On our wedding night, my wife acted strangely.

Lin An noticed Lin Yi's dilemma and asked, "What do you think we should do? Should we kick her out or let her stay?"

Lin Yi thought for a moment and said, "Let's stay here for now and talk about it after the Guo family's matter is settled."

"Yes, there's one more thing, Your Highness. The valuables confiscated from the Guo family this time have been inventoried."

"Hmm, approximately how much?"

"There are hundreds of pieces of jewelry, antiques, and paintings, as well as a large number of land deeds and house deeds, which are not specifically counted. Most importantly, there are 3.2 million taels of silver in cash."

"Tao Shao?" Lin Yi was taken aback.

"Three million two hundred thousand taels." Lin An repeated again, "Your Highness, this is truly a case of massive corruption."

Three million two hundred thousand.

This is terrifying.

If it were just Lin Yi himself, without gambling, he could never spend all that money in a lifetime.

You know, that day Fatty took Lin Yi to Yanlai Restaurant, ordered so many girls, and all the good wine and food, but in the end it only cost less than a hundred taels.

Three million two hundred thousand... This really proves the old saying.

Money is just a number.

Everyone says that the Great Zhou Dynasty doesn't have enough silver, but it turns out that it's all hidden away among officials and wealthy merchants.

Lin Yi had become somewhat numb to these corrupt officials. He waved his hand and said, "Alright, go down. Organize the accounts in detail. I want to see them tomorrow."

"Yes." Lin An turned and left.

Mimi then dared to turn back and continue taking off her clothes, whispering, "Your Highness, this young master Lu is quite capable."

Lin Yi remained silent.

That young man is single-mindedly trying to find women for himself. On the surface, he just wants to make himself happy, but in reality, he's worried that the royal family will have no heir.

The Regent's Palace is now at its zenith, wielding immense power, and he, as one of its earliest followers, naturally holds a superior position. He hopes to leave this wealth and status to his future children, but only if the palace has an heir.

After all, everyone knows that... it's quite difficult for the Lin family to have children.

Without children, neither the Lu family nor the Wang family's wealth and status will last.

Lin Yi knew this perfectly well, but he didn't say it out loud.

Thinking of Guo Fu again, I suddenly realized that the woman was quite interesting. She was a loyal and devoted person who went to such lengths for her family.

Well then, since I've already stayed, I might as well stay.

Anyway, the Prince's mansion is so big, it's no big deal to support one more person.

......

The next morning, the Regent's Palace began preparing for the marriage of the eldest princess.

Unlike ordinary weddings, which are grand and involve much fanfare, the preparations at the Prince's Mansion were carried out in an unusually low-key manner.

There was no grand announcement, no noisy invitation of guests; the servants quietly put on new lanterns, adding a subtle touch of joy to the mansion.

To outsiders, this didn't seem like a joyous occasion, but rather like a chore that had to be done.

As the prince's personal maid, Yifei was naturally extremely busy. Starting in the morning, she carefully inspected the newly changed bedding in the master bedroom, ensuring that every wrinkle was smoothed out and every loose thread was trimmed.

The prince disliked luxury, but he had extremely high standards for details; even the slightest flaw could displease him.

"This won't do, take it and exchange it right away."

"And this! Red is for the wedding day, so what's with this green?"

"It's not like this is your first wedding. How can you be so brainless? Hurry up."

Yifei efficiently directed the lower-ranking maids and servants when a servant rushed in.

"Sister Yifei..." The servant was panting heavily, and could barely speak.

Yifei frowned slightly, stopped what she was doing, and asked, "What's wrong? What kind of behavior is this, all flustered and disrespectful? His Highness dislikes servants who have no manners."

The servant quickly caught his breath and bowed as he replied, "Sister, someone from your hometown has arrived. They're waiting in the back room right now. Steward Lin sent me to inform you."

People from my hometown are coming?

Yifei was somewhat dazed.

Ever since her parents sold her into slavery, more than a decade has passed, and she thought she would never have anything to do with the word "hometown" again in her life.

Those memories were distant and blurry, like something from a past life. She could hardly remember what her parents looked like anymore; she only remembered that during the famine that year, when the family was so hungry they couldn't even afford to eat, her parents held her and cried all night. The next day, they sold her to a slave trader in exchange for half a bag of life-saving grain.

Over the years, she has thought about them, especially in the quiet of the night. She can't help but wonder how her parents are doing now? Are they still alive? Have they had another child?

But she dared not go looking for them, nor did she dare to inquire. The capital was so vast, and the population was so immense; where could she possibly find them? Moreover, her current status was that of a servant in the Prince's mansion. If she rashly sought out her relatives and caused any trouble for the Prince, that would be an enormous sin.

"Who is it? Did they say their name?"

The servant shook his head: "He didn't say. There was only an old lady with a boy of about half-grown age. Steward Lin is probably a fraud; he's put her in a back room. Sister, you should go and take a look."

Yifei was feeling very uneasy.

Composing himself, he instructed the maidservants beside him, "You all tidy up here first, don't be lazy, I'll be right back."

After saying that, she lifted her skirt and walked quickly toward the back room.

The outermost room of the Prince's Mansion was specifically used as a temporary resting place for visiting servants or visitors. The room was small and simply furnished, with only a few worn-out tables and chairs.

As soon as Yifei entered, she saw an elderly woman with gray hair sitting awkwardly in a chair. She was wearing coarse cloth clothes covered with patches, and her wrinkled hands were tightly gripping the arm of a little boy next to her. Her eyes were full of unease and awe.

The little boy was about ten years old, and was pale and thin.

When Yifei came in, the old lady's eyes lit up, and she quickly pulled the little boy down to her knees with a "plop".

"Quickly, kowtow to your sister!"

The little boy seemed a bit shy. The old lady pressed his head down, and he reluctantly kowtowed on the ground.

The sudden kneeling startled Yifei, who quickly went to help her up, saying, "What are you doing? Get up quickly."

The old woman refused to get up, tilting her head back, her cloudy eyes filled with tears: "Good child, how can you not recognize me? I'm your maternal grandmother! Your mother, Fengqin, is my own daughter!"

Grandma?

Yifei tilted her head and stared at her blankly.

She has no recollection of ever having a maternal grandmother.

"Your mother! Child, you can't possibly not even remember your mother, can you?" Seeing that she didn't react, the old lady reminded her again anxiously, afraid that she wouldn't believe her.

Yifei took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down.

"Please get up and talk to me, the ground is cold."

She crouched down and carefully examined the old woman's face.

Although time has changed so much, a familiar outline can still be vaguely seen between the eyebrows and eyes.

That's what my mother looks like.

"You...you are really my maternal grandmother?" Yifei still couldn't quite believe it.