested in Zhenzhen."
This explanation was very far-fetched, but it wasn't entirely a lie. When the Duke's mansion's people had visited, they had indeed said they were interested in the Marquis's legitimate daughter. And now...
The Duchess's breathing became unsteady. Granny Li quickly supported her. "Our Duke's mansion is not to be trifled with. This matter cannot be allowed for the Changping Marquis's mansion to have the final say. We shall see."
Madam Qin uttered this harsh statement and left, supported by Granny Li.