Li Changle stared at her with cold eyes: “I won’t let you off.”

Li Weiyang replied leisurely: “Elder Sister, you feel unwell from just a bit of wind—being so delicate and frail, you really must take good care of yourself in the future. Don’t let Father and Mother worry about you.”

Having said this, Li Weiyang actually left with Bai Zhi in a carefree manner.

The list of imperially bestowed gifts was very, very long. The First Madam’s hand holding the list couldn’t help but clench tightly.

“Master, isn’t this a bit too much?” On the surface, the First Madam appeared extremely surprised by such a long gift list.

“This is His Majesty’s reward for Weiyang.” Li Xiaoran knew why the First Madam said this—because the gold, silver, and precious jewels here far exceeded in value what the First Madam had brought as dowry when she married into the family years ago.

“Master, this was bestowed by His Majesty to the Li family.” The First Madam looked at the list, speaking word by word. She could not watch helplessly as Li Weiyang gained such great benefits.

“Madam, this reward was clearly stated by His Majesty to be for Weiyang. If we don’t give it to her, the gossip outside will be terrible.” Li Xiaoran said slowly: “Our Li family cannot afford to lose face like that.”

The First Madam thought for a moment and replied: “Master, this year the household expenses have been quite large. The second and third households are all living off the common funds. Add to that the costs of entertaining guests and observing festivals and holidays—in order to let everyone maintain appearances, I’ve even subsidized with my own dowry. You have always been incorruptible, never willing to accept offerings from subordinates. If we had this sum of money, we would be much more comfortable financially. Moreover, Minfeng will soon be discussing marriage proposals, and Changle still has three younger sisters below her. In the future, their dowries must all be splendid—”

Li Xiaoran felt somewhat troubled. Maintaining such a large family was indeed not easy. He subconsciously chose to ignore the countless shop and estate incomes of the Li family. Like the First Madam, in his subconscious mind, he was also unwilling to hand over so much gold, silver, and precious jewels to Weiyang. Moreover, he could sense the untamed rebelliousness in this child’s bones—this touched upon his authority as the family patriarch, and he felt offended. So Weiyang should receive a bit of a lesson.

Therefore he nodded in agreement: “Very well, I’ll go speak with the Old Madam.”

Generally speaking, the Old Madam would respect Li Xiaoran’s opinion, so hearing this answer, the First Madam couldn’t help but smile with satisfaction.

Hexiang Courtyard

The sky was still clear in the afternoon, but by evening snow pellets began to fall again, pattering lightly on the glazed tiles. The snow fell densely and urgently, and in no time at all, the buildings were already covered with a thin layer of light white. Li Xiaoran glanced at the sky, frowned, and entered the house. He saw the Old Madam wearing a lotus-green embroidered hundred-sons satin robe, leaning against a large red Hunan-embroidered fortune-character pillow, sitting on the couch chanting sutras.

“You say you want to add the imperially bestowed gifts to the common household funds?” The Old Madam, having heard what he said, fingered her prayer beads and said with a cold laugh: “The imperial decree states clearly that these things are all bestowed upon Weiyang. They are now enshrined in the ancestral hall. I don’t need to have someone read it to you again, do I?”

“Of course I know this, but Madam she…” Li Xiaoran hadn’t expected the Old Madam to suddenly turn hostile. His face immediately flushed red and he couldn’t speak.

“I’m usually very confident in how you handle political affairs, but you are too indulgent toward the women in the inner quarters. Weiyang is also your daughter. Although she is a concubine-born child, in my view she is no less capable than your eldest daughter. You should let go of your bias.”

Li Xiaoran unconsciously frowned: “How can Weiyang compare to Changle—”

“How can they compare? The one who gave His Majesty advice and relieved your worries was not Changle. You need to think this through clearly!” the Old Madam reminded him.

Li Xiaoran’s expression turned rather unpleasant, clearly unable to listen.

The Old Madam snorted coldly and said: “I know that Changle is your first daughter, beautiful and lovely, and you and Jiang Shi have placed great hopes in her. But I have never agreed with this. First, our Li family already holds the highest position among officials—there is no need to focus all our energy on clinging to imperial descendants. Second, Changle is too arrogant and may bring disaster. If the Crown Prince’s position were secure, these two points wouldn’t matter. But looking at the current situation, every imperial prince is formidable—getting involved may not bring good results. Moreover, after this incident, Changle’s reputation in the capital is in complete ruins. If you still think that with just a pretty face she can climb to the position of Empress, then you are preparing to roast our Li family over a fire.”

The Old Madam had said these things before. This was also why she had never been very fond of Li Changle—excessive beauty combined with arrogance was not necessarily a blessing for the Li family.

“What is your position now? Every move you make is like walking on thin ice…” The Old Madam seemed to be murmuring to herself, yet also seemed to be reminding him. “You’re picking and choosing among the Emperor’s sons—His Majesty may not be unaware.”

Li Xiaoran was startled and became somewhat alarmed.

Were his own thoughts perhaps too hasty?

He couldn’t help but nod: “This matter can naturally be set aside, but regarding Weiyang—”

The Old Madam sighed: “Everything she said and did in the great hall today will be recorded in history. Even if you don’t appreciate the honor she sought for you, you must consider the historian’s writing brush. Does our Li family lack that bit of silver? Why do such petty things?”

The First Madam would certainly refuse. Li Xiaoran felt his temples throbbing with pain again. But not daring to defy the Old Madam’s wishes, he nodded and said: “Then we’ll follow the Old Madam’s wishes.”

In less than half an hour, all the precious treasures stored in the warehouse were delivered into Li Weiyang’s hands.

The Old Madam pulled her to her side and instructed: “This was bestowed upon you by His Majesty. You must guard it well. Don’t let others trick you out of it. Although you handled this matter well, it was ultimately too conspicuous. If handled poorly, it could bring fatal disaster. Don’t seek merit but seek to avoid fault—you must be more cautious in your actions from now on. Do you understand?”

These were heartfelt admonitions. Li Weiyang, rarely receiving such care from her grandmother, felt her eyes redden.

The Old Madam smiled and patted her hand, saying: “Silly child, those in high positions can flip between heaven and hell in an instant. Today you truly frightened this old bag of bones of mine. You had such audacity, daring to play clever tricks even before His Majesty. However, filial piety is always right. With the third-rank Virtuous Lady mandate, your mother’s days will be much better.”

“Thank you, Old Madam, for not blaming me.” Li Weiyang reached out both hands to tightly embrace the Old Madam’s arm. Tears fell drop by drop to the ground, spreading into strings of water marks.

Nanny Luo beside them quickly handed over a handkerchief, smiling as she said: “Third Young Miss, please stop crying. You are now the wealthiest young lady in the capital!”

Li Weiyang was startled, then laughed.

Indeed—among the things the Emperor bestowed, aside from those imperially granted items that couldn’t be moved and could only serve as decorations, half were gold. This would be more useful to her in the future than anything else!

The First Madam soon received word from Li Xiaoran. Beyond her fury, she turned and went to Li Changle’s Yanyu Pavilion. Upon reaching the courtyard, Tanxiang hurriedly came out to meet her, stammering: “First Madam, Miss… Miss is feeling unwell—”

Li Xiaoran was holding a celebration banquet for Li Weiyang tonight, and all the high-ranking officials and nobles were coming. At this time Li Changle was ill?! The First Madam’s expression instantly became extremely cold. That useless thing!