Old man Xu spoke from the heart, "Granddaughter, I'm not comfortable staying in the countryside. People treat me like a fool. I want to come to the provincial capital to enjoy life with my eldest grandson. I won't talk nonsense anymore. I kowtow to the Lord of Heaven."
This made Chai feel very embarrassed. He was Chai's father-in-law, how could he possibly give such a big gift to Chai's cousin?
Xu Lanyin hurriedly explained, "Grandpa, my mother and my cousin had never met before, so she didn't know about their relationship. If my cousin knew, he would definitely not treat you like that... If you want to stay in the provincial capital, then stay. We, the younger generation, can also show our filial piety often."
He was Xu Qingyan's biological father, so he deserved to enjoy a comfortable life in the provincial capital. Given his current physical condition, it wouldn't be easy for him to cause trouble.
Old Man Xu wiped his tears and said, "If I knew they had that kind of relationship, I wouldn't dare say such words even if you beat me to death."
Xu Qingming assured from the side, "I promise to serve my father well and keep him from causing trouble."
Xu Lan invited them to have dinner at her home, and asked someone to invite an old imperial physician who had retired to his hometown to see Old Man Xu.
When Old Man Xu heard that this was the imperial physician who had treated the emperor, he was so excited that he trembled a little. He said to the old imperial physician, "My second daughter-in-law is the daughter of Princess Nanyang."
The old imperial physician was of course aware of Xu Lanyin's connection, otherwise he wouldn't have been invited. He smiled and said, "Old Master is so lucky to be related to the eldest princess. This blessing is something others can only envy."
Old Man Xu said proudly, "That's right, that's right. Among the gifts my second son and his wife gave me, there was a tribute."
Xu Lanyin was at a loss for words. It's easy to change a country, but hard to change one's nature. Old man Xu still loved to brag.
In the evening, Minhu, Qin Che and others came.
At Old Man Xu's request, Qin Che came to the side room.
Old man Xu stood up and wanted to kneel down, but was supported by Qin Che.
Qin Che smiled and said, "It was a misunderstanding before. I didn't know your daughter-in-law was my sister Qingyan. Now that the misunderstanding is cleared up, you know the tradition of our family and the status of the Princess's Mansion, and you won't say such things again. Otherwise, even if I don't correct you, other officials will not allow you to slander our relatives. To slander our relatives is to slander the royal family."
He gave the old man face and then hit him hard.
The old man said hurriedly, "I was blind before. I get it, I get it. I won't dare to speak nonsense again."
After speaking out, the judge was so kind, and Old Man Xu, Old Lady Xu, Xu Qingming and others finally breathed a sigh of relief.
During dinner, Qin Che sent someone to invite the old man to the table for dinner, but the old man didn't dare to go and tried his best to refuse.
The old man became obedient, so Xu Lanyin often sent people to bring supplements and food to the old couple, and occasionally invited them and the children to the Zhao family for dinner, which made the old man very happy and his health improved a lot. Xu Lanyin didn't like Xu Qingming and his wife very much, and usually only invited the old and the young.
She did this for the sake of Xu Qingyan and Chai. If Old Man Xu's health really deteriorated and he died because of that incident, Xu Qingyan would definitely have a rift with Chai. There was already a rift between them, and if it was further aggravated, they wouldn't be able to live happily together.
One afternoon in early July, Ma Zi arrived with a letter, revealing that Xu Qingyan and his team had uncovered an incident that occurred forty-three years prior at the Pu Mansion. It wasn't a secret, as the older generation knew all about it. That year, Madam Pu's twin children, a boy and a girl, had died of illness. They were Madam Pu's eldest son and daughter, just five years old, bright and charming. It's said that Madam Pu nearly cried herself to death, only to finally overcome her grief with the birth of her third son a few years later.
It was also said that the reason Mrs. Pu didn't give the girl away after giving birth to twins was because Mrs. Pu, the late Mrs. Pu, now Mrs. Pu's mother-in-law, was particularly fond of the girl and, refusing to believe rumors, insisted on keeping the children and raising them with her. Later, both children died. The old lady regretted her decision and her health deteriorated, dying of illness two years later.
This matter is of great importance and is written in code, which only Zhao Wu and Xu Lanyin can understand.
That year was exactly the time when the fairy lady went to the Taoist temple.
Could it be that the fairy lady was the twin girl? Old Lady Pu was furious that she had brought death upon her son, so she sent her to the Five Immortals Temple on Wuxiang Mountain to become a nun. A five-year-old child, over time, and with the deliberate indoctrination of those around them, will gradually forget past events. To ensure she completely forgot, she was given another earthly name, Zhao You.
If the immortal lady was indeed Madam Pu's daughter, or even the Empress Dowager's niece, it's possible she had the same jewelry. But if she was Madam Pu's biological daughter, no matter how angry Madam Pu was, she wouldn't kill her, let alone her husband and son. Even if Madam Pu went crazy, others would stop her.
Xu Lanyin couldn't figure it out, so when Zhao Wu left the yamen, they analyzed it again and thought it might be a coincidence. In the end, the fairy lady and the twins had nothing to do with each other...
At the end of July, Ma Zi sent another letter. The "lost" fake swallow hairpin had been accidentally picked up by Wen Yan's eldest son, Wen Zhuolin, the second son of the Wen family.
Li Luo took the fake swallow-shaped hairpin given by Mei to the capital, with the intention of finding a way to get it to the Wen family and lure them out of their hole.
Now that the bait has been thrown, it's time to wait for the fish to grab it.
Xu Lanyin regretted that she was not in the capital. Otherwise, with the help of Princess Nanyang, she would be able to meet with Old Madam Wen and Old Madam Pu and listen to their thoughts.
She also made a decision that after giving birth, she would go to her parents' home in Beijing to live for a while and try to find an opportunity to meet the two old ladies, so that she could avoid many detours.
On July 29th, the Pu Mansion in Ningzhou Prefecture sent out a notice inviting Zhao Wu and Xu Lanyin's family to dinner the next day. Pu Yuanqing's wife was in the capital, and his concubine, Yuan Yi Niang, was in charge of the residence here.
When the concubine invites guests, she will definitely not invite the wife of a high-ranking official like Li. She will only invite the concubines of high-ranking officials, or the wives of low-ranking officials, such as Hu, Xu Lanyin and others.
Zhao Wu's position was low, but Xu Lanyin, the adopted granddaughter of the Nanyang Princess, held a high position. Although Xu Lan disliked young wives, she was willing to associate with them to achieve certain goals. However, Zhao Wu resolutely refused to allow her to attend concubines' gatherings. The last time Concubine Yuan invited him, Zhao Wu declined, citing Xu Lanyin's recent pregnancy.
This time, Zhao Wu still didn't allow Xu Lanyin to go.
Xu Lanyin said, "What if we can find some clues?"
Zhao Wudao said, "What can a concubine know? I drank with Pu Yuanqing a few times and went hunting together twice, but I didn't find any clues." He added, "Let Lan Yue go with me. Pu Yuanqing's little girl is seven years old. They can play together."
Although Zhao Wu listened to Xu Lanyin very much, he was very persistent on certain matters of principle. He felt that letting Xu Lanyin attend that kind of party was unfair to her.
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