At the same time, inside the imperial prison.
"elder brother."
A somewhat shrill voice rang out, startling Sun Cai, who was huddled in the corner. He then reacted and rushed forward, grabbing the iron door of the cell. "Shu'er, how... how come you were carried here?"
Upon hearing this, Sun Shu remained silent, only weeping uncontrollably, her eyes filled with despair.
When she heard that she was to come to the prison to see her brother, her heart sank.
The Qin family lost, and the Sun family... also lost.
"Shu'er, don't cry. They won't dare to really do anything to us." Sun Cai reached out to wipe away Sun Shu's tears. "When Father and the others win the battle, they will come to rescue us."
"Brother, I have never suffered such humiliation..."
Sun Shu cried as she spoke, "They don't take the aristocratic families seriously at all, and we're so useless, suffering defeat after defeat. How can we ever go back?"
“Of course.” Sun Cai pursed his lips. “We just underestimated them these past few times. Shu’er, we shouldn’t go against them now. Just do what they say, and they won’t have a reason to attack us.”
"You need to take good care of yourself; you've lost a lot of weight compared to before."
After being comforted, Sun Shu nodded through her tears, "Brother, you must take care of yourself too. And... if there is a chance, please pass on a message to Father for me."
"Just say...just say I want to go home..."
The contrast between her initial high aspirations and her current single-minded desire to escape is stark; the dream of becoming the Empress of Dayu has long since vanished from Sun Shu's mind.
All she wants now is to return home safely.
"Don't worry, Shu'er, I will."
Sun Cai comforted Sun Shu verbally, but the panic in his eyes betrayed him; he too was afraid he wouldn't be able to go back.
......
Once news about the Pei family broke, it seemed to spread rapidly.
"Have you heard? The Emperor has sent someone to deliver medicinal herbs to the Pei family."
"I've heard that among these great families, only the Pei family can be considered upright. I haven't heard of the Pei family being involved in these recent events, and it's common for the Emperor to send gifts to the Pei family."
"I heard that the head of the Pei family saved Marquis Dingyuan four years ago."
The matter began to be discussed throughout the streets and alleys of the capital, and soon the news reached the ears of the aristocratic families.
Zhaoning Palace.
"Mother, Prime Minister Zhuo came to the palace today specifically to say that everyone outside the palace is talking about the Pei family."
Gu Qingyan placed his hands on the charcoal fire to warm them, "Especially when we talked about sending medicinal herbs to the Pei family, some people even said that we might be trying to form an alliance with the Pei family."
As he spoke, Gu Qingyan himself chuckled at his own words.
"Sending medicinal herbs to the Pei family is something we are doing by humbling ourselves."
Jiang Yu took a sip of tea, but that's precisely why the impact on everyone would be stronger, and why the news would spread faster.
"Let them talk about it. Hopefully, the other companies won't be so angry when they find out."
Jiang Yu tapped Gu Qingyan's nose lightly, "They won't have a good New Year this year."
Jiang Yu's belly was already showing, and her morning sickness was gradually disappearing. She was radiating a maternal glow, which made Gu Qingyan unconsciously want to get closer to her.
"This year, I will stay up all night with my mother and father for the New Year."
Gu Qingyan was already looking forward to the New Year with great anticipation.
"Also, I wonder when the first snow of the year will fall? I remember very clearly the first snow I experienced with Mother. Mother sewed a marigold onto my sleeve."
Gu Qingyan remembered all these things about Jiang Yu very clearly.
"Yes, the Chinese New Year is almost here."
Jiang Yu's expression also showed some anticipation, "I hope the first snow this year will fall before the New Year, preferably next month, so we can go and admire the plum blossoms together. The plum blossoms covered with snowflakes will be a unique sight."
The mother and son chatted by the charcoal stove, while Wanji lingered a few steps under the eaves outside, but did not disturb the warmth inside.
"What's wrong?" Granny Ling asked.
"It's nothing serious. Her Majesty instructed me to go out of the palace every half day to check on the rumors circulating about the Pei family," Wanji said with a smile, dusting himself off. "Her Majesty and the Emperor are talking inside, so we won't disturb them."
"Yes, let Her Majesty rest as well."
Hearing the commotion inside the room, Ling Mama couldn't help but smile.
......
The Pei family.
"What?"
Upon hearing the servant's report, Pei Jian's calm expression vanished instantly. "Da Yu really did send us medicinal herbs."
“It’s absolutely true, Patriarch. Right now, everyone in Da Yu is saying that our Pei family is the head of all aristocratic families.”
"broken!"
Pei Jian stood up from his chair and paced back and forth in the room. "How did the Pei family come to be targeted by Da Yu?"
"Patriarch, isn't Da Yu trying to win us over?"
"Foolish." Pei Jian's face darkened considerably. "Even if Dayu wants to win us over, have you considered how the other families will view the Pei family? Especially since the Qin, Sun, and Gong families have just suffered defeats. The better Dayu's relationship with us is at this time, the more they will dislike us."
"Does this mean we should force the Pei family to submit to Dayu, just like the Yun family?"
Absolutely impossible!
Seeing that Pei Jian's tone was unfriendly, the servant dared not say anything more, and only Pei Jian's sighing could be heard in the room.
A short while later, Pei Zhi received the news and arrived here as well.
"Father, you received the news too?"
Seeing Pei Jian's worried expression, Pei Zhi was still a little confused. "Why does Father seem unhappy?"
"Zhi'er, how can your father be happy?"
“Just tell the other Pei families that the Pei family has no connection with Dayu.” Pei Zhi said frankly, “I think they can understand this. Our Pei family is just a family that practices medicine and makes poisons. We are not involved in any military affairs.”
"Zhi'er, you don't understand."
Pei Jian frowned and interrupted Pei Zhi. What he wanted was far more than just a peaceful corner of the world.
"What do I not understand?"
“Even if the powerful families truly believe in our innocence, they won't let us off easily.” A dark glint flashed in Pei Jian's eyes. “Perhaps we should take this opportunity…”
"Father, what do you want to do with this opportunity?"
“Of course, it’s about making good relations with the other families.” Pei Jian’s expression softened. “I acted impulsively just now, Zhi’er, don’t take it to heart.”
Since Da Yu has given him this opportunity, he should make good use of it.
Pei Zhi shook her head upon hearing this. Why did she always feel that her father was starting to act strangely, and sometimes she couldn't understand what he was saying?
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