Shen Haiyan was the first to discover Gu Xuyang's true identity.
After his training, he held his daughter in his arms. "Has Zhiyi been causing any trouble for her mother recently?"
Shen Zhiyi blinked her eyes, dissatisfied with what her father said. She huffed angrily, "How could you think of me like that, Daddy? I'm a good girl. I would never make Mother angry!"
"If you keep this up, I'm going to tell Auntie on you!"
Shen Haiyan reached out and poked Shen Zhiyi's cheek. "Silly Zhiyi, Auntie is my younger sister. She'll surely side with me, not a little one like you."
Shen Zhiyi was shocked. She couldn't believe it, and her eyes welled up with tears. "Waaaaa, Auntie doesn't like me. Mother, Daddy said Auntie doesn't like me. Waaaaa."
The crying drew Xu Yutang out. Seeing her daughter with a red - flushed face from crying, she quickly stepped forward. "Daddy was just joking. He was teasing you. Auntie surely likes Zhiyi. When Mother went to war with Daddy, it was Auntie and Grandma who took care of you. How could she not like you? Don't cry, don't cry."
Shen Haiyan quickly apologized too. After some thought, Shen Zhiyi reached out and hugged her father's head. "But I feel so sad, Daddy. You have to make it up to me."
After getting the compensation from Shen Haiyan, the little girl immediately perked up. She got out of her father's arms and ran away in quick steps. Then she came back running with a wooden sword taller than herself. There were still tears on her face, but she said happily, "Daddy, look! This is the gift Zhiyi prepared for Auntie!"
Xu Yutang took a look at the wooden sword. It looked familiar. It seemed to be the wooden sword Shen Haiyan had prepared for Baozhu. It was a semi - finished product before, but now it was complete.
Without hesitation, she rushed into the house, grabbed her medicine box, and headed for the main courtyard. Before leaving, Xu Yutang patted Shen Zhiyi's head. "Be a good girl and take your punishment. Mother will come and apply medicine for you."
Then she said to Shen Haiyan, "If you punish her, you can't punish me."
...
"Waaaaa, Daddy is so mean. I just wanted to give a gift to Auntie, but he hit me." Shen Zhiyi lay on the bed, waiting for her mother to apply medicine.
Qiuqiu looked at Shen Zhiyi with admiration. "Sure enough, only a little tiger would dare to provoke a big tiger. Zhiyi is much braver than Baozhu and me."
Shen Baozhu poked Shen Zhiyi's cheek. "Silly Zhiyi, you shouldn't tell Third Brother on your own. If he asks you, just say you don't know."
Shen Zhiyi shook her head, missing her uncle very much. "Humph, Auntie doesn't side with Zhiyi. I miss Uncle and Auntie."
Chen Jinxing, standing beside them, said with a straight face, "When Uncle comes back to check your studies, you'll cry like a little cat again."
The uncle Shen Zhiyi mentioned was the same person as Chen Jinxing's uncle, Shen Heqing.
After Chen Miaochun and Yan Ming got married, the Princess Jingning worried about the marriage of Shen Heqing and Chen Ruxia. During that time, the two were always forced to attend banquets. Maybe because they were in the same boat, they got together unconsciously.
After their marriage, they were often separated. Shen Heqing traveled around to study and teach people to read, while Chen Ruxia served in the Ministry of Revenue.
It wasn't that Shen Heqing didn't want to come back. The emperor noticed his excellent teaching ability and wanted him to become famous across the land first and then return to the capital so that he could be directly appointed as the emperor's teacher.
Because they were busy with their duties, they had no children yet. Shen Heqing doted on Chen Jinxing, while Chen Ruxia liked Shen Zhiyi more.
On the other side.
Gu Chen used his resources to help Shen Haiyan find suitable wood.
He looked up at the troubled Shen Haiyan and sighed that he had finally met his match. First, there was Xu Yutang, and now there was Shen Zhiyi.
To hide his smile, Gu Chen changed the topic. "Third Brother, Susu has found a student from the Imperial College. That student has the same name as the Third Prince, Gu Xuyang. He's a disciple under my master."
Gu Chen's teacher was Master Li. Besides him, Master Li had three other disciples. Among them, only one had a connection with the Imperial College...
Shen Haiyan was older. When the emperor dealt with the Third Prince, he had gone to inquire about the news and knew that the Third Prince had been sent to the门下 of Grand Tutor Ye.
Thinking of this, Shen Haiyan had a complicated look on his face. He asked Gu Chen to repeat it. After hearing it clearly the second time, he advised Yin Susu to find someone else as her husband.
Looking at Gu Chen's confused expression, Shen Haiyan explained, "It's not just a coincidence of names. He is the Third Prince, the former adopted son of the Empress. Susu always sides with her family. Once she knows the Third Prince's identity, she definitely won't be with him. You'd better tell her as soon as possible to prevent her from getting too emotionally involved."
Gu Chen nodded.
That night, the news reached the Empress.
Upon learning that her niece was with Gu Xuyang, the Empress was first angry, and then felt powerless. She had been young and impulsive before and knew that at Yin Susu's age, she would yearn for love. But she couldn't accept Yin Susu being with Gu Xuyang, not only because of his identity but also because Gu Xuyang had bullied Yin Susu when they were young.
As long as she was alive, Gu Chen was the Crown Prince, and Yin Susu had someone to back her up. But what about in the future? The world was unpredictable. If the Yin family fell from grace and Gu Xuyang showed his true colors, what would Susu do?
The Empress suppressed her emotions and ordered an investigation.
In just a few days, the process of how Yin Susu and Gu Xuyang met appeared on the Empress's desk.
When the Empress saw that a few days before they met, Caixing had met Gu Xuyang and given him something, she subconsciously linked the two things together.
The Empress held the letter tightly, her eyes filled with despair. Her personal maid had helped Gu Xuyang. Unlike before, now Caixing knew Gu Xuyang's identity but still helped him plot against Yin Susu.
Zhuoyue said carefully, "Maybe there's some misunderstanding?"
On the same day, Yin Susu was summoned to the palace. She even brought Caixing with her.
As soon as she entered the Fengyi Palace, Yin Susu felt that the atmosphere in the palace was strange. She bowed, but the Empress didn't say a word for a long time.
By the time Yin Susu's legs were sore from squatting, the Empress finally said, "You may rise."
The Empress's tone sounded strange. Yin Susu summoned up her courage and stepped forward. "Auntie, who made you angry?"
"I heard you've found a future husband for yourself. I don't agree to this marriage. You should find someone else." The Empress directly stated her attitude.
Yin Susu was a bit confused but obediently nodded. "Okay."
The Empress had thought of many things to dissuade her but didn't say a single word. She looked at Yin Susu in shock. "What did you say?"
Yin Susu repeated obediently, "I said okay."
"Auntie, Susu always listens to you. If you don't agree to this marriage, Susu will definitely find someone you're satisfied with!"
"But Auntie, why aren't you satisfied with Xuyang? Is it because of his family background? Although Xuyang's concubine mother is dead and his father is paralyzed, his father's wife is kind, and his younger brother from the wife is very promising! We don't need to take care of his father."
The Empress was even more shocked and couldn't say a word.
Yin Susu continued to introduce Gu Xuyang's situation. "Well, apart from his family background, I'm quite satisfied with Xuyang. He's good - looking and obedient. He's also an outstanding student from the Imperial College. Our children will surely be smart and good - looking. The most important thing is that he's willing to stay at home and take care of the elders. How nice is that!"
"Actually, I wanted him to marry into our family like Brother Mingli, but he said he couldn't for the time being. He has to wait until his father dies. It's a pity I can't wait. I'm eager to get married!"
"Although he has good conditions... Auntie, please rest assured. I'll listen to you obediently. Susu knows you'll never do anything to hurt me!"
Thinking of Gu Xuyang marrying into the Yin family, the Empress shamefully felt her heart skip a beat. She even thought about making a memorial tablet for Concubine Cui and burning paper for her to let her know about this.
Her precious son was willing to marry into the Yin family!
The Empress looked at Caixing, who was kneeling on the ground, and said gratefully, "Caixing, you've worked hard."
She had wrongly suspected Caixing. Caixing hadn't betrayed her. Caixing had helped persuade the Third Prince to marry into the Yin family.
Caixing, who knew nothing, was full of emotion. "Taking care of Miss Susu is what this servant should do. It's not hard at all."
The Empress patted Yin Susu. "He has such good conditions. It was Auntie who was wrong. You take him to the manor and let Baozhu and the Princess Jingning take a look. The Princess Jingning is good at judging people, and Baozhu has the truth - revealing talisman. Let them help you check him out."
"You can leave with Caixing first. Auntie has to go to the Qianqing Palace."
The Empress was in a hurry to check if the emperor was still able to walk.