Chapter 605: Detention
Qi Shaosheng sighed and said, “I’ll beg the Emperor to let Mother come live with me outside the palace.”
Madam Xu asked worriedly, “Will he agree?”
Qi Shaosheng was silent for a while before saying, “We have to give it a try.”
Of course, Qi Xiuyuan did not agree. He said to Qi Shaosheng, “There are constant rumors outside that I don’t get along well with the Imperial Noble Consort, so she naturally has to stay in the palace. Don’t worry, Second Brother. I’ll get the servants to serve the Imperial Noble Consort well. If you’re free, you can come to the palace to visit her often.”
Qi Shaosheng hurriedly knelt down and said, “Your Majesty, that’s all nonsense from outsiders. After I go out, I’ll definitely try my best to refute the rumors. The Imperial Noble Consort has worked hard her entire life. Third Brother and I want to be filial to her…”
Qi Xiuyuan sneered and looked down at him. “Second Brother, are you really clueless as to where those rumors came from?”
Qi Shaosheng’s expression changed. Sensing the pressure from the ruler, he lay on the ground in fear. Only then did he deeply feel the difference in their identities.
How the rumors came about was naturally because her mother had asked someone to spread the rumors in a bid to help her sons secure a better title.
Even now, the Wu family was constantly hinting at this.
Qi Xiuyuan waved his hand and said, “Seeing as it’s getting late, it’s not good for Second Brother and Third Brother to stay in the palace much longer. You may retreat. If you want to see the Imperial Noble Consort, just hand in your tokens.”
Qi Shaosheng opened his mouth to beg again, but when he saw Qi Xiuyuan’s cold face, he could only retreat with a pale face.
When he returned home, he immediately asked Madam Xu to look for Mu Yangling and beg her to intercede. “She’s the only one who can help us plead for leniency in front of the Empress and the Emperor now.”
Madam Xu hesitated and said, “Madam Mu might not agree. We don’t have much of a relationship with her.”
“You’re her second sister-in-law after all.” Qi Shaosheng interrupted her irritably. After a pause, he said, “Bring some gifts over. What does Madam Mu like?”
Madam Xu choked. How could she know what Madam Mu liked?
Qi Shaosheng glared at her. “Despite being sisters-in-law for two years, you know nothing about her.”
Madam Xu lowered her head and thought about it seriously before choosing a set of gemstones. The next day, she went to the Qi Residence.
However, she didn’t even get to see Mu Yangling. She was only informed by Spring that they were very busy now and didn’t have time to entertain her because they were leaving in three days.
With a stiffened expression, Madam Xu sat in the carriage for a while before leaving. The next day, she returned again.
Mu Yangling sighed and said, “Tell Second Madam directly that I can’t help her with her request. Tell her to find someone else.”
Although Li Jinghua did not say anything, Mu Yangling could guess from her attitude that Madam Wu’s stay in the palace was not simple.
Back then, Madam Wu did not receive the Zhu family’s approval when she was promoted from a noble concubine to the legitimate wife. From this, it could be seen that there was something fishy going on. Mu Yangling was not involved in things back then, so she did not have the right to judge right and wrong. Moreover, considering there was a difference in closeness, it went without saying that she was on Qi Xiuyuan’s side.
Mu Yangling refused to see Madam Xu the entire time. When it came time to leave, she got into the carriage.
The Qi Residence was not far from the Fan Residence, but because they had many people and things, they had to wait for Little Madam Xia to come and meet them.
Zhu Liang hurried in from outside and reported, “Fourth Madam, we haven’t seen Young Madam’s people yet. We’ve already sent someone to take a look. It’s very quiet at the Fan Residence’s entrance and there’s no sign of the convoy.”
Mu Yangling raised her eyebrows. Before she could speak, a maidservant rushed over. “Fourth Madam, there’s a maidservant at the corner door. She said that she’s someone close to Young Madam.”
“Let her in.”
“Fourth Madam, please save our Second Madam.” The maidservant knelt on the ground and said, “This morning, Second Madam was about to go out when Old Master ordered her not to go out. Even the convoy was detained.”
Mu Yangling asked, “Then how did you get out?”
“I’m the guard at the corner door and am indebted to Second Master. Before Second Master left, he instructed me to look for you if Old Master refuses to let Second Madam out.”
The corners of Mu Yangling’s mouth twitched. Fan Zijin was really too much. He had clearly expected this to happen, but he didn’t tell her in advance and now she had to go against Fan Siwen.
If he had told her earlier, she could have brought Little Madam Xia over to stay at the Qi Residence two days in advance. When the time came, they could have set off from the Qi Residence and none of this would have happened.
Mu Yangling rubbed her forehead and said, “Alright, go back. I know what to do.”
Mu Yangling instructed Zhu Liang, “Let’s go. I’ll turn around and go to Fan Residence. When the time comes, we can just leave the city from there.” Halfway there, Mu Yangling stopped and asked, “Didn’t the Emperor send imperial guards to escort us? Where are they?”
Zhu Liang bowed and said, “The imperial guards have already arrived at the city gate.”
Mu Yangling let out a long sigh and said, “As expected, they’re all smart people.” She was left to face the difficulties alone.
This time, Mu Yangling had brought all the things she often used with her. Due to the miasma and poisonous insects in Qiannan, Mu Yangling had brought a lot of medicinal herbs. Hence, there were many carriages carrying things. In addition, she had brought along everyone in their residence, including guards and so on, forming a large trade caravan.
The carriages blocked half the street outside Fan Residence.
Seeing that the sun had already begun to rise, Mu Yangling asked someone to knock on the door.
Mu Yangling handed the sleeping Little Bear to the wet nurse and brought Spring and Rain into Fan Residence.
The butler of the Fan Mansion quickly invited her in. Madam Xia was already sitting in the reception pavilion. When she saw Mu Yangling, she sighed and said, “I know why you’re here. There’s nothing I can do about it. It’s a thing between the father and son.”
Seeing that Madam Xia was direct, Mu Yangling didn’t beat around the bush. She paused and said, “Aunt, Cousin still doesn’t have a legitimate son. If he leaves now, I’m afraid he won’t come back for at least four to five years. Are we really going to let his eldest son be born from a concubine? I’m afraid Cousin will have grievances about this in the future.”
Tears fell from Madam Xia’s eyes as she said, “How could I not know? He must have suffered enough as a not-the-eldest son, that’s why he insisted that the eldest son must be the legitimate son. However, his father is also stubborn and getting on in age. The relationship between father and son has always been bad. Now that Zijin is in a high position, he fears that Zijin will treat his half-brother badly in the future…”
Mu Yangling was so angry that she wanted to laugh. “Since Uncle is so worried, why is he going against Cousin instead of letting him have his way? Isn’t he afraid to worsen their relationship by angering him?”
Madam Xia sneered and said, “How could he not know? His original intention was to let me get closer to my daughter-in-law. When the time comes, Zijin’s legitimate son will also side with him. With me around, Zijin won’t make things too ugly. In time, he will bring Zijin’s legitimate son to his side and raise him to forge closer ties with this grandson.”
Mu Yangling’s expression darkened and she asked, “Do you share his sentiments?”
Madam Xia remained silent.
Mu Yangling said, “Aunt, although Uncle is stopping Little Madam Xia from leaving the house, as long as you give the order, I can take her away. We can leave her things behind for now and focus on bringing her away first.”
Seeing that Madam Xia was silent, Mu Yangling hurriedly said, “Cousin Zijin is still waiting in Qiannan. Can you bear to see him have a stiff relationship with his son like the one he has with his father?”
If Fan Zijin’s legitimate son was raised by Fan Siwen, considering Fan Zijin’s personality, she could already foresee the battle between the father and son in the future. As it was, Fan Zijin already had such faint ties with his father. She did not want him to be so distant with his future son as well.
Madam Xia was moved for a moment. A pretty servant girl went forward to refill Madam Xia’s tea. She paused for a moment and let out an exhale, then closed her eyes and said, “Hurry up and leave the city, lest you miss the auspicious hour. Little Madam Xia’s health isn’t good, so it’s not appropriate for her to rush around. I’ll send two fertile girls from decent backgrounds to serve him later.”
Source: NovelFull.com, updated on N𝘰vgo.co
