Trip to the Capital (Part 5)

As the sun set, after a day of sightseeing, Wang Pan'er and Lin Lan returned to the princess's residence hand in hand, chatting and laughing.

Just as I stepped into the living room, a loud shout exploded at my feet.

"You bastard, kneel down!"

Before any candles were lit in the living room, both Wang Pan'er and Lin Lan shuddered in the dim light.

Upon closer inspection, an elderly woman sat upright on the left side of the hall, her drooping eyebrows revealing a fierce look. On the right was a middle-aged man, slightly drunk, leaning loosely against the armrest. His distinguished features were still faintly visible, but tainted by alcohol and debauchery, he had become just another ordinary person.

Wang Pan'er calmed herself down and looked at the two of them. Lin Lan, who was standing to the side, had not broken his kneecap either.

Asking guests to kneel before the host is utterly unheard of.

The old woman, having lost face, slammed her hand heavily on the coffee table between the seats.

She was old and weak, so the sound of her slapping the table was not loud, but the sound of her nail guards scraping across the table was enough to make one scratch their head in frustration.

Wang Pan'er frowned as she looked at the two people sitting down.

A maidservant brought over a bowl of hangover soup. The prince consort took a sip and said lightly, "I heard you were brought to the manor by Xiao Chuan?"

This demeanor and tone suggest ill intent.

Is this a show of force?

What right does a prince consort who is not favored by the princess have to be arrogant? Wang Pan'er scoffed lightly: "Yes, what can I do for you?"

At this moment, the maid who brought the hangover soup lit the candles again, and the dim living room was brightened again.

The prince consort was surprised that the girl his son brought back to the mansion was a tough one. He put down the soup bowl unhappily, leaned forward slightly, and looked Wang Pan'er up and down several times.

He disdained to reply to this lowly junior, and turned to his mother, saying, "She seems like a good mother. If Xiao Chuan really likes her, it wouldn't be a bad idea to take her as a concubine."

It's unclear where this prince consort gets his confidence to think he has the right to interfere in Mu Chuan's life. Wang Pan'er won't tolerate such arrogant words.

Her hard work wasn't just for a living; more often, it was because she needed to hold the power of choice. Just like her choice with Mu Chuan, it was a two-way street, equal, and not something that this clueless prince consort could decide.

Wang Pan'er curled her lips into a mocking smile, stepped forward, and looked down at the prince consort and his mother: "It's getting late, why don't you wash up and go to bed early? Whatever you want, you can have it in your dreams."

"you!"

The imperial son-in-law's status rose with his wife's, and for many years, who would openly oppose him? Accustomed to being fawned over, he was so angry when a junior disrespected him that his hand trembled as he pointed at Wang Pan'er.

The old woman, unlike the prince consort, quickly scanned the area with her cloudy eyes and began to slur her words: "Such insolence! I will certainly not allow you to enter my Lin family ancestral hall!"

"What? Did I hear that right?" Wang Pan'er picked at her ear provocatively. "Your Lin family ancestral hall? Are you even surnamed Lin?"

The old woman stated firmly, "Once you marry into the Lin family, you become a member of the Lin family."

"Then you might be disappointed, old lady. I'm planning to create my own family tree. I'll ask your precious grandson if he'd like to be included in my ancestral hall."

The prince consort was a son-in-law who married into the family, and his son and daughter were always close to the princess. Apart from taking his surname, they didn't resemble any of the Lin family's offspring at all.

He had long resented himself for having two ungrateful children, and now Wang Pan'er's rebellious remarks, which sounded like she was trying to cut off the Lin family line, were even more hurtful to the mother and son.

The old woman was so upset by Wang Pan'er's provocation that she clutched her chest and gasped for breath. The prince consort was startled by his mother and sobered up completely. He rushed to check on his mother's condition.

There were plenty of chairs in the living room, so Wang Pan'er casually picked one up and sat down. She then asked Lin Lan, who was standing next to her, "Your father treats His Highness badly, but what about your grandmother?"

Lin Lan was stunned by Wang Pan'er's resounding remarks and stared dumbfounded at the one-sided crushing victory.

This is even more formidable than Shen Yujiao. It's unexpected that this seemingly unassuming future sister-in-law is such a powerful figure.

Already in a state of adoration, Lin Lan immediately shook her head when asked the question. She leaned close to Wang Pan'er's ear and whispered, "It's just that she doesn't dare to cause trouble because of her mother's status. There are no fools in the princess's mansion. Everyone knows that Father resents Mother for taking a liking to him back then and ruining his career. Now, he and Grandmother only use the three of us as stepping stones for their Lin family. My brother will definitely not blame you for offending them."

She has never been willing to compromise or settle for less, and even if she were, she wouldn't have returned to her small town in her previous life to inherit her grandfather's shop. Besides, she wasn't materialistic to begin with. Now that she owns four shops, she already has the life she wants. Continuing to expand her empire is just a way to achieve greater value.

Love is the icing on the cake. Wang Pan'er likes Mu Chuan and wants to be with him forever, but she never wants to force things.

Just like at the beginning, she judged that there was an insurmountable gap between her and Mu Chuan's backgrounds, and never thought of getting entangled with him. However, fate was kind to her, and she gained the approval of the Princess, which allowed her to take the step of confessing her feelings to Mu Chuan. Moreover, she believed that she could see clearly and trust the character and temperament of Mu Chuan and the Princess, so she was naturally fearless.

Wang Pan'er laughed and pulled Lin Lan to the seat next to her: "Since I dare to be impudent, I don't need anyone to back me up. I've been impudent, so what? He's just an unfavored prince consort, what can he do about it?"

After the prince consort had tumbled and fallen to catch his breath, he looked up and saw the two younger ones sitting down and chatting happily, even belittling him. Enraged, he grabbed Mu Lan by the ear and pulled her up from her seat.

How dare they lay a hand on me!

Wang Pan'er jumped up, ready to stop her, when she saw the Princess, accompanied by her maid, gracefully enter through another door in the living room.

Seeing this, Hongxiao quickly took Lin Lan, whose ear was being pulled, from the hands of the prince consort.

Lin Lan let out a strange cry, then nestled into her mother's arms in a spoiled and coquettish manner, wiping away unfounded tears and whimpering.

The prince consort could only swallow his anger, daring not to speak out, and respectfully addressed him as "Your Highness."

Even the old lady had to stand up to greet her and pay her respects to the princess.

Although the imperial son-in-law was related to the emperor, he was only a sixth-rank minor compiler and was not qualified to attend court.

He had been at odds with the eldest princess for many years, and had also heard about her recent activities, including ruling from behind the curtain and mediating on behalf of the emperor.

Without the eyes of a Vajra, how can one be worthy of the eyebrows of a Bodhisattva? Even though it was for the sake of the common people and the Emperor that the Princess developed the appearance of a Bodhisattva, being immersed in the arena of power, while the Princess remained kind, she lost her former gentleness. Now, with the majesty of the imperial family on her shoulders, her aura has increased dramatically, making it hard for people to breathe.

The closeness or distance between people is immediately apparent.

Wang Pan'er deduced that the eldest princess must have heard the servants' report and came to support Lin Lan and her.

As expected, after the princess coaxed Lin Lan with gentle words, she raised her eyes and sternly rebuked the prince consort: "What? When did it become your place to decide the marriage of two children?"

The prince consort hurriedly explained, "Your Highness may not care, but I still have to do my best for the children. The marriages I recommended for Xiao Chuan and Xiao Lan are all good matches—the son of the prime minister and the daughter of the minister, both of whom are well-matched."

"A marriage of equal social standing?" The Princess scoffed. "You have the nerve to talk about a marriage of equal social standing? My princess's household doesn't need to sell its children for personal gain. As for Chuan'er and Lan'er's marriage, as long as the other party is of good character, let them be happy. As for you, you know exactly what you're up to. Don't use the guise of doing what's best for the younger generation to profit from it. If it weren't for your good matchmaking, my Lan'er wouldn't have fallen into the moat and become a laughing stock in other people's mouths."

The prince consort was displeased and pointed at Wang Pan'er, saying, "Even if I want to be happy, I can't let this kind of country bumpkin, who is an anti-hereditary figure, disgrace our family."

The princess's piercing gaze fixed on him, and the prince consort was startled and trembled. Before he could react, the princess slapped his hand away with her sleeve as she pointed at Wang Pan'er.

He withdrew his hand, listening as the Princess spoke each word with resounding force: "From the countryside? Rebel against the Heavenly Gang? The Prince Consort has enjoyed over twenty years of good fortune by abusing his power, and now he's forgetting his roots?"

The prince consort was startled and bowed respectfully with clasped hands, saying, "I dare not."

The eldest princess took her seat in the main seat, straightened her sleeves which had wrinkled from pulling someone away, and said unhurriedly, "You only know that Pan'er was brought back to the manor by Chuan'er, but you don't know that she is also my honored guest. Before I left, I went to Kaiyuan Temple to draw lots and received a prophecy from a monk that I would meet a noble person on this trip. Can you guess who this noble person is?"

It is obvious that the benefactor is Wang Pan'er.

The prince consort lowered his upper body even further, and large beads of sweat could be seen on his forehead.

The eldest princess straightened her sleeves and took the document handed to her by Lüyi: "I already know about your going to the palace to invite the nanny to torment Lan'er. Lan'er is our daughter, and she is useless to you. You even instigated the nanny to discipline her to the point that she doesn't even have enough to eat. What a good father you are. When we were in Jinzhou Prefecture, Pan'er said that if she were my daughter, she would not want me to compromise in marriage. At that time, I thought that as a mother, I should give my children a complete family. Now it seems that I was naive. This so-called complete family has become the biggest storm for my two children."

The eldest princess unfolded the document in her hand: "I originally intended to divorce you, but I never expected that your actions would cross my bottom line one by one. This is the letter of divorce. I have waited for you for many days, and now that you have finally returned to the manor, sign it. I understand that you are frustrated and unsuccessful, and I will give you your freedom and future."

Luyi quickly put away the writing brush, inkstone, and inkstone she was carrying, and ground the ink in no time.

The prince consort never expected such a scene to await him, and he was terrified.

He felt as if he were holding a handful of sand, which slipped through his fingers no matter how tightly he gripped it. Looking up at his wife of over twenty years, he saw no trace of lingering affection in her eyes, only contempt and disdain.

Although his status meant he could only remain a minor sixth-rank compiler forever, the title of imperial son-in-law brought him endless wealth and honor, benefiting his brothers and collateral relatives immensely. He considered himself exceptionally talented, but to rise through the ranks and achieve prominence again would require a tremendous investment of time and energy.

Once the divorce papers are signed, it's uncertain how long it will take for the good days to return.

The prince consort desired a smooth path and wealth and honor, but he had no choice in the matter.

His wife already holds great power; if he doesn't sign, he will most likely receive an imperial edict that will expel him from the Princess's residence.

After weighing the pros and cons, the prince consort reluctantly signed his name on the letter of divorce.

After the princess looked at it, she gestured for Lüyi to put it away. Then she beckoned to Lin Lan and Wang Pan'er, saying, "The kitchen has prepared dinner. We don't know when Chuan'er will be back yet, so let the three of us eat first."

She led a girl out of the living room, one hand in each of hers.

The prince consort wanted to step forward, but was stopped by Hongxiao. Hongxiao said in a detached and formal tone, "His Highness has reserved a small residence for Lord Lin because he is the father of the young master and young lady. Please ask Lord Lin and the old lady to move out of the Princess's residence as soon as possible, so as not to displease His Highness again."

He changed his tune so quickly that even the servants dared to give him a hard time.

Lord Lin snorted coldly, flicked his sleeves, and left, leaving the old lady behind, leaning on her cane, her head adorned with gold hairpins and jewels, trembling as she also left the mansion.