Qian Lianxue quietly coughed, then she said, “It’s Lianxue that made a mistake. It wasn’t an appropriate time to take it out.”


  Wen Wan continued along the same line by saying, “Madam, really, what were you thinking? Why didn’t you give him something else? This servant thinks that handkerchiefs would only be given as a gift between lovers.”


  Ji Man was speechless. She could only wryly laugh at herself. She shouldn’t have been so brainless at the time and agreed to Ning Mingjie’s suggestion.

  Ning Mingjie’s expression was very ugly. “This one didn’t expect that a mere handkerchief would cause everyone to feel the need to say so many words. Really, it’s my fault. This one can’t continue eating this dinner. This one needs to think of an apology to Madam that will remove all of the dirty water that’s been splashed onto her.”


  He usually wasn’t a verbose speaker and had never said such a cutting remark in front of them.

  After these words were said, even Old Madame slightly pursed her lips and called out in a low voice, “Mingjie.”


  Ning Yuxuan lowered his eyes so that his gaze was directed at the food. Ji Man looked at him, but she had no idea what he was thinking of.

  Standing behind Nie Sangyu, Gancao hadn’t been able to keep herself still for a while. She gritted her teeth, kneeled down in the middle of the room, and kowtowed three times in front of them. “Masters, if there’s anything that you want to say, then just directly scold this servant. It’s this servant’s fault for having a presumptuous wish. My master hasn’t done anything wrong.”


  “Gancao.” Ji Man was slightly surprised, but looking at that young girl’s stubborn gaze, she seemed to have understood something. She pursed her lips and didn’t say another word.

  It truly was a teenage girl’s feelings. The hero had saved the beauty, and the beauty had lost her heart to him. Was Gancao planning on taking responsibility for this matter and also confessing her feelings to Ning Mingjie? But, you silly girl. How could the people in this room allow a servant girl to resolve this misunderstanding?

  Old Madame asked, “Gancao, what are you saying? What have you been presumptuously wishing for?”


  Ning Mingjie was also looking at Gancao.

  Gancao bit her lips. Keeping her head lowered, she said, “After Young Master saved this servant last time, this servant kept recalling that memory fondly and had thoughts that this servant shouldn’t have. Even though this servant knows it was presumptuous, this servant continued having romantic feelings towards Young Master. And so, when Madame was giving Young Master a thank you gift, this servant pleaded with Madam to also give him that handkerchief that was personally embroidered by this servant. Moreover, Madam has also given him a piece of jade, but Young Master hadn’t accepted it.”


  “Marquis and Old Madame, please allow this servant to make this clear. If this servant had known that the various masters would make something out of nothing, then servant would have never pleaded with Madam to allow this servant to express her selfish wish.”


  After saying this, she kowtowed several times. Her body was slightly trembling as she stayed in the kneeling position.

  She was clearly saying that the people that had accused her master of improper behavior were deliberately making stuff up. However, Qian Lianxue stayed silent with her head lowered to show a contemplative demeanor.

  Wen Wan also said in aggrieved tone, “So what you’re saying is that this servant is the evil person. This servant shouldn’t have said those words. This servant deserves to die.”


  In contrast, Qi Siling pursed her lips and lightly laughed, “Madam, your servant is truly very loyal to you.”


  Marquis Moyu, who had been silently eating during this entire episode, suddenly called out, “Ling.

  ”


  Qi Siling trembled for a moment, then she lowered her head too and didn’t say another word.

  Ji Man sighed. She looked at Old Madame and said, “Didn’t Sangyu say a few days ago that there will definitely be people that won’t allow Sangyu’s days to be peaceful by using the excuse that Sangyu’s belly is larger than average? Old Madame, at the time, you said that Sangyu didn’t need to worry. See, how can Sangyu not worry over this?”


  Hearing these words, Old Madame finally stopped scrutinizing Ning Mingjie. She put down her chopsticks and said, “This dinner has gone very unsatisfactory. As expected, when there’s an excessive amount of women in a harem, there aren’t too many peaceful days to be had.”


  Marquis Moyu lightly said, “Isn’t it just a handkerchief? If Gancao enjoys giving Mngjie handkerchiefs, then it’s no big deal even if she embroiders him a hundred handkerchiefs to give to him. Why is there any need to feel upset and stop eating dinner? Mother, Mingjie, the servants had prepared a pretty good meal today. The two of you should eat more.”


  Ning Mingjie glanced at him, then he looked at Nie Sangyu. He stood up, walked to Gancao’s side, and helped her stand up.

  Gancao felt overwhelmed by his gesture.

  “My father has recently been urging me to get at least get a concubine,” Ning Mingjie lightly said, “It’s rare to see a woman like Gancao that’s so wholeheartedly devoted to me. I also like the handkerchief that she embroidered. Old Madame, how about giving Gancao to me?”


  Everyone in the room was stunned. Old Madame managed to say, “You want Gancao?”


  Ning Mingjie nodded. “Is Madam unwilling to give her to me?”


  After blankly looking at him for a moment, Ji Man shook her head. “If Young Master likes Gancao, then that’s her good fortune. It’s just that marriage is forever for a woman. We should finish dinner first, then carefully discus this matter.”


  The entire table of people sunk into silence.

  In regards to Ning Mingjie’s obviously impulsive decision, there were some people that thought Gancao was very lucky, and there were also others that thought he was only making the matter more conspicuous by trying to cover it up. But everyone agreed that he was obviously doing this to protect Nie Sangyu.

  As for why he was protecting her, it was up to each person to guess the reason.

  No one was able to enjoy eating the rest of the dinner. After the meal was over, Old Madame brought Mingjie and her son, as well as Nie Sangyu and Gancao to her inner room to talk.

  Looking at Ning Mingjie with a wry smile, Old Madame said, “If I let you promote a servant girl into your concubine, your father probably won’t be thanking me. You’ve always been a considerate child. Can you tell me the real reason why you want Gancao?”


  Even after all those previous words had been said, Old Madame and Marquis Moyu clearly didn’t believe Gancao’s confession.

  Sitting in a lower chair than Old Madame, Ning Mingjie pursed his lip and said, “Mingjie thinks that Gancao is very good. It won’t be a big deal to welcome her into my household as a concubine. Mingjie will naturally explain the matter to my father. As for my real reason, it really is because she looked at me with a pair of deeply adoring eyes.”