Listening to her daughter's heartfelt words, the pregnant Lady Hou went on a killing spree.

"Keeping the child is already the biggest concession your father and I have made. Don't force us to change our minds."

Since Princess Qingyang had already said so much, the two dared not say anything more.

"Thank you, Mother Consort."

"Someone come here."

The door was opened, and several maids and servants came in.

"Send the First Madam back to her courtyard. She is not to leave the courtyard without my order, nor is anyone allowed to visit her."

"Yes, Your Highness."

An old woman walked up to Ji Chunjiao.

"Madam, let's go."

Ji Chunjiao stood up, her face deathly pale.

This was not the result she wanted. She had originally thought that she could use the child in her womb to gain status, but she did not expect that the Princess of Qingyang wanted the child, and she could not benefit from the child at all.

If I had known this would happen, I would have preferred not to mention the child and to remarry.

With a thousand thoughts swirling in her mind, Ji Chunjiao had no choice but to follow the maids and servants back to her own courtyard.

"Get out of here and kneel in the ancestral hall! You're not allowed to get up until you've knelt there for three days!"

"Yes, Father."

Xiao Yang dared not say a word more and was helped by his servants to the ancestral hall of the Prince's Mansion to kneel down.

After everyone had left, Prince Qingyang and Princess Qingyang huddled together, sighing repeatedly.

"Your Highness, do you think it's the right thing to do to keep this child?"

The two were in great inner turmoil.

Theoretically, this child shouldn't be kept, but emotionally they can't bear to part with him; after all, he is a descendant of the Prince of Qingyang.

Prince Qingyang sighed.

"We've already decided to keep it; let's leave it to fate."

The two looked at each other and sighed in unison.

.........

The Yu family were businessmen, so they naturally knew some people in the martial arts world.

After the incident, Madam Yu spent a large sum of money to hire a master of light-body skills in the martial arts world, just for the sake of making it easier to gather information.

The fact that the guards had diarrhea today was also the work of someone hired by the Yu family; otherwise, how could such a coincidence happen?

Once the matter was settled and the person returned to report, Old Madam Yu wrote a note and had it sent to the Marquis of Anshun's residence, so that Madam Ji could also be happy.

Later that evening, Madam Ji did receive a note from Old Madam Yu. After reading its contents, she couldn't help but think of her past life.

In the previous life, the Prince of Qingyang's mansion never had the problem of having two wives, but now it has.

Could it be that something similar happened in a past life, but was ultimately suppressed by the Prince and Princess of Qingyang, and they were unaware of it?

"An'an, what do you think of this? It seems that after we, mother and daughter, got involved, the course of events in this life has completely changed compared to the last life."

[Mother, don't worry. Prince Qingyang and Princess Qingyang are not foolish; they would never agree to Xiao Yang taking on two wives.]

"Mother knows, Princess Qingyang is not confused."

Putting that matter aside for the time being, the mother and daughter happily discussed how to decorate their small courtyard in the south of the city.

After all, that's where An'an will stay after she's born. Although she won't stay there for long, Ji Yueru doesn't want to make An'an feel wronged.

Meanwhile, the Yu family received an uninvited guest.

When Madam Yu saw the visitor, her pupils contracted, and she stood up and bowed respectfully.

"This old woman greets Your Highness Prince Shun."

The lowered head suppressed the shock in Old Madam Yu's heart. Why would Prince Shun come to the Yu family? Could it be that her relationship with her younger brother could no longer be kept secret?

"Madam Yu, there's no need for such formalities. I've come here today to discuss a business deal with your Yu family."

Not understanding the purpose of Prince Shun's visit, Old Madam Yu spoke very carefully, afraid of saying the wrong word.

"Your Highness Prince Shun is too kind to my Yu family. We are just merchants, how could we possibly be worthy of doing business with Your Highness Prince Shun?"

"Madam Yu is too modest. With the wealth of your Yu family and the influence of Chief Steward Yu in the palace, you are qualified to do business with me."

Previously, because his father disliked him, the Yu family almost lost contact with his younger brother. Later, after his father died, his younger brother's position in the palace rose higher and higher.

As the princes in the palace grew up, the two men, fearing that the Yu family would be implicated in the struggle for the throne, carefully concealed their relationship from each other.

But unexpectedly, this day still came, and the first to discover it was Prince Shun.

To be honest, the Yu family and Chief Steward Yu have never thought highly of Prince Shun, or rather, Prince Shun has never even come into their sights.

There were almost no rumors about Prince Shun in the capital. There were only rumors about him when he was born more than a decade ago. Because of the ominous rumors, everyone kept quiet about Prince Shun.

The princes, ministers, and common people in the court all tacitly agree that there is no such person as Prince Shun.

Who would have any faith in a prince who was banished to Dajue Temple to practice Buddhism with his hair still intact from birth?

Xiao Ce sat in the main seat of the Yu family, tapping the armrest of the chair lightly with his left index finger.

"Da, da, da."

Each sound seemed to strike at Old Madam Yu's heart, making it impossible for her to calm down.

Seeing that Madam Yu remained silent, Xiao Ce sneered.

"The matter of Chief Steward Yu being confined to his quarters can be a big deal or a small deal. As for whether it is a big deal or a small deal, that depends on your performance, Madam."

A sentence spoken in a flat tone, yet it was full of threat.

He never focuses on the methods he uses; he only cares about whether the result is what he wants.

Madam Yu was shocked. A prince who had been practicing Buddhism at Dajue Temple since childhood could actually influence matters in the palace. It seemed that Prince Shun's plans in the palace were not small.

Thinking of her younger brother, Old Madam Yu closed her eyes.

If she has done something wrong, and when she goes to the underworld to face the ancestors of the Yu family, then let her atone for her sins alone.

"From now on, the Yu family will obey Your Highness's orders."

"Old Madam Yu is indeed sensible."

Prepare one million taels of silver in cash. Ten days later, transport it to Qiushui Manor outside the city; someone there will be there to meet you.

When Madam Yu looked up again, Prince Shun was nowhere to be seen in the room.

Since Prince Shun appeared, Yang Mama, who had been kneeling with her head down and not daring to speak, got up and came over to help Old Madam Yu, her legs weak, after he left.

"Mingzhi, tell me, did I do the right thing or not?"

Mother Yang didn't dare to answer; this was not a question a servant like her could answer.

Madam Yu didn't expect Yang Mama to answer. She turned and went into the inner room. She needed to think carefully about what the Yu family should do next.

The next morning, Marquis Anshun went to the Ministry of Justice to be on duty. As soon as he arrived, he was summoned in by the Minister of Justice, who then berated him harshly.

"Lin Mufeng, I used to think you were a good person, and I submitted my memorial recommending you to succeed me as Minister of Justice a long time ago."

But look at all the trouble your family has been getting lately! It got me summoned by the Emperor and given a good scolding.

I won't go into those details, but look at how many times you've taken leave in the past two weeks.

If you don't want this position, you should get the hell out of here! Stop hogging the job!

Marquis Anshun was so scolded that he didn't dare to lift his head. Minister Fang scolded him for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before he sat down to catch his breath.

Lin Mufeng quickly picked up the teacup on the table and offered it to Lin with both hands.

"Please calm down, sir. There are just too many things going on at home."

Minister Fang took the teacup with a huff and gulped down a large mouthful.

"I can't be bothered with your family's trivial matters. There's a big case in Stone Town outside the city. You take your men and investigate it personally."

I'm warning you, if you can't solve this case, you can forget about staying in your position as Vice Minister.