Thinking this way, everything becomes clear.

Eleventh Lady couldn't help but look at the Second Lady again.

Her thoughts coincided with Xu Lingyi's.

After the incident, the first thing Xu Lingyi did was to tell her to keep the Queen calm and not to say or do anything that would displease the Emperor.

Xu Lingyi has a powerful information network, but the Second Madam...

If she has always played this kind of staff-like role at critical moments in the Xu family, then it is understandable where the respect that the lady and Xu Lingyi have for her comes from.

As the thought flashed through her mind, Eleventh Lady couldn't help but feel full of confidence.

This society has many restrictions on women, including the saying that "women without talent are virtuous". The Xu family's actions are obviously contrary to this saying. Is it because the Xu family's special experience has given women the opportunity to use their intelligence and talents to improve their status within the family? Or is it because the Xu family has always had the confidence and broad-mindedness to allow women to participate in family affairs?

She believed it was the former - when a family was in danger, most of those who were pardoned were women and children.

There were 24 founding heroes who were stripped of their titles due to the "Zheng An Wang Rebellion Case", but only five of them had their titles restored in the end. This number is very telling.

The Second Lady's words not only made Eleventh Lady think, but also enlightened the Lady Dowager's eyes.

"Yes, that makes sense." She looked at Xu Lingyi with sharp eyes. "What are your plans?"

Xu Lingyi looked at the Second Madam: "Second sister-in-law, you haven't seen the Queen for a long time, right? You should also go and greet her when you go to mourn this time."

The Second Madam nodded and said, "Don't worry, Lord. I rushed back from Xishan because I was afraid that the Imperial Noble Consort and others would take advantage of the situation and disturb the Empress' mind. The best way to resolve the sadness is to give birth to another prince."

It's like solving a riddle.

Everyone in the room understood.

Who benefits the most when the queen is deposed?

Of course, it was the Imperial Noble Consort who also gave birth to a prince and was favored by the Emperor, and the Empress Dowager who sat in the Cining Palace but worried every day that the young and strong Emperor would betray her!

If the Emperor and Empress could turn their grief into strength, it would be the greatest counterattack against this scheme!

"Then let's go!" Xu Lingyi stood up after hearing this, "We have to go to Sishanmen to mourn tomorrow morning."

The old lady nodded and asked the second lady to rest here with her: "...I want to talk to you too."

It is indeed inconvenient to go back to the back garden at this time.

The Second Madam had been gone for several months, and it was winter, so it would take several hours just to light the floor heating. By the time the house warmed up, it would probably be time to enter the palace.

The Second Lady looked at Eleventh Lady hesitantly.

Eleventh Lady felt puzzled.

What are you looking at me for?

I can't decide where you live? I can't reject the Madam's opinion.

Instead, he said, "I'll ask Mother Du to bring over the things that Second Sister-in-law usually uses."

The Second Madam listened and her lips twitched slightly, as if she had something to say. The Madam had already taken her hand and said, "You have come here exhausted, go and wash up."

As they were talking, Shiyi Niang had already called Mother Du. Mother Du knew that the party was over, so she led a large group of maids and old women in.

Eleventh Lady knelt and saluted to the Madam Tai and the Second Madam: "The Marquis and I will go back first!"

The lady nodded: "Rest early!"

After Xu Lingyi paid his respects to the lady-in-waiting, the two of them left the lady-in-waiting's yard one after the other.

On the way, Xu Lingyi paused, waited for her to come to his side, and asked her in a low voice: "Are you scared?"

Eleventh Lady was stunned.

Xu Lingyi had stopped walking, looking at her with a deep and distant gaze: "Are you scared?"

"Afraid!" Eleventh Lady looked at Xu Lingyi seriously. She was really afraid... This was a world she was completely unfamiliar with, and she couldn't see the future clearly. "But I know that the Marquis has always been standing in front of me." This was the truth. If something happened, the first to bear the brunt would be the man, Xu Lingyi, who represented the family. "Brother Yu, Sister Zhen, and Brother Zhun are standing behind me, and I can't be afraid!" This was also the truth. No matter what, she was an adult and they were children, underage children!

Looking at Shiyi Niang, whose stature was only up to his shoulders but whose eyes were extremely calm, Xu Lingyi could not help but nodded slightly: "Go back!"

* * * * * *

When I returned to the yard, I didn't expect Zhen Jie'er to be waiting in the hall.

Seeing them, she walked forward lightly and saluted them, her eyes filled with deep worry.

Xu Lingyi nodded and went straight into the house. Eleventh Lady took her hand and said, "Zhun Ge is asleep!"

Sister Zhen nodded: "I will come back after he goes to bed!"

Eleventh Lady looked at her pale face and whispered, "It's okay." After saying that, she felt that such comfort was too weak and might make Zhen Jie'er more worried, so she added, "The Fifth Prince's matter was a misunderstanding. But we are also afraid that someone with ulterior motives will spread nonsense, so we must take precautions early."

After all, Zhen Jie'er was still young. Seeing Shiyi Niang's confident look, she breathed a sigh of relief: "I was scared to death!"

Eleventh Lady smiled at her and said, "Go and have some rest! Tomorrow morning the adults in the family will go to mourn, so Zhun Ge will trouble you to help take care of them for a few days."

Zhen Jie'er immediately said, "Don't worry, mother. I will take good care of him and won't let him cry or make a fuss."

"I always trust Sister Zhen to do things." Eleventh Lady smiled and sent her to the east wing before entering the house.

Xu Lingyi had changed his clothes and came out: "What are you talking about?"

"Sister Zhen was a little worried, so I comforted her."

Xu Lingyi nodded: "I have something to do in Banyuepan. You can rest first, no need to wait for me."

Are you going to meet your staff?

Eleventh Lady nodded, sent Xu Lingyi out, washed herself and went to bed, but she couldn't fall asleep. Her mind was in a mess. It wasn't until the second watch that she felt a little sleepy. Just as she closed her eyes, there was a commotion outside. Amber came in with her clothes on: "Madam, the Marquis is back!"

She got up and put on her clothes when Xu Lingyi walked in with a gust of cold air. Seeing Shiyi Niang's clear eyes, she was stunned and asked, "Why haven't you slept yet?"

Eleventh Lady responded vaguely and stood up to make tea for him.

Seeing that she was only wearing a small coat, Xu Lingyi held her down and said, "Go lie down quickly. Be careful not to catch a cold."

Seeing that he was determined, and Amber bringing in the little maid to serve her, Eleventh Lady followed his wishes and snuggled into the quilt.

Only then did Xu Lingyi go to the bathroom to wash up.

Eleventh Lady and the maid used a heater to help Xu Lingyi warm his quilt.

The quilt was just a little warm when Xu Lingyi came out after washing up.

"No need to bother." He took off his shoes and got on the bed. "There's a floor heating in the room, it's warm."

When the little maid saw this, she quickly put away the heater and went out. Amber came forward to help them put up the curtains.

Eleventh Lady wanted to ask him what happened, but was afraid that he would think she was overstepping her bounds, so she resisted the urge to ask anything and leaned over to blow out the lamp.

It was so quiet in the tent that they could hear each other's breathing.

Knowing that the other party was not asleep, Xu Lingyi turned over and faced Shiyi Niang: "Don't worry. It was my negligence this time. I didn't expect the people of the Qu family to be so bold... I will never give them a second chance." His tone was very melancholy.

"Someone from the Qu family?" Shiyi Niang vaguely heard that the Imperial Concubine's surname was Qu. "Is she from the Imperial Concubine's family?"

"Yes!" Xu Lingyi said, "The ancestor of the Qu family served as the admiral of the Fujian Navy since the previous dynasty. After surrendering to the Great Zhou, his career was even more prosperous. Some of his descendants successively served as the generals of the Fujian Navy, the Zhejiang Navy, and the Guangdong Navy. During the Jianwu period, pirates were rampant. Lord Qu led the people to fight against the Japanese and became famous all over the world. After that, he conquered four islands for the Great Zhou and was named Marquis of Jinghai. After the emperor ascended the throne, he relied more on the Qu family for border and maritime affairs, and the Qu family was able to abide by their duties and serve the country with loyalty. That's why the emperor married the daughter of the Qu family."

Eleventh Lady thought of that delicate voice... Although there were political reasons, she must have liked it in her heart! Otherwise, she could have been a concubine, why bother with the imperial concubine? How could she not be eager to try?

Obviously, Xu Lingyi also knew it.

"That Qu family was born beautiful and proficient in music. She was favored by the emperor as soon as she entered the palace. In just two years, she was promoted from a concubine to a royal concubine." His voice was very cold. "It just so happens that our Xu family is located in the south and the north, and we can control each other."

Ultimately, the key lies in the emperor's attitude.

Eleventh Lady whispered, "Don't worry, Lord. I will take good care of the Madam tomorrow, and will also help Second Sister-in-law have a long talk with the Queen."

And his incredible tacit understanding.

Eleventh Lady's answer made Xu Lingyi extremely satisfied.

He couldn't help but whispered: "In recent years, the Japanese invasion in Fujian and Guangdong has been serious. Whether for the sake of the country or the overall situation, the emperor will not touch the people of the Qu family. But just because he doesn't move doesn't mean we won't create opportunities for him to move..."

Xu Lingyi's voice was cold.

Eleventh Lady couldn't help but follow his line of thought and think seriously.

How to create opportunities?

To tempt the Qu family to do something wrong? To make the imperial concubine fall out of favor? Or to make the Qu family's power expand to the point where the emperor would be uneasy?

It seems possible, but it takes a long time and a lot of effort to do it seriously.

The Qu family has been able to stand undefeated for two dynasties, and it has its own way of survival; the imperial concubine is still young, and it would not be so easy to make her fall out of favor; as for allowing the Qu family's power to expand, the Xu family will have to give up more, but the problem is, once they give up, it is still a question whether they can take it back.

It's hard to go left, it's hard to go right...

Eleventh Lady couldn't help but sigh softly.

In the silence, the sigh was very clear and seemed a little heavy.

Xu Lingyi thought of her frank answer when he asked her "Are you afraid?"

"Don't be afraid!" He reached out and touched her head. "The Qu family has been operating in Fujian for more than a hundred years. Although they are powerful, they have also done a lot of illegal things. As long as you have a will, a spark can start a prairie fire."

Eleventh Lady was very surprised.

From Xu Lingyi's tone, he actually wanted to confront the Qu family by filing a complaint with the emperor... This was not acceptable. This was not a society ruled by law, and the emperor's will was the key to success.

She couldn't help but say, "My Lord, I think this might be inappropriate..."

"Oh!" Xu Lingyi said, "What's wrong with that?"

However, his tone contained a hint of expectation, which surprised Eleventh Lady.

Does Xu Lingyi really want to hear his thoughts?

The thought flashed through her mind, and Eleventh Lady said, "Since the Emperor cannot touch the people of the Qu family at this time, even if you send an imperial envoy to impeach them, the Emperor will probably keep it to himself for the sake of the overall situation. Since the people of the Qu family can manipulate the food, it means that they have already planted people in the palace. Even if they are not the ones planted, they have powerful supporters. The Emperor's movements cannot be hidden from them. If you alert them, it will not be so easy to touch them again!"

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Sorry, the road construction nearby broke some wires, and there was a sudden power outage. I'll post this draft first...