Chapter 32 Family Affairs (First published on Jinjiang Literature City)
"At today's court assembly, His Majesty entrusted the investigation of this examination fraud case to the Court of Judicial Review." The old man was always straightforward and got straight to the point: "Although the Ministry of Justice and the Censorate are not involved, I imagine that such a big case will require a joint trial by the three judicial departments. The atmosphere in the capital will definitely be tense these days, so you all need to be careful."
Fu Mingzi raised an eyebrow and handed it over to the Dali Temple. The emperor's attitude was rather ambiguous. If he really valued it, he would have let the Ministry of Justice get involved. Now he just handed it over to the Dali Temple. Who knows what he's up to?
"His Majesty's thoughts are unpredictable, and as his subjects, we can only tremble with fear," Fu Mingsong sighed, frowning.
Fu Mingbo didn't react much. He wasn't a deep thinker to begin with, and he had no interest in such things, so he didn't care.
"Mingzi, I heard that you played polo with several princes in front of His Majesty today?" Duke Jingguo suddenly changed the subject.
Fu Mingzi was taken aback, then nodded: "Yes."
"How did you perform?" Duke Jingguo seemed very interested.
"It's alright." Fu Mingzi sensed something was amiss, so she spoke very cautiously.
Duke Jingguo smiled and said, "I heard that the Fifth Prince performed very well and even received praise from His Majesty, as well as many rewards."
Fu Mingzi was somewhat surprised. It hadn't been long, yet the Duke of Jingguo had received the news while sitting at home.
"Hahaha, yes, that's true." Fu Mingzi's smile was stiff.
Duke Jingguo gave Fu Mingzi a meaningful look: "In that case, you should get closer to the Fifth Prince in the future. I remember that your horsemanship is also very good. It would be good for you two to communicate more."
Fu Mingzi's face grew increasingly stiff. She mumbled an "uh-huh" to brush it off, but dared not say another word.
The other two people present had completely different attitudes towards their conversation. Fu Mingsong looked indifferent, as if he hadn't heard anything, while Fu Mingbai frowned again: "Father, the Fifth Prince is a prince after all. It's not advisable for Mingzi to get too close to him."
The Duke of Jingguo knew his son's temperament best, so he didn't refute him, but just smiled and said, "It's just children playing around, it's nothing serious. Besides, the Fifth Prince is calm and quiet. If this boy follows the Fifth Prince, he might be able to settle down a bit."
Fu Mingbo's brows remained furrowed, but he couldn't very well argue with his father, so he could only shut up and say no more.
After finishing that, the Duke of Jingguo brought up another family matter.
"Mingzhu may be returning to Beijing in two months, so please make preparations."
Upon hearing this, Fu Mingzi's expression immediately changed, and he looked at the Duke of Jingguo.
The pearl mentioned by the Duke of Jingguo is Fu Mingzhu, the only legitimate daughter of the Duke of Jingguo and his deceased wife, and the eldest sister of Fu Mingzi.
"My little sister is coming back?" Fu Mingbo asked first, "Why is it so sudden?"
It's no wonder Fu Mingbai was surprised. Fu Mingzhu married the heir of the Duke of Qian, who lived far away in Yun'an. Now, more than twenty years have passed, and she has only returned a few times. Moreover, she only returned because the emperor summoned the Duke of Qian to the capital. This was not because Fu Mingzhu did not care about her family, but because of the special status of the Duke of Qian.
The Duke of Qian was stationed to guard the southwestern border of the country, so he could not leave at will. As the current Duchess, Fu Mingzhu's fate was intertwined with his actions.
Because of this, Fu Mingzi, despite being so old, has only met this older sister once.
"Two months from now, it will be the time for the imperial concubine selection. Mingzhu's daughter will also be of marriageable age. Mingzhu sent her to the capital, so naturally he will have to come back for a visit," the Duke of Jingguo said calmly.
Fu Mingzi's first reaction upon hearing this was disbelief, but she still subconsciously glanced at Fu Mingsong, only to see that he had a calm expression, as if he already knew. Fu Mingzi became even more skeptical of the reason given by the Duke of Jingguo.
“How could Mingzhu be so reckless?” Fu Mingbai wasn’t stupid, and he immediately sensed something was wrong: “Even if my niece is going to the capital for the imperial concubine selection, why should a duchess like her accompany her? Are all the officials who were ordered to escort the candidates dead? Even if you don’t trust the officials to accompany her to the capital, my niece is not young anymore. Can’t she be competent?”
As the Duchess, she was in charge of the entire inner quarters of the Duke of Qian's mansion. Unless there were special circumstances, she would never leave easily. Moreover, given the special status of the Duke of Qian's mansion, and with Fu Mingzhu's cautious nature, she would not go to the emperor's presence at this time and cause him any trouble.
"Your sister hasn't returned to the capital for many years. What's wrong with her coming back to see this old man?" Duke Jingguo seemed to have anticipated Fu Mingbai's question, so he answered calmly: "As her brother, are you so unhappy to hear that your sister is coming back?"
“Father, I didn’t…” Fu Mingbo was upright after all. Upon hearing the Duke of Jing’s words, his face turned red, and he hurriedly tried to get up to apologize.
"Alright." Duke Jingguo waved his hand to stop him. "Your sister hasn't been back for many years. She's finally back this time. You should all go back and tidy up your living quarters so as not to upset her when she comes back."
The Duke of Jingguo's words completely shut down Fu Mingbai's unfinished words, and his face flushed red, a hint of guilt flashing in his eyes.
"My son has misunderstood. Don't worry, I will personally go to pick up my sister when the time comes," Fu Mingbo said in a deep voice.
A hint of a smile flashed in the eyes of the Duke of Jingguo, but he quickly regained his composure and simply nodded lightly: "It's good that you understand."
As Fu Mingzi watched this scene, he felt more and more that something was amiss with the eldest sister's return this time. For the old man to scheme against his second brother and silence him like this, there must be something fishy going on.
Fu Mingzi narrowed his eyes and began to ponder in his heart.
At that moment, Duke Jingguo's eyes swept over Fu Mingzi. Seeing his appearance, Duke Jingguo's face stiffened. He could fool his honest second son, but this youngest son was no pushover.
However, the Duke of Jingguo was not foolish enough to wait for Fu Mingzi to ask him. Instead, he simply acted shamelessly and said directly, "Alright, it's getting late. Go back and rest. I still have things to do here."
Fu Mingzi was so angry she laughed. It seemed the old man was hiding something big this time, but it didn't matter. There were still two months left. With enough time, they could eventually find out.
Therefore, Fu Mingzi did not linger. She got up and bowed to Fu Mingbai to take her leave. She also glanced at Fu Mingsong, who remained unmoved. She roughly understood the situation. It seemed that her elder brother was aware of this matter as well. Fu Mingzi thought for a moment and then left the study with Fu Mingbai without further hesitation.
After leaving the study, Fu Mingbo left first. Fu Mingzi didn't say much either. Although the old man had schemed against his second brother, the old man always had a plan. There was no need for him to expose him. After all, his second brother wasn't a very cunning person. If he found out that the old man was hiding something, he might ask the old man about it the next day, and then he would be punished as a result.
Fu Mingzi stood for a moment, thinking that it had been a long time since she had visited the Wen family, so she decided to go and see them today. With that in mind, Fu Mingzi went directly to the backyard.
When Fu Mingzi entered the Wen family's room, she found that her grandniece was also there. This time, she was sitting obediently next to the Wen family, massaging her legs, while the Wen family was holding an account book and pointing at it, teaching her something.
As soon as Fu Mingzi entered, Madam Wen put down the account book and looked at him with a smile: "Our Fifth Master is a rare guest. What brings you here today?"
"Sister-in-law, please don't be so kind to me." Upon hearing this, Fu Mingzi quickly apologized, "I've been busy these past few days and haven't been able to come and see you. It's my fault."
Ms. Wen smiled and said, "Alright, I know you well enough. Just say what you want to say, stop being so cheeky."
Fu Mingzi's heart skipped a beat; her older sister-in-law really understood her.
However, he certainly couldn't just admit it so casually, so he just smiled, sat down, and picked up the tea that the servant had just served him.
"My niece has grown a lot taller since I last saw her. My sister-in-law has really done a great job raising her," Fu Mingzi chuckled.
These words struck a chord with Mrs. Wen. She had spent a lot of time with her granddaughter these past few days and felt much closer to her, and she loved her granddaughter even more.
“Children change every day,” Madam Wen said with a smile. “You have a sharp eye, though.”
While Fu Mingzi laughed, her mind was racing. Hearing this, she replied, "I'm not only sharp-eyed, but I'm also sharp-eared. The master just told me something, and I rushed over to tell you."
"What did you say?" Mrs. Wen asked, somewhat curious.
Fu Yunjia, who had been sitting quietly to the side, suddenly turned pale upon hearing this. However, Fu Mingzi was focused on Wen Shi and did not notice her distress.
"Big sister is coming back soon. According to the master, it will be in a month or two," Fu Mingzi said with a smile.
"Really?" Madam Wen's face lit up with joy. Before Fu Mingzhu got married, she was the closest to her. At that time, she had just married into the Fu family. The Duchess was someone who didn't manage things. Fu Mingzhu was just a young girl then, but she was bright and generous, and she was good at everything. When Madam Wen took over the household affairs, she helped her in everything. Madam Wen also felt sorry for Fu Mingzhu having to manage the household affairs at such a young age, so she was very close to her. Later, Fu Mingzhu participated in the imperial concubine selection and was betrothed to the Duke of Qian by the emperor. She cried bitterly, thinking that she would never have the chance to see him again.
Looking back now, it was all a tragic fate. In the past twenty years, she had returned only a handful of times. Now, upon hearing that Fu Mingzhu was coming back, how could Wen not be overjoyed?
"Of course it's true." Observing the expression, Fu Mingzi knew that Wen Shi and his older sister had a good relationship. When Fu Mingzhu came back last time, Fu Mingzi was still a child, so he naturally did not know much about the relationship between his older sister and the family.
“My eldest sister’s niece seems to have reached the age for the imperial concubine selection, so my eldest sister is personally escorting her to the capital. You will be able to meet my eldest sister again then,” Fu Mingzi said, scratching Wen Shi’s itchy spot.
Hearing this, Madam Wen's eyes reddened: "It's been so many years, and you've finally come back. It's really not easy."
Seeing Wen's agitation, the maids and servants rushed over to comfort her. Fu Mingzi, watching from the side, was also somewhat surprised, not expecting that her sister-in-law and elder sister had such a good relationship.
However, when she looked away, Fu Mingzi saw Fu Yunjia standing to the side. She noticed that Fu Yunjia had her eyes slightly lowered, her face was a little pale, and her hands were clenched tightly.
Fu Mingzi was somewhat surprised, but before he could think about it further, Madam Wen asked him about Fu Mingzhu's return.
Fu Mingzi himself didn't know much either, so he could only give a few perfunctory replies. He was still hoping that the Wen family could get some information out of his elder brother.
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