SFS Chapter 161 The Princess Consort of Zhenbei
Chapter 161 The Princess Consort of Zhenbei
After the people of Guanzhou were settled, the onlookers dispersed, intending to recount what they had seen and heard at the Duke's mansion to their relatives and friends who had not heard the news.
Eunuch Cao also returned to the palace with his men and told Emperor Jing'an about this grand occasion.
In an instant, the area in front of the Duke's mansion was completely empty, leaving only the people inside.
A brief silence fell over the scene.
The second branch of the family was shocked by the people of Guanzhou and had no choice but to believe that Shen Qingtan had gone to Guanzhou during her disappearance.
Looking back on this period of time, they gloated, waiting for Shen Qingtan to suffer a miserable end.
But what awaited them was Shen Qingtan's triumphant return to the capital, which slapped them hard in the face.
The Duke looked at Shen Qingtan with a complicated expression. The rumors outside had been spreading more and more fiercely, and he was very worried that they would make things worse and really ruin Shen Qingtan's reputation.
I never expected them to pull such a stunt, going directly to Guanzhou to make a name for themselves.
The Emperor Jing'an's decree, along with the praise of their deeds from Guanzhou, dispelled the rumors.
Even if some petty people criticize behind their backs, there will be righteous people who will condemn them.
I will never again slander her in such a one-sided way as before.
"It's good that you're back." The Duke smiled with relief. "You can go back to your courtyard and rest for now. Come to my study again tomorrow."
Zhao Yi respectfully said, "Grandfather, your grandson is unfilial and has troubled you."
"You know that much." The Duke snorted lightly, "Go away, go away, just seeing you makes me angry."
Zhao Yi bowed and looked at Shen Qingtan, who was talking with the old lady.
"You've lost weight, child. You must have suffered a lot outside, right?" The old lady held her hand and said with heartache, "I'll have the kitchen cook a black-boned chicken to nourish you."
Shen Qingtan noticed that the old lady's hair at her temples seemed to have turned completely white, with not a trace of gray hair left. It was clear that she had been worried about them these past few days.
She said with a guilty conscience, "Grandmother, I've made you worry about your granddaughter-in-law."
"Which elder doesn't worry about their children and grandchildren their whole life?" the old lady said with a kind smile. "Your safe return is my greatest comfort. In the future, whatever you do, remember your family who care about you, and don't put yourselves in dangerous situations."
Shen Qingtan nodded gently: "Grandmother, your granddaughter-in-law has remembered."
The old lady sighed, "You have us, your elders, supporting you. You can discuss anything with us. The efforts of four people are more effective than the efforts of just the two of you."
Shen Qingtan felt a lump in her throat. In ordinary families, even if a wife calmed down after such an incident, she would still be blamed.
The old lady showed no sign of blame; she was only worried that they might encounter danger and offered them comforting words of comfort.
“You’re too soft-hearted, child. You can’t stand soft words. That’s not good. You’ll be easily deceived.” The old lady saw that her eyes were slowly reddening and took out a handkerchief to wipe them for her. “You and Yi’er go back to your room and rest. We can talk about it tomorrow.”
Shen Qingtan blushed, covered her face with a handkerchief, and returned to Lanxue Garden with Zhao Yi.
The master and his wife bid farewell to the Duke and the old lady, and then went to Lanxue Garden.
The Duke and the old lady walked towards Shian Hall.
The second master hurriedly chased after him: "Father, my nephew's wife went to Guanzhou, so why are you forcing my nephew to divorce her?"
The Duke said coldly, "When did I ever force Yi'er to divorce his wife?"
The second master was speechless. At that time, the old man had asked Zhao Yi to deal with the rumors outside, but did not explicitly ask Zhao Yi to divorce Shen Qingtan.
Then he asked, "Are you aware of your nephew and nephew's affair? Are you deliberately cooperating with them by taking leave to recuperate at home these past few days?"
"What, you want to be in charge of my household?" The Duke's face darkened. "If you want to be in charge, I will separate your branch of the family tomorrow."
The second master shut his mouth, not daring to utter another word.
The Duke snorted coldly and turned to leave.
The second master's face was grim. The old man was clearly biased towards Zhao Yi and Shen Qingtan, and the grandfather and grandson had completely fooled him with their act.
He was unwilling, but there was nothing he could do.
The second wife rushed over and saw the second master standing alone under the tree: "Master, what did Father say?"
"Alas, we are not as skilled as them." The second master sighed heavily and reflected, "From now on, we should eat more lotus root and be more careful, otherwise we may not be able to compete with the eldest son's family."
The second wife rolled her eyes: "Why don't you go and stir up a hornet's nest and sting yourself more?"
-
Shen Qingtan and Zhao Yi placed the imperial edict on the incense table and then returned to Lanxue Garden.
The master and his wife followed closely behind.
"Yi'er, Tan'er, what exactly happened?" The First Madam looked haggard. "I haven't had a good night's sleep these past few days, fearing that something might have happened to you."
Zhao Yi left a message for the master and his wife, but did not go into details.
"Tan'er and Boss Qin set aside a portion of the money they earned from selling grain to help the disaster victims in Guanzhou. I also arranged for people from Yongkang Trading Company to help the disaster victims in Guanzhou."
Zhao Yi made no attempt to conceal anything: "After we were assassinated in Xishan, we learned that the murderers were Prince Yu and Marquis Chengen. So I arranged for Tan'er to disappear and go to Guanzhou for disaster relief. I let the matter escalate and took the opportunity to leave the Marquis's mansion. With the methods of Marquis Chengen and Prince Yu, they would definitely use her reputation against us. Only by going to Guanzhou for disaster relief can we clear her name no matter how Marquis Chengen and Prince Yu slander her."
The reason for having Shen Qingtan go to Guanzhou under the name of Yongkang Trading Company was to protect her reputation.
She was the granddaughter of the Duke's family, and it would inevitably damage her reputation if she went into business with merchants.
Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't be a problem.
However, if Shen Qingtan's reputation is already highly controversial, revealing her merchant identity at this time might give Marquis Chengen a handle to use against her, causing even greater controversy.
The master and his wife were shocked: "The Marquis of Chengen wants to kill you?"
They even suspected they were hallucinating.
Shen Qingtan frankly stated, "Father-in-law and mother-in-law, I am not the biological daughter of Marquis Chengen."
Having found her family, Shen Qingtan no longer hid anything and told them the whole story of her grievances with the Marquis of Chengen's family.
The master and his wife were once again deeply shaken, never imagining that their daughter-in-law's background was so complicated.
The old man's eyes widened. His son was incredibly lucky; he had gotten a wife for free—it turned out to be the daughter of a prince.
If Zhao Jue found out, wouldn't he be filled with remorse?
The First Madam's eyes were red, and she felt particularly sorry for Shen Qingtan, who had to endure so much suffering at such a young age.
Madam Shen was too wicked, causing Shen Qingtan to be separated from her biological parents. I don't know how her parents could bear the pain of losing their child.
If it were her, she would definitely tear Madam Shen to pieces.
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Zhenbei Palace.
The gatekeeper received a letter and hurriedly delivered it to the backyard, handing it to the maid guarding the gate: "This is a letter from Master Gu to the Princess."