Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 41: Conferred Lady

Xue Sui's prediction was not wrong.

Two days later, Xue Yuechen returned to her parents' home and cried bitterly.

There were too many jokes circulating outside, and it was not enough that she was embarrassed. But the Imperial Concubine Xiao in the palace often scolded and looked down on her because of this fake Eight Lucky Star incident, ridiculing and punishing her, making her life miserable.

Fu was ill and disheartened, so she just advised her to be patient.

Xue Sui was in Lixiangyuan, brewing a pot of tea for her and telling her a story.

She said: "There was a tea merchant in the prosperous area of ​​Jiangnan. He had his eyes on the tea from a time-honored tea plantation in Fujian. However, the other party had kept its promise for many years and only sold the tea to Fujian merchants, not to outsiders."

"A wealthy businessman from Jiangnan wanted the other party's tea, but the other party refused to sell it, so he came up with a plan to make the other party's tea cheaper..."

"So he sent people to spread rumors everywhere, saying that the soil of this tea farm was disordered, the water source was not good, and the tea produced was harmful to the body and life span if consumed for a long time. Upon hearing this, the tea merchants in Fujian Province, regardless of their years of friendship, insisted on cutting off their business. Later, the wealthy businessman from Jiangnan bought the best tea at a very low price, and soon occupied the tea market in Fujian Province. His business was getting bigger and bigger, while the merchants in Fujian Province were gradually squeezed out and could not continue. They had to sell their property and leave their hometown..."

After listening to this, Xue Yuechen was slightly thoughtful.

"If Donggong is the scheming wealthy businessman from Jiangnan..."

Xue Sui smiled and said, "Businessmen are always like this. When they want something from you, they will find ways to devalue your treasure to nothing..."

Xue Yuechen's eyes lit up, "What if I tell this story to the imperial concubine in a tactful way?"

Xue Sui said, "Princess, let others speak."

This story is not complicated, it's just human nature.

No matter how angry Concubine Xiao was, there was no reason for her to offend the Xue Mansion and the Yongding Marquis Mansion at this critical juncture and push her trusted supporters to the opposite side. That would be tantamount to cutting off her own hands and feet...

Concubine Xiao is arrogant because of her favor, but she is not stupid.
-
Two or three days later, she sent a maid to announce the good news.

"The Imperial Concubine agreed. She said that on the day of Prince Duan's birthday, she would bring the Sixth Miss into the palace. Not only that, the Imperial Concubine also said that the status of a concubine was too unfair to the Sixth Miss, and she wanted to welcome her into the palace with the ceremony of a lady."

"A gift from a young lady?" Ruyi was overjoyed.

Xiao Zhao also looked at Xue Sui in surprise.

Xue Sui was the only one there, as calm as still water.

"Xiao Zhao, look at the reward."

The current prince's harem does not have as many ranks as the Eastern Palace, but apart from the principal wife, concubine, and concubine, Ruren is the highest rank.

Those who could become the concubines of the royal palace were all daughters of families with status. Going to the royal palace would also give them a stable status, with salary and supplies, and they could also assist the princess in handling some inner house affairs, which was higher than the status of maids and concubines.

It can be said that the prince’s wife is not just a concubine.

What’s more, it was Concubine Xiao who promised it herself.
As soon as the news arrived, the atmosphere in the mansion changed.

Ruyi had just sent the messenger away when Qian, accompanied by a few maids and servants, came in with the Tenth Miss Xue Yuezhen. She couldn't hide her smile so much that her voice could be heard from a long distance away.

"Hey, where is Sixth Sister? The magpies are calling on the branches, are you shy and hiding? The old lady asked me to bring money to Lixiangyuan."

It was obvious that Qian was very happy that the third master had escaped safely. She spoke rapidly, each word laced with smiles.

Xue Sui did not sleep well last night. He originally wanted to go back and take a nap, but with all the noise coming one after another, he could not sleep anymore, so he pulled himself together and came out to greet them.

There were several boxes in the room.

The food, clothing and daily necessities all look magnificent.

Xue Sui smiled slightly.

"Am I going to get rich?"

Qian smiled and said, "Am I not the God of Wealth today? This is all the idea of ​​your Third Uncle and the old lady. I am just doing my part."

She walked over and took Xue Sui's hand, looking at him carefully.

"It's not because you were given the title of Ruren that I prepared this gift. I wanted to come and thank you two days ago, but I didn't have everything ready, so I was embarrassed to come. Sixth Miss helped me a lot this time, and if the gift was too little, it would be embarrassing for me and your third uncle."

Xue Sui understood what she meant and smiled. "What are you talking about, Third Aunt? We are a family, there is no need to talk nonsense."

Seeing that she had a frank look on her face and didn't think that she had any intention of getting close to him, Qian Shi decided not to be distant with her. She held her hand and sat down, smiling and sighing.

"When I first married into the Xue family, I heard people say that there was a sixth girl in the mansion who was born with an unlucky body and was later kidnapped by a kidnapper. I was so sad..."

She was a straightforward person, and everything was on her face. The way she looked at Xue Sui now was different from when they first met, and it was obvious that she was really distressed.

"Now I know what happened to the Sixth Miss. I have to say that Mrs. Fu is too cruel. Even if the child didn't come out of her belly, she is still the eldest master's biological daughter. How could she kill him like this?"

Xue Sui smiled faintly, and pulled his slightly cold hand away from hers without leaving a trace.

"Aunt San, has Uncle San's injury healed?"

Qian saw the empty palm and knew that the girl didn't want to get too close to others. But she was happy today and couldn't help but get close to her, so she leaned over again, smiling brightly.

"He said they were just superficial injuries and nothing serious. He got up early this morning to pack up and go to work... This time it was a blessing in disguise. He burned down the bandit's den and killed people, and he was appreciated by General Yiwu, who recommended him to be the captain of the gate..."

General Yiwu was the one who was in charge of suppressing the bandits in Laojun Mountain. He was always upright and brave, and had a good reputation. It was obvious that Xue Qingxiu had made great contributions to win his attention.

When Qian heard Xue Qingxiu talk about this, her eyebrows danced with joy.

But Xue Sui's expression was calm, and her calmness didn't look like that of a 17 or 18-year-old girl at all. This made her excitement seem a little outrageous.

Qian smiled embarrassedly.

"Your uncle said that this time it was all thanks to you. If he wasn't a grown man and it wasn't inconvenient for him to go in and out of Lixiangyuan, he would have come here in person."

Xue Sui: "I didn't help Third Uncle with anything."

In fact, Qian didn't know how Xue Sui helped Xue Qingxiu. Xue Qingxiu just told her again and again that he was able to come back alive thanks to Sixth Sister, and she refused to say anything else.

Qian had many complaints against him in the past, but now that her man was resurrected, all her anger subsided. She found him pleasing to the eye and started to do as he said, treating her sixth sister as her benefactor.

"I used to quarrel and fight with that bastard all the time, and I never thought he was a good person. This time when he got into trouble, I reflected on myself. Third Uncle Xue... No, your Third Uncle is a bit of a jerk, but compared to those upright gentlemen with concubines all over the house, he is rare..."

Isn’t that the gentleman with a house full of concubines Xue Qingzhi?
Xue Sui smiled and said, "Uncle San is not a bad person. He won't do anything reckless when he drinks outside. It's just that he had a hard time realizing his ambitions and was depressed. Things will get better."

"Thank you for your good words, thank you for your good words."

Qian is a very outgoing person and never stops talking.

Fortunately, Xue Sui didn't dislike her at all, so he listened with a smile.

Before leaving, Qian suddenly advised, "If Fu lays a finger on you again while you are in the mansion, I will fight her."

Xue Sui smiled slightly, "Thank you, Third Aunt."

Qian also smiled, smoothed her hair by her ears, her eyes dimmed, "But then again, if your father doesn't touch her, then no one else can either. She's from a prominent family, born in a marquis's mansion, the princess' biological mother, your stepmother... Even if your third uncle and I wanted to, I'm afraid we wouldn't be able to protect you forever."

She held Xue Sui's hand tightly again.

"Good girl, you must promise Aunt Third that you will be smarter and not confront her head-on. Just say a few nice words occasionally and it will be over. When you get married..."

After a pause, she seemed to think of her marriage and smiled bitterly again.

"Aunt San said something unpleasant. If you think it's good, just listen to it. If it's not good, just ignore it and don't take it to heart."

Xue Sui probably guessed what she was going to say and smiled, "I listened to everything Third Aunt said."

Qian, as a person who had experienced it, spoke earnestly, "The royal palace is not like an ordinary family. If you do well, you will have a bright future. You should not listen to your elder sister in everything. You should fight for what you should fight for yourself..."

Xue Sui refilled her cup with water, smiled slightly, nodded, but did not respond.

Although she knew that Qian meant well and was open-hearted, she had already known ten years ago the dangers of being gullible. When she could use Qian and Xue Qingxiu to her advantage, she would use them.

I can't go any further.

　See you tomorrow, my dears~~
　　Xue Sui: I was given the title of Ruren, but someone made a wrong move. How can I be angry?
　　Li Zhao:......

　　(End of this chapter)