She didn't speak for a long time, like a clay statue, which made Mrs. Tian a little uncomfortable.
After a long silence, Madam Tian held her head and groaned. She let out a long breath and felt better. She frowned and said, "You have grown up. Can you use your brain before doing anything? This time, your father and I can still protect you. We can't really watch you get into trouble. What about later? How long can we help you and protect you?"
Mrs. Tian was both angry and frightened that her daughter was so easily tricked by Su Yao.
It was just one encounter and he was defeated so miserably.
She used to be proud of her child's frequent visits to the palace, and that she had an arrogance that other ladies could not match. But now it seems that this arrogance is not a good thing.
The incense burner on the table continuously emitted the scent of lilies, which was so sweet that it made people feel suffocated. Mrs. Tian looked at her daughter dimly, feeling extremely worried.
It was Tian Rui herself.
Her temper came and went quickly. After being irritable for a while, she calmed down again. She sat at the table, tightly holding a cup, as if she wanted to squeeze it out of shape, and then she said in a deep voice: "I know, I will change."
After such a long time, this was the only thing she said that sounded reasonable. Madam Tian then looked at her and saw that the veins on her hands were bulging. She forced herself to suppress her anger and said, "Alright! This shouldn't have happened, but it has. The most important thing you should do now is to remember this lesson and be careful with your words and actions from now on. Never make the same mistake again!"
The sound of cicadas outside the window made people want to cover their ears. Mrs. Tian softened her tone and stepped forward to embrace her daughter: "Rui'er, you have to know that in the past, you were the niece of the empress dowager and called her Auntie, but from now on, you are no longer qualified to call her that."
After saying this, Tian Rui's face trembled violently.
Some indescribable fear gradually crept into her heart. She grabbed her mother's hand, choked with sobs and called out "Mom", then buried her head in Mrs. Tian's arms.
Madam Tian smiled bitterly and patted her daughter's head, but she still said bluntly: "You are a concubine, and there is a principal wife in the mansion. Whether you can enter the palace to pay respect to the empress dowager depends on the principal wife's tolerance and decision. In front of the empress dowager, you can no longer act like a spoiled child or fool like before, do you understand?"
The Queen Mother is the Queen Mother, yes, but Tian Rui is no longer a girl from the Duke's Mansion, but a concubine from the Prince Zhuang's Mansion.
As long as Qin was around, Tian Rui would just be a concubine, and she would not be the one representing Prince Zhuang's palace.
Even if she gave birth to a child for King Zhuang, her child had to call Qin "mother".
This was also the reason why Madam Tian had refused to follow Tian Rui's wishes in the past. But now it was too late to say anything, so she could only try to let Tian Rui be smarter.
Tian Rui's lips trembled slightly, opening and closing several times, but she couldn't utter a complete sentence, and tears fell like beads from a broken string.
Before Mrs. Tian could say anything, the door creaked open. Tian Xun stood in front of them with his back to the light, looking at them quietly, and said loudly: "Don't cry, what's the point of crying now?"
Tian Rui turned her head and looked at her. Suddenly she remembered what she said yesterday that she would get what she wanted. She couldn't help but choked up and said, "What do you know?"
Her current situation is so embarrassing and difficult.
Tian Xun knew what kind of temper his sister had, so he didn't argue with her. He just raised his eyebrows and said, "I know everything I need to know. I also know that if you want to turn things around, you can only sit on the position of the main wife."
When these words came out, Tian Rui and Madam Tian were both startled, and then looked at her.
Mrs. Tian was the first to react. She coughed a few times and scolded her daughter: "What nonsense are you talking about?"
Of course, who doesn’t want this
Tian Rui herself thought about it even more, and she lowered her voice a lot: "Who doesn't know what you said? What's the point of just talking about it?"
"Why are you just talking?" Tian Xun smiled, walked over and sat beside them. Seeing Tian Rui's eyes were red from crying, he said, "Don't cry. You want to vent your anger, right? You can vent it."
Before Tian Rui could say anything, Madam Tian's heart skipped a beat. She subconsciously looked at Tian Xun, but she was afraid that Tian Rui would really take it seriously, so she glared at her and said, "Stop talking nonsense! This is not the time to cause trouble!"
He scolded Tian Rui a few more times, told her to stay and reflect on herself, and then he pulled Tian Xun out of the room, frowning and saying, "Xiao Xun, you are a smart child, don't do the same as your sister!"
She hasn't even entered the palace yet. Even if she wants to be the queen, she can't be too hasty. Now she is saying all this in front of Tian Rui. If that silly girl really does it, won't something be in trouble
Tian Xun has always been much easier to communicate with than Tian Rui. When Madam Tian said this, she immediately said obediently, "Yes, mother, don't worry, I won't tell you."
The second daughter was much more sophisticated than the eldest daughter. Mrs. Tian was relieved about her. When she heard her say that, she hummed, reached out and touched her head, and then reminded her: "You are the most obedient and sensible. Accompany your sister to comfort her first. We adults will naturally discuss other matters. Don't do anything reckless. If you cause trouble, it will also implicate you. Do you know?"
Tian Xun smiled sweetly and agreed.
Mrs. Tian was relieved.
She hurried back to her courtyard and saw that Tian Chengzhong had also returned. She immediately became extremely alert and called out "Duke" carefully.
Tian Chengzhong was exhausted. He hummed and asked her how Tian Rui was doing now.
Mrs. Tian sighed, "Don't you know her temper? She's just sulking." She was very worried as she spoke, "With this temper, she gets angry easily, and she's a little smart and self-righteous. How can she enter Prince Zhuang's mansion?"
With this kind of personality, the best thing would be to marry into an honest family of similar status, where she can live with her head held high and her parents' family can protect her. But she just couldn't understand this.
Tian Chengzhong took a sip of tea, suppressed his anger and initial irritation, and said lightly: "Teach her well. Since she has chosen this path, she must complete it well. This is her fate."
Mrs. Tian was keenly aware of his change in attitude. After thinking for a moment, she asked, "What does the Queen Mother mean? She..."
Tian Chengzhong tapped the table with his fingers and said cryptically, "Your Highness will be extremely noble in the future."
With just this one sentence, Mrs. Tian immediately understood. She looked at Tian Chengzhong, her thoughts racing in her mind, and she didn't speak for a while.