"Why haven’t they come back yet?"
"Are they okay or not?"
"If it’s not okay, I’ll slaughter my way to the Prince Yu Mansion."
In Tong Huaqiong’s house in Shengjing, Chen Sufen, Liu Yueer, Mrs. Zhao, Tong Pandi, Gu Baishuang, and others looked anxious.
Upon hearing they had confronted Princess Ming Yue of the Prince Yu Mansion, Chen Sufen and Mrs. Zhao’s legs almost gave out.
After all, in Qinghe Bay, the highest official they usually saw was County Magistrate Liu, and besides yesterday, they had never interacted with the Imperial Family.
Originally, Chen Sufen said that she was at least a lady personally conferred by the emperor, maybe she could go to the palace to submit a card and inquire.
However, Liu Yueer shot her down, saying Prince Yu is the emperor’s own brother, and did she think a fifth-rank lady is such a big official that she can just enter the palace? Even first and second-rank officials in Shengjing can’t enter the palace at will.
Leaving Chen Sufen looking embarrassed and close to tears.
Mrs. Hong and Lu Zhaozhao managed to stay calm, with one sending someone to Lord Yao’s place to get information and the other sending someone to Lu Zhaoyang’s place, but as soon as they stepped out, an energetic elderly lady came in.
This elderly lady was someone Mrs. Hong and Liu Yueer had met once before; she was the elderly mother of the Mighty General, also the grandmother of Su Chengmin, Mrs. Min.
Mrs. Min was very fond of Tong Dajiao and had wanted Tong Dajiao as a daughter-in-law back in the day, but the family was too poor to afford the fifty taels of silver as a dowry, so Tong Dajiao was married into the Gu Family as a subsequent wife by the Tong Family.
Thinking of this made Mrs. Min angry.
Ever since being taken out of Black Dragon Pond by the Mighty General, she hadn’t returned in all these years.
Upon learning that Tong Huaqiong had entered the capital yesterday, she happily came to reminisce.
While on her way, she heard that the owners of Taohua Dessert were taken to the palace after a confrontation with Princess Ming Yue, prompting her to send someone to the Jiangbei Camp to inform her son to go into the palace to pull them out, while she herself waited at Tong Huaqiong’s residence.
After waiting for a long time without any news or sight of anyone, she got anxious and stood up, pacing in circles.
As she was about to storm into the Prince Yu Mansion, she was persuaded otherwise by Gu Baishuang.
"My Han Niu is useless, he always earns face in front of the emperor, so why hasn’t he come out after going into the palace for so long?" Mrs. Min cursed her own son in frustration.
Gu Baishuang and the others exchanged glances.
Yesterday, while escorting the Crown Grandson into the palace, her son, as the Mighty General, personally led the guards.
After returning home, she asked if her son saw Tong Dajiao; her son hesitated for a long time.
Today she planned to bring her son along to reminisce with Tong Huaqiong, but he rushed to Jiangbei Camp early in the morning, making her curse him for being useless.
The Tong Family girl has several children, and her husband is dead; what’s there for her son to avoid?
He’s not a young man of eighteen.
After cursing the Mighty General, she turned to scold her grandson Su Chengmin for being a useless commander of the Forbidden Army, saying he might as well return to Black Dragon Pond to grow sweet potatoes.
Gu Baishuang and the others could only twitch their mouths in response.
The elderly lady was harsh on her own family.
"Mrs. Min, let’s wait a bit longer." Gu Baishuang suggested, knowing that after receiving the news, her son Nie Xiaofeng also went out to investigate.
"How did Taohua Dessert offend Princess Ming Yue? Is it because Taohua’s bold behavior provoked Princess Ming Yue? How are we supposed to run our business if Princess Ming Yue targets us?" Liu Yueer said with a sob after waiting for a long time without any news.
She couldn’t figure out how Taohua Dessert could have offended Princess Ming Yue.
The only thing that came to mind was her younger sister-in-law.
Her younger sister-in-law has a straightforward personality and fiery temper, she might have thought Shengjing was like Qinghe Bay and didn’t know how to hold back against Princess Ming Yue, thus offending her.
Mrs. Zhao glared at her daughter, criticizing her for speaking recklessly about her sister-in-law.
Besides, the matter was not yet settled.
Mrs. Min glared with wide eyes, raised her voice, and said loudly, "Zhao Xiyue isn’t even worthy of carrying Taohua’s shoes! A Commandery Princess with no royal demeanor or magnanimity, always hitting or killing this and that. If Taohua stands against her, it can only be Zhao Xiyue’s fault; Taohua is blameless."
Mrs. Min liked Gu Taohua.
Not because she liked Tong Dajiao and extended her favor, but because Gu Taohua’s straightforward nature suited her tastes, and her blessed appearance matched her aesthetic.
In her mind, how could Taohua be wrong? The wrong one must be Princess Ming Yue.
"Grandmother and Aunt have come out..."
Nie Xiaofeng, knowing that his mother and aunt were worried at home, came to report after getting the news.
Gu Baishuang, Chen Sufen, and the others breathed a collective sigh of relief.
"It’s good that Mother and Sister are okay. Thank goodness Mother can handle things and resolve conflicts with the Commandery Princess," Chen Sufen said, patting her chest, her admiration for her mother-in-law deepening, amazed at how she boldly accused the Prince Yu Mansion of treason and still managed to emerge unscathed.
Liu Yueer’s heart sank to the bottom, realizing that her sister-in-law, unfamiliar with Prince Yu Mansion’s might, had offended them, bringing trouble to the Gu Family. She said, "Now that we’ve thoroughly offended the Prince Yu Mansion, it’ll be difficult to survive in Shengjing."
Mrs. Min rolled her eyes at Liu Yueer, thinking how this smooth-talking daughter-in-law wasn’t as steady as the honest daughter-in-law of Tong Dajiao’s stepson.
"Second daughter-in-law, I don’t like what you said. Zhao Xiyue dared to provoke us, yet your mother-in-law and sister-in-law didn’t even break her Taohua Dessert to pieces, but instead accused her of rebellion to quiet her down. See, nothing happened! Zhao Xiyue even had to apologize obediently."
Mrs. Min clapped her hands.
Tong Dajiao was still that fiery spirit.
Just like when she first came to Shengjing. Back then, the noble ladies looked down on her, but she got into a brawl with the king’s concubine, who was the emperor’s favorite, all the way up to the Empress and Empress Dowager, and now even the stray dogs in Shengjing wouldn’t dare bark at her.
Though the noble ladies of Shengjing still looked down on her as a country bumpkin, they wouldn’t dare utter a word to her face, instead fawning over her with respect. But who felt stifled wasn’t her; it was them anyway.
It’s the same for Tong Dajiao now; it’s Zhao Xiyue and the Prince Yu Mansion who are stifled.
Thinking this way, Mrs. Min was even more eager to see Tong Huaqiong.
"By the way, did my son see your grandmother?" Mrs. Min asked Nie Xiaofeng.
Nie Xiaofeng replied with a smile, "The Great General, not wanting you to worry, ordered me to report Grandmother and Aunt’s safety. The Great General didn’t meet my grandmother; he entered the palace just after she left, so they didn’t cross paths."
Mrs. Min looked regretful.
Mrs. Zhao’s eyes twitched.
Back in the day, there were rumors in the village that her mother-in-law and Min Han Niu almost got betrothed, but later, when Min Han Niu became a general, people mocked her for being greedy and choosing to marry into the Gu Family as a stepmother for fifty taels of silver, deserving the fate of a widow instead of a general’s wife.
Judging by Mrs. Min’s intentions, she seemed to be hoping for her son to meet her mother-in-law.
Wouldn’t it be a scene of chaos if they met?
"What are you looking at? Do you see moles on my face?" Mrs. Min noticed Mrs. Zhao observing her and asked bluntly.
Mrs. Zhao forced a laugh and said, "In Yan Guan Town near Black Dragon Pond, people say that the Mighty General rose from a cowherd to a general all because his mother taught him well. Today, I finally get to see the mother who raised a great general."
Mrs. Min clapped her hands and said, proudly, "The Mighty General became a general from being a shepherd boy because his mother - me - guided him well. Today you finally get to see the mother who raised a great general."
Mrs. Zhao: "..."