Mad Queen Leaves the Palace

When Wu Yuyu saw Xiao Lan return, she asked, "Sister, why are you leaving the day after tomorrow? If it weren't for this leg, I would have liked to go back to the capital with you. Now that you're gone, there's no one to play with." Xiao Lan found Wu Yuyu's pouting quite adorable. The two sisters were the youngest children in the Jiang family and were close in age, so they were especially close. Moreover, when they were little, Xiao Lan was sent to Shaozhou to be raised until she was seven years old because of the rumors about her Phoenix Fate. Whenever Wu Yuyu came to her maternal grandfather's house, she loved to play with her older sister. And every time Wu Yuyu returned to the capital, the two of them would hold hands tightly, neither of them letting go, as if they were parting by life or death.

A past life's negligence resulted in this younger sister's poor health. After her aunt's death, she should have taken good care of her sister, but who knew that Wu De's concubines, secretly arranging a marriage for Wu Yuyu while she wasn't looking, and then hastily marrying her off. In this life, she has changed Wu Yuyu's fate and will take good care of her and her aunt. At least they will live better than in her past life. She will also try her best to keep them away from those despicable people.

So he asked, "After I go to the capital, I need to visit your father at the General's Mansion first. Is there anything or any letter you would like me to bring back for you?"

"My mother and I will be going back in a month. Maybe we'll get some news. Besides, the capital has everything. What should I bring for my father?" Wu Yuyu thought for a long time but couldn't come up with anything good to bring.

"Are you stupid? I won't even mention bringing the things. You've been here for two months now. You should at least write a letter to your father. Write a letter to get to know him better and make sure he doesn't forget that he has a legitimate daughter like you. Otherwise, all his money will be spent on those illegitimate sons and daughters, and there won't be any left for you. Wouldn't you feel cheated?" Xiao Lan thought about her younger sister and decided not to try to reason with her. She just wanted to get straight to the point.

"Yes, I really need to write to Father. I can't let the money go to my brothers and sisters." Wu Yuyu was also a bit of a miser. Besides, she didn't get along well with Wu De's other children. Naturally, she didn't want to let others benefit from the money. But just as she was about to write, she was stumped. "Sister, do I have to finish writing it for you tomorrow? The problem is, it's not convenient for me right now."

Xiao Lan was almost amused by her younger sister. "You injured your leg, not your hand. Do you write with your feet?" Thinking of this, she suddenly remembered her mother, whose calligraphy was unparalleled. Whenever her mother teased her about her handwriting, she would jokingly say that even writing with feet was better. She wondered how her mother and brother were doing. She thought she would write letters to Yuzhou and Shuzhou separately after arriving in the capital.

"Sister, my dear sister, you know me too well. Do I even know how to write a letter like this? What if I can't write it well? It's better not to write it at all. Why don't you write it for me?" Seeing she couldn't escape, Wu Yuyu resorted to pleading with her sister. "I can teach you how to write it, but you have to write it yourself." So she asked someone to bring pen and ink. Xiao Lan gave her some direction, and Wu Yuyu started thinking about how to write, first telling Xiao Lan what she wanted to say. In this way, Wu Yuyu would say a sentence, Xiao Lan would polish it, and Wu Yuyu would write. The two of them worked for almost an hour and finished the letter. Xiao Lan told Wu Yuyu to put the letter away and asked, "Tomorrow I'm going to buy some things. Is there anything you want? I'll bring it back for you."

"Sister, I can't go out lately. Could you bring me some nice picture books? My mother won't let the maid buy them for me. I'm getting so bored lately." Wu Yuyu wasn't good at poetry or needlework, and she just spent her time at home reading storybooks.

Xiao Lan looked at Wu Yuyu and thought about how sad her naturally romantic younger sister must have been in her past life to stay indoors all day and never leave the house.

"I can buy it for you, and I can also talk to your aunt later. Don't be too controlling. But there's one condition." Xiao Lan knew that Wu Yuyu couldn't go anywhere recently and was a little bored, so she thought it would be better to let her read some storybooks to pass the time.

"Sister, just tell me, if you want my mother to stop controlling me like this, I'll agree to anything, even ten times over!" Wu Yuyu knew that Jiang Xiuzhi would listen to Xiao Lan's words, so she happily agreed.

"No need for ten, one will do," Xiao Lan thought, realizing her younger sister was still too naive. She continued, "Your mother must have told you about wanting you to study at the Imperial Academy after you return to the capital, right?"

"I don't want to go. Besides, they've already recruited top students this year. If I go, my dad will have to find someone for me, and he definitely won't want that. Sister, you know that."

"With the letter we just wrote, have your mother write another one later. She'll be willing, and you should be able to enroll when you return to the capital next month. Even if your uncle's connections don't work, I have ways to get you into the Imperial Academy. Just listen to me, go to the Imperial Academy after you return to the capital, study hard, and I won't harm you." Xiao Lan had already planned this out. If Wu De's connections didn't work, she would write a recommendation letter for Wu Yuyu in the name of Young Master Lan. If the Imperial Academy really wouldn't accept her, she could come directly to Minglu Academy, where she could keep an eye on things. She couldn't let Wu Yuyu repeat the mistakes of her previous life.

"Okay, I'll go to school. But could you buy me a couple more stories?" Wu Yuyu had always admired her older sister since she was little. Now that things had come to this point, she could only ask Xiao Lan for a couple more stories to appease herself.

"Okay, I'll buy you two more books," Xiao Lan said, patting Wu Yuyu's head. She then asked Wu De about his preferences, planning to prepare a gift for him tomorrow as well. After all, he couldn't go to the General's Mansion empty-handed for the first time since he grew up.

Just then, Jiang Xiuzhi returned with Yue'er and Qiaozhu. She immediately said, "Your maternal grandmother is really furious today. Don't come over for dinner tonight, eat here with me."

When Wu Yuyu saw Jiang Xiuzhi return, she immediately asked gossipily, "Mother, how was Zhuzhu's marriage arranged later?"

"Don't rush, let me explain one by one. Jiang Zhuzhu is determined to marry him, and no one can stop her. Even your second uncle is no match for her. In the end, your maternal grandfather made the decision: it's the second son's family's business if he wants to marry her. They can hold the wedding banquet themselves, without using the Jiang family's name. Whoever arranged the marriage should host the banquet. Your parents are no longer involved."

Jiang Xiuzhi, who had just returned in a hurry, took a sip of tea and continued, "Later, I told your maternal grandmother about Granny Qian's matter. Your maternal grandfather was also there at the time, and he immediately decided that Granny Qian should return the thirty-five taels to your second aunt. Whoever she sold it to before, if there was a contract, should go to the government office to complete it. He also told Granny Qian that if anyone made things difficult for her in the future, she should go directly to your maternal grandmother. Your second aunt took the money, and her face was extremely ugly. She immediately took Jiang Zhuzhu and went home. Your second uncle stayed behind, and he's probably still being scolded right now."

"That second uncle is quite unlucky," Wu Yuyu said.

"He deserves it. He can't even manage his own wife and kids, who else can he blame?" Jiang Xiuzhi felt both angry and sorry for her second brother. He was caught in the middle, suffering from both his wife and mother.

"By the way, Lanlan, when I left, your eldest uncle told me that your maternal grandfather might want to separate your second uncle from his family, or maybe both of them. I'll be leaving in a month, so I should be able to write to your mother in the next couple of days. I estimate that your mother will be coming over soon."

After listening to Jiang Xiuzhi's words, Xiao Lan pondered in her heart that with so many things to do, it seemed she would have to go see Uncle Lin tomorrow. She would need Uncle Lin's help with many follow-up matters.

Thinking of this, Xiao Lan said to Jiang Xiuzhi, "Since Grandfather has made up his mind, let's just do what needs to be done. It's not something I, as a grandchild, should worry about. My aunt's leg, although Dr. Cui is taking care of it, still needs a lot of attention. She must rest quietly. I see she's bored staying at home all day. Tomorrow we're going to the market, so I'll buy her some books so she won't have nothing to do."

Also, don't forget to write to your uncle. I had my sister write one today too. Remember to give them to me at tomorrow's dinner party, and I'll take them to your uncle the day after. I need to go shopping tomorrow, so I have to go back and pack today. I won't be eating. I'm leaving now.

After saying this, he got up to take his leave and returned to his own courtyard with Yue'er.