Because the matter of establishing a new empress was still unresolved, Zhou Wanxiu was quite agitated.

But she really had no way to contact Lu Xingjian, and when she went to the Su family to see Su Wanwan, she was turned away.

After much deliberation, she tearfully explained the situation to her great-grandfather.

She hopes the Zhou family will step in and send her to the palace; she doesn't care whether she becomes empress or a concubine.

When Marquis Zhou An of Qingyun heard that the emperor liked Su Wanwan, he was first shocked, and then fell silent.

He recalled that in June, the emperor had suddenly traveled incognito to the Qingyun Marquis's residence, and that evening he had been a guest there.

Wanwan entered the palace as a lady-in-waiting with a limp, but left the palace not long after...

Everything will then be clear!

He looked at Zhou Wanxiu with a complicated expression, and quickly made up his mind:

"Prepare the carriage; we're heading to the Grand Princess Chun'an's residence."

The next day, the imperial son-in-law Cai Zhen submitted a memorial requesting the establishment of an empress, and nominated a noblewoman from a prominent family who had been raised in the palace since childhood and was beautiful and intelligent as the first choice.

They were practically just going to write Su Wanwan's name out directly.

Lu Xingjian kept the memorial to the emperor, but arranged for the New Year's Day sacrificial ceremony to be led by Cai Zhen.

The news spread like wildfire.

The Shouning Marquis's household, which was recently on the verge of collapse, grasped at a straw and quickly submitted a memorial requesting the establishment of a new empress.

The wording was almost identical to Cai Zhen's, but he added a sentence:

The best candidates should be virtuous and generous individuals who are selfless and altruistic, such as the daughter of Su Nan, the former Assistant Director of the Ministry of War's Carriage and Vehicle Management Office.

Lu Xingjian couldn't help but chuckle when he saw this sentence.

He immediately ordered in a pleasant tone to release Zhang Zonghui, who was imprisoned in the imperial prison.

Marquis Zhang Heling of Shouning wiped his sweat, relieved that he had guessed the emperor's mind correctly.

In the inner palace, Empress Dowager Wang did have some complaints.

She wanted to send one of her maternal grandnieces to the palace to become a concubine.

I heard that Su Wanwan's body is damaged and she can't have children.

Whoever gives birth to a prince will have a firm grip on the next emperor.

The temptation was too great; they wanted to try it no matter what.

Lu Xingjian couldn't help but frown.

After Empress Dowager Zhang's power waned, Lady Wang began to boldly set conditions.

The power dynamics within the harem are merely a matter of one side prevailing over the other, a constant ebb and flow.

The Wang family, with three members holding the titles of Marquis and Earl, was still not satisfied; they were never satisfied with their wealth and honor.

He immediately ordered the salt release from the Wang family to be stopped.

Wang was a smart woman; knowing she had met with a tough opponent, she knew when to stop and said no more.

The new empress has not yet been chosen, but the Imperial Household Department is already making preparations for all the items needed for the emperor's wedding.

Ma Ji was probably the most anxious person in the entire capital.

She deeply regretted that she shouldn't have acted impulsively and argued with the emperor at the Su family's gate that day.

She thought the emperor would be good-natured and coax her to make her happy.

As many times before.

However.

No.

Now, at this crucial juncture of establishing a new empress, the emperor refuses to see her and forbids her from entering the palace again.

If the emperor were to act on a whim and make another woman his empress, wouldn't all her efforts over the past few months have been in vain, like she'd been working for someone else's benefit?

And you've offended so many people for no reason!

It's all that bitch Su Wanwan's fault.

It seems that on that day outside the Su family's gate, after Su Wanwan opened the door and glanced inside, the emperor suddenly turned cold towards her.

Maggie found the fourth young lady of the Zhenyuan Marquis's mansion, with whom she was on good terms, and whispered and plotted for a long time.

...

New Year's Eve arrived in the blink of an eye.

The Su family only has three members in the capital: Su Nan, Su Wanwan, and Wanying. However, they still need to visit many relatives and friends to exchange New Year's greetings.

Su Wanying planned to visit Master Qian, who had saved Su Nan and her from trouble, on the first day of the Lunar New Year to express her gratitude.

Su Wanwan then arranged to visit the Yang family to offer New Year's greetings.

After all, Yang Ting was her teacher, and Madam Yu was her sworn sister; she should at least make this trip.

After visiting the Zhou family again on the second day of the Lunar New Year, I can continue to stay at home.

The congratulatory gift she brought to Yang Ting included some everyday gifts as well as a printed copy of "Essential Prescriptions Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold for Emergency Use".

Yang Ting and his wife went to the palace early in the morning to participate in the New Year's Day greetings and did not arrive home until nearly noon.

"We will sell it at cost price, and try our best to make sure that major bookstores and clinics have this book," Su Wanwan said respectfully.

Yang Ting stroked his beard and nodded, his eyes showing approval.

Scholars like to collect ancient books.

Because errors are inevitable during the copying process, the more books are passed down, the more erroneous they become, and they may even distort the original meaning.

Especially in medical books, a single wrong word could turn a life-saving prescription into a deadly one.

Therefore, the older the classic text, the more immeasurable its value.

Whether for collection or as a gift, it is a rare and precious item.

Whoever gets their hands on it will treasure it and will not easily show it to others.

Unexpectedly, Su Wanwan was so generous as to publish the precious ancient books, allowing knowledge to reach more people.

In this way, the value of the ancient book in her hands will actually decrease.

But this kind of practice, which seeks to benefit the world and bring good fortune to everyone, is especially worthy of our deepest respect.

Madam Yu warmly invited Su Wanwan to sit down, then gave Yang Ting a reproachful look, her expression ambiguous.

"Master, why don't you have Wanwan print all the ancient books in your collection?"

Yang Tingzheng was drinking tea when he heard this and choked on his own. He then changed the subject.

"Is lunch ready? Wanwan has been waiting for us all day, she must be hungry."

Madam Yu smiled and complained to Su Wanwan in a low voice, "They treat all those ancient books like treasures, and they won't even let anyone see them."

Su Wanwan covered her mouth and laughed.

Unlike other couples who treat each other with the utmost respect, Yang Ge Lao and Madam Yu, who married later in life, had a more down-to-earth and ordinary relationship.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!