Prince Rong was only a few years older than Emperor Shunqing. When Emperor Shunqing ascended the throne, he was still clueless about the meaning of power. By the time he tasted power and his ambition swelled, Emperor Shunqing, under the tutelage of several regents such as Grand Secretary Lin and Grand Tutor Zhou, had also gradually consolidated his power. Prince Rong could only secretly plot, hoping to strike decisively.

In recent years, he has been able to win over fewer and fewer court officials, so he has turned his attention to the rising stars in the court.

A figure like the Imperial Advisor was naturally someone he wanted to win over.

He never expected that, while he was still struggling to win over the Grand Preceptor, he would be getting married to the Princess.

In that case, there's no point in him trying to win over the Imperial Advisor anymore!

Originally, his daughter, Princess Qingping, had a crush on the Imperial Preceptor. He turned a blind eye to her antics, thinking that if things went well, the Imperial Preceptor would have no choice but to side with him, which would be a good thing.

Unexpectedly, her daughter not only became a laughingstock, but also died a violent death.

The heir of Prince Rong also looked gloomy.

"Father, if this continues, we will have no chance at all!" His tone was slightly anxious.

Prince Rong understood his son's meaning. Originally, he already controlled three of the six ministries, but after losing control of the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War, he was left with only the useless Ministry of Rites. Fortunately, through their tireless efforts over the years, the Minister of Personnel had softened his stance slightly and might be of use.

Moreover, Grand Secretary Zhang's appetite is growing bigger and bigger, and he is clearly not satisfied anymore.

Since losing the Dingzhou iron mine, he has been increasingly short of money. He has no way to reach the hearts of scholars and officials, and he can't even befriend the newly powerful Imperial Preceptor. How could he not be at his wit's end?

Seeing his father at a loss, the Prince Rong's heir gritted his teeth and said resolutely, "Father, we've been planning this for years, we can't give up. Now the Minister of Rites is one of our men, how about this..."

He said a few words in a low voice.

Prince Rong listened, pondered for a moment, looked at his son with approval, and smiled…

...

Soon, the day of the Grand Preceptor and the Princess's wedding arrived.

Su Youran arrived at the Imperial Preceptor's residence early in the morning.

Ever since her adoptive mother slapped her hand last time, she dared not see her adoptive mother again.

Anyway, it's not too late to try and please her after my godmother becomes my teacher's wife.

Moreover, with Yueyue in the Princess's residence, there shouldn't be any trouble.

But the Imperial Preceptor's Mansion is too difficult; there are seven Calabash Brothers in total!

Even on their wedding day, they set up a row of stalls in front of the Imperial Preceptor's mansion!

When she arrived at the gate of the Imperial Preceptor's residence early in the morning, she saw the seven Calabash Brothers setting up a table and banners. Enraged, she went straight up and overturned the bright yellow tablecloth.

The seventh senior brother was startled. "Oh dear, I didn't do anything to offend you today!"

Su Youran sneered, "Don't you know what day it is today?"

"I know, my martial uncle is getting married!"

"Hmm, so you still set up stalls because you know?"

The eldest brother chuckled and said, "Grandma, it's our wedding, not ours! Does it mean we can't even earn a living because of our uncle's wedding?"

"On the day of the Imperial Preceptor's wedding, you can't even get a bite to eat? You're expected to set up a stall in front of the gate to earn your own food?" Su Youran shouted, hands on her hips, pointing her finger at their noses. "This old lady thinks you're all obsessed with money! Huh? Haven't you earned enough these past few days? You can't have a single day off?!"

The seventh senior brother looked miserable. "It's not about whether we've earned enough or not. You don't know how poor we've been. We're afraid that this dream of making a hundred gold coins a day is just a fantasy! So we dare not stop for a single day. Who would complain about having too much silver?"

Su Youran snorted, "Haven't you heard the saying, 'Things are valued for their scarcity'? You set up your stall every day and can only get a hundred taels each time. But if you only set up your stall once a month, you can get a thousand or even ten thousand taels each time. Do you believe it or not?"

The seven gourd brothers all shook their heads.

Su Youran looked at the once magnificent Imperial Preceptor's mansion and thought that if her adoptive mother married into the family and took charge of the household affairs, she would have to endure the annoyance of the stalls in front of the gate every day. Then an idea came to her mind. "Come, come... let me tell you a way to make money..."

The seven of them surrounded it, and after a moment, "Huh—"

A long, drawn-out chorus of ridicule, filled with doubt and mockery, followed by, "Grandma, this is absolutely impossible! Impossible, impossible!"

Su Youran put her hands on her hips again, "Is it possible? We'll know once we try! Here's what we'll do: I've got plenty of money. One month! Just one month, and you'll switch to an appointment system and declare that you'll only do ten orders a month! If your income is less than three thousand taels, I'll make up the difference!"

The seven Calabash Brothers were skeptical. "Really?"

"really!"

The eldest brother immediately and decisively took back his fortune-telling banner, rolled it up, and finally carried it on his shoulder. "Alright! I'm too lazy to stand here in the wind and rain every day. We should trust the little goddess of wealth!"

He spoke his last sentence with utmost seriousness.

The others also immediately began packing up, preparing to scatter like birds and beasts.

Su Youran called out to them, "Wait a minute!"

The seventh senior brother asked with a grin, "Grandma, is there anything else you need?"

"Today is Master's wedding day, aren't you going to give him a gift?"

The seventh senior brother immediately understood, "He Yi! Of course! Hahaha—"

He laughed as he backed towards the door, "Don't worry, Grandma... don't worry! We've already prepared the wedding gifts for Uncle's wedding!"

The group quickly disappeared inside the door.

For some reason, Su Youran suddenly had a bad feeling.

She simply thought that there would be many guests coming to offer their congratulations today, and she didn't want people to look down on the Imperial Preceptor's residence, so she gave a reminder.

I wonder what kind of congratulatory gift these seven Calabash Brothers will send?

Forget it, I'll just tell Master's two doormen to deliver it quietly and not make a fuss.

The Imperial Preceptor's residence was brightly decorated, having long been adorned by officials from the Ministry of Rites sent by Emperor Shunqing. Seven or eight officials from the Ministry of Rites were currently surrounding Wuwang, helping him try on his wedding attire.

As soon as Su Youran entered the courtyard, she saw her senior brother Wen Yuanbai standing there with a serious expression.

Curious, she stepped forward and affectionately called out, "Senior Brother!"

Wen Yuanbai turned around, his serious expression immediately softening into a smile. "Junior Sister, you've arrived?"

"Yes, Master is about to become my godfather, so of course I have to come earlier!"

Wen Yuanbai slapped her forehead with his folding fan. "You still dare to talk back! You've been meddling in Master and the Princess's good time, haven't you?"

Su Youran touched her forehead, "I already said it's a good thing! Master will definitely thank me!"

Wen Yuanbai glared at her. "Speaking of which, you are your aunt's adopted daughter, so you should be considered part of the woman's family according to etiquette. You should go back to the Princess's residence!"

Su Youran snorted, "I'm still Master's disciple! I won't!"