After severing all ties with family and friends, the villain's entire family was filled with re

Chapter 149 Xiao Jingyan's Birth Mother

Qin Wan was clearly taken aback when she saw this person, because she had never seen him in either her past or present life and did not know who he was.

But when she saw her, she felt a sense of familiarity.

It's just like a friend.

Consort Yan spoke up: "This is Consort An, the birth mother of the Fifth Prince. She came to me today to ask to see you. I thought you would meet sooner or later, so I agreed!"

Qin Wan was stunned for a moment and did not respond. Xiao Lingyun thought she was angry, so she explained again.

“Sister-in-law, you know that my brother saved you and me before, and also saved Fangqiu’s life. We naturally cannot refuse her mother’s request!”

Upon hearing this, Qin Wan realized that her reaction seemed to have caused them to misunderstand.

She quickly composed herself, smiled, and bowed, saying, "This humble woman, Qin Wan, the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Pingding, greets Consort An!"

Qin Wan was poised and courteous.

Consort An responded with a smile, but it was a faint smile.

Upon seeing Qin Wan, Consort An did not say a word to her, but instead looked at Consort Yan.

"Thank you very much, Your Highness, for your help today!"

After saying that, he left without saying another word.

Qin Wan frowned. She had heard before that Consort An was eccentric, and today's incident was indeed strange. No wonder she felt that Xiao Jingyan was sometimes also strange.

Xiao Lingyun noticed Qin Wan's doubts and whispered in her ear.

"Ignore her. She's always so strange. Her sudden visit to Mother's place today really startled me. If it weren't for my brother, we wouldn't have allowed her to see you!"

"Yun'er, don't be rude!" Consort Yan still heard Xiao Lingyun's voice.

Regardless of what kind of person Consort An is, she is still the birth mother of the Fifth Prince and the future mother of Qin Wan, and should not be slandered at will.

Consort Yan followed up on Xiao Lingyun's words, saying, "Consort An wasn't like this before. She was influenced by her father. Because of her father's mistakes, her entire maternal clan was executed. At that time, she was already pregnant with the emperor's child, which saved her from the death penalty. But after that, she became a completely different person. She's a pitiful person, really..."

When Consort An's past was mentioned, Consort Yan sighed repeatedly. Consort An had entered the palace a few years earlier than her, but she was still only a minor concubine.

If she hadn't been pregnant with the emperor's child at the time, she would probably have been beheaded long ago.

Fortunately, she gave birth to a prince, which saved her from the death penalty and prevented her from being sent to the cold palace.

For decades, she lived alone in Qingyin Palace. His Majesty never visited her, and the snobbish people in the palace showed her no respect. It was not much different from being in the Cold Palace.

"Look, I've already said too much!" Consort Yan said self-deprecatingly.

Then, she stepped down from the main seat, graceful and elegant, with a charming gait and every smile and frown exuding the grace of a beautiful woman.

"Miss Qin, Yun'er has already told me about what happened at the Spark Gathering that day. I haven't had a chance to properly thank you yet. If it weren't for you, Yun'er would probably have been in danger long ago. This is my way of expressing my gratitude, so please don't find it offensive!"

The maid behind Consort Yan presented a tray with a pearl in the center. The pearl was bright and round, clearly a fine item.

"These are South China Sea pearls, a gift from His Majesty to me. Miss Qin, you may keep them or make them into jewelry, it's all up to you!"

As she spoke, Consort Yan was about to stuff the pearl into Qin Wan's hand.

Qin Wan would never want something so precious, but seeing Consort Yan pursing her lips and adopting a humble attitude, Qin Wan couldn't bear to refuse.

Now Qin Wan finally understood why Consort Yan remained so favored; her demeanor was such that even she, a woman, couldn't bear to scold her, let alone men.

"It is my honor that Your Highness has bestowed such a gift upon me, and I would never dare to refuse it!"

Qin Wan accepted the pearls bestowed upon her by Consort Yan and bowed in gratitude.

"Alright, I won't disturb you any longer. I'm hosting the flower viewing banquet today. I'll head to the Imperial Garden first!"

"Take care, Mother!"

After seeing off Consort Yan, Xiao Lingyun was finally free from restraint.

He pulled Qin Wan to the pavilion outside, took the pearl that Consort Yan had just bestowed upon him from her hand, and admired it.

"Mother is so generous! I've never seen such a big pearl before!"

Qin Wan noticed Xiao Lingyun's envy and teased, "How about we give these pearls to the princess?"

Xiao Lingyun quickly waved her hand, "I don't want it. This is a gift from my mother. You'd better keep it safe!"

For some reason, Xiao Lingyun felt fear whenever Consort Yan was mentioned.

But Consort Yan was clearly very gentle, which puzzled Qin Wan. Could it be that she was just imagining things?

The pearl returned to Qin Wan's palm and was carefully put away. After that, Xiao Lingyun leaned forward slightly.

"Your Majesty, you said before that you could divine, could you teach me today? From now on, before I leave the palace, I'll cast a divination for myself to avoid any danger!"

Xiao Lingyun's big eyes blinked, and her sincere expression made Qin Wan feel a little guilty.

She has no knowledge of divination, and what she said before wasn't just a bluff.

......

Behind the artificial hill outside Shao'an Palace.

Su Yan'er had been waiting here for a while. She had originally thought that she would meet Xiao Jingyu as soon as she arrived, thus creating an encounter and making him fall in love with her.

But she had such high hopes that in reality, she didn't even see a shadow of Xiao Jingyu.

Judging by the time, the flower viewing banquet was about to begin, and she could no longer stay here.

As she turned to leave, a gentle breeze blew the handkerchief from her hand. She instinctively reached for it, but missed.

Seeing the handkerchief lying not far away, she was about to pick it up, but as she bent down, before she could even reach out, someone else picked up her handkerchief.

Su Yan'er looked up and met the gaze of the person she had been longing to see.

"Fourth...Fourth Prince!"

Xiao Jingyu recognized Su Yan'er; she was the adopted daughter of the Marquis of Pingding.

"Miss Yan'er, what are you doing here?" Xiao Jingyu returned the handkerchief to Su Yan'er.

This immediately made Su Yan'er blush, her face turning red all the way to her ears. Her shy appearance made Xiao Jingyu chuckle softly.

"Yan'er came with Fourth Sister to attend the flower viewing banquet, but got lost and wandered here by mistake, disturbing Your Highness's peace and quiet. Please forgive me!"

Su Yan'er lowered her eyes and used her best skills to play dumb and act weak. No man could dislike someone like her, she was very confident.

Upon hearing that Qin Wan had also arrived, Xiao Jingyu's eyes lit up, and then she said.

"The flower viewing banquet is in the Imperial Garden, not in this direction. I'll take you there!"

Su Yan'er was stunned. She took the bait so quickly?

"Then... thank you very much, Fourth Prince!"

What Su Yan'er didn't know was that Xiao Jingyu's trip to the Imperial Garden wasn't for Su Yan'er, but for Qin Wan.

Su Yan'er's heart pounded wildly; she knew that no one could resist falling at her feet.

Even the high-ranking princes were no exception.

The two walked toward the Imperial Garden. Xiao Jingyu would occasionally exchange a few words with Su Yan'er, mainly out of respect for her being the adopted daughter of the Marquis of Pingding.

However, this scene was misinterpreted by bystanders.