Congratulations to both sides.

Three days back home.

Compared to the small Chu family, the Sheng family has much more people. In the capital alone, Sheng Xingan has two younger brothers and a younger sister. Each of their families has four or five children. In addition, for Sheng Xiyan's wedding, many uncles and aunts from her hometown came specially, filling the main hall with them.

Sheng Xing'an did not ask anyone to invite the Sheng family. Not to mention that the incident caused by the Sheng family last time made Sheng Xing'an extremely annoyed, the fact that Prince Zhao's mansion was now under confinement was enough to make him draw a clear line between himself and the Sheng family.

Chu Yuanchen was of noble status, and Sheng Xiyan was also a princess, so there was no need for them to go through any formalities in recognizing their relationship. It was enough for them to just follow Sheng Xiyan's lead and say a few greetings.

A room full of cousins ​​called him brother-in-law, which made Chu Yuanchen very happy. He handed out red envelopes like they were free, and he was very happy and refreshed.

In addition to the red envelope, each of the cousins ​​received a set of writing brush, ink, paper and inkstone. The cousins ​​received two kingfisher butterfly pearl flowers prepared by Sheng Xiyan. Among the children of the Sheng family, only Sheng Yan practiced martial arts, and he received a curved knife that Chu Yuanchen brought back from Beiyan. He was so happy that he almost screamed and followed his brother-in-law like a little tail.

After the recognition, several aunts and aunts took Sheng Xiyan to the back, and a group of sisters surrounded her, chattering non-stop and asking about the patterns on her skirt and the embroidery on her handkerchief.

Sheng Xiyan also wore the gold necklace given by the lady.

She understood that the lady really wanted her to wear it often rather than keep it as a treasure.

Although this gold necklace is a bit old, it is really exquisite. Little girls all like beautiful jewelry. The shy ones stare at it from a distance, while the lively ones will come over and ask where it was made.

Very lively.

Chu Yuanchen was supposed to follow Sheng Xingan to the front to eat, but Sheng Xingan said, "You guys go first. I sprained my ankle. Aunt, please accompany me."

No one was slow to respond. Knowing that Sheng Xingan wanted to talk to the new aunt, no one said anything more and just smiled and walked away.

Sheng Xingan led Chu Yuanchen and fell to the end.

He didn't say anything, and Chu Yuanchen didn't ask either. The two walked in silence for a while. Sheng Xiyan seemed to have considered her words for a long time before she said, "Aunt, Sister Yan is young, and I, as her father, haven't been able to take good care of her since she was a child. Maybe I am not qualified to say anything."

"It's just that, Your Highness, Sister Yan looks gentle, but sometimes, she is very stubborn and can't tolerate any sand in her eyes. If in the future... Aunt, you should think about it more. Sister Yan was there when you were in the most difficult time."

Chu Yuanchen raised his eyebrows and asked, "I don't know what uncle means."

In the past, Sheng Xingan would never say such a thing even if he was beaten to death.

He had never been to the execution ground, but he had heard about the strange appearance of a person born with a supernatural power, such as a white tiger turning into a dragon. There was no doubt that Chu Yuanchen was heading that way step by step, and it was very likely that he would soar into the sky.

Originally, Sheng Xingan should be ecstatic about this, but he felt a little uncomfortable in his heart.

He said hesitantly, "My Lord, if Sister Yan doesn't want to live with you anymore, don't bother her and let her come back home."

He almost gritted his teeth and finished speaking in one breath. As soon as he finished speaking, he felt relieved, as if he had thrown away a heavy burden.

Neither the Sheng family nor himself had actually done anything for Chu Yuanchen. It was as if they were following behind him, waiting to take advantage.

The Sheng family is not of high status.

If Chu Yuanchen really has that day, I'm afraid that more people will stick to him, and throughout history, marriage is always the most reliable.

Originally, before Sheng Xiyan got married, he really hadn't thought about it so much.

On the day when Sheng Xiyan left the palace, he had a nightmare for some reason. He dreamed that Yan Jie'er had died at a young age less than a year after leaving the palace. They all said that she died of illness, but Sheng Xing'an saw thin marks on her neck...

Sheng Xingan woke up suddenly and felt very cold.

In the dream, even Sheng Xiyan's appearance was a little blurry. The only thing he couldn't forget was the mark on her neck, even after he woke up.

He couldn't remember what he did in his dream.

But if it were now, he would want to kill that person with his own hands!

Sheng Xingan's heart has been restless and he hasn't slept well for the past two days. Today, when he saw Sheng Xiyan and Chu Yuanchen returning home together, he couldn't help it and told them.

"Let her come back home. The Sheng family can support her."

Sheng Xingan rarely spoke seriously.

Chu Yuanchen stopped walking, and Sheng Xingan also stopped. His heart couldn't help but beat wildly. He also felt that what he said was a bit unreasonable. A married lady couldn't just come back whenever she wanted. Even if he didn't say so, he would have to worry day and night.

"Father-in-law, you worry too much." Chu Yuanchen chuckled, "In this life, I only need Ah Yan."

Sheng Xingan was stunned.

Chu Yuanchen had already taken a step forward.

Sheng Xingan wanted to ask a few more questions, and if possible, it would be best if he could write a letter of guarantee for him. However, after catching up with her, he hesitated for a long time and still did not dare to be so persistent.

Men and women sit separately.

There was a table in the front yard and another in the inner yard.

After lunch, Chu Yuanchen took Sheng Xiyan to say goodbye. When they got on the carriage, Chu Yuanchen told her about this incident. Sheng Xiyan was a little stunned.

She had never thought that Sheng Xingan would say such a thing. She always thought that Sheng Xingan, as a father, had no feelings for her and that in his heart, the interests of the family should be far higher than her.

Isn't that the case...

Or was it because in her previous life, she wasn't close to him either, and they always treated each other indifferently, and she never thought about changing?

Sheng Xiyan tilted her head and looked at Chu Yuanchen.

Chu Yuanchen immediately expressed his loyalty and said, "I told my father-in-law that having you in my life is enough."

Her eyes sparkled like stars.

It was not because of his promise, but because he cherished her.

He quickly caught the smile from the corner of her lips, like a child who had stolen candy, his beautiful peach blossom eyes filled with pride. Then he gently pulled her into his arms, letting her back rest on his chest. His eyes fell on her soft and delicate cheeks, and he gently stroked them with his fingertips.

I couldn't help but steal a kiss.

He said confidently, "This is my father-in-law's first time marrying off his daughter. You're overthinking it. I finally got my daughter-in-law, how could I possibly give her back?"

Don’t even think about it!

"I just miss you!"

"No one can compare to you."

After expressing his loyalty, he hugged her tightly again. The two of them were almost sticking together. Sheng Xiyan leaned relaxedly on his broad chest, and a cheerful laugh escaped from her mouth.

They did not go directly back to the Zhenbei Palace, but took a detour to the Qingming Tea House.

Chu Yuanchen didn't let her go until the carriage stopped. He helped her out of the carriage, and the two of them walked into the teahouse hand in hand.

Xiao Shuo was sitting in a private room on the second floor. In front of him was a chessboard with several pieces already placed on it, black and white running across the board. Judging from the chessboard, there was no clear winner or loser.

Wu Ning was serving tea on the side, and it was obvious that he was playing chess with himself.

Seeing the two of them come in, Xiao Shuo smiled slightly, his smile was as gentle as the spring breeze.

"Brother."

Chu Yuanchen walked over, picked up a white piece naturally, put it in the corner, then lifted his robe and sat down opposite him.

Sheng Xiyan sat down beside the tea table, poured herself some tea, and leaned against the window leisurely, listening to the "pa pa" sound of chess pieces falling. Occasionally, she turned her head to take a look and saw that the situation on the chessboard became more intense, with the white and black pieces stuck together and neither giving in.

Neither of them spoke, and the teahouse was quiet and peaceful.

"I'm not going back!"

From the street outside there came a sharp shout.

Wu Ning frowned and thought: Who is this, shouting in the street in broad daylight, disturbing the governor, can he afford it?

He retreated quietly.

Sheng Xiyan didn't notice Wu Ning had left. The voice sounded familiar to her, so she looked a few more times and saw a plain carriage parked across the street. The noise came from inside the carriage.

The curtain of the carriage was suddenly thrown open, and a woman jumped out of the carriage. Two maids hurried over to stop her but failed.

"Madam," Xigui said, "it's the wife of Earl Wu'an."

Because she was away, Xigui started to address her as "Madam".

The person who got out of the carriage was indeed Lady Wu Anbo. She angrily shouted at the maids who were holding her back, "I will not go back to my hometown."

"I am the wife of a baron, canonized by the imperial decree. I am a proper lady of the imperial family. What qualifications does Fu Pingzhang have to chase me away?"

"I gave birth to his children, raised his parents and sent them to their old age. Now that I am old, I want to send you away so that he can take a beautiful concubine, right?!"

"I will never leave!"

…

Her voice became shriller.

"How did the wife of Marquis Wu'an become like this?" Xigui said, "Madam, when we last saw her, she was still very elegant and graceful. How come she is now... so messy and dissolute?"

indeed.

Sheng Xiyan nodded with a smile.

The last time she was at the Cheng family, she was still acting like a lady of an earl's family.

Chu Yuanchen had just made a move when he turned around and said, "Wu Anbo came back yesterday."

Seeing the excitement on Sheng Xiyan's face, Chu Yuanchen walked over, picked up a walnut and threw it to Wu Ning who was just walking out the door, and waved to him to slow down because his wife wanted to watch the fun.

Wu Ning only listened to Xiao Shuo's words, and when he saw that Xiao Shuo did not stop him, he returned to his private seat.

Sheng Xiyan gave Chu Yuanchen an admiring look, and Chu Yuanchen immediately became excited. Without waiting for the question, he said, "Wu Anbo is too straightforward. He doesn't have any tricks. It was okay when he was in Lingnan. He was the uncle, and the Fu family was one of the best families in Lingnan. Wu Anbo's wife was often flattered when she went out. Now that she has returned to the capital, the gap is too big, and she can't stand it..."

Sheng Xiyan understood, so she couldn't wait to arrange a good marriage for her son so that her family could also improve.

"I won't go back. I want to see if he can beat me to death!"

The wife of the Marquis of Wu'an was shouting loudly, as if she was determined to fight to the death. The nanny was really having a headache. After the accident of Prince Zhao, the Crown Prince locked up the wife. Until the Marquis of Wu'an returned to the capital yesterday, he immediately ordered the wife to be sent back to her hometown and said that if she was unwilling to leave, he would become a widower to prevent the whole family from suffering.

Originally, my uncle had asked people to prepare the carriage early this morning, but my mistress was so noisy that it was delayed until now.

Before they even left the city, the lady coaxed the prince away to buy some cakes, and then she started making trouble again.

However, Wu Anbo was very determined this time. Not only did he let Fu Junqing send her back personally, he also arranged dozens of guards. As soon as she made a noise, the guards scattered and formed a human wall to block her.

Mrs. Wu Anbo was both ashamed and annoyed.

Many passers-by were attracted by the movement here and came over to watch. Soon, the wide street was blocked with people inside and outside.

They knew what was going on and just thought it was a case of someone favoring a concubine and killing his wife, and wanted to send his old and ugly wife back to her hometown.

When Fu Junqing rode over here, sweating profusely, this was the scene he faced.

In Fu Junqing's hand was a bag of freshly baked pastries from the Xi family shop. Lady Wu'anbo's wife was sorry that they would not be available anymore, so she went to buy them.

He squeezed into the crowd, looked at the raging wife of Wu Anbo, and said with a tired face: "Mother, please stop making trouble. If you leave the capital any later, you won't be able to reach the town at night and will have to camp in the open air."

"What did you say?!" Mrs. Wu Anbo was angry at his attitude. She covered her chest and cried out in pain.

In everyone's eyes, this was seen as the son being disobedient and unfilial, and people around him pointed fingers and talked even louder.

Fu Junqing looked embarrassed and at a loss as to what to do.

He was capable of leading troops in battle, but it was really difficult for him to deal with his troublesome mother.

Mrs. Wu Anbo was sure of her son's temper: "I will never go back to my hometown. If you insist on driving me back, I will kill myself here."

As she spoke, she wiped away her tears and pretended to crash into the carriage.

Fu Junqing subconsciously raised his hand to stop her, and two maids pulled and persuaded her, and Mrs. Wu'anbo burst into tears.

He rubbed his forehead, perhaps noticing someone looking at him, and turned around to see Chu Yuanchen sitting on the second floor of the teahouse. Chu Yuanchen made no secret of the fact that he was watching the excitement with his wife, and waved to him.

Fu Junqing's eyes were dark. He still remembered that day when Chu Yuanchen appeared in front of him, criticized him from head to toe, and then said:

"You are just a foolish filial piety."

"I don't know why you are so stupid. How do you lead troops to fight in battles? You are not the one who always leads people to die."

"Don't act like I owe you money. What you are doing is sending people to their deaths."

"Think carefully about the Jinwu Guards under your command. They all have parents, wives and children."

These words made his mind clear all of a sudden. He realized that all of King Zhao's plans had not escaped Chu Yuanchen's eyes. King Zhao was doomed to fail, and he would be buried with his entire family and the Jinwu Guards...

The situation in the capital changes day by day. If you are not careful, you will be dragged into it. The whole family will suffer, but your mother will still make a fuss.

He and Chu Yu's happy marriage was ruined...

He raised his hands in front of the carriage, looking at Mrs. Wu Anbo who was still cursing in front of him, feeling exhausted both physically and mentally.

…

Sheng Xiyan withdrew his gaze and asked casually, "How is Wu Anbo's mission going?"

"Not bad." Chu Yuanchen said meaningfully, "Wu Anbo is interesting and a useful person."

He is brave and good at fighting, but he also knows his limits and right from wrong. He is not a blindly loyal person. Apart from having a troublesome wife and a son whose mind is sometimes clear and sometimes confused, he has no shortcomings.

Speaking of Wu Anbo's job, Chu Yuanchen said with interest: "When he went to suppress bandits, he drove the bandits to Yizhou and instigated the bandits to fight to the death with the most rampant bandits in Yizhou. Both sides suffered heavy casualties, and he led 3,000 soldiers out, and brought back 3,000 soldiers."

The imperial guards were now tightly controlled by Zheng Zhongming, and Xiao Shuo could not intervene. Wu Anbo had led the imperial guards out, so after completing the task, he did not report it directly to Xiao Shuo. Instead, Chu Yuanchen knew about it earlier.

After hearing what he said, Xiao Shuo understood what Chu Yuanchen meant by "somewhat interesting".

Xiao Shuo raised his eyebrows, rubbed the chess piece in his hand with his fingertips, and ordered: "Wu Ning, go down and tell them that the imperial edict of Lady Wu Anbo is gone."

After he finished speaking, the black piece he had been holding for a long time finally fell down with a crisp "pop".

Chu Yuanchen looked back and was dumbfounded.

How did he find this flaw?

Chu Yuanchen frowned in thought while Wu Ning had already walked downstairs again and went straight to Lady Wu Anbo. He conveyed Xiao Shuo's meaning with an expressionless face.

Seize the imperial edict?

Mrs. Wu Anbo's eyes widened in disbelief.

No!

She blurted out: "No!"

Wu Ning ignored him and said, "My Lord, in our opinion, we should not send him back to his hometown, but send him to Baiyun Temple outside the city to practice Buddhism without a haircut."

Mrs. Wu Anbo was shocked and panicked. She realized that this was going to be serious.

She looked at her son subconsciously.

She dared to make trouble only because she relied on her son not to disregard the mother-son relationship. But facing Xiao Shuo, let alone her, who else in the entire Darong Dynasty dared to make trouble?

Fu Junqing resisted the urge to look back, and said with a bow: "Yes..."

Mrs. Wu'anbo's face turned pale and cold sweat broke out on her forehead. She wanted to tell herself that this was just a show of strength. How could Xiao Shuo have the qualifications to abolish her imperial edict? In fact, she didn't dare to have even the slightest bit of luck. They had only been back to the capital for half a year, and the number of families that had been raided in Dongchang was countless, and each of them was powerful...

Her legs were shaking: "My lady..."

"Oh, right." Wu Ning seemed to have remembered something and turned around and said, "Just now I heard that Madam wanted to kill herself by hitting her head against the wall. Just do it. We are watching here..."

"If you can't die, we will give you another stab wound to ensure that you die completely."

He said it lightly, as if he was joking, but the coldness in his tone made Mrs. Wu Anbo feel as if he would come up and strangle her neck in the next moment.

Wu Ning smiled and said, "Madam Wu Anbo, do you still want to bump into me?"

Mrs. Wu Anbo's face turned pale with shock. Cang Huang waved his hand and said, "No, I won't bump into you... I won't bump into you anymore."

As she spoke, she shrank back until her back was pressed tightly against the carriage, and there was no trace of the arrogance and arrogance she had just shown.

Wu Ning's gaze moved from Mrs. Wu'anbo's terrified face to Fu Junqing. Seeing the deep purple under Fu Junqing's eyes and the fatigue in his eyes, he uttered an undisguised "Huh".

If it weren't for the good fortune of the Fu family and the lack of a supervisor, this family would have been tortured to death by this woman sooner or later.

Wu Ning glanced at him and said, "In that case, let's go to Baiyun Temple as soon as possible... Madam."

The title of "Madam" was very meaningful, as if to say that in a while, the imperial edict would be gone and she would no longer be called "Madam".

Knowing that this was not a joke, Mrs. Wu Anbo's legs went limp and she collapsed. She was pulling the carriage with her hands and almost fell to the ground. Her body was shaking constantly.

Wu Ning left without looking back.

When the door of the private room was opened, Chu Yuanchen had just resigned himself to defeat. Wu Ning smiled as if it was a matter of course, thinking: This King of Zhenbei dared to play chess with the Governor, he should have admitted defeat long ago!

"Master, I have completed my mission.

After he finished speaking, he stood quietly by the side.

Sheng Xiyan took another look at the street outside. Lady Wu'an had already been dragged onto the carriage by the maid, while Fu Junqing stood aside, silent.

Since Chu Yuanchen lost, he was responsible for cleaning up the chess pieces. After the chess pieces and chessboard were in order, Sheng Xiyan took the initiative to walk over, and the two of them offered tea to Xiao Shuo together.

Xiao Shuo, who never changed his expression, was stunned for a moment.

"Recognition tea."

Chu Yuanchen said seriously.

Then he laughed again and said, "It doesn't matter whether you are from the man's side or the woman's side, just drink this kinship tea together."

Xiao Shuo: “…”

He couldn't help but laugh. No wonder Chu Yuanchen insisted on asking him to come over today.

"good."

He responded, his gentle voice becoming a little hoarse and low.

His eyelashes trembled slightly, hiding the emotion in his eyes. After he finished drinking the tea, he was faced with two hands that were opened and held in front of him:

"A greeting."

Xiao Shuo couldn't help laughing. He raised his hand to the palms of the two of them, patted each of them lightly, and said calmly, "Here, a meeting gift."

Chu Yuanchen was thick-skinned and said cheerfully, "It's okay if you're not prepared. You can make up for it next time! Brother, I like your new Mongolian horse. Why don't you take it?"

Xiao Shuo's eyes fell on Sheng Xiyan's gold necklace, and a flash of nostalgia flashed in his eyes. He waved his hand and said generously: "You go and choose it yourself."

Chu Yuanchen was satisfied and said to Sheng Xiyan happily, "I'll pick the best one for you. We'll go hunting in a few days."

Xiao Shuo's eyebrows softened, and he looked at Chu Yuanchen and counted on his fingers, "Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow are not possible, let's go on the 15th..."

Xiao Shuo casually asked, "Has the army arrived?"

It has been almost two months, and the Zhenbei Army should have reached the capital by now.

As long as we have these 30,000 Zhenbei Royal Army in our hands, we can compete with the Imperial Guards next.

"I'll be there the day after tomorrow." Chu Yuanchen had originally planned to tell him about this, "Brother, why don't you go with me to pick him up."

"Together?"

Xiao Shuo seemed to be thinking about something.

He never does things based on his momentary likes and dislikes, but always weighs the pros and cons.

He thought for a moment and replied, "Okay, I'll go with you."

Chu Yuanchen was satisfied. He raised his hand to fill his tea cup and mentioned something else: "Brother, the lady may have noticed you."

Xiao Shuo's hand trembled slightly, and a drop of tea splashed out.