Chapter 169 - Yuan Xuepei’s Consideration

Song Yixiao didn’t beat around the bush with him, either, “I asked my mother that day, but she just said that since my brother had no hope of becoming the heir of the prince, she would like to find a daughter-in-law who can get along with her!”

Yuan Xuepei thought, “Get along with her? It’s because my sister is easy to bully, ok?”

But he was asking for information from Wei Mengying’s own daughter, so naturally he couldn’t say anything wrong about Wei Mengying in front of her.

Pondering for a while, he finally said, “Lu Guanlun was engaged to your cousin, the Seventh Miss Wei earlier, but he broke off the engagement shortly afterwards. During that time, the Seventh Miss Wei seemed to have been staying at the Duke of Yan’s mansion for a few days. In my opinion, you know the inside story of their broken engagement, right?”

Song Yixiao closed her lips slightly for a while before she replied, “I can’t tell you about this!”

“I got it!” How clever Yuan Xuepei was that as soon as he heard these words, he knew it was mostly a problem on Wei Chan’s side. After all, because of the close friendship between Song Yixiao and Yuan Xue’e, if it was Lu Guanlun’s problem, she would have implied that the marriage was inappropriate even if she didn’t say the reason.

It would be not suitable to speak frankly, and it was clear that it wasn’t Lu Guanlun who was in the wrong.

“If Xue’e was married to Lu Guanlun, I’m afraid that you wouldn’t be able to see each other very frequently in the future.” Yuan Xuepei considered for a moment and looked up, “After all, the woman should stand on her husband’s side once she was married. However, Xubai and Lu Guanlun are not on the same page.”

Song Yixiao was startled at the words, and said, “Stand on the side of her husband’s family… You approve of this marriage?”

She just added “family” in Yuan Xuepei’s words, but the meaning had changed: Yuan Xuepei was just talking about the disagreement between Jian Xubai and Lu Guanlun; Song Yixiao was hinting at the dispute over the heir of the prince between the people in Prince of Hengshan’s mansion and others.

“Firstly, Lu Guanlun was originally my most favored candidate for brother-in-law, and I gave up before because I really couldn’t get involved.” Yuan Xuepei said slowly, “Secondly, I’m not going to hide it from you: although I’ve already voted for the Crown Prince, being the same as Xubai, no one knows who will win until the end of the competition for the crown prince! Even though the Crown Prince’s position is still secure now, but Prince of Wei and Prince of Zhao are also menacing!”

If the future successor to the throne was the crown prince, it would be fine, “If Prince of Wei or Prince of Zhao wins, I myself am willing to give in and there’s nothing to explain! But I don’t want to get Xue’e involved. Think about it, everyone knows that I, Marquis Boling stand by the Crown Prince. So, the brother-in-law I can choose is either on the Crown Prince’s side, or a candidate with a clean background who hasn’t taken a stand yet, or a neutral faction like Prince of Hengshan’s mansion who never participates in the competition for the throne!”

Since he didn’t want to put his sister at risk, he wouldn’t choose one who stood by the Crown Prince, “Even if the candidate doesn’t support anyone before, after marrying Xue’e, he would automatically be under the Crown Prince’s command. There’s no difference from following me. That’s why only uninvolved families like Prince of Hengshan’s mansion are reliable!”

In fact, if he wanted his sister to marry a neutral faction, he had no choice but Prince of Hengshan’s mansion: those people had chosen to be uninvolved, so why weren’t they worried that marrying his sister would be seen as moving closer to the Crown Prince?

Only Prince of Hengshan’s mansion, with deep seniority and high status, was the close relative of the Yuan’s siblings. They had already been related by blood, and it was still hopeful to get rid of the political relationship when they had another connection through marriage.

Therefore, if the Crown Prince failed in the future, Yuan Xuepei would not have to worry about getting his sister involved. Besides, Lu Guanlun was generous enough, and wouldn’t be hostile to Yuan Xue’e. If the Crown Prince succeeded, even if Prince of Hengshan’s mansion didn’t make any contribution, they would not be in a bad situation. Yuan Xue’e could have a higher status in her husband’s family because of her brother Yuan Xuepei, which was the icing on the cake!

“You’re truly like a father as her elder brother!” Song Yixiao was silent for a long time at his words before giving him a complex look, “It was said that a parent’s love for their son is a far-reaching plan. Your painstaking thought is almost the same as a father’s thought!”

According to his arrangement, no matter who the new ruler was in the future, Yuan Xue’e wouldn’t suffer any loss.

No wonder she was reminded now to distance herself from Yuan Xue’e in the future, so as not to bring trouble to his dear sister in case the Crown Prince failed!

However, was it really comfortable to live in Prince of Hengshan’s mansion?

She couldn’t talk about Wei Chan; as a daughter, she couldn’t talk about what kind of person Wei Mengying was, either.

So Song Yixiao was full of worries and just had to say, “If Xue’e really married Third Young Master Lu, it would be inconvenient for me to get along with her in the future. What’s more, I’m afraid the same applies to you, Your Excellency? Xue’e is simple-minded, and I am not sure if she can get used to being a wife at the very beginning.”

It was obvious that Yuan Xuepei heard her hint and worries in her words. But he just smiled gently, “It’s not like she hasn’t lived in Prince of Hengshan’s mansion before. Even if being a daughter-in-law is quite different from just living there, she will get used to it after some experiences.”

He was clearly fobbing her off. Song Yixiao had come with full sincerity, and her hint just now was suspicious of antagonizing her own mother, but Yuan Xuepei was still watching out her like that. Even if she was on good terms with his sister, she was still a bit unhappy, and said coldly, “In that case, it was me who said too much! Since it’s getting late now and if there’s nothing else, I’m leaving!”

Yuan Xuepei kept making apologies, but still never mentioned how he would deal with the intricate relationships of the family after Yuan Xue’e married into the Prince of Hengshan’s mansion. So Song Yixiao became more and more annoyed as she listened, leaving hurriedly with a dark face without even meeting Yuan Xue’e.

After she left, Yuan Zhan, who had been hidden in the inner room as a guard during their previous conversation, came out and asked with confusion, “Your Excellency, from Madam Song’s words, she was really worried about Miss Yuan. Even if you don’t want to tell her the truth, there’s another reason to gloss over it. Why do you let her leave with anger?”

As a member of the Yuan Family, he wouldn’t have to feel wronged for Song Yixiao for no reason. The main reason was that, “This lady is now the sweetheart of the Duke of Yan. I’m afraid that she would tell him her grievances in front of the Duke of Yan, which might affect the friendship between you and Duke of Yan!”

“It’s just because she was true to Xue’e that I didn’t tell her!” Yuan Xuepei took the tea cup he handed over and had a sip, saying peacefully, “After all, I’m going to lead her mother into a trap later. Who do you think she will help if I tell her about this? On the one hand, Xue’e is her close friend who knows each other from childhood; on the other hand, Princess Consort of Wei is her own mother who gave her life and brought her up. Aren’t we deliberately trying to put her into a dilemma?”

Yuan Zhan was suddenly aware of this, but still insisted, “Why don’t you give Duke of Yan a private message to avoid misunderstanding?”

“No need.” Yuan Xuepei said confidently, “With the tacit understanding between us, he can think of it without telling him!”

Yuan Xuepei was in presence of mind, but Song Yixiao was full of anger when returned to Duke of Yan’s mansion. Qiaoqin came over before she could find Jian Xubai to talk her grievance, “Madam, the Empress sent someone on behalf of Lady Nuan to thank you and His Highness for the gifts you sent yesterday!”

Although on the Qianqiu Festival, when Jian Xubai sensed his wife’s suspicion, he said that it was fine not to send anything to Lady Nuan. But the next day, most of the people who attended the Qianqiu Festival sent gifts to the palace. So, Song Yixiao picked a few items from Wuhuan from the storeroom plus some nourishing herbs and sent to the palace together with others.

Of course, the gifts were handed over by the Empress.

She didn’t feel unhappy about the message, saying, “After all, she was the Emperor’s concubine. It would be fine if we didn’t know her, but since we’ve already known about her, it is reasonable to express our concern. What else did the servant say besides that?”

Qiaoqin answered, “He also mentioned that the ninth day of the first lunar month was the birthday of Princess Yushan, and a small banquet would be held in the palace. So he left an invitation!”

“I almost forget about this!” Song Yixiao was surprised at the news and felt lucky, “Fortunately, the servant sent by the Empress mentioned it!”

Too many relatives might be no good. Regardless of weddings or funerals, the birthday wine alone can be drunk from the beginning of the year to the end!

And if you were not careful enough, you would miss someone’s birthday!

Moreover, it was under the circumstances that almost all of Emperor Xianjia’s half-brothers and half-sisters had been killed after he ascended the throne. Otherwise, if the late Emperor’s forty or so children were still alive, how could she have the time to go to the Yuan Family today?

Otherwise she would be busy paying her respects to her uncles and aunts during the whole lunar January!

Now she was not in the mood to be angry with Yuan Xuepei, lifting her hair at the temples and commanding, “Send a servant to Commandery Princess Qingjiang’s mansion quickly. Ask my elder sister-in-law for me what presents should I give Princess Yushan for her birthday? How much to send?”

The moment the servant was dispatched, Jian Xubai went back to the backyard.

As soon as he entered, he waved his hands to let the servants leave. Song Yixiao thought he was going to settle the score with herself for last night and was full of caution, but she heard him say, “Is your wet nurse’s grandson raised in our mansion?”

Song Yixiao was startled, “Yes. After Qingchun, my wet nurse’s daughter, divorced with her husband, her brother and sister-in-law didn’t like her very much. So Ms. Zhao asked me to give her a job in the backyard and take her kid with her. Although it is a boy, he’s little now. It’s okay to keep him in the backyard, right?”

Jian Xubai frowned, “You misunderstood it. Since she’s your wet nurse’s daughter, just give her a leisurely errand and keep her as an ordinary person. Why do you really ask her to do so many things? How can such a little child be left unattended? He just bumped into me today, which is fine. What if he hits a rockery or something like that or falls into a pool?”

“Her errand is to clean an unoccupied side yard!” Song Yixiao was shocked, “And I specifically told her not to be too busy, so that she would have time to take care of the kid! Nowadays, a lot of things in the backyard are dealt with by Ms. Zhao. Does anyone actually dare to bully her?!”

She also thought of the route Jian Xubai took back from the front yard. There were many rockeries and lotus ponds along the way, and quite a few steps in many places. It would be too dangerous for a child of only three or four years old to wander around by himself.

She asked instantly, “How’s the boy now?”

“I asked Ji Su to take him to your wet nurse.” Jian Xubai was unhappy, “You should ask about this. How can the mother do this! If the child is too much of a burden, in my opinion, it would be better to send him back to the Fu Family. Maybe he is lucky enough to be adopted. Or see whether there are any childless families who want to adopt him, which is a kind thing and better than her mother who was not responsible! I was just thinking that it is in New Year, and there are only two people in the mansion to be served. Why is his mother too busy to take care of him?”

Song Yixiao fiddled with the bracelet on her wrist, “I’ll ask Ms. Zhao later!”

Jian Xubai estimated that Ji Su would have sent the child to Ms. Zhao and told her the situation. It was right for his wife to deal with this matter. Then he said, “I left something in the study. I will go back and get it. I’ll be back later!”

After he left, Song Yixiao’s face became dark instantly, and she called the maid over, “Invite Ms. Zhao and Qingchun here!”

A few moments later, Ms. Zhao and her daughter came over together, both looking a little frightened.

When Song Yixiao saw that Ms. Zhao was holding her grandson, she grabbed a handful of sugars from the box on the table, beckoned the child forward, and put them to his hands. She said to Jinxun, “Take him to the wing room to play for a while, don’t let him feel hungry or thirsty.”

The kid was timid and quiet, looked like being afraid of strangers. But when Jinxun went to hold his hand, he was extremely tame. This kind of tameness was not like being good natured, but a bit like being scared after being hit.

Song Yixiao saw this and became increasingly dissatisfied with You Qingchun. However, to keep Ms. Zhao’s grace, after dismissing the servants and remained silent for a while, Song Yixiao asked in a gentle way, “When my husband came back, he told me this kid was playing alone in the yard. It was cold and no one was there accompanying him. My husband was worried, so he asked Ji Su to send him to you and also reminded me to ask the reason.”

Just after saying that, You Qingchun had already looked nervous and knelt down, “It’s my fault! But the kid has always been naughty, and as soon as I turned around, he ran off. It was unexpected that he offended His Highness…”

“Get up to talk!” Song Yixiao closed her lips slightly, “How could such a little child know what is offending? Qingchun, listen carefully to what I’m asking: I am not pointing out his fault, but asking why he’s unattended! I remember that the errand assigned to you should not keep you so busy that you don’t have time to take care of the child!”

At this point, seeing You Qingchun about to kneel again and Ms. Zhao looking guilty, she held back, letting her tone become gentler, “I don’t have any other meaning, just thinking about whether you are in a hard time. If you are, just tell me. After all, I was brought up by Ms. Zhao, and you are her own daughter, so we should be counted as a family, aren’t we?”