Chapter 9 First Encounter

  Call for recommendation votes, call for collection, and call for support. It's hard for a newcomer!

  Li Zhengyang failed to achieve his goal and, with no face to stay in the wine tower, covered his face with his sleeve and left. He had known this would be the outcome from the start; it would have been better if he had just taken a hundred taels of silver. Guwalgiya snorted: "I thought you were someone with ambition, weighty emotions, and strong sense of justice, but it turns out you're just a decorative pillowcase, all show and no substance."

  "Yao'er, from now on when you look at people, look at them as a whole. A good heart should be discerning."

  Shu Yao nodded cleverly, and Shu Xuan asked: "What did you say just now, little sister? Which book is that sentence from? I've read the Analects of Confucius and the Four Books, but I've never seen it."

  Shu Xuan was well-read in classics and history, and had always loved reading books. He reminded Shu Yao: "The Master said that it is not permissible to use his words indiscriminately, and the Sage Confucius must not be offended."

  "Master said, must be Confucius who can say that? What I meant by 'master said' is not 'Confucius said', nor 'Mencius said', but 'little master said', 'woman said', all are 'said' anyway. And I didn't say it must be 'Confucius said'?"

  She was very eloquent and well-versed in the classics, but when it came to her younger sister Shu Yao, she was at a loss for words. Especially when Shu Yao put on a serious face, with her two slender eyebrows slightly raised, looking extremely pleased with herself.

  Shu Yi pushed the dim sum box to Shu Yao, secretly giving her a thumbs up. Not many people can shut down big brother Shu Xuan, lazy little sister is quite capable. Zhiyuan glanced at Guajia with satisfaction, why worry about Shu Yao? As long as others don't provoke her, that's good enough. Shu Yao doesn't speak easily, but when she does, it will be earth-shattering.

  Gual Jia's head was getting more and more painful, her daughter's temperament was similar to that of her husband Zhiyuan, with clear-cut edges and corners, easily offending people. "Have you eaten enough? You need to return to the Duke's mansion in Beijing before dark."

  Settled the bill and paid, Zhiyuan asked for two jars of Qianli Xiang, adjusted his clothes and long gown, smoothed out the three short whiskers under his chin, which were well-maintained, with a refined and elegant demeanor, he returned to Beijing with his family.

  In another elegant room in the wine tower, a young man who had witnessed the whole process poured himself a drink and asked in a low voice, "Should I send someone to investigate?"

  The handsome young man paused with his wine cup in hand, "No need, just look at them, a family returning to the capital city, if their status is sufficient, they will meet eventually."

  Not high enough in status, what's the use of asking clearly? Shu Tong replied: "That girl from that family should be a Banner Beauty, but I don't know if she's qualified to participate in the Imperial Selection."

  The young man put down his wine cup, "Just a little girl of eight or nine years old. I value the master and mistress of this family, his wife is an intelligent person. If the little girl can learn from her mother's cleverness, she will be someone to look up to in the future. She can become a noble lady of a prestigious family."

  Shu Tong repeatedly nodded, Master said what is what, that lady, he really didn't see her ability, young bodyguard carefully observed and whispered to Shu Tong: "Settle the account and return to Beijing."

  The sun sets in the west, and the blue sky is painted with rolling flames of clouds. The streets of Beijing are bustling with people coming and going. Shu Yao, sitting in a horse-drawn carriage, leans against Gualjia's shoulder and dozes off, "When can we arrive?"

  "Hurry up, passing through the Cross Street, near the Loshan Sea, most of them are the mansions of the nobles who entered the pass from Long, I remember that they occupied half of the street. Although my ancestors were greedy for beauty and had a reputation for being promiscuous, they were indeed talented, not only able to fight wars but also knew how to manage, laying down a huge family fortune. If he hadn't died before entering the pass, the Duke's Mansion wouldn't have fallen from the top noble to its current state."

  "Him?"

  Guarjia said: "It's your Ama's Mafa, to say that he is a legendary figure, the only one who was reused by Emperor Taizong of the Qing dynasty and was able to avoid the purge of the previous emperor. The Empress Dowager had personally offered him a noble title, and your Mafa was able to inherit it, thanks to Old Lady's connections with the Empress Dowager. Although Old Lady is just a idle princess of the imperial family, she didn't get any benefits, but the Empress Dowager still remembers all 180 of them."

  "What benefits? The Empress Dowager will not lack benefits, she is the most noble woman under heaven." Shu Yao glanced out through the gap in the carriage curtain, there were fewer pedestrians, this mansion was extremely prosperous in the Beijing city of later generations.

  "The old lady was clever and knew that she couldn't keep the glass, perfume, soap, etc., so she proactively offered them to the Imperial Household Department. The Empress Dowager was delighted, and the Duke's title was not downgraded. You Ma Fa is now a first-class duke, and coincidentally, after entering the pass, he also got a large amount of land and mountainous areas. Moreover, the Empress Dowager pitied the Duke's household for having many people and great expenses, so she rewarded them with several shops, which allowed the Duke's household to retain its income."

  "Glass? Soap? They were all created by our ancestors?"

  Gua Lian said: "That's why they say our ancestors were incredibly talented."

  "Oh." Shu Yao responded with a single word, shaking off the thoughts in her mind, "Are we short on silver?"

  Shu Yao rarely cared about the income of the mansion, glass and soap could be sold for silver, in her past life as a science genius Shu Yao was able to manufacture mirrors and many other items. From Gua Erjia's conversation, Shu Yao could sense that she was uneasy, worried about Ah Ma's older brother. In this life, although the mainstream is scholars, farmers, workers, and merchants, without silver it's hard to take a step, relatives who come to visit in autumn are despised by people. Shu Yao did her best to help her family, but the radish-shaped space bracelet was worthless, when would she be able to grow ginseng that could be sold for silver? Shu Yao didn't know, maybe this lifetime she wouldn't even reach the level of being able to grow ginseng, farming was too tiring.

  "Yao'er, can you remember 'wealth should not be revealed'?"

  "Uh-huh."

  It seems there's no shortage of money. Shu Yao stretched her waist and the carriage slowed to a stop. "Madam, Miss, we've arrived at the Duke's Manor."

  Gualgiya lifted the curtain, stunned. The gate of the Duke's mansion was wide open, and the servants at the door were dressed in neat and new clothes, with exquisite fabrics. Gualgiya took a glance, and the Duke's mansion had been renovated again. The family's wealth and honor were overwhelming. Gualgiya frowned, could it be that the news she got was wrong?

  Gua Lijia saw two middle-aged men in their thirties walking out from inside, vaguely familiar, one with a slightly high stature and regular features, with a slight eagle nose, was Shu Mu Lu Zhi Cheng, who was raised as the eldest son by the old lady, and the other, slightly chubby and smiling, was the fourth brother Shu Mu Lu Zhi Hao.

  Gua Lijia held onto Shu Yao and shook her head softly, saying: "We can't move, let's see how your mother handles this."

  "Are they Third Uncle and Fourth Uncle?"

  Guaerjia's eyes flashed with a stern expression, and her interest was piqued. "As soon as we returned to the capital, the Duke's mansion set up this grand formation. They are smarter than I thought, and the cold treatment is not enough to show brotherly love. They want to see if you, Ama, can return to the capital with the help of a noble person, and they plan to figure out our background."

  "Are they afraid of Ama and them competing for the throne?"

  "Of course, you're scared. Your mother was a fourth-rank official before returning to the capital, with outstanding achievements that impressed the emperor and earned her promotion. After reporting to the Ministry of Officials, she'll at least be promoted half a rank, entering the third-rank category, and will have an audience with the emperor. The Third Master is just a hereditary idle official, who has been mixing in the capital for over ten years and is still only a fourth-rank official. As for the Fourth Master, it's even more unnecessary to mention him - he can only rely on his connections to become a third-class official, and his career advancement is far behind your mother's steady rise through the ranks. Although the title was granted by imperial decree at your mother's request, without an heir, the old lady has no choice but to treat the Third Master as her own son, but it depends on whether the emperor will approve of it or not. Your mother doesn't want to compete with them for the title, but they won't let their guard down."

  Gualgiya's excitement grew as she spoke, "If they act too strangely, I'll help you, Amma, take the title. The Duke's mansion...hmm...who knows who will be in charge?"