Chapter 70: Nalan Yujin is shocked, the most dazzling guy in the entire Capital (Seeking subscriptions)

Tianjing, Weiyuan Marquis Mansion.

Nalan Yujin was nursing her child in the bedroom.

Her long hair was coiled into a matronly bun, adorned with pearl hairpins and beautiful jade; her fair face glowed with maternal radiance, her purple silk robes were parted on both sides and slightly disheveled, and a crimson bellyband was unfastened on one side, hanging before her.

Watching her son's greedy suckling, she could not help but smile, reaching out to stroke his cheek.

"Eat more and grow up quickly, so you can be a general like your grandfather and father in the future; you must never be a good-for-nothing like your second uncle."

She felt very fortunate that Pei Shaoqing had been kicked out of the house.

Otherwise, what would she do if her son learned bad habits from him?

Just imagining her son growing up to be like Pei Shaoqing made her shudder with a jolt.

"Clang, clang, clang!" Suddenly, the bedroom door was knocked from the outside, and the maid's urgent voice came through: "My Lady, have you finished feeding the young master? Someone from the palace has come to proclaim an Imperial Decree."

"Quickly prepare the incense table, I am coming immediately; prepare some silver for a reward, and call the wet nurse to watch the child." Nalan Yujin's expression changed; she put down her son and hurriedly dressed.

The little brat, suddenly interrupted from his feeding, began to wail, his little arms and legs flailing.

As a mother, Nalan Yujin felt anxious hearing this, but there was no other way; after the wet nurse arrived, she instructed her to look after the child well and hurried to the front courtyard to receive the decree.

Along the way, she had already prepared herself mentally.

She surmised that it was most likely that her good-for-nothing brother-in-law's crime of deceiving the Emperor had been confirmed, and the Emperor was formally issuing a decree to reprimand the Pei family.

She sighed softly in her heart.

As long as they did not rebel, deceiving the Emperor would not affect the Pei family, but Pei Shaoqing's continuous courting of death had caused the Emperor to accumulate dissatisfaction with the Pei family; something would go wrong sooner or later.

The one proclaiming the decree was a eunuch from the Directorate of Ceremonial, who squeezed out a brilliant smile upon seeing Nalan Yujin.

"Congratulations, My Lady, congratulations; your noble house has gained another titled lord—how fortunate to have two titles in one family?"

Nalan Yujin was stunned upon hearing this.

While completely bewildered, her mind raced rapidly.

Could it be that war had broken out in the north?

Had her husband been granted a title for performing a great service?

At this thought, she was instantly overjoyed, her face flushing red at a speed visible to the naked eye; after all, those of the nobility knew best how difficult it was to obtain a title in the Great Zhou.

Although she could not contain her joy, Nalan Yujin still tried her best to maintain the poise of a noble lady of a Marquis house, saying calmly: "The Eunuch has worked hard; this concubine thanks you on behalf of my husband, who is far away in the northern frontier, for making this trip."

"Uh..." The eunuch froze, immediately realizing the other party had misunderstood, and hurriedly corrected: "Oh, My Lady, you are mistaken; it is not the Marquis Heir, but the second young master."

"What?" The smile on Nalan Yujin's face suddenly stiffened, and she widened her beautiful eyes in utter disbelief.

Seeing this, the eunuch quickly explained the reason: "The second young master first severely damaged the Xuan Sect Tongzhou Branch, and later killed the Kaiyang Saint Child; his meritorious service has been verified, so the Emperor has promoted him to Trial Centurion of the Jing'an Guard and granted him the title of Pingyang County Baron, with a fief of three hundred households."

Nalan Yujin stood there with a vacant gaze.

Her mind was filled only with the words that Pei Shaoqing had been granted a title.

He actually killed the Kaiyang Saint Child!

And even severely damaged a branch of the Xuanhuang Sect!

No, is this definitely something Pei Shaoqing did?

Could he have been possessed by some Demon?

Nalan Yujin was ten thousand times unwilling to believe it, but everything before her told her: this was the truth!

Thinking back to how she had just used her brother-in-law as a negative example in front of her child—although no outsider knew this—Nalan Yujin still felt incredibly embarrassed, her face burning hot and crimson.

"My Lady? My Lady?" The eunuch called out twice.

Nalan Yujin came back to her senses; despite the complex emotions in her heart, she quickly adjusted her mood and smiled slightly: "I was just surprised to hear this news, please forgive my lack of composure, Eunuch; may we begin the proclamation?"

"Understandable, understandable; after all, no one expected the second young master to be hiding his true talents!" The eunuch sighed with understanding, then his expression turned solemn as he held up the Imperial Decree and sang out in a long, drawn-out voice: "The Imperial Decree has arrived—"

Nalan Yujin and the others immediately knelt down.

"By the grace of the Emperor, the decree says: I, having received the Mandate of Heaven, govern all lands, rewarding loyalty and punishing the rebellious to manifest the might of Heaven. There is Pei Shaoqing, Flag Captain of the Jing'an Guard, who is loyal, brave, and valiant, having killed the rebel Kaiyang Saint Child of the Xuanhuang Sect...

I hereby promote him to Trial Centurion of the Jing'an Guard, bestow upon him one thousand gold, ten bolts of Ice Silkworm Silk, and grant him the title of Pingyang County Baron, with a fief of three hundred households, to be inherited in perpetuity, enjoying the grace of the nation forever.

The Pei family has passed down loyalty through generations, and the Weiyuan Marquis has taught his son well, making him a pillar of the state with merit to the country; I hereby bestow a golden plaque personally inscribed with 'Loyal and Brave Serving the Country' to be hung in the main hall of the Marquis Mansion, to manifest the glory of the family gate...

I hope you father and son will be of one heart, perform your duties faithfully, secure my empire, and bring peace to my people. Respect this!"

Nalan Yujin felt completely dizzy.

It was not until the decree was finished that she reacted: "This subject's wife receives the decree, thanks the Emperor for his great grace, and wishes His Majesty a long life."

"Men, hang up the plaque." The eunuch instructed those behind him, then said to Nalan Yujin: "If there is nothing else, My Lady, I shall take my leave."

"Wait a moment." Nalan Yujin solemnly handed the Imperial Decree to a servant, took a money bag, and shoved it into the eunuch's hand, saying: "It is such a hot day and you had to come to proclaim the decree; you have worked hard, Eunuch, take this to buy a bowl of tea."

After all, it was a joyous occasion for the Marquis Mansion; even if she loathed Pei Shaoqing, she could not be lacking in etiquette regarding this matter.

"Then many thanks, My Lady." The eunuch weighed the money bag unobtrusively and said with a beaming smile.

The eunuch left, and Nalan Yujin looked up at the shining golden plaque, her heart unable to calm down.

She could already imagine what kind of expressions her father-in-law and husband would have when they received the decree.

"Could it be that he was intentionally hiding his talents before?" She muttered suspiciously to herself, but soon her gaze firmed up again, "Even so, he is still no good."

When one harbors prejudice against another.

Then even their breathing is wrong.

Once the Imperial Decree was issued, the Capital was shaken.

"How could the Emperor be so generous to the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion? To grant Pei Shaoqing a title for just this merit—although it is the lowest rank of Baron, it is still a real title!"

"It is truly bizarre; when Pei Shaoqing was in the Capital, he bullied men and women, ate, drank, whored, and gambled—how did he become so capable in both civil and martial arts as soon as he went to Tongzhou?"

"A comfortable environment makes people degenerate, while a harsh environment makes people grow; I have decided, I will tell my father when I go back to send me to the most arduous place! I want to be granted a title too, I want to bring glory to my family gate too!"

"Gentlemen, come in and play; our Miss Cui Liu was slept with by Lord Baron Pei himself; for ten taels of silver, you can catch some of his good fortune, what are you hesitating for?"

Pei Shaoqing was not in the Capital, but the Capital was everywhere filled with him; today, he was undoubtedly the most dazzling guy.

Some people remained unconvinced, questioning if there was something fishy going on.

Others were moved, feeling that Pei Shaoqing was a prodigal son who had turned over a new leaf.

Everyone had their own opinions, but on one point, everyone's view was the same: the Emperor favored the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion greatly; after all, there were two titles in one family!

At the Pingxi Hou Mansion, Wan Guifei's second younger brother, Jiang Xiaoyun, sighed and said: "This time, the Emperor won't have to worry about the Weiyuan Marquis harboring ulterior motives for a while. With such grace and favor, the Pei family will surely repay it with their lives. If they dared to rebel, the whole world would point fingers at their spines, and they would lose the hearts of the people and perish rapidly."

"Second Young Master, the Noble Consort wrote in her letter that she suspects Pei Shaoqing beating the young master Bo to death involved other schemes. What do you think of this person?" the Marquis Mansion Butler, Li Bo, asked curiously.

"To tell you the truth, I can't see through him." Jiang Xiaoyun shook his head, let out a breath, and said: "This person's schemes are too formidable. He deceived everyone, lying dormant in the capital for twenty years—he does not make a sound, but when he does, he startles everyone."

"How could I possibly fathom the actions of such a person? After all, he, the hostage of the Weiyuan Marquis, was pretending to be a good-for-nothing, but I, the hostage of the Pingxi Hou, am a genuine good-for-nothing!"

"Forward the third sister's letter to Father. Let him and the eldest brother worry about such matters. After all, little Bo is the eldest brother's son. I won't concern myself with it; I only concern myself with people."

"Yes." Li Bo smiled slightly. He felt that the Second Young Master was being self-deprecating; although he was certainly not as outstanding as Pei Shaoqing, he was by no means as bad as he claimed to be.

Jiang Xiaoyun frowned, "Also, tell the third sister to write home less. It is not a good thing for a favored concubine in the inner palace to have such close dealings with a Marquis who holds real power and leads troops abroad. I have heard that she is even more arrogant in the palace than she was at home."

"Doesn't that just show that the Emperor favors the Noble Consort alone?"

Jiang Xiaoyun shook his head and sighed, a look of worry in his eyes; this kind of favor was not a good thing.

True favor is never indulgence.

The Pingxi Hou Mansion's power and influence were even greater than the Weiyuan Marquis Mansion's.

They had a flourishing family, one hundred thousand armored troops, and the women of the family were still concubines in the palace, favored and having given birth to princes.

To outsiders, it looked like a scene of blooming flowers and brocade.

But to him, it looked like boiling oil over a raging fire.

Therefore, Pei Shaoqing being granted a title was actually a good thing for the Pingxi Hou Mansion; it could just happen to cool things down for them while they were at the center of the storm and divert everyone's attention.

…………………………

Matters in the capital were temporarily unrelated to Tongzhou.

In the afternoon, Liu Yuheng finished her tasks and returned to her room, just preparing to take a short nap. However, no sooner had she taken off her outer skirt and long trousers than someone suddenly knocked on the door.

"Knock, knock, knock! Mistress, may I come in?"

Hearing that it was Zhao Zhilan's voice, Liu Yuheng, who had just been about to put on her clothes, put them back down.

"Come in, and close the door properly."

Zhao Zhilan pushed the door open and entered, closing it behind her. She walked all the way to the bedside, where she saw Liu Yuheng wearing embroidered shoes, a moon-white Bellyband, and moon-white underpants.

The mature, beautiful woman was full of charm in every way.

"Mistress, your body is truly beautiful." Every time she saw her, she couldn't help but let out a heartfelt exclamation.

Liu Yuheng rolled her eyes at her, stepped in her embroidered shoes to pour her some tea, and asked, "What is the matter?"

The thin Bellyband could not contain the overflowing, plump fruits at all; as she walked, they swayed left and right, as if ready to burst forth.

"The Young Master is coming to my room to sleep tonight. Mistress, what should I do?" Zhao Zhilan asked straight to the point.

"What?" Liu Yuheng was startled and didn't even bother to pour the tea, turning back to stand before Zhao Zhilan. "Did he tell you directly that he wants to sleep with you tonight?"

"Yes." Zhao Zhilan's earlobes turned bright red, and she looked at her pitifully. "What should I do, Mistress?"

"That little lecher, wanting to eat his fill before even crossing the threshold. Isn't it enough that he treats you so wretchedly on a daily basis?" Liu Yuheng spat, taking her beloved disciple's hand to comfort her. "It's fine, Mistress has a way."

(End of this chapter)