After breakfast, Qingyan was dealing with the affairs of the manor when Shuzhu rushed in from outside. Qingyan put down the account book in his hand and looked at Shuzhu's appearance, and couldn't help but feel puzzled.
"Fourth Princess Consort, please go to the palace as soon as possible!" Shu Zhu said anxiously.
Qingyan was stunned for a moment. Had something happened to Consort Tong?
"Mother... what happened?" Qingyan asked Sulan to tidy herself up a bit before quickly getting into the carriage with Shuzhu.
On the carriage, Shu Zhucai told Qingyan the whole story.
Two days ago, Madam Tong Guogang celebrated her birthday. Since Qingyan could not attend in person, she personally went to Linglong Pavilion to urgently order a set of jewelry. On her birthday, she brought it out and let Madam Tong Guowei see it. She secretly remembered it and waited for two days, but Qingyan did not compensate her with jewelry as she had done before.
This morning, she went to Consort Tong to complain.
"Even Mother was scolded?" Qingyan regretted it a little; she should have handled things more smoothly.
Upon arriving at the entrance of Chenggan Palace, Qingyan overheard Madam Tong complaining to Consort Tong inside the palace. She felt aggrieved; she wasn't an ATM to be exploited by these people for no reason.
“Mother…” Qingyan smiled and slowly walked in.
After respectfully greeting Consort Tong, she turned and gave a half-bow to Madam Tong Guowei.
"Fourth Princess Consort, you don't even respect your elders?!" Madam Tong Guowei looked coldly at Qingyan, her anger still burning.
Qingyan was taken aback. Upon closer examination, Madam Tong's words were indeed improper.
"An elder?!" Qingyan saw that Consort Tong was in a difficult position, so she stepped forward!
Madam Tong watched as Qingyan stood up, looking at her with a cold smile.
"Little darling, sit down!" Consort Tong looked at her mother. If Madam Tong hadn't come today, she would probably have persuaded Qingyan to send him some fine jewelry.
When Consort Tong gave the order, she obediently sat down to the side.
"It's just to give my aunt some face, Mother, it's not that serious!" Consort Tong was too lazy to pay attention. Kangxi asked her to give up her family because there were too many troubles at home, and Longkodo had crossed the bottom line she had set.
Madam Tong's face was very unpleasant. Was this a small matter?
On that day, many court officials witnessed Qingyan's actions, all of which were a slap in the face to her.
"I'm only doing this for your own good. How can you save face with such a slap in the face as a daughter-in-law?" Tong Guowei's wife was determined to make Xiao Guai a disrespect to Consort Tong. Since Tong Guogang's birthday, many of the court ladies had stopped getting close to her and instead became very close to Tong Guogang's wife.
Qingyan pursed her lips, listening to Mrs. Tong Guowei's ramblings.
Could a mere headdress really have caused such a bloody incident?
“Madam Tong, I will definitely give gifts to Grandma Guo Luoma on her birthday. When you celebrated your birthday, I also gave you jewelry of the same value!” Qingyan’s words were somewhat barbed. Consort Tong’s face turned purple with anger, while Madam Tong continued to grumble about how unfair it was.
Every year, double the annual gifts are given. Without the financial support of Yuelai Inn and Linglong Pavilion, Qingyan probably wouldn't have been able to do this.
When the princes left the palace to establish their own residences, the Imperial Household Department only provided 230,000 taels of silver for their settlement. The rest had to be earned by the princes themselves. The Ninth Prince's obsession with business was probably due to his fear of poverty.
If the princes' maternal families are capable, they should be able to provide some support to the princes. As for someone like Yinzhen, it would be considered a favor if they didn't try to take advantage of him.
As soon as she finished speaking, Madam Tong was so angry she almost fell backward; Qingyan's words were rather scathing.
A smile appeared in Consort Tong's eyes; her mother was unforgiving when she was in the right.
The atmosphere inside Chenggan Palace became increasingly awkward. Madam Tong kept grumbling about how Xiao Guai's actions were not fair, which made Qing Yan uncomfortable.
"Grandma Guoluo, the only thing that Linglong Pavilion has to wait is half a year. The jewelry you ordered will be delivered during the festival!" Qingyan said with a cold smile.
Madam Tong's face stiffened. The jewelry she had ordered with several close female officials would be a great honor if she could bring it out during the Golden Festival.
"Little darling, hurry up, Mother, this is the last time!" Consort Tong understood what Madam Tong meant, and she still asked Qingyan to prepare.
Madam Tong nodded with satisfaction. After all, Consort Tong was her daughter, and in the face of matters of great importance, Consort Tong still stood in front of her.
"Alright, Lanya, you should give your daughter-in-law a proper talking-to. If she doesn't know the rules, there will be a lot of people gossiping about her!" Madam Tong said to Qingyan after bowing.
Qingyan watched Madam Tong's retreating figure and smiled helplessly.
"Mother, please don't be angry!" When Qingyan turned around, she saw Consort Tong trembling with anger.
She patted Consort Tong on the back to calm her down.
Seeing her mistress's expression, Shu quickly sent a maid to report to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
Today, Emperor Kangxi did not intend to let Consort Tong see Lady Tong and planned to leave her waiting for a while. However, Consort Tong was always thinking about her family and begged Emperor Kangxi for a long time before he finally let her go.
Half an hour later, Kangxi brought Yin in a hurry. Yin stepped into the hall and found that Xiao Guai was also there, which made him even more confused.
"You two go to the side hall first." Kangxi noticed the red eyes of the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law and told them to go and calm them down first.
Upon arriving at the side hall, Qingyan burst into a tirade, incessantly criticizing Madam Tong's arrogance. She even accused her of wanting to interfere in the transfer of Linglong Pavilion, questioning whether Madam Tong was afraid of not getting enough benefits.
She was only halfway through her sentence when Yin picked up the fuming little guy and pulled him into his arms, quickly trying to soothe the flustered little darling.
"We're not doing business with her anymore!" Yin patted her little head to calm her down.
Now that Madam Tong has come all this way, she can't let go so easily, otherwise Consort Tong will definitely be tormented by Madam Tong.
"She really resembles her mother. No wonder the two of them get along so well." Qingyan couldn't help but complain. The relationship between Jueluo and Madam Tong was getting better and better, and Xiao Guai was getting more and more things from her.
Yin patted her back, and she buried her head in his shoulder, large tears falling onto his shoulder.
"Little darling, this is probably the last time Madam Tong will have a private audience with the Emperor, and Father is furious." A smile appeared on Yin's lips. Only when Mother is completely disappointed with the family can they, as sons and daughters-in-law, take action.
Qingyan leaned on his shoulder, venting her resentment with her tears. Ever since she stepped into Chenggan Palace, Madam Tong had been like a raging firecracker, constantly lashing out at her.
In fact, Consort Tong wanted to stop it because she was worried that Madam Tong would gossip about Qingyan after she left.
"Huh?! Really?!" Qingyan looked up at Yin, wishing it could be like this.
Yin smiled slightly. So many years have passed, and Longkodo has completely destroyed the Tong family. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
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