The Duchess of Qi was so frightened that she lost her senses. In no time, countless visitors came to offer their condolences, turning the front gate of the Duke of Qi’s mansion into a bustling scene.
Several princes naturally couldn’t miss the opportunity to showcase their brotherly affection (and catch a glimpse of the drama), bringing their duchesses along to visit.
The Duke of Qi had just managed to see off the Prince of Qin when a servant reported that the Prince of Lu and the Prince of Shu had arrived. He had no choice but to gather his spirits to welcome the guests.
“Fourth Brother, I heard that Fourth Sister-in-law was startled by a frightened horse. How is she now?” The Prince of Lu asked eagerly as soon as they met.
The Duchess of Lu, standing beside her husband, twitched her lips slightly. She hadn’t even had a chance to inquire, why was her husband, as a younger brother-in-law, so anxious.
The Duke of Qi furrowed his brow, looking deeply worried. “She’s just severely shocked and can’t see anyone.”
The Prince of Lu’s eyes lit up. “Can’t see anyone?”
The Duke of Qi paused for a moment.
What did it mean that Fifth Brother’s eyes were gleaming?
At this point, the Prince of Shu spoke up, “Indeed, Fourth Brother, how exactly is Fourth Sister-in-law? Would it be convenient for my wife to visit her?”
If the Duke of Qi felt a mix of helplessness and tolerance towards the Prince of Lu, as if dealing with a fool, he was much more wary of the Prince of Shu.
With the Crown Prince dead, among the remaining princes, he considered the Prince of Shu the greatest threat.
The Prince of Shu’s mother was Consort Zhuang, whose status was no lower than Consort Xian’s, and perhaps even more favored by Emperor Jingming. Moreover, the Prince of Shu’s maternal grandfather was the Grand Secretary of the Imperial Academy, with disciples all over the realm.
Furthermore, compared to the fourth son, the Duke of Qi, Emperor Jingming preferred his sixth son, the Prince of Shu.
The Duke of Qi was well aware of this fact.
Were the Sixth Brother and his wife here to mock him?
The Duke of Qi was furious inside, but he maintained his composure outwardly. He sighed and said, “Thank you for your concern, Sixth Brother and Sixth Sister-in-law. However, your Fourth Sister-in-law is severely shocked and becomes terrified at the sight of outsiders. She currently needs to rest quietly…”
“I see. In that case, Fourth Brother, please take good care of Fourth Sister-in-law. We won’t disturb her,” the Prince of Shu said with a smile.
Neither the Duchess of Lu nor the Duchess of Shu felt inclined to speak. The conversation that followed was idle chatter among the three brothers until the Prince of Lu finally couldn’t resist inquiring, “Is it true that Fourth Sister-in-law only donated 400 taels of incense money, while Seventh Sister-in-law donated 1,800 taels?”
The Duke of Qi’s face immediately darkened.
The Prince of Shu was also dumbfounded.
He had expected Fifth Brother to be straightforward, but he never imagined him to be this blunt. This was blatantly slapping Fourth Brother’s face.
But this face-slapping was well-deserved; he was happy to watch the show.
“Fourth Brother?” Seeing the Duke of Qi’s dark expression and lack of response, the Prince of Lu reminded him with an innocent face.
Hehehe, he had been waiting for this chance at revenge for a long time.
Fourth Brother had always been a hypocrite. He probably forgot about the incident when they were young, when he broke Father Emperor’s brush washer and Fifth Brother took the blame, didn’t he?
The Prince of Lu recalled how he had desperately tried to explain it wasn’t him, while the Duke of Qi also desperately tried to explain it wasn’t Fifth Brother. In the end, everyone believed it was him who did it. The frustration of that moment was unforgettable.
Don’t think he was stupid. He, who hadn’t done anything wrong, took the blame for the one who had made the mistake. No matter how much of a good person the other party pretended to be, they were not a good person!
The Prince of Lu was silently flipping through his mental ledger of old grievances.
The Duke of Qi truly didn’t remember this trivial matter. Looking at the Prince of Lu’s face, he had an urge to beat him up.
But he had no choice; he had to endure it.
Lady Li had just caused trouble, and if he created another incident of beating up his brother, it would make an even worse impression on Father Emperor.
Wait, why did he use the word “even”?
The Duke of Qi inwardly cursed his bad luck and said with a grim face, “I didn’t ask much about matters between women.”
The Prince of Lu shook his head, “Tsk tsk, Fourth Sister-in-law is just too frugal.”
The Duke of Qi finally couldn’t bear it anymore and started to drive them away, “I still need to go check on your Fourth Sister-in-law—”
The Prince of Lu knew when to stop and said with a smile, “Then we’ll take our leave. Sixth Brother, what about you?”
The Prince of Shu’s lips twitched quickly as he said, “Fourth Brother, you should go see Fourth Sister-in-law soon. We’ll be leaving as well.”
The show was over; why stay for dinner?
The two couples leisurely left the Duke of Qi’s mansion.
The Prince of Lu stopped after a few steps and hesitated, “Should we go see Seventh Sister-in-law?”
The Duchess of Lu raised an eyebrow, “Sixth Sister-in-law and I can go by ourselves.”
Before the Prince of Lu could react, the Prince of Shu smiled and said, “Indeed, Seventh Brother is currently not at home. It would be inconvenient for us to visit.”
The Duchess of Lu gave the Prince of Lu a sideways glance and headed to the Prince of Yan’s mansion with the Duchess of Shu.
At this moment, Aman was enthusiastically recounting her thrilling experience, surrounded by a circle of maids and servants.
A young maid raised her chin and looked around, asking, “Do you know what the Emperor looks like?”
Everyone shook their heads in unison.
“I know!” Aman proudly described Emperor Jingming’s appearance.
A young maid looked at her with admiration and said, “Sister Aman, you’re amazing. You’ve even seen the Emperor.”
Several other young maids chimed in, “Yes, the Emperor is the most noble person in our Great Zhou. Sister Aman, you’re truly capable—”
Aman pursed her lips and smiled, “I’m not capable at all. It’s all because I follow our mistress that I had the chance to see His Majesty. So in the future, you all should serve the Duchess wholeheartedly too, and you might have good fortune as well.”
Aqiao, who had taken a step forward intending to stop Aman from bragging, heard these words and shook her head with a smile, swallowing what she was about to say.
“Oh, and His Majesty even knew my name!”
Aman’s words immediately caused a burst of exclamations. It was only when a maid hurriedly came to report that the Duchess of Lu and the Duchess of Shu had arrived that the maids and servants reluctantly dispersed.
Jiang Si’s sense of accomplishment from achieving her small goal didn’t last long.
The death of her brother and her husband’s departure—these sorrows and concerns were long-lasting.
Not long after meeting with the Duchess of Lu and the Duchess of Shu, Jiang Si received a letter from the Dong Ping Earl’s mansion.
The letter was written by Jiang Yi, full of concern about what had happened to her, asking if it would be convenient to visit tomorrow.
Seeing this, Jiang Si simply sent a reply, deciding to return to the Earl’s mansion for a visit.
Upon receiving Jiang Si’s reply, the Dong Ping Earl’s mansion immediately sent a steward to wait outside. As soon as Jiang Si arrived, she was promptly ushered into the Hall of Compassion.
“Si’er, are you alright?” Jiang Ancheng carefully examined Jiang Si as soon as he saw her. Seeing that his daughter didn’t appear to be injured, the pallor of his face improved somewhat.
Having just lost his son, if his younger daughter were to be in danger as well, he truly wouldn’t be able to bear it.
Jiang Si looked at her father, who had lost a considerable amount of weight and felt a slight sting in the corner of her eyes. “I’m completely fine. I’m sorry for worrying you.”
“Worrying is nothing. It’s good that you’re safe.”
Old Madam Feng broke the moment of father-daughter affection: “Duchess, how did you encounter a startled horse out of nowhere?”
Jiang Si’s expression cooled. “Grandmother, asking me this puts me in a difficult position. How could I explain the reason for such an unexpected accident?”
Although Old Madam Feng noticed Jiang Si’s displeasure, she still had to say what needed to be said. “I heard that you even talked back to the Duke of Qi in front of the Emperor. Duchess, the Duke of Qi is, after all, the Prince’s elder brother. You should be more cautious with your words and actions in the future.”
Jiang Si curved her lips in a cold smile.
A’Jin’s elder brother? Grandmother believed that the Duke of Qi was most likely to inherit the throne and feared that she might offend the future emperor, implicating the Earl’s mansion.