Isn't this Hongli? He should be having a banquet in the front hall, why did he suddenly come here?
Hongli's sudden appearance surprised Su Yushan. She was unaware that it was all thanks to Chang Yue.
Yunfang wasn't very knowledgeable about these social niceties, but Changyue was very clear about them. As soon as Yunfang revealed her master's identity, Changyue knew that her master's meal was probably not going to go smoothly.
So she had a sudden idea. She went out alone and quietly went to the front hall, where she asked Li Yutong to tell the Fourth Master that Su Gege had encountered trouble.
At that time, Hongli was also entangled by several officials who came to the Zheng family to deliver congratulatory gifts.
None of them expected that Fourth Master would come to the Zheng family. Upon seeing Fourth Master, the officials were overjoyed. They usually had no chance to speak to Fourth Master, so they were extremely fortunate to be able to share a banquet with him today.
Fortunately, Hongli was of noble status, so they were careful when speaking or offering toasts, and dared not be presumptuous. Hongli could just do as he pleased. The only uncomfortable thing was having to listen to some hypocritical flattery, which was quite boring.
Just then, Li Yu came to report that Yu Shan had encountered some trouble. Hongli said "Excuse me" to everyone, and then got up and went to the backyard.
In principle, men from outside the family are not allowed to enter the backyard, but if the Fourth Prince wanted to go in, no one could stop him.
Just as Yu Shan was in a dilemma, Hongli happened to arrive!
Yu Shan stood up in surprise and walked up to him. "Fourth Master, what brings you here? Is there something you need to do before you leave?"
Upon hearing her call him "Fourth Prince," the great-aunt quickly followed. "This must be your husband, the Fourth Prince, right?" Looking at the man before her, the great-aunt clicked her tongue and sighed, "The prince's demeanor is indeed extraordinary!"
Just now, Chang Yue said that an older woman was causing trouble for Yu Shan. Hong Li guessed that this must be the woman who spoke. "I am Yu Shan's husband. If you have anything to say, you can tell me directly."
The Fourth Prince's decisiveness suggests he is a straightforward person. The maternal aunt, speaking frankly, repeated that she wanted to find a job for her grandson.
Hongli looked at Yushan, "What kind of relative is she to you?"
“Uh…” Su Yushan was speechless for a moment, completely forgetting how the woman had just introduced the kinship between the two families.
My great-aunt quickly chimed in, "My cousin married her second uncle, and we have a very good relationship with the Su family!"
He thought they were some close relatives! Upon hearing this, he couldn't help but chuckle, "Such a distant relative, not even a direct relative, how dare you ask?"
"We're all from the same village, so it's good to have someone to look out for you when you're out and about. It makes the journey easier, doesn't it? As the saying goes, accumulating good deeds..." Before Auntie could finish speaking, Hongli interrupted her.
"I'm not immoral, so I don't need to accumulate merit. I'm not Buddha or Bodhisattva, so why should I save your family?"
The Fourth Prince was handsome, but his attitude was unusually cold, much to the Aunt's surprise. How could the Fourth Prince refuse such a simple matter? The Aunt felt utterly humiliated and refused to give up.
"We helped her family a lot when they were poor! We should repay kindness!"
Su Yushan thought to herself, this man's face doesn't seem like that of someone who's happy to help. Before she could think of a rebuttal, Hongli had already spoken up, retorting on her behalf.
“A married daughter is like water spilled from a cup. The grudges of the Su family have nothing to do with Yu Shan. You have no right to bother her anymore.”
After finishing his conversation, Hongli told Yushan that he had other important matters to attend to and had to return to the manor.
In reality, Yu Shan couldn't stay any longer either. She also wanted to leave, so she readily agreed, told her sister, and left with Hongli.
On this joyous occasion, the great-aunt had hoped to gain some favor, but unexpectedly, she was rejected. Dejected, she returned to her seat, only to hear the Zhou people gossiping and even mocking her. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became, and she turned around and ridiculed Su Yushan.
"I thought she was very favored after entering the Fourth Prince's mansion! This Fourth Prince doesn't even help her relatives, it seems he doesn't care about her at all!"
Yu Chan, who had been holding back her words, was mindful of the occasion as the Zheng family was hosting guests. As a daughter-in-law of the Zheng family, she didn't want to spoil anyone's fun. However, upon hearing this woman slander her sister, Yu Chan couldn't hold back any longer and spoke out.
“My eldest brother is now a sixth-rank official, and my second brother is a palace guard with a fourth-rank official position. If the Fourth Prince doesn’t favor my sister, how can our family rise to prominence? The Fourth Prince only helps our Su family’s direct relatives. Why do you need to join in and make a fool of yourself!”
My great-aunt rolled her eyes and complained, "We're all part of the same family. If we have a say, we should just help each other out! Does she have to turn her back on us like this? Does entering the royal family mean she doesn't recognize distant relatives anymore?"
The woman had been talking nonsense ever since she entered the room. Yu Chan already disliked her, and now that things were out in the open, she simply stopped holding back.
"Helping you is a favor, not helping is my right. You have no right to blame my sister. If you dare to gossip behind my back again, I will tell Fourth Master. Fourth Master hates gossips the most. At that time, not only will your little grandson be in danger, but even your eldest grandson's career will be in jeopardy!"
When Madam Zheng heard the news, she rushed over and found that her usually gentle and taciturn daughter-in-law had suddenly become fierce.
Although Yu Chan's teasing made her great-aunt very embarrassed, Madam Zheng felt that her great-aunt had brought it upon herself. Therefore, she did not blame her daughter-in-law. She simply pretended to step forward, offered a few words of advice, and then asked her great-aunt to leave and moved her to the next room.
While everyone was watching the show, Yu Chan was in a bad mood. She excused herself and went back to her room. He Yun Ning followed her and tried to calm her down.
"You've just finished your postpartum confinement period, you can't let yourself get angry; holding in anger will damage your liver."
When her own body was mentioned, Yu Chan became alert and secretly warned herself not to get angry over unrelated people.
The Fourth Prince has already made it clear that she won't go to bother her sister anymore. After all, it's a prince's residence, not a place that just anyone can enter.
With this thought in mind, Yu Chan felt temporarily at ease.
After the banquet ended, the guests dispersed. Mr. and Mrs. Zheng stayed in the front hall to talk with the relatives. The great-aunt brought up the events of the banquet again, first criticizing Yu Shan for being ungrateful, and then complaining that Yu Chan was too sarcastic and dared to talk back to her, an elder, which was very unruly.
Upon hearing this, Zheng Lin's anger flared up. "It's already difficult enough for a Han woman to stay in the prince's residence. She has to walk on thin ice every day, behaving in strict accordance with the rules and not daring to overstep them. As an elder, you should understand her difficulties. We haven't asked her for any help, so why are you making trouble for her?"
Furthermore, Yu Chan is her sister. How can she remain indifferent when you speak ill of her sister in front of her? Now you are criticizing my wife in front of me. Is this how you treat a guest?
Zheng Lin's rebuke made his great-aunt blush with embarrassment and anger. "I'm just stating the facts. A gentleman should help those who are reasonable, not those who are close to him. Your insistence on protecting Yu Chan is harming her!"
Sitting upright in his chair, Zheng Lin spoke in a clear and solemn voice, "First of all, Yu Chan did nothing wrong. Secondly, what kind of man would I be if I didn't even protect my own wife?"
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