I'm already a concubine, who wants to fight with you?

Chapter 203: A Thousand Falls

Pei Yuan said: "When the Marquis's Mansion was divided, the fourth branch did not receive the most land and shops."

However, they, father and son, had been stationed at the border for many years, had made many outstanding achievements, and had received many rewards from the imperial court.

However, no matter how wealthy the family is, it cannot withstand the turmoil caused by the fake Pei Yuan and Xiao Shirong. If they don't take care of it, in five or six years at most, the fourth branch will have to beg on the streets.

Xie Fei thought of something else. "I remember the rumor in the capital that you were a loser who couldn't even ride a horse in the frontier?"

Pei Yuan sighed: "Your Majesty will naturally not let me have a good reputation."

Although those who are familiar with the inside story know that Pei Yuan is an absolute young talent after being taught by the old marquis and General Pei.

But the common rumor is that he is a cowardly waste.

This was undoubtedly the work of the royal family. His Majesty did not want the Anyuan Marquisate to produce another war god who could lead troops to fight and had a high reputation.

Xie Fei sat down beside the couch and asked hesitantly, "Does the general's death have anything to do with the emperor?"

She only heard that the hero of Dajing who had made great military achievements died in his prime. Rumors in the capital said that it was due to overwork, and some said it was a conspiracy by the enemy. There were all kinds of reasons.

The more she came into contact with him, the more she felt that it might be related to Emperor Xuan.

Pei Yuan closed his deep black eyes, hiding his sadness, and when he opened them again, he was still clear-headed.

"It doesn't matter much." He only said: "If my father were still alive, the Pei family would have one more marquis."

General Pei Su died on the eve of being conferred a title of nobility.

The father and son made many outstanding achievements, and their reputation in the court increased greatly. Even Emperor Xuan had to issue an edict to confer the title of marquis on General Pei.

However, General Pei died before returning to Beijing, and Pei Yuan was forced to replace him, so the matter of conferring the title of nobility naturally came to nothing.

Xie Fei only felt sad, and he didn't understand why Emperor Xuan targeted the fourth house so much.

"The emperor wants to suppress the entire Anyuan Marquisate, but why do I feel that he is targeting the fourth house? Could it be because only the fourth house was in charge of military power?"

Xie Fei's guess was not unreasonable. After all, emperors of all dynasties were most wary of military generals who commanded large armies.

As long as Marquis Anyuan and the four masters are gone, there will be no one in the remaining houses who can command the troops, and it will be much easier to eliminate them.

Pei Yuan said: "This is one reason. Secondly, there are some... minor frictions between the emperor and my father."

Xie Fei understood, "The overall situation is only one aspect, personal grudges are the real problem?"

Pei Yuan nodded slightly, but did not say what the grudge was.

It was late at night. Xie Fei yawned and pointed at the prescriptions on the table.

"Don't touch that thing over there, I'll need it tomorrow. I'm going back to Songyueju to sleep first, I'm still busy."

She left right after she finished speaking, completely ignoring Pei Yuan's lonely and resentful look.

Pei Yuan wanted to ask, is the bed in Chaohui Pavilion uncomfortable to sleep on?
But it's not easy to ask such questions.

Early the next morning, Xie Fei and Mother Liu arrived at the shop, and the women from the farm were already waiting.

Nowadays, the embroidery workshop's business is on track and does not need so many people to take care of it, so some people, including Madam Zou, come to the cold drink shop here.

Xie Fei took out the recipe he had prepared last night and asked everyone to practice by comparing them one by one.

It took several days of hard work for everyone to come up with many new cold drinks, most of which were Xie Fei's ideas.

Once all the fruit and floral ice cubes were ready, the cold drink shop reopened.

Unable to wait to see how the business was going, Xie Fei dragged his heavy body back to the house and fell asleep.

She slept until the afternoon and was woken up by Su Lu again.

"The lady is furious in Qiong Yu Garden, go and have a look."

Xie Fei struggled to get up, rubbed his eyes and asked, "What is she making a fuss about?"

"The food is not to my taste." Su Lu said helplessly.

Arriving at Qiongyu Garden, Xie Fei could hear Xiao Shirong beating and scolding the maids from afar, with teapots and cups banging outside. She listened outside the door for a while, probably because Xiao Shirong disliked the food being too bland and not worthy of her status.

"What did you eat for lunch, ma'am?"

Su Lu said: "According to the new rules, there are carved candied fruits and fresh fruit plates before the meal. At noon, there are eight dishes such as wine-fermented meat, fried mandarin duck tripe, steamed fish, shrimp and tofu soup, etc. After the meal, there is..."

Xie Fei interrupted in surprise, "Is this still too little?"

Su Lu reminded: "Before you knew, the lady said she would prepare at least twenty dishes at noon."

Xie Fei patted his forehead, remembering that this was indeed the case.

Not to mention twenty dishes, it would be impossible to finish even eight dishes, but even if you can't finish them, you still need the same amount for the next meal.

Xie Fei didn't even bother to enter the door, and said: "Eight dishes are still too many, reduce them. In addition, those, and those."

She pointed to the broken items on the ground one by one and said, "All of them will be deducted from the monthly allowance of the Madam."

After saying that, she turned and walked away, muttering, "This money only goes out and never comes in, and all the gold and silver mountains will be eaten up. I have no objection to eating, but you can't waste it. You still have to be frugal when you should, and wasting is shameful..."

For three consecutive days, Xiao Shirong experienced what it meant to be worse than pigs and dogs.

Ever since Pei Yuan ordered Xie Fei to be the housekeeper, her living standard has plummeted.

The opera troupe that had been maintained for several years was dismissed without warning, and the treasury was also controlled by Xie Fei, and she was no longer allowed to take money from it.

Even the supply of three meals a day has been reduced by a large margin, which is a world of difference from before.

She was resentful in her heart, but because of Pei Yuan's presence, she could not openly oppose Xie Fei.

She sat by the window, breaking off the branches of flowers in the vase, with a vicious look in her eyes.

The pearl curtain was drawn aside, and a tall and graceful young man walked in slowly. His flexible and graceful figure was slender yet long, and for a moment it was hard to tell whether he was a man or a woman.

He squatted down tenderly in front of Xiao Shirong, pinched Xiao Shirong's calves with both hands and massaged them gently.

"Ma'am, are you angry?"

Xiao Shirong sneered and raised his chin.

"Someone is against me, what do you think I should do?"

The young man raised his head and looked into her eyes, his eyes moving and full of charm.

"It's blocking your way, just remove it."

Xiao Shirong liked this.

The young man lowered his head again and continued to massage her shoulders, neck and waist, which made her enjoy it very much.

Closing her eyes, Xiao Shirong immersed herself in this tenderness, but she had other thoughts in her mind.

Since Pei Yuan, that playboy, wanted to embarrass her, why should she show mercy?

And there was also Xie Fei, a concubine who wanted to take advantage of her power to cause trouble for her, so naturally she could not be let off.

In the final analysis, it is better to get rid of Pei Yuan. When she is the only one in charge of the mansion, won't Xie Fei be at her mercy?

Xiao Shirong curled her lips into a smile, thinking about what poison to use to kill Pei Yuan silently.

The young man remained silent and served her wholeheartedly.

Xiao Shirong looked at him with a hint of arrogance in his eyes.

After Pei Yuan dies, it would be best if Ji Miaoxuan also lives in the Buddhist temple and doesn't come back.

She then killed all the concubines in the mansion one by one, leaving only this beautiful actor, and kept a few handsome young men.

With someone taking care of me like this, I believe that my days as a widow will not be too lonely in the future.

(End of this chapter)