Pink 810+
However, this time the situation was special. Old Madam Ren wanted to understand the attitude of Yanbei Prince's Mansion, which was why she thought of looking at the letter the Commandery Princess had written to Ren Yaoqi.
Unexpectedly, the old servant woman sent over quietly shook her head at Old Madam Ren.
It turned out that after Ren Yaoqi had boarded the carriage first, the old servant woman had returned, using the excuse that the Fifth Young Lady had left something behind in the study and she needed to fetch it for her.
Ren Yaoqi had left with her head maid, Granny Xu had gone to the rear courtyard, and only a few second- and third-tier maids remained in the study. Ren Yaoqi had never imposed any restrictions on her study, and both the head maids and the second-tier maids responsible for cleaning and serving had been inside before. Ren Yaoqi had never deliberately hidden anything, so the maids saw nothing suspicious about the old servant woman.
The old servant woman rummaged through the study for a long time but found no letters. Just as she discovered a small locked drawer under the desk and tried to pry it open with her hairpin, Ren Yaohua arrived with others.
Seeing the old servant woman's behavior, Ren Yaohua lost her temper, accusing her of stealing and ordering her to be dragged away for a beating. In the end, the old servant woman had no choice but to confess that she had been sent by Old Madam Ren to search for something.
Ren Yaohua would not let her off easily and pressed her for details. Knowing Ren Yaohua's severity, the old servant woman had no choice but to explain.
In the end, however, Ren Yaohua still had the old servant woman driven out.
Ren Yaohua's exact words were: "I don't believe Grandmother would have you sneak around doing such disgraceful things! If there was a legitimate reason, wouldn't Grandmother simply ask Fifth Sister for it? If it were truly important, would Fifth Sister refuse? I think you're just here to steal! But since you serve in Grandmother's courtyard, I won't punish you. Go back and face Grandmother's judgment yourself!"
The old servant woman was alone and could not resist the people Ren Yaohua had called to escort her out. In the end, she had no choice but to first catch up with Ren Yaoqi's carriage and return to report to Old Madam Ren.
Seeing the old servant woman shake her head, Old Madam Ren frowned and signaled her maid Shanhu to go over and ask for details.
Meanwhile, Ren Yaoqi had already received a secret message sent by Ren Yaohua while she was in the carriage, informing her that Old Madam Ren had tried to secretly retrieve the letters exchanged between her and Xiao Jinglin but had failed.
To be honest, in their usual correspondence, she and Xiao Jinglin had never mentioned anything about the Ren Family. However, there were some things in the letters that Ren Yaoqi did not want to expose or have others see.
Still, she pretended to know nothing and replied softly, "I received a letter from the Commandery Princess a few days ago and sent a reply to Yanbei Prince's Mansion. In her letter, the Commandery Princess mentioned some interesting things about her time at Jiajing Pass and said she would return in about two months. Other than that, there was nothing else."
After Shanhu learned what had happened from the old servant woman, she approached Old Madam Ren and reported that they had failed to obtain the letters between Ren Yaoqi and the Commandery Princess. Old Madam Ren felt displeased and secretly blamed Ren Yaohua for being spoiled and acting recklessly.
But at this point, Old Madam Ren could not say much more. She had no choice but to temporarily set the matter aside and asked, "Did the Commandery Princess really not mention anything about our family in her letter?"
Ren Yaoqi looked puzzled. "What about our family?"Old Madam Ren patiently guided, "That is, did she mention whether the Prince's Mansion has any dissatisfaction with the Ren Family?"
Ren Yaoqi thought carefully, then shook her head: "She never said anything. Why do you ask, Grandmother?"
Seeing she couldn't get anything out of her, Old Madam Ren glanced at Old Master Ren again.
Old Master Ren's expression had remained stern all along; in fact, everyone present looked rather grave. After noticing this, Ren Yaoqi also allowed herself to show a hint of unease.
Unwilling to give up, Old Madam Ren said to Ren Yaoqi, "Could it be that you didn't fully understand the Commandery Princess's letters? Perhaps she gave some hints? How about this—where do you keep the letters? I'll have someone fetch them so I can take a closer look for you."
Ren Yaoqi frowned. "But the Commandery Princess doesn't allow others to read her letters. Last time, Second Young Master Xiao accidentally opened one of her letters by mistake, and she threw a huge tantrum."
Old Madam Ren said displeasedly, "Then just don't let her know!"
Ren Yaoqi lowered her head and said nothing, but stubbornly shook her head.
Old Madam Ren had been feeling quite irritable lately, or rather, many in the Ren Family were in low spirits. When dealing with Ren Yaoqi, Old Madam Ren had still shown patience and a relatively pleasant expression due to some reservations.
However, seeing Ren Yaoqi dare to openly defy her, Old Madam Ren grew furious: "What's the harm in letting your grandmother take a look?"
Third Master Ren couldn't stand it anymore and, under pressure, spoke up for Ren Yaoqi: "Mother, letters are private items. If neither the Commandery Princess nor Yaoqi wish for others to read them, it's better to let it be. It would be disrespectful to the Commandery Princess. Even if Yaoqi doesn't tell her, she would still feel guilty when she meets the Commandery Princess later. Wouldn't it be even worse if the Commandery Princess found out eventually?"
Old Madam Ren angrily pointed at him and scolded, "Be quiet! What do you know?"
Third Master Ren truly didn't understand. What did such major matters of the Ren Family have to do with his little daughter? As a scholar, he couldn't bear the idea of privately opening letters.
Old Master Ren, who had remained silent until now, slammed the table: "Enough! What time is this for quarreling!"
Old Master Ren glanced at Ren Yaoqi, who kept her head lowered and said nothing, then spoke gently: "If you don't want the letters read, then so be it. However, Yaoqi, the Ren Family now needs your help with something."
Ren Yaoqi looked up at Old Master Ren: "What is it, Grandfather? Please instruct me."
Old Master Ren nodded with satisfaction, then said, "You should return to Yunyang City shortly, then go to the Yanbei Prince's Mansion to pay respects to the Princess Consort. Remember every detail of her attitude toward you, as well as the attitude of everyone else in the Yanbei Prince's Mansion, and every single word they say to you. Then come back and report it to me word for word."
Ren Yaoqi nodded, then asked somewhat bewilderedly, "But why?"
Madam Lin, standing nearby, muttered softly, "Why else? Someone dug up last year's mine collapse incident at our family's coal mine and reported it. Now all three of the Ren Family's major coal mines have been sealed."
Ren Yaoqi caught this with sharp ears and put on a stunned expression: "But what does that have to do with the Yanbei Prince's Mansion?"The eldest young master, Ren Yiyan, explained softly from the side, "In previous years, such incidents have occurred, but usually, after settling the families of the deceased miners and offering some tribute to the officials, the matter would be brushed aside. This time, when Father and the others went to deliver silver to the authorities, the officials did not relent, only telling Father to return and wait for news. Unexpectedly, as soon as Father returned, officials arrived at the mine to seal its entrance, and even several coal depots in Yan Prefecture were taken over by the authorities, who also began auditing the accounts."
For any family owning coal mines, accidents were inevitable.
Such incidents were simply unavoidable, and the deceased miners had all signed life contracts, so such matters were typically resolved with silver. In previous years, the Ren Family had not paid much attention to these incidents, so last year’s accident was also handled carelessly. Little did they expect that someone would use this incident to stir trouble. The authorities suddenly turned against the Ren Family, and there was even a sense of an impending storm.
If it were not for the influence of Yanbei’s ruler, the Ren Family would never have believed it. Thus, the current leaders of the Ren Family were no longer calm.
Old Master Ren said, "Alright, you may go now. Even if I tell you more, you wouldn’t understand. When you meet the Princess Consort, no matter what attitude she takes, you must behave obediently."
Ren Yaoqi nodded, "I understand, Grandfather."
Old Master Ren instructed Old Madam Ren, "Have someone prepare a carriage to send her back to Yunyang City."
Thus, Ren Yaoqi, having spent less than half an hour at the Ren Family’s old residence, was sent back by the Ren Family’s carriage, heading directly to the Yanbei Prince’s Mansion.
Old Madam Ren even sent her own maid, Shanhu, to accompany Ren Yaoqi.
When the carriage arrived at the Yanbei Prince’s Mansion, Ren Yaoqi properly presented her name card to request an audience with the Princess Consort.
As the foremost authority in Yanbei, the Yanbei Prince’s Mansion had a multitude of rules, evident in the layout of its inner and outer halls and the naming of its main halls.
If not for the late Old Yanbei Prince, Xiao Qishan, who disliked such formalities and simplified and improved some of the rules, the regulations of the Yanbei Prince’s Mansion would rival those of the Li family’s imperial palace in the south.
Usually, when Ren Yaoqi visited the Yanbei Prince’s Mansion, she did not need to follow these procedures; at the very least, she had never presented a name card before.
However, today, Ren Yaoqi deliberately adhered to the mansion’s rules.
Shanhu had never accompanied anyone to the Yanbei Prince’s Mansion before, but she had long heard of its strict regulations, so she did not find it suspicious.
This time, however, Ren Yaoqi and Shanhu waited outside the Yanbei Prince’s Mansion for nearly half an hour before a matron emerged to inform them that the Princess Consort was unavailable today and would not be receiving guests.
This was the first time Ren Yaoqi had been turned away at the gates of the Yanbei Prince’s Mansion.
The maids behind Ren Yaoqi exchanged uneasy glances, and Shanhu’s face paled with fright.
However, upon taking a closer look at the matron who had delivered the message, she found her somewhat familiar.
Shanhu immediately recalled that this matron was the one who had escorted the Fourth Young Miss, Ren Yaoyin, back to the Ren Family Villa last time. She seemed to be surnamed Duan?
Ahem, the author owes many people extra updates, basically everyone above the helmsman rank on the fan leaderboard... 〒_〒So... for birthdays, weddings, childbirths, children's birthdays, those seeking blessings, or those heartbroken and in need of comfort... all of these creditors of the author, if you need the author to repay the debt of extra chapters in advance, please leave a comment in the book review section one day ahead.
The author will try to arrange time the next day to write and repay the debt~ o(∩_∩)o
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