Pulling Qin Chulin over to her, Ye Wanshu said bluntly, "Manager Feng, my father has no children. On the day of the funeral, I'm afraid there won't even be anyone to carry the coffin and break the tiles. I've decided to adopt Chulin under the name of my father and mother. This way, the Ji family will have a pillar of support."
As soon as these words were spoken, the mourning hall suddenly exploded.
Aunt Zheng had long intended to adopt her nephew from her mother's side under the master's name, but the master had never agreed. Now, look what happened, this little bastard from Aunt Qin's family has taken advantage of him.
She had just heard from someone in the palace that the emperor intended to posthumously confer a title on him. With the master's loyalty to His Majesty and the achievements he had made, he should at least be a marquis. How could such immense wealth be given to someone else?
"Miss, this is no small matter. How can you make this decision on behalf of the master and the Ji family without authorization?" Aunt Zheng rolled her eyes in dissatisfaction: "Miss, don't forget that your surname is Ye now, not Ji."
"What a joke! Even after my father died, he only wanted to be buried in the Ye family's ancestral tomb. Does it matter whether my last name is Ye or Ji?" Ye Wanshu snorted disdainfully. "If Aunt Zheng has any complaints, why not go down and have a good talk with my father yourself?"
Aunt Zheng was so frightened that she choked and glanced at Aunt Sun secretly: "Are you mute?"
Aunt Sun has always been a person who knows how to deal with current affairs. She was only taken back to the mansion because the master mistook her for the late wife when he was drunk. How could she dare to interfere in the affairs of the master's family?
"What the eldest lady said makes sense," Aunt Sun said, "The master passed away suddenly, leaving us orphans and widows. We will inevitably be bullied in the future. Chu Lin is Aunt Qin's nephew, and he is also highly regarded by the master. It is most appropriate for him to be adopted into the mansion."
"You..." Aunt Zheng stared at her with a dark face, angrily.
"I disagree."
Ji Ningxi pursed her lips and said, "Eldest sister really doesn't consider us younger sisters as close relatives. Even if she gets married in the future, there are still me and the other younger sisters. At most, she can find a son-in-law to marry into the family. Why would she adopt a person from another family?"
Ji Ningxuan could see what her second sister was thinking. If she couldn't adopt Qin Chulin into the family, she would wait until her eldest sister got married and then find a son-in-law to marry into the family. From then on, she would have the final say in the Ji family.
I don't know how my mother became so confused that she let her instigate me. Without the approval of His Majesty, how could her cousin from the Zheng family be adopted into the Ji family?
"Second sister has been talking too much today."
Ji Ningxuan said, "Second sister, have you forgotten that in order to enter Prince Qi's mansion, you boasted and severed your relationship with father. Now that eldest sister has kindly taken you back home out of sisterly love, how dare you still interfere in the Ji family's affairs?"
"That was just a momentary angry remark. How can it be counted?" Ji Ningxi was so angry that she was about to go forward to provoke her, but was pushed to the ground by Ji Ningxuan.
"The Ji family is no longer run by you, little lady. How dare you, a convicted woman from Prince Qi's mansion, boss me around?"
Ji Ningxuan walked straight up to Ye Wanshu and said flatteringly, "Don't worry, big sister. We will definitely respect Chu Lin as our legitimate brother from now on."
She knew that if a bastard daughter like herself wanted to have someone to rely on in the future, she had to please her elder sister and have a good relationship with her younger brother.
The cousin of the Zheng family is not a good person. Her uncle's family has always been eyeing the Ji family's property. Even if the cousin of the Zheng family is adopted into the Ji family, she and her mother will not get any benefits.
It would be better to take good care of this younger brother of the Qin family who has no relatives or friends.
Although Ye Wanshu had not been in the Ji family for a long time, after the last incident with Zhou Ru, she realized that Ji Ningxuan was no simple person and was a smart person.
Ting Feng, who was standing by, couldn't guess what the eldest girl was thinking, but even if she didn't mention the adoption, someone in the clan would probably intervene sooner or later.
After all, the fortune left by the master is enormous. Even if only half of it is left, it would be enough for the Ji family to covet it, not to mention the upcoming posthumous title.
He knew that the Third Young Lady was trustworthy, so he quickly signaled to Ye Wanshu, "Young Lady, the master has just passed away. According to the customs of our Great Ye Dynasty, His Majesty intends for you and Prince Yongning to marry within a hundred days. After your wedding, it would be appropriate for the Third Young Lady to assist the young master in managing the household affairs."
Emperor Zhaolie had no children, and now he had decided to make Fu Mingchi the crown prince. What he was most worried about was probably Fu Mingchi's offspring. Ye Wanshu could guess his intentions as he was so anxious to get her married.
If the marriage cannot be completed within a hundred days, it will have to wait until after the three-year mourning period. The emperor was worried that he could not wait and wanted to see a new royal heir born as soon as possible.
Nodding towards Tingfeng, Ye Wanshu gradually turned her gaze towards Ji Ningxuan. "Third sister, I know about father's will. You and everyone else have complaints, but as long as you keep your promise, I will prepare another dowry for you when you get married."
Ji Ningxuan quickly shook her head: "I don't blame my father. My elder sister has been away from home for many years. It is reasonable for my father to want to make up for her."
After saying this, Ji Ningxuan deliberately glanced at Aunt Zheng and continued, "I don't have any other thoughts. I just hope that after Dad passes away, our Ji family won't wither away and disappoint Dad."
I said this not only for my mother, but also in the hope that my elder sister would think more about the Ji family in the future.
Ye Wanshu could naturally hear the hidden meaning in her words. After all, the Ji family was her mother's hard work, and she certainly would not watch the mansion decline.
"Don't worry, our Ji family will only get better and better," Ye Wanshu comforted.
Ji Ningxi listened silently for a long time, with only endless resentment in his heart.
Lying before Ji Yuan's coffin, she cried bitterly, "Father, did you see everything? My eldest sister is so partial to one and the other. She would rather hand over your family business to an outsider than let her inherit it. If I hadn't risked my life to get into the city last night, how could my eldest sister have the leisure and elegance to be here and give orders? She is so ungrateful."
"If you hadn't interfered, how could my cousin have died?"
Ye Wanshu bent down angrily and grabbed Ji Ningxi's clothes. "Ji Ningxi, considering what happened last night, if you behave yourself, there's still a place for you in this mansion. If you continue to harbor evil intentions, there's no friendship between us. I'll have no choice but to kick you out."
Ji Ningxi was stunned for a moment and dared not complain anymore.
After arranging all matters, Ye Wanshu no longer cared to meddle in other matters. She simply instructed Ting Feng, "Manager Feng, please invite the clan leader as soon as possible to finalize Chu Lin's adoption. This will also allow arrangements for my father's funeral."
As soon as she finished speaking, Emperor Zhaolie came in with a number of court officials, led by servants.
The eunuch who announced the decree first read out the imperial decree posthumously conferring the titles of Prince Taifu and Marquis Wen Zhong on Ji Yuan, and then Emperor Zhaolie personally went to the coffin to burn incense.
After gazing silently at the spirit tablet for a long time, Emperor Zhaolie finally asked, "Jinghe, have you chosen the person who will carry your father's coffin back to his hometown?"
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