Xie Fengran nodded. "Granddaughter told Miss Sun about my desire to go to the women's college."
The old lady nodded. "Since that's the case, you must strive for it. The women's college has an entrance exam. Are you confident?"
"Grandmother, rest assured. Granddaughter will surely not disgrace you."
The old lady said with relief, "Grandmother believes in you." With that, she struggled to get up.
Xie Fengran quickly supported the old lady. With the help of the maid, she stuffed a soft pillow under the old lady. After seeing that the old lady was sitting comfortably, she asked, "Grandmother, for no reason, why did you faint?"
"Isn't it all because of your father! Cough, cough!" A flush crept onto Lady Xie's face as she scolded angrily, "Your father is so soft - eared. He was instigated by that mother - daughter pair. They incited him to tell me that they want you to marry the Crown Prince!"
Xie Fengran blinked her eyes, not understanding what it meant.
"Grandmother, how did this come about? Isn't Second Sister..."
"Humph! Your father says one thing and does another. Yesterday, I told him to send Xie Yunxi to the manor for confinement. But after that mother - daughter pair pleaded, he let her stay. After hearing the rumors outside, that mother - daughter pair actually had the audacious idea of having you marry Qin Junxing and Xie Yunxi marry the Crown Prince."
"Ugh! Your father is blind with greed. He doesn't even see what kind of daughter he has given birth to. How dare she even dream of the Crown Prince? She doesn't deserve it!"
After Lady Xie uttered a string of scolding words, miraculously, her complexion improved a bit.
Xie Fengran glanced at the old lady's expression. Seeing that she had the energy to scold, she let out a sigh of relief.
It seemed that the previous fainting was really caused by anger. Now that she had vented, she felt much better.
Xie Fengran thought for a while and advised, "Grandmother, if you're angry, you can punish or scold as you like, but you must take care of your health. Don't really get angry. The Marquis's Mansion still depends on you to hold it up!"
She couldn't count on her father. If something happened to her grandmother, the Marquis's Mansion would really decline.
A surge of pride welled up in Lady Xie's chest. She slapped the couch and said, "I'm in good health." Then, she waved her hand at the maid. "Go and fetch the red purse from my rosewood box."
The maid curtsied and walked behind the screen. After a short while, she took out a dark red purse.
The old lady took it and poured out a golden token inlaid with silver edges. On one side was the character "Xie", and on the other side was the character "Ling".
The old lady rubbed it in her hand for a while. A look of nostalgia appeared on her face. She reached out and took Xie Fengran's hand, solemnly placing the token in her hand.
"Fengran, this is the token that can mobilize the eight - hundred private troops and guards of the Marquis's Mansion. Your grandfather gave it to me when he was on his deathbed and instructed me that if your father was useless, I should return it to the emperor. Now, grandmother is giving it to you. Go and deal with Xie Yunxi for me. If they don't obey, you can just go in and arrest them."
The old lady took a breath. A vicious look appeared on her face. "For a hundred years, the Xies have had a good reputation. All the daughters of the family, whether legitimate or illegitimate, have never been concubines, not even for the royal family. This principle must never be destroyed by her."
"Grandmother, I..." Xie Fengran was also stunned. She knew that the founding marquis had been granted private guards by the founding emperor as a sign of favor. She had learned this in history.
But over the years, most of these private troops and guards had been taken back by the royal family. The only families that still had them were those highly favored by the emperor. She thought that her family's had already been taken back, but unexpectedly, it was still here!
Lady Xie didn't give Xie Fengran a chance to refuse. She directly held her hand and made her grasp the token. "This token also represents the order of the head of the Xie family. The Xie clan has always had a small population. Although it has a long history, it has never been very prosperous. That's why it has not attracted too much attention. Grandmother wants you, one day in the future, to hand this token to Chenghui."
"Fengran, promise grandmother!"
Xie Fengran looked at the eager look on Lady Xie's face. She felt that the token in her hand was extremely heavy. This weight not only pressed on her hand but also on her heart.
She understood that grandmother was not only asking her to deal with Xie Yunxi but also telling everyone in the Marquis's Mansion that from now on, she, Xie Fengran, would be in charge of the Marquis's Mansion, even over her father.
This support was not for her but for Xie Chenghui. It was also an inevitable way for grandmother after seeing that her father couldn't support the Marquis's Mansion. She wanted her to hold up the Marquis's Mansion and then smoothly hand it over to Xie Chenghui.
There was calculation and coercion in it, but she had to accept it. Not for anything else, but for the fact that when her mother ignored her, grandmother took her by her side, raised her, taught her carefully, invited famous teachers for her, provided her with fine clothes and delicious food, and gave her dignity and status, making her the proud eldest lady of the Marquis's Mansion.
Xie Fengran tightened her grip on the token and nodded at Lady Xie. "Grandmother, Fengran will surely not fail your trust."
A hint of a smile appeared in Lady Xie's eyes. "I'll assign Nanny He to you. She used to be a punishment - administering nanny in the palace. By chance, she came to my side. Now I'm giving her to you. Go!"
Xie Fengran stood up abruptly, walked to the door, paused for a moment, and finally didn't look back. She pushed the door open and walked out.
Xie Yi and Xie Yunxi were still in the same position as before. Maybe they had heard from the imperial doctor that Lady Xie was out of danger, so Xie Yi looked much more relaxed.
Seeing Xie Fengran come out, Xie Yi asked, "How is your grandmother?"
"Father, grandmother has woken up."
Xie Yi let out a sigh of relief and nodded. "That's good, that's good." He looked back at Xie Yunxi standing behind him and hesitated. "Since mother has woken up, Yunxi, go and kowtow to your grandmother to apologize."
Xie Yunxi was a bit reluctant, but when she met Xie Yi's meaningful look, she gritted her teeth and forced herself to walk towards the inner room.
"Stop!"
Xie Yunxi stopped in her tracks and looked at Xie Fengran angrily. "Sister, what do you want?"
"Father, when grandmother fainted, daughter wasn't by her side. Now I want to ask, why exactly did grandmother faint?"
Being questioned like this by his own daughter, Xie Yi felt a bit embarrassed. But when he met Xie Fengran's serious look, he suddenly felt as if he was seeing his mother. For a moment, he felt a bit guilty. He touched his nose and said, "Your grandmother is old. She didn't rest well. It's inevitable to have a minor illness."
"Then why did father ask sister to kowtow and apologize?"
Hearing Xie Fengran's unyielding words, before Xie Yi could speak, Xie Yunxi got angry and retorted, "When grandmother fainted, sister didn't know where she was fooling around. We couldn't even find her. Now what right does she have to question me?"
"Sister, watch your words. A young unmarried girl always talking about 'fooling around'. Those who know will say that Concubine Yuan has taught you well. Those who don't know will think it's father's influence!"
Xie Fengran's words provoked so much hatred that Xie Yi was enraged but couldn't find a single fault to blame. He could only turn his anger towards Xie Yunxi. "You shut up! Where did you learn such vulgar words, a young girl? Apologize to your sister!"