Chapter 358 Extra Chapter: With You (Part 11)

When Lord Mu heard Princess Yongxin say that they might not even be qualified to enter the gates of the Duke of Dingguo's mansion, his heart skipped a beat.

Previously, the Ministry of Works had made some mistakes, and he quickly found someone to fill in. Although the matter had nothing to do with him, he was still at fault for negligence and concealment as a superior.

If the imperial court really investigates, he will definitely be punished.

He might even be demoted...

His daughter frequently visited the palace, and the Empress trusted him; even the current Regent had once been her friend.

Does she... know something?

Lord Mu wanted to stop Princess Yongxin to ask what was going on, but he could only watch helplessly as the carriage left.

"Master, nothing will happen! That incident happened so long ago, it has nothing to do with you!" Madam Mu quickly comforted her from the side.

“Yes, Father, that happened so long ago, and you’re still doing your job normally! My elder sister… she was just trying to scare you.” Mu Chen chimed in from the side.

Lord Mu thought for a moment, then simply nodded.

"Master, how are we going to get there in ten days?" Madam Mu asked Lord Mu cautiously.

"Ten days from now...aren't you on good terms with Madam Xu? Why don't you go with them?" Lord Mu suggested.

Madam Mu's eyes darkened.

She was on good terms with Madam Xu, but yesterday when she invited Madam Xu for tea, Madam Xu declined to come.

Will she really be willing to go with the Mu family to celebrate Madam Shen's birthday?

Madam Mu has absolutely no confidence!

...

When Princess Yongxin returned to Chunbuwan, Wei Yanli had already prepared tea and snacks.

"So? Finally decided to let it go?" Wei Yanli asked in a low voice.

Princess Yongxin hummed in agreement.

"Yes, I've completely let go of it. When I went there, I was thinking about whether I should bring back all the things I left in that mansion."

Later, I realized I couldn't recall anything else I might have in that mansion.

It seems I really have no connection with that household anymore!

Wei Yanli handed the tea he had poured to Princess Yongxin.

"There wasn't anything like that to begin with! You were raised in the palace by the Empress Dowager as soon as you were a month old. Even if the Mu family had things for you, they were things from when you were just born."

Do you think your father would have the intention to keep those things from back then?

Your mother's dowry... was also taken back by the Korean Duke's Mansion.

After the Empress Dowager passed away, you went directly to the Duke of Han's mansion after leaving the palace. Even when you occasionally returned to the Mu mansion, it was always a hurried trip.

It's perfectly normal that there's nothing of yours over there!

Your home has never been the Mu residence.

If the royal palace was your first home, then the Han Kingdom's residence was your second home.

Perhaps you will have a third home in the future, but it certainly won't be the Mu family's!

"Try to think positively. The Mu residence... is just a guest's home," Wei Yanli advised kindly.

After hearing Wei Yanli's words, Princess Yongxin finally felt a little better.

"That's true. I've only stayed at the Mu family's house a few times. Since that's the case, I won't be sad."

That place was never my home to begin with. Princess Yongxin chuckled self-deprecatingly.

Wei Yanli quickly handed a pastry to Princess Yongxin.

"If you ask me, you really should learn from Song Zhimian in this regard."

Look at Song Zhimian, she was originally the daughter of a marquis, but then she just gave up such a big family estate.

Song Zhimian never mentions that she was once the daughter of a marquis in public! She only recognizes one identity: a female official in the palace.

Isn't this great!

You should think of it this way: even though your father is nothing special, you have many more people who love you!

Your Majesty, there are so many people in the Duke of Han's mansion, and there's also the Empress, you still have us, Song Zhimin, and Xiao Ruanruan...

So many people like you, why are you still hung up on whether some scoundrel likes you or not!

You're not as open-minded as Song Zhimian in this respect.

"Didn't Song Zhimian say that people should think more about what they have and not always think about what they don't have?" Wei Yanli continued to earnestly advise Princess Yongxin.

Princess Yongxin snorted, but in her heart she wholeheartedly agreed with what Wei Yanli had said.

Exactly, we already have so much, why bother worrying about what we don't have?

Some things are better off without...

"Alright, then I won't think about those things anymore. Wei Yanli, you'll probably be going out with me on some errands in a couple of days. We should be back after Old Madam Shen's birthday and before Xiao Huaijin's wedding."

"Okay, I'll go with you!"

Hey, Mu Xiao, let me tell you, now is the perfect time for you to go out. No matter what happens to the Mu family, you can pretend you don't know anything.

I suspect that His Majesty and his entourage chose this exact moment.

I'll go pack my things right away. Oh, I need to go back and tell my grandma and the others first, otherwise it wouldn't be good if they couldn't find me.

Two days later, Princess Yongxin and Wei Yanli left the capital in a carriage, accompanied by people from the inner palace and a team of imperial guards.

As everyone knows, these two masters are out on official business and are not in the capital recently.

...

Two days after Princess Yongxin and Wei Yanli went out on business, an imperial edict was issued from that palace.

Lord Mu was dismissed from his post for failing to perform his duties effectively and for neglecting to supervise and conceal the mistakes made by his subordinates.

The moment the imperial edict was read, Lord Mu collapsed to the ground.

He was dismissed from his official post... so he would have to stay at home in retirement from now on.

"Lord Mu... no, I should say Master Mu, you should thank him!"

If it weren't for His Majesty's consideration for the princess, it wouldn't have been as simple as just being dismissed from your post. Right now, you've only lost your official position; you're still a commoner!

Those two officials from your Ministry of Works who were involved in the case were both demoted to commoners.

You'd better take care of yourself!

Lord Mu's first thought was to find Princess Yongxin.

He knew that his dismissal from office was definitely related to his daughter, and that she must have been plotting something behind the scenes.

How could she dare! He's her father!

However, he not only failed to see Princess Yongxin, but he also failed to enter the gate of the Duke of Han's mansion.

Madam Zhao sent a message out.

"Mr. Mu, you should cherish your life as it is now! If you keep causing trouble, who knows what might happen!"

...

Just as Princess Yongxin said, Madam Mu was unable to take Mu Chen to pay respects to Old Madam Shen on her birthday. It was as if the Mu family had suddenly disappeared from the sight of the people in the capital.

Princess Yongxin and Wei Yanli went to the southwest after attending the Regent's wedding.

Wei Yanli told Princess Yongxin that everything in the Southwest was good, except that it could tan people's skin.

Princess Yongxin, not wanting to deal with the Mu family, immediately agreed.

...

Another year passed, and Princess Yongxin and Wei Yanli, far away in the southwest, received an imperial decree bestowing a marriage upon them...

The former empress felt sorry for Princess Yongxin and had a princess's mansion built for her in the southwest.

"Mu Xiao, this is your third home!"