This matter, speaking of it, wasn’t considered very major, nor was it very minor. It was simply that several stewards from the Wei estate had been arrested by Shuntian Prefecture. Madam Wei felt that the people from Shuntian Prefecture were truly too audacious. She was so angry her whole body trembled as she pulled her son along and nagged: “This is truly… truly too lawless. What kind of family is ours? We’re also an official’s household. On what basis do the people from Shuntian Prefecture dare to directly barge into our estate and seize people? Who gave them such audacity!” When she said this, she was truly unbearably angry. Only after having a maid pound her back for a long time did she finally recover somewhat, breathing heavily. “There’s truly no reason for this! You quickly go to the yamen and take a look. Ask them what law we violated that they dare so brazenly barge into our home to arrest people!”
In this era, unless it was the Imperial Guard conducting a house raid, otherwise for officials’ families, who would have yamen runners coming in to arrest people for no reason? But their Wei estate had precisely encountered such a matter. What was most distressing was that it happened at this juncture, at this very juncture!
Wei Yansheng submitted a calling card but didn’t even manage to see the Shuntian Prefecture Governor’s face. It was a familiar clerk inside who passed him a message, saying that the stewards from his estate had all been found to have some connection with Huangjue Temple. Recently they had been frequenting teahouses and theaters very diligently, everywhere speaking on behalf of Huangjue Temple’s monks, with suspicion of colluding with the rebels.
Wei Yansheng’s face practically lost all color. He returned home frightened and alarmed. His mother was still chattering endlessly, telling him to go bail out the people and seek justice. He couldn’t help but feel extremely vexed. Rubbing his forehead, he roared: “Enough!”
Madam Wei had never seen her son this angry. She stared wide-eyed at her son’s furious appearance, momentarily at a loss. When she came to her senses, she immediately burst into tears. The son she had raised for so many years had always been extremely filial. This was the first time in history he had yelled at her. She felt she had lost all face and dignity, and her heart felt even worse. She was so angry she nearly fainted.
Wei Yansheng smiled bitterly and looked at his foolish mother with a cold laugh. “Do you know why they were arrested?”
Madam Wei’s tears were still on her cheeks. Hearing this, she looked at her son bewilderedly. She had thought that Shuntian Prefecture had come to arrest people for no reason, which was truly too excessive. Could it be that these people had committed some offense?
Madam Wei couldn’t help feeling somewhat panicked in her heart—she had invested in a gambling house outside. In the capital, those with some connections, who didn’t engage in some untouchable business? Noble families needed money everywhere for social exchanges and arrangements. Without money, one could barely move a step. This wasn’t anything rare. Could it be that this was discovered?
Wei Yansheng’s expression still didn’t look good. He sat down heavily in a chair. His eyes hurt terribly. He drank a mouthful of tea, then turned and said: “Shuntian Prefecture says that these days they’ve been frequenting teahouses and theaters, everywhere speaking on behalf of the rebels from Huangjue Temple, with suspicion of colluding with Huangjue Temple’s rebels.” He glanced at Madam Wei whose face was ashen, and sighed. “Mother, why did you do such a foolish thing? Why did you have to get involved with Huangjue Temple’s matter?!”
Even Prince Dongping and Fan Liangdi wished they had never had any connection with Huangjue Temple, but his mother was excellent—she was foolish enough to throw herself at it. To deal with the Song family, she actually had to praise Huangjue Temple. She even said that Huangjue Temple probably only suffered misfortune because they provoked the star of calamity. Where did that place the Grand Prince? Was she saying that the Grand Prince and the Imperial Guard wronged Huangjue Temple’s monks? And where did it place His Majesty? Was she saying His Majesty had his eyes deceived, couldn’t distinguish or discern loyalty from treachery, and casually entrapped people’s lives?!
Originally, the capital was already in panic with wild speculation because all of Huangjue Temple’s monks had been wiped out at once. Yet Mother insisted on sticking her foot in at this time. The resentment in Wei Yansheng’s heart was about to burst out. His fists clenched with creaking sounds as he looked at his mother, disappointment evident in his eyes. “Do you know what it means to say such words?!”
Madam Wei shrank back, her face full of alarm. She hadn’t thought so much before. It was just that she had gone out once and saw that girl from the Song family who had been adopted from Qingzhou—that girl called Xiang Mingzi, whom she had once plotted to match with her son. Seeing her bright-eyed and beaming with joy, all her anger surged up.
The Song family’s disdain for their Wei family back then was still vivid in her mind. The proud appearance of that formidable Song girl was still imprinted in her heart. She truly couldn’t swallow this grievance—if Song Chuyi truly became the Grand Princess Consort, wouldn’t she look down on them people of Prince Dongping’s faction even more in the future? She was just unable to let go of her anger.
“I… I just thought that if the Song family and the Grand Prince formed this marriage alliance, the Song family would become a great support for the Grand Prince…” Madam Wei looked at her son and couldn’t help crying. “Who knew this would also be discovered?!”
Indeed, it was merely spreading some rumors. Everyone in the capital was saying these things. During leisure time after meals, who didn’t use Huangjue Temple’s matter as gossip now? Who exactly had such sharp eyes that they could even trace it back to the source?
Song Jue stood before Old Madam Song and glanced at Song Chuyi. He coughed once and said: “It was that clever lad Qing Zhuo. Chongyin Workshop is originally His Highness’s territory. He was staking it out every day, and seeing someone who came frequently, coming every time and being extremely good at stirring up the atmosphere, he came back and told me.”
Old Madam Song hadn’t expected that the Grand Prince would help again. But naturally it was extremely good that His Highness the Grand Prince was willing to help. She reached out to clasp Song Chuyi’s hand and looked at Song Jue. “Shuntian Prefecture arrested people?”
Song Jue nodded. “They arrested them, charging into the Wei estate to make arrests without even giving advance notice. The Wei family people are probably furious. I heard that in the afternoon, the Wei family’s eldest young master went to Shuntian Prefecture, but didn’t manage to see the Governor.”
What kind of person was the Shuntian Prefecture Governor? Facing the entire capital’s powerful and noble families, he had long since learned to be extremely shrewd and very good at reading the winds. Now it was clear that the Wei estate had offended someone above. It was perfectly normal for him not to see Wei Yansheng.
Old Madam Song laughed coldly. “Spreading such rumors behind people’s backs to ruin reputations—fortunately they were capable of doing it. Now they’ve been bitten back, instead bearing the crime of suspected collusion with rebels. This can be considered the price they’ve paid.”
It was just that this price came somewhat too heavily. The several stewards of the Wei estate were without exception all sentenced to exile. The Empress’s edict of reprimand to Madam Wei arrived at the Wei estate that very day. Under such layers of pressure, Madam Wei immediately fell ill. She was both shocked and afraid. She didn’t even need her son to say more to her. It was just that she truly couldn’t figure out in her heart how it was merely a matter of a few rumors, yet when exposed by someone, it actually became such a serious matter?