Chapter 73 Xu's Abacus
Over there, the Jiang family had already arrived at the Imperial Garden, where dignitaries and noble ladies were coming and going.
Jiang Yuanzhou and Xu Huiran looked at each other, and Xu Huiran pushed Jiang Zhao.
"Zhao'er, your sister is a concubine. You are not young anymore. It is not appropriate for you to meet her again."
Jiang Zhao had been looking forward to seeing his sister for a long time. When he heard this, he was stunned and the smile on his face froze.
"Then where should I go? But this isn't one of the rules Madam told me before I came here. Why can't I see my sister?"
Xu Huiran was furious when she saw Jiang Zhao still thinking about his sister all these years, but she still smiled and said:
"If you didn't hear what I just said, just wait here and don't break the rules."
There were so many noble people coming and going here, and she thought her son was good-looking. If he could win the favor of a noble lady...
Jiang Zhao's heart gradually grew cold and his head drooped.
"All right."
At Zhaohua Palace, Jiang Yingli finally saw Qiuxia coming with Jiang Yuanzhou and Xu Huiran.
Jiang Yingli went out to greet him.
Jiang Yuanzhou and Xu Huiran were completely stunned before they even entered Zhaohua Palace. Now they walked to the eaves outside the palace, looking around and forgetting to greet each other.
This is incomparable to the former Prince Su's Mansion. The red gate of the former Prince Su's Mansion had peeling paint. This concubine's residence is so luxurious that it's dazzling.
Lian Qiao saw Jiang Yuanzhou and Xu Huiran looking around and reminded them:
"Please pay your respects to Her Majesty."
This voice drew their attention back to Jiang Yingli.
When Xu Huiran saw the two ruby-inlaid gold tassel hairpins on Jiang Yingli's head, her eyes lit up and she walked forward enthusiastically.
"My sweetheart, how could you be so distant with me?"
As Xu spoke, she reached out and took away the two hairpins from Jiang Yingli's head, holding them in her hands and marveling at them.
"Oh, this is a reward from His Majesty, it's really a good thing."
The smile on Jiang Yingli's lips froze, and Lian Qiao, who was standing beside her, became furious.
"Why don't you even show respect to Her Majesty when you see her? And why do you pull the hairpin off Her Majesty's head!" Lian Qiao pretended to snatch the hairpin back.
Xu's eyebrows raised, and she took a step back with her hairpin in her palm.
"Who the hell are you? How dare you yell at me! I'm your queen's biological mother. Without me, she wouldn't have the chance to wear such a fine hairpin!"
Jiang Yuanzhou also said: "Even the emperor respects his mother, how dare you disrespect filial piety."
Lian Qiao looked incredulous.
It turned out that what Qiuxia said to her before was too gentle.
This Jiang family is simply unreasonable!
Seeing Lian Qiao about to move again, Qiuxia quickly stopped her, sighed helplessly, and whispered, "Your Majesty has been waiting for this for so long. You've been embroidering the sachet for two months. Don't make it difficult for Your Majesty."
Lian Qiao was so angry that her face turned pale and she retreated frantically.
Jiang Yingli managed to soften her expression and smiled, "Don't stand at the door talking anymore. Dad and Mom, come in first."
Jiang Yingli asked someone to make tea for Jiang Yuanzhou and Xu Huiran. She looked for a long time but didn't see her own Jiang Zhao.
"Mother, where's my brother? Didn't he come today?"
Xu Huiran sat there arrogantly, holding her tea and laughing strangely.
"Your brother? After you entered the palace, it seemed like you had no news at all. Did you remember that you had a brother then?"
Jiang Yingli pursed her lips. "Mother, you asked me to ask His Majesty to find a job for my brother, but how old was he then? He had no achievements to his name, and His Majesty was just an unpopular prince. How could I help him?"
"You always have your reasons~" Xu took a sip of tea leisurely.
Then she said, "That was your excuse in the past. What about now? Now that you live in such a beautiful palace and wear a golden hairpin, do you miss your family? Your brother has long seen through you, your selfish sister. Even your father and I still care about you."
Jiang Yingli said quickly, "How could that be? Why wouldn't my brother come to see me? Besides, I'm in the inner palace, so it's not easy for me to interact with my family. That's why I waited until today. I've prepared a gift."
Xu Huiran and Jiang Yuanzhou looked expectant.
Jiang Yingli took the sachet forward first, "This is embroidered by my daughter, one for each of my father, mother, and brother, and there is also this box of jewelry and..."
"Enough!" Xu waved the sachet in Jiang Yingli's hand with disgust, and all three sachets fell to the ground.
"You said you were in the deep palace, and now that we finally get to see each other, you're using this thing to fool us?"
Jiang Yingli felt empty inside and her face turned pale in an instant. She was stunned for a long time. She wanted to say that she had a box of gold, silver and jewelry that she had accumulated, but her throat felt like it was filled with lead.
Jiang Yuanzhou glanced at the sachet on the ground, sighed, and said earnestly, "Li'er, don't blame your mother for being cruel. You know, our family is in business and we often need money to make ends meet. Can't we afford something like a sachet?"
Jiang Yingli swallowed the lump in her throat and calmed herself down. "Yes, father, you are right. I was inconsiderate. Here is a box of cash. Please take it back with you. If you have any difficulties, you can use it for cash flow."
When Jiang Yuanzhou saw the box of gold and silver, his expression softened immediately. "Ah, Father has long known that you are a filial son. Since you have prepared it, why not tell me early to avoid misunderstandings?"
Jiang Yuanzhou and Xu Huiran were counting the gold and silver in the box. Jiang Yingli pushed the jewelry box in front of them and said:
"Mother loves beauty, and all of this is prepared for her. However, the hairpin you just took off was a birthday gift from His Majesty to his daughter, so it cannot be given to you lightly."
Upon hearing this, Xu grabbed the jewelry box, threw the two hairpins on the table, and complained softly.
"I risked my life to give birth to him, and worked tirelessly to raise him, but he turned out to be an ungrateful person, even arguing with his biological mother about jewelry."
Jiang Yingli clenched her handkerchief.
After a moment of silence, she asked, not giving up, "Brother, did you really not come today?"
Xu said impatiently, "Why would I lie to you?"
Jiang Yingli: "Please help me explain when you get home, mother. I've always been thinking about my brother and never forgot him. He studies hard. When the time is right, I will ask His Majesty for mercy."
After Xu finished looking through the jewelry, she looked happy for once.
"You're right to think so. Family members naturally support each other. If your brother becomes an official, our family will no longer be poor. You will also benefit, right?"
Jiang Yingli nodded.
Xu suddenly took Jiang Yingli's hand warmly and said, "Mother has been working so hard to make your life easier in the harem. Our family is a merchant family with a low status, but if we can reach the top of the business, we can also earn some prestige."
Jiang Yingli was puzzled when she heard this: "What does mother mean by this?"
"You may not know, but your uncle's family recently rose to prominence, becoming vice-president of a flower business. They're now vying for the position of head of a flower business. Being head of a flower business means more opportunities to host flower banquets for dignitaries. It's only a matter of time before they become prosperous. Now that your uncle has become head of a flower business, he's definitely going to promote someone in our family to be second in command."
This was good news. Jiang Yingli asked, "If my uncle wants to promote our family, what are his requirements?"
Seeing her daughter getting on the right track, Xu Huiran smiled even more happily and held Jiang Yingli's hand.
"Regardless of whether we ask for anything or not, we're all family, and we should support each other. It's just that your uncle still lacks the ability to maintain a good image, so he's timid when competing with others. If it were like our family, with a golden phoenix flying out of the house, we'd be able to stand tall."
Jiang Yingli suddenly thought of something, but still couldn't believe it.
Until Xu Huiran took out a woman's embroidered handkerchief and said to her softly:
"You are currently enjoying favor in the palace, but it's hard to say what your future holds. It's best to take this opportunity to introduce your cousin to the palace. We are all blood relatives, so we can support each other in the palace."
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