Chapter 51 Real Face

Emperor Sheng Yuan's words made Ye Zhen fell into the abyss, her answer would determine whether she could land safely, or shattered to pieces. Of course, what was the difference between choosing her father or choosing herself? In the end, it was still the word "death".

No, no, how can you die? If you choose to protect yourself, then you will still be Ye Jieyu, who is aloof and monopolizes the power in the palace. You can also protect the remaining members of the Ye family, and will be able to regain the emperor's favor at the right time. But if you choose your father, you will have nothing, and the death penalty will be difficult to avoided. The Ye family's business inevitably cannot be preserved, and you have no power and position, can only live a miserable life with your relatives, and won't the people you have offended before still throw some stones and attack together?

It's worse than death! Keep the green hills and not be afraid of running out of firewood, Ye Zhen, just choose yourself to consider the big picture. Only in this way you can lead the clan to escape from the predicament, and bring the Ye family back to glory one day in the future! Your choice is right, your choice is right… After repeating this sentence in her heart, Ye Zhen's face already had a faint madness.

Her mind was in a turmoil, and countless thoughts were spinning in the gust of wind, as if they were about to explode. However, in the midst of so many distracting thoughts, she didn't dare to think about what would happen if she lost everything she had, and what would happen if she lost the favor of the emperor. She didn't even realize that this problem was most likely just a trap, or a probing.

The poison in her body were haunting, the constant pain was like a knife cutting off the flesh, and the successive blows that followed was destroying her spirit and will. In only just a few days, Ye Zhen's whole body was almost overwhelmed.

Emperor Sheng Yuan didn't rush, while tapping his fingers on the table, he quietly observed the change in the other person's expression. After carefully searching his mind, he realized that he seemed to have only seen her sadness, sorrow, smile, tenderness, and other gestures that could arouse men's desire to protect her. Other than that, it was completely blank.

On the other hand, Madam, although he only saw her face a few times, her understanding smile, hearty laugh, and a smile like… all kinds of smiles, yet bright and warm; One moment enduring her anger silently, but once it reach the end of her patience, she pointed her finger with glaring eyes, slapped the table while standing up, her demeanor was chivalrous and heroic; When she was facing the fragments of destroyed books, it was clear that she was so distressed and grief-stricken, but there was only a layer of water mist in her eyes, and not a single teardrop had fallen, she really had iron-bones, proud and awe-inspiring.

Putting the two together, although they were equally gorgeous, a beauty that could overturn a country. One seemed to exist in the darkness full of gloomy moisture, causing people to be infected with the dark. The other blooms under the clear sky, bathed in brilliant sunshine, so that people could only feel the spring and surging vitality.

The more he recalled the person's frown and smile, the more painful and sharp his heart became. In the end Emperor Sheng Yuan didn't dare to think about it any more. He lifted his eyelids slightly to look at Ye Zhen who was going crazy.

"This concubine confessed her sin and ask the emperor to spare this concubine this time." Ye Zhen was ashamed and directly save herself, only wept bitterly.

Yong He, who was standing beside her, was already sweating profusely, she wanted to warn her but did not dare to make a move. As a bystander, she clearly knew what kind of image niangniang had in front of the emperor over the years. She was pure, kind, gentle, infatuated, and cherished the old friendship. However, with the case of spying at the emperor's trail, and coupled with the absurd choice just now, the beautiful image she painstakingly created had completely collapsed. Even if the emperor spared her this time, after seeing her ruthless real face, how could he give her a chance to regain his favor? On the other hand, if she chooses to protect her father and clan, there was a chance that the emperor would give her kindness out of her filial piety.

Niangniang, you can't!

It's a pity that Ye Zhen couldn't hear Yong He's cry, she was devastated physically and mentally, her mind was plunged into chaos, and she could only act by instinct.

What an instinct to act! Emperor Sheng Yuan stopped tapping on the table and muttered, "You will still be Ye Jieyu in the future, and Ye Quanyong over there, Zhen will let Department of Justice to handle in accordance with the law, and there will be no pardon for death penalty."

Ye Zhen froze in an instant, her chest heaving violently, as if she couldn't bear more bad news. Emperor Sheng Yuan didn't even look at her, he turned around and wanted to leave, but he heard her calling out, "Your Majesty, wait, this concubine still has something I want to give you. Yong He, hurry up and get it."

With tears in her eyes, Yong He took down the brocade box placed on the shelf, opened it and inside there was a half foot square small table screen, fixed on a frame with a holder in the middle, which could be rotated back and forth. There was a simple black pattern on a white background of a piece of silk cloth, but it had been embroidered on both sides in fine detail, and no matter how people look, they couldn't find any flaws. There were two well-framed paintings, one of Rakshasa and the other of Smilling Buddha.

"Your Majesty, this is the table screen that you entrusted niangniang to embroidered a few days ago. She did not dare to delay, even when she was sick she still doing the embroidery, and stayed up all night, almost burning her eyes. This is a new embroidery method that niangniang has figured out by herself. The method is called double-sided embroidery, and she said she want to pass this method to the embroidery mama in the Weaving Department so that it can earn more benefits for you. Your Majesty, niangniang treats you with all of her heart, you should have some pity on her!" Yong He really couldn't do anything, except talking about feelings.

Ye Zhen opened her lips and smiled bitterly, a line of blood slowly dripping from the corners of her mouth, against the pale complexion and sad eyes, she looked both pitiful and pathetic.

The two master and servant composed and sang excellent performances, making Baifu, an old man who had long experienced the fickleness of the world, almost cry, not to mention the other people in the hall. It didn't take long for a series of sobbing to come from the surrounding corners, which literally rendered the splendid Ganquan Palace into a poor alley, which was extremely miserable.

Emperor Sheng Yuan picked up the table screen with no expression on his face, and felt remorse in his heart. If he had known that these two drawings would be regarded as tools to gain pity and showed affection, he would not have sent them to Ganquan Palace. It was really heartbreaking that the noble was tarnished by the despicable.

He carefully put away the drawings, threw the table screen to the inner attendant, and ordered, "Send it to the weaving department, and let the embroider mama over there think about it. If the craftsmanship is not complicated, it can be promoted to benefit the people. If it is too complicated, cultivate some people to specialize in this project and open source for the national treasury."

The attendant agreed and went with the table screen. Then he stared at Ye Zhen and said bluntly, "A few days ago, you were seriously ill because Zhao Luli was about to remarry, sighing for the unforgettable love. Today you are talking about infatuation with Zhen. Ye Zhen, how many hearts do you have? "

Ye Zhen and Yong He froze together, speechless for a while.

Emperor Sheng Yuan didn't need the other person to answer, and continued, "I see that you have no heart at all. You can even abandon your own father's life, how could you be willing to give up your life to save me? The Ye family has been a travelling merchant for generations, their ability to avoid harm and gain benefit are unmatched, absolutely impossible to risk the whole family and sacrifice oneself for a stranger. Did you really not know Zhen true identity back then? Did you really just show kindness to an injured person you met by chance? Now, it doesn't seem like your character."

It's over, it's all broken! Yong He's soul flew out of the sky, almost fainting. Ye Zhen was still holding on, the chaotic mind was instantly clear, and then she tried her best to reflect – the traces from back then were all erased, the emperor would not find anything, even if her father was interrogated, he should also know the importance. Admitting means he would die, if he did not admit, even though he would also die, but there was no need to add another crime of assassinating and deceiving the monarch, and he could also save the nine clans, so he must not admit it.

As the emperor said, the Ye family's ability to avoid harm and gain benefit was unparalleled, and her father would definitely know how to choose. Thinking like this, Ye Zhen planned to defend herself a few words, but heard the emperor solemnly said, "What is the truth, Zhen will send someone to investigate. Ye Zhen, you just hope that Ye family's hands and feet are clean enough." He had already identified her as suspicious in his heart.

Ye Zhen couldn't bear these heavy pressures anymore, and with a "puff", the old blood in her heart spurted out.

Baifu hurriedly beckoned the imperial doctor to treat her, then turned to chase after the emperor who had already walked away. Unexpectedly, Ye Jieyu, who seemed to be gentle and submissive, had such a powerful means that she could even fabricate that life-saving grace. If there was no trace when investigated, wouldn't it mean that when the emperor was assassinate, the Ye family also pushed it hard?

Hiss, that's killing the monarch! Thinking of this, Baifu felt flustered for Ye Jieyu, and felt the chill at the base of his neck.

—-

Zhao Luli offended the new madam yesterday, and almost break all ties, but today he didn't even think to try to appease and apologize, instead ran to Ye Mansion early in the morning to clean up the mess for Master Ye and Liu shi. The Ye family not only detained many powerful people on the day of the treasure banquet, but also caused the commanders to lose their official hats and suffer flogging for dispatching the Imperial Guards without authorization. It could be said they had offended most of Yanjing overnight, if no one supported the facade, afraid they would be rained down with stones and pushed to the wall by the crowd.

Although as Marquis Zhenbei he had no real power, but he had accumulated some old friendship in the army, and he could talk to some extent. And because Zhao Wangshu and Zhao Chunxi had no real mother to discipline them, he also brought them along, which could also soothe and comfort their elders.

Master Ye did not neglect this ex-son-in-law like he used to, but welcomed him by the gate with great enthusiasm, and asked him to speak in the main hall. The two little ones followed their cousins to visit their grandmother in the back house. Although they had just been severely beaten in the face by the emperor, Ye Jieyu was still there, and Master Ye's official position was still there. When the emperor's anger subsides, and Jieyu regained the holy favor, they would be able to turn over in the future, maybe even more glorious than now.

Therefore, Ye Mansion was only slightly depressed, and there was no sign of defeated. However, just after chenshi (7-9am), seeing that the palace was about to disperse, there were several lines of guards holding swords and halberds surrounded the Ye Mansion. Minister of Justice personally led the team to break into the gate, without saying a word, he first tied up all the guilty people on the list, and pulled them outside the courtyard, recited the decree word by word.

Zhao Luli knelt down behind the Ye family to protect the two children. He was shocked when he heard it carefully, and finally understood what Guan Suyi said yesterday, "It is not too late for a gentleman to take revenge for ten years". Not only did Old Master Guan not plead for the Ye family, but he sued his father-in-law on 32 charges, all of them were capital offenses, all of them could annihilate the nine clans.

Now that even the emperor had made a Guilty Edict, how could he spare Ye Mansion lightly and forgive Ye Zhen? The last path to live for the Ye family was cut off by Old Master Guan's second impeachment. What a poisonous means of revenge! Zhao Luli's heart felt like it was twisted with a knife, it was useless to repent now. On the other hand, the two children were already scared foolishly.

Before the official finished reciting the decree, the Ye family had already shouted injustice, but they unable to impress the officials. They could only watch helplessly as they tore down the pavilions, smashed down tables and chairs, carried away the wealth hidden in the cellar and storehouse box by box, and slammed down the gold plaque of Ye Mansion and smashed them to pieces.

Keep the green hills and not be afraid of running out of firewood: where there is life, there is hope.

Chapter 52 Divorce

The Ye Mansion, which was still slightly depressed just now, was about to collapse in a blink of an eye, and the danger was imminent. This change came too quickly, and people were caught off guard. The people passing by saw the officers coming and going, heard the loud cries, so they all gathered around to watch.

"Why did the Ye family even have the plaque removed? This doesn't seem like a petty fight!"

"Hey, don't you know? The Ye family relied on Ye Jieyu's favor, so they always acted wildly. Now they have stabbed the hornet's nest and make the Emperor Teacher impeach them! There are thirty-two charges, and they are all posted on the notice in front of the gate of Minister of Justice office, go and see for yourself, there are a few Confucian scholars there to recite for free."

"Minister of Justice office is too far, I'm too lazy to run, you can tell me."

"Yes, yes, you can tell everyone." The gossipy people quickly echoed.

The well-informed person recounted the cause and effect triumphantly, and concluded at the end, "Speaking of which, it was the red coral that caused the disaster. You said that you are worried about your two grandchildren, afraid that they will be bullied by their stepmother, at once stuffed in a shu daughter as a concubine, why are you so brazen? Isn't it obvious that you tried to embarrass the Emperor Teacher Mansion? That's just great, the Emperor Teacher Mansion doesn't use a normal move, but one move will kill you!"

"Tsk tsk tsk, the literati's methods are truly terrifying! Even doing personal vendetta to this point!" A Confucian scholar shook his head and sighed.

Didn't know who spit in the back, and shouted loudly, "You fucking knows fart! The Emperor Teacher not only impeached Ye Quanyong, but also impeached the emperor, saying that he indulged his foreign relatives and bring disaster for the common people, the emperor then issued a decree to strictly investigate the Ye family, otherwise it's unknown until when the Ye family will be rampant. Do you think Ye Quanyong is a good person? I tell you, the Ye family doesn't have any good thing! In the past, a large area of Gejia village in the western suburbs was forcibly occupied by the Ye family who allied with some officials, the emperor clearly issued a decree, exempting the common people of Great Wei from paying taxes for three years, the people in ten miles and eight villages should have all benefited from this, but at Ye family's land, the rent were still collected like before, they still recruited forced labor like before, coupled with summer floods and severe cold in winter, the grains could not be harvested, to the point the villagers of Gejia starve to death and freeze to death. Walking a little closer to that place, all I saw was red earth and white bones, really a desolate place! Some villagers couldn't stand it anymore, they were going to the capital to sue to the imperial court, but they were beaten to death by the minions sent by the Ye family, and they were thrown into the mountains to feed the wolves. What kind of good thing is Ye mansion? Just a bunch of fucking beasts! If there is no Emperor Teacher, they will still rely on the emperor and Ye Jieyu's power, and it's unknown how long they will run rampant, and it's unknown how many people they will harm. Emperor Teacher is eliminating evil for the people, enforce justice on behalf of Heaven!"

The man cried bitterly as he spoke, showing that there were a lot of grievances in his heart.

Someone next to him whispered, "Yes, yes, eight to nine out of ten beggars in Yanjing are from the Gejia village. When they saw the plaque of the Ye family from a distance, they avoid it. They are very afraid! "

"More than that! There used to be a very prosperous cloth shop in Willow Lane. The dyed cloth is colorful and does not fade for a long time. It's very popular with powerful people and nobles. Completely different patterns are embroidered on both sides of the silk, and even if people turn it over and over in their hands, they can't find any flaws. Because of the unique skills of the dyeing and embroidery, someone from the Department of Internal Affairs took a fancy to them and wanted to choose them as imperial merchants and specialize in tribute weaving, but the news was intercepted by the Ye Mansion, and the nine members of the family of the owner of cloth shop were forced to death by some dirty means, the family property and secret methods were forcibly seized, they really have no conscience!"

"And there's…"

In the past, because Ye Jieyu was favored, everyone did not dare to criticize "Imperial-in-law Ye", but now even the emperor had been charged with "condoning foreign relatives to cause disaster", and also wrote a Guilty Edict to reflect on himself, it could be seen that the Ye family's punishment was difficult to escape, so the bloody cases one by one were turned over and spread to everyone.

Looking at it this way, the Ye family's raid and extermination of the clan were really not wrong at all.

"Emperor Teacher is too selfless. He only has the law and public interest in his eyes, but he has forgotten his own family! He impeached Ye Mansion, causing Ye Quanyong's family to be destroyed. He didn't think about how his granddaughter will live in Marquis Zhenbei Mansion? We know that the deceased wife of the Marquis Zhenbei is Ye Jieyu's twin sister, and half the blood of the Ye family still flows in their di son and daughter. With such a bloody feud, Guan shi will have a hard time in the future."

"Yeah! In order to seek justice, Emperor Teacher has sacrificed the lifelong happiness of his granddaughter, and I don't know if he will regret it in the future."

"Guan shi is pitiful, really pitiful…" The people who were still indignant just now sighed for Marquis Zhenbei Madam.

After the father-in-law and several brothers-in-law were kidnapped, Zhao Luli helped Liu shi out of the door, followed by a group of crying womenfolk. The Ye Mansion had now been sealed, and the officials were preparing to stick the seal on the door. If they couldn't find a place to settle down, they must sleep on the street.

Up to now, Liu shi finally realized the benefits of her ex-son-in-law, pulled him to shout the injustices one by one, repeatedly begging him to bring Master Ye out. Zhao Luli promised again and again, but his heart was trembling. Where would he find a way? He could only bring the womenfolk back to the mansion for resettlement, and then slowly plan to rescue his father-in-law in the future.

Liu shi didn't dare to put all her hopes on her son-in-law. She stroked the hem of her clothes and tidied up her hair on he temples. Then she went to the gate of the palace and knelt down to see if she could see her daughter. She just walked out a few steps when she heard a passerby talking about "Guan shi this , Guan shi that", and then new hatred and old hatred surged together, pinching his son-in-law's arm and said angrily, "Yes! My Ye family fell into this situation, all were caused by that Guan shi! Chen Guang, you must divorce that vicious woman!"

Zhao Chunxi didn't even have the slightest idea how to fight against Guan shi, and only hoped that she could stay farther away from her, so she couldn't help but fan the flames and said, "Dad, didn't Guan shi threaten us before, saying that it's not too late for a gentleman to take revenge for ten years? That saying is finally here, the Guan family's impeachment of grandfather must be under her orders. The trivial matters in the family should be discussed and be coordinated together, each takes one step back to be more open-minded and make the whole family happy, but she actually make a fuss to the point of people dying! Daddy, she is too narrow-minded. With such a person as my and Wang Shu's mother, how could we dare to provoke her in the future? If accidentally pierce her heart, will we die in her hands?"

"Daddy, I'm afraid!" Zhao Wangshu had been frightened by the collapse of the Ye family and the ferocity of the officers. He could not help but trembled with fear when he heard that it was all because of his stepmother's ghost.

Zhao Luli looked at the Ye's family, who was suffering from the bitter wind and rain, and at the children who were like startled birds. He was seething with anger for a while, then dropped a sentence, "I'll go see her to settle the bill" and left in a fit of rage. Liu shi cursed for a moment through gritted teeth, and then she smiled coldly: My Ye family is indeed unlucky, but can you get a good outcome Guan Suyi? As a woman, living in the back house, your husband is your heaven, and your children are your land. Without your husband's favor and at odds with your children, I want to see if you're unable to rely on heaven and fall to the ground for the rest of your life, how should you live! Guan Qiguang that old bastard has harmed his own granddaughter, but he still doesn't know. Reading books too much is making you stupid! Cuih!

With a fierce spit, Liu shi said, "All go to the palace gate and kneel. You won't get up unless Jieyu niangniang has summoned!"

Although Zhao Chunxi and Zhao Wangshu were full of reluctance, they did not dare to object, so they had to force themselves to go.

—–

Guan Suyi was idle today and was wandering the newly opened bookstore when she heard someone call her from above, "Madam, Marquis Zhenbei Madam?"

"Hunnar, why are you here?" Guan Suyi looked up, turned out it was the big man of the Jiuli tribe, almost nine feet tall and shrunk in a cramped corner, a pair of seemingly pure black, but in fact, occasionally appeared blue eyes were staring at her.

"This bookstore was opened by Lord Marquis, and this subordinate accompany him to see it." Emperor Sheng Yuan barely suppressed his joy and pointed above.

Standing behind Guan Suyi, the maid named Jinzi quickly glanced at the emperor, and then let out a sigh of relief. It took all of her mind to bring the very intelligent madam to come here without letting her see the flaws.

Guan Suyi looked up and saw that Qin Lingyun was standing by the railing with a smile that was not a smile.

"You still have the mood to go shopping?" He took out a Buddhist bead, his tone was very gloating.

"What happened?" Guan Suyi's heart moved, and she speculated, "My grandfather took office today. Could it be that he impeached Ye Quanyong in the Jinluan Palace?"

"More than that." Emperor Sheng Yuan walked down slowly and spoke with red ears.

Guan Suyi thought for a while, and then said, "And impeached the emperor?"

Qin Lingyun asked in amazement, "How do you know?" If it weren't for the fact that the emperor sent spies to follow Marquis Zhenbei Madam all the time, making sure that after she left the mansion's gate and drove to the bookstore, she didn't meet any acquaintances on the way, nor did she stop much, Qin Lingyun really wanted to suspect that she was a clairvoyance and omniscient.

"It's very simple. Impeaching the Ye family can impeach the emperor by the way. In this way, the first fire of the Inspectorate is really lit." Guan Suyi took out a travel journal, smiled and shook her head while reading.

Emperor Sheng Yuan's mood fluctuated slightly, and he realized, "So, the target of the Emperor Teacher has never been the Ye family, but the emperor?"

"If you want to quickly establish the prestige of the Inspectorate, is there a more suitable target than the emperor?" Guan Suyi put down the book, bowed three times in the direction of the imperial city, and sighed, "Fortunately, the emperor is a real wise monarch, lead by example and serves the public wholeheartedly, only then my grandfather can seek benevolence and acquire it. In my opinion, within three to five years, our Great Wei will definitely rejuvenate, and within ten years it will unified the rivers and mountains."

In front of the Emperor's lackey, she easily patted the horse's butt. Of course, the administration of officials in the Great Wei was indeed much clearer than in the previous life. In the early days of the founding of the country in the previous life, the court was very chaotic. First, Xu Guangzhi used his literary to mess with the law. Second, Jiuli aristocrats oppressed the Han people. And third was the secret struggle between foreign relatives, noble families and clan relatives. It was not until the civil unrest broke out later, and the Great Wei was almost torn apart, Emperor Sheng Yuan finally realized the pain when the pain gone and ruthlessly rectified the administration of officials, but it took three to five years to gradually stabilize the situation.

On the other hand, this world was peaceful and smooth. Could this be the result of saving her grandfather? A small change could influence the fate of a country. Heaven's will was really unpredictable.

When Guan Suyi sighed and lamented, Emperor Sheng Yuan felt his hot blood surged after being praised by her. Carrying the whole country's rivers and mountains on his left shoulder and the common people on his right shoulder, he had been trying his best to explore and move forward, fearing that one wrong step would turn the world upside down and the common people would be forced to leave home and become miserable. However, others could only see his high power and invincibility, how could they understand his fear and trepidation, like walking on thin ice? Even if they praised him as a wise monarch and holy master ten thousand times, it was no match for Madam's plain and firm prophecy.

"Borrowing Madam's auspicious words, I will let Madam see my Great Wei's peaceful and prosperous age as soon as possible." Emperor Sheng Yuan's voice was hoarse, and he was about to say something else when he saw Zhao Luli running this was with a huff, and dragged her out without looking at anyone else, said angrily, "The Ye family suffered such a great disaster, and you are still hanging out? If you don't let the Emperor Teacher withdraw the impeachment memorial and enter the palace to plead for the Ye family today, I will divorce you!"

patted the horse's butt: a.k.a. ass-kissing.

Chapter 53 Blind

Seeing that Madam was staggering after being pulled by Zhao Luli and almost fell over, Emperor Sheng Yuan's anger surged up, and his hand was already on the handle of the knife ready to free her. But then he saw Madam turned her head and unobtrusively shook her head.

"Madam." He shouted helplessly and hoarsely, and immediately followed.

When Zhao Luli ran back to the Marquis Mansion, he found that Guan Suyi was not there. He asked the housekeeper only to find that she was going to the bookstore today, so he searched all the shops in Yanjing City, and found that Marquis Zhenxi was also here. He ran fast all the way while seething in anger, his red eyes and sinister face ruined his former graceful demeanor, making passersby dodge and at the same time extremely curious, so they also followed him to watch the fun, and found that the person he was blindly looking for was Marquis Zhenbei Madam, everyone suddenly realized.

"I'll just say it, this couple is really finish!" Some busybody whispered.

"Afraid Madam Marquis is going to be unlucky! A married daughter is like a spilled water. The Emperor Teacher did not think about how his granddaughter would live before taking action. After all, Ye Mansion was the foreign relatives of Marquis Mansion, when the pair of di son and daughter grew up, wouldn't they want to avenge their mother's family?"

"Yeah, being a stepmother is already difficult enough, let alone to have deep blood feuds in the middle. If Master Ye is beheaded, this deadlock cannot be resolved. Guan shi might as well go to her maiden home and persuade her grandfather to let him go to the palace to ease the tension with a few words, and leave Master Ye alive."

"Exactly, first impeached others, it make him righteous, and then later come forward to protect them, it make him merciful. This kind of grace and power is like two-pronged approach. Even if Ye Mansion and Marquis Mansion hate Guan family to the bone, they can't say anything, and Guan shi can also live in peace and security with the great grace and righteousness. How good is that, isn't that the best of both worlds?"

"Brother is wise!" Many people raised their thumbs in agreement.

Emperor Sheng Yuan's heart was full of mixed feelings, bitter and astringent. If it wasn't for his oversight, Madam would have never fallen into this situation. She was a proud woman, but she had to use such a compromised method to survive, had to consider the Zhao family's face everywhere, and even more, had to be under the control of the Ye family. Even the Emperor Teacher and Chief of Ceremonies couldn't protect her. A married daughter is like a spilled water, at this moment, he finally understood the cruelty of this sentence. If a woman couldn't find a good home, she was like the sewage on the ground, and she could only let it run its course and be at the mercy of others. If the husband's family loved her dearly, she would be able to live a little better, and if the husband's family hated her, she would be treated like a dirt, and she couldn't help herself.

Maybe other women could endure this kind of treatment, and then fully adapt to the numbness. But wanted Madam with iron-bones and deep inner strength to bow down and compromise, what difference it was than directly killing her? If at that time he brought her into the palace and protected her under the feather, what would happened?

As soon as this idea was formed, it was like a sharp thorn stabbed into Emperor Sheng Yuan's heart, and it was another heart-wrenching torture.

Guan Suyi also listened to the commotion, and she couldn't help but laugh inside. She first loosened up her wrist, after she noticed Zhao Luli's strength was also loosened, she then quickly broke free, rubbing her red skin, and slowly said, "Zhao Luli, if you want to solve Ye family's predicament, then follow me to a place."

"Where are you going?" Zhao Luli was still angry, but gradually calmed down.

"You follow." Guan Suyi's sleeves shook as she strode forward, Jinzi and Minglan quickly followed. Zhao Luli couldn't go grab her any more, and if a fight broke out, the scene would become even more unbearable, not only let passersby see the joke, but also lost the face of Marquis Mansion, so he could only follow silently.

"Let's go and have a look." The crowd also began to follow, making a lot of noise and excitement.

Emperor Sheng Yuan made a gesture, and countless death guards who were hiding, secretly guarded Marquis Zhenbei Madam.

Guan Suyi walked to the Xuande Gate, pointed to a rusted copper drum, and said casually, "This is the road drum, now called the Dengwen Drum. After the collapse of the Great Zhou Dynasty, very little people cares about it, and it has been here for more than a thousand years. However, the emperor wanted to recast the legal code and clean up political and folk customs, the drum has been reactivated recently. It is one of the ways for people to directly complain about their grievances. If there is a major grievance, without examination by local government, without drafting a complaint, without reporting it layer by layer, as long as you go to this drum and beat it, a guard will come up to inquire within a moment, and finally take it directly to the Holy' face. However, in order to prevent the public from abusing this drum, every time you strike the drum you must be hit with a hundred heavy sticks, and if you get through it, the whole court will open their eyes for you, and will never stop until you get your justice."

"Is there such a thing?" The passerby asked in a low voice.

"There is, there is, every time the emperor writes a decree, he will send the order to all over the place. This article on Dengwen drum was released three days ago. I still remember it." A scholar nodded over and over again.

"It turns out that recasting the legal code also has such benefits! With this drum, are you still afraid that the common people will have nowhere to seek justice?"

"You don't know clearly, if you're hit with a hundred sticks you can die before seeing the Holy' face!"

"That's why you must not beat the drum if you haven't encountered such a difficult problem. The emperor is not so nice." An old man sighed.

"In any case it's much better than to die but not even have place to speak the truth. The emperor is a good emperor!" As soon as someone finished speaking, he attracted countless approvals and echoes.

Emperor Sheng Yuan's mood was fluctuating. He looked at Madam in front of Dengwen Drum with both admiration and inexplicable sadness. Even at this point, she did not forget to teach people, and did not forget to publicize the benefit of amending the law. Her heart was truly exquisite, without any dirt.

Zhao Luli gradually heard the voice and glared angrily.

Guan Suyi did not have any fear, took down the heavy drumstick from the stand, and said slowly, "I know better than you what kind of person my grandfather is. He has a clear conscience, upright, and since he presented thirty-two charges against Master Ye, then not a single one of them are false, and those are only a few, not all of them. I will put my words here today. If the emperor verifies that half of my grandfather's word is just to slander the Ye family, I will immediately write a divorce letter and cutting off my hair! My grandfather dared to speak out and sacrifice his life for righteousness, and I also dare to use a lifetime of virtuous name and ruin a lifelong reputation as a guarantee for him."

Shoving the drumstick into Zhao Luli's hands, she smiled contemptuously, "Do you, Zhao Luli, dare to guarantee for the Ye family with your life? Do you dare to say that Ye Quanyong is innocent and upright? Do you dare to say that he is wholeheartedly loyal and done his best? Do you dare to say he loves the common people as his own children, and honest to pursue the public interest? If you dare to say "yes", I will help you beat the drum, and I will help you bear the hundred heavy sticks, I even will tear my face with my grandfather, and I will definitely help you to get justice! Do you dare? Do you dare or not?"

Every time she said the word "dare", she slowly approached one step, her scorching eyes as bright as a mirror, reflecting the cowardice and ugliness in people's hearts.

Zhao Luli, who was still angry just now, was already in a cold sweat and very embarrassed. He desperately wanted to raise the drumstick to strike, and desperately wanted to say "yes" confidently, but he opened his mouth and couldn't speak for a long time. He also involved in some of the Ye family's shameful secrets, and even helped with the aftermath. If the emperor checked it out one by one, maybe even the Marquis Mansion would be implicated, so how could he have the face to complain for the Ye family? He just wanted Guan Suyi to ask the Emperor Teacher and Chief of Ceremonies to say a few good words, and to obtain extrajudicial tolerance. In the end how could she forced him into such a situation?

"He dares fart! What Ye Quanyong did, Marquis Zhenbei Mansion did not intervene less! The Ye family killed a maid a few years ago, and it was the guards of Marquis Zhenbei Mansion who helped drag the body out and bury it. My cousin saw it all!" Someone in the crowd shouted, afraid of being discovered, he hurriedly shrank back.

Emperor Sheng Yuan raised his eyes slightly, and a death soldier secretly brought this person for interrogation.

Guan Suyi stared at Zhao Luli, whose face was pale, and said word by word, "My grandfather punish the guilty to comfort people, eliminate violence and return peace. This is to be loyal to the country and ask for orders for the people. I am confronting you today in front of many people, this is to defend the family's reputation, to do my filial piety and observe festivals. If you want to be loyal to the country and ask for orders for the people, you should go to the Justice Department to make a statement of yourself; if you want to be righteous to your elders, you should beat the drums and clarify the facts; if you want to take care of your wife and children, and do filial piety to your mother, you should stay at home in peace and not interfere with the criminal law at will."

She raised her sleeves slightly, put her five fingers together, and counting down one by one, and said lightly, "Look at yourself, you're not willing to be loyal, nor dare to keep righteousness, let alone fulfill your filial piety. You are disloyal, unfilial, and unrighteous person, if it wasn't for the imperial decree to marry before, you still dare to talk to me about being a discarded wife? Are you worthy?"

"Well said, really well said!" A heroic "man" walked out of the crowd, holding a sword in his hand and wearing a set of First Rank Prince's court dress, he could be said to be a beautiful man, rich and domineering. He stroked his palm and said, "Madam is loyal to the country, fulfill both filial piety and righteousness, she is really Yao and Shun among women, it's a pity to be matched with such filthy people! Zhao Luli, long time no see, do you still remember those soldiers who died tragically in Hancheng, Liaodong? You And Ye Zhen that little bitch…"

"Your Highness Grand Princess, have you been summoned back to the capital?" In order to prevent this lady from airing out the scandal of the past, Qin Lingyun had to interrupt under the cold stare of the emperor.

Seeing the emperor hidden in the crowd, the Grand Princess twitched the corners of her lips and stopped talking. But her appearance was like the last straw, completely crushing the overwhelmed Zhao Luli. He suddenly threw away the drumstick, hugged his head and cried, not only hating himself for being weak and incompetent, but also regretting the sins he had helped and abetted over the years, and countless shame that were beyond words.

Guan Suyi fixed a look at him, and then picked up the drumstick and placed it on the stand. Finally, she bowed to the Grand Princess, to Marquis Zhenxi and the big man of the Jiuli tribe. She bowed to the crowd, and said flatly, "Let everyone laugh." Finally, facing the direction of the imperial city, she bowed three times solemnly, then walked step by step and slowly left.

The crowd automatically divided a path for her, but still watched as she walked with her back straight and her wide sleeves fluttering. In a short while she went very far, as if she was riding the wind and driving the fog, like an ethereal fairy that didn't look like a mortal. Suddenly the pot boiling, everyone started talking at once, "Hey, is this Marquis Zhenbei Madam? What a talented person!"

"Endowed with fine spirits of the universe, and irrigated with the righteousness. Can marry such woman, Marquis Zhenbei still not satisfied, also takes a concubine and humiliate her, he deserves to be reduced to today!"

"Even at this point, Marquis Zhenbei Madam still unwilling to compromise and give in, she would rather tear her face with her husband and maintain loyalty and filial piety. This temperament is too strong! However, she talked frankly and unrestrained, which is indeed a noble and benevolent character, it really made people admire!"

"This is the family education of the literati giant, the character of great scholar, how can other mortals appreciate it? If we can marry such a frank and upright woman, I will not bear for her to suffer the slightest humiliation. You wait, in the future, Marquis Zhenbei will definitely regret it!"

"But now he still persist on going the wrong way, he's really blind!" Everyone pointed and shook their heads and sighed.

The Grand Princess sneered while listening, pointed to Zhao Luli, and said, "One has blind heart," and pointed to Emperor Sheng Yuan, "One has blind eyes," and left without looking back, "You two are the best match, why should you harm other people's good woman!"

Dengwen Drum: the drum that hung outside the courthouse in ancient china, so that those who have grievance or urgent case can beat the drum thus establishing a lawsuit.

Yao and Shun: 2 legendary emperors we talked about before.

Chapter 54 Wife's Dominance

The Grand Princess was the sister of Emperor Sheng Yuan. Although she was not born from the same mother, but they had fought side by side and had a bit of friendship. Back then, when the enemy attacked Hancheng in Liaodong by surprise, it was Her Highness Grand Princess who led the people to defend the city. However, Zhao Luli, a general who was stationed at the border a hundred miles away, because he lost his beloved wife, he drank heavily every day, and when he received the war report, he couldn't even get up, let alone rush to the rescue. When his subordinates risked beheading and dispatched the army without permission to rescue them, Hancheng was already broken, and hundreds of thousands of people and soldiers were all turned into blood, the tragic scene was like purgatory on earth.

Although the Grand Princess survived by chance, she hated Zhao Luli and Emperor Sheng Yuan since then, so she guarded the border all year round and reluctant to return to the capital. If not for a letter written by Emperor Sheng Yuan a few days ago, saying that recasting of the law and reforming the tax and land system would probably violate the interests of the big aristocratic clan which would caused a violent shock in the court and ordered her to return to the capital to suppress it, or she might not step into the gate of Yanjing City in this lifetime.

However, as soon as she entered the capital, she saw a woman with a peerless beauty scolding Zhao Luli like a dog, but there was no swear word in the whole sentence, which immediately made Grand Princess' gloomy mood brighten up. Coupled with the fact that her emperor brother was hidden in the crowd, pretending to be an honest bear, but his eyes were full of pain from unrequited feelings, which made her even more happy.

What kind of auspicious day she run into? Some other time, she must make good friends with this Marquis Zhenbei Madam. She got on her horse, tightened the reins, bypassed the crowded streets, turned into a dark alley, and quickly disappeared without a trace.

Zhao Luli was still standing in front of Dengwen Drum with a bewildered expression on his face. Several women who had once admired him whispered, "Fortunately, when my mother asked to let me marry Marquis Zhenbei, he refused, otherwise I would be in this dire straits now. Barely got married already take concubine, the Ye family still so rampant that they brought out Ye Jieyu to suppress the madam of the main house, even had the posture of taking a concubine as wives. If Marquis Zhenbei Madam is not Guan shi, if it replaced with an ordinary woman, she would not be able to live now!"

"Yeah! The Guan family is upright and honest. They dared to fight against Ye Jieyu and the emperor's relatives, and finally won. Other families don't have such means, nor can they teach such a courageous woman."

"Just now everyone is still worrying about Guan shi. I think she can handle it completely. She is loyal, filial, and righteous, return to the truth, and walk on the bright road (TN: doesn't use shady means). it can even be said to not have worldly desires. The Ye family those demons and monsters, and the Marquis Mansion this despicable and dirty things, simply can't hurt her at all."

"This is probably like The Sage said, 'looking up not ashamed of the sky, looking down not ashamed of people', really has magnificent spirit, which is admirable."

"Exactly!" The noble ladies echoed one after another, and they scolded Zhao Luli for a while before dispersing. From then on, there was no more legend of "Jade Son" in the capital. When mentioning Marquis Zhenbei, every womenfolk would shake their heads and spit "disloyal and unfilial, heartless and unrighteous waste".

"Hey, I said, are you still going to beat the Dengwen drum? If you don't beat, get out of the way, I want to use it!" A lame beggar hesitated for a long time, and finally stood up, followed by many frail orphans.

"I want to beat the Dengwen drum too, let me go first!" A tearful woman stepped out, picked up the drumstick and struck without hesitation, dong dong, dong dong, dong dong… The dull thunderous sound of the drum spread from near to far, bringing the people who had walked away slowly gathered again.

Zhao Luli was squeezed out of the crowd, and when he looked back, he found that Marquis Zhenxi and the disguised Emperor Sheng Yuan were standing not far away, staring at him. He didn't know when the two of them came, but he also too ashamed to step forward to speak, only slightly arching his hands, intending to go first.

"Do you remember what you said when you entered the palace to ask for a marriage decree?" Emperor Sheng Yuan stepped forward and said solemnly, "It seems that Madam can assume the responsibility of a clan wife, but you are not worthy of being a Marquis." And what he wanted to express more was that Madam could not only bear the responsibility of a clan wife, but also the mother of the country.

But he was not qualified, so he could only hold back.

Seemingly aware of the hatred and bitterness hidden in the depths of the emperor's eyes, Zhao Luli's heart beat fiercely, then immediately felt one hole opening up, like something extremely important was slowly lost and never returned. The two stood at a standstill, no one spoke, and suddenly heard the sound of uniform footsteps in the distance, and soon a line of guards surrounded the women and beggars who were beating the drums and asked, "Who is beating the drums? Who is suing? What happened?"

"Reporting to my lord, this woman (this commoner) wants to sue Ye Quanyong for taking a life!" They both knelt and shouted in unison.

The passers-by were in uproar, never expecting this to be the sins of the Ye family again, and they would rather be hit with a hundred heavy sticks. One of them was still a frail woman, which showed that she really hated the Ye family. It wasn't over yet, just as the two of them finished speaking, another eight to nine-year-old boy staggered to Dengwen Drum, stood on tiptoe to reach for the drumsticks on the stand, and shouted anxiously, "I also want to sue the Ye family for killing people! I was originally the young master of Jinxiu Manor in Willow Lane. My parents, older brothers and sisters, younger siblings, grandparents, and maternal grandparents were all killed by the Ye family! He also robbed my family's cloth manor and took my mother's double-sided embroidery technique! I was shoved into a dry well by my mother and only then managed to escape, I have proof!"

The guard couldn't bear it, and advised, "You are still young, you will definitely not be able to withstand a hundred heavy sticks. If you have any grievances, go to the local authorities to file a complaint, or come back when you grow up."

"No, when I grow up and come back, Ye Quanyong may have been executed. I would rather die with him than live. I once worshiped the Emperor Teacher in the enlighten school, I know what moral integrity is, what loyalty and filial piety are!"

"Well said! You have a backbone!" A burly man came out, picked up the drumstick and beat it twice, and said loudly, "I beat the drum on behalf of this little brother, and I will bear a hundred heavy sticks for him. There is righteousness in the world, and it is not called treacherous and chaos! The Emperor Teacher dares to sacrifice his life for justice, Marquis Zhenbei Madam dares to stand upright, and the little brother dares to die for his family, we should draw a knife to help when seeing injustice on the road!"

"Yes! Draw a knife to help when seeing injustice on the road, that's a good one! We are all righteous people, how can I let you get all the glory? I will bear this hundred heavy stick, not only for this little brother, but also for this lady!" Another strong young man came out.

"I'm coming too!"

"I come!"

"And I!"

Infected by all the righteous people, people kept raising their hands in response, and the Xuande Gate was in a state of frenzy. There were also many old and weak women and children who covered their faces and wept, their hearts were shocked. The boy and the woman knelt on the ground and kowtowed again and again, while still refusing, "We understand the good intentions of the elders and fellow countrymen, and we don't need to implicate others. We will avenge our grievances and sue our grievances ourselves."

On one hand the guards were captured by the people's righteousness, and their hearts were greatly touched, but on the other hand, they did not dare to make exception, so they had to send someone to report to their superiors.

Emperor Sheng Yuan's eyes were slightly red, his throat was blocked, and there was a constant inexplicable emotion surging in his chest. Only then he understood what he was doing and what kind of changes he would bring to the world. If it wasn't for Madam pointed it out, it might take him five years, ten years, or even longer time to understand the strength of the people's hearts and supports, and to appreciate the vastness when the public opinions came together.

"If you want to rejuvenate the country, first settle the people. If the people's heart is good, the injustices in the world will be wiped out. If the people's heart is evil, the country will be destroyed and the people starving, relatives and friends will be ruined. Zhen open the way to speak and recast the legal code, it's actually the right thing. You look at them, can you see the war-torn hostility and despair? Can you see the numbness and disheartened of being thrown away from their home? The Emperor Teacher guides by loyalty and righteousness. Zhen willing to be a model, lead by example, and borrowing Madam's auspicious words, in less than five years the Great Wei will be restore, and within ten years will unify the rivers and mountains. Madam's words are always right."

Emperor Sheng Yuan pointed to the positive and energetic people, and there was a sense of pride.

Qin Lingyun nodded in agreement, but sighed in his heart: Nowadays you just say "Madame says this, madam says that", it has really become a specialty of Sichuan and Shu – rake ears , and still quite enjoying yourself, really falling deeper and deeper.

Looking at the excited people, Zhao Luli had another feeling, as if he fell into the surging river and was about to die. Is this the sin of the Ye family? If things get bigger and bigger, how will it end? The Ye family is over, what about Zhen'er? Won't the Marquis Mansion be implicated?

While thinking about it, a middle-aged man in an official robe hurried out of the Xuande Gate, sternly rejecting the people's proposal to be tortured on other's behalf, and only let the guards done things according to the rules, but secretly told them to use less power, the boards made crackling sound, but only hurt the outer layer of flesh. After a hundred sticks, not to mention two adults, even the boy could get up quickly and thank him. The people were indignant at first, but when they saw what happened later they came to their senses, and endlessly praising him.

"Who is this person? Not confuse the law, but secretly benevolent, thorough from top to bottom, not one drop was leak. He is truly a talent!" Qin Lingyun's eyes lit up as he praised.

"This person is the eldest disciple of Old Master Guan, Zhou Lekang, and the newly appointed young minister in Prime Minister office." Emperor Sheng Yuan gave the person a deep look and then waved his hand, "Go back to the palace."

While walking, his thoughts were mixed, he never expected that even the "double-sided embroidery" was snatched by Ye Zhen with vicious means. So what kind of inside story the life-saving grace from back then? Because of this woman, he lost a brother he treated sincerely, lost the empress who should belong to him, and perhaps missed the only soul that could enter his heart.

His loss, his injustice, his anger, who should he sue? Emperor Sheng Yuan seemed to have a fire burning in his heart. He walked halfway, and suddenly said gloomily, "Go to Heavenly Prison, I will personally interrogate Ye Quanyong."

Qin Lingyun silently turned around and shed tears of sympathy for Ye Quanyong.

Zhao Luli didn't dare to keep up. He stood on the side of the road for a while before leaving in a daze. Suddenly, his nose felt a little cold, and when he looked up, he realized that it was raining. The rain was thin and dense, carried along the spring's chill and dreadfulness, afraid he would get sick after being poured on for a while. He cleared his mind for a moment, and hurriedly ran towards the palace gate in the north, where Liu shi and a pair of children were still kneeling and begging for life.

On this side, Guan Suyi arrived at her maiden house before the rain, took off her cloak, changed into her regular clothes, and then went to the main hall to pay respect. Zhong shi stood anxiously under the porch and waited, with an expression of wanting to speak but hesitated. However, Old Maaster Guan and Guan Father looked as usual, and ordered their servants to prepare dishes and drinks and sit down for a light meal.

"Just now Zhao Luli looking for you to make a scene?" Guan Father opened his mouth under the old man's gesture.

"Just a piece of waste, it's not much of a trouble." Guan Suyi poured wine for her grandfather, her brows and eyes were all calm and indifferent.

Only then did Guan Father nodded and chuckled, "Good, my child is indeed not inferior to men. Marrying a daughter into a high gate and marry a wife from a low gate, one is to promote the family wealth, and the other is to strengthen the husband's dominance. My Guan family's wealth is a pair of proud bones, a bold and loyal heart, and does not need the embellishment of other vulgar things. My Guan family's daughter have a clear conscience, no need to flatter, no need to accept compromise, no need to bear the shame and humiliation. Didn't his Marquis Zhenbei Mansion let the words out that our Guan family just climbing the marriage? Then let father completely humbled him, and see who climbs who, this is to strengthen wife's dominance."

Hearing this, Guan Suyi burst out laughing, but Zhong shi only sighed and shook her head.

rake ears: it is Sichuan dialect, it means a man who is afraid of his wife.

Chapter 55 Executed

Zhong shi saw her father-in-law and her husband didn't take Ye Mansion's ransacking seriously, even made up this "wife's dominance" thing, as if they were raising their daughter as a son, she couldn't help but hurriedly said, "Yiyi, don't listen to your father's nonsense, what is it this wife's dominance thing, don't make people laugh. If the family's daughter loses her husband's favor, her life will be extremely difficult. He will not give you son, he will not protect you, the pair of children will view you as enemy and alienated you, and to go as far as trampling you. When you are old and weak in the future, you can neither rely on your husband nor your children, then how should you live? Besides, Zhao Wangshu is going to inherit the title. When he becomes the head of Marquis Mansion, he can deal with you unscrupulously. So you absolutely can't get to that point, let's find a way to ease the relationship!"

Old Master Guan frowned, obviously dissatisfied with what his daughter-in-law said. Guan Father stopped eating and drinking, slapped the table and said angrily, "Woman's foolishness, don't corrupt my child!"

What is this woman's foolishness? What is this corrupting your child? Are you and father-in-law really forget Yiyi's gender? She is a daughter, not a son! Zhong shi was sullen in her heart, but it was not easy to argue with her husband in front of her daughter.

Guan Suyi was about to appease her mother, but she heard her father sneered and said, "Women can have a footing in the back house, one by relying on favor, and the other by relying on her maiden's family, in other words, power and status. Men in the world, apart from the ones that truly self-cultivated and have a noble character, which one is not quick to switch sides and halfhearted? How is one to know how long this bit of pampering today will last? Instead of pinning your life hopes on others, it's better to be self-reliant. According to you, in order for my child to have something to rely on in her old age, she has follow the Marquis Mansion and the Ye family in everything. They want to take concubines, we can't object; they want to take concubines as wives, we can only bear it; if in the future that concubine gives birth to a shu son, their heart will grow bigger. If you want to be the righteous Marquis Zhenbei Madam, according to what you said, my child should take the initiative to give in, just so that the pair of stepchildren can support her for the rest of her life?"

Guan Father became more and more angry, and asked, "Would you like to let my child rely on others' breath, endure humiliation and burdens, and accept compromise for a lifetime, or would you like to see her raise her head and straighten her back, be an upright person?"

Raise her head and straighten her back, be an upright person. Zhong shi was dumbstruck by the questions, and could not help but look at her daughter with shame on her face. Guan Suyi smiled and shook her head, indicating it was alright.

Old Master Guan put down his wine cup and said slowly, "I'm not good with words, and I don't understand the ways of the world, so I'm often misunderstood, and the path will always be blocked. However, I never take a detour. If there is a stone in the front, I will move the stone away, if there is a south wall, I will break the south wall in the front, I will break the south wall, even if I die on the way, I will get what I want. This is the style of my Guan family, choose the straight path, loyalty, benevolence, righteousness, repaying kindness with kindness, repaying claws and teeth also with claws and teeth. For those who are benevolent and virtuous, we will talk to them with benevolence and virtue, and for those who cheat and manipulate power, we will also talk to them with power. The Ye family is not benevolent nor virtuous, like to usurp power, expecting us to repay them with kindness is delusional. It's better to kick it away like a stone, and break it like a wall with all your might, so that they can no longer block your way. Then when you look at them again, it's just a few random clamoring ants, it won't get in the way."

Zhong shi murmured, "But Yiyi still has to live in Marquis Mansion…"

Old Master Guan said in a light tone, "There will be no Marquis Mansion anymore. Although I have not impeached Marquis Zhenbei, as long as the emperor strictly investigate and handle it, he will not escape the punishment. Hundreds of lives are no small matter, and taking away the title is considered light. However, looking at my and Yunqi's face, Yiyi's first-rank title can still be preserved, and whether the Zhao family can recover in the future depends on how Yiyi acts." Speaking until here, the old man touched his granddaughter's head and instructed cautiously, "If the Zhao family can wake up and treat you well, and you will treat them with all your heart. If they can't, with your rank on your side, and your father and I supporting you, why should you be afraid of anyone? The Ye and Zhou, those two families has collapse, but you have not defeated, it should be those people depend on your breath to live."

Zhong shi was completely speechless, so she could only bury her head while serving her daughter.

Remembering the previous life of accepting a compromise and enduring the humiliation, and then looked at this extremely happy life, Guan Suyi burst into tears and was filled with emotion. In her last life, she dedicated herself to protecting her family, but in this life, they were the ones who have painstakingly protected herself. Was it really the cycle of karma, where good and evil has their own compensation?

"Grandfather, father and mother, you all have paved the way for me, if I don't live well in this life, then I failed the teachings you have taught me for more than ten years. I will take the straight path, how they treat me is how I will treat them, never let myself suffer losses, let alone discredit the Guan family. It doesn't matter if there is favor or not, it doesn't matter if there is a title, as long as I feel happy with my self."

"It's good for my child to think like this. Don't let those bad people and bad things ruin the atmosphere of our family reunion." Guan Father laughed, raised his cup and drank, and finally said casually, "That's right, my child, do you still have that Fragrant Snow Sea? You also know that your grandfather is clumsy. If there is a government affairs every day, he will write and rewrite the memorial, change it again and again, and then copy it several times, so the paper was used up especially fast. If you have extra, give him a few folder."

Guan Suyi smiled and said, "I gave a folder to Li shi of the Marquis Zhenxi Mansion a few days ago. I still have two folder left, and I will ask Minglan to fetch it later."

"Li shi? Madam of the main house of Marquis Zhenxi Mansion?" Guan Father pondered, "She is a person with a temperament and is worthy of friendship. You are not familiar with noble ladies in Yanjing, so it's better to walk around with her more. Since there are only two folder left, save one for yourself, and make for us more in the future."

Guan Suyi said it was not a problem, and persuaded her father and grandfather to stop drinking.

—-

The emperor's mansion was peaceful and happy, but the Ye family outside the north gate was miserable and wretched. It rained not long after they knelt down. At first, a few small droplets were fleeting, and soon it rolled like threads, and after it got into their clothes, it was extremely cold and chilling to the bone marrow.

"Mother, are we still kneeling?" The eldest daughter-in-law leaned into Liu shi's ear and asked.

"Kneel, why not kneel? On a rainy day we still kneel to show our sincerity." Liu shi raised her hand and shouted, "This mister, can you please send a message to Ganquan Palace, saying that Ye's Liu shi is outside asking to see."

The guards had already heard about the change in Ye Mansion, and even the emperor also confessed his guilt, so it could be seen that there was no room for turning around. At this time, not only giving them some face was not good, but it might even anger the top, so they all had to be deaf and blind, and ignore it.

Liu shi shouted and shouted, knelt and knelt, but it was all in vain, she couldn't help but lie on the ground and cried bitterly. When she cried, the rest of the family also cried, and a few other children didn't know what was going on, they looked left and right, their mouths shriveled, and suddenly they opened their throats and let out a shriek. The harsh sound broke through the rain curtain and reached the sky.

The guard was so upset by the noise that he rushed over with his sword and scolded, "What are you wailing? If you disturb the nobles that passing by, can you afford it? Even the emperor has been implicated by you, even writing down a Guilty Edict, and you still want to ask for mercy? Keep dreaming! Are your faces bigger than the emperor?"

"Mister, please pass on a message to Jieyu niangniang! This is for you, you take it!" Because the family property had been confiscated, Liu shi was penniless, so she had to take off the golden hairpin on her head to bribe.

The guard's eyes flashed slightly, and his heart said it was just to pass on words, he didn't have to go there in person, just pick a small eunuch who had just returned to the palace, and let him run for a while. There was also the eunuch on top who could take the blame, it was nothing, so he gathered one of his sleeve, his five fingers were clenched, and ready to accept it. At this moment, a luxurious and extraordinary carriage approached not far away, and arrived at the gate of the palace in a short while.

The guard hurriedly pushed the golden hairpin away, went forward to check, but saw a hand with sharp bones sticking out from the raised carriage curtain, holding a token between his fingers, a five-clawed golden dragon flying in the clouds, surrounded by blood jade, its majestic was really terrifying.

"This subordinate have seen Lord Marquis Zhenxi." The guard promptly knelt down and saluted, and hurriedly swept his eyes onto the gap with his heart pounding. He saw that the person sitting beside Marquis Zhenxi was not someone else, but His Majesty. He was wiping his face, front of clothes, wrists, and so on with a white handkerchief, blood splatter were all over his body, and a strong fishy smell spread in the carriage.

This is, this is just coming out from the torture chamber? The guard's scalp was numb, and he couldn't think of anyone who still had the "blessing" to make His Majesty toiling the torture himself.

However, he soon learned the answer, and only listened to His Majesty's solemn voice, "That's the Ye family? Tell them that Ye Quanyong is dead, don't kneel in front of the palace gate to cry, it's unsightly."

The guard trembled and promised, and when he was sending the carriage away, Marquis Zhenxi smiled contemptuously, and said vaguely, "Ye Quanyong, that old fucker, hides poison between his teeth, that's the death soldier's method. He not only can't get rid of the relationship with the Second Prince's hidden troops, afraid even the greed of the previous dynasty was involved. I thought he was just a businessman, didn't expect to hide it so deeply…"

No matter how many words, it disappeared in the rain, making the guard's whole body cold. He was secretly glad that he didn't pick up the golden hairpin. He turned his head and saw that Liu shi was still staring at him, he couldn't help but get extremely angry, kicked her over and scolded, "Get lost, all get lost for this old man! The above has already spoken, you are not allowed to kneel here. You go to the Heavenly Prison to inquire, the sinner Ye Quanyong has already been executed, even kneeling to death at the gate of the palace is no use!"

"What did you say? Master is already dead? Impossible, this is absolutely impossible! The emperor has not yet started the trial, who would dare to touch the master's hair?" Liu shi cried frantically.

The guard kicked more and more fiercely, and the other colleagues also ran over to help expel them. If the person who spoke before was not the emperor, they would not dare to treat the Ye family members like this. However, Master Ye was indeed dead, and it was still the emperor himself who tortured him. Even if Ye Jieyu's honor and favor had broken the sky in the past, there would be no room for her to turn around in the future. So offending Ye Mansion could be said to have no pressure.

In the chaos, Zhao Chunxi and Zhao Wangshu were also kicked several times, their bodies were cold, their bones were aching, and their hearts were full of shame, embarrassment and fear, only thought they never felt so low before, never felt ashamed and unable to show their faces, as if they could melt into the mud with the rain. At this moment, they didn't want to be in the company of Ye family at all. They were the son and daughter of the dignified Marquis Zhenbei Mansion, why should they suffer such humiliation?

"Don't hit, we are the young miss and young master of Marquis Zhenbei Mansion, we are not the Ye family! Please stop hitting!" Zhao Chunxi shouted loudly while protecting her younger brother.

The guards were stunned for a while, and just at this moment, Zhao Luli hurried over, protecting his two children in his arms, and went to pull the embarrassed Liu shi and the others. When he was about to reprimand, he heard the leader of the guards shout, "What about Marquis Zhenbei? It was the emperor himself who told you to leave, so as not to hinder the view. If you don't want to leave, it's fine, and when the emperor demand an explanation, we will report it truthfully, punish you for the crime of 'blocking the palace gate, intended to rebel', and arrest everyone and put them in the heavenly prison."

"Yeah, that's how it should be for those who refuse a toast and still drink the penalty wine." Another guard sneered and echoed.

Zhao Luli was dumbfounded, and the anger on his face turned into fear. He hurriedly pulled the quail-like Liu shi and the others, hired a few spacious carriages, and brought them back to the Marquis Mansion for resettlement.

south wall: a wall used to block sight in traditional Chinese architecture.

refuse a toast and still drink the penalty wine: hesitate to do something until forced to do even more.

Chapter 56 Dove Occupied

(T/N: the title doesn't make sense because it's related to the next chapter's title)

Guan Suyi stayed at home for a whole day, embroidered with her mother, practiced calligraphy with her father and grandfather, ate dinner, loosened up a little in the garden, and when the food had been digested she went back to the Marquis Mansion neither too slow nor too fast. As soon as the carriage drove into the back alley, they saw the steward mama standing on the side of the road with an umbrella while looking over her neck, her face looked very anxious.

"Mother Wang, it's raining, what are you doing here?" Minglan asked as she lifted the curtain of the carriage.

"Oh, madam, you're finally back." The steward mama hurriedly stepped forward to meet her, and talked like a burst of cannons, "Lord Marquis brought all the womenfolk of the Ye family, and now they are gathered in the old madam's room, crying. Liu shi even went to our main house to look for you earlier, saying that she wanted to fight with you, but she was pulled by a few grannies. They made trouble for a while, and after seeing that you hasn't come back for a long time they went to the main courtyard. The old madam wanted to drive them away, so they ran to the main entrance of the Marquis Mansion, knelt down and kowtowed, shouted out grievance and beg for mercy, provoking passers-by to come to see, saying that our Marquis Mansion is not benevolent, forcing the old madam to be helpless, and asked Lord Marquis to solve it by himself. You also know what kind a person Lord Marquis is, always gave everything for the Ye Mansion, how can he drive the people away, only wish he could take in the entire Ye family, and then he also kneel down and beg the old madam for mercy, almost making the old madam faint."

The steward wiped the rain off her face and continued, "The old madam really can't handle him, she is looking forward to your return! Hurry up, hurry up, go to the main courtyard, it's an emergency."

Guan Suyi frowned slightly and instructed, "You go to the old madam first and send a message that I will come as soon as possible after I change my clothes."

"Yes, yes! This servant is going right now." The steward sighed in relief, then ran away with the oil-paper umbrella crookedly.

Guan Suyi got off the carriage, Minglan and Jinzi hurriedly covered her from the rain, and the three master and servant returned to the main house with muddy feet. After freshening up, she changed into a clean dress, took the account book, abacus, keys, matching cards, etc., and then slowly stepped into the rain curtain and walked towards the main courtyard.

"As long as we go back to the Marquis Mansion, there will be countless dirty things. Miss, next time you go back to your maiden's house, don't bring this servant with you, the gap is too big and this servant really can't adapt." Minglan sighed.

Jinzi laughed, thinking that this little girl's words were really interesting.

Guan Suyi also slightly curved her lips and replied, "Okay, don't follow next time, I'll send you directly to Zhao Luli, and I'll pick you up in a few hours, and you'll be able to experience climbing from hell to the Western Paradise, and you will surely cry with joy when you see me."

"No no no, this servant would rather serve a pig than the Marquis." Seeing that this was a bit too poisonous, Minglan glanced at her miss secretly, seeing that she didn't seem to have heard it, she winked at Jinzi.

It turned out that Marquis Zhenbei was inferior to a pig in the hearts of these master and servant, Jinzi secretly kept this information to her heart.

The three walked around the rippling lotus pond, walked through the rained on corridor, and went straight to the hanging flower gate full of roses in full bloom. As soon as they crossed the threshold, they saw many people standing under the eaves of the main courtyard. Most of them were womenfolk, as well as more than a dozen young men, young women, and children, all of whom were very good-looking.

One of the middle-aged women seemed to know Guan Suyi and screamed, "Mother, that bitch Guan shi is here!"

Hearing the sound, Liu shi rushed out of the house, raised her hands with long fingernails, and said angrily, "Little bitch, you're finally back! You've hurt my Ye family to this point, I'll fight with you! See if I don't tear you apart today!"

"Hit her, beat her to death!" Didn't know which young man took the opportunity to stir up everyone's emotions, and several women followed closely with vicious expressions. They moved too fast, and Marquis Mansion's guards who were guarding around the courtyard had no time to react, they didn't expect the Ye family to be so arrogant when they were already dying, and they dared to make trouble in other people's territory.

Jinzi was about to protect the master, when she heard a crisp sound of "pop", Liu shi was slapped by her madam and flew far away, unable to get up for a while, followed by a girl with a stick in her hand, who was also stunned, and the weapon was immediately grabbed by her, snapped it into two pieces, and threw it on the ground carelessly.

The stick as thick as an adult's wrist was actually broken like this, and everyone in the Ye family was a little afraid. Guan Suyi then took out her name post and said solemnly, "Minglan, the criminal Ye family's woman want to murder this madam, and now there are witness and evidence, you immediately go to the Department of Justice to send a word and ask them to come over and arrest her."

"Yes!" Minglan took the post and looked at it, it turned out that miss had already written it when she was at her parents' house, which showed that she had expected this situation.

The Ye family was stunned for a moment, and then they were terrified, wanted to beg for mercy but unwilling to give up their face, couldn't help but look at Liu shi. With great difficulty Liu shi finally get up, and when she heard these words, she lost all her arrogance, and said in a trembling voice, "Who is going to murder you? We didn't even lay a finger on you, but we were beaten to pieces by you! It's a false accusation! My face, the slap print on my face is the proof!"

Guan Suyi passed over the Ye family members who glared like a tiger watching his prey, dared to be angry but did not dare to speak, and said word by word, "I beat you, whether it's justified or not, you have to bear it, because you are a criminal now, and I am a first-rank title woman. Don't say that you intend to attack me, even if your eyes are a little disrespectful, I will immediately give you a round of hitting board and you will have nowhere to complain. And you," she said contemptuously, turning her fingertips around, "if I'm unhappy, I can immediately send you to Heavenly Prison to reunited with Ye Quanyong." Speaking until here she clapped her palms a little, and pretended to suddenly realize, "Look at this madam's memory, it seems that the sinner Ye Quanyong has already feared the crime and already die, isn't it?"

She poked at the Ye family's sore point with every word, making them embarrassed and desperate, and at the same time felt extremely terrified. The people who were still full of arrogance just now were like eggplants beaten by the frost, and they all shrank into the corner one by one, for fear that Marquis Zhenbei Madam would not like them and let the officials arrest them.

Minglan stood at the corner for a while, and when she saw the yard was quiet, she said, "Miss, do you still want to report to the officials?"

"You are guarding here. If anyone is disrespectful or has bad intentions, it's not too late to make a report." Guan Suyi stepped into the main hall without looking back, "Keep an eye on all of them for me, and send anyone who is not honest to prison. People who live relying on others' charity should have the consciousness of someone who live relying on others' charity, don't always think that everyone in the world has to revolve around your Ye Mansion."

All the family members raised their voices and answered with the promise, and very appropriately threw away the stick in their hands. Liu shi was completely stunned, clutching her rapidly swollen left face, standing in a daze under the porch, a look of resentment slowly appeared in her eyes, and then she became dazed. Guan Suyi passed through the main hall and entered the inner room, and found that Zhao Luli was clasping Zhao Chunxi and Zhao Wangshu to kowtow to the old madam, his face was full of anxiety and sorrow.

The old madam closed her eyes tightly and twisted the Buddha beads in her hands, she was already powerless to resist. When she heard the footsteps she raised her eyes, and said in surprise, "Suyi, you're back! Quick, get rid of those people outside! They are not welcome in my Marquis Mansion!"

"Mother! The Ye family has fallen to this point. No matter how much resentment you have, now is time to help, right? If I leave them alone, they are penniless, and they are all old and weak women and children, how can they live in Yanjing City? What's more, father-in-law has offended a lot of people, if there are people who throw stone while somebody down and deliberately finds fault, what do you think will happen to them? If it goes wrong, it will cost several lives. No matter how father-in-law violates the law, the women and the children are always innocent. You save their lives is to accumulate virtue for yourself, and there will be good rewards in the future. Mother, I beg you, mother!" Zhao Luli dared not go to Guan Suyi, with a slap from the day before yesterday, coupled with reprimand today, he always had a feeling that he couldn't lift his head in front of her.

Seeing his mother turned her face away with a grim expression, he hurriedly held his son and daughter and kowtowed again.

Guan Suyi calmly walked to the old madam's side and sat down, and looked at the father and children from head to toe. Very good, drenched in the rain, but the clothes on the body hasn't been changed, and the hair hasn't been dried, so they rushed to the main courtyard with a pale face, which clearly to make a bitter trick!

Zhao Luli was really infatuated with his "dead wife", but he didn't realize that the pair of children might not be of the same mind with him, especially Zhao Chunxi, whose unwillingness almost overflowed.

Guan Suyi shook her head and laughed, she was worthy of being Ye Zhen's daughter, her selfish nature was exactly the same. Since she liked to stick to the Ye family so much in the previous life, and always thought that the Ye family was good and perfect everywhere, then let her fulfill her wish in this life, let her eat, live and sleep with the Ye family's womenfolk, and see how long she could endure.

While thinking about it, the old madam couldn't bear it anymore, patted the back of her daughter-in-law's hand, and whispered, "Suyi, whether the Ye family is leaving or staying, you can say something."

Except for Zhao Luli, who was very nervous, everyone else stared at her with hopeful eyes, especially Zhao Chunxi. She thought that the Guan family had vendetta against the Ye family, and Guan Suyi definitely would not tolerate the womenfolk of the Ye family, so let her be the villain, and she only need to stand up at the right time and blame her stepmother for being ruthless, and then she was "forced to compromise" after making a little fuss, in this way, she not only followed her original intention, fulfilled her filial piety, and also had a good reputation for being benevolent, it could be said to be watertight.

However, Guan Suyi was destined to disappoint her. She gave Jinzi a slight hook, and handed over a stack of account books and a small abacus to make it convenience. It was obvious that she was well prepared, and she had no lack of plan in her mind.

"Whether the Ye family will leave or stay, it's up to Lord Marquis to decide." Spreading out the account book and smoothing out the abacus, she spoke word by word.

"Suyi!" The old madam was extremely shocked, Zhao Chunxi's eyes flashed slightly, and her heart was disappointed.

"Don't worry, listen to me first." Guan Suyi patted the back of the old madam's hand and continued, "Does Lord Marquis want to keep the Ye family forever and take full responsibility for their food, clothing, housing and transportation; Or are you going to take them for a while and then find another place to settle down when the situation calm down?"

Thinking of the "dead wife" who was seriously ill, the father-in-law who died inexplicably, and the mother-in-law who was miserable and helpless outside, Zhao Luli bit his teeth and said firmly, "Naturally being a good person who will do it to the end and take care of them for the rest of their lives. The Ye family's shop was sealed, the family's property was confiscated, and even the sacrificial fields were seized, what do they have to support themselves in the future? If I ignore them, or give up halfway, they have no choice but to die. Madam, I know that I was wrong before. I apologize to you here, please forgive me a lot, also please spare the Ye family, so as to leave them a way to survive!" When the words finished, there were "bang bang bang" noises as he kowtowed his head on the ground.

Before Zhao Chunxi and Zhao Wangshu could react, their father pressed their heads down and ordered, "Quickly kowtow to your mother and admit your mistake, and ask her to save your grandmother!"

Zhao Wangshu cooperated ignorantly, but Zhao Chunxi seemed to have swallowed a fly, her heart was unwilling and extremely disgusted, but she had to obey because of moral relations.

Chapter 57 Magpie's Nest

Even if the father and children smashed their heads, Guan Suyi would not be touched, not to mention they were just making appearance. She tapped her fingers on the table, and said casually, "It's the same sentence, whether the Ye family can stay or not, it's up to Lord Marquis to decide."

She flicked her hand at Jinzi and asked, "Among those people just now, how many married women, elderly, young men and women, and young children are there?"

Jinzi's heart was slightly stunned, secretly thought that Madam's test had finally come, and she couldn't help but racking her brain to recall, hesitantly said, "Reporting to Madam, there are sixteen married women, they are the mistress of Ye Mansion Liu shi, sinner Ye Quanyong's nine concubines, main branch's eldest daughter-in-law Song shi, second daughter-in-law Li shi, fourth daughter-in-law Tang shi, the third branch's madam Wang shi, third branch's concubine Wu shi, third branch's eldest daughter-in-law Zheng shi. There are four elderly people, third old master, third old madam, and also two concubines of Old Master Ye. There are seventeen youngsters… six boys and eleven girls, this servant hasn't been able to differentiate each one, asking madam to please forgive; there are four young children, namely Song shi's young son, Li shi's young daughter, Tang shi's young daughter, Zheng shi's young daughter."

Guan Suyi gave her a thoughtful look, nodded and said, "You miss one person, there are eighteen youngsters, six boys and twelve girls, the youngsters are each branch's di and shu children. Among the twelve young girls only Ye Fu, Ye Fen, and Ye Ran are the di misses, the rest are all excellent-looking people selected from various side branches, they are assess every month, and those who fail to meet expectations will be sent home, and there will be substitutes. The longest one stayed in Ye Mansion for several years, the shortest one only one or two days, you definitely won't recognize all."

Jinzi had been specially trained to recognize many faces in a quick glance and count many people, but Madam had sharper eyes and quicker mind than her, even if the leader of the dark guard came, he would be slightly inferior. Is this the so-called "gift of talent"? Madam is truly extraordinary!

Jinzi was already convinced, but Zhao Luli didn't know what they were going on about, so he couldn't help saying urgently, "Madam, we will count how many people in the Ye family later. Let's find a place for them to settle down first, so they won't get seriously ill by the spring cold weather. Didn't you let me decide? I agree and let all of them stay."

Zhao Wangshu smiled stupidly, thinking that he was looking forward to living with his cousins, but Zhao Chunxi turned pale and was reluctant.

Guan Suyi lowered her eyelids and slowly fiddled with the abacus, "It won't be too late to make a decision after I finish my words. The Marquis Mansion now has 216 people, eight masters and 208 servants. Lord Marquis monthly expenses ranged from 500 to 1,000 taels, and it was as high as 4,000 to 5,000 taels during the New Years. The second master is not in Yanjing, so let's not count him, but sister-in-law is pregnant, and still taking care of Mu Mu, the medicinal materials should not be lacking. There are also four seasons clothes, pearl hairpins, head ornaments and other items, which add up to about 200 taels. The old madam has always been frugal, but as she is getting older, it's indispensable to ask the doctor to check the pulse from time to time, and prescribe a few safety prescriptions. We also have to give offering to the temples, donate sesame oil, and these are 100 taels in total; Zhao Chunxi's monthly silver is 20 taels each month, plus clothes, fabric, jewelry, rouge and other items from time to time, adding up to at least 80 taels. If she want to buy any precious jewelry, it can add up to several thousand taels at a time; Zhao Wangshu is given 20 taels per month, salary of private tutor is 20 taels, and 50 taels for brush, ink, paper and inkstone per month. There are also social amusement, clothes and exquisite items cost nearly 500 taels here and there; the main house has no expenses, so it's only counted as 50 taels. In addition, every few months, there must be weddings and funerals held by close family members or superiors and subordinates, and the gifts will be paid from the public fund, which is also a lot of money."

She fiddled with the abacus quickly, and the white fingertips lined with the bright yellow abacus beads were so beautiful that Jinzi was entranced.

The old madam had already tasted the taste, and finally let out a slow sigh of relief.

"Among the two hundred and eight servants, the rough servants are 300 copper coin per month, the third-class servants are 500 copper coin per month, the second-class servants are one taels , the first-class servants are two taels. Each divisional steward has two or three taels, the deputy housekeeper has four taels, and the housekeeper has five taels of silver. Among them, there are sixty-eight rough servants, fifty-four third-class servants, thirty-seven second-class servants, thirty-six first-class servants, five stewards, and four deputy housekeeper, and one housekeeper, the total monthly salary is 192 taels and four coin, which is 2308 taels and eight coins in one year, plus the expenses of the masters…"

She cracked and counted for a while, then raised her eyes and said, "Lord Marquis, you can see that the annual cost of the Marquis Mansion is as high as 19,182 taels and 8 coins, and it is still calculated according to the most economical cost. If I really calculate thoroughly with you, the chewing of a few hundred servants alone are not a small amount, and if the master has to wear clothes and eat, so they don't need it? If the monthly silver not come out, who would care to serve and run errand for you? However, how much income does the Marquis Mansion earn every year, you also very clear in your heart. The shop, the fields, your and my official's salary, and the money for the public fund that the second master sends every year, can barely maintain the balance of income and expenditure. Now that you want to take in the Ye family members, you think it's just a matter of lip service, by all means just go to the accountant to get the money, but I am in charge of central feeder, I have to tell you clearly. When I come to ask you, how do you want to take care of them? Is it only to give a bite of food or to follow the example of the Marquis Mansion's masters? If we compare the master's example, the annual fee is…"

In the room, there was another crisp sound of bead collision and the woman's tactful announcement. Gradually, Zhao Luli's forehead was covered in cold sweat, and his head was getting lower and lower.

After a while, Guan Suyi pushed the abacus to the table and said coldly, "The expenses of the sixteen married women and the four elders are all compared to the old madam, 24,000 taels per year; The six young masters compared to Zhao Wangshu is 36,000 per year; The twelve young misses compared to Zhao Chunxi, 11,520 per year; four young children compared to Mu Mu, 1,920 per year, the total is 73,440 taels, plus the monthly silver of the servants brought by the people, is about 74,000 taels. This is not even counting legal fees and the management of the Ye Mansion's men who are imprisoned in the Heavenly Prison, and expanse to lighten the punishment. Dare to ask Lord Marquis where the annual expenditure of nearly 100,000 taels comes from? To steal or to rob?"

The old madam was completely at ease. While twisting the Buddhist beads, she watched her son sweat like rain, embarrassed and disgraceful.

"How about just give a bite of food?" Zhao Luli's face was red as blood.

Guan Suyi glanced at him contemptuously, slowly smoothed the abacus, and said in a low voice, "It's also costs a lot of money to give a bite of food to eat, so Lord Marquis needs to be prepared. To provide so many people, food, clothing, housing, and transportation, as for food…"

Everyone stared at her fingertips that were flying up and down, blooming like a flower. In fact, when she fiddled with the small abacus it was indeed beautiful, and the results were obtained in a moment. Even if it was reduced again and again, it would take about 23,000 taels.

"Lord Marquis, please give me your word, should the Ye family leave or stay?" Guan Suyi pushed the mess back to him.

Zhao Wangshu had already shown timidity at this time, and quietly hid by his grandmother's side, while Zhao Chunxi looked up at her father, desperately wanting to get the word "leave" from his mouth.

However, if Zhao Luli could give up Ye Zhen and her maiden clan, he would not be the infatuated bastard who could even harm his own wife and children like in the previous life. He thought for a while, then hesitated, "If we let them stay, is there a more economical way?"

The old madam, who thought her son would choose to compromise, almost fainted, severly broke the Buddha beads in her hand, and scolded "unfilial son". Zhao Chunxi stopped breathing, and then quickly buried her head so that everyone could not see her resentful expression.

Guan Suyi was naturally unmoved, and she flipped the abacus lightly, "There are two ways to be more economical, one is to expand financial resources, the other is to control the money flow . There are only so many shops and fields in the Marquis Mansion, and there are no money to buy more. If want to expand financial resources, the only way is to ask the second brother to send back more silver every year."

"No! The second brother is defending against the enemy at the border, and he always puts his life on stake, it's unknown whether he can return safely in this life. The silvers he sent are his blood and sweat, and I am too ashamed to take it." Zhao Luli unexpectedly refuse.

Even you still have some conscience. Guan Suyi pursed her lips and continued, "Then there is only one way, to control the money flow. If the expenses of Marquis Mansion and Ye Mansion is to be reduced by half, you can barely make do with the situation. But let me say it first, the old madam is in her old years, and her spirit is not good, her expenses must be not less."

"Naturally." Zhao Luli nodded.

"My sister-in-law is pregnant and taking care of Mu Mu, so the cost of the second house can't be less."

"Naturally."

"I will be responsible for the cost of the main house in the future, and I will not take a cent from the Marquis Mansion, lest some people make irresponsible remarks behind my back."

"No!" Zhao Luli and the old madam refused in unison.

Guan Suyi was not a living Bodhisattva, so why should she sacrifice herself for the Ye family? However, she had long planned to draw a clear line with the Marquis Mansion, so she took advantage of this pretext to completely separate the main house from the Central Feeder, which also saved a lot of entanglements in the future. Besides, she even gave up the cost of the main house, no matter how dissatisfied the Ye family was, this alone could make them speechless, and outsiders could not find the slightest mistake.

She didn't care about her own reputation, but she had to take care the reputation of the Guan family, so it was better to act carefully.

"If I don't make a statement, the Ye family will be not be able to endure a poor life in the future, and won't the main house never be peaceful?"

"Mother-in-law is not that kind of person. If I explain to her carefully, she will understand my difficulties." Zhao Luli said firmly.

Hearing this, the old madam and Guan Suyi both smiled coldly, even Zhao Chunxi shook her head secretly, slandering: If my grandmother could really understand others, she would not force everyone to kowtow at the gate of the palace on rainy days, and she would not cry and shout to live in Marquis Mansion. The selfishness of the Ye family is engraved in their bones, even if I have half of the Ye family blood, I have to admit it. I don't know what my mom did in the past to make my dad value the Ye family so much. Mom, you are the most selfish person in the world!

After all kinds of changes, Zhao Chunxi actually held a grudge against Ye Zhen, and her mood became more and more difficult to calm down.

Guan Suyi was too lazy to argue with this idiot, and said lightly, "What Lord Marquis can say whatever he want, but the decision I make cannot be changed, the main house's expanse is to be separated from the Central Feed, and there will be no interference in the future. Next we continue to how to save money. After all, Lord Marquis still wants to have dealing with others, so the cost can be reduced by half, Zhao Wangshu and Zhao Chunxi will be reduced by two-thirds, and the servants serving in the front yard, Penglai Garden, and Jingzhe Tower will also be reduced to 30%, which can distribute eight or nine thousand taels, barely able to feed the Ye family."

Zhao Wangshu still didn't realize what the concept of reducing by two-thirds was, but Zhao Chunxi complained into the bone marrow, and her eyes were red. Why should she give up the beautiful clothes, luxurious fabric, jewelry, and rouge powder for the Ye family? When the Ye family was extremely wealthy, they didn't think about her at all.

However, Guan Suyi knocked on the table and said, "Eating and clothing have been settled, but there are still housing and travel arrangements that need to be arranged. The Ye family has forty-two masters and eighty-four servants. Where this one hundred and twenty-six people live, does Lord Marquis have an idea?"

Zhao Luli was questioned again, and his sweat gushed down.

Chapter 58 Wake Up

Guan Suyi had torn her face with Zhao Luli, so she didn't speak politely at this moment, and ordered Jinzi to bring the map of the Marquis Mansion and pointed out, "The current Marquis Zhenbei Mansion is the former residence of the previous dynasty powerful official Long Qiu. Long Qiu last position was as Imperial Secretary, and the mansion was built with reference to the grade and ancestral system, originally it was not very spacious, and the population of the Marquis Mansion was simple. Over the years many courtyards were not used, so they were closed, nowadays they're all in despair, the eaves has declined, and it's impossible to lived in. If Lord Marquis want to accommodate this many people, you would have to spend a lot of money to repair the mansion.

Having said that, she swung the abacus up and down, put the bead back in its place, and continued, "I will do the calculation for the bill. If the wood is made of inferior elm, the stone is taken nearby, plus build the furniture and purchase the furnishings, add the bedding…," there was a crackling sound, then she spread her hands, "Total 6,680 taels, if you wipe off the fraction, it will be 6,000 taels. Lord Marquis, this year's profits from each estates and shops have not yet delivered, where do you find so much silver?"

Zhao Luli felt blood dripping down from his head and thought for a while before saying, "I still have a lot of antique calligraphy and paintings over there. If I take them out and sell them, I should be able to raise 10,000 taels of silver."

Guan Suyi nodded, "Okay, the money to repair the house is available, but it will take time to collect the money, after all you have to find a buyer slowly, right? Besides, it will take a year and a half to complete the repair of the house, and the Ye family was about to move in, so Lord Marquis please come out with a solution. But I have to say first, the old madam has a problem with migraine, please do not disturb, her main courtyard cannot add more people.

Seeing that Madam seemed to relent, Zhao Luli hurriedly said, "It's natural."

"My sister-in-law is pregnant and need to raise her fetus. Mu Mu is sensitive and thoughtful and can't be frightened, so cannot add people to the second house." Guan Suyi glanced at him strangely, and found that he was a little low-spirited, but she didn't know whether it was just her own imagination.

"Naturally, naturally." Zhao Luli continued to respond.

"I have an undeniable feud with the Ye family. To prevent someone from stabbing my back one day, I can't add anyone to the main house." Guan Suyi's tone was cold and fierce.

"I won't let the Ye family disturb Madam for half a minute." Zhao Luli swore quickly and said with a blushing face, "Then does Madam have any arrangements for the next step? I have never pay attention to the affairs of the back house, and I didn't know there are so many twist and turn in it, managing a family really is no easier than managing the country. Madam's bitter hardship, madam's comprehensiveness, madam's good intentions, I finally understand."

He paused, as if he still had a lot of feelings to be said, but because his throat was choked, he couldn't speak for a while, and when the surging shame and remorse were swallowed, he didn't know how to say it.

Guan Suyi didn't expect Zhao Luli to be able to speak human words, so she looked at him for a while, then clicked on the map and said, "Among the hundred or so people, the rough servants live together with the Marquis Mansion's rough servants, anyway, they are all sleep in communal beds, just add a few more beds; the first-, second-, and third-class maids, attendants, and stewards also follow this example. In other words, people who lived alone in the past will now have two, three, or even four people live together, I will hand over such trivial matters to the housekeeper to coordinate and deal with. After all the married women and the elderly are elders, so it's better to live in a more spacious place, so let them go to the main courtyard of Penglai Garden, and a dozen rooms are enough. Then set up the side courtyard and warm pavilion for the twelve misses to live with Zhao Chunxi. The young masters naturally accompany Zhao Wangshu. In this way, there are still five empty rooms in Jingzhe Tower, leaving it for a few young children and their wet nurses to live in temporarily, it can also barely squeezed them down."

Zhao Luli nodded again and again and thanked her continuously. Zhao Wangshu was also looking forward to the days of having several cousins every day. Only Zhao Chunxi, whose heart was smashed, but had to pretend to agree.

Guan Suyi glanced at her lightly, patted the old madam who was obviously unhappy, and suddenly changed the subject, "Food, clothing, and housing are all settled, Lord Marquis, don't think that everything is fine, there are still worse things to come."

Zhao Luli thought for a moment, then said sadly, "Madam is worried that the Marquis Mansion will get involve with the lawsuit? Please rest assured, Madam, I already have some thoughts, and I will never implicate my wife and children."

Guan Suyi actually didn't seem to know him, she looked at him up and down, left and right for a while, until she saw that his face turned red, turned white again, and then turned green, and only then said, "That is just one of the concerns. Based on Lord Marquis's care for the Ye Mansion, you must be deeply involved in those rotten things in his family, and it's not easy to clean it up."

Zhao Luli cupped his hands in despair, "Madam is absolutely right. I'm really stuck in the mud."

"Daddy!" Zhao Chunxi cried out in fear, only now that she finally shed a few sincere tears and choked, "Are you really going to be implicated? Will something happen to you? Will you be arrested and taken to prison? Will you be like my grandfather, like that…" She didn't dare to say the word "executed", and countless fears hit her heart, making her mind buzzing.

Zhao Wangshu finally felt that something was wrong. He jumped out from behind the old madam and said repeatedly, "Daddy will also be arrested and sent to prison? Really? Really?"

"It's a sin! It's a sin!" The old madam hugged her grandson and cried bitterly, she couldn't care about the Ye family outside.

The room was immediately shrouded in miserable gloom, but Guan Suyi remained calm, and waited for their voices to fade away before saying, "Blindly crying won't solve any problem. At this time the emperor has not yet open the trial, Lord Marquis still have the opportunity to atone your sins with merit. So juts took off your official robe, put thorns on your back, and go to Chengde Hall to confess your sins."

Zhao Luli felt more and more that his wife was calm and quick-witted, and even thought the situation for him. He couldn't help softening his face and sighed, "Madam is indeed virtuous and intelligent. I am very relieved to hand over this family to you. To marry you as a wife is really my…"

Guan Suyi was impatient to listen to his compliments and interrupted by tapping on the table, "Let's settle the Ye family's affairs first. To settle them, you will not only have to bear financial pressure, but will also cause many far-reaching and negative effects. Can you see clearly those beautiful girls in the Ye family? They are all chess pieces that Ye Quanyong will use to win over other families. They have received special training since childhood, and only know how to compete for favors, prying information, controlling people's heart, and not understand what lady's dignity are. Letting them mix together with Zhao Chunxi may make her go down the wrong road, and it will also cause chaos in the back house. Moreover, when Ye Quanyong's crimes are fully exposed, can you be so sure that these womenfolk are innocent, and there will be no officers who will bring people to catch the fish that escaped the net? What if you accidentally hurt your children? Those who marry the Ye family's daughter will possibly divorce or discarded them, as they definitely will try to get rid the relationship with the Ye family. If those women come to take shelter with you, will you take them? At that time the Ye family's daughter will have a rotten reputation. Aren't you afraid that it will implicate Zhao Chunxi and make her unable to marry? Many of the Ye clan's young men are a dandy. How many of Zhao Wangshu's cousins are really promising? What kind of influence will they have on Zhao Wangshu, have you considered it clearly?"

Guan Suyi knocked on the table and pointed out, "For the reputation of your two son and daughter, for their future and marriage, and for the future peace of Marquis Mansion, I suggest you invite them out. Of course, if you buy them a house outside to settle down, I have no objection."

The daughter-in-law had already spoken to this point, and the old madam thought that her son would find his way back, but he thought hard for a long time, then gritted his teeth, "Madam, you don't know, my deceased wife Ye Zhen and I got to know each other when I'm poor, we intersect in the calamity, and her death is also because of me. Without her, there would not be the current Marquis Zhenbei Mansion, nor this family's rich and noble life of. My Zhao family was originally a criminal and lived in extreme poverty at the border, and we suffered a lot of humiliation. If it weren't for my father-in-law and mother-in-law gave a lot of help, our family would have starved to death long ago. I can't forget these kindnesses, and I can't fail to repay them. Madam comes from a Confucian family, and the most important thing is benevolence, righteousness, courtesy, wisdom and faith, you should be able to understand me and also to be able to fulfill me. If we get pass this safely, we can live a good life. All the misunderstandings, hurts, and quarrels in the past were all because of me. It is me who didn't appreciate Madam, blindly demanding, blindly indulging. Instead, we and the beautiful, happy and cheerful little family were ruined into the current fragmented pieces. Madam, it's me who let you down! Borrowing the words from the people at that time, I, Marquis Zhenbei, what kind of virtue, what kind of talent do I have to marry you, Guan Suyi, as a wife, if I don't cherish it, I should really be strikes by thunder!"

Zhao Luli sincerely repented, and also sincerely felt that Guan Suyi was good. It may not be obvious in ordinary times, but in the face of such a catastrophe that endangered the whole family, her calmness, strength, and ability were fully revealed. With her here, there was a stabilizing force at home, and he felt extremely comfortable and at ease.

Guan Suyi's heart was already cold, she lowered her eyelids and said, "You are pulling a lot of mess, but you are just begging for the Ye Mansion. You still want to take them in, even if they may harm your children?"

"What Madam said is it not frightening words to scare people. I will warn the in-law and Madam Liu to take care of her family. If their mother's clan is killed, and my Marquis Mansion doesn't care, nor does the two children care, will the reputation be good? I believe Wangshu and Xi'er won't meet with damnation nor couldn't be save. When everyone settles down properly, I will naturally find a way to eliminate all kind of hidden dangers. The most important thing is hurrying up to repair the house, and another thing is to distribute silver to free people from the prison, and the rest can be arranged slowly. It's not that I don't want to put them outside, but the Ye Mansion's case has just broken out, and the situation is still developing. If those who hold grudges against father-in-law take action against them, they will surely die. How can I have the face to see my deceased wife in the underworld in the future? When the storm subsides in the future, I will naturally move them out."

In fact, Ye Zhen didn't die at all, so he couldn't abandon the entire Ye family.

"You don't have the face to see her, but you have the face to see me." Guan Suyi sneered.

"I don't have the face to see Madam either." Zhao Luli said bitterly, "I want to be loyal, I want to be faithful, I want to be filial, but I am already in such an embarrassing situation, I can't go up, I can't go down, I can't go forward, I can't go back, beside living in a muddleheaded and confused way, there is no other way to live. Among them, the twists and turns are unbearable, and I ask Madam to forgive me one last time! Madam, I beg you!"

Pulling the pair of children, he choked out, "Hurry up and kowtow to your mother. In the past, you were unfilial and always disobeyed Madam. I will definitely not forgive anyone who makes Madam angry in the future. Your mother is kind and will not leave your (maternal) grandmother alone."

Zhao Wangshu listened to his father's words the most, and immediately kowtowed three times. Zhao Chunxi almost crushed the roots of her teeth to keep herself from roaring. Daddy, don't just think about the Ye family and your mother-in-law, think about us too!

Guan Suyi saw that the crucial moment was almost here before slowly spoke, "Alright, since you are bent on going your way, I'll fulfill you."

The old madam was shocked, and when she was about to object, she was interrupted by her daughter-in-law raising her hand. She took a sip of hot tea unhurriedly and continued, "Look carefully at this map, the main courtyard, the main house, and the second house are on the same line, and the expanse of the three houses is also different from yours. In this case, it is better to build a wall in the middle to separate the Marquis Mansion. The three of you, father and children will live in the east with the Ye family, and I, the old madam, sister-in-law, and Mu Mu, will live in the west. The second brother has established a family, and should have opened a mansion long ago. So let's just borrow his name first to use, and divide the mansion without separating the family, and the east and west mansion are living independently, and they have nothing to do with each other. What do you think?"

East and west? Such a big change, such a comprehensive plan, such a wonderful idea, afraid it was not a flash of inspiration, right? When Ye mansion was in trouble, when he brought everyone back, she might be already planning this matter, but under her deliberate guidance, he fell into the trap step by step, and food, clothing, housing and transportation have already clearly divided, even if he wanted to oppose, there was nothing to say.

Madam had a meticulous method, very intelligent, and so decisive in her actions! If this time he couldn't get out unscathed, the Zhao family still had her, and it seemed like he had let go a hundred and twenty hearts, and there was no worries at all. Zhao Luli frowned for a while, sighed for a while, and finally bowed deeply, had no choice but to compromise, "Just follow what Madam said."

The old madam thought for a while, and acquiesced to this matter, her pale face finally turned red. It's really a blessing of several lifetimes for my son to be able to marry Suyi. I hope this time he can really get back on the right path and live a good life with Suyi. This wall can be built, but it also can be demolished one day. As the saying goes, without destruction there can be no construction, after it was broken, it can stand up. As long as the husband and are the same heart, there will be a good future waiting in front of them.

Chapter 59 Dividing The Mansion

Dividing the East and West mansions was just the first step for Guan Suyi to clear the relationship with the Marquis Mansion. If she still couldn't live in peace this way, even if she couldn't get reconciliation, she could find reason to live in the village estate in the future. In this life, she was not an adulterous woman who lost her chastity and dignity, but a high-powered first-rank title Madam. Who dares to neglect her? Wouldn't it be nice to eat and drink outside, and went to travel through the landscape from time to time?

Thinking like this, she finally looked at Zhao Luli a little more favorably, and decided, "In that case, please ask Lord Marquis to invite sister-in-law, and let's settle the matter of the dividing the mansion."

The more Zhao Luli's close servants listened to it, the more they felt that the future was bleak. Why should the Ye family seize their monthly silver, house, food, and clothes? Could it be that Lord Marquis was not good enough to them in the past? People can't be such a rough to this extent! Lord Marquis was also confused, just as Madam said, why not rent a house outside for them to live? But insisted to get them into his home, and make foul atmosphere everywhere. After a long time, they didn't want to stay in the East Mansion, how good would it be if they could find a way to move to the West Mansion?

Not only was this old servant unhappy, but the maids and grannies who served Zhao Chunxi and Zhao Wangshu also had a gloomy face, and they were already thinking in their hearts how to transfer to the West Mansion. That's why, when Zhao Luli wanted to send people to invite the second madam, he shouted several times before a granny came forward to accept the order.

A quarter of an hour later, a series of screams came from outside, mixed with words such as "Ghost, Demon is here", followed by a chaotic banging, howling groan, and chanting sound, somewhat like people were in panic, and knocked down tables and chairs, causing a mess.

Thinking of Madam's usual attitude of showing neither pity nor disgust when she saw her sister-in-law, and then looked at the embarrassing appearance of Ye's family in panic and shouting, Zhao Luli's face flushed with shame, and he gradually began to doubt whether he made the right decision by bringing them home for resettlement. With this kind of family education and style of handling things, afraid there would be no peaceful day in the Marquis Mansion, but he had already ridden the tiger and had no choice but to go forward with it.

After a while, Ruan shi pulled the frightened Mu Mu into the inner hall, her head hanging low, she covered her face with her hands, and murmured, "Lord Marquis, just now I'm sorry for scaring those delicate guests of your foreign family."

Zhao Luli felt ashamed and waved his hands quickly, "It is them who are disrespectful, it should be me who apologize to sister-in-law, and I also ask sister-in-law to please forgive me."

Ruan shi reluctantly pulled the corners of her lips, and took a few steps forward to greet her mother-in-law and sister-in-law. There was no more thorn in her voice, "Mother-in-law, sister-in-law, what are you looking for me for?" While she was talking, Mu Mu didn't feel shy with stranger at all, actually walked up to Guan Suyi's side, put his two short hands on her knees, opened his mouth wide, and made an "ah" sound.

Guan Suyi's cold face couldn't be maintain anymore, she smiled lowly, and immediately looked at his throat, and said with relief, "It took only two days for the swelling to subside, very good. Can you eat hard things?"

Ruan shi smiled, "Actually, that evening is already so much better. The next day, he dragged me to beg for food. I think he was very hungry. It's every hard for him to be sick for so long and still did no say a word, I usually feed him any food, but he only eat very little, and didn't know how painful it should be to swallow those vegetables and meat."

"This is a child who can endure, and he has a promising future. However, it is not good to endure blindly, he has to know how to fight, so let him learn how to speak. Sister-in-law doesn't need to worry, I will teach him slowly." Guan Suyi tentatively picked up a piece of cake and coaxed, "Mu Mu, come to mother, mother will feed you cake."

After hesitating for a moment, Mu Mu got into his adoptive mother's arms, but he didn't dare to bite the cake, just stared at it with his black eyes, and Guan Suyi's heart was melting, she handed it to his lips while holding his small chin so as not to let the cake residue fall into his lapels.

When she was sincere and good to someone, the water-like tenderness could almost overflow from her gorgeous eyebrows, as if the whole person was emitting a shimmering light, which made people unable to move their eyes and deeply attracted. Mu Mu loved this fragrant, beautiful, powerful, and very kind adoptive mother, a small short hand slowly wrapped around her arm, then take a bite of the cake.

Zhao Wangshu was stunned, suddenly turned his head away with red eyes. It turned out that the stepmother not only has a strict side, but also a gentle side, just like the mother he imagined. It's just that she wouldn't treat him like that. She didn't like him, and he could feel it from the beginning.

Zhao Luli was also full of emotion, thinking that if he hadn't hurt madam's heart, madam would have taken care of Wangshu and Xi'er like this. What kind of sins he had done to break a good family into pieces, and he hoped there would be a chance to make up for it in the future. At the end, he remembered the conversation between the two sister-in-laws, so he asked his mother what happened to Mu Mu, and was reprimanded again.

Guan Suyi and Ruan shi listened silently and did not interrupt, waiting for the old madam to let out a bad breath before they began to talk about the business. Ruan shi had long been fed up with the Ye family, when she heard that the West Mansion would be established in the name of her husband, and she would live alone with her sister-in-law and mother-in-law, she was naturally happy. Everyone reached an agreement, the old madam would personally pay for the construction of the wall, and immediately order the steward to go to recruit craftsmen and start work immediately, she could not wait for a moment.

Seeing his mother was so eager to get rid the Ye family, Zhao Luli could only smile bitterly. After the maid had collected the map and cleaned up the table, he poured a cup of hot tea with his own hands, knelt down and held it high, saying with guilt, "Mother, over the years, you have taken a lot of responsibility for me. If you hadn't been in charge of the central feed, this family would not be what it was like. Not only did I not care about everything, but I often rebelled against you and making you angry. Your migraine problem is probably caused by anger towards me. This son is not filial, and I don't know if it will be too late to make amends. Thinking about it, I really regret it! This son will enter the palace tomorrow to plead guilty, and if unable to get through unscathed, you and madam should get along well in the West Mansion, I can rest assured that she will take good care of you. This son still has some property, which is also entrusted to you to take care of it, so that you will not have to worry about your livelihood in the future."

Is this a last word? The old madam groaned inside, her heart was broken, but she couldn't bring her face down to reconcile with her son, and snorted coldly, "I'm stupid and I don't have much energy, so how can I take care of it for you. Why don't you hand it over to your wife?"

"Give it to her, is she willing to take it?" Zhao Luli smiled wryly. He wasn't really blind, he just didn't dare to look at everything around him. Madam had torn apart even the expense for food and clothing with the Marquis Mansion, and unlike Ruan shi, who was readily call his mother mother-in-law, she only called her the old madam. It was obvious that she never regarded herself as a Zhao family's member. But this couldn't be blamed on her. Thinking about the things he had done, who wouldn't bear grudges? Who would be willing to suffer? She was the proud and unyielding Guan family's member, and she was not an ordinary woman, who could not be slighted, could not be overlooked, and could not be insulted.

Guan Suyi pursed her lips and did not speak.

The room fell into a dead silence, and the awkward atmosphere permeated for a while, before hearing the old madam coldly said, "You put the account books and other items in the main courtyard for the time being, and take them back when you return home safely. If you can't get through this hurdle, I don't need you to explain, I will also hand over the property to Suyi to take care, I am rest assured that she is capable, she can hold up two of you!"

Zhao Luli finally smiled briskly and agreed, "Mother is right, Madam is really capable, we can rest assured handing over our family to her. This son will go settle the Ye Mansion's family member, and will not let them disturb you before dividing the mansion."

The old madam nodded indifferently, and when her son left the inner hall with the pair of son and a daughter, she sighed softly, her eyes were red and wet.

There were vague voices from outside, and there seemed to be cheers of joy, and then she heard his son admonishing, "The main courtyard, the main house, and the second house, you'd better not set foot on them. In other people's house you must abide by other people's rules, and if anyone has a bad heart and anything in those three houses gone, I have the right to count on that person's head, and I will report it to the officials." In other words – whoever disobeys will be named as a thief and sent to prison, this attitude was very strong.

There was a moment of silence outside, followed by a mixture of quarrels and frightened apologies, and then slowly faded away.

The old madam held her forehead and wept, both happy and worried. The happy thing was that her son was really awakened; the worried part was that he had already fallen into another quagmire, and she didn't know if he could come all the way out. She didn't hold grudges against Guan family or her daughter-in-law. Without these heavy hammers, her son would probably be confuse for a lifetime. It would be better to start all over again as he was now.

With great difficulty Zhao Luli settled the Ye family, and when he turned around, he found that his daughter was still following him, with a worried expression on her face. His eyes dimmed, and he took his daughter to the study to speak.

"Daddy, what will happen to you when you enter the palace tomorrow?" Will you go to jail? But in the end, she dared not ask.

"Daddy doesn't know what will happen, it depends on the emperor's decision." Zhao Luli thoughtfully said, "Xi'er, while no one is here, daddy will explain a few words to you. I hope you will grow up quickly, and stop indulging in wild imagination and going astray. I have always known about your relationship with your mother. When you first met, she saved you in the bitter cold, and when you were helpless and not have anything to depend on, you thought she fit your imagination of a mother, crying and shouting for her to come to the Marquis Mansion. After I asked for the imperial decree of marriage, you found that she was outspoken and rigid, which was very unsatisfactory, so you didn't show it on the surface, but always make things difficult behind her back. Xi'er, Daddy knew all these things, and I can understand how you feel. But you have to understand that not everyone in the world has to revolve around you, and not everything is to your liking. If you continue to act like you used to, your mother will not tolerate you, and daddy will not indulge you any longer. Have you seen your grandfather? He's the perfect example."

Zhao Chunxi's face was pale, and she was speechless for a long time.

Zhao Luli sighed and said, "Don't resent your mother, everything has nothing to do with her, let alone the Guan family. The Emperor Teacher's new appointment as the censor must set some prestige. The Ye family is only a springboard in his eyes, and the emperor is the real stepping stone. How much risk and pressure do you think he needs to endure to impeach the emperor? The emperor uses him for the time being, precisely because he is the Emperor Teacher, if one day he is no longer needed, every time he impeaches, every time he gets angry, every big officials he offended will become his death spell in the future. But he has to do it, and he has to do it well, just because the Holy Order is hard to violate, because the world belongs to the emperor, and all of us have to listen to him. The Guan family is very remarkable, they do not think of hardship, but take pride in it. They are willing to sacrifice their lives for righteousness, striving to the utmost, in the future they're bound to leave their names on annals of history, and be passed on for hundreds of generations. Your mother come from such a family, and her character was unsullied and untainted, benevolent and righteous. If I can't come back alive, you will take Wangshu to beg her, listen to her carefully, honor her with sincerity, with the Guan family's reputation outside, and her beauty inside, she certainly will never leave you alone."

"Daddy, don't say it!" Zhao Chunxi threw herself into her father's arms and burst into tears.

However, Zhao Luli couldn't help but explain clearly, "If I don't say it how you can understand, affairs of life will always happened. Guan family is right, it's your maternal family that is wrong. I can't tell you what your grandfather did, you just need to know, he confessed his guilt and was executed, and his death was not because he wrongly accused. You don't need to hold grudges against your mother, or even hatred, because of his tragic death. You must know that family has family's rules and the country has country's laws, even the emperor has to bear the punishment for violating the law of the country, so what about other people? Under the imperial power we all are ants. You should stay away from the court and live in peace. Don't imitate the Ye family's love of vanity and clinging to the powerful. Your brother is spoiled, like to done things without thinking, neither your grandmother nor I can control him, but he listen to you the most. You said that your mother is good, he expected me to marry her; you said that your mother is not good, he immediately avoided her and turned against her. You must not mislead him in the future, and say more kind words about your mother, teach him to get close to her. If your mother is happy and willing to cultivate him wholeheartedly, in the future his prospect will not be bad. The Guan family's method of tuning and teaching people, you as the family's daughter may not know, but you may look at the court, those who can speak now, except for the senior minister's lineage, are the Emperor Teacher and his disciples. With such a strong backer, you will definitely have no worries in your life."

When the words fell, he burst into tears, and sighed, "Don't blame daddy for being incompetent, daddy used to be in the battlefield, going up and down, but the will of Heaven often mess with people… You just need to know, your daddy is not really confused, nor am I really cowardly, but I just have to put on this attitude to protect our family. Daddy is gone, and you are a little confused when things happen, don't be competitive, and don't set your mind to climb up. Going to the top is not a good journey, your mom…"

He couldn't speak any longer, and cried bitterly while holding his daughter.

Zhao Chunxi was dazed and desperate for a while, but there were no tears left. What exactly did my mom do back then? Why her scenery is beautiful and infinite, but only leaving others with endless pain and bleakness?

Reconciliation: in ancient china there are different type of divorce system, all of them are harmful to women's reputation, but the least harmful is (heli) which basically means husband and wife agree to divorce.

Chapter 60 Quarrel

The father and daughter talked for a long time before they separated. Zhao Chunxi walked back with brain full of thoughts, and suddenly saw a lot of craftsmen on the west end, who were taking measurements with soft rulers and other objects, and used white lime to mark the flower beds, rockeries and gardens that need to be demolished one by one, it seemed that construction would start soon. A few stewards from the west end stood by the side to supervise the map drawn by Madam, and could vaguely hear words such as "hurry up, don't delay, add more money", which showed how urgent they were with the idea of getting rid the Ye family.

"Miss, are we really going to divide the mansion?" Hexiang and Xueliu stared blankly for a while, their faces filled with confusion, and their hearts felt even more terrified.

"Guan… What mother said, have it ever fail to come through?" Zhao Chunxi stared into the distance, and her tone was deep, "The action is so fast, even the map has already drawn, the craftsman only needs to build following the map, as fast as one month, as slow as two months, this wall can be built. Do you believe that she devised the plan at the last minute? Hexiang, you are right, we just took one step, and she has finished the next ninety-nine steps. My maternal grandfather, Ye family, daddy, and even the scene where Wangshu and I have to live together with others, afraid she had expected it a long time ago, and then tore it clean one step at a time, without being touch by the dust at all, but took all the good reputation. Look at me Daddy, grandmother, second aunt, who doesn't admire her and trust her? She has just come to the Marquis Mansion for more than half a month, and she has made herself the absolute ruler of this place. Whether you want it or not, you have to be lead by the nose by her, and in the end, you have to deeply grateful."

Hexiang and Xueliu lowered their heads and did not dare to talk, but they also had a deep fear for Madam in their hearts.

"Even if you don't want to accept it, you have to accept it!" Zhao Chunxi smiled miserably, "If something happens to daddy, Wangshu and I will have to rely on her to live in the future, and there won't be any benefit at all if we work against her. In fact, I myself have forgotten why I wanted to target her in the first place, indeed one step wrong, every steps wrong." Of course, it was for the sake of her mom, but looking at it now, she felt that it was not worth it.

"Miss, you're right to think so." Hexiang carefully pointed out, "Don't think that Madam's method is just to divide the mansion into east and west, break down the east house, and preserve the west house. In fact, there are other things in here. She took into account the people's hearts of the two mansion, follows her then chickens and dogs ascend to heaven, and do not follows means living a miserable life. Although the houses were divided, the servants of the two houses would only respect her more than the masters they served. If she wants to deal with you, she doesn't need to set foot in the East Mansion, and there are countless people who can scheme for her. Indeed the arm can't twist the thigh, you can, you can admit it for the time being."

"Admit it, why don't I admit it?" Zhao Chunxi shook her head and sighed, "You first-class maids are the most useful people around me, and your monthly silver is paid from my account, so you don't have to worry about it in the future. Let's go, let's go back and have a look."

Hexiang and Xueliu let out a long sigh of relief, but they also understood that the more the eldest miss was like this, the more Madam had the upper hand. Lifting up a few maids higher would only make the people below them even more unwilling and eager to move. But they also have to live, so they didn't mention it.

Zhao Chunxi talked big, but her heart was actually bleeding. Her life had always been extravagant, and the monthly cost of 80 taels as Guan Suyi said was still counted as the minimum limit. In fact, with only buying one jewelry, the monthly expenses were more than 1,000 taels. The monthly silver could never be saved, and she had to find Daddy subsidizes, so there was not much money left in the account.

Supporting three to five months was already unlikely, let alone waiting for two to three years until she got married. At that time, don't talk about the people below, afraid she would not be able to keep her confidants. Human heart was really unpredictable, and human heart was even more sinister. She felt extremely tired and at a loss, and when she could easily count so many people on Guan Suyi's side she couldn't help but feel timid.

The three master and servant returned to Penglai Garden unhappily, and heard the noise and clamoring inside. A few cousin were arguing over who lives in the spacious room, and they were about to raise their hands. The servant's monthly silver was reduced thirty percent of the original, and the daily necessities were not as good as before, naturally, they hated the Ye family who were like dove occupying the magpie's nest. They only made a show of persuasion on the surface, but did not try to stop them, and a few even hid by the side to watch the play, their face full of schadenfreude smiles.

Zhao Chunxi's forehead jumped, and immediately ran to mediate. A certain cousin accidentally scratched her neck, leaving a bloodstain. The quarrel finally subsided for a while, only then she exhaustedly pushed open the door and saw her third aunt, Ye Fan and the three di daughters of the Ye family sitting in the room while drinking tea, with a pile of jewelry at hand, which seemed familiar at a closer look.

"Oh, why did you open the eldest miss' trousseau?" Hexiang shouted while holding the empty brocade box.

"We sit and have nothing to do, and borrow something from my sister to play around with. What are you shouting, let alone these shoddy things, even the nine-headed phoenix hairpin we have also seen, why would we greedy for such cheap things? Here here here, I'll give it all back to you, really shallow! My eldest aunt is still Jieyu, while she still alive for a day, my Ye family will not really collapse, you just wait!" The eldest cousin Ye Fu immediately raised her face, brushed a pile of jewelry off the table, pearls and emeralds were spattering around, and a few bracelets were shattered, which made Zhao Chunxi's eyes hurt even more.

Back then, she admired the big cousin's extravagant gallantry the most. No matter how valuable things were, it never enter her eyes, even a huge eastern pearl was easily crushed and used as pearl powder. However, when this arrogance was placed on her and her things that were abused, she finally knew how hateful this person were.

She was so angry that her chest hurt, and if she open her mouth to speak immediately, she was afraid that she would spit a mouthful of old blood. However, before she could air out her grievance, the other two older cousins were already spitting out their grievance, holding the handkerchief, wiping the corners of their eyes, and sobbing, "Sister, please stop, after all, our family is different from the past, it's understandable if the younger sister is more contemptuous and vigilant, who let let us fall and still implicate her? Not to mention looking at her things, afraid we won't even be able to enter the main hall in the future. Let's go to uncle to say goodbye, it's better to stay far away, so as not to spoil the affection of the past."

Wow, use daddy to press me! Pretending to be innocent, pretending to be pitiful, and fabricate accusations, it's indeed like bringing the wolves into the house! Zhao Chunxi not only felt distressed, but her internal organs were hurting, her stomach was burning like a fire, and her whole body was about to explode. She finally understood how Guan Suyi felt when she faced her frequent tricks. Although she could easily push people to death, it still felt disgusting.

"Didn't a few sisters listen to my daddy? In other people's house you must abide by other people's rules, otherwise if any courtyard lose any belonging, you will be reported to the officials. Hexiang, count the jewelry and see if anything missing." She gritted her teeth.

Hexiang immediately agreed, but before she could pick up the things on the floor, several cousins all said goodbye and left in a hurry.

Ye Fan stayed at the end, touched the wound on her niece's neck with a handkerchief, and said worriedly, "Who hurt you? Those unrestrained wenches are still so rampant, I will ask my aunt to teach them the rules later. Xueliu, quickly bring some medicine for your master, I'll put it on for her."

Zhao Chunxi finally felt a little more comfortable, she sat opposite her third aunt, her eyes were red, but she never expected that the atmosphere had just eased, and the other person asked, "Is there anything wrong with your daddy? Can my marriage with him still happen? His title…"

She thought that she would be able to marry into the Marquis Mansion and become a concubine who had more face than the mistress, but because of a coral tree, all her dreams were shattered. This was not the end, the uncle was first ordered to reflect behind closed door, and then he was taken to the Heavenly Prison. However, barely a day, afraid of facing the crime he was then executed, and the originally beautiful and powerful Ye Mansion, was burned to ashes. All kinds of changes happened too rapidly and quickly, it didn't give Ye Fan any time to react. When she suddenly turned back, there was no way out behind her, and only darkness in front of her. She didn't know if she took a step forward would she die horribly or escape to heaven.

If Zhao Luli could safely avoid this disaster and kept the title, that was the best, if not, she had to think carefully. After all, Ye Jieyu was still there, as long as she didn't collapse, the Ye family would not be really finished.

How could Zhao Chunxi not guess these thoughts of hers? Already thought that her father was not worth it. She also found it ridiculous to rely on her foreign family, and even more despised the ghostly thoughts of her third aunt.

"If something happens to Daddy, what will you do?" She threw the question back.

The room fell into silence, and after a while, Ye Fan said with a light smile, "If anything happens to your father, naturally I will accompany him through the difficulties."

"Auntie, you are so kind." Zhao Chunxi firmly pressed her hand on the table, and said in meaningfully, "Remember what you said today. You are a highly principled and loyal person, I will tell my daddy about it, he must be very moved when he hear it."

"What is this moved thing, I have already set a wedding date with Lord Marquis, already become his person, and I should be of one heart and one mind with him." Ye Fan smiled softly on her face, what's actually in her heart, it best not to mention it.

However, Zhao Chunxi made up her mind to press her down. Since the Marquis Mansion was implicated by the Ye family, then if one have bad luck then everyone would have bad luck, and if one die everyone would die together.

Not only were the Ye and Zhao families harmonious on the surface, but also pinched each other on the inside, but the undercurrent in the courtroom was also raging, and the battle was constant. The next day, Emperor Sheng Yuan once again summoned his ministers to discuss the revision of the law. The further back, the wider the tentacles of the reform, gradually involving taxation, military power, land, etc., seriously damaging the interests of the big clan.

As the representative of the noble clan, Prime Minister Wang's faction naturally opposed it fiercely.

Today, seeing the emperor's proposal to change the "land occupation system" to "equal land system", he said angrily, "The emperor has little reading and does not understand a lot of things, so it's best not to carelessly speaking out. Since the implementation of the land occupation system, a large number of land has been reclaimed, and the taxes that peasants need to pay are also light. If it changed to equal land system, the tax is collected according to the population, now the war has just passed, the labor force has dropped sharply, and the climate is changing, and the harvest is not good, which commoner can afford it? The emperor can even granted such an important position like Grand Astrologer to an illiterate merchant, it shows that he is very unfamiliar with the management of the people's livelihood, and it's all up to us the specialize ministers to do it, you should learn it slowly, and discuss it when you have mastered it." The intention of making a mere figurehead monarch was abundantly clear.

Emperor Sheng Yuan was enraged by his disrespectful attitude, and was about to slap the table, but Prime Minister Wang flung his sleeves and left first, and all the subordinate officials also took their leave. For a moment only the Emperor Teacher still sitting upright, looking solemn.

"Fuck you Langya Wang clan! One day this old man will slaughter you!" Emperor Sheng Yuan couldn't bear it anymore, he raised his hand and swiped over the memorials and other items on the imperial table, but unexpectedly lifted the ink stone and splashed ink spots all over the Emperor Teacher's body.

When he caught a glimpse of the Emperor Teacher's honest eyes, his anger disappeared, and he extended his big palm to wipe it for him, while sincerely apologizing.

Old Master Guan said slowly, "Prime Minister is right, it is indeed inappropriate that the emperor can even granted the post of Grand Astrologer to Ye Quanyong."

the arm can't twist the thigh: the weak is no match for the strong.

Langya Wang clan: the wang clan of langya was the top clan is ancient china. The term the king and the horse share the world, means when the influence of aristocratic family is grater that the imperial power, mostly refers to this family.