The Eldest Daughter Returns: Imperial Uncle, I'm Pregnant!

Back then, Gu Ziming became prime minister by his own efforts and was to marry the eldest daughter of the Duke of Ningguo. The emperor granted the marriage and bestowed a house upon him.

Now that he no longer holds the official position, the Prime Minister's residence will naturally be taken back.

Gu Ziming was still being tortured in the palace when the palace staff arrived.

The eunuch first brought the Empress Dowager's decree, giving Gu Hanjiao a thorough dressing-down, but in the end, he didn't let the Emperor issue the decree, as that would be too disrespectful to the Emperor.

Gu Hanjiao held the imperial edict in disbelief. How could she have gone from being the principal wife to a concubine? And Li Qianyu had snatched the principal wife position from her? What about all the efforts she had made over the years?

Although the old lady was bedridden, she was still carried out to receive the imperial edict. Not a single word in the edict was bad, but in plain language, it was almost like she was pointing her finger at the old lady and scolding her for being disrespectful to her elders and causing trouble for her children and the whole family.

Although the old lady had suffered a stroke, she was not deaf or mentally impaired. After hearing these words, she became anxious and mumbled incoherently, which caused her to faint again. The people below then had to fuss over her.

There is no one in charge of the household. The only masters are Gu Hanjiao and Gu Hanqing. Although Aunt Li and Aunt Rou manage the household affairs, they have no say in decision-making.

After seeing the eunuch off, Gu Hanjiao quickly composed herself and spoke before Gu Hanqing could even open her mouth.

“My father hasn’t come home yet, and my eldest sister isn’t here either, so let me say a few words.”

"Oh, even if the eldest young lady isn't here, there's still Young Master Qing. This second young lady was just scolded, and I didn't expect her to be in charge so soon," Aunt Rou said sarcastically.

“Aunt Rou, even if I am reprimanded and my mother is divorced, I am still the second young lady of this household. With my elder sister gone, I am the most qualified in terms of seniority!”

"Yes, yes, you are qualified. As the saying goes, a tiger father will not have a dog son. This applies to the Second Miss as well. A tiger mother will not have a cat daughter. Hehehe, I am not very cultured, and I hope the Second Miss will not take offense."

Gu Hanjiao took a deep breath and said, "Instead of mocking me here, Aunt Rou, you should hurry back and pack your things. The eunuch just said that someone will be coming to take this house back soon. Why don't you take this opportunity to pack up your personal belongings? Are you planning to give them all away to someone else?"

Aunt Li thought about it and agreed. So she tugged at Aunt Rou's sleeve and said, "Sister, let's listen to the Second Miss and pack our things, so we won't feel uncomfortable if we're missing something in the new place."

"Sigh, sister, what's the point of packing up? We're all alone, both of us have experienced hardship. It's just that our child is pitiful."

"Who can disagree? Qing'er is thankfully all grown up, but the child in your womb is truly pitiful, having never experienced wealth and luxury."

“Sister Li, I don’t care if he sees any luxury or wealth. I just want him to be safe and well. Even if other young masters are born in good times, so what? They still have to grow up with compromises.”

From then on, the two mothers remained silent. Gu Hanjiao didn't ask about their affairs. She had to hurry back and organize all the things left behind by Wang Ruyan and Gu Changfeng, including her own dowry, and find a way to hide them. Even if she was demoted to a concubine, she would keep all these personal belongings.

As the saying goes, "Where there's life, there's hope."

As for the old lady, through the care she had received over this period, she had learned that the old woman must have hidden a lot of money. She had to find a way to get her hands on all of the old woman's assets.

Thinking of this, Gu Hanjiao checked all the things in her hands and went to her mother's courtyard. Gu Hanjiao knew where her mother's things were hidden. Soon she found the hidden compartment by the bed and took out two boxes.

One box was filled with gold and silver jewelry, and another box was full of deeds and land deeds.

"Is that all?" Gu Hanjiao asked in a low voice.

“Miss, this doesn’t seem like a small amount,” Chunlu said.

"What do you know? In all these years as the Prime Minister's wife, has my mother ever slacked off? So it's definitely not that little."

"Could it be in Young Master Changfeng's room?"

"Impossible. That spendthrift son of a bitch, if he had it, he probably wouldn't have left a single hair. You two go out and keep watch. If anyone comes in, come and let me know immediately, and I'll come and check."

Spring Dew and Autumn Frost obediently went out for some fresh air, and thoughtfully closed the door behind them.

Gu Hanjiao climbed onto the bed and groped around on it. Finally, she found a small protrusion in the hidden compartment. Excited, she pressed the button. With a click, she quickly pulled back the covers and found a small space inside.

Gu Hanjiao single-handedly carried all the boxes out of the room, and when she opened them, she found they were full of valuable jewelry and a lot of silver.

"So he really did hoard all this for his family of three?

Gu Hanjiao heard someone talking at the door, but she didn't look closely and hurriedly closed the door. If Gu Hanjiao had taken a closer look, some trouble could have been avoided later.

Gu Hanjiao opened the door and saw Chunlu and Qiushuang outside looking anxious.

"what happened?"

"Reporting to Miss, I heard that the eldest young lady has returned and is currently in the front yard. Would you like to go and take a look?"

Gu Hanjiao thought for a moment and said, "No rush, you can come with me to move all the things here into my room first."

Chunlu called over a few more old women, who carried box after box into the embroidery pavilion. Gu Hanjiao told Qiushuang to go back and watch over things, leaving Chunlu behind to help.

Gu Hanjiao didn't let any of Wang Ruyan's clothes go. She put the new, unworn clothes in a box, and she also packed up the worn ones. They were all made of good materials, which could be given away, cut up and used for other things, or even pawned, as they would be valuable.

The servants in Wang Ruyan's courtyard had long been dismissed by Gu Ziming. With the tree fallen, the monkeys scattered, and those with a lively spirit came to find Gu Hanjiao.

"Miss, please save me!"

"How can I save you?" Gu Hanjiao recognized this as a second-class maidservant by Wang Ruyan's side. She was usually favored by Wang Ruyan and would be given tasks. This time, because she was a second-class maidservant, she managed to escape a bit.

"Miss, the madam is gone. People in our courtyard have either left, died, or scattered. Please, Miss, give us a way to live."

Gu Hanjiao raised an eyebrow, sat down, and asked, "How do you want me to save you?"

“This servant knows what Miss is here for. Madam’s wealth is not limited to these. Every month, Madam regularly sends Xue Niang out with a large amount of silver notes.”

Gu Hanjiao thought that perhaps it was given to Doctor Zheng, who knows?

"So what? Xue Niang is already dead."

"But I know that I went there twice with Xue Niang."

Gu Hanjiao immediately became interested upon hearing this. She smiled and pulled the person up, saying, "I know your name is Hongqiao, right? Chunlu, find her indenture later. From now on, Hongqiao, you will follow me and become a head maid just like Chunlu and the others."

"Thank you, Miss. Hongqiao will do anything for you, even go through fire and water."

"Alright, hurry up and help Miss Jia move her things. We still need to go to the old lady's place later."

With many people working together, things got done quickly. Under Hong Qiao's guidance, everything in Wang Ruyan's room was moved out in no time. Gu Hanjiao looked at it with satisfaction and nodded.

"Hongqiao, go back and work with Qiushuang to organize all the items in the embroidery room and add them to my dowry list."

"Miss, would you like to go back together?"

"I'm taking Chunlu with me to attend to the old lady's illness." Gu Hanjiao smiled, straightened her clothes, and left with Chunlu.

The old lady's courtyard was very quiet, and there were very few maids and servants walking around outside. The old lady had always been a lively person, but now it had become so deserted.

Gu Hanjiao acted as if no one was around. The summer heat was oppressive, and the cicadas chirping in the trees was annoying. In the past, the old lady would have had the cicadas caught long ago, but now they were nothing but annoying.

Spring dew lifted the bamboo curtain in front of the door, and a wave of heat, accompanied by a slight odor, immediately rushed out.

Gu Hanjiao covered her mouth and nose with a handkerchief, saying as she walked, "What's this smell? Why isn't there even an ice basin?"

Just then, the magpie inside came out carrying a basin.

"It's the Second Miss. The Old Madam just wet her pants, and I just changed them."

Gu Hanjiao's face showed disgust, and she took a few steps back and said, "Magpie, you've really worked hard. What are the little ones doing, treating the old lady so poorly?"

"Alas, Miss, you know that they... must be feeling uneasy too. Miss, please wait until I finish dealing with what I have to do before I come back to talk to you."

"Go ahead, go ahead, I'll take care of things here with Grandma."

Gu Hanjiao went in and glanced at the old lady on the bed. Her eyes were closed, so it was impossible to tell whether she was asleep or awake.

"Chunlu, you stay here and keep an eye on the old lady. I'm going out for a bit."

"Yes."

Gu Hanjiao didn't want to stay in this room; the smell was too unpleasant. She came out and walked to the corridor, idly waving the fan in her hand.

"Why is Miss sitting here?" Magpie had just returned and saw Gu Hanjiao.

"Magpie, you're back. It's so stuffy in the house. Seeing Grandma like that makes me feel bad too. I saw that Grandma had fallen asleep, so I came out to get some fresh air. Don't rush, sit down and rest."

"But what about the old lady..."

"It's alright, I've left Chunlu inside to keep an eye on things. We can wait for her to call us."

Magpie was indeed exhausted. Since the incident, she had been busy with everything inside and outside the house. Fortunately, the Second Miss would come to help from time to time, giving her a chance to catch her breath.

"Magpie, how long have you been with your grandmother?"

"In reply to Second Miss, this servant was bought by the Old Madam when I was very young."

"That was a long time ago. When Grandma was well, she loved you the most. But now that Grandma is like this, what are your plans for the future?"

Magpie thought for a moment, then could only shake her head and say, "I don't know. I hope the old lady will get better, otherwise I don't have any good plans."

Gu Hanjiao took Magpie's hand and said, "Magpie, how about you follow me from now on?"

"Following the Second Miss?" Magpie was stunned for a moment, and said, "This..."

"You're unwilling?" Gu Hanjiao said with some disappointment, "That's true. My status is not good now, and no one wants to follow me. I was presumptuous."

"No, no, no, it's a blessing from my past life to be able to serve the Second Miss. It's just that I..."

"Then what are you worried about? Is it your grandmother?"

"To be honest with you, Second Miss, although the Old Madam is usually very stern, she is actually very kind-hearted. Now that she is suffering so much, if even the maids leave, then there will really be no one to take care of the Old Madam."

"Magpie, you are such a good girl. Of course, I don't mean for you to leave your grandmother. Just take care of her without worry. What I mean is, if your grandmother passes away in the future, you can come with me. Although I can only be a concubine in the future, who knows what might happen?"

Hearing the dejection in Gu Hanjiao's voice, Magpie couldn't help but comfort her, "Miss, don't be discouraged. The Third Prince still likes you."