Tianliangyuan

Chapter 473 Cooling Off

Li Shun always thought that the princess recommended him through normal channels or used her connections to help him make arrangements.

Unexpectedly, the downfall of the former Chief Secretary of Yuzhou was orchestrated by her.

Xie Zheng did not hide this from him.

Letting Li Shun know about this is to make him fearful and realize how much power Xu Zhaozhao has!

Xie Zheng himself is not suited to get involved in these things because he is a military general.

Neither the Xie nor the Xu families are actually suited to be involved with civil officials, especially in matters of administration, as this would seriously affect their standing in His Majesty's eyes.

But Xu Zhaozhao is different.

She was a woman, and also a lucky star recognized by His Majesty.

Besides, if Xie Zheng hadn't mentioned it, who would have thought that this was the work of a woman who was not even twenty years old?

This cunning and strategy is terrifying!

At this point, Li Shun had not yet truly realized just how terrifying Xu Zhaozhao's schemes were.

Chang'an Magistrate Liu Qi recommended Li Shun to Qu Shiji. In addition to affirming the man's talent, he also mentioned that the Xie family should value him, since he was Xie Xiaolin's son-in-law and they originally intended to promote him.

If Qu Shiji were willing to give Li Shun such an opportunity at this time, it would be equivalent to having a closer relationship with the Duke of Huguo's mansion.

Qu Shiji thought about it and realized that this was indeed the case.

Promoting Li Shun would not only benefit Xie Xiaolin but also allow the matter of the Crown Prince to remain hidden, making it the perfect solution.

Within three days, Li Shun received a transfer order from the Ministry of Personnel, appointing him as the Prefect of Yuzhou. He set off for his post two days later.

When Xie Juan heard the news, she was both happy and a little reluctant.

After all, her husband got a promotion, which is a good thing.

But now that she's heavily pregnant, she really doesn't want him to travel far.

Fortunately, shortly after Li Shun received the transfer order, the Duke of Huguo's mansion sent someone over. In addition to helping Li Shun arrange his journey, they also specially arranged for Xiao Songshi to come and keep Xie Juan company.

Considering Xie Juan's pregnancy, Xu Zhaozhao specially sent someone to inform her that after Li Shun left, Xie Juan could be taken back to the Duke's Mansion for a few days, and then Xiao Songshi would accompany her to stay at the Li family's house for a while.

This was also to appease Xie Juan, since she was pregnant and her due date was approaching. Sending Li Shun out at this time was indeed not a good idea.

But there's nothing I can do. How can important matters of the court be decided based solely on the wishes of a mere woman like you?

The Xie family currently only has Xie Qiao, the fourth wife, who is still unmarried. They will discuss the wedding date after the mourning period ends.

Mrs. Lin is currently preparing Xie Qiao's dowry, which was actually almost finished beforehand.

However, seeing the lavish dowries Xie Chan and Xie Juan received when they got married, she felt resentful and always felt that her own daughter was the legitimate daughter, and that she should be better than those two illegitimate daughters no matter what.

She just didn't expect that it would be much harder than before to get some good things out of the old lady.

And even if she could pry it out, so what?

It is said that Xu Zhaozhao's dowry for Xie Chan and Xie Juan appeared ordinary on the surface, but in reality, she gave them a lot of money, which was deposited in Daxing Bank.

It was only then that Ms. Lin realized that although both of them had dowry properties, the annual income of her properties seemed to be less than a fraction of Xu Zhaozhao's!

It's outrageous!

Perhaps because of its abundance of greenery and its proximity to mountains, Baiguoyuan is noticeably cooler than Beijing.

So when May arrived, Xu Zhaozhao suggested that her mother and the children come over to escape the summer heat.

Wang Ruolan felt it was still early, and that she should wait until June to go.

Xu Zhaozhao's dowry was her own; she could invite whomever she wanted, and no one could voice any complaints about that.

But Ms. Lin had long heard that the Hundred Fruit Garden was beautiful, and that ordinary people could not even get close to it.

It was because Xu Zhaozhao had held several banquets there before, which attracted many nobles to attend.

However, not all nobles were qualified to entertain guests and enjoy music there.

For example, Princess Leyang, who is on good terms with Xu Zhaozhao, could be one of them.

However, none of the princesses in the palace were suitable.

"Zhaozhao, I heard that your Hundred Fruit Garden is cool in the summer. The old lady has been having stomach problems these days. The doctor said she needs to move around more, but she sweats easily when she moves around, and she doesn't like that. Why don't you invite the old lady to the Hundred Fruit Garden to escape the heat?"

Since Ms. Kobayashi brought it up in public, Xu Zhaozhao naturally wouldn't refuse.

Besides, she was referring to the old lady.

“What does Grandmother think? The scenery at the Hundred Fruit Garden is quite nice, and it’s also cooler than here. The only downside is that it’s not as luxurious as the Duke’s Mansion.”

The old lady smiled and declined, "No, no. I'm just an old woman, I can stay here comfortably. There's no need to bother a whole bunch of people running around for me, it's too much trouble."

Madam Lin quickly replied, "Mother, you're too kind. You're the matriarch of our family. Anyone would be happy to help you!"

Madam Yu laughed and said, "Mother, Zhao Zhao is right. You should consider it. After all, the doctor also advised you to move around more. If you go to the Hundred Fruit Garden, it should be more comfortable than here."

"Haha, you don't need to say anything more. I know you are all filial, but this old woman is used to living here and won't go anywhere else."

Xu Zhaozhao knew that going to the Hundred Fruit Garden to escape the summer heat was Xiaolin's own idea.

The old lady's firm stance clearly indicated that she genuinely did not intend to go.

"Grandma, I've built a beautiful flower wall at the orchard. Would you like to see it?"

"A flower wall? What kind of new trick is this?"

"Grandmother, do you still remember that flower-covered wall in my Brocade Garden?"

"Oh, of course I remember! The flowers were all different colors, they were so beautiful!"

"The Hundred Fruit Garden is as long as a wall, it's beautiful! Just imagine, red flowers, green leaves, and butterflies fluttering in the middle, isn't it extremely beautiful?"

The old lady was genuinely tempted by what she said.

Madam Lin, standing nearby, continued to persuade, "Mother, since Zhaozhao has said so, shall we go and take a look?"

we?

Xu Zhaozhao now understood what Madam Lin was planning.

But she remained calm and continued, "Yes, Grandmother. There are not only flower walls there, but also cranes. We are woken up by birdsong every morning, and it's very comfortable. It's just that Father and the others have to run errands and it's inconvenient for them to go in and out of the city gates so frequently. Otherwise, Xie Zheng would have moved there long ago."

This actually means that only the women went there.

This is actually more convenient.

Mr. Kobayashi's expression stiffened for a moment, but he didn't say anything.

Xu Zhaozhao saw this and wondered to herself, could there be something else going on?

"You all describe it as so wonderful, like something out of heaven and earth, that I'm tempted."

"Then let's go! I'll have someone arrange it right away. Grandmother will stay in her own courtyard. Would Second Aunt like to come along?"

"I'm not going, I have a lot to take care of at home!"

Just as Madam Lin was about to speak, Xu Zhaozhao turned her head and smiled, "That's right. I suppose Fourth Aunt can't go either, since she still has to take care of Fourth Uncle and the others."