The An family has three masters. The eldest master is An Piao'er's father, a dissolute young master who is utterly incompetent in both officialdom and business. However, the old lady favors this son the most. The eldest master is sweet-talking and always caters to the old lady's wishes, thus reaping many benefits.
The second master was Yuan'er's father. He was a steady and decisive man with a bright future in his career. Under his grandfather's guidance, his official position rose higher and higher. However, An Chaoli had his own ideas and often went against his mother's wishes, so he was not favored by the old lady.
The Third Master was a shrewd businessman. He and An Chaoli jointly acquired many properties, and much of the An family's wealth was managed and cared for by the Third Master. An Chaoli's relationship with his eldest brother was lukewarm, but he was close to his third brother, so the two helped each other a great deal with their businesses.
However, when the third master was young, he was attacked by thugs while doing business and was injured, so he could no longer have children. As a result, the third family's lineage dwindled, and he only had one son, An Chaohe. An Chaohe mostly accompanied his father on business trips and was not at home in the An family mansion.
An Chaoli had not remarried for many years, so many of the concubine's daughters in the An family were the eldest master's daughters.
The First Madam's desire to have a "noble son" back then damaged her health, rendering her unable to conceive again. Under the pretext of ensuring the continuation of the An family line, and with the Old Madam's pampering, the Master has brought in concubines one by one over the years, and now he has nine concubines.
Perhaps it is karma, but the master clearly wanted a son, but all the concubines gave birth to daughters. So far, the master's only son is the son born to the first wife. However, the birth of An Chaosheng was a difficult one, and he has been sickly since birth.
The First Madam felt indebted to her son, having devoted much of her energy to caring for An Chaosheng over the years, leaving her little time to concern herself with the Master's concubine-taking affairs. However, the First Madam and the Master's relationship had gradually faded, no longer as intimate as it once was.
An Piao'er's stubbornness in preventing her mother's childbirth became a stain on her reputation for a long time. However, An Piao'er was clever after all; after An Yuan'er went to Chenyang Palace, she was the only legitimate daughter in the family.
She tried to win over her grandmother again, diligently learning the etiquette and learning expected of a lady from a prominent family in Shengjing, as her grandmother had requested. Coupled with her already considerable talent, she and Han Yuanyuan were known as the "Two Beauties of Shengjing," and had countless admirers.
The old lady has always favored useful people, and An Piao'er's timely pandering has earned her considerable respect in recent years. Therefore, these concubine's daughters all cling to An Piao'er's coattails.
An Piao'er looked at her sisters with satisfaction and said smugly, "We're all family, no need for such formalities. I know you're worried that Yuan'er will bully you, but I'm the eldest sister after all, and I'll definitely protect you. As for your future marriages, I'll definitely put in a good word for you with Father. You're all daughters of the An family, and I won't let you suffer any injustices."
In truth, An Piao'er looked down on these concubine's daughters, but she and these women shared a common object of their hatred: An Yuan'er. She joined forces with her sisters to isolate An Yuan'er, determined to make her life miserable.
During the few days that An Yuan'er was recuperating, the An family was peaceful for a few days, without so many upsetting things.
However, the peace did not last long.
She had just recovered from her illness when Guoguo relayed a message: "Miss, the old lady has summoned all the younger female relatives to Ci'an Hall for questioning, saying that there is something important to announce."
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