Chapter 724

Chapter 731 Distant News (Part 2)

Xiang Shi still felt somewhat uneasy.

Others might not know, but she was well aware that her mother had been privately complaining about her aunt for years over this matter!

She discussed it with Xu Siyu.

Xu Siyu also found the matter quite troublesome. After some thought, he said, "Since Mother said to accept it, let's just keep it for now." He added, "We'll be departing in a couple of days. We should also inform Aunt. When you see her, bring it up and see what she says. We can decide what to do then—it won’t be too late!"

Xiang Roujin had helped Lady Xiang manage household affairs since her days in her parental home and was the most knowledgeable about the Xiang family matters among the siblings. Later, she married the eldest son of Lord Xiang’s fellow candidate from the imperial examinations, the Zhou family, where the father served as Vice Minister of Works. It was a highly satisfactory match. Lord Zhou now also held the position of Censor in the Censorate, overseeing river works in the two Huai regions. Their son, Young Master Zhou, was promising—he passed the imperial examination in the tenth year of the Yonghe era and, within just five years, had risen to the position of Secretary in the Shandong Bureau of Revenue. His future was bright. Xiang Roujin, a woman of both virtue and talent, was highly respected by both the Zhou family and her husband. Lady Xiang increasingly relied on her eldest daughter, often seeking her opinion on family matters.

Xiang Shi smiled and nodded. "I understand. I’ll go see eldest sister first thing tomorrow."

When Xiang Roujin learned of her younger sister’s purpose for visiting, she smiled somewhat helplessly. "This matter—I only heard about it once from my aunt when I was young. It seems that when Aunt was getting married, she wanted to take all the books from her study with her. Grandmother agreed immediately. Mother felt that books, unlike gold or silver, were heirlooms to be passed down in the family, so she quietly muttered behind Grandmother’s back, 'Although they’re meant as a dowry, they’ll ultimately go to another family and become someone else’s property.' Somehow, this reached Grandmother’s ears. Grandmother was furious, seized upon those words, and complained to Grandfather about Mother’s faults. In the end, she even gave the Xiang family’s book collection to Aunt as part of her dowry. The way Aunt is acting now—I suspect, eight or nine times out of ten, she still remembers Mother’s comment."

*Weren’t you looking down on my mother for giving birth to a daughter? Well, I’ll give the very thing you cared about most back then to your daughter—let’s see what you have to say now...* After all these years, it was still a stinging slap in the face to Lady Xiang!

"What should I do? What should I do?" Xiang Shi was so anxious she was pacing in circles. "My mother-in-law has already spoken and told me to accept the books—I cannot refuse to accept them. But if Mother finds out..." She grabbed her sister’s hand. "Sister, you have to give me some advice!"

Seeing her younger sister caught between their mother and their aunt, Xiang Roujin also felt troubled. After pondering for a while, she said, "Keep the books safe and well-preserved. I’ll talk to Mother about it."

"How will you explain it?" Xiang Shi asked worriedly.

She was afraid their mother might end up blaming her sister as well.

"Just tell her the truth!" Xiang Roujin said. "The rift between Mother and Aunt has been deepening for years—it’s no overnight matter. Even if we try to cover for Aunt, Mother will likely still blame her. If we’re not careful, she might even blame your mother-in-law..."

Xiang Shi’s heart skipped a beat. Before her sister could finish, she urgently interrupted, "We absolutely must not drag my mother-in-law into this!" She frowned. "I’m already overwhelmed... We can’t afford any more trouble!"

"Don’t worry!" Xiang Roujin couldn’t help but sigh. "I know what to do!" Then, cheering up, she smiled and asked about their upcoming move to Jiaqing Prefecture. "You’ll probably be staying in the government offices, right? Given that your husband holds a low-ranking position, the compound there is likely quite small. If you bring too many daily furnishings, maids, and older women, you probably won’t have enough space..."

This struck a chord with Xiang Shi, and she immediately shifted the topic. "Exactly! I’ve been worried about that too. Just the everyday essentials already fill over twenty trunks. If we take everything, plus the maids and older women, we’d need at least two official boats. My husband is only an assistant magistrate of the seventh rank—if we set off from the capital in such a grand procession, who knows how others might criticize him? It might even attract the attention of the censors. Once we reach Jiaqing, if his superiors and colleagues see us making such a display, and given that he comes from the Yongping Marquis household, they might think he has an arrogant and unruly personality. That would only harm his relationships with superiors and colleagues—it wouldn’t do any good! But my husband insists on taking everything. I can’t really argue, so for now, I’m just packing everything up. We’ll see what happens on the day of departure."

Xiang Roujin’s interest was piqued. "Your husband told you to pack everything? Then won’t the courtyard you’re living in be left empty?"

"Yes!" Xiang Shi said. "I suggested leaving a couple of maids to look after the courtyard, but my husband didn’t agree..." She hesitated. "Eldest sister, do you think... my husband is planning to take this opportunity to..." She picked up a tangerine from the kang table and split it in two.

Xiang Roujin nodded slightly. "It sounds that way to me too!"

Xiang Shi murmured thoughtfully, "But since my husband hasn’t mentioned it to me directly, it’s even harder for me to bring it up."

Although they were the eldest son by a concubine, and it would be appropriate for them to move out early to make way for the legitimate second son, they couldn’t bring it up themselves unless their parents mentioned it first.

Xiang Roujin offered a suggestion: "Why don’t you store some of the things you don’t usually need at the estate that was given to your husband when you got married? Assign trusted stewards and older women to keep watch, and see how your husband reacts."

Xiang Shi understood and shot her elder sister a grateful glance. Upon returning home, she immediately instructed her maids to repack the trunks, separating everyday items from those seldom used, and setting aside those already in storage. She had the maids and older women create an inventory accordingly. Then she went to discuss it with Xu Siyu: "There’s too much to bring. I plan to leave some of it at the estate."

Xu Siyu secretly breathed a sigh of relief but maintained a calm expression as he nodded to Xiang Shi.

Xiang Shi also secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

At last, she had figured out her husband’s intentions.

It seemed that once they left this time, they would not be returning!

She couldn’t help but take a look around the courtyard where she had lived for seven or eight years.

The banana trees that once reached shoulder height were now taller than a person. The swing frame that fifth uncle had helped set up for Ying Ying’s first birthday stood empty and still. A faint sense of melancholy suddenly welled up in her heart.

In the early years of her marriage, she had also thought about the prospect of moving out to establish their own household. But as the years passed, living under the same roof, she found her grandmother to be cheerful and kind, her father- and mother-in-law to be well-educated and reasonable, and her sisters-in-law always warm and considerate toward one another. Their children also played together harmoniously... As she thought about how all this liveliness would soon fade into the distance, and recalled how over the years she had never been burdened with household responsibilities—even during her pregnancies and childbirths, her mother-in-law had sent nurses to care for her with meticulous attention—she suddenly felt a twinge of fear.

From now on, everything would depend solely on herself. In the unfamiliar Jiaqing Prefecture, would she be able to shoulder this responsibility?

Lost in thought, she felt someone run over and hug her leg: "Mother, Mother!"

She looked down and saw her daughter’s beaming, sun-bright face.

"Yingying!" Xiang Shi picked up her daughter, who immediately wrapped her arms around her neck: "Mother, what are you doing in the yard?"

Her daughter’s eyes were as clear and transparent as spring water, calming her heart.

For her daughter’s sake, she had to summon her courage and not retreat.

"I was waiting for Yingying!" Xiang Shi took a deep breath, her voice carrying more resolve than usual. "I was waiting for Yingying so we could go together to pay respects to her grandmother!"

Yingying giggled, wriggling out of her mother’s arms to stand on the ground, then took Xiang Shi’s hand: "Mother, let’s hurry! If we’re late, Big Brother and Second Brother will eat all the red bean cakes in Grandmother’s room."

Xiang Shi instructed the wet nurse to carry Qing Geer and, smiling, let her daughter lead her to Eleven Lady’s quarters.

Watching the official three-masted ship gradually recede into the distance, the figures of Xu Siyu, Xiang Shi, Yingying, and Qing Geer standing at the railing became blurry. Only then did Eleven Lady lower her waving arm.

"Let’s go back," said Lord Xu, standing with his hands behind his back, glancing casually at his wife rubbing her arm.

A faint smile flickered in his eyes.

Eleven Lady gave an "oh" and, with Jiang Shi supporting her, headed toward the carriage nearby.

Yingniang saw Jiang Shi extend a hand, stepped back, and walked behind Eleven Lady.

Four or five men in military robes shouted, pushing through the bustling crowd on the pier, rushing toward the pier where they stood.

Lord Xu couldn’t help but stop and watch with a frown.

The horses galloped closer.

The Xu family guards immediately surged forward, forming a human wall.

Hearing the commotion, Eleven Lady, Jiang Shi, Yingniang, Xu Sizhun, Xu Sijie, and the others all turned to look. They saw several horses rear up on their hind legs, letting out loud neighs, and come to a halt about five steps away from the guards.

"Yongping Marquis!" The lead rider dismounted and knelt on the gravel path. "I am an imperial guard from the Qianqing Palace." He took out his identification token and handed it to the Xu family guard blocking his way. "By the emperor’s oral decree, I request the Marquis to come to the palace immediately."

Lord Xu was somewhat taken aback.

The Xu family guard had already presented the soldier’s identification token to Lord Xu.

After a brief glance, Lord Xu instructed Xu Sizhun: "You and your fifth brother escort your mother home to the residence. I will return shortly."

Xu Sizhun and Xu Sijie acknowledged with a "Yes, Father," but their eyes simultaneously turned toward the soldier.

Lord Xu, accompanied by several guards, followed the imperial guards as they rode off quickly.

Eleven Lady and the others returned slowly into the city in the carriage.

"Mother, will Father be all right?" Yingniang asked worriedly.

Jiang Shi hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping herself.

Minister Chen had recently submitted a memorial recommending the selection of capable individuals to fill the vacancy left by the retired Minister Liang. The emperor, using the previous emperor’s refusal as a pretext, had postponed the discussion. These days, the emperor frequently summoned Father-in-law for discussions. According to Oldest Uncle, Ouyang Ming was incompetent, so the emperor had to use Yongping Marquis to counter the influence of the empress’s father, Zhou Shizheng. Oldest Aunt had visited her several times, hinting that the emperor currently held Father-in-law in high favor and hoping he would put in a good word with the emperor. She even said that if Father-in-law needed to avoid suspicion, recommending Minister Du would be equally acceptable—the Jiang family would be just as grateful.

But how could she bring this up with Father-in-law?

Last time, Mother-in-law had already warned her. If she meddled in such matters again without understanding the proper boundaries, Mother-in-law would surely be angry!

Yet, if she didn’t help put in a word, the Jiang family would miss this opportunity, and their influence would only wane further. It would likely become impossible for them to join the cabinet!