Although the scenery of this royal manor is extremely beautiful, after what happened, neither Wei Yingzhi nor Shen Huiran wanted to stay any longer. Fortunately, the two of them were only able to come here because of the grace given by Concubine Rui. Despite the true and false words of Lin Fu, Concubine Rui did not ask too many questions. She just gave them a few instructions and let them follow Shen Xinyan back home.
As for the follow-up matters, they were completely handed over to Wei Chenglin.
On the way back home, Shen Huiran clung closely to Shen Xinyan, her face full of fear.
She finally breathed a sigh of relief when she learned that the second son of the Zhou family had broken into the wooden house by mistake and that she had not been violated by anyone.
If she really lost her innocence, she would rather die.
Shen Xinyan patted the back of her hand gently, comforting her silently.
The niece was the most innocent in the whole incident. She had done nothing, and she had not even thought about the eldest son like she did in her previous life. But because of her identity as a 'cousin', she was eventually dragged into it.
"Aunt, I want to go home, back to my uncle's house." Shen Huiran said softly.
Shen Xinyan lowered her eyes, put her arm around her shoulders, and replied softly, "Okay, Auntie will take Huier home."
She knew that her niece had more or less guessed the reason for her experience. After experiencing a dangerous situation, people only want to return to a safe place, and the safest place in the world is their own home.
No matter how good the Duke's Mansion is, it is not her home after all.
He told the driver to turn around and go to the Jing'an Marquis's Mansion. The three people in the car sat closely together and said nothing more.
"Mom, I'm afraid cousin Hui won't come to our house for a long time." Wei Yingzhi sighed after returning to the Duke's Mansion.
Shen Xinyan patted her shoulder and said, "Okay, go change your clothes first!"
The Grand Princess was not a stupid person, and Shen Xinyan didn't think she had the ability to hide the truth from her, so she reported to her everything that happened in the Summer Resort.
After hearing this, the eldest princess frowned and remained silent for a long time before saying, "I think your niece from your mother's side is quite good. It would be a good idea to make the relationship closer."
Shen Xinyan was surprised that she would think of this.
If it were in the past, she might have agreed to it, but now she no longer has such an idea.
"It's Hui'er's blessing that my mother thinks highly of her. It's also an affirmation of her daughter-in-law. But now..." She sighed softly, "Let's wait a bit!"
The eldest princess also understood that after such an incident, the girl must have some thoughts in her mind, so she did not force it. She just sighed and wondered why her eldest grandson's marriage was so unsuccessful!
After more than half a month, the good news came from the Summer Resort that the Crown Princess was pregnant. A few days later, Yuchai set off for Beijing.
"The prince has something to do, and I'm afraid he won't be back for a while." Shen Xinyan drove back to the capital, but to his surprise, Wei Chenglin did not come back with him. Just as Shen Xinyan was wondering, the guard sent by Wei Chenglin to report the news came forward.
Another errand? Shen Xinyan frowned: "Do you know what the errand is? When will you be back?"
"I don't know about that." The man lowered his head.
Shen Xinyan had no intention of making things difficult for him and let him leave.
"Not only has the Crown Prince's ink painter not returned, but even the secretary and inkstone have left with their people. Madam, I think the Crown Prince's mission this time seems a bit difficult." Chunliu said softly.
There was worry between Shen Xin's brows, how could he not be aware of this?
"Mom, Dad has brought back a letter." Just as she was worrying, Wei Yingzhi walked in happily holding a letter.
Shen Xinyan took the letter with a smile and read it roughly. After folding it, she saw her daughter's eyes sparkling with a sly smile on her face: "Mom, what did Dad say in the letter?"
"It's a very important matter."
"What's the matter?" Wei Yingzhi asked curiously.
"Your father said he would return home as soon as possible to prepare for your marriage to Lin Fu."
Wei Yingzhi's face turned red all of a sudden.
Shen Xinyan hugged her and smiled: "Now Lingfu can finally rest assured. He doesn't have to ask people every now and then when the Duke will return to the capital."
Wei Yingzhi was so embarrassed that she didn't even dare to raise her head. She said in a mosquito-like voice, "It's him who always does these stupid things..."
Shen Xinyan hugged her and smiled for a while.
Since Wei Junhang had written to say that he would return to Beijing as soon as possible, she had to prepare everything for the engagement first. Taking advantage of this free day, she went to the storehouse in person and began to prepare her daughter's dowry.
After so many years of accumulation, the dowry that she and Wei Junhang prepared for Wei Yingzhi was already quite considerable. Adding the part given by the Grand Princess, it would not be an exaggeration to say that it was a huge amount of red dowry.
"Madam, look, why does this phoenix jade pendant have such a nice smell?" Chunliu suddenly cried out in surprise, and walked quickly towards her with a brocade box in hand. He opened the box and handed it to her.
Shen Xinyan took it and looked at it, and recognized that this was the engagement token she had given to Princess Changning that year. Princess Changning had asked Wei Chenglin to return it to her. She felt uncomfortable looking at it, so she put it in the warehouse and locked it up.
She took out the jade pendant, sniffed it carefully, and found that there was indeed a faint fragrance. The fragrance was like osmanthus, but when she smelled it carefully, it felt like orchid. When she smelled it again, it seemed like the scent of some other flower.
"It's so strange. How can this lovely jade pendant have such a fragrance after being stored in the warehouse for such a long time?" Chunliu was puzzled.
Shen Xinyan was silent for a moment and put the jade pendant back into the brocade box: "Find a doctor to take a closer look to see if there is anything wrong with the fragrance."
Chunliu took it and quickly went to see a doctor.
"I consulted several doctors, but none of them could find out what was wrong with me."
Is that so?
Shen Xinyan stared at the phoenix jade pendant on the square table. For some reason, she always felt a little uneasy.
"Not long ago I heard that Princess Changning returned to Beijing. Is this true?" she suddenly asked.
"It is true. The princess came back at the end of last month. It is said that she is in good health now. The princess missed her daughter so much that she could not bear to leave her alone in the mountains, so she brought her back." Chunliu replied.
"The princess asked Lin'er to return this jade pendant when she left Beijing. She has been recuperating in the mountains for the past few years and is now in good health. The jade pendant she returned that year has been kept in the warehouse all these years and no one has ever touched it..." Shen Xinyan stroked the jade pendant on her wrist, thoughtfully.
"Madam, what you mean... is that you suspect that the princess' illness back then was related to this jade pendant?" Chunliu was shocked.
"I just feel a little uneasy in my heart, and I have a vague guess. If it is indeed the problem with this jade pendant..." Shen Xinyan didn't dare to think about it further.
If it was indeed the problem with the jade pendant, then the happy marriage that year must have been plotted against, but she didn't know whether it was a mistake in her own mansion or in Prince Ning's mansion.
But no matter what, Princess Changning suffered all this in vain.
"But I remember clearly that when I handed over the jade pendant, it didn't have such a strange smell. If it had, how could I not have discovered it? After all, it has always been in my custody." Chunliu bit her lips lightly and tried to recall.
Shen Xinyan sighed: "Put it away for now, and ask the imperial physician to take a look another day."
She told Chunliu to put away the brocade box, and seeing that it was almost time, she went to pay her respects to the Grand Princess.
Walking around the floor-length screen, I just happened to see Aunt Xu, who was beside the Grand Princess, coming out.
"How was your dinner, mother?" she asked with a smile.
"We have received the letter from the Duke. His Highness is in a good mood and has eaten half a bowl more porridge than usual. He is now talking to the Fourth Young Master inside! Madam, please come in quickly." Madam Xu replied with a smile.
Shen Xinyan walked past her and had just taken a few steps when she suddenly felt her wrist being grabbed by Aunt Xu.
"Madam, wait a minute!"
"Mammy?" Shen Xin was surprised, not understanding why she grabbed her so rudely, but she found that the other party's expression seemed to be a little wrong.
"Madam, there seems to be a different scent on your body, but I don't know where it came from?"
Shen Xinyan looked at her in surprise, and suddenly she remembered that she had heard the Grand Princess mention in her casual conversation that Aunt Xu was an expert in making incense.
"It came from a jade pendant that has not been used for a long time." She answered tentatively.
"Madam, could you let me see the jade pendant?" Madam Xu asked.
"Of course you can. Chunliu, go get the jade pendant quickly." There was no reason for Shen Xinyan to refuse, and he quickly ordered Chunliu behind him.
When he entered the room, he saw Wei Chengqi sitting at the bottom, listening attentively to what the Grand Princess was saying.
"…Although your mother's opinion is important, your own idea is more important. If you want, you can continue studying in the Imperial College. Even if you don't have to take the imperial examinations, it's always good to read more. Even Lin Fu, who is a marquis, has not fallen behind in his studies in the Imperial College." The eldest princess said earnestly.
"I understand what grandma said, but, but... I still want to find a job." Wei Chengqi insisted with hesitation on his face.
There was a hint of disappointment in the eldest princess' eyes.
It's obvious that he doesn't like being an official at all and just wants to focus on academic research, but because his mother doesn't agree, he doesn't even dare to insist?
Forget it, forget it. Her children and grandchildren have their own blessings. She can’t care about them anymore.
"Since you insist, Grandma will grant your wish!"
At this time, the grandfather and grandson also saw Shen Xinyan coming in. After some greetings, Wei Chengqi took his leave.
"Is there any news about Lin'er?" As soon as the Grand Princess saw her, she asked about her eldest grandson, who had not sent any news back yet.
"I haven't received any news yet." Shen Xinyan shook her head.
The eldest princess sighed and said worriedly, "I just found out yesterday that Lin'er took away all the people his grandfather left for him. What on earth did he do that made him seem like he was going to do it with all his strength?"
Shen Xinyan's heart skipped a beat and even her expression changed.
"How about I ask Lin Fu to find out tomorrow?"
"I've already asked, but Lingfu doesn't know either." The eldest princess looked even more worried.
The mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were speechless for a while.
After Shen Xinyan left, Nanny Xu, who had been waiting outside, came in, holding in her hand the brocade box that contained the token given to Prince Ning's Mansion.
"Your Highness, I have something to report. I'm afraid that Princess Changning's illness was man-made!"
Funing House.
"Madame Xu took the jade pendant away?" Shen Xinyan learned about this from Chunliu after returning to the house.
"If Madam feels it is not suitable, I will go and get it back."
"No need, just take it away. Since Madam Xu can take it away, I think there is a plan. In the end, I'm afraid it will be decided by mother. It's better this way, it saves me a lot of trouble." Shen Xinyan shook her head, stopping her from leaving.
***
Wei Chenglin returned half a month later, along with the ashes of the guard Ping Yan. As for the guards Zhimo and Shishu who returned alive, they also had injuries of varying sizes.
Wei Chenglin is naturally no exception.
Looking at the long knife wound on her eldest grandson's abdomen, the eldest princess was unable to breathe and immediately fainted.
Suddenly, the room was in chaos.
After everything returned to normal, the Grand Princess held Wei Chenglin's hand and burst into tears.
"God is blind, God is blind!"
Shen Xinyan clutched the handkerchief tightly in her hand, still unable to recover from the words just spoken by the imperial physician.
"...Prince, with this injury...I'm afraid you will have trouble having offspring in the future." Just as the words fell, the eldest princess, who had just woken up, fainted again, but even Shen Xinyan's legs went weak and she almost fell to the ground.
Difficulty in having offspring?
The gray-haired old doctor's face was full of sympathy. It would be such a pity if such an outstanding man could not have offspring.
"Grandma..." Wei Chenglin curled his lips in a bitter tone, "It's fate. I dare not blame you. Fortunately, I still have Xiang Ge. But I have failed to live up to your years of careful teaching."
The eldest princess wiped her tears and just held him and kept saying, "God is unfair."
The most outstanding eldest son of the previous generation is gone, and the greatest hope of the younger generation has ended up like this...
Fang, who was outside the door, heard everything clearly and was so excited that her body trembled slightly.
Difficulty in having children? That must be God's will!
How could he have a good ending if he sat in a seat that didn't belong to him!
Without an heir, what right did he have to sit on the throne of the crown prince? Without Wei Chenglin, the second house had to rely on that infant Wei Chengxiang? It showed that God still cared for her.
"Don't be like this, mother. If Doctor Wang can't cure the disease, we can just ask a few more doctors to treat it. If that doesn't work, we can ask famous doctors to treat it. There will always be a way to cure it." She put away the smile on her lips, put on a worried expression, walked up to the eldest princess, and advised softly.
"You're eager to spread the news so that the whole capital knows about it, aren't you?! In the past, I only thought you were a good person. I never thought that you had evil intentions. You framed Lin Ge'er to make him unmarried, and now you want to make him have a reputation of being childless. Only in this way can you fulfill your wish, right?" Unexpectedly, the Grand Princess suddenly lost her temper, pointed at her nose and cursed her.
Fang was scolded so much that she almost stopped breathing. She fell to her knees with a thud, crying, "It's unfair! My daughter-in-law has been wronged!"
Shen Xinyan was startled and then winked at Chunliu.
Chunliu understood what was meant and retreated quietly. He also ordered that no one was allowed to approach and then stood guard outside the courtyard gate from a distance.
"Bah, do you think I'm that old fool? What did you do secretly back then? Why did Princess Changning become seriously ill for no reason? How could the girl from the Xie family have the courage to elope with someone? One after another, do you want me to throw the evidence directly in Qi Ge'er's face and let him see what kind of vicious person his mother is!" The eldest princess' eyes were blazing with fire, and she spat in Fang's face, scolding her mercilessly.
The investigations she had uncovered over the past few days had already dealt her a heavy blow, and now her most valued eldest grandson had gotten into trouble again, which was like the last straw that broke the camel's back, and she completely collapsed.
"It is unfortunate for our family to have such a vicious woman. It is also because of my lack of vision back then that the situation today has come to this!" The eldest princess burst into tears, extremely sad and angry.
Shen Xinyan stared at Fang in disbelief, watching the color drain from her face bit by bit, but she still tried hard to protest her innocence.
"Mother is innocent, mother is innocent. All of this has nothing to do with my daughter-in-law!"
"So, it was you who caused the princess to almost lose her life back then?" Wei Chenglin's face turned ashen, and he tried hard to suppress the anger in his heart. He clenched his fists tightly, as if he would rush out in the next moment and smash it hard on that hypocritical face.
Princess Changning was his first fiancée. If she hadn't suddenly fallen seriously ill, he would have married her long ago.
He may not have ever fallen in love with Princess Changning, but that woman who was praised by his grandmother, mother, and even sister, and whom he missed, would always leave a mark in his heart. It had nothing to do with love between men and women, but it was indelible.
However, the woman almost lost her life because of her great aunt whom he always respected!
Fang shook her head desperately.
She couldn't admit it, couldn't admit it, she couldn't let Qi Ge'er know, couldn't let Qi Ge'er know...
However, when she saw Wei Chengqi standing at the door with a pale face, she felt as if she had fallen into an icy cave.
"Grandma, what grandma said is true, right? Mother, did you, did you really almost harm the princess back then? And did you use some tricks to make the girl from the Xie family elope?" Wei Chengqi's face was extremely pale and his body kept shaking, but he still walked towards Fang step by step, staring into her eyes.
Even if Fang had a thousand excuses, she could not utter a word when she looked at her son's eyes filled with pain. She just covered her mouth and shook her head.
Chun Liu, who had chased after Wei Chengqi to stop him, saw this and retreated in a panic. This time, she personally found two strong maids to guard the gate of the courtyard and was determined not to let anyone in.
If those words in the room were to spread out, I'm afraid there would be no peace in the mansion for a long time.
"It's not me, Brother Qi, it's not me..." Apart from repeating this sentence over and over again, Fang could not say anything else.
She was scared, really scared. She had never been so scared as she was at that moment. She was scared to see the disappointment on her son's face, which was the disappointment in her as a mother.
Her son had always been well-behaved and filial, and had never gone against her wishes. She had never thought that one day she would see disappointment in herself on his face.
"Grandma, I want to see the evidence, can I?" Wei Chengqi ignored her and walked towards the Grand Princess.
The Grand Princess did not expect him to appear suddenly, and the timing of his appearance was so perfect. She felt very complicated for a moment.
She has always been very fond of this only bloodline left by her eldest son. Although she is a little cowardly, she has a soft heart and a clear mind.
What she said just now about "throwing the evidence in Qi Ge'er's face" was just an angry remark. She never thought of putting those filthy things in front of him and destroying the beautiful feelings he had towards his biological mother and family.
She opened her mouth to refuse, but Fang had already rushed over, kneeling on the ground and crying loudly, "Mother, I was wrong, I was wrong, I really know I was wrong..."
Those tears were filled with pleading, asking her to retain the last bit of dignity as a mother.
Because Fang knew very well that if the Grand Princess took action, she would definitely find out more than just these two things, there would definitely be many other things she had done.
Wei Chengqi's body shook, his lips trembled slightly, and he opened his mouth to say something, but his throat seemed to be blocked by something and he couldn't utter a word.
"From now on, you will rest and recuperate in Jingde Hall. Except for the two maids serving you, no one is allowed to come in and out at will!" After a long while, the eldest princess took a deep breath, stared at Fang who was crying without any dignity at all, and spoke word by word.
Fang fell to the ground, unable to utter a word except crying.
Recovering from illness? There is no illness for her to recover from. My mother has completely given up on herself! Maybe after some time, she will die quietly from illness.
Wei Chengqi knelt down in front of the Grand Princess with a thud and said in a hoarse voice: "Grandma, I am unfilial. I have the courage to ask you to preside over the separation of the first and second branches."
Fang stopped crying and stared at her son with wide eyes, unable to believe that such words came from the mouth of her always well-behaved and filial son.
"Brother Qi, what nonsense are you talking about? The elders are here, so how can a junior like you talk about dividing the family?" Shen Xinyan stopped him.
Even Wei Chenglin looked at him disapprovingly: "Fourth brother, please don't say that again."
The Grand Princess looked at him without blinking: "Are you determined to do this?"
"My grandson is unfilial!" Wei Chengqi lowered his head, but his tone was extremely firm.
"You're crazy! Do you want someone to poke your back?!" Fang rushed over angrily and tried to cover his mouth, stopping him from saying such outrageous words again.
If the family was divided, the eldest branch would have no chance of getting the title, so why did she do so many things? It was clear that Wei Chenglin could not have children, and Wei Chengxiang was still young, so the title was already one step closer to the eldest branch.
"Please grant me your blessing, grandma!" Wei Chengqi avoided her and his voice became louder.
"Okay, since you insist on doing so, then I will grant your wish. I will divide all the properties among you clearly, but you still have to live in one place. When I close my eyes and kick my legs one day, you can move out if you want!" The eldest princess waved her hands weakly, and she looked much older in an instant.
Shen Xinyan quickly stepped forward to support her.
The eldest princess gently pushed her hand away and said, "Go back and get the account books and keys. While I am still alive, divide this house up first!"
"Mother!"
"grandmother!"
Everyone knelt on the ground immediately.