I thought that without Wei Junhang and Wei Chenglin, the Duke's Mansion would be at the mercy of others, but I never thought that even a woman was so stubborn.

This task seemed very simple to him. He thought it would be done with a few threats. But now... taking a closer look at the tablet held in the hands of the Wei men and the Duchess of England with a furious look on her face as if she was ready to fight to the death, he knew that this matter was going to be a little tricky.

Not to mention that there is no strong evidence to prove that Wei Junhang is a traitor, even if there is, the successive Dukes of England have indeed made outstanding contributions and are respected by the people. If he were to force his way in today and shock the heroes, he would probably be stabbed in the back by countless people in the future, and no one would be able to protect him.

However, if he returns empty-handed... he won't be able to explain to the person in the palace!

The youngest, Xiang Ge'er, held his grandfather's tablet and rolled his eyes a few times. He looked at his mother with frowning eyebrows, then looked at the leader opposite. His little eyebrows wrinkled, and he suddenly walked towards the man and kicked him hard: "Bad guy, bullying my mother!"

After kicking, he ran back again, imitating his brothers, with a stern face and wide eyes, holding the tablet tightly in his arms.

Shen Xinyan had not expected the young man to do such a thing, and looked a little stunned, while Wei Chengzhao, Wei Chengyue and Wei Chengqi looked at Xiangger with admiration. Xiangger felt their praise, and proudly puffed out his chest, his round face tensed up because he pretended to be serious.

The man didn't expect to be kicked by a little kid today and felt a little embarrassed for a moment.

"Madam, please don't make things difficult for me. Are you doing this because you have something to hide and that's why you keep obstructing me?" He took a deep breath and suppressed his anger.

"Let him search!" Shen Xinyan was about to speak when the Grand Princess's majestic voice suddenly came from behind.

She turned around and saw Chunliu walking in with the Grand Princess. She hurried forward and supported her on the other side: "Why is mother here?"

As he asked, he glared at Chunliu with disapproval.

Chunliu gave her a helpless look, indicating that he was also innocent.

"Your humble servant greets Her Royal Highness the Princess!" When the men dressed as guards saw that it was the current Princess Jinghe, they hurriedly saluted.

"What's your name? On whose orders have you come to search my mansion?" the Grand Princess asked coldly.

"I am He Peng, a humble official, and I am following the order of Your Majesty." The leading man replied.

"Sir He, you can search the house if you want! But if you can't find anything in my house, I will spare your life!" The eldest princess had a grim look on her face and her eyes were sharp, shooting directly at the man named He Peng.

The person's breath was choked, and her lips trembled, as if she wanted to say something, but the Grand Princess sneered and said, "Why? You don't dare? This is not a place for you to barge in at will! You can search the house today, and I won't make it difficult for you. But since I am the Grand Princess of the court and the wife of the Duke of Ying, my face has been torn off and trampled on the ground, so naturally I have to seek some justice."

"Otherwise, how can I, the eldest princess, keep my dignity? How can the Wei family keep its reputation as loyal and righteous people? How can the royal family keep its dignity?!"

Shen Xinyan supported her and stared at He Peng quietly, not missing the hesitation on his face. Even the other people behind him looked at each other in confusion.

If we let these people search the house easily today, the Wei family will become a laughing stock. How can they stand in the court in the future?

"Yes, grandma is right. We can search the house, but if nothing is found, you can keep your arm!" Wei Chengzhao and others also reacted and said one after another.

"Sir?" Seeing the scene was completely unexpected, the somewhat thin man behind He Peng called out hesitantly.

He Peng gritted his teeth and decided to take a gamble: "Okay! If you can't find what you want, I will keep this arm!"

"Well, Lord He is a man of seven feet tall, I think he is not the kind of person who goes back on his word!" The Grand Princess glanced at Shen Xinyan inconspicuously.

Shen Xinyan nodded imperceptibly and said to He Peng coldly, "There is just one thing that I hope you will keep in mind. Most of the items in the Duke's Mansion are gifts from past emperors and the current emperor. You and your subordinates should be more gentle. If you bump into something and the emperor blames you, I'm afraid you won't be able to explain yourself."

He Peng's face was ugly, he swallowed his anger and said through gritted teeth: "Madam, don't worry!"

"In that case, please come in, sir!" Shen Xinyan helped the Grand Princess to move aside. Wei Chengzhao and others also made way one after another upon seeing this. The servants who had reputations in the mansion personally led He Peng and others in.

"Why is mother here? Who is so blind as to alarm you?" Shen Xinyan helped the eldest princess to sit down and asked softly.

"I just felt depressed, so I went out for a walk, and saw that all the maids looked panicked. After asking them, I realized that something had happened." The eldest princess said lovingly, stroking Xiangger's fair and tender face.

"It was my daughter-in-law's poor planning that disturbed my mother." Shen Xinyan apologized.

"It's not your fault. It's just that I disturbed our ancestors today." The eldest princess sighed, and seeing Shen Xinyan's face showing a little more apology, she quickly patted the back of her hand and said, "I'm not blaming you. You did a good job. The ancestors will not blame you."

Wei Chengzhao and his brothers placed the tablets in their arms one by one on the upper chief table. Led by the eldest princess, the descendants of the Wei family knelt down respectfully and kowtowed to their ancestors.

Xiangger imitated his brothers' movements and kowtowed crookedly.

After the ceremony, the eldest princess hugged him lovingly and said lovingly, "Xiang'er is so good."

Xiang Ge'er coquettishly rubbed against her arms and said softly, "My brothers are also very good."

"You are all good boys, all of you are good sons of the Wei family!" The eldest princess nodded, and her eyes of approval fell on Wei Chengzhao and the other two who were sitting below her.

The three of them felt a little embarrassed by her praise.

About half an hour later, He Peng and his men walked in with grim looks on their faces.

Shen Xinyan looked calmly at the butler following behind them, and when she saw him nod slightly at her, she felt relieved.

"Lord He, have you found what you want?" The Grand Princess also noticed her gaze, her mind moved slightly, and she spoke coldly.

He Peng knew that he had gotten himself into trouble today. Everyone in the court knew that the Grand Princess was vengeful. Today he had offended her and failed to find what he wanted. He was afraid that he would lose his arm.

"Bring the knife!" The eldest princess shouted coldly, and the servants in her own mansion brought the sharp long knife to her. Chunliu stepped forward cleverly and coaxed and deceived Xiangger into taking him down.

"Your Highness, I was reckless today, but I was only following orders. I had no choice but to do this. Please forgive me!" The gleaming sword was right in front of him. No matter how brave He Peng was, he began to feel scared and softened his tone.

"I always keep my word. Lord He, did you do it yourself, or did my people do it?" The eldest princess said coldly.

Seeing the guards of the Wei Mansion walking towards him step by step with long swords in hand, He Peng subconsciously tightened the sword at his waist. However, the people he brought with him were unsure whether they should step forward to help if a fight broke out.

"Sir He, I admit defeat. If you stay with one arm today, I will go to the Golden Palace and make trouble. I'm afraid you won't be able to save your life!" The Grand Princess noticed his actions and said sternly.

He Peng's heart trembled, and the hand holding the sword finally loosened slowly, knowing that the situation was hopeless. If he didn't satisfy the Grand Princess today, given her temper, she would really cause trouble in the Golden Palace. By then, not to mention losing an arm, he might even lose his life.

What’s the point of keeping your arms if you’ve lost your life?

He finally lost hope, and only blamed himself for trusting that man too much and underestimating the women of the Duke's Mansion, which led to his current fate.

The guard with a knife was getting closer and closer, and the cold air emanating from the blade went straight to his face. He closed his eyes, waiting for the severe pain to come.

"Wait!" Suddenly, a woman's voice was heard in the huge main hall. He looked up and saw that the person who spoke was the Duke's wife.

"Mother, my daughter-in-law wants to chop off one of this man's hands with her own hands to vent her hatred for being bullied today!" Shen Xinyan said slowly.

The Grand Princess looked at her deeply and said, "Yes!"

He Peng's face changed again. If he couldn't escape having his hand cut off today, he would rather die quickly. Just as he was about to say something, Shen Xinyan had already taken the long sword from the guard's hand, and without waiting for him to react, he raised the long sword high and chopped at him.

He Peng was horrified and subconsciously wanted to draw his sword to block, but the long sword had already hit him. He felt a sharp pain in his left arm and cried out in pain. There was nothing else in his mind except the despair of losing his arm.

However, when he stretched out his other hand to press the wound on his broken arm, he found that his left arm was still intact, except for the place where he was cut by the knife and was bleeding.

"My daughter-in-law is useless." Shen Xinyan returned the long sword to the guard and said to the Grand Princess with an apologetic look on his face.

"Forget it, count it his luck today!" The Grand Princess lifted her curtains, then looked at He Peng and sneered, "Why? Lord He still won't take your people away, are you still not giving up and planning to search again?"

"I dare not. I am sorry for offending you today. Please forgive me, Your Highness and Madam." He Peng pulled back an arm, frightened and sweating. How could he dare to say another word? He lowered his posture even lower and left in a hurry with his men.

"What a pity. If I had known earlier, I would have done it myself and would have definitely cut off one of that guy's arms!" Wei Chengyue said with regret after the Grand Princess and Shen Xinyan led the men to bring the tablets of their ancestors back to the ancestral hall.

"What an idiot! Grandmother and second aunt are playing a double game!" Wei Chengzhao glanced at him with a look of disgust on his face.

"Singing a double act? What does that mean? Hey, don't go, explain it to me clearly!" Wei Chengyue was confused.

"What Second Brother meant was probably that neither Grandmother nor Second Aunt really wanted a hand from Lord He." Wei Chengqi explained kindly.

"Why not? That guy is so arrogant, how can we not teach him a lesson!" Wei Chengyue was still angry.

"If we really cut off one of his hands, I'm afraid we will have new enemies in the Duke's Mansion. Although we are not afraid of him, this little devil is hard to deal with. Now is a critical period, and our second uncle and eldest brother are not here. It would be better to scare him a little so that people will not dare to look down on him so easily." Wei Chengqi said patiently.

At this time, the Grand Princess was also asking Shen Xinyan: "Did you have a plan in mind?"

Shen Xinyan smiled and said, "As expected, nothing can be hidden from mother."

"So you know what they're looking for?"

Shen Xinyan nodded.

The eldest princess looked at her deeply for a long while, sighed softly, and slowly lay back in the bed: "I'm old!"

You can also let go completely.

Shen Xinyan took off her shoes for her and said, "Mother is not old at all. If she hadn't arrived in time today, I'm afraid we wouldn't have been able to shock the other party so easily."

Since the other party has brought people here, the mansion must be searched. Moreover, rumors are flying everywhere in the capital. If she refuses today, she is afraid that the Duke's mansion will be caught up in even bigger rumors tomorrow. Therefore, the mansion must be searched, but it cannot be searched too easily.

The eldest princess closed her eyes and said nothing more. Shen Xinyan tucked the quilt for her and was about to leave when she suddenly asked, "Where did those people mainly search?"

"The Duke's study, and then... the eldest sister-in-law's place." Shen Xinyan was a little hesitant, but still answered truthfully.

"As for the eldest house..." The eldest princess muttered something to herself, and she didn't hear it clearly. After a moment, when she didn't see the eldest princess say anything else, she quietly retreated.

Although the mansion was searched, it was obvious that the other party had taken the Grand Princess's threat seriously and did not dare to make any fuss, so there was not much chaos in the mansion. In less than half an hour, the servants had restored everything to its original state.

"I heard that you showed off your power again today and scared people so much that they dared not touch the things in your room?" When she returned to the room, she saw Wei Yingzhi holding Xiang Ge'er and feeding him. The brother and sister took turns eating a bite of snacks and finished the full plate cleanly. She couldn't help laughing.

Wei Yingzhi wiped her brother's mouth and said disapprovingly: "Everything in my room is exquisite. Don't they even look at themselves? Do they think they are worthy of using my things?!"

Shen Xinyan shook her head but said nothing more. She hugged her son who was acting coquettishly towards her and kissed him, coaxing him to go out and play with the little girl. Then she called the housekeeper and told him to spread the news of what happened today as soon as possible.

The butler understood her intention after a moment's thought, and smiled as he responded and left.

"Mom, are you trying to show your weakness to others?" Wei Yingzhi asked.

"Of course. If someone can force me with rumors, why can't I respond with a few words?"

The next day, word spread in the capital that someone had taken advantage of the opportunity when the Duke of England was leading his troops to war to bully the women and children in the Duke's Mansion. The rumor was well-founded and very interesting, which immediately diluted the earlier rumors about the Duke of England colluding with the enemy and committing treason.

If anyone brings up the matter of treason again, passers-by will quickly refute it: "The police searched the house and couldn't find any evidence. It shows that someone deliberately wanted to frame a loyal person."

Things were developing in the direction Shen Xinyan had hoped. She slowed down her tone and gave the butler a few more instructions.

A few days later, the news of the ancestor worship ceremony held in the Duke of Ying's Mansion spread out again. When people inquired, they learned that when the officials searched the mansion that day, even the spirits of the previous dukes were disturbed. Now the Duke's Mansion was holding an ancestor worship ceremony to comfort the spirits of their ancestors!

For a while, rumors about the court bullying loyal ministers spread everywhere, forcing His Royal Highness the Crown Prince to personally drive to the Duke of Ying's mansion to comfort the loyal ministers. However, soon there was news that when the officials searched the mansion that day, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince strongly opposed it, but he never thought that His Majesty would actually issue an order.

But someone immediately refuted it, saying that His Majesty was clearly ill, so he had entrusted the government to the Crown Prince. It was time for him to rest and recuperate, so why would he issue such an order?

Under the guidance of some people with ulterior motives, various conspiracy theories emerged, including that someone had forged the imperial edict, and that His Majesty had long been held hostage by someone. All kinds of reliable and unreliable speculations made the chaos in the capital even more chaotic.

Because of this, there are fewer criticisms and rumors surrounding the Duke's Mansion.

When Fang Birong came to visit her sister again, Shen Xinyan was talking to the Grand Princess. After receiving the report from the servants, she first looked at the Grand Princess, and seeing that she didn't even raise her eyelids, she knew that she had made the decision, so she ordered: "Take her to the Madam."

Fang Birong originally thought that she would be turned away again today. If possible, she didn't want to come again. But now that things have gone off track, she is extremely anxious and must come again in person.

She had only been sitting in the hall for less than a quarter of an hour when a maid from the mansion came and led her to the eldest daughter's house, Fang. She saw that Fang was the only one in the room. Although she found it a little strange, she couldn't help but feel secretly glad.

If there were other people in the room, she would have to take the trouble to lead them away. It would be better to talk like this.

"Elder sister." She calmed herself down and walked towards Fang without even raising her head.

"What are you doing here?" Fang was threading the needle with her embroidery machine without even looking at her.

"Sister seems to be in much better spirits." Fang Birong ignored her cold expression and moved a cushion to sit next to her.

Fang ignored her.

"I haven't seen you do embroidery for a long time. Your needlework is quite exquisite." Fang Birong made small talk.

Fang finally stopped what she was doing, glanced at her, put the embroidery stand aside, and said calmly: "Just say whatever you want to say, why waste time talking nonsense!"

Fang Birong bit her lip and looked around the room. After making sure there was no third person or eavesdropper, she lowered her voice and asked, "Why didn't you put the things I gave you last time?"

"Put it in? Why should I put it in?" Fang asked with a smile.

"Hasn't it been agreed upon? If you don't let him in, how will the one from the second house fall? If he doesn't fall, how can Brother Qi inherit the title?" Fang Birong became anxious when she heard this. She was furious. If her eldest sister hadn't regretted it at the critical moment and the police couldn't find any evidence, how could she have given that man a good beating?

"Do you think I'm blind, or do you think I'm really blinded by hatred? You don't even have the most basic judgment!" Fang stared at her and asked coldly.

Fang Birong's heart tightened, and she quickly denied: "What do you mean, elder sister? I don't think so."

"If you don't think so, then you actually let me frame Wei Junhang for treason? How can you know that even if the nest is overturned, the eggs will not be safe. If Wei Junhang falls, is there any good thing for us mother and son?"

Fang Birong felt uncomfortable being stared at by her, so she had no choice but to bite the bullet and say, "If elder sister didn't want to, she shouldn't have accepted the gift that day and used words to coax me. Who do you think I'm doing this for? Isn't it for you and Qi Ge'er? You really take my kindness for granted!"

"If I don't accept the things, how can I have the chance to see who is behind this!" Fang sneered.

"What do you mean by making trouble or not? Sister, please don't say such harsh words!" Fang Birong was a little angry.

"If the people who came that day were His Majesty's men, it would mean that His Majesty was suspicious of Wei Junhang and the Duke's Mansion and wanted to get rid of them. Even if Wei Junhang died and the title went to Qi Ge'er, it would be just an empty title without any real power. If the people who came were not His Majesty's men, then you are committing treason and committing heinous crimes! How could I drag myself into this and die!" Fang's eyes were grim and her face was angry.

Fang Birong's heart skipped a beat. She was a little afraid to meet her gaze and said reluctantly, "You, what nonsense are you talking about?"

"Go away. Don't come again. Our sisterhood ends here!" Fang didn't want to say anything more to her. She took the embroidery frame from the table and started threading the needle again.

Fang Birong was already panicked by her words and didn't dare to stay any longer: "Then, then I will go back first and come back another day..."

She wanted to say, "I'll come to see you another day," but when she thought of what she had just said, "You don't have to come again," she swallowed her words and said angrily, "Since my elder sister said so, I can't force you. I'll take my leave now!"

"After listening for so long, do you still feel it's not enough?" Fang Birong left and then Fang spoke slowly.

As soon as he finished speaking, a person came out from behind the screen. It was Shen Xinyan.

"Sister-in-law really makes me look at her in a new light." Shen Xinyan's eyes were somewhat complicated.

After all, she is the eldest daughter-in-law chosen by the Grand Princess after careful selection. She can still remain stable in the face of major issues.

Fang raised her eyes to glance at her, then lowered her head again, her eyes never leaving the needle and thread in her hands.

"Nothing in this mansion can be hidden from you. I am in this state now. It is time to see the situation clearly and accept my fate."

Shen Xinyan was silent.

The Fang in front of her was dressed simply, without any makeup, but her expression contained a sense of peace that she had never seen in her past or present life. She was concentrating on embroidery, as if nothing in the world was more important than the embroidery in her hands.

She thought, maybe she really had figured it out and saw things clearly.

She stood quietly in the room for a long time, lowered her eyes and turned to leave, when she suddenly heard Fang ask from behind: "Will my second brother come back safely?"

"Yes!" Shen Xinyan answered with great determination.

"That's good." Fang said softly, and said nothing more.

No matter how much she was unwilling to admit it, the Duke's Mansion could not do without Wei Junhang. If he was there, the wealth and peace of the whole mansion could be preserved; if he was not there, no one could predict what fate would be waiting for them.

Not to mention that it was impossible for the things her sister gave her to fit in. Even if she could, as soon as she put them in, Shen would resort to surgery on her.

She didn't want to accept her fate, but she didn't want to be the sinner of the Wei family, and she didn't want to be hated by her own son all her life!