Chapter 343 Protecting Wife
The only people left in the room were the Duke's wife and Qin Xiaoning.

Knowing that the Duke's wife was still unhappy, after she finished her tea, Qin Xiaoning said respectfully: "Mother, let your daughter-in-law serve you breakfast."

In this world, especially in wealthy families, a daughter-in-law has to serve her mother-in-law every day to be considered filial. This is especially true for a new bride, who follows even more red tape.

"Then let them pass the food."

As soon as the Duke's wife finished speaking, her personal nanny Yu went out to give instructions. A moment later, the maids came in one after another and placed all kinds of exquisite breakfast on the dining table in the outer room.

The wife of the Duke sat down at the dining table, and Qin Xiaoning stood beside her, picking up the jade chopsticks to serve the food.

The little woman was neither humble nor arrogant, and had a gentle attitude. She always had a warm smile on her face, and when she spoke occasionally, her words were always soft and gentle.

The wife of the Duke took a sip of the soup, then looked at her daughter-in-law who was as docile as a little white rabbit beside her, and the anger that had been blocking her heart unconsciously faded away.

The Duke's wife opened her mouth, cleared her throat and said, "A Ning, sit down too and enjoy with me."

The attitude softened noticeably.

Qin Xiaoning smiled faintly: "My daughter-in-law has already used it, I will just wait on my mother to use it."

The little woman spoke softly and arranged the dishes in an orderly manner, and the dishes she put into the bowl in front of the Duke's wife were all her favorites.

The little woman is very careful.

The Duchess's wife took two more bites. It was the first time in a while that she could enjoy her food since she found out that her son had married without her permission.

The Duke's wife's expression relaxed unconsciously. "Although our family is a high-ranking one, I have always been a straightforward person. I hate being bound by red tape, so I will not use these rules to restrict you. Today is the second day of your marriage, so it's okay to follow some rules. Tomorrow, you don't have to serve me meals in person."

The tone was no longer as cold as before.

He glanced at Qin Xiaoning's belly inadvertently, and there seemed to be a hint of heartache in his eyes.

Qin Xiaoning, however, was calm and unperturbed, and spoke gently, "I know that mother loves me, but I am a new bride, so I must follow the etiquette and rules. Otherwise, people will laugh at me for being a daughter-in-law without rules. If such a reputation spreads, it will be difficult for mother to protect me."

The Duke's wife frowned when she heard this: "You are my daughter-in-law, I want to see who dares to say something behind your back."

The words are full of maintenance.

Lu Ji often got into trouble with her, but he would not tolerate anyone bullying her in the slightest. The Duke's wife also had this kind of personality.

Qin Xiaoning replied: "I will not let you know what others say about me behind my back. Besides, I don't want to embarrass you, so I would rather follow the rules and not let others find fault with me."

The little woman lowered her eyes, and her tone couldn't help but lower slightly.

As gentle as water, yet so pitiful.

The Duke's wife couldn't help but feel soft-hearted when she saw this.

She put down the jade chopsticks in her hand, thought seriously, and said, "How about this, for the first three days, you just come here every day to pretend to be here, and then you don't have to do it anymore."

"After all, you are pregnant, so we have something to explain to the public."

Knowing that the Duke's wife was a straightforward person and hated nagging, Qin Xiaoning respectfully agreed.

Just when they were halfway through breakfast, Li Lanchun and Sixth Girl came over.

The Sixth Miss walked in front and sat down next to the Duke's wife when she entered the house, saying, "Mother, your breakfast today looks good." The Duke's wife glared at her daughter and said, "Is your small kitchen treating you badly?"

"My small kitchen is not bad, but it's not as good as mother's." The Sixth Girl looked around the table full of food and said, "I want to use some of yours."

Then, he pulled Li Lanchun and said, "Sister-in-law, have some with us. You have been busy this morning and didn't have time to eat."

Upon hearing this, the Duke's wife hurriedly said, "Then sit down and enjoy together."

Qin Xiaoning asked the maid to bring bowls and chopsticks for Li Lanchun and the Sixth Girl, and then she personally served soup for them.

The Sixth Girl was small, so she just took it with a smile. Li Lanchun glanced at Qin Xiaoning's slightly bulging belly, but felt uncomfortable in her heart.

Serving the parents-in-law breakfast is the duty of a new bride.

There was nothing wrong with this, but Li Lanchun always felt awkward having Qin Xiaoning serve her and the Sixth Miss.

I regretted sitting down just now.

The eldest daughter-in-law and daughter sat down to eat, only the pregnant daughter-in-law stood aside. The wife of the Duke felt even more uncomfortable. She was about to ask Qin Xiaoning to sit down as well, when a maid came in and said that Lu Ji was here.

Without waiting for the Duke's wife's consent, Lu Ji strode into the house.

He didn't even have time to change into his court robes. It was obvious that he had hurried over after the court session.

He was afraid that she, as the mother-in-law, would make his daughter-in-law angry.

This was not the Duke's wife who was wrongly accusing anyone. As soon as Lu Ji entered the room, his face was dark, as if someone owed him money. Anyone with eyes could see his obvious intentions.

The Duke's wife glared at him, then swallowed back the words she had just said to ask Qin Xiaoning to take a seat.

Li Lanchun glanced at Lu Ji, then turned to look at the Duke's wife, opened her mouth, but didn't know how to start.

The Sixth Girl didn't say anything either.

In this situation, Qin Xiaoning had no idea what to say.

Because of Lu Ji's arrival, the huge main room immediately fell into awkward silence.

Three people sat in front of the table, Qin Xiaoning stood beside the Duke's wife, Lu Ji raised his eyes and glanced at them, then sat down on the armchair with a disdainful look on his face. When the maid brought him tea, he sat there with a big sword and a golden horse, holding the teacup in one hand and stirring the tea leaves with the tea lid in the other.

The "click, click" sound of the tea lid being fiddled with echoed in the quiet room, appearing particularly clear.

Who can still eat this?

Li Lanchun was the first to put down her chopsticks, followed by the Sixth Miss. The Duke's wife ignored Lu Ji and continued to eat, but the "clacking" sound made people feel upset. After a while, the Duke's wife could no longer hold back and put down her chopsticks as well.

"Second brother, why don't you come and use some too?" The Sixth Miss couldn't help but ask.

Lu Ji didn't even raise his eyelids and replied coldly: "I'm not hungry, you can just use it well."

The man had a cold face and looked unhappy all over.

Looking at his appearance, who can eat?