CHAPTER 336: CHAPTER 330: I AM THE MARQUIS MANSION DOWAGER 19

As Xu De witnessed the proof penned by the Emperor for Anning, he truly almost got scared to death.

He had extreme admiration for this newfound great-aunt who seemed to have come out of nowhere.

Her audacity was indeed too great.

She even dared to make demands of the Emperor.

And these were particularly unreasonable demands, no less.

The key thing was, she actually managed to get the Emperor to agree.

Tang Pei, on the other hand, had mixed feelings.

He looked at the Emperor, then at Anning, not knowing what to do.

His own great-grandmother was going to marry someone, and that someone was the Emperor—how was he to face the future?

What was he supposed to call him?

Regardless, regardless of what the two of them thought, the Emperor and Anning still seemed quite happy.

Right then, they agreed that after arriving at the Capital, the Emperor would bring Anning into the palace.

The Emperor also asked Anning where she wanted to live, and Anning said straightforwardly that she wanted to stay at Duke Zhongyong’s Mansion since that was her only relative in the Capital.

Finally, after coaxing the Emperor away, Anning asked Xu De about Xu Wan’s situation.

"You previously told us you had no plans to remarry, what about Wan’er?"

Xu De had already thought about this: "My mother-in-law wrote saying she wanted to bring Wan’er to the Capital, to raise her under her care."

Anning sneered: "You really trust her so much, not afraid your daughter’s life might enter Duke Zhongyong’s Mansion but won’t leave it?"

"Don’t speak nonsense."

Xu De immediately became stern upon hearing this.

He still had a lot of trust in his mother-in-law.

Anning pointed at Tang Pei: "You tell your uncle what happened."

So, Tang Pei stepped forward, took Xu De aside, and quietly told him everything about how he fell into the water that year, and who had harmed him.

Anning scoffed: "Mrs. Song could bring herself to even harm her own grandson, let alone a grandnephew, huh, Xu, you probably don’t even know, but Ms. Zhang has had her sights on your family for many years now. Do you think it’s a coincidence that between you and your wife, you only managed to raise an ailing daughter like Wan’er? And, do you know the real reason why Xu’er died?"

Xu De was stunned.

Being upright and proper, he never interfered with the affairs of the inner court and was completely unaware of these things: "Please, tell me what you know."

Anning then took Xu De into Tang Xu’s room and pointed out item by item that had been tampered with.

"Look at that red canopy, it’s been soaked in a potion; any woman in prolonged contact will inevitably become weak with a cold womb, making it difficult to conceive, and look at that set of porcelain, the pigment used on it is also no good stuff, furthermore, the pillow Tang Xu rested on is made of Heavenly Jade..."

With each item Anning pointed out, Xu De instructed servants to take it out.

He then summoned the most reputable doctor in Yangzhou City to discern.

The doctor’s conclusions were not much different from what Anning had said.

This time, Xu De truly believed.

After seeing the doctor off, Xu De was so angered his face turned ashen: "Unbelievable, Ms. Zhang, Ms. Zhang, I will be at odds with you for life..."

He was truly furious to the extreme, and in his boiling rage, vomited a mouthful of dark blood.

Anning patted his back and another mouthful of blood came out.

Anning nodded: "This must feel better now."

Tang Pei hurriedly handed over a medicine pill: "Uncle, take your medicine."

Xu De took the pill without a glance and swallowed it immediately.

Afterward, he sat down on a chair, rest his head on his hands and began to cry.

Anning waited for him to finish crying before speaking: "If you trust me, let me take care of Wan’er. I will take her to the Capital with me when I go, and she can live with me from now on. I will raise her well."

Xu De looked at Anning, then at Tang Pei.

He finally nodded: "I trust my great-aunt. You have taught Pei’er so well, you will surely treat Wan’er well."

Anning chuckled: "Pei’er and Wan’er are both my juniors; I will certainly teach them well. And with me around, neither Mrs. Song nor Ms. Zhang will be able to stir up any trouble."

Speaking of Ms. Zhang, Xu De’s eyes filled with hatred: "I will take these things to the Capital, and also write a letter to question my mother-in-law."

"Okay, go ahead and ask."

Anning spread her hands: "At most, it’s just that Ms. Zhang would take all the blame, and Mrs. Song, considering Ying’er and Xuan’er who have entered the palace, would spare her. At most, she would just be punished by being confined to the small Buddhist hall and not allowed to go out."

Xu De knew that Anning’s guess was likely true.

His sense of injustice grew stronger.

"If you really can’t get over it, then you should take good care of yourself. There will eventually come a day when Ms. Zhang receives the punishment she deserves."

Anning offered this advice to Xu De.

Xu De bowed his head in thanks.

Believing she had said what needed to be said, Anning left with Tang Pei.

She stayed at the Xu Family’s home for a few more days, then leisurely made her way to the Capital with Tang Pei.

Originally, the quickest and most comfortable way to travel from Yangzhou to the Capital would be by water, but Anning, feeling indifferent, chose to take the overland route with Tang Pei in a horse-drawn carriage.

Departing from Yangzhou, they did not travel far each day, leaving late and returning early—treating it as a leisurely outing.

Meanwhile, in the Capital, there were people whose eyes were turning red from eagerly anticipating their return.

First and foremost, the Emperor.

The Emperor returned to the palace by water and had been counting the days, waiting for Anning to enter the Capital.

He even had people watch Duke Zhongyong’s Mansion daily, hoping to be the first to know when Anning arrived and then promptly issue an imperial decree to appoint her as the empress or something of that sort.

But after waiting left and right, the anticipated person did not arrive.

Next were the couple Tang Bai and his wife.

These two were eagerly and anxiously waiting every single day.

One was waiting for a source of support, the other for their son.

Naturally, their waiting also turned out to be in vain.

Particularly today, Tang Tao and his wife Zhang Feng’er had another quarrel, angering Tang Bai so much that he directly dragged the couple over and scolded them.

Originally, Tang Bai would not interfere in Tang Tao’s and Zhang Feng’er’s troubles.

But now that he had some hope, he naturally stood up straighter and began disciplining his son.

Tang Bai slammed his hand on the table and scolded Tang Tao: "Making trouble all day long, the two of you are nearly a spectacle. Aren’t you ashamed?"

Tang Tao also felt wronged: "It’s not my fault, it’s all because Feng’er..."

"Shut up when I’m talking about you."

Tang Bai glared at Tang Tao: "I can’t reprimand your wife, but you’re my son, so I’ll scold you."

At this moment, Zhang Feng’er still defended Tang Tao: "Father, it’s partly my fault too, I was the one making a fuss..."

Just then, Mrs. Li came in and glanced at Zhang Feng’er: "Tell me, what exactly happened?"

Zhang Feng’er lowered her head: "It’s... Old Madam tasked Mr. QI with going to Yangzhou to pick up Cousin Xu, and I said a few words to Mr. QI while packing the luggage, which made him impatient and we started arguing."

Mrs. Li understood the situation upon hearing this.

It was nothing more than Zhang Feng’er being overly jealous and petty, especially since Tang Tao was a flirtatious sort, the couple was bickering over this.

Tang Bai also understood, and he directly kicked Tang Tao: "Bringing all sorts of fragrant and stinky things into the house all day, making your wife lose trust in you, and you still think you’re in the right. This time you’re going to Yangzhou to pay respects to your aunt and incidentally pick up your cousin. If you dare to visit the pleasure quarters, if I hear about it, I’ll break your legs."

Tang Tao was somewhat defiant, standing his ground: "I’m just following your example, Father. You’re always lingering in pleasure quarters, and Mother never said anything, but Feng’er just can’t tolerate it."

When these words were said, not only Tang Bai, but Mrs. Li was so angry that she slapped Tang Tao.

"Kneel down."

Mrs. Li was always gentle, but this time her anger scared Tang Tao into kneeling immediately.

Mrs. Li, with eyes reddened by anger and trembling fingertips, pointed at Tang Tao: "Others may criticize your father, but you must not say a word. Everything your father does is for you, for me as your mother. If he hadn’t been reckless, do you think you would have survived to this day?"

Her words frightened both Tang Tao and Zhang Feng’er.

"What do you mean by that, Mother?"

Zhang Feng’er quickly supported Mrs. Li and asked.

Mrs. Li glanced at Tang Bai.

Tang Bai waved his hand: "Go ahead, tell them. Tell them everything."