She mistakenly got into the bridal sedan chair and married a sickly but powerful minister, becoming

Shen Qingtan nodded slightly: "Alright, I'll head over now."

After paying his respects to the Second Madam and Shen Mingzhu, the steward hurried to the gate of the mansion.

The second wife and Shen Mingzhu had stiff expressions.

"Second Aunt, you are truly a prophet." Shen Qingtan turned to look at them, a smile playing on her lips. "I also thought the Emperor was not satisfied with me, so he didn't give me a gift. It turns out the Emperor was considerate of me and sent the reward to my residence."

The second wife's lips twitched, and her face turned ugly.

Shen Qingtan invited, "Second Aunt, didn't you want to broaden your sister-in-law's horizons? Then let's go together?"

The second wife clenched the handkerchief in her hand. Although she was jealous and resentful, she really wanted to see what rewards the Emperor would give to Shen Qingtan.

She forced a smile and said, "Since my niece-in-law is so kind as to invite me, then I will go with Mingzhu to broaden my horizons."

Shen Qingtan gave Tingxue a few instructions and then led Liuyue to the front hall.

The second wife's face darkened as Shen Qingtan turned around.

Jealousy gnawed at Shen Mingzhu's heart, and she stared at Shen Qingtan's back with a gloomy look in her eyes, as if she wanted to carve two holes in her.

Their lives and destinies were completely reversed.

Everything that Shen Qingtan possessed should have belonged to her.

As the group arrived at the front hall, a maidservant approached Shen Qingtan carrying a square, carved wooden box.

The second lady looked around but saw no one from the palace. Finally, her gaze fell on the wooden box.

The wooden box was only about the size of a jewelry box.

Seeing that there was only such a small amount of food, she felt a little better.

Before the maid could speak, she opened the box first.

"Let me see what rare treasures the Emperor gave to my niece-in-law."

The lid was opened, revealing a box full of gold ingots, with a house deed on top.

The second wife, who was nearby, couldn't help but laugh when she saw the contents of the house deed.

"His Majesty is truly generous. My nephew is in poor health, so he has bestowed upon you a residence in Jiangnan. When the climate in the capital is unfavorable, you can return to Jiangnan to recuperate."

The second wife covered her mouth with a handkerchief and said in a strange tone, "No matter what kind of reward you give, nothing can compare to gold. Other things can't be given away casually, and they can't be sold if you encounter difficulties, but gold can help in an emergency."

With so much gold, there must be five or six hundred taels, right?

Although she was envious, she couldn't feel jealous at the moment.

Because aristocratic families regard money as vulgar and value purity and refinement.

The Emperor bestowed gold upon Shen Qingtan; wasn't that an implicit criticism that she was vulgar?

If word gets out, people will probably laugh at her.

“What my second aunt said makes sense, and I think it’s quite true. But this wasn’t a gift from the Emperor; it was a gift from one of my younger sisters.” Shen Qingtan closed the lid, her eyes smiling. “She’s very straightforward; whenever she has something good, she always remembers her older sister.”

Shen Mingzhu pursed her lips, feeling that Shen Qingtan was subtly hinting at something.

"Really?" The second madam didn't believe it and pretended to be doubtful, saying, "Didn't the steward just say that the palace had sent over rewards?"

At this moment, the maid interjected, "Second Madam, this was sent by Miss Qin to Second Madam, saying it's for Second Madam's pocket money."

Then she handed the wooden box to Liuyue and explained demurely, "Someone from the palace came ahead of time to inform us that they will arrive in a little while."

The next moment, the old lady and all the women in the household arrived.

The front hall was packed with people.

The palace eunuchs followed closely behind, carrying the gifts and filing in one after another, almost filling the front hall.

The Emperor specially dispatched Eunuch Cao to make this trip in person to show his high regard for the matter.

After paying his respects to the old lady, Eunuch Cao said with a smile, "Second Madam Zhao, His Majesty praised you for your beauty and wisdom, gentleness and virtue, and dignified conduct. He said you and Lord Zhao are a perfect match and wished you a long and happy marriage."

The old lady, along with her family members, knelt down and kowtowed to express their gratitude for the Emperor's grace.

After expressing her gratitude, the old lady rose shakily and gave the maid a look. The maid quickly presented the generous gifts she had prepared to Eunuch Cao.

The old lady invited him to the front hall: "Eunuch Cao, sit down and have a cup of coarse tea."

Holding his whisk, Eunuch Cao politely declined, saying, "I must return to the palace to report."

The old lady did not try to persuade her to stay.

At this moment, Tingxue rushed over and handed Shen Qingtan a small wooden box, no bigger than the palm of her hand.

Shen Qingtan handed it to Eunuch Cao: "Eunuch Cao, thank you for making this trip. Please join the other eunuchs for a drink."

Eunuch Cao took the wooden box, which was quite heavy, and his smile became even more amiable: "I will accept your kindness and thank you on their behalf."

Shen Qingtan watched as Eunuch Cao and the others left, then looked at the old lady: "Grandmother..."

"The reward is for you. You should give Eunuch Cao a thank-you gift. You've done very well." The old lady saw her smooth handling of the situation and looked at her with admiration. She instructed, "You should register the Emperor's reward in the register and then put it into the treasury."

Shen Qingtan smiled and said, "Alright, I'll have someone write it down."

The old lady nodded slightly and left the front hall with her maid.

Shen Qingtan instructed Liuyue and Tingxue to bring pen, ink, paper and inkstone, and to arrange for someone to take away one item and send it to Lanxue Garden after each item was registered.

"A bushel of pearls from the South China Sea, a pair of jade ruyi scepters, a red coral tree, and ten bolts of tribute silk..."

The second wife's eyes were dazzled by the sight of the round pearls, the exquisitely crafted jade ruyi, the bright red coral, the crystal-clear amber, the smooth and soft satin, and the boxes piled high with ivory, agate, and other jewels.

Such a generous reward is enough to show how much the Emperor values ​​Shen Qingtan.

From now on, the wives of officials in the capital will have to think more highly of Shen Qingtan.

The second wife was in excruciating pain in her chest; among all the treasures in the room, not a single one belonged to Shen Mingzhu.

Shen Mingzhu is also a new bride, so why is she not given anything as a reward?

It's truly a case of some dying from drought and others from floods.

Shen Mingzhu had never seen anything like this before, and she stared in disbelief. These things should have been hers, but now Shen Qingtan had gotten a great deal out of them.

She regretted it. If she had married Zhao Yi, with this reward and the emperor's support, even if she became a widow, she would have lived a very comfortable life.

Unlike now...

Zhao Jue was getting further and further away from his title, he had lost all his official duties, and there were other women in his room.

The more Shen Mingzhu thought about it, the more heartbroken she became, and the more useless Zhao Jue seemed.

He has lost favor in the Duke's mansion, so he should be currying favor with the Marquis of Chengen. Why should she be afraid of him?

The second wife whispered in her ear, "Shen Qingtan used to share her good things with you. Ask her for a bushel of pearls and some jewelry."

Shen Mingzhu lowered her eyes as boxes of pearls and gems swayed past her.

If it were in the past, she would definitely have acted coquettishly and foolishly to coax Shen Qingtan into giving her half.

The two of them are now maintaining a facade of friendship, but deep down they are enemies.

"She won't give it to me."

Shen Mingzhu was too proud to ask.

Shen Qingtan's other younger sister sent her gold and a house.

This "younger sister" of hers only knows how to ask for things, and she doesn't even know how she'll be ridiculed.

"If you want it, just ask her yourself."

After Shen Mingzhu understood the situation, she was no longer afraid of the Second Madam and turned to leave the front hall.

The second wife was furious. This bitch had gone too far and dared to give her attitude!

She suppressed her anger and turned to meet Shen Qingtan's smiling eyes, which were filled with sarcasm.