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"What's wrong? Am I not right?" Looking at Cheng Yuezhu's shocked expression, Xiao Yao showed a slightly puzzled look at Cheng Yuezhu.
"No... it's not..." Cheng Yuezhu quickly blushed at Xiao Yao's gaze, lowering her head to avoid Xiao Yao's eyes. However, just a moment later, when Cheng Yuezhu lifted her head again, her complexion had returned to normal.
Cheng Yuezhu looked seriously at Xiao Yao, "You are not wrong; I accept your suggestion."
Hearing this, Xiao Yao couldn't help but smile with satisfaction, and upon seeing this smile, Cheng Yuezhu felt relieved. She then walked directly in front of Xiao Yao, knelt down properly, and performed a grand gesture of respect, saying, "Today I have received great kindness from the princess; I will surely repay it doubly in the future!"
"Why say such things?" Xiao Yao stepped forward to help Cheng Yuezhu up and said softly, "Since I have agreed to let you go to Jiangnan today, you will no longer be part of the royal residence. From now on, we can call each other sisters."
"Yes." Cheng Yuezhu felt a surge of joy in her heart.
"However," Xiao Yao changed her tone and looked seriously at Cheng Yuezhu, saying, "For the sake of me and my family, since you are new to my Xiao Family, my elder brother will definitely not place you in an important position. You need to rely on your own abilities to rise step by step and earn everyone's respect. Do you understand?"
Cheng Yuezhu initially thought Xiao Yao would raise other issues, but upon hearing this matter, she felt relieved and solemnly promised Xiao Yao, "I naturally understand this. In business, it is only right that the capable take charge. I believe I will prove myself through my abilities."
Looking at Cheng Yuezhu's confident face, Xiao Yao suddenly felt a bit envious of her.
Daring to break free from this luxurious cage. In a society where women are merely accessories to men, pursuing one's own path—no matter how difficult—was commendable. As long as one thinks of their future, they would be filled with courage and determination to move forward.
Thinking of this, Xiao Yao reached out to hug Cheng Yuezhu and said, "Now all I can do is wish you well. I hope you can achieve the life you desire."
"I will," Cheng Yuezhu's smile was confident and beautiful.
About ten days later, the lady of Xuanping Prince's Mansion from the Cheng Family fell ill with a serious disease and showed no signs of improvement. Xuanping Wang decided to have the Cheng Family move to a manor in the Beijing suburbs for recuperation to prevent the illness from spreading to others in the residence.
Once the news spread, everyone knew that the Cheng Family had been abandoned by Xuanping Wang. She was left to fend for herself in some corner of the Beijing Suburbs.
As a result, the capital, which had been calm for a long time, suddenly found this news to be just the right topic for people to discuss and alleviate their boredom during meals.
"Hey, did you hear that the lady from Xuanping Prince's Mansion is going to be sent to the countryside soon?"
"Of course! How could I not know? At this rate, it seems like only the princess will be left in the entire backyard of Xuanping Prince's Mansion."
"Isn't that the truth! I wonder if Xuanping Wang will take a concubine..."
"Probably not. Xuanping Wang hasn't taken a concubine in years. Besides, when Cheng Family was in the residence, I heard that she was never favored by the prince!"
"What? Really? So Consort Xuanping is that impressive? A Primary Wife can actually receive the prince's exclusive favor?"
"Yes, it shows that Consort Xuanping's methods are extraordinary. Moreover, think about it: Xuanping Wang publicly stated that Cheng Family was ill and going to the countryside for recuperation. Who knows if she was really sick or not?"
"What do you mean..." The voices lowered, and several people's expressions turned sneaky.
"It could be that the princess didn't like her, so..." The sentence trailed off, but their eyes revealed everything; everyone wore an expression of "I understand, I get it."
However, some sighed, "But it still requires the prince's approval. In the end, she still won't be favored."
"That's true. If you were to replace her with someone who is favored, they probably wouldn't dare to be so arrogant."
"That's for sure."
Outside, the comments were buzzing, but they were nothing more than trivial gossip. Xiao Yao listened to Yun Yue twice and lost interest; after all, listening was pointless, and it was better to use that time for something else.
Cheng Yuezhu had already boarded the car arranged by He Yu last night, heading straight for Jiangnan.
The elder brother had also made arrangements; once she arrived there, he would naturally ensure that everything for Cheng Yuezhu was taken care of.
At this point, there was nothing more she could do. As for her future path, it would depend on her own efforts.
Cheng Yuezhu's matters were ultimately someone else's backyard affair.
Such gossip rarely lasted long and would soon be forgotten. What truly stirred up a storm in the capital was the rewards from the recent campaign in the northwest. Almost all the generals who participated in the battle received promotions, except for Xuanping Wang.
The title of General of Xuanping Town, which had been promised before the war, was no longer mentioned by Qidi. Instead, some symbolic rewards were given lightly, and that was that.
Everyone who heard about this was greatly surprised, exclaiming in disbelief, "It must be tough for the prince; this news took so long to come out, yet he can still endure it."
Indeed, Qidi's actions essentially meant attributing He Yu's achievements to other generals. As for He Yu, he merely did some hard work for the emperor.
Just when everyone thought that Xuanping Wang would rebel due to his temperament, a month passed without any sign of action from him. The only change was that the Xuanping Prince's Mansion had one less consort. Thus, people began to speculate that Xuanping Wang truly had remarkable patience.
Of course, some suspected that Xuanping Wang might be biding his time. After all, Qidi took great precautions to pamper this ancestor with riches and luxury, aiming to turn him into a playboy. Moreover, marrying a merchant's daughter at that time was likely intended to secure military power for the He Family.
However, now that Xuanping Wang had returned victorious, the military power that had been guarded for so many years had returned to the He Family's hands. Even if the emperor held the tiger talisman now, it meant little. It might not be as effective as simply invoking Xuanping Wang's name. Many of those troops were former subordinates of General Xuanping; if rebellion were to occur, it would ultimately depend on Xuanping Wang's will. Therefore, whether rewards were given or not made no difference.
When He Yu heard this rumor while sitting in the prince's peach blossom grove, he shook his head and smiled bitterly. "I really have no such intention."
"Is that so?" The Crown Prince listened to He Yu, teasing as he sipped his tea, "If you really were in that position, your woman would be the most esteemed woman in the realm. Don't you want that?"
"Forget it," He Yu scoffed, interrupting the Crown Prince's question. "Don't use my woman to tempt me. Besides, my woman doesn't care about being the most esteemed woman in the realm. As long as I cherish and love her, that's enough."
The Crown Prince raised an eyebrow, noncommittal. "You are quite frank."
"The saying 'high places are lonely' is definitely not just an empty phrase," He Yu said casually. "When you reach that level, it's truly about being constrained and balancing the court. Every day is filled with endless worries. I'm not someone who is concerned about the country; I’d rather spend time with my daughter-in-law, enjoying the beauty of life together. That is the highest enjoyment in life."
Hearing He Yu's words, the Crown Prince shook his head with a wry smile and sighed, "You really know how to enjoy life."
"Of course! That person is trying every possible way to turn me into a young master who only knows about romance and pleasures, right? Then I'll just do as he wishes," He Yu replied indifferently.
So, no one is a fool; who can't see what that person's intentions are? It’s just that this alchemist seems to have closed his mind, thinking that he can act unilaterally.
Seeing the Crown Prince's pained expression, He Yu naturally understood what he was thinking. He smiled, tossed away the sunflower seeds in his hand, and clapped his hands. "Don't worry too much; at least that person was someone when he was young. By then, your situation won't be too chaotic; there's nothing to fret over—just do what you need to do."
Truly carefree, the Crown Prince shook his head. "You really don't understand how difficult it is until you're in charge; if only it were that simple."
Hearing this, He Yu didn't even raise an eyebrow and said expressionlessly, "At least now your succession to the throne is not a problem. Use the remaining time to think carefully about various solutions." As he spoke, he stood up with a cheerful demeanor. "My daughter-in-law is still waiting for me to have dinner, so I won't stay here worrying with you."
After saying this, He Yu didn't even bow and walked away leisurely.
Left behind, the Crown Prince fell into deep thought over his words, completely ignoring He Yu's impolite behavior.
In fact, He Yu was not wrong. After being severely injured, although the Eldest Prince had awakened, he was basically in a state where he relied on medicine and spent his days in a daze, completely lacking the vigor and majesty he had when leading troops into battle. The collapse of the Sun Family combined with Fourth Prince's cowardly behavior had already ruined all his prospects. Now that all threats had vanished, what he needed to consider was how to gradually clean up the mess left by the current Sovereign after he ascended to the throne.
Thinking of this, the Crown Prince got up and entered the study, with Su Hong following him in and placing tea on the Crown Prince's desk.
The Crown Prince smiled and then said, "Don't leave yet, help me grind the ink."
Su Hong was slightly taken aback but soon smiled and stepped forward, saying, "Alright." As she spoke, she began to grind the ink.
Red Sleeves Adding Fragrance stood to the side, while Yang Yunqing found his thoughts unusually clear. He picked up a brush and started writing on the paper. The two of them worked together—one grinding ink and the other writing—taking occasional breaks, and before they knew it, it was already evening.
Su Hong glanced outside and said to the Crown Prince, "Your Highness, let's head back. It will be too late for the palace gates to close."
"Mm, let's go." The Crown Prince set down his brush, collected the papers, folded them neatly, and placed them in a hidden compartment of the antique shelf behind him. Only then did he take Su Hong's hand as they exited the peach blossom grove, with a group of servants quickly following behind.
Meanwhile, He Yu returned to the Wang residence and had lunch with Xiao Yao and their daughter.
The children had grown up now, and since they had physical education classes like horseback riding and martial arts in the afternoon, they were all hoping to rest a bit more after lunch. If they had to walk back and forth between the Central Courtyard and the backyard, it would take at least two quarters of an hour. Xiao Yao noticed this and felt sorry for them, so she decided to set up a kitchen in the backyard and found two capable apprentices from Li Pei's students to help out.
Over the past few years, Li Pei had taken on several apprentices. Those like Li Da who started learning from Li Pei early on had become quite skilled at cooking and could manage looking after a few children.
As a result, those eating in the Central Courtyard became He Yu, Xiao Yao, and Yuhui.
During lunch, He Yu suggested, "Now that there are only a few children left in the backyard, why not open up the entire backyard for them? It would be much more spacious."
"Sure, as long as you don't take another concubine, I have no objections," Xiao Yao replied with a sly smile.
He Yu raised one hand and gently flicked Xiao Yao's forehead. "You know I won't take another concubine; yet you still tease your husband. You really are fearless, aren't you?"
"You're only this fearless because I've spoiled you," Xiao Yao retorted.
"..." This statement was so powerful that He Yu was momentarily at a loss for words. With no other option, he could only nod and say, "Yes, yes, I spoiled you, but I'm happy to do it. I'm happy to spoil you."
The corners of Xiao Yao's mouth curved up more and more, and He Yu couldn't help but laugh as well. Only Yuhui looked curiously at this inexplicable pair of parents, not understanding what they were doing.
After laughing enough, He Yu continued, "I'm serious. If you think it's feasible, we can start tomorrow."
"Of course it's feasible," Xiao Yao said earnestly. "Once the kids grow up, they'll each need their own independent space. It's a good time to plan this out properly now to avoid chaos later."
"Exactly, that's what I was thinking," He Yu agreed with Xiao Yao's idea. Then he added, "However, I won't be leaving a room for our daughter. We'll build a loft right next to our house for her to live with us."
He thought to himself that he didn't want her mixing with a bunch of kids in the backyard; who knows what kind of trouble that could lead to? As a father, he believed that daughters should be raised close by, pampered and cared for right in front of him.
Xiao Yao completely agreed with He Yu on this point. Moreover, she had always thought that having their daughter live in a loft was quite a good idea. (To be continued)
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