Chapter 314 Putting a Sack

Upon hearing this, the carriage was quickly stopped. Li Mingshu was a little confused after being called down, but she heard her second brother calling her. Soon, she took Yue'er and changed carriages to Lin Changning's and the others' carriage.

Qi Rong moved further inside, making room for Li Mingshu and Yue'er. He reached out and pulled Yue'er into his arms, while he leaned against Lin Changning, nodding his chin and gesturing to Li Mingshu to look at the stack of drawings on the table.

"Third Sister, could you take a look at these blueprints for Xiao Liu? Xiao Liu wants to open an embroidery shop. All the girls in our Ciyoutang who are over 12 years old can go to the embroidery shop to make a living and learn a skill. I think this idea is good. Xiao Liu has also drawn some blueprints. Can you see if they will be popular with the wives of officials in Taiyuan?"

After Li Mingshu sat down, she nodded slightly to Lin Changning. Hearing her second brother say this, she responded and picked up a stack of drawings from the table.

By the dim candlelight, Li Mingshu flipped through the pages one by one. The more she looked, the brighter her eyes became. Suddenly, she remembered the gorgeous dress she wore at her aunt's banquet that day.

Looking up at Lin Changning, she asked, "The day you picked me up from the manor, was the pattern on the clothes my aunt was wearing drawn by you?"

Lin Changning nodded at Li Mingshu: "I did draw several sets of clothes. The one that the Princess and the County Princess wore should be a mother-daughter outfit that I drew at the time. The material and accessories are very valuable, but at the time it was just to get a spot in the mansion."

If it weren't for the eldest princess deliberately letting them escape, it probably wouldn't have been so easy to get away that day.

Li Mingshu nodded, looking intently at her second brother: "These clothes are exquisite and novel in style. I like them very much, and I think the wives of officials in Taiyuan will like them too."

Lin Changning looked at Li Mingshu with some suspicion and asked, "Is what the princess said true?"

Li Mingshu chuckled: "Of course it's true. Putting aside the quality of the fabric, the elaborate and gorgeous designs alone are enough to capture the hearts of many officials' wives. If they were made into ready-made clothes, could you give me a few sets? If I wear them to a banquet, people will probably come to inquire, and I can introduce you to Xiao Liu."

After saying this, Li Mingshu became somewhat dejected: "It's been almost four years since I've been home, and I've rarely received any messages from home in recent years. I don't know if the officialdom in Taiyuan still recognizes me as a..."

Lin Changning and Qi Rong exchanged glances. She could tell that the princess was somewhat downcast. Perhaps it was because she was longing to return home, or perhaps it was because she had been suppressed and imprisoned by the Marquis's mansion in the capital for the past few years. A strong sense of insecurity slowly emanated from Li Mingshu.

Qi Rong had seen his younger sister before; she was well-educated, beautiful, and radiant. But now, seeing his third sister with her head down, her eyes somewhat vacant, and her whole being filled with gloom, he couldn't help but feel even more resentful towards the people of the Marquis's mansion.

Qi Rong even gritted his teeth at the emperor who had bestowed the marriage upon him.

Looking at his younger sister, who had been wasted like this, Qi Rong sighed softly. Back then, when his sister had just turned 14, an imperial decree of marriage arrived in the capital. His aunt was anxious at the time and did not want his sister to go to the capital as a hostage, so she came up with the excuse that she had already betrothed his sister to him.

The two were cousins, and he had grown up in the Chu Prince's mansion since childhood, so it makes sense.

However, he had already joined the army at that time, and coincidentally, Daxing was frequently clashing with the Tartars on the border. He was leading his troops to fight and defend the city, and it was a time when he couldn't leave his post.

When the war ended, he returned to the palace with his men. His sister had already accepted the imperial decree and was to go to the capital to get married a few months later.

The matter is settled, and there is no room for maneuver.

Ashu was always considerate of her aunt and uncle and did not want to cause trouble for her family, so she married them and went to the capital as a hostage.

The young master of that Marquis's mansion was a reckless and unruly man. He was the one who went to escort the bride back then. Originally, I thought that if the young master could protect Shu'er, she wouldn't have to live a miserable life.

He was too young and impetuous back then. After bringing his sister to the capital, he first led his men to give the heir a hard time.

At that time, he found out that the prince already had a sweetheart, who was the daughter of the wet nurse in his room. He used both threats and inducements to get the prince to agree to give his sister a respectable position.

However, on the eve of his sister's wedding, the wet nurse's daughter died suddenly. Although he wanted to make things easier for his sister, he never thought of taking the life of another innocent woman.

After secretly investigating, he discovered that it was Marquis Jing'an who was behind it. By the time he found out, it was too late. Not long after leaving the capital, news came from the Prince's residence that his sister and the heir apparent were having marital problems.

A few months later, we heard the news that my younger sister was pregnant. At the time, the family was happy for her, until Yue'er was born.

Her unusual white hair caused her to suffer years of gossip, and the people around her were eliminated one by one by the mistress of the Marquis's mansion on the grounds that she was not a virtuous woman.

Even when Yue'er was less than a month old, her younger sister and Yue'er rushed to the side courtyard.

That brat from the Marquis's mansion was so ruthless as to lay a hand on his wife and daughter. When he stepped into the capital that time, seeing the bruises on his sister's arms and wrists, and the injuries on Yue'er's face, he couldn't hold back any longer.

He beat people up and threatened to kill his sister if she dared to lay a hand on him again.

Unfortunately, he couldn't stay in the capital often, so he only stayed quiet for a few days. In addition, the news that his aunt had told him she would marry his sister to him back then actually confirmed the rumors that he and his sister had an affair.

After being fined several months' salary and beaten by the Duke, her life became difficult again after she was recalled to the frontier.

Fortunately, they were brought back.

"Ah Shu, you've had a tough time all these years. Your eldest brother is the heir apparent, your uncle is a prince, and your second brother also has military power. No one else in Taiyuan would dare to look down on you."

Lin Changning nodded vigorously: "That's right. The princess is beautiful and kind. Her father and brothers are all powerful. Anyone who looks down on the princess is going against us. If anyone dares to say anything to the princess or Yue'er after we go back, just tell me. I'll bring my brothers to put a sack on them."

Li Mingshu watched the two people coaxing her and silently curled the corners of her lips: "Xiao Liu, putting a sack on top? What does that mean?"

Lin Changning shrugged: "It's just about finding a sack, a few brothers, and then putting the sack over the backs of those who talk badly about others. We just punch them until they don't even know who we are. That's what we call 'putting them in a sack.'"

Yue'er clenched her little fists and said with burning eyes, "Then if anyone bullies Mother in the future, Yue'er will go and put a sack over their head."

Qi Rong: ...

Qi Rong glanced at Lin Changning, who was nodding in agreement, and slapped him on the back of the head: "Little Six!! What nonsense are you spouting in front of Yue'er?"

Lin Changning stared wide-eyed, clutching the back of his head, looking at Qi Rong with disbelief.

Li Mingshu couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Then thank you very much, Xiao Liu."