Su Chengye was a little anxious. He didn't expect Su Yuanzhou to say that. He thought everyone had their own relatives and friends, and Su Yuanzhou would understand this.
Upon hearing this, the old lady said, "How are they the same? You and Xiaoliu are closer by blood. After all, your third uncle is still a layer away from us and can't be considered family."
The issue of Su Yuanyi inheriting the title had always been a source of unease for the old lady. Now that Concubine Zeng had finally given birth to a son for the eldest son, she couldn't let the title fall to someone else.
So today, Su Yuanzhou and Su Qingyu were called back, one to give face to Aunt Zeng and the child, and the other to discuss this matter.
Su Yuanzhou sneered when he heard this. Blood relationship? It seems that if there is a chance, he should invite Mr. Zhou to the Su family for a simple meal and help his father verify his relationship.
I thought so in my heart, but said casually: "I can't write two Su characters with one stroke. I wonder what my grandfather would think if he knew what my grandmother said."
"If my father and grandmother were to discuss this with me, my stance would be that Yuan Yi would inherit the title. If my father insists on appointing the crown prince instead, I can do nothing about it. However, the Pingning Marquisate will soon be on the verge of collapse."
The old lady was a little dissatisfied. "What does Yuanzhou mean by that? My Su family is thriving now, how could it be in decline?"
Su Yuanzhou smiled and said, "Grandmother, you know that our family is now considered a dual-noble family. My Ning Wang Mansion and the Su family's Marquis Mansion should be of the same blood and support each other."
When the old lady heard this, she couldn't help but show pride. This was a great honor for the Su family, and it was also the confidence she had when she went down to see the old master in the future.
Su Yuanzhou continued, "I'm telling you the truth, father, please don't be upset. Your ability as an official is really average, far inferior to that of Third Uncle."
"If Yuan Yi inherits the title, with Yuan Yi's talent and the support of his uncle, the Su family will have no problem prospering for another three generations."
"But if it were this newborn baby, it would be hard to say. By then, it wouldn't be a case of the two families helping each other. I'm afraid the Su family would have to rely on Prince Ning's Mansion."
"If this continues, the Su family will soon be on the verge of collapse."
Even though Su Chengye knew that he was not very capable, his face turned red and white when his own son said it directly.
I wanted to scold my son, but because I know him well, I knew it wouldn't work.
The old lady knew that Su Yuanzhou was right, but due to selfish motives, she still hoped that Zeng's child could inherit the title.
Su Yuanzhou was too lazy to say more to them. After making his attitude clear, he exchanged glances with Su Qingyu. The brother and sister stood up together and prepared to leave.
Before leaving, Su Yuanzhou said, "Third Uncle is related to the Song family by marriage. If you change the crown prince for no reason, what will the Song family think? Have Grandmother and Father thought about it?"
There was no need for them to answer. After saying that, he took Su Qingyu away.
The two of them walked out of the hall and headed towards the outer courtyard.
As soon as he came out of the Chuihua Gate, before he got on the carriage, he met Song Hongshen, who was accompanied by Su Yuanyi.
Song Hongshen saw the two of them from afar, hurried over and saluted Su Qingyu.
Su Yuanzhou teased him, "I'm also your uncle-in-law, so why didn't you bow to me?"
Su Qingyu tilted her head back to suppress her laughter, what a great term for a brother-in-law who hasn't even married into the family.
Song Hong gave him a deep look, but didn't say anything back because Su Qingyu was there.
Su Yuanzhou asked him again, "Why are you here?"
Song Hongshen asked in return, "Why can't I come?"
He is the future son-in-law of the Su family, and it is not natural for him to come to the Su family.
Su Yuanyi, who was standing by, accompanied them with a smile on his face. Ever since Song Hongshen and Su Zhilan's engagement continued, Song Hongshen came every now and then.
Whenever Song Hongshen came, he had to accompany him. It would be bad to let him walk around the Su family alone.
Initially, Su Yuanyi had assumed Song Hongshen was a military general, a man of few words and no smiles. However, after a few interactions, he discovered he never acted like a prince, always speaking with a pleasant demeanor. As he got to know him better, he realized he was a master of both military and civil strategies.
Su Yuanyi had previously benefited greatly from Shen Zhixiu's guidance on his studies. Recently, Song Hong, knowing that he was about to take the imperial examination, had deliberately explained a lot of the ins and outs of it, which made Su Yuanyi ecstatic.
So during this period of time, the scene in the outer courtyard of the Su family was that Song Hongshen chased Su Zhilan to ask about shipbuilding, and Su Yuanyi chased Song Hongshen to ask how to write a policy paper that would be outstanding.
Hearing that Su Yuanyi was sending Song Hongshen out of the mansion, several people walked towards the carriage together.
Su Yuanzhou whispered to Song Hongshen, "Did the emperor tell you when to leave for Fujian?"
Song Hongshen smiled and replied, "No hurry, I'll figure out this boat first."
Su Yuanzhou gave him a meaningful look and said, "My fifth sister is your wife-to-be, not a craftsman who builds your ship."
Song Hongshen raised his eyebrows and said, "You don't need to remind me."
Afterwards, everyone got on the carriage and returned home, and Su Qingyu also went directly back to the Shen family.
As soon as Fang returned to the mansion, the stewards came to the West Courtyard to ask for an audience. Most of them were about trivial matters related to Shen Yue's marriage, and Su Qingyu took care of them one by one.
By the time I finished all these things, it was already noon.
Shen Zhixiu rarely returned home to have dinner, and the couple sat down in the flower hall.
Su Qingyu first talked about her return to the Marquis' Mansion today, and then said, "Sometimes I really want to open my father and grandmother's heads to see what they think about all day."
"Can the succession of a title be changed at will? What about the court's laws?"
"No wonder my grandfather often said when he was alive that my grandmother was narrow-minded and womanly."
Su Qingyu recalled that when her grandfather was alive, although the Su family had declined and become a low-ranking marquisate, her grandfather still worked hard to govern the family and moved up step by step.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so close to the old master of the Shen family and arranged a marriage for her. Even the third master of the Xie family was a close friend of my grandfather.
After my grandfather passed away, the Su family became worse and worse.
Seeing Su Qingyu's frown, Shen Zhixiu was unhappy. Every time she went back to the Su family, the Su family would find something to do.
He couldn't bear to see Su Qingyu upset and angry, so he blamed the Su family in his heart.
"I think your third uncle is an upright man with a clear mind. How come your father-in-law and second uncle have developed such personalities?"
While Shen Zhixiu was asking questions, he picked up a fish and put it on the plate, carefully picking out the fish bones with chopsticks.
Su Qingyu lowered her head to drink soup, and when she heard him ask, she began to explain.
"Actually, my grandfather placed great emphasis on the upbringing of his children, but my grandmother was so protective of her two biological sons that she wouldn't even allow him to say a harsh word, let alone punish them."
"Later, my grandfather only took my third uncle to his side to raise him. My father and second uncle were both taught by a teacher. I heard that even the teacher listened to my grandmother's instructions on how to teach them."
Shen Zhixiu shook his head. The foundation of a big family is its descendants. If the descendants are not talented, the family will fall into decline overnight.
After the two finished talking about the Su family, they talked about Shen Yue's marriage.
Because Shen Yue was still in mourning, all formalities had to be kept simple. The guests were also treated to a simple vegetarian feast as a sign of respect for the Shen family.
Shen Zhixiu thought for a moment and said, "Go to Prince Ning's Mansion tomorrow and see if there are any omissions."
Su Qingyu laughed and said, "My mother was also the wife of a marquis, so this is not something that requires my intervention."
Shen Zhixiu shook his head.
"This time is different. The Emperor will personally visit Prince Ning's Mansion that day."
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