Chapter 342 Digging a Hole
That day, after breakfast, Chen Wan took Shanhu Yinchuan to take a walk in the garden.
Just as she was leaving the courtyard, a maid came over and said, "Princess, the old lady wants you to go to her place."
Why would the old lady look for her?
Last time, she stabbed her wound with a knife. When she left, the old lady looked as if she wished she would never set foot in her Wing Chun Temple again in her life. Only a few days have passed, and she has become so upset again?
Shen Wan knew that the old lady was not looking for her for good reasons, but since she was free anyway, it would be okay to go over and take a look.
When Shen Wan arrived, the room was full of people, including the princess.
Ever since the old lady was stripped of her imperial title, the princess rarely went to pay her respects to the old lady. Seeing Shen Wan coming, the princess asked, "Why is Wan'er here too?"
Just as Shen Wan was about to answer, the old lady put down the teacup in her hand and said, "I sent someone to invite her here. This is a matter concerning the public. She is not so ill that she cannot leave the house. I should also listen to her opinion."
The princess frowned and said nothing more.
But it’s about the public…
Shen Wan guessed that it was probably about the betrothal gift for the third young master Xie Jingxi to marry Du Xiner.
As expected, the old lady called Shen Wan and the princess here for this matter.
The old lady said, "I know there are rules in the government, but rules are fixed, people are alive. Xi'er was framed and knocked down the third daughter of the Left Prime Minister's Mansion in the street. Although Xi'er did not mean to do so, she is still sorry for Miss Du and should make compensation."
"This isn't just a matter for the Second House, it's also about the reputation of our Jingbei Palace. I want an extra twenty thousand taels of silver from the public treasury as a betrothal gift. Do you have any objections?"
The Fourth Lady said, "When the Second Young Master married the daughter of Duke Song, the Duke didn't even take any extra money."
The Third Madam said, "How can they be the same? Song Nanyan fell into the water on her own and dragged Ze'er with her. Our Jingbei Palace has never wronged the Duke of Song's Palace in the slightest..."
The fourth lady helped the princess to oppose, while the third lady helped the second wife to fight for it. After all, the third master and the second master were brothers from the same mother.
The old lady looked at Shen Wan, "Does the Crown Princess think the palace should compensate the Left Prime Minister's daughter?"
I knew it was no good to find her.
However, it is reasonable to make up for this matter, but asking for an extra 20,000 taels from the public treasury is a bit too much.
Shen Wan didn't like being led around by the nose, and then she got angry at the old lady, "Fortunately, Prince Yuzhang saw it, otherwise the Third Young Master would be accused of doing it on purpose. Second Uncle and Second Aunt must prepare generous gifts and thank Prince Yuzhang properly."
The Second Madam had never thought about thanking Prince Yuzhang, but since Shen Wan brought it up, she couldn’t pretend not to know, “I will go to Prince Teng’s Mansion to thank you, but now I’m talking about making up for Miss Du San!”
Chen Wan said, "Before we talk about making amends, I think we should first find out why the people behind Tianxiang Tower did such a thing..."
"If the Third Young Master provokes Tianxianglou, and Tianxianglou retaliates against him, and implicates Third Miss Du, our Jingbei Palace must make amends to Third Miss Du."
"But if the Third Young Master is innocent, and Tianxianglou is trying to pair him up with Third Miss Du, then the Third Young Master himself is innocent. If the Left Prime Minister is angry about his daughter's reputation being ruined, it's not the Third Young Master's fault, but Tianxianglou's. Naturally, our Jingbei Palace can't make amends for Third Miss Du. The Old Madam and Second Aunt insist on compensating Third Miss Du, which makes it seem that the Third Young Master is at fault, or that the Third Young Master is not worthy of Third Miss Du and can only make up for it with the betrothal gift."
The old lady came to Shen Wan because she wanted to hear what she needed to make up for from Shen Wan's mouth, not for her to object!
Almost every time Shen Wan said something, the old lady's face darkened.
The Fourth Madam and Xie Zhiyao tried hard not to laugh.
Ever since the Crown Princess married into the Jingbei Palace, she has never been easy to bully. I don’t know how the old lady thought that the Crown Princess would side with them. If the Crown Princess didn’t come, it would be exactly what the old lady wanted. Instead, she took the initiative to call the Crown Princess over.
The Fourth Lady really didn't understand.
The princess said, "Wan'er is right. If the Third Young Master caused trouble and implicated Miss Du, he should indeed make amends to the Left Prime Minister's Mansion. The Third Young Master is innocent. Although this marriage is too high, it is destined by heaven. Since the Left Prime Minister has agreed to the marriage, there is no need to be so humble. I think no one will object to the extra five thousand taels from the public treasury."
Shen Wan raised his brows.
It is suspected that the princess used five thousand taels to lure the old lady and the second wife.
Xie Jingxi was right. The princess agreed to add 5,000 taels to the public treasury. If Xie Jingxi made a mistake, the public treasury would definitely have added 20,000 taels.
As long as they admit their mistakes, they can get an extra 15,000 taels of betrothal gifts. The temptation is set in the trap, and it depends on whether they see the trap or the temptation.
The Second Madam and the Old Madam exchanged a glance and said, "I disagree with what the Crown Prince's wife said. The Crown Prince has been assassinated several times. Is that because he sinned and brought about his own death?"
Chen Wan said, "Second Aunt, it's unfair to compare you to my husband. The assassin who killed my husband might have been the work of my father's political enemies. The assassination of the Third Young Master... The people of Tianxiang Tower couldn't be considered an assassination of the Third Young Master. They barely taught him a small lesson."
"Tianxianglou has learned a small lesson. They tried to match the Third Young Master with the Left Prime Minister's son-in-law, but were caught by the Prince of Yuzhang. This led to the closure of Tianxianglou. I'm afraid he will die of anger."
After a pause, Shen Wan said, "I think someone is plotting against the Left Prime Minister's daughter, and the Third Young Master was just chosen by chance to ruin the reputation of the Left Prime Minister's daughter."
Xie Zhiyao's eyes widened. "So, doesn't that mean the Left Prime Minister wants to make amends to Third Brother?"
Shen Wan blinked, "Second Aunt, if you're not afraid of being accused of taking advantage of others, you can ask the Left Prime Minister for it."
The second wife's mouth was almost crooked with anger.
The old lady said, "This matter is too complicated to explain. When you go out, your words may offend people..."
Before the old lady could finish, the princess interrupted her, "Old lady, please be careful with your words. This matter is related to Tianxiang Tower. How could the third young master offend the people in Tianxiang Tower? Could it be that he has been to Tianxiang Tower?"
The Second Madam asked, "Will the people in Tianxiang Tower stay in the tower forever and not come out?"
The princess couldn't refute this.
The old lady continued, "Let's just assume that Xi'er offended someone, which is why this disaster happened."
Shen Wan, “…”
Just for the sake of money, he fell into the trap.
The princess's face suddenly darkened. "The Third Young Master has been causing trouble outside, even bringing trouble upon the Left Prime Minister's daughter. He's such a poor parent. Not only did the prince not punish the Second Wife, but he also asked the Imperial Court to pay an extra betrothal gift to clean up the mess? What do the old lady and the Second Wife think of the Imperial Court?!"
"If the public treasury really paid for this betrothal gift, I'm afraid every young master in the mansion would follow suit!"
The change in attitude was so great that everyone in the room was dumbfounded except for the Fourth Madam and Shen Wan who were watching the fun.
The old lady was stunned by the barrage of accusations, but she had nothing to say in rebuttal because they had brought this upon themselves.
The old lady opened and closed her mouth again and again, but not a single word came out.
The second wife was worried that she would be punished for the second and third masters, and this worry was not unnecessary at all.
The Second Madam said, "My Xi'er is a very dutiful person and would never offend anyone outside..."
Shen Wan asked, “Why didn’t Second Aunt say this just now?”
Xie Zhiyao's shoulders were shaking, it was so uncomfortable to hold back her laughter.
The second wife's face turned pale.
Fortunately, at this moment, a maid came in and reported, "At the court this morning, the Left Censor-in-Chief Zheng Da died..."
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