Chapter 279: Stabilize First
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Su Ying came to Xiao Jin’s side and walked along the long, bluestone path of the palace. The vermilion palace walls were solemn and oppressive.
Su Ying didn’t like this feeling and subconsciously frowned.
When he sensed her emotions, Xiao Jin gently held her hand.
The moment she felt the warmth of his palm, Su Ying’s anxiety was quelled.
Emperor Kangze was waiting for them in the side hall.
When they arrived, the eunuch immediately went into the hall to announce their arrival. A moment later, the eunuch’s sharp voice rang out.
“His Majesty invites you into the hall.”
The side hall wasn’t large, and the moment Su Ying entered, she saw Emperor Kangze sitting on the dragon throne.
He was dressed in a purple-gold dragon robe that proclaimed his Emperor’s status. He was very thin, and his eyes were chilly with a hint of sullenness. His eagle-like sharp eyes seemed to be forever filled with suspicion and oppression, making people very uneasy.
At least, Su Ying didn’t like being sized up like that. It was as if the other party was evaluating the value of a commodity.
Emperor Kangze looked at Xiao Jin with an expression full of conflicting emotions as he walked in.
This was the son he should be proud of, but he was displeased with the son’s arrogant and obstinate nature. A capable but unruly child always made him feel that the child was difficult to control.
Therefore, Emperor Kangze truly loved and hated Xiao Jin.
While his thoughts were running wild, Xiao Jin and the rest had already arrived in front of him. After the group paid their respects, Emperor Kangze did not say a word for a long time.
After an unknown period of time, Emperor Kangze let out a deep sigh like an elderly father. He personally went forward to help Xiao Jin up.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
Xiao Jin straightened up, his eyes showing that he felt touched. “It’s my honor to serve you, Emperor Father.”
Su Ying’s eyelids twitched as she looked at the emotional expressions on the faces of the father and son. She had to admit that they were all good actors.
Emperor Kangze patted Xiao Jin on the shoulder before turning to look at Su Ying.
The instant his eyes met Su Ying’s, Emperor Kangze was astounded.
If it weren’t for the fact that she looked the same, he wouldn’t have been able to recognize the woman in front of him. Wasn’t this his shameless and contemptible daughter-in-law who was as stupid as a pig?
Su Ying wasn’t afraid of Emperor Kangze’s scrutiny at all. The aura of an Emperor was indeed intimidating, but she wasn’t an ordinary person.
“All of you must be worn out from the long journey. Go back first and have a good rest. As for the earlier case, I’ve already asked the Minister of Justice to review it again. When the time comes, I’ll give you a satisfactory answer.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
“I have already gotten people to tidy up your Prince’s Manor. The servants have also been arranged for you. In three days, 1 will hold a celebratory banquet in the palace. Go back now.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. 1 will take my leave.”
Su Ying and Xiao Jin left the palace. For a while, Su Ying couldn’t figure out what Emperor Kangze’s intentions were.
“Do you know what he is thinking?”
Xiao Jin came back to his senses. “We just came back, so naturally, he has to stabilize things first.” After all, the tiger tally was still in his hands.
Xiao Jin held Su Ying’s hand. “Let’s go back to the Prince’s Manor first.”
“Mm-hmm.”
Prince Qi’s estate was located on the most prosperous corner of the Imperial City’s main street and occupied a large area.
Before they returned, Emperor Kangze had already instructed people to send the items that had been confiscated earlier back to Prince Qi’s Manor. The confiscation seals had also been removed.
As soon as Su Ying and her group arrived outside the manor, a person who looked like a caretaker led a group of servants to welcome them.
When Prince Qi’s Manor was searched for the purpose of confiscation, even a chicken was captured, much less a person. Therefore, these people were arranged by Emperor Kangze.
The horse carriage stopped outside Prince Qi’s Manor. As soon as Su Ying and the rest alighted, all the servants knelt down in front of them.
“Your servant respectfully welcomes Prince Qi and Princess Consort Qi back.”
Xiao Jin’s gaze swept over them indifferently and ask them to rise.
“Your humble servant, Wei Xi, is temporarily managing the affairs of Prince Qi’s Manor for Your Highness. The manor has already been tidied up. Your Highnesses must be tired from the long journey. Please come into the manor to rest.” Wei Xi bowed and moved to the side.
Xiao Jin stood outside the entrance. The two stone lions outside Prince Qi’s Manor still stood tall like before, and the signboard spelling out “Prince Qi’s Manor” in pure gold characters on a black background was still bright.
Xiao Jin clenched his two fists in his sleeves. Thereafter, he walked in with the two children in his arms.
Not only did Prince Qi’s Manor look very big from the outside, but the area inside was much bigger than it appeared externally.
As she walked on the path paved with bluestone, Su Ying felt that this manor was very similar to Xiao Jin’s temperament. It looked chilly, but perhaps because it was too big, or perhaps because no one had lived in it for too long. In fact, the entire manor exuded an eerie chill.
After passing through a few small gardens that had become bleak and desolate, they finally arrived at the main hall in the front courtyard.
“Your servant has already gotten people to clean up the courtyard that Your Highnesses lived in previously. Please have a look to see if there’s anything missing. Your servant will immediately get people to prepare it.”
“Mm-hmm.”
After the caretaker Wei Xi explained the situation in the manor, he tactfully excused himself.
The courtyard was completely filled with new faces. Su Ying felt that everything she did was being monitored by countless cameras.
“All of you, leave. Don’t come to me for no reason in the future,” Su Ying said to the maidservants.
The maidservants looked at each other, but they didn’t leave immediately. They all knew very well that Su Ying wasn’t their true master.
Su Ying frowned slightly, but Aunt Zhao pressed down on Su Ying’s shoulders and said, “Your Highness, let this old servant handle this matter. It’s just some servants, it’s not worth it for you to get angry.”
Over the past year, Aunt Zhao had been in charge of the internal affairs of the palace in Sky Alpha City, and she had managed everything flawlessly. Thus, Su Ying didn’t say anything else.
Aunt Zhao came to the front of the maidservants. Her face became stern and her bearing was immediately displayed.
“Who sent all these creatures that are born without ears? We do not permit people with incomplete facial features to work in Prince Qi’s Manor. If you can’t undertake this job, get lost immediately.”
Those maidservants were a little afraid when they heard this. They didn’t know what would happen if they were really chased away. After repeatedly pleading for mercy, they obediently excused themselves.
Aunt Zhao turned her head and received Su Ying’s look of approval. This made Aunt Zhao feel even more confident.
“Are you two hungry?” Xiao Jin asked the two little ones. Earlier, he didn’t bring his children into the palace, and Emperor Kangze didn’t ask any questions at all. His attitude couldn’t be more obvious. It was obvious that he didn’t take his two grandchildren seriously.
The older toddler Ji nodded. “I’m a little hungry.”
“I want to eat Grandpa Hea’s egg noodles.” Ling did not look very energetic either.
From the moment they returned to Prince Qi’s Manor, the two little fellows had been listless and looked extremely pitiful.
Hea Shouyi had already brought his assistants to the main kitchen in the manor. He would never trust anyone else to prepare the food that Su Ying and the rest were going to eat.
When Xiao Jin returned this time, he left behind many of his trusted aides. Hea Shouyi brought two people to the main kitchen, but the kitchen was already bustling with activity with the fires in full blaze.
Wei Xi stood at the entrance of the main kitchen and was talking to a fat chef. Judging from his looks, this person was probably the supervisor of the main kitchen.
“Eunuch Wei, don’t worry. I know what to do.” The supervisor nodded and bowed. If it wasn’t for Wei Xi, this fat chef wouldn’t have been able to come to Prince Qi’s Manor to take on the post of a supervisor. Not surprisingly, he had to suck up to Wei Xi.
Upon seeing this, Hea Shouyi walked over. “Eunuch Wei.”
Wei Xi turned his head and narrowed his eyes as he sized up Hea Shouyi. He remembered that Hea Shouyi had followed Xiao Jin and the rest into the manor.
“You are…”
“I am Old Hea, the chef responsible for His Highness and Her Highness’s daily meals. Now that they have returned to the manor, this rule will not change. From now on, the chef in the big kitchen will take care of other people’s meals while I take care of the meals for His Highness’s family.”
Wei Xi was the caretaker sent by Emperor Kangze himself. Now, he was in charge of all the general affairs of Prince Qi’s Manor. How could he allow anyone to challenge his authority?
Wei Xi had a smile on his face, but it was superficial and pretentious.
“Old Hea? Where did you come from? Do you know the rules of the Imperial family’s meals? Do you know how many dishes the nobles eat every day? Previously, it was fine if His Highness and Her Highness were outside and were not fussy.. But now that they are back in the manor, how can this main kitchen be controlled by some untrained chefs? What if the masters eat something that disagreed with them? Can you shoulder the responsibility?”
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