Chapter 424 Wasn't this something she brought upon herself?
Madam Gu never expected that after saying a lot of conciliatory words and filing a lawsuit, her son would not only not soften his heart, but would become even more ruthless.
She was so angry with her son that she almost fell over backwards: "You!! You can't say anything nice, ptooey ptooey ptooey! Stop cursing your cousin! He said he wants to live to see your wedding day, he wants to drink your wedding wine!"
"Is that so? In that case, I will never marry in this lifetime."
Madam Gu was stunned: "What?!"
"As long as I don't get married, my cousin won't die. I'm willing to sacrifice myself for his longevity."
Madam Gu: "..."
These little monkeys! One or two of them just love to lead her into a trap!
Pei Lin'an, who was lying in the next bedroom, couldn't help but laugh. His second cousin was indeed a genius, his eloquence was truly first-rate! It would be better if he could just hold back a little when he was scolding him.
However, there was one thing he found strange: since his second cousin liked Shen Wantang, why didn't he take the opportunity to fulfill his aunt's wish and say that he had taken a liking to Shen Wantang?
What is the second cousin worried about? Is he afraid that his aunt will not allow him to marry Shen Wantang?
That doesn't seem likely. When has my second cousin ever been afraid of my aunt? He's not even afraid of my stern and imposing uncle!
——
Prince Ning's Mansion.
After returning from the Duke's mansion, Shen Wantang first went to the Princess Ning's courtyard.
Princess Ning questioned her for a full hour about the people she met at the Duke's mansion and what they said. Only after repeatedly confirming that the people at the Duke's mansion were very polite to her and that Gu Qianning was also very polite to her did she let her leave.
After Shen Wantang returned to Wutong Garden, Princess Ning sent Granny Quan to deliver things to her.
Granny Quan smiled and said, "The Princess said that the Crown Princess had gone to a lot of trouble to make this trip, so she specially asked someone to open her private treasury and pick out a few rare items to give to the Crown Princess."
Shen Wantang smiled at her as well: "Thank you, Granny. Please also thank my mother for me."
As long as she makes a contribution, her mother-in-law is never stingy, and the harmony and balance between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law are well maintained.
After Granny Quan left, Shen Wantang glanced at the things that had been delivered. They were indeed rare treasures, so she had Du Juan put them away.
Just as she finished packing, Qin Xin rushed in: "Princess Consort, something has happened!"
"What's wrong?"
"After using Aunt Chu's scar-removing medicine, the second young lady of the Yu family, the Minister of Revenue, had her hair turn completely white overnight, and large patches of white spots appeared on her face. This morning, the second young lady of the Yu family was found hanged in her bedroom."
Shen Wantang was shocked: "Such a thing is true?"
Qin Xin whispered, "It's absolutely true! Because of the burns on her face, Miss Yu spared no expense to frequently buy the Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pill from Shendan Hall, but after using it a few times, white spots started to appear on her face."
"The Vice Minister's family kept quiet for the sake of her reputation, but the situation got worse and worse. Later, her hair even turned white. Miss Yu could not bear the shock and committed suicide."
"Now, people have arrived from Minister Yu's residence. Young Master Yu demands an explanation from the Heir Apparent and Concubine Chu!"
Shen Wantang was somewhat stunned. She knew there was something wrong with Chu Yanluo's medicine, but she didn't expect the problem to be this serious.
She had previously spread rumors that the Nine-Turn Rejuvenation Pill contained banned drugs, but people still scrambled to buy it.
"Why didn't Young Master Yu go to the Divine Pill Hall? Why did he come directly to the Prince's Mansion?"
"I heard that they have already gone to look for it, but Shendantang denied everything, saying that the medicine was given by Aunt Chu and that they were only selling it for her because of the young master's influence."
Shen Wantang couldn't help but sigh. She knew that as long as something went wrong, Shendantang would push Chu Yanluo out to take the blame.
However, wasn't this something Chu Yanluo brought upon herself?
"Princess Consort, aren't you going to go and take a look? I'm afraid the Prince is struggling to cope."
“He has no choice but to deal with it, whether he can or not. He is the heir apparent and will be responsible for the family in the future. If he can’t handle this kind of thing, then he will be too unworthy of his father and mother’s upbringing. It is not appropriate for me to handle this kind of thing for him.”
Shen Wantang found a very respectable reason, and then sat down at his desk and took out a new calligraphy copybook to start practicing calligraphy.
As evening fell, Xiao Qingyuan arrived.
His eyes were sunken, and he looked utterly exhausted: "Shen Wantang, something happened at the manor today, did you know? How come you're acting like nothing happened?"
Shen Wantang said in a calm tone, "Your Highness, I went to the Duke's mansion today to apologize on behalf of the Princess, did you know that? Instead of thanking me, why are you questioning me?"
Xiao Qingyuan froze; he had completely forgotten about it!
He thought Shen Wantang was just relaxing at home today!
His imposing manner immediately weakened by half: "I'm not questioning you, I'm just asking casually. After all, matters in the manor are not insignificant. Yanluo's medicine killed someone, and people have come knocking on our door. I'm exhausted from dealing with them. You should at least help me out."
"Next time, if Aunt Chu kills someone again, I'll help you deal with it. But from now on, you'll be the one to apologize to others. Would you be willing, Your Highness?"
"I'm not very good at apologizing, and I'm afraid I'll make things worse, so it's more appropriate for you to do it."
Shen Wantang wiped her eyes with a handkerchief, choking back sobs: "Your Highness is so heartless. I didn't do any of these wrongdoings, yet I'm the one apologizing and dealing with the deceased's family. Don't you think this is going too far?"
"The saying goes, 'Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt its debtor.' Whoever did wrong should bear the consequences themselves. That's the only fair way. Are you trying to force me to my death by targeting me and tormenting me like this?"
"Does the young master like Consort Chu so much? She killed someone, and you can't even bear to hand her over to the victim's family for disposal?"
"I really envy Aunt Chu. She can get away with anything, no wonder she's become more and more arrogant!"
Xiao Qingyuan felt both guilty and embarrassed. After Shen Wantang's words, it seemed that he had come to the wrong person. He should have gone to Chu Yanluo instead, since this matter had nothing to do with Shen Wantang.
He coughed lightly and said, "Well... how about you give me some money first? We need to compensate the Yu family first, otherwise Young Master Yu will report us to the authorities tomorrow."
"How much silver does the young master want?"
"Give me a thousand taels first. If it's not enough, I'll come back for more."
"So, does the young master mean that the Yu family is just going to let the matter of their dead daughter be over after taking a thousand taels of silver? Will Minister Yu be able to hold his head high in court after this? Young Master Yu risked his own sister's life for a thousand taels of silver, isn't he afraid of being gossiped about? Is the Yu family really that short of a thousand taels of silver?"
"What do you mean by this? If a thousand taels is too little, then give me ten thousand taels. Anyway, the Prince's mansion has plenty of silver!"
"This isn't about whether it's a thousand taels or ten thousand taels. The more the heir offers, the less likely the Yu family is to accept it, because it's tantamount to selling their daughter! Minister Yu, a dignified third-rank official, can't afford to lose face like that!"
"Huh? What should we do then?"
"It's very simple. The young master just needs to hand over Consort Chu and let the Yu family deal with her as they see fit."
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