Compared to the Ye family of that time, and the Ning family of today, they are in no way inferior. Although they don't have the dazzling reputation of having two dukes, they still have one duke and two marquises, and both marquises are young. They have a bright future.
Once a noble title is granted, the family must go to the palace to express their gratitude.
The Empress also issued a decree, summoning Yan Jinsi and Meng Junxian to come in, as she had questions for them.
The next day, Yan Mingyun brought Zou Shi, Yan Jinsi, and Meng Junxian into the palace.
Lady Zou led them directly to Zhaochun Palace, while Yan Mingyun went to thank His Majesty himself.
After paying their respects at Zhaochun Palace, Yan Nangui sat at the head of the table.
She wore a bright red dress today, and the belt was indeed pure black, embroidered with flowers and inlaid with gemstones.
It looks very conspicuous.
The skirt is embroidered with small peonies in gold thread, which is very beautiful.
Her hair was styled in a side bun, simply adorned with a few pieces of jewelry. At first glance, she didn't resemble Empress Zhuang.
But her inherent charisma is enough to make her stand out.
"Your Majesty, I thank you very much." Lady Zou bowed respectfully to express her gratitude.
"Second Aunt, please don't stand on ceremony. I called them in today because I have something to say." Yan Nangui raised her hand.
Yan Jinsi stood up: "Is Your Majesty inquiring about... Fourth Sister?"
"I know the details now. Princess Yiyu killed that concubine, which alarmed her own pregnancy, causing her to give birth prematurely. What a dangerous situation."
"Indeed, I was quite frightened when I heard about it. How is Fourth Sister? I haven't gone to see her yet," Madam Zou asked.
"Fourth Sister... she still can't get up. I'm afraid she won't be able to go to the palace to pay her respects for a while. Her face... her face is injured," Yan Jinsi said.
"I already know the details. Since she is my sister, I can agree to her divorce, but she needs to think it through. After this ordeal, I'm sure Shu Ke understands and won't dare to act recklessly. If things can still work out, then so be it; if not, wait until she recovers and come see me. As for Shu Ke, he holds neither an official position nor a title. Since he is a member of the imperial family, he can only be punished with a beating," Yan Nangui said.
"Thank you for your decision, Your Majesty." Yan Jinsi breathed a sigh of relief.
"We'll talk about her matter when she's feeling better. As for you, I called you two here today to ask you how you've been these past few years, despite my lack of concern for you." Yan Nangui looked at Yan Jinsi, then at Meng Junxian.
In my memory, Meng Junxian was a refined and dignified man.
Well, in other words, he's quite handsome.
But looking at him now, he really looks old. He's not that old, only in his thirties.
Sure enough, when life is not going well, people age more easily.
Since the Empress has brought this up, Meng Junxian has no choice but to answer.
"Your Majesty, everything is fine at home. Although the two children are not very bright, they have at least started school." This was the attitude of Yan Jinsi and Meng Junxian.
Life isn't so hard anymore.
Although she lost all her prestige, she was not short of money. After all, Yan Jinsi was still a princess and the empress's sister.
No one would take the initiative to get close to them, but no one dared to provoke them either.
Both sons are healthy. Perhaps they themselves have little hope, but as the children grow up day by day, there is still much hope.
So, after a while, once you accept your fate and stop pursuing those lofty goals, life becomes less unbearable.
When it comes to this, I can calmly say that everything is fine.
Yan Nangui smiled and said, "That's good. I'm too lazy to dwell on the past. Otherwise, people might say I'm unforgiving." From the moment Rong Ning died, Yan Nangui's revenge was complete.
So, those who are alive neither cause trouble nor reconcile, and just continue like this.
She wouldn't keep these people for a meal, so she sent them all out shortly afterward.
On the way back to the mansion, Madam Zou and Yan Mingyun rode in one carriage, not wanting to be too conspicuous, so they arranged for several carriages.
Inside the carriage, Lady Zou recounted the events that occurred at Zhaochun Palace that day.
Yan Mingyun said, "The Empress... is not someone we can understand. Fortunately, although you and I didn't pay much attention to her back then, we didn't do anything. It's a blessing in disguise."
Yan Mingyun wasn't stupid; she could figure out many things after thinking it over. It's just that the past shouldn't be brought up.
As his uncle, it was actually difficult and inappropriate for him to interfere in the affairs of the girls in the backyard. With the princess there, even a younger brother like him wouldn't dare to go that way.
So it's not so much that we ignored it, but that we never paid any attention to it at all.
It's nothing really, that's just how the world is these days.
However, Zou was a woman from the inner quarters, and she had bullied Yan Nangui to some extent.
It's rare that Her Majesty the Empress is not holding it against us. Our family's earldom is all thanks to Her Majesty.
In this way, they won't just be people who need their older brother to gain some recognition anymore.
In the other carriage, Yan Jinsi was lost in thought, while Meng Junxian, who hadn't slept well the night before, had fallen asleep in the swaying carriage.
In the inner palace, almost as soon as these people left, the Empress Dowager would urgently summon Yan Nan back.
Yan Nangui was a little confused this time: "What does the Empress Dowager want?"
“This servant doesn’t know, but I think nothing’s wrong. She’s recovered. Granny Fei is much better too, and she can take care of us. The person who came didn’t say anything about an accident, so… you only saw your family today, this servant didn’t expect that,” Yuanhua said.
Yan Nangui then went to Ruining Palace with a puzzled expression.
The Empress Dowager's face turned sour. She waved her hand to dismiss everyone, leaving only Granny Fei behind.
Seeing this, Yan Nangui had no choice but to leave Yuanhua behind, while the others went out.
"Empress! You're getting on in years, how can you be so clueless about things?" the Empress Dowager berated him.
"...Mother, please calm down. What happened? Please explain clearly." Yan Nangui remained silent.
"You...do you even know your own place?" the Empress Dowager roared.
"There are only a few people here. Why can't Mother just speak frankly if she has something to say?" Yan Nangui retorted.
"What else do you want me to say? You... I'm asking you, did Princess Jiahe and her husband come today?" the Empress Dowager asked.
Yan Nangui understood what was going on: "Yes."
"I have already asked. Was it you who relayed the message that the Prince Consort should also enter the palace?" the Empress Dowager asked again.
"Yes." Yan Nangui took a deep breath.
The main problem is that I laughed without taking a breath.
"Empress! Don't you know your own status? Your past deeds... are known to everyone, yet you still want to see him?" the Empress Dowager roared.
"I know what Mother is thinking. I sent word that they should both come to the palace. It's their first meeting, so it wouldn't be appropriate to see only one of them." Of course, this was a lie. The truth was that she just wanted to see how pathetic he looked now, and have some fun.
"As for it being common knowledge, it's not a secret at all. When I got divorced, I left the Meng family with a divorce agreement. I entered the Crown Prince's residence by your imperial decree. In between, I also spent a month recuperating at the estate. All of this is recorded. What's there to be ashamed of?" Yan Nangui said.
"You! Do you even know what it means to avoid suspicion? You're being far too ostentatious!" the Empress Dowager exclaimed.
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