Chapter 485: Krypton Gold Palace Struggle System (20)

"Yang Er, are you certain these treasures were sent by your master to our Third Branch? Could it be that she, in her advanced years, had urgent business beyond the border and, having no time to store them, temporarily entrusted them to our home?"

"No," Xie Yang said, swinging her short legs comfortably and shaking her head. "Master sent them to our home for the three older brothers' weddings and to nourish Father and Mother."

"There must be a dowry for Yang Er as well," Madam Xie San said, coming to her senses and clapping her hands. "The Holy Aunt is truly thoughtful. This trip beyond the border must be fraught with danger, so not only did she have Ning Gu escort Yang Er back to the manor, but she also sent Yang Er's dowry in advance. How could I not have thought of that!"

Xie Yang: "..."

She was only five years old, and they were already considering her dowry?

Forget it, as long as her convenient mother was happy.

It was still early anyway; by the time she reached the age for betrothal, if the manor wanted to interfere and arrange her marriage, they would have to weigh the "Master's Sect" behind her.

Madam Xie San did not know the inside story and thought she had hit the truth.

She cleared out a separate storeroom for her daughter to store the several large chests of durable treasures she had carefully selected.

A batch of large jade seeds was stored here, while the gold fragments were melted down to be crafted into jewelry and objects.

From now on, this storeroom would be dedicated to saving up a dowry for her daughter.

Only the remainder would be divided among the three sons.

As for those in the courtyard, they were items meant for the manor to see.

She would select a few to show filial piety to the Old Matriarch, send some local specialties to the First and Second Branches, and use the rest for social gifts.

As Xie Jing's wedding approached, various manors sent congratulatory gifts one after another. While the public treasury was responsible for the return gifts for those added to the common pool, the Third Branch had to handle the return gifts for those sent directly to them.

Previously, she had been worried about the return gifts.

She couldn't bear to use the good things the Holy Aunt had brought for return gifts, but besides those, the rest were either Madam Xie San's own dowry or antiques and curios the master had collected, most of which happened to be fakes.

Because of this, the return gifts had become a difficult problem.

Fortunately, her daughter had brought twenty carts of good goods, some of which were perfect for social gifts and returning favors, such as medicinal herbs, tea leaves, wine, dried mushrooms, Nanyang Bird's Nest, and local specialties from various regions.

The families who received the return gifts gained a brand-new understanding of the Xie manor's Third Branch.

Previously, they only knew that the First Branch had produced an eldest daughter who became a consort in the palace, and the Second Branch had two legitimate sons dedicated to studying for official ranks; the Third Branch had always been either ignored or used for comparison.

It wasn't until the Third Branch's Seventh Young Miss was taken as a disciple by the Thousand-Faced Holy Aunt and the Fourth Young Master became the Feng family's son-in-law that they gradually shone before others.

"Just watch! The good days for the Xie manor's Third Branch are still to come!"

"I heard the Emperor also knows that the Seventh Young Miss of the Xie manor's Third Branch was taken as a disciple by a martial arts heroine, who brought twenty horse-drawn carts of gifts on the eve of the Fourth Young Master's wedding. He even summoned the Eldest Master into the palace for questioning!"

The Eldest Master of the Xie family was indeed summoned into the palace by an imperial decree for questioning.

Fortunately, the Third Branch had hidden the good things in time. What they showed the manor were items that were good, but could be bought with Silver; at most, they were from distant Fucheng and valued for their novelty.

Therefore, the Eldest Master picked a few things to talk about, and the Emperor lost interest.

As the supreme ruler, he had all these things in his palace, and even if he didn't, he could just have local officials offer them as tribute.

As for the legendary figure of the Thousand-Faced Holy Aunt, she hadn't appeared since she showed herself at the city gate two years ago. Although the Emperor was curious, considering that the imperial court and the martial arts world had always kept to their own spheres, he didn't ask further.

If he asked around and angered the Holy Aunt, and she snuck into the palace to assassinate him one day, wouldn't the loss outweigh the gain?

Standing in a high position, he cherished his life more than anyone.

Upon learning that the Emperor had only summoned the Eldest Master into the palace to ask a few questions before letting him return, not only did the Old Matriarch breathe a sigh of relief, but the entire Third Branch also set aside their anxious hearts.

Unexpectedly, before Xie Jing's wedding, another decree came from the palace.

But this time it wasn't the Emperor summoning them; it was Noble Lady Li missing her family, so she begged the Emperor to issue an imperial decree summoning Xie Yang into the palace to visit her.

After receiving the imperial decree and slipping a purse to the eunuch who delivered it, inviting him inside to rest, drink tea, and eat snacks, the Xie family looked at one another, unable to understand Noble Lady Li's intentions.

If you say you miss your family, shouldn't you summon the First Madam or other legitimate or concubine-born daughters of the First Branch?

Why summon a cousin from the Third Branch into the palace?

As a five-year-old girl, what intimate words could she chat with you about?

Don't cause trouble in the palace!

The Third Master and his wife frowned, showing the same worried expression: "Mother, must Yang Er go into the palace?"

The Old Matriarch gave him a sharp look: "What do you think?"

The decree has already been delivered from the palace; can you refuse? Dare you refuse?

Xie Yang, however, was calm and unhurried. She brushed off the grass clippings she had picked up while kneeling to receive the decree, tilted her head, and asked, "Father, Mother, can Yang Er see the eldest sister now?"

She had thought Xie Ping was in the palace and she wouldn't have a chance to contact this task target for a while, but she didn't expect the other party to offer a ladder herself. She had to go!

Even if she couldn't retrieve the Sub-system yet, it would be best if she had the chance to observe it at close range.

Thus, she was taken back to the Xi Kuayuan by the Third Master and his wife, where she burned incense, purified herself, changed into formal attire, and entered the palace with "Ning Gu" and Ming Cui, the senior maid the First Madam had temporarily assigned to serve her, following the eunuch who delivered the decree.

Why did Xie Ping want to see her cousin from the Third Branch?

It was because she heard that this five-year-old cousin had been taken as a disciple by a martial arts heroine with high-level skills. On one hand, it was out of curiosity, and on the other, she wanted to win over the Third Branch.

She heard that the Thousand-Faced Holy Aunt doted on this disciple, her cousin, and out of love for her, had sent dozens of carts of festival gifts to the Third Branch one after another.

It was rumored that martial arts heroes were free and easy, viewing Silver as dirt. If she could win over her little cousin, it surely wouldn't be hard to borrow some Silver when the Palace Struggle System needed Krypton Gold in the future, right?

If Xie Yang knew the true intention behind Xie Ping summoning her into the palace, she would surely be amused to the point of anger.

However, she had originally wanted to find an opportunity to approach Xie Ping to see if she could retrieve the Palace Struggle System.

【I cannot, Host.】

The Main System tried:

【System cannot connect to the Sub-system for the time being.】

Being unable to connect meant that the Bond between the Palace Struggle System and Xie Ping was already very deep.

That made sense! Xie Ping had already reached out to the manor for over ten thousand taels of Silver.

This did not include the private money the Old Matriarch and the First Madam had given her to support herself when she entered the palace years ago.

In other words, the money Xie Ping had spent in the Palace Struggle System was at least ten or twenty thousand, so how could the Bond not be deep?

The ready Silver in the public treasury is likely running low; otherwise, the First Madam would not have set her sights on the monthly allowances of the estate.

Xie Yang tilted her head, pretending not to see the maidservant sent by the First Madam to be by her side, and quietly slipped a few Silver banknotes to Xie Ping.

Xie Ping tucked them into her wide sleeves as if nothing had happened.

Afterwards, she pulled Xie Yang over and chatted with her about household matters with a beaming smile.

Her tone was as gentle as if she were truly a big sister who cared for and cherished her.

Xie Yang tilted her little face up, revealing the innocence and docility expected of a five-year-old child, and answered each question one by one.

Not until the sun slanted to the west, as imperial concubines are not permitted to let outsiders stay overnight at will, did Xie Ping bestow some snacks sent from the Imperial Kitchen, letting Xie Yang take them back to enjoy with her family, before having someone escort her out of the palace.