The Empire and the Kingdom

Mother Xie took the ledger from the warehouse and opened it to think about everything.There is no precedent for a young lady getting married in the family, so she can only choose some good things to remember first, and then ask Mrs. Pan to increase or decrease.

When she memorized all the things she had selected, and took the list to the warehouse to confirm the things, she found that many things were gone. This made her break out in a cold sweat. Could it be that there were thieves in the Xiangfu?The woman in charge of the warehouse said: "These are all ordered by the madam, and they moved to the small warehouse inside early in the morning."

The mother-in-law led Xie's mother into the small warehouse inside, and sure enough everything was there.Mother Xie asked, "Why are these things moved into the small warehouse?"

The mother-in-law spread her hands, "Thank you mother, if you don't know, how do we servants know?"

Mother Xie looked at the things in the small warehouse, and checked the list with the list in her hand, and found that more than half of the items in the list were here, and they were all the best things in the warehouse.She somewhat understood that Pan's collection of these things was probably intended to be a dowry for the young lady Xue Ying.

She went back and drew up a new dowry list, this time it was all from the big warehouse.The list was handed over to Pan Shi, Pan Shi looked at it, "These things are all very good, and they should all be given to Ai'er, but there are only so many things in the warehouse, and Xiangye has five daughters. I don't need to pay so much dowry, but I'm a aunt, so it's not easy to give out anything. And Ying'er, who is not young, and is the eldest daughter of the prime minister, naturally she can't be shabby when she gets married." She took a pen and wrote on the list. After ticking off a few things, Mama Xie saw that they were all the best things on the list.

After finishing the check, Pan looked at the dowry list, "I don't know what the dowry is for other young ladies, and it's not right. Ai'er is marrying into the palace, so don't spend too much in the mansion. It makes people think that Xiangye is greedy for money in private. Alright." As she spoke, she ticked off a few more items. "That should be about the same."

Mother Xie couldn't bear it any longer, she was the daughter of the prime minister's wife and married to the royal family, the dowry was too shabby.

"Ma'am, the third lady is a daughter-in-law, so a larger dowry is for the face of the Tian family."

Pan nodded. "That's all. I have three shops under my name, two for Ying'er and one for Ai'er. These don't look like much. They are all from my mother, and there is another one in the palace. The dowry, plus the betrothal gift from the Eastern Palace, the total is quite a lot. Ai'er is a side concubine, so it's not good to go past the main concubine, lest she be put on small shoes by the main concubine in the future."

After Pan's calculations, the dowry she gave to Xue Aibei was really a fraction of that of ordinary officials.She knew that Xiang Xiang would not agree to this matter, so she didn't mention a word in front of Xiang Xue.She was born in a small family, and originally her dowry was not much, but fortunately Xue Xiang is a clear-headed person, although the Xue family was not a famous family before, there was no shortage of money.After Xue Xiang entered Beijing, he set up several farms near the capital, and there were also shops in the capital, so there was no need for Mrs. Pan to subsidize the palace.Even so, with so many years of savings, Pan's foundation is still weak.In her heart, Xue Ai should not have come to this world, and Xue Ai should have died together when her son died.She took her son's life back then, and now she wants to take her daughter's dowry. She will never allow such a thing to happen.

Regarding Pan's calculations, Xue Ai did not know, Xue Xiang did not know, but Wang did.It is not difficult to arrange an eyeliner in Wanning Garden, so Pan's words quickly reached Wang's hands.

Xue Zhi was only released by Xue Xiang recently, so she is very well-behaved. "Mother, is Da Furen really so cruel to Sanmei? If Sanmei gets married with such a dowry, not only will the people in the capital laugh at her, but she will also be looked down upon by the royal family."

"The eldest madam really wants to kill the third lady!" Although it is said that the relationship between Pan and her daughter is as bad as possible, they are both mothers. When Wang thinks of the embarrassing situation that Xue Ai will face when she gets married, she feels a little nervous. Could not bear.She just couldn't understand, how could her daughter, Mrs. Pan, be so cruel?

Xue Zhi has already sensed the sense of crisis, "Mother, if the eldest lady is so stingy, wouldn't the dowry for me and Fifth Sister also be..." If she were to face Xue Ai's situation, she would want to die.

Mrs. Wang patted her hand, "You, what a child. Although the dowry was prepared by her mother's family, most of it was saved by her mother. Don't worry, although mother is not the official wife, your maternal ancestor's family is the highest. , There is never a shortage of money. When your mother got married, even though she was a concubine, your grandmother also gave her a large dowry. When you get married, your mother will take more than half of it for you. Poor." Wang stroked her daughter's pretty face, "My daughter will definitely marry with red makeup."

"Mother," Xue Zhi threw herself into Wang's arms, "You are so kind to me."

"Silly boy, you were born in October, how can you be bad?" Mrs. Wang said, patting Xue Zhi on the back.

Yes, pregnant in October, who gave birth to a child with all her life, which mother has the heart to treat her harshly?Pan has the heart.As the mistress of the house, she knows how much dowry will be given to each young lady in the palace.From this amount, she quietly deducted [-]% and put it in Xue Ying's dowry.She knew very well that if she dared to withhold the dowry of the three concubines, her mother would definitely not agree. Only Xue Ai would not know how much the dowry should be, and no one else would care, so that she could give it to Xue Ai. Ying saved more.

No one knew about Pan's plan to withhold Xue Ai's dowry, but everyone in the mansion knew about Pan's preparation of Xue Ai's dowry.For this reason, Xue Ying had a tantrum for two days, thinking that Pan's was going to Xue Ai when she started preparing the dowry so early.

Mengan told Xue Ai the news, Xue Ai rubbed the center of her brows, and shook her wrist, which was sore from writing, "That's my mother's business, we don't care about it as she prepares it. It's up to me as much as my parents give. With all my heart, Meng An, there is no need to mention this matter again." Now she is planning how to put her future husband to death, without a wedding, where is the dowry?It's all worrying.

Meng An came over to help Xue Ai knead her shoulders and neck, "Miss, you have been stuck in the room for many days, Madam didn't let you go out, but she didn't say that you are not allowed to walk around in the house, you should go out anyway, It's good to breathe."

Xue Ai also felt that he had been bored for a long time, and the things that should be sorted out had already been sorted out.She was a cautious person, and burned all the useless papers, and finally left a sorted list for Meng An to hide, which was to be handed over to Feng Jingsu.

"Don't go out of the yard, to avoid trouble." Xue Ai walked around the yard a few times, and finally sat down on a stone bench in the yard, watching the leaves falling from the trees.Unknowingly, Feng Jingsu has been back for more than a year. At this time last year, because she helped Feng Jingsu in Princess Mingqi's mansion, she was kidnapped by bandits ordered by the Zhuang family. If the Feng family hadn't rescued her, the anniversary would have been burned .That night, at Princess Ming Qi's Mansion, she and Feng Jingsu confessed their feelings to each other. It was the first night that the two embraced and slept together. She lay in Feng Jingsu's arms and slept very peacefully.

A year passed quickly, and her life was much busier and more practical.It feels really good to have a goal and to use all your ingenuity to get there.

"Aww!" The red fox on the side saw Xue Ai start yelling in the cage.

Meng An laughed and said, "Fei Yun misses Miss too."

Xue Ai asked Mengan to go to the kitchen to bring a piece of chicken, and she wanted to feed Feiyun.

The little fox has grown into a big fox, shed its innocence and childishness, and Fei Yun shows a bewitching beauty.

"Fei Yun, why do you grow and become more beautiful? I also want to be like you, so that Sister Su won't dislike me." Feng Jingsu refused to touch her until now. She knew it was respect, but it also made her very sad. Worrying, she really wanted to have more contact with Feng Jingsu, thinking of Feng Jingsu's beauty, she wanted to drool a little.She really didn't know that women can be lustful, but unfortunately she is like this.

Meng An brought a large piece of chicken, Xue Ai frowned, "It's such a big piece, can Fei Yun eat it?"

Meng An smiled, "Miss, Fei Yun has grown up, so I don't need to feed her with small pieces."

Xue Ai threw the chicken into the cage, and Fei Yun picked it up and put it in the innermost part of the cage, then lay down and ate slowly.

"He also knows how to protect food." Xue Ai nodded, as expected, the fox is still smart.

She had had enough of staying in the yard, and went back to her room. She wondered if Feng Jingsu would come over today. This was something she was looking forward to every day.

Feng Jingsu didn't come out tonight because a major event happened in the palace.The prince wrote to the queen, saying that he was attacked in Yun Kingdom. Fortunately, both he and Princess Hejia were fine. The assassin had already been caught. After interrogation, he was sent by the second prince. Informed.

The queen personally led people to search the Jiaolan Palace, and indeed found the letter that conspired with the second prince to assassinate the prince.The queen got the physical evidence and asked the emperor to handle the matter.

The emperor read the letter and asked Wang Guifei, "What do you want to say?"

The noble concubine knelt down and kowtowed, "Your Majesty, the concubine is wronged! The concubine has never written such a letter, let alone conspired with the second prince to assassinate the prince. Everything is framed by someone who wants to get rid of the concubine and the second prince." Ah! Your Majesty is clearly watching!" Concubine Wang Guifei was crying as she spoke, the appearance of Qi Qi Ai Ai made the emperor couldn't bear it anymore, and asked someone to help her to sit aside.

The queen saw that this posture was wrong, "Your Majesty, the noble concubine colluded with the second prince to assassinate the prince. There are all witnesses and material evidence, so you can't deny it!"

The emperor felt that his head was hurting, so he sent someone to call the second prince outside the palace and asked him to defend himself.

Seeing the crying concubine and the letter in the emperor's hand, the second prince bowed his head and said, "If the emperor wants to punish the crime of the son, the son has nothing to say. There is only one sentence, the son did not assassinate the prince, let alone talk to the mother." The concubine joins forces to assassinate the prince."

The emperor's eyes narrowed slightly, and he tapped his fingers on the table a few times, "Then how do you explain this letter?"

The second prince said: "Going back to my father, if I want to see my concubine, I can do it any day. I can definitely meet with my concubine and talk about this matter. Why do I need to write a letter to leave evidence? This is one of them. Second, if the son-in-law wants to assassinate the prince, he only needs to arrange someone to go to assassinate him, and there is no need to discuss it with the concubine mother. The concubine mother is a woman in the deep palace, how can I help the son-in-law? The emperor read this letter. All the details are arranged by the mother and concubine, even if the son is not as intelligent as the prince, it will not be so useless."

Seeing the emperor nodding frequently, the queen asked, "Then how do you explain the assassin's confession in the crown prince's hand?"

The second prince kowtowed to the empress, "Go back to the empress, the minister is not talented, such a testimony can be obtained by as many ministers as the empress wants." This means that the confession is false.

"Bold!" The queen slapped the table, "You mean the crown prince framed you?"

"I dare not." The second prince kowtowed.

The queen turned to the emperor and said: "Your Majesty, the second prince's tongue is as sharp as a knife, so it can be seen that he has already thought up the words of refutation. If the assassin was not ordered by him, how could he think of these words in advance?"

The emperor frowned, saying it was meaningless for this sake. "Queen, assassinating the crown prince is no small matter. If we want to convict their mother and son, I still need solid evidence." He looked at the second prince, "Before this matter is investigated clearly, you should go back to the government and introspect."

"My son obeys the order." The second prince was very obedient.

The emperor looked at the weeping concubine Wang Guifei again, "You go back to the palace first, and you are not allowed to go out without purpose."

Wang Guifei leaned over, "The concubine obeys the order."

The imperial concubine and the second prince had left, the emperor glanced at the queen, "You continue to investigate, and then tell me after you have verified."

The queen could hear displeasure from the emperor's tone.She lowered her head, "The concubine complies."

The emperor turned back to his Qinzheng Hall.After thinking about it, he sent someone to call Feng Jingsu.

"Yun Yi, do you know what happened in the harem today?"

Feng Jingsu sat next to the emperor after seeing the ceremony, "I heard that the empress went to the imperial concubine's palace to get something. I heard that it was related to the assassination of the prince when he went out. Later, I heard that the second brother also entered the palace. What happened next My son doesn't know." Feng Jingsu answered honestly.

The emperor nodded, "The empress found a letter in the imperial concubine's palace. The empress said that the letter was written by the imperial concubine and the second prince. The letter did say that she would assassinate the prince when the prince was on a diplomatic mission. But both the imperial concubine and the second prince denied it. This letter was written by them. Afterwards, a few people quarreled, and it was a huge sum of money, which made my head hurt." The emperor supported his head, "I called you here just to hear your opinion."

Feng Jingsu's eyes widened, expressing her surprise.

The emperor smiled, "Don't pretend to be confused with me, you will never get involved, that's why I want to hear from you."

Feng Jingsu thought for a while, "Father, if you have anything to say, you can just say it directly. You are not allowed to say that the subordinates have committed crimes, whether it is big or small."

"Sure, tell me." The emperor leaned on the couch, obviously he was still very relaxed in front of his daughter.

"I don't understand a few things about this matter. First, the crown prince was assassinated. Shouldn't this matter be reported to the court and let you handle it? Second, the empress received the letter from the prince, even if she wanted to search the palace, The status of the imperial concubine is only below that of the empress, shouldn't the empress tell you? Thirdly, the notes on the letter have obviously been read by the imperial father, and the handwriting is presumably the imperial concubine's. The imperial father said the deployment in the letter If the whole plan was written by the imperial concubine, it means that the whole thing was planned by the imperial concubine. Since the assassination operation has been carried out, it means that the second brother knows the content of this letter. Since the second brother already knows, Why does the imperial concubine keep this trouble?" These three points were the first things that Feng Jingsu thought of after hearing this.

The emperor nodded, "Well, the analysis makes sense, much better than their arguing." He sat up slightly, "Yun Yi, how do you think I should handle this matter?"

Feng Jingsu looked at the emperor without speaking.

The emperor waited for a while, seeing that Feng Jingsu had no intention of opening his mouth at all, he patted Feng Jingsu, just like a father and daughter fighting, "You girl, you're still playing tricks on me, tell me quickly!"

"Father, you are the emperor, how can you speak nonsense for a princess like this?" Feng Jingsu didn't want to leave any excuses.

"All right, all right, you're right, I told you to say it, so say it quickly."

Feng Jing and Su Bianping said, "Father, didn't you send secret guards to secretly protect the prince? Some of them are responsible for passing on the news, just ask one of them to come back and ask, will it be clear?"

"Oh, yes." The emperor patted his head, "I have made them confused."

The emperor immediately sent someone to contact the secret guards, and Feng Jingsu ignored these matters.Too much control will inevitably arouse the emperor's suspicion. She knows that the emperor has trusted her more and more, but the basis of all this is because she is a princess, so she is an outsider when it comes to the throne.Once she lets the emperor know that she wants to fight for the throne, she will lose the emperor's trust.

After returning to Shenhe Palace, she deliberately waited until very late before going to Antai Palace, and told Concubine De about the matter.Concubine De shook her head, "I feel sorry for the empress and concubine now, at this age, and I have to do my best for my son, I feel tired just thinking about it." She put her arm around Feng Jingsu's shoulder, "It's still me Yunyi is the best, don't let me worry about it at all."

"Shuangniang, you have done a lot for me." If Concubine De hadn't arranged for her to fly to Yejin, how could there be Feng Jingsu today?

"Raise a son at a hundred years old, and worry about 99 years. My son, your mother entrusted you to me before she died. How can I not count on you? Fortunately, you can protect yourself now. This palace is always better than the queen and the concubine." Blessed." Concubine De hugged Feng Jingsu, "Don't worry about your affairs, take your time, you see they are pinching so hard now, this is your chance."