Yin Qianhua planned to visit Yuan's house after a few busy days to reveal her son's feelings to her aunt. However, before she could take any action, she received news from the Prince's Mansion that the Crown Princess had given birth prematurely and was suffering from hemorrhage, and her condition was very critical.
As the aunt, Yin Qianhua had to show up at this time. She rushed to the Prince's Mansion with the oldest ginseng and supplements in the palace. The imperial doctors were busy trying to save the young life for six days but failed. The Crown Princess and her newly born daughter who had never seen the world finally passed away together.
"Are we going to the Prince's Mansion to pay our respects? Do Ruyi and I have to go too?" Xiao Yao certainly didn't want to attend the funeral. Not only did she feel creepy, but she had to kneel for most of the day and her legs would be swollen after she came back.
"I'll go, and let my sister stay." Xiao Yuan patted his chest proudly. As long as the young lady went to the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery's Mansion, it would be fine. Who cares whether there is one or two.
"The Crown Prince's Mansion is different from an ordinary royal palace. All officials and their families who have reached a certain age must go. Although there are no clear regulations on this, this is the custom passed down from ancient times. Except for your fourth aunt and eldest sister-in-law who are unable to go, everyone else in our family must go."
"Sister-in-law... am I going to have another nephew?" Xiao Yao temporarily forgot about the troubles in the Prince's Mansion. She was overjoyed to have another soft, little ball of flesh calling her aunt. It would be even better if they could have a little girl. That way, if she and her sister got married, at least there would be someone at home who could distract her grandfather and give him someone to confide in.
"Hurry up and go to the sewing room to ask them to measure your size. Tell them to work overnight to make mourning clothes for you and Ruyi. We are going to the Prince's Mansion tomorrow." Tong Mingyu glared at her daughter. She had already started learning to be a housekeeper when she was thirteen, but her daughter was still so innocent. She would be satisfied if she could be half as favored as she was at home after she got married.
If I think about it carefully, my daughter is actually also involved in the housekeeping. She is involved in the accounting part. The kitchen and sewing room at home have shown results under her management of those systems. Now I just need to assign tasks every few days and reconcile the accounts at the end of each month, and basically I don't have to worry about it.
Not only did she work diligently herself, but Xiao Yuan was also motivated. The warehouse accounts of Yiyuan were now in Xiao Yuan's hands. The two of them did their jobs very well, and Yuan Yutong was so happy that she couldn't stop smiling.
"My daughter will be right there." The two sisters walked off hand in hand. Tong Mingyu went to arrange the carriage and check if there were any other taboo decorations in the mansion that needed to be removed. Because of the Crown Princess incident, her second son's wedding and her daughter's meeting with the Liang child had to be postponed. She couldn't get over it either, and perhaps delaying it would change things. Tong Mingyu really couldn't bear to let her daughter marry a guard.
The next day, Qin and others dressed neatly and set off with the two little girls. Xiao Yao and Xiao Yuan changed into mourning clothes in the carriage when the carriage was halfway through the journey.
As the saying goes, to be pretty, you have to wear mourning clothes. Xiao Yao interprets this saying very well. Her beautiful face and the white clothes make her look pitiful and charming.
"Xiaohui, did you bring a pair of scissors?" Tong Mingyu looked left and right and felt that her daughter was too conspicuous. If she had a pair of scissors to trim her hair, cover her smooth forehead and hide her clear eyes, she might not be so conspicuous.
"No, I didn't bring any." No one would bring a pair of scissors when going out. In Xiaohui's purse, besides small change, there was also a small comb.
Tong Mingyu used her fingers to pick up a few strands of hair from her daughter's temples, but unexpectedly, instead of covering it up, it made her look even more charming.
"Forget it, just walk among us for a while, keep your head down and talk less." Tong Mingyu put down her hand in frustration. Her daughter was really not suitable to go out. What if she attracted a crowd of onlookers in the Prince's Mansion, or attracted someone with ulterior motives?
"Oh!" I don't want to go to that kind of occasion, okay?
The front of the Prince's Mansion was filled with carriages, and the women of each family lined up in an orderly manner and went inside, waiting to pay homage to the Crown Princess.
Xiao Yao stood in the middle of the Xiao family's team. If you didn't look for her deliberately, it would be difficult to find her. As soon as her family members appeared, several waves of people left the gate. The target person had appeared, and it was time to go back and report to the master.
"The female relatives of the Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery have arrived." The steward in charge of reception announced loudly.
Burning incense and kowtowing, the Xiao family repeated the same actions as the previous guests. When they knelt down and kowtowed, they had to arrange themselves according to seniority, so Xiao Yao and Xiao Yuan knelt in the last row.
The mourning hall was filled with white gauze curtains and women in plain clothes. Next to the coffin were several children in heavy mourning, as well as the concubines of the prince's mansion. The number of people was spectacular.
How many tears would a man shed for his wife if he had so many concubines? Since ancient times, the most ruthless people are the imperial family, and it seems that what they said is absolutely correct.
"The Crown Prince has arrived, Prince Qi has arrived." The rustling sound of fabrics rubbing against each other could be heard in the mourning hall, along with low sobs. Everyone's face looked solemn, and Xiao Yao could only take deep breaths to relieve the depression in her heart.
"Please sit down. There has been a sudden change in the mansion, so there are bound to be mistakes and omissions. I hope you will forgive me." Prince Yun Yiheng clasped his fists and said.
Xiao Yao kept her head down. She hoped to leave here as soon as possible, and at the same time, she prayed to God in her heart that everyone in the royal family would live a long life! She never wanted to experience such a scene again. This kind of depressing atmosphere made people feel suffocated.
Everyone lowered their heads in silence, waiting for the next wave of kneeling and weeping spirits. Yun Yifan glanced in the direction of the Xiao family seemingly inadvertently, and only saw Xiao Yao's black bun. The poor little sister must have been dragged here by the old lady and her mother.
After a short break, the women began to weep. Xiao Yao had no tears! She pulled two handkerchiefs stained with pepper powder from her sleeves, kept one for herself, and gave one to her sister. It was too embarrassing not to shed a tear in this situation, so she had to use props.
What she didn't expect was that the power of pepper was so great that she couldn't stop crying. When Yun Yichen and Kong Xuzhe arrived, the two little girls' eyes were red from crying, and they looked like a pair of little rabbits.
"Silly girl, you are talking about these two!" You just shed a few tears to show your affection, and that's it. You cried so sincerely that you might have thought the Crown Princess was their biological sister! Kong Xuzhe couldn't help but complain in his heart.
Perhaps she felt someone was watching her, Xiao Yuan shrugged her nose and didn't dare to use the handkerchief anymore. She simply rubbed her eyes with her hands. She wanted to see who was staring at her.
"Where is your own handkerchief! Don't rub your eyes with your hands." Xiao Yao had already changed into a clean handkerchief. She didn't expect Xiao Yuan was still using props. No wonder his eyes were almost turning into peaches.
"You...why didn't you tell me if you changed it?" Xiao Yuan stuffed the "evidence" stained with pepper powder back into his sleeve, pulled out his handkerchief that smelled of plum blossoms, sniffed it deeply, wiped the corners of his eyes, and looked for the source of his uneasiness.
Xiao Yuan's eyes widened, and he pouted as he glared at Kong Xuzhe. "Is this guy mentally ill? Why is he running to the Prince's Mansion for no reason? He thought he was getting married! And he even wanted to watch the fun!"
Kong Xuzhe scratched his face subtly with his fingers. It was so embarrassing that the pretty girl turned into a little rabbit.
Being able to swallow one's anger was not Xiao Yuan's style at all. She showed her white teeth, trying to scare off her opponent. Oh! And she even had canine teeth! No wonder he couldn't stop thinking about her. This little girl's advantages were really increasing.
The two of them interacted so frequently that they couldn't hide it from those around them. Xiao Yao looked up and met Yun Yichen's dark eyes. In the past, everyone had only seen Xiao Yao's cheerful and lively side, but no one had ever witnessed her pitiful and delicate appearance, tears streaming down her face. Even a heartless person would feel distressed when seeing her like this, let alone a young man full of vigor and vitality.
"I can't stand it. My heart will break if I look at it for two more times." Kong Xuzhe shook his head. Who is so cruel to make my beautiful sister kneel down? A man should know how to be gentle and considerate to women. Let my beautiful sister and the little cutie go quickly.
This was Yun Yiheng's second time seeing Xiao Yao today. He had certainly heard of this famous beauty in Kyoto. However, the Emperor's words, "A daughter of the Xiao family must marry as a principal wife," held him back, preventing him from harboring any illusions. He couldn't disobey the Emperor's orders, and he didn't want to be an enemy of the Loyal and Brave Marquisate.
The situation was very different now. The Crown Prince's Mansion was without a mistress, and while the new Crown Princess couldn't rival Zheng's in status, she was no less capable in other respects. Yun Yiheng also set his sights on Xiao Yao. The title of Kyoto's most beautiful woman was fitting for her. It wouldn't be easy to find a more beautiful and spiritual lady in Tianyu!
Xiao Yao hadn't expected these people to show up at the Prince's Mansion at the same time. Now, all they needed was Mu Fengwu to be together. Xiao Yao used her eyes to stop Xiao Yuan from messing around. They weren't holding a banquet. Were these guys sure they didn't go to the wrong place?
After all the ceremonies were completed, the women rested in a side hall and ate before gradually leaving. Yuan Yutong supported her mother-in-law, while Xiao Yuan supported Xiao Yao. Looking at the mother and daughter, and then at her own legs, which were struggling to walk, Xiao Yao felt that she was too weak.
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has ordered me to escort the female members of the Xiao family back to the palace." The captain of the guards in the Crown Prince's palace bowed to the Xiao family members very politely and kindly. Behind him were two rows of guards, which attracted the families of other officials to stop and watch. Some of them even started pointing fingers at the Xiao family members and whispering to each other.
Do they have the right to refuse? Tong Mingyu thought to herself that what she feared would come true. She had never expected that the prince would actually set his sights on her daughter. What should she do now?
"Go back and tell the prince that your cousin and Prince Kong will escort the Xiao family back. There are so many things to do in the prince's mansion, so he doesn't need to worry about such a small matter as sending people." Prince Qi gave Yun Yichen and Kong Xuzhe a look, what are you waiting for!
Everyone understood the prince's intention, except the Xiao sisters, who still considered themselves outsiders. They looked at Prince Qi and the chief guard of the prince's mansion with confused and puzzled eyes, not knowing what had happened.
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