Chapter 68

Recently, unexpected events have been happening in the palace almost every day. Duke Ling told Lord Bao tiredly, “I won’t keep you here; I have a lot going on at home. I’ll treat you to drinks another time.”

Mr. Bao only intended to discuss a case that day, but he ended up witnessing another crisis.

He felt a bit embarrassed and said, “Okay, I’ll come back another day.”

After Mr. Bao left, the doctor was quickly brought to Duke Ling’s residence. After examining Old Lady Shen, he confirmed that she had indeed had a stroke due to anger, and her condition was serious. It was uncertain whether she would be able to speak again.

Duke Ling understood.

Old Lady Shen had already faced health issues from recent stress, and now more problems arose. She had been scolded and humiliated by her beloved Ruojin, leading to her anger and heartache.

Ruojin had just learned that she and Guan Muyun were going to be kicked out of the mansion. Out of anger, she spoke harshly to Old Lady Shen.

Seeing Old Lady Shen now, Ruojin calmed down and realized her mistake. She leaned over the old lady and cried, “Grandma, I’m sorry. I’ve been through so much lately and took it out on you. I truly regret it.”

Looking at the unconscious old lady, Ruojin felt scared. People often said Tao Sheng had a strange personality, did not respect elders, and didn’t want to return home to honor her family.

But now, Ruojin was the one who had made Old Lady Shen so angry. In front of Mr. Bao, the prefect of Shuntian Prefecture, Shen Yu valued Old Lady Shen’s opinions. To explain the situation to his family, he would surely expel Ruojin from the house.

Since returning from Ning Garden, Tao Sheng had not deliberately asked about related matters, but as the center of the storm, she was still informed about everything happening around her.

Many people visited to offer condolences and shared various news and gossip.

First, there was gossip about the Eastern Palace from Princess He’en. It was said the information came through a complicated route. Princess Heqing’s daughter told her mother, who then relayed it. The source was credible.

Tao Sheng knew Princess Hui’an’s temperament. While she expected Princess Hui’an to be angry, she was surprised the prince had not reacted at all.

In both the original text and the world Tao Sheng traveled to, the prince was not known for being broad-minded. Now that he learned the Shen family had deceived them, it was strange that he did not pursue the matter or even reprimand anyone. 

In Tao Sheng’s view, the prince’s unprincipled act of pretending to be good was concerning.

The Crown Prince had entered the Eastern Palace and was the future heir to the throne, a position that might make the Emperor wary of him.

If the Crown Prince could show tolerance and control the court officials, the Emperor would inevitably grow suspicious.

The Crown Prince was distancing himself from the heir position, which was good for the King of Chu. Tao Sheng viewed the Eastern Palace as a rival, so she paid little attention.

The second person to bring gossip was Lady Wen’an, the eldest daughter-in-law of Grand Master Luo.

Princess Wen’an was close to the Liu family, and Liu was Mr. Bao’s wife. Mr. Bao had been frequently visiting the Guan family recently, bringing first-hand news.

Shen Ruojin’s attempt to hire a killer had failed. If it had been an ordinary assassin organization and the victim was just a servant, Guan Muyun could have arranged to settle the issue.

However, this incident involved the traitorous King Liang, so Mr. Bao would not let it go easily. He would have to report it to the Emperor. Even if the Emperor did not openly punish the Guan family, he would find other ways to retaliate.

The Mansion of Duke Lingguo was also very aware. Initially, they planned only to divorce Shen Ruojin, but later Guan Muyun insisted on staying, so Duke Lingguo decided to cut ties with him and his wife.

The family had been in turmoil. Shen Ruojin wanted to jump into the river, and Madam Guan wanted to hang herself, but neither could change Duke Ling’s determination to separate from his son.

Tao Sheng recalled that the original text mentioned Guan Muyun was Madam Guan’s only legitimate son and the son Duke Ling had high hopes for. According to the original timeline, Shen Ruojin should have had a child by now, who would be the beloved little master of the family, greatly cherished by the old Duke, and one of Shen Ruojin’s biggest advantages.

However, not only did Shen Ruojin have no children, but Guan Muyun also lost Duke Ling’s favor. This showed that the world was changing.

Yet, thinking about Duke Ling’s past affection for Guan Muyun, Tao Sheng was surprised he was determined to drive Guan Muyun and his wife away.

Tao Sheng’s political experience taught her that Duke Ling probably didn’t abandon Guan Muyun just because of this incident. The Guan family must have other plans, but they were not known yet.

Tao Sheng didn’t care much about the Guan family’s grudges; she was more interested in the rumor about Old Lady Shen’s stroke in the Guan family.

“I heard Old Lady Shen had an accident in the Guan family due to Shen Ruojin’s rebellion. Is this true?”

“This is true,” the Lady of Wen’an said. “The Guan family wants to bring a concubine into the family. We all know that when they say ‘concubine,’ they actually mean to demote Shen Ruojin to a concubine. After all, Guan Muyun is not an ordinary person. He is the prince of the Duke of Lingguo’s mansion. The prince’s legal wife must be recorded in the Ministry of Rites. If there is no record, it means the marriage is not recognized. It’s just a nice title in the mansion.”

“The old lady of the Shen family heard about this from somewhere and came to blame Master Guan. Shen Ruojin originally accepted it and wanted to be his second wife, but the quarrel made Master Guan and Duke Ling change their minds. Duke Ling let Master Guan and her live separately, so the position of Master was naturally lost. Shen Ruojin became resentful after hearing this and quarreled with old lady Shen, making her very angry.”

Tao Sheng figured out the key to this situation.

Madam Shen was trying to fight for Shen Ruojin’s rights and interests, but she didn’t realize how serious things had become. She also didn’t know Duke Ling’s determination to protect himself. If Guan Muyun did not agree to divorce his wife, he would have to leave the mansion with Shen Ruojin.

So, Madam Shen was only thinking about protecting Shen Ruojin’s rights and interests and preventing Guan Muyun from divorcing his wife. She probably made a lot of threatening remarks, but she didn’t expect the conflict to escalate and that Shen Ruojin would betray her.

If Shen Ruojin had talked to the old lady in advance and said she would rather be a co-wife and not leave, she might have convinced the old lady. But now, no one could speak calmly, and there were some information gaps, which led to old lady Shen’s stroke.