Reborn of the Rightful

After returning, Maid Maidong's family sent a message back to White Crane Town, informing Old Madam Ren of the day's events.

However, although Ren Yaoqi's letter had been delivered, ever since Maid Maidong's family arrived, Ren Yaoqi had not received any more letters from Xiao Jinglin.

Maid Maidong's family diligently monitored the letters sent in from the outer courtyard, but in the end, they could only return empty-handed.

She also reminded Ren Yaoqi from time to time to send a request to the Yanbei Prince's Mansion to seek an audience with the Princess Consort. Ren Yaoqi complied, but the Princess Consort consistently refused to see her. In the end, aside from reporting the truth to Old Madam Ren, Maid Maidong's family had no other recourse.

And now, Old Madam Ren did not have much time to attend to the affairs of the third branch.

Since the formal division of the Ren Family's East and West Mansions, the Second Old Madam of the East Mansion had decided to depart for the capital. The Second Master of the East Mansion, Ren Shiyuan, would also accompany her this time. However, the Second Wife, Su Shi, decided to temporarily remain in Yanbei to look after the household, allowing Ren Shiyuan to take several concubines and their two sons along. Ren Yaoting claimed she wanted to stay behind to accompany her mother and did not follow her grandmother and father this time.

The Old Madam of the East Mansion seemed to have plans for a long-term stay in the capital, packing away all valuable items, regardless of their bulkiness.

However, both the East and West Mansions originally belonged to the Ren Family. Although some furnishings in the East Mansion were in use there, they were actually considered ancestral property of the Ren Family and, in principle, should not be removed from the ancestral home.

But Madam Liao paid no heed to this. In her mind, since the items were within the East Mansion's premises, they had been allocated to their branch. Why couldn't they be taken away?

These past few days, Old Madam Ren was so infuriated by Madam Liao that she nearly vomited blood.

Old Madam Ren was not an overly stingy person. If Madam Liao had only intended to take away some ordinary items, she might have turned a blind eye and allowed her to take advantage of the situation.

However, in the East Mansion, there were two folding screens, two pairs of vases, and several calligraphy and paintings—all antiques that the late Old Master Ren Baoming had spent a fortune collecting to adorn the family's prestige. It had been agreed that these would only be passed down to the eldest son of the main branch. Sometimes, whether a family had depth and heritage depended on how many heirlooms left by their ancestors they possessed and whether they were presentable.

Ren Baoming came from humble origins but was determined to elevate the Ren Family into a great clan like the Yun Family. Thus, he placed particular importance on these matters. Back when the Ren Family was just beginning to prosper and was not particularly wealthy, he was willing to spend generously on such items to enhance the family's prestige.

This time, however, Madam Liao wanted to ship all these items to the capital.

Not only Old Madam Ren but even Old Master Ren had objections, as this was no longer merely a matter of money.

Old Madam Ren invited the Second Wife over and reasoned with her, appealing to both logic and emotion. The Second Wife, Su Shi, was quite reasonable and, after returning, tried to persuade Madam Liao not to take these items along but to leave them in the East Mansion. After all, they might return to live there in the future, and besides, transporting such items on the journey would not be very convenient.

Unexpectedly, Madam Liao not only refused to listen but also scolded Su Shi and drove her away, accusing her of betraying her own family. Then, still seething with anger, Madam Liao spread rumors among relatives that Old Madam Ren was mean-spirited and wanted to force their branch out of the family empty-handed. Madam Liao thought that since she would be residing in the capital long-term from now on, she no longer feared breaking ties with Old Madam Ren or damaging her own reputation.The previously separated branch families of the Ren Family from the previous generation now began to stir up trouble and watch the commotion.

Old Master Ren Baoming, besides his two legitimate sons Ren Yongxiang and Ren Yonghe, also had concubine-born children. However, after Ren Baoming passed away, they were given a small portion of the family wealth and driven out to live separately. Over the years, they had very little contact with the main legitimate branch of the Ren Family, except during festivals and ancestral worship ceremonies.

Now that the East and West Mansions were dividing the family, the Ren Family's vast assets inevitably attracted envy, and there were naturally many who stepped forward to make sarcastic remarks.

Whether in the East Mansion or the West Mansion, the Ren Family had been quite lively recently, and Old Madam Ren was extremely busy.

After all the commotion, Madam Liao finally left. As for the ancestral properties, Old Madam Ren reluctantly spent some silver to redeem them, secretly hoping that Madam Liao would never return after this departure.

Not long after Madam Liao and Second Master Ren left, Fifth Master Ren also wanted to go to the capital. Ren Shimiao had always traveled between the capital and Yanbei, and he had previously been involved in some of the family's businesses in the capital. Whenever any trade involved both Yanbei and Jiangnan, Old Master Ren would also assign it to Ren Shimiao. It was only in recent years, due to major incidents in both the Ren Family and the Fifth Branch, that Ren Shimiao had been held back.

Ren Shimiao's trip to the capital was actually intended as a way to relax, and he wanted to bring Madam Lin and their two children along.

Ever since Old Master Ren had punished Ren Shimiao by docking his monthly allowance to teach him a lesson, the relationship between Ren Shimiao and Madam Lin had been fluctuating between good and bad. Later, Ren Shimiao thought about how Madam Lin had never left Yanbei and remembered that he had promised her when they first married that he would take her to the capital if the opportunity arose. He decided to bring Madam Lin and their children to stay in the capital for a while, hoping that the trip would help them forget the unpleasant events of recent times.

Madam Lin was deeply moved when she learned of this and recalled the tender affection they had shared in their youth. The couple became as sweet as honey again, and Madam Lin began preparing for the trip to the capital with great enthusiasm.

Old Master Ren happened to have some matters he wanted Ren Shimiao to handle, so he did not stop him from going to the capital. However, both Old Master Ren and Old Madam Ren were dissatisfied with Ren Shimiao's decision to bring Madam Lin along. Unfortunately, Ren Shimiao was unusually firm in his stance this time. Old Master Ren had just recovered from his illness and lacked the energy to manage him, so in the end, he had no choice but to let him go.

Everyone in the Fifth Branch was overjoyed about the trip. Before departing, Ren Yaoyu went to Yunyang City to bid farewell to her maternal grandparents and even flaunted her trip in front of Ren Yaoqi and Ren Yaohua, generously promising to bring back some specialties from the capital for her elder sisters. Ren Yaohua nearly rolled her eyes to shoo her away.

Fifth Master Ren had originally planned to stay in the capital for a year or two with his family. Unexpectedly, the Fifth Branch's carriage and horses were unable to proceed when they reached Xuzhou.

The reason was that Fifth Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu, mother and daughter, had fallen ill.

Fifth Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu fell ill quite suddenly. They had been perfectly fine when they left Yan Prefecture, but by the time they reached Dezhou, both mother and daughter began suffering from travel sickness, with rashes appearing on their faces.It was not unusual for those who rarely traveled to experience some discomfort from acclimatization on their first long journey, so Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu did not pay much attention to it, aside from being more cautious with their diet.

Unexpectedly, as the journey continued, the rashes on Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu’s faces grew increasingly severe. What had initially resembled heat rash swelled to the size of chickenpox blisters, developing pus-filled sores that emitted a foul odor when approached. By the time they reached Xuzhou, both had developed persistent low-grade fevers.

This greatly alarmed Fifth Master Ren. They stayed in Xuzhou to seek treatment for Madam Lin and her daughter, but despite consulting numerous physicians, none could determine the cause. Some even suggested it might be a contagious epidemic, frightening the maids and servants around Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu so much that they dared not approach to attend to them.

Thus, Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu’s illness dragged on for a month. By the time the Ren Family received the news, the two were already critically ill, on the verge of death. Many physicians who examined them later declared their conditions untreatable and advised Fifth Master Ren to prepare for the worst, leaving him in immense anguish, stranded in an unfamiliar place far from home.

Fifth Master Ren wrote back to the Ren Family, asking them to send someone to bring them home. Even if Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu could not be saved, Ren Shimiao did not want his wife and daughter to die in a foreign land. Moreover, he still hoped that their illness might be due to acclimatization, clinging to the faint possibility that they might recover naturally upon returning to Yanbei.

However, upon receiving the letter, the Ren Family was reluctant to allow Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu, whose illness remained undiagnosed, to return. What if it truly was a contagious epidemic? The Ren Family could not risk being wiped out for the sake of Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu!

Thus, Old Madam Ren dispatched a steward to calm Fifth Master Ren, promising to send several renowned physicians from Yanbei and urging him not to rush back with the patients.

The Ren Family’s attitude left Fifth Master Ren, already enduring immense suffering, both shocked and furious. He had never imagined that, in his time of greatest need, his family would treat his wife and daughter this way.

Although Fifth Master Ren had not made any significant contributions to the Ren Family since reaching adulthood, he had always prioritized the family’s interests under Old Master Ren’s guidance, diligently carrying out his duties. He knew that, according to the family rules, he would inherit only a small portion of the family estate after Old Master Ren’s passing. Madam Lin had even quarreled with him several times over this, blaming him for rarely staying in Yanbei to accompany her due to his busy work for the family, accusing him of toiling for others’ benefit.

Yet, Fifth Master Ren remained steadfast in his responsibilities assigned by Old Master Ren and Eldest Master Ren, never allowing Madam Lin’s provocations to sway him. In his heart, he was a member of the Ren Family. The family had raised him, and it was only right for him to serve it. Moreover, he believed Eldest Master Ren was not someone who would disregard brotherly bonds and would treat his siblings generously once he took charge of the family.

But this time, for the first time, Fifth Master Ren began to doubt himself.

With the Ren Family unwilling to allow him to bring the critically ill Madam Lin and Ren Yaoyu back, Fifth Master Ren, heartbroken and resentful, could only turn to his third brother, Ren Shimin, for help.Ren Shimin, mindful of brotherly affection, instructed Madam Li to send people to tidy up the villa in Yunyang City, arranged for a doctor to be found, and dispatched several stewards with attendants to fetch Ren Shimiao.