I really became a king.

Chapter 332: Prince Duan's Mansion Has Changed
Jiang Yi stood in the empty Jingqi Hall, feeling absurd and at the same time, anger began to rise in his heart.

What is this place called the Qiong Hall? It was set up by the legitimate owner of Prince Duan's Mansion. Many people even refer to it as the Qiong Hall when they mention Prince Duan's Mansion.

But now, the Jingqi Hall, which represented the majesty of the entire Prince Duan's Mansion, was gone. It was as if it had been robbed and was completely emptied, leaving only a frame of the house.

After a while, Ding Ren walked in with a bow. After getting permission, he came closer and reported something in a low voice. The more Jiang Yi listened, the more ridiculous his expression seemed to him. By the end, he was looking up at the sky in silence.

Ding Ren carefully glanced at his prince, then waved towards the door. A guard brought an ordinary chair and placed it behind Jiang Yi.

Jiang Yi waved his hand weakly, and Ding Ren carefully retreated with the guards, leaving Jiang Yi sitting alone on a chair in the empty "Jingqi Hall".

At this time, many people who had heard the news had gathered outside the Hunqi Hall. They gathered in groups of three or five, looking at the Hunqi Hall guarded by the personal soldiers, and then looking at An Daohui who was kneeling on the ground motionless, and talked about it with some curiosity.

Especially when he looked at An Daohui with a hint of disdain in his eyes, he kept muttering some unpleasant words.

There were even a few women who were cracking melon seeds with a handful of them. They would spit out each one they cracked, and soon the surrounding area was covered with melon seed shells.

Ding Ren didn't even know how to describe his mood at this moment. He even thought that he had come to the wrong place. Is this still the famous Prince Duan's Palace?

Especially An Daohui, who was kneeling there, couldn't help but twitch his eyelids.

This Chief Steward An is an old man who has been by the side of the old prince. He has been holding the stirrups for the old prince since he was a child, and has followed him in battles all over the world. He has made many military achievements and is regarded as the old prince's right-hand man.

But now he was being pointed at and called an old man by a few vulgar women. If one had not seen it with one's own eyes, who would have known that this person was the Grand Steward An who once held great power over the entire Prince Duan's Mansion.

And these strangers around us are truly ignorant and fearless.

On the contrary, the servants in sackcloth clothes all had trembling expressions on their faces, just like An Daohui, waiting for their unknown fate in fear.

After a long while, two figures, one big and one small, finally walked into the front yard through the small archway, immediately attracting everyone's attention.

Only An Daohui was still kneeling there motionless.

"Shuo'er, did you remember everything your mother told you? You must speak for your uncle and the others later." The gorgeously dressed lady did not forget to remind him again.

"Mom, I understand." The quiet boy next to her, who looked about eight or nine years old, nodded.

The gorgeous woman was still a little worried, so she gave her son's instructions again carefully. After getting his assurance, she took a few deep breaths and walked towards the Jingqi Hall.

The dark-skinned woman who had been knocked to the ground by the personal soldier with the handle of a knife had her mouth stuffed by the guards because she couldn't control her mouth.

When he saw the two people coming, he felt like he had seen a savior. He wailed and struggled hard, but was held firmly in place by a guard with the hilt of a knife.

Seeing this, the beautiful woman touched her son Jiang Zhongshuo with her hand, and Jiang Zhongshuo said, "She is my aunt, let her go."

The guard turned his head and looked at Ding Ren. When he saw Ding Ren nodded, he let go of the dark-skinned woman.

As soon as she was free, the dark-skinned woman grabbed the guard like a wild beast, but was frightened by the guard's action of drawing his sword. She wailed for help from the concubine and her son.

"Seventh Master, Princess Shu, the prince has been waiting for the two masters in the Jingqi Hall for a long time."

At this time, Ding Ren stepped forward, bowed, and said something.

Concubine Shu no longer cared about the dark-skinned woman. She squeezed her son's hand tightly and walked towards the Jingqi Hall with heavy steps.

Especially after seeing An Daohui kneeling there with his head on the ground, not moving, his body began to tremble uncontrollably. On the contrary, the young Jiang Zhongshuo next to him was much calmer. Instead, he held his mother's hand and led her towards the Jingqi Hall.

Just as the two of them walked to the entrance of the Gongqi Hall, there was a burst of hurried footsteps coming from the main gate of the palace. Everyone looked over, including Concubine Shu and Jiang Zhongshuo.

But they saw hundreds of royal guards in black armor walking quickly into the palace. Seeing this scene, Concubine Shu's face turned pale. On the contrary, the young Jiang Zhongshuo gently held her hand and half-pulled her into the Jingqi Hall.

Not long after the two of them entered, hundreds of royal guards had already arrived in front of the Jingqi Hall. They stopped and moved to both sides, making way for a passage.

A heroic woman walked out, and glanced at the scene in front of the Jingqi Hall with a pair of eyes, her beautiful eyes containing murderous intent.

When Ding Ren and the others saw the woman, they all stepped forward to greet her and said politely, "Hello, aunt!"

The person who came was none other than the eldest aunt of Prince Yi’s Mansion, Jiang Ning. Jiang Ning looked around coldly, waved her hand at Ding Ren, and said lightly, “These people who have made the entire Prince Duan’s Mansion a mess, arrest them all!”

After saying this, he signaled to the old ladies around him. The old ladies understood and walked towards the backyard with a team of female guards.

Ding Ren waved his hand in response, and immediately there was chaos outside the Jingqi Hall.

Inside the Qilin Hall.

"Hello, Sixth Brother." Jiang Zhongshuo bowed gently to Jiang Yi. The concubine Shu beside him was a little at a loss and wanted to step forward to salute, but was held back by a small hand.

Jiang Yi's eyes narrowed, and he said with a smile, "Someone, show Concubine Shu a seat."

A guard opened the door and walked in carrying a chair.

As soon as the door opened, a chaotic sound like chickens and dogs flying around came into the Jieqi Hall, accompanied by some vulgar curses.

"Open your mouth!"

As Jiang Ning said this, a crackling sound was heard.

Concubine Shu looked anxious and wanted to say something, but seeing Jiang Yi's eyes which seemed to be smiling but rather a little cold, she ended up saying nothing and sat down on the chair uneasily.

Jiang Yi didn't say anything, but just silently looked at the mother and son in front of him.

Concubine Shu was indeed a beauty. Even though she had given birth to a child, she was still more beautiful than most young girls. This might be the reason why she had charmed her father.

But seeing that the other party had his head half lowered, not daring to be angry or speak, but his eyes were not glancing towards the door, Jiang Yi sighed inwardly, and couldn't help but admire his father's vision of people.

With her stunning beauty, she would definitely be treated like a treasure no matter which house she entered, but she fell out of favor not long after being taken into the king's room. Jiang Yi had never met her before, so he naturally didn't think about why, but after experiencing what happened today, he understood that no matter how charming this kind of woman was, it was difficult for her to be favored by men, especially in this conservative dynasty era.

The bottom line is, the other party is too soft-hearted, especially too easy on the ears, and too much of a good person. Of course, all this is directed at my mother's family.

In the words of later generations, she was a "brother-doting maniac", and her news was even worse than those in her previous life.

His father must have noticed this, so he quickly became distant from him and deliberately suppressed his youngest son, Xiaoqi.

"I haven't been here for a long time since the palace was divided. When I came here today, I found that the entire Prince Duan's Mansion has changed a lot..." Jiang Yi sighed.

Shufei still had her head half lowered and didn't say anything, but she looked a little nervous. On the contrary, the seventh son, Jiang Zhongshuo, had a calm expression and even held his mother's hand to comfort her.

Jiang Yi didn't care and asked, "I wonder if Auntie can tell me, it's only been a few months since the palace was divided, where are the hundreds of guards in Prince Duan's palace?"

The concubine sat there, looking embarrassed and silent. Jiang Zhongshuo, who was standing next to her, opened his mouth to say something, but swallowed his words back after a glance from Jiang Yi.

This scene happened to fall into the eyes of Princess Shu, who couldn't help but reach out and hug Xiao Qi tightly in her arms, making Jiang Yi smile bitterly, as if he had become a big villain who bullied orphans and widows.

But there are some things he must clarify personally.

"My...my youngest brother...just got married..." He had just spoken half a sentence stutteringly, and seeing Jiang Yi frowning slightly, he thought that he didn't understand, so he explained:

"He is... he is Shuo'er's uncle. After he got married, he started a business and opened a escort agency. But he was short of manpower, so I sent the guards in the mansion to help."

"A escort agency can use hundreds of people?"

"They also brought some guards with them. It just so happened that Grandma Shuo'er and a few of her uncles didn't have anyone to look after their homes, so they were transferred over."

Sure enough... Jiang Yi sighed in his heart, but his face showed no expression, and continued to ask: "Where are those maids?"

"Some of Shuo'er's grandma's cousins ​​are already grown up, and they still haven't found wives. It's not a good idea for them to live alone, so they betrothed the young maids in the mansion to Shuo'er's cousins."

Perhaps because she had gotten used to it, or perhaps because she felt that Jiang Yi did not have any unhappy expression, Xiao Qi's biological mother, Princess Shu, spoke much more fluently.

Jiang Yi smiled, but didn't comment. He continued to ask, "Where are those old women?"

"Shuo'er's grandmother's family has never had a servant to serve them. These maids are good at serving people, so they were all sent to Shuo'er's grandmother's family."

Jiang Yi nodded: "What's going on with those unfamiliar guards and servants in the mansion?"

Hearing this question, Princess Shu seemed to feel a little embarrassed and explained, "It's not just the relatives in my hometown who are talking about this. There are also neighbors on both sides who have no way to make a living. After discussing it with Shuo'er, we transferred them to the palace to find a job and support the family..."

After saying this, as if afraid that Jiang Yi might misunderstand him, he explained, "I didn't spend any money from the treasury..."

"Then where does their monthly salary come from?" Jiang Yi asked curiously.

"I saw that the monthly wages of the guards, maids and other servants in the mansion were not low, and they didn't need so much, so I reduced it by half and gave it to the people back home."

"My aunt will calculate it carefully then." Jiang Yi said with a smile, and then asked: "I wonder what happened to the little maid who was punished just now? Did she do something that angered the heavens and the people?"

Princess Shu wanted to speak again, but Jiang Yi raised his hand to stop her. Then he looked at Xiaoqi Jiang Zhongshuo and said, "If I remember correctly, that little maid is from Xiaodi's room, right?"

Jiang Zhongshuo straightened his body and responded, "Yes, Sixth Brother, Qu'er is the maid in my room."

"What did she do to deserve such a severe punishment?" Jiang Yi continued to ask.

Xiaoqi Jiang Zhongshuo looked like a calm little adult and said, "My second uncle is alone in the palace, so I asked her to take care of him. I didn't expect that she would hurt him with a teapot."

"Oh? What's the reason?"

"My second uncle saw that she was well-behaved and wanted to take her into his room, but she was unwilling and fought back desperately, injuring my uncle..."

"The teapot was filled with hot water, and my poor second brother's fingers were scalded and turned red..." At this time, Princess Shu interrupted.

Jiang Yi didn't look at her, but looked straight at Jiang Zhongshuo, and said, "Because your second uncle likes her, your seventh brother also thinks that she shouldn't resist?"

Princess Shu wanted to speak again, but Jiang Zhongshuo stopped her and said, "Sixth brother, she is a servant in the mansion, and uncle is the master. It is her blessing that he likes her."

Looking at Kang Jong Suk who was speaking in an orderly manner, Kang Yi looked at him quietly for a long time without saying anything. This was the younger brother whom he had always protected with all his strength, and he even helped him become the heir to Prince Duan's Mansion. This was obviously not the case before.

He couldn't help but say, "If I remember correctly, I was carefully selected by my brother to live in your room, and she is only a few years older than you. Do you know what this means in a powerful family like ours?"

"I know, but I'm still young and I just want to concentrate on practicing and studying." Jiang Zhongshuo said.

"So you just gave her away? But have you ever thought that she is not that old, only eleven years old this year..." Jiang Yi's tone has changed slightly.

Princess Shu noticed it and wanted to say something, but Jiang Zhongshuo had already spoken: "You are not young anymore. You can serve others at this age."

Jiang Yi was stunned. He didn't know what had happened in the past few months. Or was it because he had been too protective of his younger brother? So protective that even he couldn't see clearly?
With a secret sigh in his heart, Jiang Yi looked up at the sky in silence, but his eyes narrowed again, because he just discovered that there was one beam missing from the roof of the Jingqi Hall.

This roof beam is optional and is more of a decoration, so the material used is very particular, it is precious nanmu. But now, this nanmu beam is gone, it was sawed off...

"What's going on with this Jingqi Hall?"

This time Princess Shu spoke first, a little embarrassedly, "My uncle Shuo'er has just built a new house, and it just so happens to be in need of some decorations. These are useless here, so I'll have them demolished..."

"Hehe..." Jiang Yi couldn't help but laugh and pointed to the top of the gate of the Qi Hall. "So even the plaque of the Qi Hall was taken down?"

"Well... that house just happened to be missing a door plaque, and Uncle Shuo'er thought this one was just right and grand, so he took it apart and brought it back to use..."

(End of this chapter)