Chapter 276: Worrying Over the Parents

Chapter 276: Worrying Over the Parents

Thousands of acres of land and a nearly incalculable amount of gold, silver, and jewels overwhelmed Xiao Yiyuan and Xiao Chengming, making them hesitant to accept such wealth.

Tang Shuyi gestured for Xiao Yiyuan to sit and added, "This is a gesture from the Duke and me. From now on, we are all one family; please do not refuse. I've heard you haven't divided the family assets yet. How you manage these resources is up to you; the Duke and I will not intervene."

"But this..."

"This..."

At a loss for words, Xiao Yiyuan and Xiao Chengming were unsure how to proceed until Xiao Huai spoke up, "Accept it."

With his word, Xiao Yiyuan and Xiao Chengming ceased their objections.

The conversation shifted to mundane family matters. Xiao Chengming didn't bring up the status of the old Marquis's two wives, and naturally, Tang Shuyi remained silent as well. After all, everything that needed to be said had been addressed previously.

During their visit, Xiao Huai took Xiao Yiyuan aside for a private discussion in the study. In his view, Xiao Yiyuan was the linchpin of the family. Whether they would bring trouble to the Duke's household hinged largely on Xiao Yiyuan's character.

After their talk, Xiao Huai understood why Tang Shuyi had decided to allocate such a substantial portion of the wealth to Xiao Yiyuan and his family. Simply put, Xiao Yiyuan was worth it.

Although not profoundly learned, his knowledge was solid. Most importantly, his character and wisdom were strong; he knew what he wanted and what he could achieve, and he understood how to obtain it. Such a person, given additional resources, would likely achieve great things. If used wisely, he could become a valuable ally.

Xiao Huai didn't see anything wrong with the idea of utilizing Xiao Yiyuan in the future. Though they were technically family, they were essentially strangers with no emotional bond. Besides, he intended to use Xiao Yiyuan in the future, while Xiao Yiyuan was already seeking to benefit from the Duke's household.

To put it plainly, they were mutually using each other.

Despite these calculations, it was important to maintain a facade of kinship. Xiao Yiyuan was a clever man, well aware of when to advance or retreat, making their conversation quite pleasant.

The extended family dined together at noon, and after the meal, Xiao Yiyuan and his family departed. Xiao Yuzhen and her siblings swiftly excused themselves, leaving only Tang Shuyi and Xiao Huai in the hall. Tang Shuyi found the situation amusing yet endearing, understanding the good intentions behind her children's actions, leaving her with nothing to criticize.

"I assume the Duke had a pleasant conversation with General Xiang yesterday," Tang Shuyi inquired.

Xiao Huai nodded, "Li Chengyi is currently bent on dealing with me. Should I be disposed of, he would likely be next. Xiang Tianhe must also be taking precautions."

"Isn't the Emperor afraid that, should there be another war, he will have no one to rely on?" Tang Shuyi asked after hearing this.

Xiao Huai sneered, "The Rouli Kingdom has been subdued; there won't be any warfare in the northwest for at least a decade. The southern borders, previously under the vigilance of Xiang Tianhe, have also been pacified, ensuring peace for at least another decade or so. Li Chengyi probably believes he can cultivate new talent within this period."

Tang Shuyi was speechless. Did it mean that once these newcomers gained achievements and power, they would continue to be eliminated? The current Emperor only seemed to engage in underhanded tactics.

"The late Emperor's judgment was truly questionable. Our current Emperor always resorts to petty schemes behind the scenes, which is utterly despicable," she said.

Xiao Huai laughed, "He's always been like this, and quite adept at disguising it. Before he was Emperor, he was even better at pretending. He would never do anything the late Emperor disliked. For instance, since the late Emperor disfavored meat, he followed suit and ate vegetarian. However, he himself enjoyed meat, the fattier the better.

Once, the late Emperor tested him by having him accompany him in reviewing petitions in the Imperial Study for half a month, requiring him to eat and live there. Desiring to impress, he persisted in abstaining from meat, but after seven days, he couldn't bear it any longer and sneaked off to the kitchen for meat.

As it happened, the late Emperor took a casual stroll to the kitchen and caught him indulging in a hearty meat feast. He was so frightened at the sight of the late Emperor that he nearly choked on the meat stuck in his throat."

Envisioning the Emperor nearly choking to death on meat, Tang Shuyi burst into laughter, asking, "Then what happened?"

Seeing her bright laughter, Xiao Huai's face also lit up with a smile, "The late Emperor was magnanimous and didn't hold it against him."

"How does the Duke know these details so thoroughly?" Tang Shuyi continued to probe.

Xiao Huai smiled without responding. Seeing his expression, Tang Shuyi guessed the truth, "The late Emperor wasn't led there by you, was he?"

Xiao Huai turned to look at her, "My lady is astute."

Tang Shuyi laughed again, "You really are wicked, my lord."

Xiao Huai, still smiling, picked up his cup of tea to drink. He had been irked by Li Chengyi's pretense at the time.

After a couple of sips, he said, "The late Emperor wasn't satisfied with Li Chengyi back then. He thought Li was capable of defending the city, but doubted his ability to bring the great Qian Dynasty further. Yet during the fierce struggle for the crown prince position, Li Chengyi was adept at maneuvering behind the scenes, and he had always been good at pretending. Many ministers in the court were his followers, so in the end, the late Emperor had no choice but to select him."

"Did the late Emperor ever consider you, my lord?" Tang Shuyi asked curiously, having heard that the late Emperor was quite fond of him.

Xiao Huai sighed deeply, "The late Emperor did ask me, but I've grown too accustomed to indolence. I couldn't bear the routine of rising early and working late, reviewing petitions. I feared I might become a negligent ruler, so I declined."

His tone was teasing, and Tang Shuyi couldn't help but laugh. She had to admit, he was a very comfortable person to be around.

After chatting for a while longer, one returned to the study while the other headed back to the Shi An Garden.

At Xiao Yuchen's residence, both Xiao Yuzhu and Xiao Yuming were present. At the moment, Changfeng was reporting: "While the Duke and the Lady were conversing, the hall was off-limits to everyone else. Cuíyún and the Duke’s personal attendants were standing guard. However, I saw both the Duke and the Lady smiling as they came out, so they must have had a pleasant talk."

Xiao Yuchen waved him off, then heard Xiao Yuming say: "I told you so, it must have been Father who angered Mother, and she was punishing him. Look, they’re almost back to normal."

Both Xiao Yuchen and Xiao Yuzhu were half skeptical about his guess, but it was the only explanation that made sense for now. Regardless, the two of them were clearly doing better than they were a couple of days ago, and that was a good thing.

Their siblings were indeed breaking their hearts over their parents.

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