The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Chapter 288 Shopping

Who can argue with that? While she and Yu Linglong may get along well, their relationship is more driven by self-interest. From the moment Yu Linglong first saw her and learned that she was the successor of Huichun Valley, the gears of their mutual interests began to turn.

It's not that it's bad to want something in return, but knowing what the other person wants will reduce psychological pressure during the relationship.

"Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. Does Your Highness have any official business to attend to upon your return?"

"What, do you have plans?"

"I think it's still early, Your Highness, how about you accompany me for a stroll?"

It was rare to see Wanwan invite him to travel so earnestly, so Xiao Jingchen cooperated, straightened his back and said in a deep tone, "Since the princess has asked me for a favor, I can't be unreasonable. I grant your request."

"Hahahaha." Gu Qingwan was amused by Xiao Jingchen's appearance and laughed in the carriage.

Seeing her smile so happily, he felt a sense of clarity in his own heart, but the thought of what was to come made him feel melancholy.

The two first went to the Caiyi Pavilion and changed into more ordinary everyday clothes. Gu Qingwan also changed her hair into a Yuanbao bun, which was only adorned with two kingfisher feather hairpins and a jade bracelet. That was all.

Seeing an opportunity for his rarely seen owner to show off, the shopkeeper actually came to the store in person to select clothes, wishing he could let his owner wear all the most fashionable styles in the store.

When Duobaoge heard that its owner had gone to Caiyige, he felt that he couldn't miss such an opportunity to show off. He quickly had someone pick out a few of his recently acquired items. They weren't particularly valuable, but they were exquisite.

"Shopkeeper, what will happen to the shop if you leave? There are still some important people here..." The shop assistant saw his shopkeeper rushing out and quickly stopped him.

"Hey, don't block my way. You look after the important person in the shop. I'll be right back. I have other things to do." The shopkeeper didn't care about any of that. He finally had a chance to see his most respected boss, how could he not go?

All these years, I've made a fortune thanks to my boss's skillful management. Before, I was destitute. If it weren't for my boss... The shopkeeper's eyes welled up with tears just thinking about it, and he quickened his pace even more.

But then he suddenly remembered that his mistress had married a prince, so he tugged at his clothes and asked, "Take a look and see if I'm dressed appropriately."

"The shopkeeper is dressed very well..." The waiter was a little nervous because of the shopkeeper's words. If he didn't know better, he would think that the shopkeeper was going on a blind date today.

"That's good, that's good. I have to hurry over there. If I don't go soon, that old man will steal my thunder. Oh dear, there's still such a long way to go. Boss, you'll have to wait for me!"

……

When they arrived, Gu Qingwan was combing her hair when Manager Wu arrived.

"Manager Wu, what brings you here?" Manager Wang blocked the doorway, deliberately preventing anyone from entering.

"Hey, Old Wang, the boss is here and you didn't even tell me. You're so unfair."

"Tch, I won't tell you. Even if I didn't tell you, you still came running here because you smelled the aroma of the restaurant. Honestly."

"Make way, I have something good for the owner." Manager Wu pushed aside Manager Wang, who was blocking his way, and ran to Gu Qingwan with a smile.

"Greetings to the Prince and Princess."

Gu Qingwan glanced in the mirror and saw it was Manager Wu from Duobao Pavilion. She turned around and asked with a smile, "Get up quickly, Manager Wu, how's business?"

Manager Wu nodded repeatedly, "It's all good, it's all good, boss. Don't worry, this year will definitely be better than last year! Boss, would you like to take a look at Duobao Pavilion? Recently, Duobao Pavilion has received some new signings."

Gu Qingwan shook her head and said, "I'm not going. I came out for a stroll with the Prince today. You can pick out some similar items and have them sent to the Prince of Chu's residence later."

"Yes, yes, boss, don't worry." Manager Wu naturally understood that his boss was giving Duobao Pavilion a boost in reputation. Since the Princess Consort of Chu had taken a liking to Duobao Pavilion's products, the quality was definitely guaranteed. In this way, Duobao Pavilion's reputation would be even better.

Not to be outdone, Manager Wang said, "Boss, I have some new flower patterns here. How about I discuss with Manager Wu and we make them into matching sets to send to you?"

"That would be perfect. You can leave it in the store for two days to display before sending it to me."

Gu Qingwan finished combing her hair into a bun. She wore a pink cloak, her delicate face was as white as jade, and her phoenix eyes were bright and vivid. Even Xiao Jingchen was a little dumbfounded.

Wanwan was already quite beautiful. If she hadn't been exposed to the elements and hadn't taken good care of herself all those years, her beauty would surely have been noticed by others. It's just that Xiao Yuheng has always had ill intentions towards Wanwan and hasn't given up on his wicked thoughts.

"Shall we go?" Gu Qingwan asked.

"Ah."

Xiao Jingchen kept it simple; his hairstyle remained the same, and he still wore the same jade pendant at his waist. That was all.

Shi Shu stayed behind to check on how her own shops nearby were doing. Not only were the shops related to Gu Qingwan's dowry managed, but the prince, for some reason, also asked her to check on all the shops under the name of the Prince's Mansion.

Shi Shu said that was absolutely not allowed. Only the Princess Consort could look at the things in the Prince's mansion and the Prince's things. She could not interfere, as it would not be good for the Princess Consort and the Prince. However, she did not say anything on the surface. After all, the Princess Consort had quite a few shops of her own, and she could not possibly look at them all.

Siqi and Xiaoyi also changed into casual clothes so they could stay close to their master.

The country is at peace, free from the turmoil of war, and the people live in peace and contentment, with bustling streets and markets.

Both of them were very handsome, and people passing by couldn't help but glance at the perfect couple.

Gu Qingwan was captivated by a clay figurine stall. She looked at each one carefully, unsure which to choose, as she liked them all and found the craftsman's skill truly exceptional.

Xiao Jingchen said, "If you like them, then buy them all."

The vendor's eyes lit up. He had found a big customer. If he sold everything, he could make a lot of money and go home earlier to make more.

Gu Qingwan looked at the various clay figurines. There must be at least one or two hundred of them. If she bought them all, there would be no place to display them, and it wouldn't make much sense to put them in the Prince's mansion.

Besides, clay figurines are small ornaments, as long as they are exquisite, that's fine. So she said to Xiao Jingchen, "I'll pick out a few, and you can pick out three for me from them."

Xiao Jingchen found this quite interesting, so he readily agreed.

Soon the two of them chose three Siqi to follow behind to pay the bill, and the items were piled into Xiao Yi's hands.

With a smile on her face, Xiao Yi asked solicitously, "Siqi, do you see any styles here that you like? I'll buy them for you."

Seeing that Xiao Yi was almost pressed against her face, Si Qi snorted and said, "No!"

"Hey, hey, don't go! If you don't like this, you can like something else..."

Gu Qingwan walked over to a small blanket. There was a red agate beaded flower that she thought was small and cute. The beaded flower was shaped like a begonia, with tiny freshwater pearls as the stamens inside. It was very cute when she picked it up and it swayed back and forth.

"Does it look good?" Gu Qingwan asked Xiao Jingchen, her hair still in her hair.

Xiao Jingchen nodded: "It looks good."

In his eyes, Wanwan looked beautiful no matter how she dressed up, and even without makeup, she was unmatched, especially in bed... cough...

Xiao Jingchen's eyes began to dart around unnaturally. He couldn't let Wanwan find out, or he'd have to sleep in the study again.

"How much is this beaded flower?"

The vendor, seeing that the person was good-looking and well-dressed, judged, even though he himself didn't know much about goods, that the person in front of him must be someone who was not short of money.

"Sir, you have a good eye. This beaded flower is purely handmade, and there are only a few of them. I won't charge you extra for this one; you can take it for fifty taels of silver."

Gu Qingwan was stunned when she heard this. How dare he ask for fifty taels for such a small thing?

Xiao Jingchen assumed that Gu Qingwan was worried that Siqi hadn't come along and hadn't paid, so he stepped forward and said, "I brought money with me."

Gu Qingwan pushed his hand away as he reached for the money and placed the beaded flower back on the stall: "Everyone says that doing business requires honesty and integrity, but you're not doing it right."

“Madam, what you’re saying is true. We are honest businessmen. I’m not lying about charging you fifty taels of silver for this hairpin.”

"This beaded flower is only worth five hundred coins. At most, you can sell it for one tael of silver at most."

The vendor was immediately caught off guard; he had indeed only intended to sell the beaded flower for 500 coins. If he hadn't thought the other party was a wealthy person and wanted to rip them off, he wouldn't have dared to ask for 50 taels.

"Oh dear, you're charging such exorbitant prices! Hurry up and leave, don't buy anything from this stall." People who were originally buying things nearby quickly left after hearing Gu Qingwan's words, afraid of being ripped off.

The vendor, enraged, said, "If you can't afford it, don't buy it. This is my price. I've been selling it this way since I started my stall. If you want a cheaper one, you can get one over there for 500 coins. Put down this beautiful beaded flower!"

The man took the beaded hairpin from Gu Qingwan's hand and muttered, "Poor wretch, what are you pretending to be rich for? Pah!"

Xiao Jingchen's face immediately darkened. In all his life, even when he accompanied his elder brother through the perilous struggle for the throne, no one had ever dared to show him any disrespect.

Seeing that Xiao Jingchen was about to get angry, Gu Qingwan took his hand and said, "We're just out having fun, it's alright, husband, let's go."

Clearly, Xiao Jingchen was completely disoriented by being called "husband." With Gu Qingwan holding his hand, he felt as if his feet were soft and yielding, as if he were walking on cotton, a sweet and wonderful sensation.

"Stop!" The vendor quickly called out to Gu Qingwan, "Young lady, you can leave now, but leave my things behind. There's no such thing as taking things without paying."

Gu Qingwan immediately said, "Isn't the pearl hairpin in your hand? When did I take your things?"

The vendor knew in his heart that he had indeed taken back the beaded flower, but he thought the young woman in front of him was a poor wretch. She looked well dressed but didn't have much money. However, the kingfisher feather ornament on her head was quite nice.

“The kingfisher feather ornament you tried on is mine. If you’re not going to buy it after you’re done wearing it, return it to me.”

Gu Qingwan touched the kingfisher feather ornament in her hair and laughed in exasperation: "This is my own jewelry, what does it have to do with you!"

"You unreasonable young lady! You look so respectable, how can you be so dishonest!"

The vendors' shouts attracted the attention of onlookers, including the Wen family mother and daughter.

Wenrou had no intention of getting involved in this; she just wanted to stroll around with her mother because of the lively atmosphere. Unexpectedly, she saw the King of Chu, and it seemed that the vendor and Gu Qingwan had a dispute.

"Wang... Cousin! What are you doing here?" Wenrou had been wanting to talk to Xiao Jingchen, and now that she finally had the chance, she was eager to get close to him.

The peddler immediately changed his attitude when he saw a richly dressed young lady with expensive jewelry approaching.

"Miss, you be the judge! This young lady took a fancy to something from my family. Not only did she not have the money to buy it, but she also took my kingfisher feather ornaments with her before leaving, and insisted that they were hers. What kind of logic is that!"

"Insolence!" Xiao Jingchen finally couldn't take it anymore and directly rebuked the other party.

The small vendor was so frightened that his face turned pale. He subconsciously thought he had kicked a steel plate.

With a gentle glance and a charming smile, she said, "I thought there was something special, but it's just a beaded hairpin. It's normal for cousin and sister Gu to not carry any money when they go out, given their status. Luckily, I have some on me. Let me settle the bill. How much, waiter?"

When the peddler saw someone paying, he was overjoyed and said, "Nothing much, just... thirty taels of silver will do."

Gu Qingwan sneered: "You asked me for fifty taels for that worthless thing, but you asked for thirty taels for this one?"

"Yes, yes, what's wrong!" The vendor, having lied, was somewhat guilty. He then deliberately straightened his back and stretched his neck like a fighting rooster: "These are my things, I can price them however I want!"

"Are you sure it's yours?" Gu Qingwan pressed.

Wenrou, trying to be the good guy, said, "It's just a hairpin, there's really no need for this. Sister Gu, please stop talking. I'll handle this. My cousin is still here, so please don't embarrass him."

Just then, Siqi and Xiaoyi arrived.

"Xiao Yi, go to Duobao Pavilion and invite the manager over," Xiao Jingchen instructed.

Xiao Yi and Si Qi had just arrived and didn't know what had happened, but since it was the prince's order, he had no reason not to do it.

"Yes, I'll go right away."

Wenrou felt a little embarrassed, so she quietly approached Xiao Jingchen and said, "Cousin, it's really not appropriate with so many people here. It's just a little bit of money."

Gu Qingwan looked down on her attitude and said, "Miss Wen, since you call my husband 'cousin,' then please call me 'cousin's wife.' Also, this isn't about money. They don't know my family's situation, but you do. You just said not to embarrass your cousin. If I were to accept this in a muddle, that would be embarrassing your cousin!"

"You! That's not what I meant, cousin, I..."