It can be said that apart from the slight blood relationship of being from the same lineage, Xiao Shaozhang, the King of Pingliang who had lost his fiefdom, and the old King Wu, the former Chief Clan Officer of the Imperial Clan Affairs Office of the Great Qi Dynasty, actually had no emotional foundation with Xiao Shaoyuan and Xiao Yuanjin.
However, relying on the so-called blood relationship, these two people often joined Xiao Shaoke in plotting against Xiao Shaoyuan and Xiao Yuanjin.
Xiao Shaoyuan was as impatient as he could be with these three people, but he still had a father-daughter relationship with the eldest princess Xiao Yuanjiu.
When Xiao Yuanjin took the initiative to propose to take the eldest princess Xiao Yuanjiu out of Huangjue Temple, Xiao Shaoyuan had already sent someone to Huangjue Temple.
However, after Xiao Yuanjiu learned that Xiao Shaoyuan did not intend to take back the women who were stranded in Huangjue Temple, but instead planned to give them a sum of money and have them properly dismissed, Xiao Yuanjiu chose to continue staying in Huangjue Temple.
She could understand Xiao Shaoyuan, who was forced to marry those women and didn't want to see those women who reminded him of his unpleasant past, but at the same time she was also very clear that her biological mother, Concubine Zhang, would definitely not be willing to take the severance pay and return to her parents' home.
The Zhang family is just an ordinary family of minor officials. If she goes back to her parents' home, her life will definitely not be as good as if she stays in Xiao Yuanjin's Prince Zhao's Mansion.
If she goes back to her parents' home, she will be an old woman abandoned by the previous emperor of Da Qi. But if she stays in Prince Zhao's Mansion, she will become the only woman by Xiao Shaoyuan's side.
This is just a huge difference in status. On the material level, the treatment in Prince Zhao's Mansion is definitely several levels better than that of the Zhang family.
Xiao Yuanjiu knew that with Concubine Zhang's personality, she would definitely take advantage of the opportunity when Xiao Shaoyuan wanted to take her biological daughter, that is, Xiao Yuanjiu, away and rely on him without any explanation.
But how could Xiao Yuanjiu possibly cause such trouble to Xiao Shaoyuan and Xiao Yuanjin?
That was Prince Zhao's Mansion, which belonged to Xiao Yuanjin. As Xiao Yuanjin's biological father, it was reasonable for Xiao Shaoyuan to move in.
The second prince and the little baby of the last emperor of Qi are, after all, the eldest prince's half-brothers.
Xiao Shaoke, who shamelessly insisted on living there, was not only Xiao Yuanjin's uncle, but also Xiao Yuanjin's classmate for many years.
It was barely acceptable for them to move in, and for her, Xiao Yuanjin's sister, to move in. But why did Concubine Zhang move in with Xiao Yuanjiu in Xiao Yuanjin's Prince Zhao's Mansion when Xiao Shaoyuan had already decided to dismiss them, the concubines?
Xiao Yuanjiu didn't want to cause trouble for Xiao Shaoyuan, nor did she want to cause trouble for Xiao Yuanjin. In addition, she had a special status and a foolish mother like Concubine Zhang. Xiao Yuanjiu had long given up hope of a good marriage and husband, so she simply chose to continue living in Huangjue Temple.
However, Concubine Zhang, whom she wanted to accompany and watch over, obviously did not care about Xiao Yuanjiu's good intentions.
Concubine Zhang did not want a peaceful life of austerity and simplicity; she just wanted to live a better life than before through the help of the eldest princess.
When Concubine Zhang heard Yu Zizhen asking her if the eldest princess was completely unaware of the situation, she subconsciously wanted to lie. However, after meeting Yu Zizhen's half-smile, Concubine Zhang couldn't help but tremble.
This sudden sense of crisis made her suddenly recall that this person was not someone who could be easily fooled. She was a legendary figure who founded Dahua as a woman.
"Yes, yes." The little man's survival instinct came into play again at this moment, and Lady Zhang lowered her head and told the truth.
Yu Zizhen hummed. "If that's the case, how can Concubine Zhang claim that the eldest princess lives a very hard life? As you said, the eldest princess has a brother and once took shelter with me in her childhood. She is an acquaintance of mine. If that's the case, how did she end up living such a hard life?"
She emphasized the four words "very poor", without any fear that the people around her would have different opinions about her or Xiao Yuanjin because of this.
In fact, Yu Zizhen really didn't feel guilty at all. She had nothing to hide, so of course she didn't mind laying everything out in the open.
Concubine Zhang was speechless when asked this question. She racked her brains for a long time before finally coming up with a reasonable excuse, "Yes, the eldest princess is afraid of causing trouble for you and the emperor, so she keeps everything to herself and dares not come to you and the emperor."
Yu Zizhen chuckled, "As far as I know, Prince Zhao had already sent someone to invite the eldest princess before he and I got married. It was the eldest princess herself who didn't want to go to Prince Zhao's mansion. She wanted to stay in Huangjue Temple to accompany you."
Lady Zhang was struck by lightning. "How, how is this possible?"
"How is that impossible?" Upon hearing the news that Concubine Zhang had escaped, the eldest princess immediately dispatched her men and finally tracked her down. She rushed over immediately, her face livid with anger. "I did refuse the people sent by Prince Zhao's palace to fetch me, and it was because I wanted to stay at Huangjue Temple and take care of you nearby."
At this point, the eldest princess no longer cared about her own and Concubine Zhang's reputation. She didn't care about the idea of keeping the family's dirty laundry in public. She only knew that she must not let Yu Zizhen and Xiao Yuanjin's reputation be damaged because of her.
She blinked her eyes slightly, and two lines of tears rolled down her cheeks.
"You don't want to take the severance pay and go back to your parents' home, and I'm worried about leaving you alone in Huangjue Temple. Doesn't that mean I can only stay there and take care of you?"
"Although I feel very sorry for Father, he still has his brothers and sisters, while you only have me. I can't bear to see you alone, always accompanied by the ancient Buddha and the green lamp, so I reluctantly gave up reuniting with Father."
"Father and brother understand me. Not only have they not made things difficult for me because of my selfishness, but they have always been very considerate of me. I can't thank you enough. How could I be so unhappy that I would need you to sneak out and even offend His Majesty to speak up for me?"
"You are coming to Your Majesty and saying this now, are you accusing me of neglecting my own father just to be filial to you?"
Concubine Zhang shook her head subconsciously. Of course, that wasn't what she meant! The eldest princess had crawled out of her belly. Wasn't it her duty to consider her? On the contrary, if she ignored her, then she really deserved to be struck by lightning!
She eagerly denied it, "Of course not! I just don't want you to continue living in Huangjue Temple."
She didn't care whether the dead girl lived in Huangjue Temple or not, but if the dead girl lived in Huangjue Temple, she would not be able to live in Prince Zhao's Mansion under the pretext of taking care of her daughter, which was something Concubine Zhang could not tolerate.
She wants to go to Prince Zhao's Mansion. She wants to live a good life!
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