Chapter 346: Chapter 346: The Suffering Wife vs. The Mistress (Part Thirty-Two) Chapter 346: Chapter 346: The Suffering Wife vs. The Mistress (Part Thirty-Two) Zhang Mingshu had no close relatives alive, so naturally, her marital arrangements were completely left to the discretion of the Prince of Zhenbei’s Mansion.
Surprisingly, the Princess Consort of Zhenbei actually arranged an external residence for Zhang Mingshu to live in until the wedding, from where she would be brought into the mansion. Those unaware might think that the Prince’s Mansion was very dissatisfied with this new Crown Princess.
Actually, situations like that of Zhang Mingshu were not unprecedented. If they truly valued a daughter-in-law, naturally, they would carefully select a family and recognize the person as an adopted daughter and relative. In that case, the girl would have a status and wouldn’t face the embarrassment of being married without even a mother to send her off, which would really look awkward.
Seeing Zhang Mingshu’s treatment, although the servants of the Prince of Zhenbei’s Mansion said nothing, deep down they felt somewhat disdainful towards this new Crown Princess.
In fact, the Princess Consort of Zhenbei meant no disrespect to Zhang Mingshu; it was just that the Old Princess Consort had always been in charge of the household. For years, she only cared about enjoying flowers, playing with jade, and listening to operas with familiar madams, never bothering about these vulgar matters.
The Old Princess Consort had already given up on her, cutting off the opportunity to marry a reliable Crown Princess and hand over control of the Prince’s Mansion from a daughter-in-law directly to a granddaughter-in-law.
But who knew that the arranged marriage they had set their sights on would fall through? The Old Princess Consort fell ill from the setback and never recovered, leaving everything to suddenly fall onto the Princess Consort, who knew only about watching operas.
Being already overwhelmed and with time pressing, it was natural to imagine how chaotic it was inside the Prince’s Mansion.
Many guests merely saw it as a joke. In such circumstances, Zhang Mingshu, upon entering, inherently seemed lesser in the eyes of others.
But having been raised by the Princess Consort of Zhenbei since childhood, how much insight could Zhang Mingshu possibly have? Oddly, she didn’t even feel that anything was amiss.
Qin Yuanzheng, however, was becoming increasingly annoyed.
When there was still a marriage contract, this cousin of his, unattainable at the time, appeared perfect in every way in his heart. Yet not a month into their marriage, he realized that his cousin was far from what he had imagined.
Zhang Mingshu was just another Princess Consort of Zhenbei, clueless about common affairs. The Princely Heir’s quarters were in disarray under her management, and the servants were all loafing and being deceitful.
She was indeed of a stunning type, but she liked to put on a pitiful demeanor. Previously, Qin Yuanzheng thought this aspect of his cousin had its own unique charm, yet he had married her as his legal wife! Which household’s Lady Legal Wife spends everyday with furrowed brows and a pitiful appearance? Properly the main wife but behaving like a concubine.
At every banquet hosted by various households, ladies of some status scorned to engage with Zhang Mingshu; her demeanor really made her hard to like.
His cousin also couldn’t engage with him in discussions about his career or art. Sometimes, Qin Yuanzheng even doubted why he had liked his cousin so much all these years. Those days of deep affection felt like a dreamy, illusory realm.
The more he thought this way, the more distinctly another figure began to emerge.
It was not that he was particularly fond of Gu Shengyin, but whenever Zhang Mingshu disappointed him, he couldn’t help comparing her with Gu Shengyin: if it were Miss Liang, it wouldn’t be , would it? The Liang Residence’s scholarly upbringing was a model throughout Qi Country, and Liang Chenyu was worthy of being the mother of a nation, managing a small Prince of Zhenbei’s Mansion would surely be a trivial matter; the Liang family’s daughter was always popular at banquets, unlike his cousin, who always returned from gatherings with a saddened face…
Noticing the shift in her husband’s attitude, Zhang Mingshu naturally sensed it, and inevitably, cracks began to form between the once affectionate couple.