Xie asked Gu Yue calmly, "How much did you eavesdrop?"
Gu Yue whispered, "I just eavesdropped a little."
"Really? So you already know about the dowry."
Gu Yue nodded cautiously.
Xie picked up the teacup, took a sip, and asked calmly, "What do you think?"
"Daughter, daughter..."
Gu Yue hesitated and never expressed her true thoughts.
Xie put down her teacup and said, "I want to hear the truth."
Gu Yue suddenly raised her head and said, "Mother, I am dissatisfied."
Xie scoffed. "So what if you're not convinced? Your father made the decision on this matter. You heard it too. I tried my best, but I couldn't change your father's decision."
"Father, why are you so partial? You give all the good things to Gu Jiu. I don't accept it. I am also a legitimate daughter. How am I worse than Gu Jiu? Why does she have a dowry of 40,000 taels while I only have 20,000 taels? I don't accept it!"
Gu Yue burst into tears, crying so hard, as if she had suffered a great injustice.
"Who told you not to marry the emperor's grandson? If you had married the emperor's grandson, you would have received a dowry of 40,000 taels. No, it could have been even more than 40,000 taels."
Xie was not distressed, but instead provoked Gu Yue. Of course, what she said was the truth.
Gu Yue cried even louder, "Mother, I know I was wrong."
She knelt down, threw herself at Xie's feet, and cried, saying that she knew she was wrong.
Xie gently stroked her head. "It's too late to realize your mistake now. But there are advantages to marrying into the Haixi Marquis's Mansion. I heard that Haixi Marquis is one of the few ministers who can have a say in His Majesty. If you can gain a foothold in the Haixi Marquis' Mansion and then influence his position, it may be a way out."
Gu Yue's eyes widened. "Mother, I don't understand."
"Are you stupid?"
Xie looked at Gu Yue with disdain.
Gu Yue felt wronged.
Xie signaled to Chunhe.
Chunhe understood what he meant and went to guard the door to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.
Xie stared at Gu Yue and lowered her voice to say, "Gu Jiu married the emperor's grandson. Do you know what this identity means?"
Gu Yue said uncertainly: "Prosperity and wealth?"
Xie sneered, "It's not just about wealth and glory, it also means you could be imprisoned at any time."
Gu Yue opened her mouth wide, but no sound came out.
Xie reached out her hand and gently stroked Gu Yue's cheek, "After Your Majesty ascended the throne, how many of His Majesty's brothers are left?
When His Royal Highness the Crown Prince ascends the throne, or when another prince ascends the throne, do you think the Ning Palace will still be as prosperous as it is today? That Gongzi Zhao, can he still be his son?
"Gu Jiu married Gongzi Zhao. As the saying goes, if you marry a chicken, you follow the chicken; if you marry a dog, you follow the dog. If Gongzi Zhao's life is not guaranteed, how can Gu Jiu still survive?"
When Gu Yue heard this, a light that could burn people flashed in his eyes.
Her eyes sparkled. "Mother, do you mean that Haixibo should support His Royal Highness the Crown Prince or another prince, but not Prince Ning's Mansion?"
"You're not stupid." Xie smiled.
Gu Yue also laughed, "Mother is wise, this is a great idea. As long as the Ning Palace collapses, even if Gu Jiu has great abilities, he will never be able to turn things around."
"That's exactly the truth. The royal palace can't compare to the official families. If an official commits a crime, as long as he survives, there's a chance of recovery. However, if the royal palace is feared by the new emperor, it usually ends in a miserable state."
Gu Yue nodded frequently, "Thank you for your teachings, mother. I understand."
Xie looked at Gu Yue with a half-smile, not forgetting to hit her, "Have you ever thought about how to gain a foothold after marrying into the Haixibo Mansion and influence Haixibo's decision?"
"daughter……"
Gu Yue was speechless. "My daughter hasn't thought about it carefully. Please teach me, mother."
Xie smiled softly, "Silly child, Zhao Erlang must be involved in this matter. You are the daughter-in-law, how can you go to your father-in-law to talk to him? As long as you can convince Zhao Erlang, and he talks to Haixibo, this matter will be settled."
Hearing Xie mention Zhao Erlang, Gu Yue lowered her head and smiled shyly.
Even the voice involuntarily became very light and soft.
"Erlang... I haven't seen him for a while, and I don't know what he's thinking."
Xie snorted coldly, "Why are you in such a hurry? You and he are already engaged. As long as nothing unexpected happens, you can just wait to get married. After you get married, you can see him every day and see if you get tired of him."
Gu Yue shook her head repeatedly and said shyly, "My daughter won't get tired of it."
Xie sneered and looked at Gu Yue with great dissatisfaction.
She had been desperate for Zhao Erlang and had made a fuss countless times. This daughter really disappointed her.
Xie suddenly lost interest and didn't want to talk to Gu Yue.
She said to Gu Yue, "If there's nothing else, you can leave first. Think carefully about what I said when you go back."
Gu Yue didn't want to leave. She looked at Xie eagerly, "Mother, I want more dowry."
Mrs. Xie said with a stern face, "I've prepared 20,000 taels of dowry for you. Don't you think it's not enough?"
"But Gu Jiu has a dowry of 40,000 taels." Gu Yue said aggrievedly.
Xie scolded, "Don't compare yourself to Gu Jiu. She married the grandson of the emperor and the eldest son of the royal family."
"But……"
Gu Yue looked at Mrs. Xie and said, "Didn't father promise to give five thousand taels of silver? Mother, could you add this five thousand taels to the dowry? That way, my daughter will have a dowry of twenty-five thousand taels."
Xie sat up straight and stared at Gu Yue intently. "Yu'er, I'll say this one last time. Your dowry is only 20,000 taels, not a penny more. As for the 5,000 taels your father gave me, I will add it to your dowry. This way, the balance on your account will be reduced by 5,000 taels. Do you understand?"
Gu Yue felt so wronged that her eyes were filled with tears.
“Why would a mother treat her daughter like this?”
Xie snorted coldly, "You should ask yourself how this marriage came about. Also, Zhao Erlang is not the eldest son. If you were capable of marrying Haixibo's eldest son, your mother would definitely prepare a dowry of no less than 30,000 taels for you."
Gu Yue burst into tears, "Mother, mother..."
She kept calling her mother, but Xie remained unmoved.
Xie's heart was extremely cold and hard at this moment.
She looked at Gu Yue coldly without saying a word.
Gu Yue didn't get a response and gradually stopped crying.
She sobbed and looked at Xie, "Mother has such a cruel heart."
Xie frowned and said angrily, "If I were truly cruel, you wouldn't be crying in front of me right now, but would be in the nunnery with the ancient Buddha and the green lamps. Think it over for yourself."
Gu Yue was stunned. Did her mother really want to send her to a nunnery to reflect on her past?
When Gu Yue thought about how cruel Xie had been, she wanted to cry, but she didn't dare to.
She looked pitiful and somewhat weak.
Xie closed her eyes with a look of disappointment, making it clear that she didn't want to see Gu Yue.
Gu Yue sobbed twice, but when she didn't get any response from Mrs. Xie, she knew that the conversation was over for the day.
She stood up and bowed slightly, "Mother, I'll take my leave first."
Mrs. Xie didn't move, still closing her eyes to rest.
Gu Yue bit her lip, feeling somewhat annoyed. Then she turned and left.
Chunhe walked in quietly, cleared the teacups, and poured another cup of tea for Mrs. Xie.
"Ma'am, have some hot tea."
Xie opened her eyes and asked, "Gone?"
Chun He nodded, "The third young lady has left. I saw that her eyes were red and she looked very sad."
Xie snorted coldly and laughed sarcastically, "She's sad? What was she doing when I was sad?"
"Madam, you should relax. The third girl is slowly starting to understand things."
Xie scoffed and shook her head. "I'm afraid she won't truly understand until she marries into the Haixi Marquis's mansion and is bullied for a while. Only then will she know who in this world is truly kind to her."
"Of course, Madam treats her the best. Over the years, I have seen that Madam treats the Third Miss like the apple of her eye. It's a pity that the Third Miss hasn't realized this yet."
Xie laughed at herself, "Never mind, let's not talk about this. Go get Yue'er's dowry list and I'll see if there's anything I need to add."
…
On the fifth day of the first lunar month, the Marquis' Mansion hosted a banquet for relatives and friends to celebrate the New Year together.
Early in the morning, everyone in the Gu Mansion set out, got in carriages, walked through the main gate, and headed for the Marquis' Mansion.
The carriage stopped at the second gate. Gu Jiu got off the carriage and saw Gu Mei.
She smiled, "Sister Mei."
"Sister Xiaojiu, please come quickly. The old lady is really worried about you. When she heard that you were betrothed to Gongzi Zhao, she didn't sleep well all night."
"I'm being unfilial by making the old lady worry about me. By the way, has Sister Qi and Sister Ying's marriage been finalized?"
Gu Mei nodded, "It's already been decided. The engagement will be made after the first month of the year."
Gu Jiu smiled and said, "Then I have to go congratulate Sister Qi and Sister Ying later."
Gu Mei looked at Gu Jiu worriedly, wanting to say something but stopping herself.
Gu Jiu pretended not to see it and continued chatting and laughing freely.
Everyone came to Songbaiyuan to pay their respects to the old lady Wei.
"Okay, okay, everyone is finally here for the New Year this year. Unlike previous years, your second wife was always absent, and it looked much quieter."
Xie smiled and said, "From now on, our second family will come to bother the old lady every New Year. Please don't think we are noisy."
The old lady Wei laughed loudly, "Don't worry, I love lively occasions. I love seeing the whole family gathered together. Sit down, don't stand. Xiaojiu, come over here and let me see you."
The others took their seats one by one, and Gu Jiu walked forward and came to the old lady Wei.
Old Madam Wei took her hand and looked at Gu Jiu carefully, "I'm sorry for putting you in such a difficult position."
Gu Jiu shook his head slightly, "My niece is not wronged."
Old Madam Wei sighed, "You and Miss Wei San, I don't know what luck you two had, but you were both given marriages to the emperor's grandson."
The Eastern Palace chose Miss Wei San, the third lady from the old lady’s family, the Duke of Zhuguo’s Mansion.
By the time the Duke of Zhuguo's Mansion learned the news, it was already too late and there was no way to change His Majesty's decision.
In addition, there was a queen watching behind them, so the Duke of Zhuguo's Mansion was helpless and could only accept the marriage reluctantly.
For this reason, the officials of the Eastern Palace were really happy.
The Duke of Zhuguo also held military power, but unlike the Duke of Lu's forces, his troops were stationed in the north. The north was peaceful, with few battles. Their combat effectiveness was certainly not comparable to that of the Duke of Lu.
However, once fighting breaks out in the north, the troops under the command of the Duke of Zhuguo may be controlled by the Marquis of Lu.
In this way, the Duke of Lu suddenly surpassed the Duke of Zhuguo.
Once the Duke of Lu begins to control the troops in the north, he will have an army of nearly 300,000 at his command.
Such rights are really scary.
Therefore, there were always memorials impeaching the Duke of Lu in the court every day.
The civil officials jumped up and down every few days, saying that the Duke of Lu was corrupt, abused his power, took human lives, drank the blood of his soldiers, had wolfish ambitions, and was a traitor.
Every day, he deceived the emperor and kept him on guard against the Duke of Lu. He almost said that the Duke of Lu should be arrested and cut into pieces, and his death would not be a pity.
The emperor has immense trust in those he trusts. As long as they don't do anything that threatens the imperial power, even if they offend the whole world, the emperor will still trust them and entrust them with important tasks.
For those whom the emperor dislikes, even if every word they say is eloquent, the emperor will not believe a single word.
The Duke of Lu was recognized as the most capable official and the nobleman who was best at pleasing the emperor.
He was in the northwest for many years, but he still enjoyed the trust of the emperor. Every time he returned to the capital to report on his work, the emperor would give the Duke of Lu a large reward.
The emperor also took good care of the Marquis of Lu's family in the capital.
This is also why the Eastern Palace and the major royal palaces are trying every possible means to win over the Marquis of Lu.
As long as he could get the support of the Marquis of Lu, he would be only one step away from the throne.
However, the bastard Marquis of Lu took the money but didn't do the job, which made the Crown Prince and other princes furious. In private, they cursed Marquis of Lu over and over again.
As the eldest daughter of Marquis Lu, Pei Yun's marriage naturally attracted the attention of the entire capital from top to bottom.
Just yesterday, Pei Yun's marriage was decided.
The emperor personally arranged the marriage, and the man Pei Yun was betrothed to was none other than the eldest son of the Duke of Zhuguo and the brother of Miss Wei San.
This is also the reason why Donggong is so happy.
The young master of the Eastern Palace married the third daughter of the Wei family, and Pei Yun will marry into the Wei family.
In this way, the Eastern Palace and the Marquis of Lu's Mansion are connected.
For this reason, everyone in the Eastern Palace celebrated all night long.
Some are happy and some are sad.
The Eastern Palace was in high spirits, while the Wei family of the Duke of Zhuguo's Mansion was half happy and half worried.
Even the old lady Wei began to sigh, feeling mixed emotions.
The servant came to report that the Wei family from the Zhuguo Mansion had arrived.
Old Madam Wei hurriedly said, "Please invite the person in quickly."
The wife of the Duke of Zhuguo came in with the children.
As soon as Miss Wei San saw the old lady Wei, she threw herself into the old lady's arms and burst into tears.
"Grand aunt, I'm so sad." Miss Wei San burst into tears.
The wife of the Duke of Zhuguo coughed twice, reminding Miss Wei San to be mindful of the occasion and her proper manners. It was New Year's Day, and it was unbecoming to cry in a relative's house.
Old Madam Wei waved her hand at the wife of the Duke of Zhuguo, "The child is feeling wronged, just let her cry it out."
The wife of the Duke of Zhuguo sighed, "Aunt loves her, and so do we. But the imperial decree has been issued, and this matter cannot be changed."
Miss Wei San raised her head and shouted, "My daughter doesn't want to marry into the Eastern Palace. I've met the Second Young Master of the Eastern Palace. He's a fool."
"Nonsense. Do you think you can talk nonsense in front of your great-aunt? Where have you learned any etiquette?"
The wife of the Duke of Zhuguo gently scolded Miss Wei San.
Miss Wei San started crying again out of grievance.
Old Madam Wei held Miss Wei San in her arms and patted her back gently, "Okay, okay, I know you've been wronged."
"My great aunt loves me the most."
Old Madam Wei laughed. "You are just a crybaby. Look, Xiaojiu didn't even cry. She was also betrothed to the emperor's grandson, just like you."
Miss Wei San looked at Gu Jiu curiously.
Gu Jiu nodded slightly, "Happy New Year, Third Sister Wei."
Miss Wei San wiped her tears and said, "Sister Xiaojiu, I have heard everything about you. You are betrothed to Gongzi Zhao, what should we do?"
The wife of the Duke of Zhuguo coughed repeatedly, reminding Miss Wei San again to be careful with her words.
Miss Wei San lowered her head and bit her lip. She knew she had gone too far and shouldn't have cried in front of her relatives and ruined their mood. But she was really upset.
Gu Jiu said to her, "Don't cry, Third Sister Wei. The imperial decree has been issued. Let's think about what to do in the future."
Miss Wei San nodded and said, "Thank you, Sister Xiaojiu."
Miss Wei San stopped crying, and the wife of the Duke of Zhuguo gently scolded her, "Hurry up and get off the old lady. The old lady is so old, how can she withstand your commotion?"
Miss Wei San hurriedly stood up and said, "Grandaunt, I'm sorry to have made a fool of myself."
Madam Wei said, "Why are you being so polite to my great-aunt? I know you feel wronged. Just cry it out."
Miss Wei San nodded and said, "I will listen to my great-aunt."
Old Madam Wei also warned Gu Jiu, "Xiao Jiu, get close to your Third Sister Wei when you have the chance. It will be difficult for you to get close to her in the future."
For a moment, no one in the hall spoke.
Everyone thought that Wei San married into the Eastern Palace and Gu Jiu married into Prince Ning's Mansion.
The Eastern Palace and Prince Ning's Mansion definitely don't get along well.
Wouldn't Miss Wei San and Gu Jiu become rivals and enemies in the future?
Everyone looked at the two of them, feeling mixed emotions.
This damn arranged marriage, it’s all thanks to the Queen Mother who came up with this idea.
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