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

Early the next morning, the Second Prince Xiao Yuhuai arrived at the gate of the Chu Prince's Mansion with Lu Yan, the heir of the Marquis of Yi'an. However, he did not expect that Princess Qinghe and the Third Prince Xiao Yuheng would also be among those who came. Even the Crown Prince and the Fifth Prince Xiao Yuting came along.

Xiao Yuhuai raised an eyebrow and said, "Oh, the Chu Princess's estate is indeed a good place. I didn't expect so many people to come."

“Yesterday, my second brother told me that there are some good things on my aunt’s estate that none of us have seen in the palace. Since we have time today, we should definitely go and take a look,” Xiao Yuting said.

Princess Qinghe snorted coldly. When she heard that someone was going to investigate Qingwan's estate, she knew that it was just troublemaking. At first, she thought it was the Third Prince Xiao Yuheng's bad idea, but she didn't expect it to be Xiao Yuhuai.

"Indeed, appearances can be deceiving. Hongying and Duansui, go knock on the door and let's go in."

The people who came were all members of the royal family, and the Chu Prince's Mansion had no reason to turn them away. Moreover, the Emperor had sent someone to deliver an imperial edict, so they could not be easily neglected.

The steward invited the princes and princesses to wait in the flower hall of the palace, where fine tea and snacks were prepared.

"My lords, our princess is having breakfast now. She said that if you can't wait, you may go ahead. If you are willing to wait, please sit here and have some tea."

The Crown Prince said, "It's alright, let your aunt eat at her leisure."

Princess Qinghe was a woman, and her relationship with Gu Qingwan was unusual. She said, "Uncle Hua, I'm still a little hungry. Where is Qingwan? I'll go find her."

"Someone, take the princess to the princess's side." The steward called over a maid and led Princess Qinghe away.

The Fifth Prince and the Crown Prince sat calmly in the flower hall of the Prince's Mansion, drinking tea. The Third Prince, Xiao Yuheng, also did not make any other move and sat down inside as well.

Xiao Yuhuai was somewhat dissatisfied. Could it be that this was a smokescreen by the Princess of Chu, with the aim of stalling them so that someone could go to the estate to destroy the items?

Lu Yan became even more audacious, greedily staring at everything inside the palace, thinking about how he could get his hands on the Princess of Chu here.

Xiao Yuhuai felt increasingly uneasy. He said, "Since my aunt hasn't had dinner yet, it's not appropriate for me, as her nephew, to urge her. So, the heir of the Marquis of Yi'an and I will go ahead first, and we'll meet up at the estate."

“Oh dear, Second Brother, there’s no need to be in such a hurry. Sit down and have a taste. Our Imperial Uncle’s tea isn’t something you can get so easily. It’s only because the Imperial Aunt is home alone that we’re here. If the Imperial Uncle were here, he would have kicked us all out,” said Fifth Prince Xiao Yuting.

"My fifth brother may have the leisure and inclination, but I cannot, for I have a mission to fulfill and cannot afford to delay."

"Alright then, Second Brother and the Heir Apparent of Yi'an should go first. We'll escort Princess Chu there later."

Along the way, Lu Yan said to Xiao Yuhuai with some dissatisfaction, "We don't really need to rush. Wouldn't it be better to travel with Princess Chu?"

Xiao Yuhuai said with a very bad expression, "I understand what you're thinking, but right now I'm going to suppress your little scheme. Princess Chu is obviously trying to stall for time. What does that mean? It means she knows there's something fishy going on at the estate. She's feeling guilty and might be buying time for the Ning family."

“What the Second Prince said makes sense, but didn’t we already send people to lie in ambush outside the manor? If we find anything, we can catch them red-handed on the spot, wouldn’t that be even better?”

"The Princess Consort of Chu is no ordinary person. During the last assassination attempt, the King of Chu disappeared around that manor. Now it seems that the Princess Consort of Chu must have taken him in and helped him escape."

No one expected that when the King of Chu returned from the Western Hills, he was assassinated by martial arts masters. Although they guessed that the assassins were from the capital, they never guessed that the Second Prince Xiao Yuhuai was also involved.

"That time, we took advantage of the chaos with the help of the third brother and almost caught the big fish, the King of Chu, but he still got away. This shows that the Queen Consort of Chu is definitely not an ordinary person. We must not be careless and underestimate her."

Lu Yan nodded outwardly, but in his heart, he thought of the Princess Consort of Chu as nothing more than someone who relied on the power of the Chu Prince's Mansion. What was so special about a woman from the inner quarters?

The group rode quickly to Gu Qingwan's estate on the outskirts of the capital, where, as expected, Lu Yan had already sent men to keep a close watch on the area.

Is there anything unusual?

"Nothing has been found so far."

The head of the village has now been replaced by Wang Dazhu. Wang Dazhu has obviously been notified that someone is going to search the village today, and he is to cooperate.

Wang Dazhu trusted his eldest daughter the most; whatever the princess said was law.

"Pah, a bunch of ignorant fools."

Xiao Yuhuai and his men didn't even wait for the Princess of Chu before they began searching the estate. During the search, Xiao Yuhuai thought for a moment and said to his men, "Go and summon everyone in the estate to this place. Tell them that I have questions to ask you."

Before long, everyone in the village gathered together. Some of them were still carrying farm tools, clearly indicating that they had been working in the fields when they were brought over.

Xiao Yuhuai found a chair and sat down in the open space.

"Fellow villagers, I am here on the Emperor's orders to search this estate. Someone reported that there are some things that shouldn't be there. The soldiers are searching it bit by bit. Of course, you are the people of the estate. If anything is found, you will also be held accountable. At the very least, you will be charged with concealing something!"

Everyone looked at each other, seemingly confused as to how working in the fields could lead to a crime.

Wang Dazhu said, "Second Prince, don't scare us farmers. We all honestly farm and make a living by our skills."

Xiao Yuhuai smiled and said, "Of course, so I will give you a chance to tell me what you know or suspect. Whether it is true or not, I will not only exonerate the informant, but also reward him with a silver coin."

Upon hearing that there would be a reward, everyone began whispering among themselves. Wang Dazhu became even more certain that the person in front of him was definitely not a good person and had come to cause trouble for the princess.

Seeing the crowd begin to stir, Xiao Yuhuai couldn't help but reveal a smug smile.

He continued to entice, "Of course, since His Majesty sent me to investigate, it must be for the sake of the people. If you have any hardships or unspeakable problems, you can speak out boldly today, and I will ensure that your whole family is safe and sound."

"Second Prince, what exactly do you mean? Are you trying to bribe us to frame our master?" Wang Dazhu couldn't help but ask.

The Second Prince pointed at Wang Dazhu and said, "Men, seize this man for me. He is the head of the village and must have bullied the people here. Once we take him down, I think no one will be afraid to speak the truth."

"Why are you arresting people without any reason?!" Wang Dazhu questioned directly.

Seeing this, the surrounding villagers picked up their farm tools and surrounded Wang Dazhu.

What a joke! They've only had a few good days. If it weren't for the princess, they'd still be enslaved. Now they finally have land of their own, and the princess has even waived this year's rent. When the rent is collected again next spring, it will be half of what it used to be. Where else can you find such treatment?

The most important thing is Wang Dazhu, the head of the village. At first, everyone was indeed a little unconvinced because he was too young, but later this young man was not only enthusiastic but also hardworking. Whenever you had a problem, he would definitely find a way to get it done.

Nowadays, some small businesses have been introduced to the family, such as basket weaving and bamboo basket making. These are all jobs that Wang Dazhu has found for everyone outside. In this way, the elderly or women who are unable to work in the fields at home will not be idle at home and can earn some food.

The princess also considered their feelings. All the income from the handicrafts they made belonged to them. The employer didn't want a penny, or only accepted rent and grain and vegetables.

Knowing that some people were having difficulty collecting these items, Wang Dazhu, a young man, organized a group of people to collect them from door to door.

Therefore, they must protect Wang Dazhu and the boss.

"What are you doing!" The Second Prince, Xiao Yuhuai, was startled.

"We're not doing anything wrong, but you can't just arrest people like that! We're doing our jobs peacefully at home, and suddenly you want to arrest us? What gives you the right? Just because you're a prince doesn't mean you can treat human life like this!"

"That's right, that's right! They even want us to frame our boss! Our boss is such a good person, we're too busy being filial to him. I'd rather die than do something so ungrateful. If any of you are jealous of that money, go ahead and ask for it. As long as you're not afraid of being struck by lightning, then go ahead and ask for it against your conscience!"

"Pah! If such a thing were to appear among us, his parents would beat him to death!"

The crowd kept talking, making Xiao Yuhuai's face very unpleasant. He hadn't expected these troublemakers to be so difficult to deal with.

"Wow, what's going on here? It's so lively."

Upon hearing the sound, everyone made way, and some sharp-eyed people immediately recognized who it was.

"Boss! The boss is here!"

"Oh, boss, you've finally arrived! If you hadn't come, the prince would have arrested us all."

Some people said, "Boss, you'd better leave quickly! There are bad people here trying to frame you. We'll protect you with our lives, so please leave now!"

Gu Qingwan felt a warmth in her heart upon hearing this. She also felt that the tenants on the estate were very simple and honest, and she smiled to reassure everyone.

"It's alright. This is the Second Prince. He came to our estate on the Emperor's orders. I have nothing to do. If you have nothing else to do, you can all go back home. There's still food to cook at home. I see you're carrying farm tools, so the work in the fields isn't finished yet. Go back home."

Seeing the princess arrive, Wang Dazhu confidently stepped out from the crowd and stood before her to pay his respects.

"Master!"

"Are you OK."

"I'm fine!"

"Well, you should take the tenants home. Your sister came with me too, so let her go with you so you can all have a family reunion. These are all distinguished guests, and I've brought servants from my home to take care of them, so it's alright."

Wang Dazhu listens to Gu Qingwan the most; if his employer tells him to go east, he will never go west.

"Yes!" Wang Dazhu turned around and called to the surrounding tenants, "Fellow villagers, let's all go home."

"No, no, we still have to protect our employer!"

"It's alright, these are all distinguished guests from the capital. Let's pay our respects and head back!"

They looked at each other, then at Gu Qingwan. Seeing her nod in acknowledgment, they finally gave up, knelt down in unison to kowtow to the dignitaries, and dispersed in twos and threes to go back home.

Xiao Yuheng hadn't expected Gu Qingwan to be so popular. He couldn't help but regret that he hadn't listened to Consort Yu's advice back then. If he had married Gu Qingwan as his principal wife, the dowry she had, the support of the Ning family, and Gu Qingwan's methods would have all helped him rise to a higher level.

What a pity! When he succeeds, he will definitely ask Gu Qingwan if she is willing to follow him.

The Crown Prince and the Fifth Prince exchanged a smile, knowing that following the Princess Consort of Chu at the back would surely bring some excitement. They hadn't expected Xiao Yuhuai to be so capable.