Inside the Imperial Study of the Palace
The guard sent to investigate returned and reported to the Emperor the results of his inquiries at the Prime Minister's Residence and Duan Wang's Residence, along with the rumors circulating among the capital's citizens over the past few days, recounting every detail to the Emperor.
Upon hearing this, the Emperor was furious. He had known his useless second son was incapable of doing anything decent—so this was it! What a scoundrel, actually sneaking into a minister's inner quarters to engage in illicit affairs with a young lady… If this were to spread, where would the imperial family's dignity be?
And Prime Minister Yun had failed in educating his daughter—how could an unmarried young lady be so wanton!
Enough. Prime Minister Yun probably hadn't had an easy time these past few days either—his wife unsettled, his daughter causing trouble. Since things had come to this, allowing the rumors to continue would likely harm the imperial family's reputation.
Thus, from a drawer in the desk, he took out a new scroll of imperial edict, wrote a passage in elegant strokes, and handed it to Eunuch Li beside him.
"Eunuch Li, take this to the Prime Minister's Residence to deliver the edict!"
"Yes, Your Majesty! This old servant will go at once!"
He then ordered the guard to relay a message to the Dali Temple, instructing them to suppress the rumors in the capital.
With the Emperor's intervention, within two days the rumors were suppressed. No one dared to discuss the matter openly anymore, as defying the imperial command and discussing imperial affairs could easily lead to arrest.
…
Wutong Courtyard
Yun Li was applying medicine to her face. She noticed the scars on her face were fading more and more, likely due to the Spiritual Spring Water. She had also analyzed the components of the Spiritual Spring Water using instruments from her space.
She discovered that the Spiritual Spring Water contained a large amount of trace elements. Not only could it strengthen the body and aid in rapid recovery from injuries, but it also beautified the skin—in short, it had numerous benefits.
It seemed she needed to ponder this further. She currently lacked money and people… Given her situation in the Prime Minister's Residence, she had no intention of staying in this place for a lifetime—the thought alone was dreadful.
But the most urgent matter now was to earn lots of silver! Spiritual Spring Water was a treasure that couldn't be bought even with money, and she certainly wouldn't foolishly sell it.
The Space Supermarket had face masks and skincare products. She could open a beauty shop later! A drop or two of Spiritual Spring Water could be added to some high-end skincare products to make their effects visibly outstanding. These products could then be marketed to the noble ladies of the capital!
Just as she was lost in thought, Ying Tao hurriedly ran in.
"Miss, the master asks you to go to the front hall! They say someone from the palace has arrived—the Emperor has issued an edict to the Prime Minister's Residence, and everyone is to gather!"
"Oh! Alright."
Making her way to the front hall, the entire household of the Prime Minister's Residence had assembled.
Su Meixian looked haggard, her eyes swollen, devoid of her usual radiant elegance. Yun Ran beside her, however, appeared in decent spirits, though she had lost some of her former arrogance and domineering air.
Seeing Yun Li approach, Yun Ran's eyes flashed with venomous hatred, as if she wished to devour her. Yun Li met her gaze with an indifferent smile.
Seeing everyone gathered, Eunuch Li beamed with joy and announced in a shrill voice, "Since everyone is here, this humble servant shall proclaim the imperial edict!"
As his words fell, everyone knelt to receive the edict.
"By the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees: The legitimate eldest daughter of the Prime Minister's Residence, Yun Ran, virtuous and gentle, pure-hearted and wise, now seventeen years of age, is hereby granted by imperial decree in marriage to Prince Duan Helian Qi as his principal consort. An auspicious date shall be chosen for the wedding to take place immediately! So it is decreed!
Eldest Miss Yun, receive the edict!"
Yun Ran accepted the edict with both hands: "This subject's daughter thanks Your Majesty! Long live the Emperor, long live, long live!"
Prime Minister Yun slipped a gold ingot into Eunuch Li's arms: "Thank you for your trouble, Eunuch Li."
"Prime Minister, you are too kind. Once I have delivered the Imperial Edict, my task is complete, and I shall take my leave!" Eunuch Li happily accepted the gold ingot.
Yun Li watched as Yun Ran received the Imperial Edict with an unhappy expression, feeling an inexplicable sense of satisfaction. She thought to herself, Yun Ran had such high ambitions, dreaming of marrying the Crown Prince, but in the end, she was to marry that scoundrel Prince Duan. Serves her right!
Even so, Yun Li still felt that Yun Ran was reaching above her station. A woman with such a malicious heart—whoever married her would be cursed for eight lifetimes…
Ignoring the gazes of the crowd, Yun Li took Ying Tao and walked straight out through the main gate. Her mind was now filled with thoughts of how to make money. Money was simply too easy to spend. Half of the five hundred thousand taels of silver she had recently obtained from Yun Ran had been spent on medicinal herbs and buying a house. Today, she had come out to purchase a few maidservants and guards, and once again, she was left penniless overnight…
"Miss, what are you thinking about?"
Ying Tao couldn't help but ask as she saw her mistress lost in thought.
"Thinking about how to earn silver."
"Miss, do you need silver?"
"Yes! I need a lot of silver. Right now, my fate is lacking in money…"
"Miss, I have some. What do you want to buy? I'll give it to you."
"Ah, forget it. Keep that little bit of silver for yourself. You still need it for daily expenses…"
Ying Tao glanced around and, seeing no one nearby, pulled Yun Li into a nearby alley. Leaning close to her ear, she whispered, "Miss, we actually have a lot of silver!"
Yun Li was taken aback by her sudden action and looked at her in confusion. "How much is 'a lot'?"
Ying Tao stood on tiptoe and whispered into her ear, "Miss, there are about three million taels in silver notes…"
Yun Li was shocked and stared at her in disbelief. A flood of thoughts raced through her mind. "How do you have so much silver?"
"Miss, this was entrusted to me by Zhao Momo to save for you. Before, when you were close to the eldest miss, Zhao Momo repeatedly warned me not to tell you about the silver notes, fearing that the eldest miss might swindle you! This money was left to you by your mother. The Prime Minister's Residence has never provided any living expenses for Wutong Courtyard, so all our expenses have been covered by ourselves. I have always been very frugal with this money. Zhao Momo said to spend as little as possible, so that when you marry, it can all be used as your dowry…
Additionally, there are three shops in the capital that generate some income every month. Although business has been getting worse lately, it's still better than nothing. So, Miss, if you need silver, I can give it to you."
Yun Li quickly processed the information from Ying Tao's words. The money was left by the original host's mother, and the Prime Minister's Residence had never given a single coin to Wutong Courtyard…
Where did the original host's mother get the money? As far as she knew, three million taels of silver was no small sum. An ordinary family could never accumulate even one hundred thousand taels in their lifetime… Moreover, there were three shops in the capital. Even if the original host and her mother were out of favor, they were still Prime Minister Yun's children. How could Prime Minister Yun ignore them and not provide a single coin? And if the original host's mother had her own money, why did she stay in the Prime Minister's Residence?
There was another important point: how much trust did the original host's mother have in Zhao Momo to entrust her with such a large sum of money before her death?
On second thought, it seemed there was no one else she could have entrusted it to… In Wutong Courtyard, there were only Ying Tao, Zhao Momo, and the original host. The original host was young at the time, and Su Meixian and Yun Ran were not easy to deal with. Zhao Momo must have gone through great efforts to protect the original host and raise her to adulthood…
Thinking of this, Yun Li felt a deeper sense of respect for Zhao Momo in her heart.
But at the same time, her mind felt tangled like a mess of threads. The relationship between her mother, Prime Minister Yun, and the Prime Minister's Residence seemed very strange. It looked like she would have to wait for Zhao Momo to wake up and ask her about these matters.