Chapter 193 I have said all I need to say; you can decide what to do next.
Princess Yalin sat sadly in the teahouse for a while before returning home. On the way, she pondered whether or not to tell Xie Ning'an about her pleading with Jiang Yu.
She had also attended the Ning family's banquet today, and news of what happened in the men's section of the front courtyard quickly spread to the women's section of the back courtyard. Initially, many people were waiting to see the Duke of Chu's mansion make a fool of itself.
However, as news from the front yard reached the back, even those families who were at odds with the Duke of Chu's mansion and disliked Jiang Yu had to admire her composure and calmness in handling matters. Let alone a woman like her, even an ordinary man wouldn't have been as calm in that situation.
Later, the women in the inner courtyard all learned that it was the second wife of the Xie family who had framed Jiang Yu. The second wife did not attend the banquet today; instead, the first wife of the Xie family did. At that moment, the first wife, Xie Ning'an's mother, was so ashamed she wanted to disappear into the ground.
Princess Yalin felt a pang of sympathy at the time. Later, when she left the Ning family, she met Xie Ning'an. Xie Ning'an looked very unwell and seemed distracted when speaking to her. She asked if it was because of Madam Xie's framing of Jiang Yu, and Xie Ning'an told her not to concern herself with it before leaving in a hurry.
Seeing his somewhat flustered figure, she felt extremely distressed and, in a moment of panic, went to find Jiang Yu. She never expected it to end like this.
Upon arriving at the Prince Yong's residence, she went straight to her courtyard and locked herself in her room. When dinner time came, the kitchen staff delivered the food, but she wouldn't let the maids in. Several maids tried to persuade her, but to no avail. Left with no other option, the maids told Prince Yong and his wife what had happened.
Yalin was the youngest daughter of Prince Yong and Princess Yong. The two doted on this daughter and rushed to her courtyard immediately upon hearing that she was not eating dinner.
The couple stood outside and knocked on the door for a long time before Princess Yalin finally opened it, her face still streaked with tears. Upon seeing Prince Yong and his wife, her tears flowed again.
When the Prince and his wife saw this, they were even more distressed and hurriedly asked what had happened. Princess Yalin's tears flowed continuously, but she remained silent.
The King and Queen Yong asked Ya Lin's maid, who then recounted the whole story. After listening, the King remained silent, knowing that his daughter had acted rashly.
Princess Yong, however, said, "This Duke of Chu is utterly ruthless. What is Ya Lin's status, and what is hers? My daughter has already humbled herself to beg her, yet she still won't let it go. She..."
"Alright," Prince Yong interrupted her, "Let me tell you about this, Yalin..."
"Waaaaah..."
Before Prince Yong could finish speaking, Princess Yalin burst into tears, and Prince Yong immediately swallowed the rest of his words.
Princess Yong glared at her fiercely and said, "Your Highness, we cannot be bullied like this. Go to the palace now to see the Emperor and ask him to stand up for us."
King Yong: "..."
"Say something!" Princess Yong said, glaring at Prince Yong.
Prince Yong was silent for a moment, then stood up and said, "Very well, I will go see the Emperor now."
Princess Yong was satisfied, but Prince Yong frowned as he walked out. As a prince of the royal family, entering the palace was quite easy for him. When he arrived at the imperial study, the emperor was having dinner.
Upon seeing him, the emperor greeted him, "Have you had dinner yet? Come and eat with us."
The Prince Yong walked over with a smile, saying, "I have already used it."
The emperor grunted in response and continued eating. Midway through, he asked Prince Yong, "You haven't been to the palace for a long time. What's the matter?"
Prince Yong laughed again: "Your Majesty, as you know, I am dull-witted and have been lazy for many years. I am not clear about many things in the court."
The emperor hummed in agreement again. Prince Yong was a few years older than him. During the struggle for the throne, although Prince Yong hadn't helped him much, he had always stood by his side. After the emperor ascended the throne, Prince Yong himself stated that he would not hold office or participate in affairs, only wanting to be a carefree prince. Therefore, the emperor had always shown great favor to Prince Yong's residence.
Then King Yong said again, "Yalin did something rash today..."
Prince Yong recounted the events that occurred at the Ning family banquet and what Ya Lin did afterward, and then said, "After learning about this matter, I thought it over and decided to come and tell you. I have spoiled Ya Lin and she has lost her sense of propriety in her actions."
The emperor put down his chopsticks and looked at him, his eyes deep and unfathomable. Many people said that Prince Yong was foolish and dull-witted, but the emperor had always believed that Prince Yong was wise beyond his years. Just like now, he was testing his attitude towards the Xie family.
“Brother,” the Emperor said, looking at Prince Yong, “when Ya Lin wanted to get engaged to Xie Ning, both the Empress Dowager and I disagreed. It was only after Ya Lin knelt outside the Empress Dowager’s palace for a whole day that the Empress Dowager finally agreed.”
“It’s Yalin who is being unreasonable,” said Prince Yong.
“You’ve spoiled her too much,” the emperor said again. “She’s my niece. How could I not want her to be well? She often came to the palace when she was little, and the Empress Dowager was very fond of her. How could the Empress Dowager not want her to be well?”
Prince Yong rose and knelt on the ground, saying, "Your Majesty and Empress Dowager have failed to live up to their kindness."
At that moment, Prince Yong truly realized that the Xie family was a huge pitfall, and his daughter absolutely could not marry into it.
The emperor instructed Zhao Fuquan to help Prince Yong up, and then said, "I have said all I need to say. You can decide what to do next."
"Yes." A cold sweat broke out on Prince Yong's back. He was very glad that he had come to the palace tonight. Otherwise, it might not have been as simple as Ya Lin jumping into a fire pit. Perhaps their entire Prince Yong's mansion would have been disliked by the emperor.
He knew very well that the emperor's continued favor towards him over the years was not solely due to their brotherly bond, but mainly because he neglected state affairs and posed no threat to the emperor. The emperor was also happy to show that they, as members of the royal family, were amicable and respectful brothers.
King Yong left the palace in fear. After he left, the emperor sat there in deep thought for a while and said, "I will bestow upon the Duke of Chu a jade ruyi and a jade disc..."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Fuquan immediately went to carry it out, while the emperor strolled slowly in his study to digest his meal. He had originally intended to punish the officials who were on good terms with the Xie family as well, but now he thought better of it. The change of ownership of the Xie family's money shop might even cause turmoil, and if there were further upheavals in the court, it would be difficult to manage.
His reward to Jiang Yu was a way of telling everyone that he was on Jiang Yu's side, and to warn some people not to act rashly.
......
Jiang Yu was having dinner with the old Duke of Chu when the emperor's gift arrived. She quickly led everyone from the Duke of Chu's mansion in expressing their gratitude, and then had Li Zhong see the eunuch who delivered the decree off.
Looking at the rewards laid out on the table, the old Duke of Chu asked, "What does Your Majesty mean by this?"
Jiang Yu thought for a moment and said, "The Emperor is preparing to take over the Xie family's bank. He doesn't want the Xie family's downfall to cause a stir in the court."
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