For the following few days, the people in the Marquis Donglin Manor could neither sleep nor eat peacefully. They didn't even know how old the child was, much less his identity. The only thing they did know was that Shen Liang would be raising him. For the child, he disregarded everything and demanded Shen Ruiting to expand his courtyard. Since the day he was born, since when had Shen Ruiting ever compromised with him?
But he succeeded. Not only did Shen Ruiting allocate sum of money to him from the family's account, but also specifically told Zhao Lan, who was placed temporarily in charge of the back courtyard matters to take out another sum of money and give it to Shen Liang. He also ordered that no one was allowed to spread word about the child. This terrified everyone. Even the old madame's inquiries were silenced by Shen Ruiting, who had always been filial. Everyone began to speculate if the child had been born from someone Shen Ruiting was keeping and raising outside. But this didn't make any sense. If it was an illegitimate child, how could the child be given to Shen Liang, an unmarried Ger himself, to raise and care for?
Regardless of their hypotheses, Shen Liang began busying himself the next day, bright and early. In order to save time, Lei Zhen mobilized more than two hundred men specialized in civil engineering from the Nether Guards. With the Zhonglin Courtyard as the foundation, in just one short day, three walls of more than two meters high had been erected between Zhonglin Courtyard and the side wall of the Marquis Donglin Manor. Broken tiles were also plastered on top of the walls as to prevent people from climbing over them.
Five days passed and with the concerted efforts of more than two hundred people, three rows of tile roofed houses had been built from ground up. The empty space in the center had been left and used as a garden. The original Zhonglin garden had also been renovated. Besides an old tree, compared to the pavilions in the other parts of the Marquis Donglin Manor, the Zhonglin Courtyard's new pavilion did not lose in sophistication and magnificence the least bit. Although it wasn't built as beautiful, it was much larger, giving everyone plenty of room to move around. Shen Liang even had his own room to research poisons and medicine.
"Liangliang, people from the Lotus Fragrance Courtyard are here and requested that you pay a visit after classes." Shen Liang had utilized and moved too many people. The new Zhonglin Courtyard was able to start inhabiting people after just eight days. Most of the Nether Guards had withdrawn, leaving only Lei Zhen and a few other guards who guarded Zhonglin Courtyard and protected the people in it. That day after school, as usual, Shen Liang first paid a visit to Fu Ying's room to see Shen You as always. When he returned to his own room, Lei Zhen, Qi Yue, and Qi Xuan all came in to tell him of the matter. They had been silent for eight days now. It seems like they finally couldn't take it anymore.
"En. Lei Zhen, how is it over at the City of Wangyue?" Shen Liang responded nonchalantly before questioning. He didn't provide an answer as to whether he would pay the Lotus Fragrance Courtyard a visit or not, but he was concerned about the affairs of Wangyue City.
"Hui An is still imprisoned and a portion of the Ling Family's army is still guarding the dam." Three days ago, the work of stabilizing the dam had already been completed. They watched as the weather grew better day by day. Wen Yuan was in a good mood and was in a hurry to return to the Imperial City to report back to the emperor for credit. But exactly at that time, Hui An appeared and predicted that a downpour would result in five days and begged that the Ling Army to stay behind and continue stabilizing the dam. Wen Yuan immediately ordered someone to behead him on ground of defrauding the public with words of witchery. The Nether Guards immediately provoked the crowd to rush forward and prevent the execution in a timely manner. General Ling was a cautious man by nature. He decided to leave Hui An be for now and have him temporarily confined in the government cells but couldn't persuade Wen Yuan, who was in a hurry to return to the Imperial City, to stay behind. Hence, before escorting Wen Yuan back to the Imperial City, he left a portion of his army behind in the City of Wangyue to guard the dam. One, because he was afraid a downpour may truly occur as the man predicted and two, he was afraid someone might deliberately damage the dam at this time.
"How is the situation in the palace?" nodding his head, Shen Liang continued to ask. These few days, Pei Yuanxian was nowhere to be seen, but he knew that Pei Yuanxian must be occupied with handling matters concerning the City of Wangyue. Any conscientious person wouldn't sit back and simply watch as hundreds and thousands of people drown and suffer from the flood!
"The Emperor was also notified about Hui An and he sent people to investigate his past. However, we've already prepared for that. The only things that will reach his ears would be Hui An's great achievements and compassion, and his adamancy in saving the world. The celebration banquet for Wen Yuan and the General Ling had also been postponed until two days later. I imagine he's waiting to see if it would truly rain then."
The Nether Guards had people in the palace as well. What they should know, they knew everything. It was only a matter of whether the Nether Guards were interested in knowing.
"En. It's the last two days now. I imagine not only the emperor, but many people's attention would be on the dam and the embankment. I hope the General Ling would be more cautious and personally return to the City of Wangyue before then," Shen Liang stood up and walked to the window where the burning clouds in the sky were in full view. He spoke calmly, but he was more worried and concerned about this matter than he imagined. Perhaps it was the responsibility of once being the empress of the empire from his previous life persisting in him. For the innocent civilians, Shen Liang couldn't bring himself to simply ignore them.
"Yes. Master, I truly hope what you predicted would not come to be," after some time with him, Lei Zhen began to speak more to Shen Liang as well. Rather than saying the two had a master-subordinate relationship, they were more like friends now.
"Haha..." Shen Liang laughed: "From the common people's point of view, I also want myself to be wrong. But from a personal point of view, I sure as well don't hope everything I had designed to fall to ruins."
Humans. They were often to controversial.
"Lei Zhen, there's another matter you need to personally discuss with Yuan Shao," after the two's brief laughter, Shen Liang then seriously stated: "If no mishaps occur, then tomorrow would be the day the Empress passes away. Following that, the day after will be the day of the tumultuous downpour. Head back and see if the two matters could be linked together with Yuan Shao. Spread the word that the Heavens was crying for the Empress's death, that she died with grievances. She must have been grief-stricken by some matter. Attempt to allude the matter to the civil exams cheating incident. As for how specifically this will be done, I will leave it to you. If necessary, you can head over to Yinjiaxiang to find Fu Yunxi. In terms of planning, he should be of good help."
Words were a terrible weapon. As long as the public opinion is stirred, even if the emperor didn't want to look into Wen Yuan, he would be left with no choice. But the emperor should be more than willing and happy to do so. Once the examination fraud case is thoroughly investigated, then many officials would be bound to fall. At present the national treasury was reaching its end. Both the ongoing war and the impending natural disaster would only make their treasury more tense. Once Wen Yuan was fired, his family's treasury could be used to fill the Imperial Family's. That had always been what the old emperor resorted to.
"En," it would be a lie to say Lei Zhen wasn't surprised, but the empress had been bedridden with illness for a long time now. For her to pass away anytime soon was only natural. Lei Zhen nodded his head before excusing himself.
"Liangliang, will we head over to the Lotus Fragrance Courtyard?" seeing that they had finished discussing their matter, Qi Yue stepped forward to inquire. Of course, he naturally wished that they would never have to see those people again. They had only just set off the firecrackers to celebrate the Zhonglin Courtyard's renovation and the Lotus Fragrance Courtyard had already sent people over. Even if they used their asses to think, it wouldn't be difficult to know what those people wanted.
"Go. It's time to add some fuel to the flame again. But..." Shen Liang's gaze flickered between Qi Yue and Qi Xuan before resting on Qi Xuan: "Xuan Ge, pay a visit to the Murong Family. Tell them that the empress will die tomorrow. At that time, from royal dignitaries to all of the affluent families, every single household will require large volumes of linen. The linen they have collected and gathered will inevitably be revealed and made known to others. Have them tell others that the linen have been collected for the refugees and victims of the disasters. If there are people who wish to purchase them, have the Murong Family come up with an appropriate price. Take good care of this opportunity and the Murong Family will only benefit immensely from it. But they must remember that not a single piece of cloth must be sold to the fourth prince's manor and the Marquis Donglin Manor."
With the death of the mother of the empire, all of the civilians of the empire have to wear a sackcloth to display filial piety. Hence, such linen would become a material hard to find in markets. Shen Liang had been planning for this since the day he returned. Although he couldn't lend this matter to suppress Qin Yunshen and the Marquis Donglin Manor in essence, a single ant-hole may cause the collapse of a thousand li dyke *huge damage could result from a moment's negligence*. From this point on, they will slowly be guided and walk towards their doom.
"Not even the Marquis Donglin Manor? Then we..." Qi Xuan didn't understand. Wouldn't they also be implicated as well then?
"Are you stupid? Can't we just take some back for ourselves quietly?" for his brother to be this foolish, Qi Yue couldn't help but laugh bitterly.
"Oh, that's right. Those linens are ours anyways."
"Alright. Don't stand there like a fool. This matter needs to be handled urgently. Hurry along and hurry back," Shen Liang shook his head helplessly. Qi Xuan wasn't truly dumb. He just still wasn't able to completely extract themselves from being a part of the Marquis Donglin Manor.
"Alright," Qi Xuan ran out energetically.
Qi Yue couldn't help himself as he laughed. But then he said seriously: "Liangliang, for us to suppress the Marquis Donglin Manor like this, would it affect the eldest master?"
"How would it?" Shen Liang glanced at him lightly as he headed over to the table to pour himself a cup of tea to moisten his throat: "Elder brother isn't the heir of the manor right now. In addition, he out there at the northwest border defending and fighting for the empire with his life. Who dares to drag him into this matter?"
If it would affect Shen Da, then Shen Liang wouldn't have arranged it like this.
"En. Liangliang, your words are reasonable," after careful analysis, Qi Yue affirmed and nodded his head: 'But Liangliang, say, why do you think the marquis didn't instate the eldest master as heir. I think he cares for the eldest master quite a bit."
'Why else? Isn't it simply because the old madame and the others wouldn't let the matter go quietly?' Shen Liang pursed his lips as his eyes filled with sarcasm. Shen Ruiting was actually quite filial to that old thing.
"...."
Just that?
Qi Yue's forehead went dark as he felt speechless by Shen Ruiting's actions. But that was alright. Their eldest master was a capable person. He didn't need to rely on the Marquis Donglin Manor's name to make a name for himself. Who said that he wouldn't be able to earn a title for himself through his own means. As for the Marquis Donglin Manor's heir, it didn't mean anything to them.
"Let's go," Shen Liang suddenly stood up. Seeing that Qi Yue appeared dumbfounded, he couldn't help but laugh, "Didn't you say we should pay a visit to the Lotus Fragrance Courtyard? Let's go see what new tricks they've conjured up in their sleeves again."
These few days, they must feel suffocated. If it was what Shen Liang expected, then there should be quite a few people waiting for him in the Lotus Fragrance Courtyard.
"Oh. Oh. Liangliang, I think they want to force their own people into our courtyard."
Otherwise, how could it be so coincidental? In the past few days when the expansion had been in place, they never laxed their guard and vigilance either. There were quite a few people meandering outside their courtyard.
"That's not strange at all. The last time when I refused their "good intentions," it was on the basis that my courtyard is too small and cannot inhanbit any more people. Now that the courtyard has been enlarged, they will definitely attempt the matter again. After all, it would be a waste for them if they couldn't take advantage of their status as elders. But I imagine they have other purposes as well," Shen Liang walked as he said. For those people's intent, he had no interest in guessing. He'd know once he arrived anyways. But in terms of that matter, they must have moved it up in their agenda? Hmph! If they didn't commit to it then he'll just forget about it, but if they intend to move through with that matter, then Shen Liang won't settle with just these small fights and fusses with them. He will make sure they suffer a heavy injury this time!
"What goes around comes around," Qi Yue was a gentle one and even after finally letting loose after suppressing it for a long time, the phrase was all he could muster. It couldn't even be considered a curse.
"Ah. Ah...."
"You'er's awake? Let Uncle hug you." Just as the two of them were about to exit the door, Fu Ying came out with Shen You in his arms. The little one had just woken up from his nap. When he saw Shen Liang, the little one kept calling out excitedly. A smile immediately emerged on Shen Liang's face: "Has You'er grown a bit plumper? I feel as though he's grown heavier."
Shen Liang freed a hand to stop the little fist that grabbed onto Shen Liang's hair. Shen Liang spoke as he weighed the child in his arms. Infants that were only a few months old seemed different every single day. In just ten short days, Shen You's complexion had become fairer. His cheeks also seemed rounder. But he was different from a fat baby. After all, Shen You had only returned from the northwest not long ago. The journey must have been long and arduous. It would've proved difficult for adults and grown men, much less an infant who was only a few months old.
"En. He is indeed a bit heavier. The little master has a good appetite and sleeps well as well. After raising him for another while, he'd only be much cuter."
Shen Liang had to go to the Academy during the day and Qi Yue accompanied him. Qi Xuan also had his own matters to handle. Hence, the matter of raising Shen You naturally landed on Fu Ying's shoulders. But the man wasn't tired the least bit. Quite contrarily, he found himself enjoying the little Shen You's company more and more. The child was easy to raise and Fu Ying regarded him as he would his own grandson.
"That's good. Children are cuter with a bit more fat," hearing this, Shen Liang was also happy. He lowered his head to kiss the white and tender cheeks before handing him back to Fu Ying. "You'er, be good. Uncle has to handle some matters first. I'll accompany you when I return tonight, "holding onto the hand that was thrown his way and begging for a hug, Shen Liang coaxed the child in a gentle tone.
"Is Liangliang planning on heading over to the Lotus Fragrance Courtyard?" holding onto the restless Shen You, Fu Ying asked with concern. He was also aware of the Lotus Fragrance Courtyard sending people to ask for Shen Liang.
"En. If I don't do, they will only have a reason to make more trouble," nodding his head, Shen Liang's gentleness was gradually replaced by indifference.
Fu Ying said with distress: "Then you be careful. Those from the back courtyard have always been filled with dirty methods. Nothing can be completely avoided and guarded against."
Who knew what they had conspired to harm Shen Liang with again? They had only had a few days' worth of peace and they were already up to no good again.
"Haha... It would only be weird if they didn't have anything planned," Shen Liang laughed as he stepped out of the courtyard. Qi Yue trailed behind him.
Fu Ying carried Shen You, who was screaming, as he watched their thin backs with distress. It had been more than 20 days since he had arrived here but he had already seen much of both what should and should not be seen. Marquis Donglin Manor can only be described as messy. Shen Liang truly had it hard. But he also heard that there wasn't a single woman living in the Duke of Qingping's Manor. Even the servants there were all retired Ironclad Guards. There also weren't any elders to suppress people as well. In the future, when Shen Liang married over, at least in terms of the back courtyard, he'd be more at peace, right?