"Why bring up unpleasant things, Mother? There are some things I remember. I will naturally avenge this blood feud." Shu Chengfeng was still smiling, but his eyes were filled with hatred.

His elder brother, Shu Changfeng, the eldest prince of the Dayan Dynasty, who was posthumously honored as the Prince of Qin, was someone he greatly admired in his childhood.

He was also the brother who loved him the most, but later, he died in such a terrible way.

Over the years, although he was the crown prince, what had the empress been like? What was his own situation like? The apparent peace was nothing but a false illusion.

He remembers it all. No rush. There will be a day when he turns all of this upside down.

"That's good." The Empress wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes. "Don't overwork yourself; your health is important. It's getting late, so to avoid trouble, go and kowtow to the Empress Dowager and then go back. As for Yan Shi, since she's coming into the mansion, make proper arrangements for her. Also, tell Ning Shi to be more sensible and not just be jealous."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I will go now. Please rest assured, Mother." Shu Chengfeng rose and took his leave.

In the Empress Dowager's palace, Shu Chengfeng merely paid his respects and then left.

The Empress Dowager was the late Emperor's principal wife, but unfortunately, she was not the current Emperor's biological mother.

Although they have honor, they have no say in illness.

At Shuiyun Manor, Yan Nangui, having rested for two or three days, was in better spirits and it was time for him to deal with the affairs of those around him.

"The old ladies have worked hard and have to go out again. I'm going to the Crown Prince's residence as a concubine, so I can't bring much dowry. Sell everything in my dowry that can be sold. Exchange everything that can be converted into silver notes. As for the estate, keep only this one and sell the rest. There's still time."

The old women agreed, which was only right. Once inside the Crown Prince's residence, these things should, in principle, belong to the residence.

Bringing cash is the most practical way to make money.

"These things can be done in about twenty days. You can take your time. However... I need to take a few people with me when I enter the manor, so I need to choose them carefully."

Yan Nangui looked down at the people below.

An old woman frowned: "Girl, you should think this over carefully. These girls... aren't necessarily honest."

“Of course. There’s no time like the present, let’s do it today.” Yan Nangui sat up straight: “Go, call all the people who came from the Meng family and those who came with me from the Yan family to the Meng family.”

Soon, people went there.

Everyone was trembling with fear. In the past, many people were not afraid of her. Although she was powerful in the past, she was only powerful in words and had not actually done anything.

But after she dealt with Li and others, none of the servants below were afraid.

Within fifteen minutes, the room was filled with people, and there were also fifty or sixty people outside the door.

The four maids at the front are named Chunlan and Qiuju, and they have been with her for many years.

"Chun'er, I took you away. Do you hate me a lot now? Hmm? I know about your affair with Meng Junxian."

Chun'er was startled and quickly knelt down: "Miss...this servant wouldn't dare..."

"Lan'er, how much money did the Li family pay you to sell out all my business here?"

Lan'er also knelt down, trembling all over: "This servant didn't, this servant didn't, Miss has misunderstood..."

"Qiu'er, you didn't do anything too wrong, but you were disloyal as a servant. You knew they were trying to harm me, but you just turned a blind eye."

Qiu'er also knelt down, not daring to speak, only bowing her head.

“Miss, I know I was wrong, I know I was wrong…” The last one, Ju’er, knelt down before Yan Nangui could even speak.

"Yes, you know you were wrong, but so what? Your mistakes are enormous. Knowing that the magpie wanted to harm me, you deliberately sent everyone away from the courtyard. This is just one example; how many more are there? Hmm? From the time you came to the General's Mansion, from the time you came before me. Are you my servants, or the Princess's servants?"

The group was terrified and could only beg for mercy; they dared not say anything more.

"And you all." Yan Nangui glanced at the crowd behind him.

Everyone had already knelt down.

“You should know why I killed you. I was a mistress in the Meng family for two years, and you fooled me for two years. It was me who told Li that I had thought about it before, which is why I could endure everything. But when I didn’t want to, what were you? In the past, you benefited from stepping on me and called me a fool behind my back. Do you regret it today?”

Everyone was afraid, so naturally they kept saying they dared not do it again, and they all regretted it.

pity.

"These four young ladies were carefully selected by the Princess. They are all beautiful and talented girls. Don't waste your looks, sell them to a brothel. Tell them that if anyone is willing to redeem them, don't stop them. That would be their own good fortune."

The four maids were shocked and cried and begged, but none of them were willing. Would they still be human if they did that?

"If you have any backbone, then commit suicide. I'll take care of your funeral arrangements," Yan Nangui said calmly.

Upon hearing this, the four of them paused in their weeping, but who dared to do so? Who would choose to die when they could live?

They were eventually dragged out.

Although the four girls were not bad-looking, they were no longer young girls in their teens and would not be valued.

Besides, Chun'er is no longer a virgin.

After dealing with the four senior maids, the junior maids were all trembling with fear. Some hadn't done anything wrong, but they were naturally afraid of being implicated. Those who felt guilty were already shaking uncontrollably.

Yan Nangui, having witnessed the original owner's situation firsthand, understood it even better. If it weren't for the disloyalty of these servants, she wouldn't have ended up in such a predicament. Her servants had been replaced several times throughout her life; there was practically no one truly loyal anymore.

"Let these eight young girls go with the army. The north is bitterly cold, so let's send them to the south."

The girls were both scared and relieved.

At least she wasn't sold into a brothel.

"Suijun" (随军) did not refer to military prostitutes, but rather to a unique custom in the Dayan Dynasty. It involved forcibly arranging marriages between erring maids or women from corrupt officials' families. However, because these women were required to accompany soldiers, the term "suijun" (随军) gradually came to mean accompanying them.

They might rise in the future because of their husbands' achievements, but it wouldn't be easy for them to leave their homeland and go to the place where the soldiers were stationed.

Women were not allowed in the army; they could only live in nearby towns.

It's possible that we might only see each other a few times a year, which is quite tough.

But even if life is tough, it's still a normal life, unlike the life of the four older girls.

After dealing with those close to her, Yan Nangui was left with only the people managing the shops or estates, and the several stewardesses in her main courtyard.

These seasoned veterans were clearly not like young girls; they had a lot to say about explaining and arguing.

But the wild geese fly south, and they don't care at all.

She knew all about these things, and immediately ordered the two mothers to be dragged out and beaten: "Sixty strokes of the cane. If they live, kick them out. If they die, throw them out."

If it weren't for those old women, they wouldn't have so easily sent a maid in with someone to force-feed her medicine that day.