Su Jinan was the legitimate eldest son of the Marquis of Lu. The Marquis of Lu was still young and had not yet requested the title of heir, but Su Jinan’s position as the heir to the Marquis of Lu was already set in stone, and no one could shake it. Although he couldn’t compare to the descendants of the former Marquis of Hengyuan, Marquis Lu Ping also had quite a few children. However, unlike the former Marquis of Hengyuan, the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children within the Marquis of Lu’s household was very clear, and there was absolutely no chance of an illegitimate child surpassing a legitimate one in status. The Marquis of Lu’s wife, Lady Su, came from a relatively humble background, the daughter of Jiang Guang, the governor-general, who was later promoted to the position of salt commissioner of Jiangguang, in charge of salt affairs in the Jiangguang area, a position of power and wealth. For this reason, when Lu Ping became the Marquis of Lu, his wife Lady Su forcibly took over the stewardship from her mother-in-law’s hands, becoming the indisputable mistress of the Marquis’s household.

Lady Su was also a formidable woman. With so many people and complex relationships in the Marquis’s household, she managed to keep everything in order. Lady Su was shrewd and capable, and although the Marquis of Lu had other wives, he had great respect for his own wife and often listened to her opinions on important matters. Lady Su gave birth to two sons and two daughters for the Marquis of Lu, with the eldest son being Su Jinan. With such a powerful mother, Su Jinan was not a foolish person himself, so naturally, his position in the household was unshakable.

At this moment, Su Jinan was holding an invitation card, which came as a surprise to him. He had just returned from the yamen and hadn’t even had a sip of hot tea when the steward of the marquis’s mansion immediately brought him this invitation card. However, from what the steward said about one matter, he seemed to understand the meaning behind this invitation card.

“Young Master, Jincheng is here.”

“Let him in.”

Su Jinan looked up, and soon, a young man hurried in, even jogging a little. As soon as he saw him, the other person raised the invitation card in his hand and exclaimed: “Big Brother, Yunan’s cousin sent me an invitation card through someone, inviting me to Qingyuan tomorrow at noon for a little gathering!”

This young man was none other than Su Jinan’s own blood brother, Su Jincheng. Su Jincheng was a year older than Shao Yunan and six years younger than Su Jinan.

Su Jincheng was both surprised and excited. He didn’t know how many invitation cards had been sent to Shao Yunan by the people of the Marquis’s mansion, all of which had been declined. Now that Shao Yunan had taken the initiative to send him an invitation card, how could he not be surprised and excited?

Su Jinan raised the invitation card in his hand: “I’ve received one too.”

“Brother, you got one too?!”

Su Jincheng reached out to grab his elder brother’s invitation card, opened it, and found that it was indeed the same as his. At this moment, Su Jinan’s personal maid came in and said: “Young Master, Master Jinyu is here.”

“Let him in.”

Su Jinyu, the grandson of Su Chenyi’s father’s second wife. Because Su Chenyi married outside the family, his second wife’s son became the legitimate son. Su Jinyu was considered the eldest grandson of the second branch and the only legitimate grandson. Su Jinyu also held an identical invitation card in his hand. Seeing this, Su Jinan and Su Jincheng understood the purpose of each other’s visit.

Sure enough, Su Jinyu bowed to Su Jinan and Su Jincheng and said somewhat nervously: “Eldest Brother, Jincheng Brother, Yunan’s cousin sent a invitation card to me. I heard that Eldest Brother and Jincheng Brother also received one.” Su Jinan, as the eldest grandson of the main branch and the eldest son of the Marquis of Lu, was called “Young Master” by the servants of the Marquis’s mansion, and the younger brothers also called him “Big Brother”.

Su Jinyu was only thirteen years old. He was suddenly frightened by the invitation card from such a distinguished cousin. Although he was supposed to be closest to Shao Yunan in terms of status, because his grandmother was the second wife, and his uncle had already married when he was born, he was very unfamiliar with Shao Yunan. Su Jinyu came to see his grandmother immediately after receiving the invitation card, and upon learning that both of his cousins had received the invitation card, under the guidance of his grandmother and mother, he came to ask his two cousins, especially his eldest cousin, what to do about this matter. He would definitely go, but he needed to clarify the intentions of the other party.

Su Jinan looked at Su Jinyu’s invitation card once and then Su Jincheng also took it to compare. He asked first: “Do you know why Yunan’s cousin sent you the invitation card?”

Su Jinyu shook his head: “I don’t know, so I came to see my two cousins.”

The Marquis’s mansion was not divided into branches. There were three brothers in the previous Marquis’s family, each living in one of the three relatively independent large courtyards of the Marquis’s mansion, the main courtyard, the east courtyard, and the west courtyard, so what happened in the main courtyard was unknown to the second and third courtyards. But Su Jincheng said: “Cousin Shuhan went to ‘Qingyuan’ to book a table today, but he was turned down by cousin Yunan, saying that Cousin Shuhan asked for three tables as soon as he opened his mouth, and he wanted it for tomorrow night. Cousin Yunan said it would only be available in five days. Cousin Shuhan came back and told his grandmother about it, and the grandmother went to see my mother. As for what mother did, I don’t know. I just got back so haven’t seen my mother yet.”

Su Jinyu was still young and didn’t have much sophistication. When he heard Su Jincheng say this, his first reaction was: “Cousin Shuhan went to eat at Qingyuan? And three tables? It’s very expensive there. Aunt Su gives Cousin Shuhan so much pocket money?”

Unlike Su Jinyu, there was a hint of disdain in Su Jincheng’s eyes when he said these words. At this time, Su Jinan said: “I just got back too, so I don’t know about Shuhan’s matter. Yunan sent the invitation card, so of course, we should go. Do you know who else received an invitation card?”

Su Jinyu shook his head: “I don’t know, it seems like I’m the only one from the second branch.” Saying this, he couldn’t conceal his pride.

Su Jincheng said: “I didn’t ask.”

Su Jinan said: “Tomorrow, you two don’t wander around. I’ll ask around again to see who else has received invitations. Tomorrow, we’ll go to ‘Qingyuan’ together.”

“Okay!” Su Jinyu was the first to agree.

Su Jincheng nodded: “I won’t go anywhere tomorrow. But, brother, we can’t go empty-handed.”

After some thought, Su Jinan said: “The invitation from Yunan is for a casual gathering, so let’s not be too formal. I’ll have Mother personally prepare some snacks.”

Su Jinyu added: “Then I’ll ask my mother to prepare some snacks too.”

“Good.”

Su Jinyu happily left. He was the only one from the second branch to receive the invitation. After he left, Su Jinan and Su Jincheng went to see their mother. Lady Su was in the room, and she wasn’t surprised at all when her two sons arrived. If they hadn’t come, she would have sent someone to call them.

As soon as they entered, Lady Su asked: “Did you two receive the invitation sent by Yunan?”

Both replied: “Yes, Mother.”

Su Jinan said: “We came to see you about this.” With that, he placed the two invitations on the small table beside his mother. Lady Su carefully examined the invitations, then set them down with a pleased expression and said: “Only you two from the first branch received the invitation. Jincheng, you shouldn’t wander around tomorrow.”

Su Jincheng replied respectfully: “Mother, I’ve already told Big Brother that I won’t go anywhere tomorrow. I’ll go with Big Brother and Jinyu when the time comes. Mother, Jinyu said only he received the invitation from the second branch. Did anyone from the third branch receive one?”

Lady Su smiled faintly: “Only you three from our house did.”

“What? Why is that?” Su Jincheng was surprised. If the first and second branches received invitations, why didn’t the third? There should have been at least one.

Su Jinan remained silent, quietly sipping his tea. Lady Su asked him: “Jinan, do you know why?”

Setting down his teacup, Su Jinan calmly said: “Yunan is not close to our family. Firstly, he is deeply favored by the current Emperor and has many matters to attend to. Secondly, he spent over a decade away from his family and has only recently returned. Since we are his relatives by marriage, we naturally have fewer opportunities to interact closely. Thirdly, the third uncle has been married off, so his relationship with the second branch has naturally become distant. Yunan and us are naturally much less familiar with each other.”

Lady Su nodded in satisfaction: “You are well-informed and reasonable.”

Su Jincheng listened attentively to the conversation between his elder brother and mother without interjecting. Su Jinan didn’t continue but instead asked: “Mother, do you know about the matter with Shuhan?”

The smile faded from Lady Su’s face as she replied: “Shuhan is immature. Although the old lady dotes on him and initially plans to intervene, she’s not foolish. I had a word with her, and the matter was dropped. Shuhan isn’t a member of the Su family, so his mother should discipline him. I’ve also spoken to the second and third branches to ensure that their children behave properly and don’t do anything disrespectful.”

Su Jincheng couldn’t help but say: “Mother, didn’t Grandmother intervene? I thought she would definitely speak up for Shuhan.”

Lady Su calmly replied: “No matter how much the old lady dotes on him, he’s still part of your family. Your grandmother can’t offend King wife and Yunan for the sake of an outsider.” Lady Su seemed reluctant to dwell further on Shuhan and instead said: “Jinan, you haven’t answered the question I asked earlier.”

Meanwhile, Su Chenyi accompanied the empress for a stroll. When he was pregnant with their two children, Dai Mingyuan was not by his side. He endured the discomforts of pregnancy alone, as well as the loneliness of childbirth. Fortunately, he had a strong personality and never once complained to Dai Mingyuan about it. However, after losing Yunan, who had been missing for twelve years, he felt deeply distressed. His health suffered greatly during those twelve years of sorrow. Now that his son had returned and under his care, he had regained his usual cheerful demeanor.

During this pregnancy, Emperor Yongming was especially cautious with the empress. After all, he was the emperor, and this was the best time for Su Chenyi to accompany him through his pregnancy.

“Empress, take a break. The first three months are crucial.”

“Alright.”

The palace maids and eunuchs quickly laid thick cushions on the seats of the pavilion and served tea and snacks. When Shao Yunan returned to the palace, he could see his father and the empress chatting and laughing from afar. Dai Mingyuan was the empress’s male cousin, and with so many women in the general’s mansion, he was the one with whom he could have a conversation. In the palace, he was the most suitable person to talk to him.

Shao Yunan didn’t mention anything about the Su family’s affairs. He continued to chat with them until the empress got tired. He and his father accompanied the empress back to the Palace to rest, and then went to his father’s residence. It was there that Shao Yunan finally mentioned the matter of Shuhan to his father. Sure enough, Su Chenyi’s reaction was: “Why is this child so foolish?”

Shao Yunan replied: “Little Guo said he’s quite favored in the Lu residence.”

Su Chenyi said angrily: “The Eldest Madam has only one daughter, your cousin, and she has been spoiled since she was little. Initially, she was desperate to marry the son of the Grand Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, Ru Shilin. Ru Shilin is seven or eight years older than her, and he already had a legitimate son who was five years old. Ru Shilin married a male spouse, and their relationship was very deep. He had no concubines or secondary wives, only one legitimate wife. But your cousin pressured our family’s elders so much that they had no choice but to force Ru Shilin to marry her as a secondary wife.”

“Since she barged into their lives like that, how could Ru Shilin feel good about it? She didn’t get her husband’s affection, so she came back home crying. In short, she made trouble for both sides. Two years ago, Ru Shilin passed away, and everyone in the Ru family believes his early death was related to her. No one in her husband’s family likes her. Since married daughters cannot keep running back to their family home, the Ru family didn’t make things difficult for her, but they just ignored her. The Eldest Madam had no choice but to take her back, claiming it was out of pity for her being a widow.”

“I see,” said Shao Yunan: “I heard that the current Duke of Lu is very fond of this sister? What about this Ru Shuhan?”

Su Chenyi said with a sigh: “The Eldest Madam of the Eldest House dotes on her daughter, and as the Duke, he can’t afford to have people say he’s unfilial or doesn’t protect his siblings. Besides, this is a family matter. The mother wants to bring her daughter back home, no matter whether the son agrees or not, outsiders will only blame the daughter-in-law. Madam Su is the Eldest Madam, the Duke’s wife, even if she doesn’t want to, she has to agree, and she has to show concern for her sister-in-law in public. The situation in the Duke of Lu’s Mansion is different from ours in the General’s Mansion. Our men are all stationed on the border, it’s best for the whole family to live together for mutual support. Your aunt is a sensible person, she never troubles her elder brother and sister-in-law. Over the years, our family has benefited a lot from her presence.”

Shao Yunan agreed: “Aunt is indeed different. Aunt manages the household, and you’re also a daughter-in-law, with Aunt around, at least you and Aunt have less to worry about.”

“Exactly. Aunt has a lot on her plate with the younger ones at home.”

Because of this, Su Chenyi visited his maternal home less and less. Although he was from the Second House, there were still plenty of troubles. The pillar of the Second House was his stepmother, and if he didn’t go home, no one would bother him.

Having obtained confirmation from his uncle, Shao Yunan knew what to do next. Not long after, the three young masters of the Eldest and Second Houses of the Lu Mansion each received invitations sent by Shao Yunan’s people. Guo Zimu, also received a message from Shao Yunan from King Rong steward asking for his help with arranging something.

In the aristocratic circles of the capital, news spread quickly, especially about matters within the family. The incident where Ru Shuhan was rejected at the ‘Qingyuan’ restaurant by Shao Yunan was soon widely known. Similarly, the news that the two legitimate young masters of the Eldest House and the legitimate young master of the Second House received invitations from madam Wang Shao was also well known in the capital. Leaving aside the reaction of the Third House, Ru Shuhan, upon receiving the news, locked himself in his room and tore up an entire book.

 

Edited by: Jaisland

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