The Princess Residence gazed at her desolate face and after a long while, she sighed.
"I just hope your second brother doesn’t resent ," she said.
Puyang Yi thought of her second brother’s disheveled return ho, how their mother had ruthlessly turned him away, not even letting him in before chasing him out, and she knew her mother was resolute. She imdiately tried to console her again.
"No, no, he will co to understand. Mother is doing this for his own good..."
"Which mother in the world doesn’t plot for the sake of her children..."
The Princess Residence exhaled a sigh.
The decline of the royal family and the gradual downfall of the noble families were visible outcos.
That Pei Jue was not just a rising star in court, but a noble among nobles who could cover the sky with one hand.
As long as she was alive, she could still protect her son and daughter.
But what if one day she kicked the bucket?
When a person passes, the tea grows cold—who would then give face to the Princess Residence?
For the sake of her son’s future, she had no choice but to be ruthless.
Yet, as she thought of her son leaving alone with his bundle, a dissatisfied shadow in the background, her heart ached unbearably...
"Tomorrow you go to Huaxi Village and see how things are," she said.
Upon hearing this, Puyang Yi furrowed her brows.
"That won’t do. If the second brother catches even a glimr of hope, he might backtrack. Mother, since you’ve done what needed to be done, why not endure a bit longer?"
"But..." The Princess Residence was still hesitant.
"There is no ’but.’" Puyang Yi took her mother’s hand, looking steadily into her eyes, "Mother, rest assured, Lady Yun is not soone who lacks discretion. The worst that can happen to second brother in Huaxi Village is to remain unrepentant; he won’t beco any worse..."
The Princess Residence sighed with bitterness and said, "Fine."
Puyang Yi let go of her mother’s hand, and her gaze suddenly solidified.
It was only now that she realized her mother, who had always taken great care with her appearance, was barely in her forties and already had white hair.
"Mother..."
She suddenly threw herself into the embrace of the Princess Residence.
The Princess Residence held her, "What’s wrong?"
Puyang Yi was overwheld with sorrow and could not speak in ti before her eyes were wet, and her voice choked up.
"My brother and I... we have not been good children. From childhood, we never did any good, only causing mother worry..."
This was the first ti the Princess Residence heard such emotionally charged words from her daughter; her heart swelled and ached, though a smile crept onto her face.
"I am your mother; if I don’t worry about you, who will I worry for?"
She gently lifted Puyang Yi’s head and gazed at her firmly:
"It’s right that you’ve beco friends with Feng Yun. If sothing should happen to one day, rember, you must look after your second brother for ..."
"Mother..." Puyang Yi’s eyes filled with tears, "Why do you speak of such things when all is well?"
The Princess Residence shook her head slightly and closed her eyes a bit.
There were many things Puyang Yi did not understand, but she saw them very clearly.
The operation against the bandits on Xiufeng Mountain had been raging like fire in the last few days; Pei Jue, even wounded, had taken to the battlefield, astounding the public.
There was much talk among the people.
In teahouses and taverns, every day people discussed the heroism of the Prince of Yonghuai.
What the public didn’t know was that Pei Jue’s focus was actually not on Xiufeng Mountain, but on Yecheng.
Before Dajin split, Yecheng had to buy many of its supplies from other regions, with rchants coming and going frequently. Now that it had divided, although open trade had lessened, private trades had never ceased, and the Governnt Office had not taken the matter seriously.
This ti Pei Jue was serious.
He had not only ordered that rchants must not do business with Yecheng, but he had also dispatched a large number of troops to investigate rchants involved in underhanded dealings.
Once discovered, they would be prosecuted for colluding with the enemy.
The batch of goods seized today revealed that the mastermind behind it was Yuan Kang’s father, Prince Xingyang Yuan Tao.
Brazen and reckless.
If the faction of Prince Xingyang and the Marquis of Xuanping had any dealings with Yecheng that were not above board, they were sure to be settled by Pei Jue.
And her...
She, too, might be considered their support and be marked in their account.
Nothing is more fragile than a royal power struggle; once Pei Jue was free to act, whether he would stir up a storm was still unknown.
The Princess Residence gently stroked Puyang Yi’s back, her heart surging with waves...
In such tis, what more could she do?
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