"Well, he knew I didn't like him, but he insisted I say it. He insisted I was innocent, so I did... and then, when I said he shouldn't have taken your credit, he actually didn't get angry!"
Wen Yuanbai remained silent: ...
Xiao Youran swallowed hard again. "If someone speaks ill of you in public and you don't get angry to their face, they must be plotting something big behind your back! Senior brother, I think I'm in for trouble!"
Wen Yuanbai was speechless: ...
Xiao Youran continued waving her little fist, "Sure enough, a little while later he had two large boxes of pastries delivered!"
Wen Yuanbai couldn't help but ask, "Isn't this his way of showing goodwill?!"
Xiao Youran sulked, "It's this strange attempt to be friendly that's so scary! I was worried he'd poison the pastries, so I didn't dare eat a single one! He said he had an upset stomach and couldn't eat sweets. I could only watch Yueyue eat them one after another! I was so regretful! Can you believe how awful he is?! Isn't he terrifying?!"
Wen Yuanbai remained silent for a moment before saying, "Why don't you just say you're overthinking it?"
"That's what makes him so terrifying!" Xiao Youran was even angrier. "He didn't do anything, but everything he did seemed suspicious to me. That's what's scary!"
Wen Yuanbai was utterly speechless: ...
He had heard that Xiao Youran was going to enter the palace today, so he made a special appearance in front of her to win her favor.
Who would have thought that just two short sentences would lead to such a result...
He finally opened his mouth and said, "Have you finished your daily calligraphy practice?"
Xiao Youran immediately covered her head and ran away, "Senior brother, you're so mean! I was so scared today, I came here for comfort, and you had to add insult to injury! Humph..."
...
The joyous occasion of Yunfu's move to his new home caused a sensation throughout the capital city.
A few days later, the news that General Yun Yue, the Marquis of Yun and the Grand General of Pingyuan, was also returning to the capital to report on his victory once again caused a sensation in the capital.
Everyone is watching with bated breath, wondering what reward Marquis Yun will receive for his great achievement this time.
The Western barbarians suffered a crushing defeat and fled. The thousands of prisoners left behind in Taizhou became laborers at the Sanyangshan coal mine, and the Fifth Prince became a prisoner once again.
The Western barbarians sent envoys to the capital to negotiate with Marquis Yun.
However, half a month later, on his way back to the capital, Marquis Yun was attacked. He was seriously injured, and none of the Western envoys survived. When the news reached the Emperor's desk, he was so angry that he threw down the memorial he was holding.
A slender hand picked up the folded document from the ground, and a voice rang out, "Father, he has made his move again. Are you going to keep enduring this indefinitely?"
The Emperor gritted his teeth. "Yuanbai, do you think your father doesn't want to fight back? I was the one who helped Yunhou rise up to fight against him, but now, more than half of the officials in the court and the six ministries are his cronies! Even you, who have clearly returned, have to live in the Xuanwang Mansion under the name of the Xuanwang Heir for your safety!"
Wen Yuanbai placed the memorial on his father's desk, then looked up, revealing a different face, his thin lips slightly pursed. "Father, there's no rush. We will rectify the wrongs in the six ministries of the cabinet one by one. Although the two ministers of the Ministry of Revenue, the old and the new, have not yet been convicted, they are already in our hands. The Ministry of War is under the control of Marquis Yun, so there's no need to worry. Next will be the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Personnel... However, what's important right now is that Marquis Yun cannot die! If he dies, there will be no one to testify to the death of the Western envoy, which will inevitably reignite the war between the two countries."
"Where are the men sent to fetch Marquis Yun?"
Wen Yuanbai said, "It will be soon. We should be able to enter the capital tomorrow. However, I hope that Father Emperor can spread the word that Marquis Yun has died from his illness."
Emperor Shunqing pondered for a moment, then granted his request.
A moment later, a eunuch left the palace carrying a secret letter.
Wen Yuanbai also left the palace.
He was going to the county magistrate's residence to first inform Xiao Youran and Madam Su, and then have them relay the message to the Yun family so that they wouldn't be so worried.
To their surprise, when they arrived at the county magistrate's mansion, they found it surrounded by layers upon layers of people.
Half an hour ago, Madam Gao from the Jiang family of the Yong'an Marquis's Mansion arrived in a sedan chair, saying she was there to pick up her granddaughter and bring her back to the Jiang residence.
Su naturally refused outright.
How could she possibly let her daughter venture into that dangerous place, the Jiang family's, again?
A quarter of an hour later, a carriage stopped in front of the mansion gate.
The old lady of the Marquis of Yong'an was carried down and slumped in a reclining chair.
An old woman called out loudly, "Young lady, you are the granddaughter of the Jiang family. If you don't return to the Jiang family, then the old lady will be so eager to have her grandson that she has no choice but to come and bother us for a few days."
Nosy folks immediately gathered around.
Jiang Mingyi hid inside the carriage and did not show himself.
This was a method he had come up with after thinking about it for several days.
He wanted to arrange another meeting with Madam Su and Xiao Youran, but Madam Su flatly refused.
He had no choice but to resort to this desperate measure.
My mother is already partially paralyzed, so it doesn't matter if she loses some more face.
The old woman who came forward was Zhang Mama, an elderly woman who served my mother. She was very aware of the situation of the Earl's family and her own difficulties.
Su appeared at the door, leading Xiao Youran by the hand.
Zhao Mama rushed out, pointing at Zhang Mama's nose and cursing, "Where did this old hag come from, daring to cause trouble in front of the county princess's mansion? It's one thing if your Earl's Mansion can't tolerate our little county princess, but now our little county princess and her biological mother are living happily together. What right do you have to come and forcibly take our little county princess back to the Earl's Mansion? You can't forcibly take her, so you want to move in? What? Do you think you can just move into this mansion as you please? Saying you miss your grandson so much, I spit on you! If I call her 'Old Madam,' do you think she'll respond?"
Ignoring her, Zhang Mama curtsied to Madam Su, "Former Second Madam, although the old lady of the Earl's Mansion is now unable to speak, this old servant knows her thoughts better than anyone. The two children of the second branch have been away from home for a long time, and she truly misses them. Chen-ge'er is not in the capital now, so there is indeed nothing she can do. But the little county princess is right here, how could she not want to see her? She sent someone to fetch her this morning, hoping to see her children and grandchildren around her, but who knew that you would not allow it. The old lady had no choice but to come herself, and hopes that the former Second Madam will forgive her."
Hearing her refer to her as "former second wife" repeatedly, Madam Su just smiled and said, "Zhang Mama, the madam is so ill that she can't even speak. I suppose what she lacks is not children and grandchildren around her, but daughters-in-law to serve her, right? The madam's mansion has the eldest son's wife, the third son's wife, concubines, and a princess's wife. Why don't you have them serve her? My daughter is only five years old. How could she understand what it means to serve someone in illness?"
Madam Zhang said with a forced smile, "How could we ask the young county princess to come and take care of me? After all, the young county princess is also surnamed Jiang, and is a member of the Jiang family. How could a granddaughter of the Jiang family not live in her own home, but instead live in a separate residence for a long time? The old lady knows that the young county princess is reluctant to leave you, the former second madam, and she doesn't blame her for not returning to the Jiang family. That's why the old lady came in person. She said that it would be fine if she could stay in the county princess's residence, as long as she lives with the young county princess, it doesn't matter where she is."
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