Not only the Wen family, but her mother's family also received it.
Unfortunately, her mother was old, and the family was managed by her sisters' elder brother, who was busy collecting furs in the northeast and had not yet returned.
At home, only the elder sister-in-law, who was in poor health and required medication year-round, was left with her nieces and nephews.
The men studied, and the women embroidered and learned etiquette.
For a time, there was no one available.
Her mother's family had no choice but to write to her, asking her to travel to Jiangnan.
Fortunately, her mother-in-law, the old madam, was enlightened and amiable.
Otherwise, such a matter would not have been possible in any other family.
After all, she was a married woman.
"This gift list seems a bit meager. Bring that chest of tribute Shu brocade that the Empress Dowager rewarded me with."
"And that seven-foot-tall South Sea red coral, bring it too."
"Mother, this, this is too much, isn't it? My brother-in-law's family is just merchants."
Although they were weavers who supplied silk fabrics directly to the Jiangnan and capital regions, and were royal merchants, they did not hold official positions.
"Didn't your sister write to ask for help? She must have encountered some insurmountable difficulty. You go there first and give them some face."
"If they are reasonable, you can calmly settle the matter. If they are unreasonable, consider it as supporting her."
The old madam's voice became stern at the end.
Su Xiaoqi realized then that the old madam, who had always been kind to them, was also an old lady with a temper.
Her kindness was simply because she considered them family.
As for the Wen family's brother-in-law, they were outsiders.
Wen Shi stood up to thank her, knowing that it was her mother-in-law giving her face.
As her mother-in-law said, her sister had always been a stubborn and resolute person.
After marrying far away for over twenty years, she had never written back to complain of hardship. Now, in her old age, she had written such a letter.
It was truly intriguing, hinting at hidden matters.
If she didn't go, she wouldn't be at ease.
But if she did go, her safety was also a concern.
Now that the old madam was giving her items rewarded by the Empress Dowager, it was clear that she was supporting her.
It was to let outsiders know that she was not only the madam of the Duke's mansion but also a daughter-in-law cherished by the old madam.
What did she have to fear now?
Wen Shi happily stood up to take her leave, also reminding Su Xiaoqi to visit the Duke's mansion from time to time to chat with the old madam.
Afterward, she went to busy herself with the affairs of the mansion.
"Grandmother, Aunt, since the mistress of the household has left, who will manage the affairs of the house?"
"Who else could it be? It has to be this old bone of mine to support it."
As she spoke, the old madam remembered something and said to Su Xiaoqi, "Ah, right. You wrote earlier saying that you were new to the capital and might not understand human interactions."
"This is perfect. One of you is already married and has her own home, and the other is of marriageable age and will also have her own home in the future."
"Come over whenever you have time these days, learn from me, and help me out a bit."
The old madam's words directly blocked any chance of refusal for the two of them.
She wasn't asking them to directly manage the household, but to learn.
This was such a good opportunity, something others would beg for. The two naturally wouldn't be ungrateful and refuse, and both stood up to agree.
They accompanied her for a while longer, and then Granny Lin came to ask if they should serve the meal.
The old madam glanced and ordered it to be served, as Su Xiaoqi and Du Yiyi were there to dine with her.
After the meal and tea, the old madam still needed her afternoon nap, and she waved Su Xiaoqi away to return to her courtyard with Du Yiyi.
At this time, Zhang Yu, who had left earlier, returned.
She came before Su Xiaoqi, her face showing an unconcealable smile.
"What's going on?" Du Yiyi asked curiously.
Although Su Xiaoqi didn't ask verbally, she was curious and motioned for her to speak.
Zhang Yu knew that Du Yiyi was also involved, so she did not avoid her and said directly:
"Master and Miss Du are living comfortably, but do you know that the Ning Prince's mansion and the Yong'an Marquis's mansion have already fallen out?"
"Ah, so soon?" Su Xiaoqi was startled.
She had anticipated this when she devised the plan yesterday.
But she didn't expect everything to go so smoothly.
Zhang Yu told them that she had just gone out to gather information.
Early this morning, the Grand Princess had chosen to deal with those who had accompanied Princess Huian on her outing.
It was said that Princess Pingning, also known as the Ning Prince's Consort, was currently at the Empress's Fengzao Palace.
She thought about it, and the more she thought, the more indignant she became. So, she took the two head maids who had served Princess Huian and went to the palace, finding the Empress directly.
Without saying more, she began to cry and complain.
In front of the Empress, she started quarrelling with Princess Pingning.
She caused the Empress such a headache.
Of course, Zhang Yu did not gather all the details, she only inferred based on common sense and added it to the matter to help her master understand the situation.
"Princess Pingning is such a patient person, yet this time she was put in a difficult position by the usually unreasonable Grand Princess. She patted her chest and promised to investigate the matter upon returning."
However, others didn't know, but they knew very well that with no witnesses or evidence, it would be difficult.
This matter would be impossible to investigate. No one saw it, so what could be said?
Even Princess Huian's personal maids and nannies didn't know about it.
And Su Xiaoqi and Du Yiyi could not stand before the Empress and everyone else to testify.
Therefore, this matter had reached a dead end.
"It's impossible to investigate now. What should the Grand Princess do?" Su Xiaoqi was a little worried.
The Ning Prince's mansion had a total of two county princesses. One was Princess Fu'an, whom she had seen at the flower appreciation banquet. She was not a good person either, with a condescending demeanor that looked down on everything in the world, making her quite annoying.
And this Princess Qionghua was even more outrageous. She was far beyond being merely annoying.
Her "level" was higher; she was completely vicious and without any sense of propriety.
If Su Xiaoqi hadn't seen it with her own eyes, she wouldn't have believed that such a woman could exist in a family with generations of meritorious service, composed of princes and marquises.
She was very curious, how was she raised?
"Princess Pingning will not be able to investigate, but the Grand Princess is not to be trifled with. In her anger, she directly took Princess Huian to the palace."
"She demanded that Princess Pingning also bring Princess Qionghua. As a result, as soon as Princess Huian saw Princess Qionghua, she was so frightened that she cowered like a mouse seeing a cat, not daring to move."
Zhang Yu was still sharing palace secrets.
Du Yiyi, however, looked curious. "Zhang Yu, these things should have happened in Fengzao Palace. How do you know so clearly?"
Zhang Yu was stunned. Of course, she knew because their organization had people planted in the palace!
But how could she say this?
Let alone Du Yiyi, even her master Su Xiaoqi didn't know about this.
Her eyes flickered slightly. She had been too ostentatious and forgot to conceal this.
"Oh, isn't it simple? She must have found someone from the Grand Princess's mansion to inquire." Su Xiaoqi covered for Zhang Yu.
Du Yiyi might not know, but she knew very well that while Zhang Yu and her group might have limited abilities, the organization behind them was definitely extremely powerful.
Otherwise, Shen Yun wouldn't have been promoted so quickly back then.
Although it was related to Shen Yun's own abilities, it was also partly related to the good shelter he had behind him.
Su Xiaoqi's explanation made Du Yiyi's surprise subside, and Zhang Yu, with no psychological burden, became even more enthusiastic.
In short, they had been causing a commotion for most of the day, and it was still ongoing.
The next piece of news had not yet been received. Zhang Yu said excitedly that as soon as the news came back, she would come to tell them.
The two nodded in unison.
Zhang Yu then quickly ran out again.
Su Xiaoqi had no interest in watching the commotion. She pulled Du Yiyi, sighing inwardly.
"I don't know if this way, Princess Huian..."
"She probably won't get better," Du Yiyi sighed.