Zhao Mingkun arrived at his Er Shu Zhao Kaiyue’s residence, bringing along his concubine, with his shu children, and a group of attendants. He instructed Concubine Du to take Wei Shi and the children to the inner courtyard, while he himself brought Zhao Huanchao and Zhao Huanyang to pay respects to Zhao Kaiyue. The moment he saw him, he began to pour out his grievances.

“Can you believe this? A woman who married into the family, taking advantage of my father’s illness, has seized control of all the servants in the household! She even barred me, the Guogong Residence’s legitimate eldest son, from entering to visit my father. This is utterly outrageous! Er Shu, my father is still ill, and I’ve been away from home for a long time. The entire Guogong Residence has been taken over by Yin Shi that venomous woman. As an elder, you must stand up for me!”

Zhao Kaiyue furrowed his brows from time to time, occasionally casting his gaze elsewhere. His expression conveyed his utter exasperation with Zhao Mingkun, yet he remained silent.

Zhao Mingkun, seeing this, grew anxious and said, “Er Shu, please say something. Could it be that you have also been bribed by that venomous woman?”

Zhao Kaiyue abruptly turned his head and rebuked him, “What nonsense are you spouting?”

Zhao Mingkun replied, “If not, then out of consideration for my father’s reputation, you wouldn’t just stand by and watch that venomous woman humiliate me without lifting a finger to help!”

Zhao Kaiyue waved him off impatiently and said, “Considering you’re my eldest nephew, let me give you one piece of advice: stop stirring up trouble with your wife. Just return to your post in Pingliang Prefecture at once.”

Zhao Mingkun was dumbfounded. After a long pause, he shut his mouth, stood up, and said, “Er Shu, I never thought you’d be this kind of person. Since you refuse to help, I’ll go find San Shu instead.” With that, he flung his sleeve, called Zhao Huanchao and Zhao Huanyang before turned to leave.

Zhao Kaiyue, enraged, said, “You are truly incorrigible! In that case, I might as well tell you the truth: no matter whom you turn to, it won’t help. If you escalate this matter, even though I am your Er Shu, I won’t be able to protect you. I’ll have no choice but to follow your father’s orders, open the ancestral hall, and remove your name and those of your two shu sons from the family registry, expelling you from the clan!”

The father and his two sons were all stunned.

Zhao Mingkun turned back, his voice trembling as he asked, “Er Shu, what do you mean by this?”

“Surely you’ve heard,” Zhao Kaiyue replied, “that it was originally your father who was supposed to go to Liaodong. Before he left, he came to see me and entrusted me with a handwritten letter. In it, he clearly stated that if you dared to return to the residence without permission, abuse your status as the legitimate eldest son to cause trouble, harm Yin Shi, or harm Huanxi, I was to convene the clan, open the ancestral hall, and expel you and your sons from the Zhao Family. From then on, you would no longer have anything to do with this family!”

“This is impossible! It’s impossible! Father would never treat me this way!” Zhao Mingkun cried hysterically.

“If you truly don’t believe me, then go back and make a scene,” Zhao Kaiyue said coldly. “For such a serious matter, your father would never have entrusted only me. If I’m not mistaken, some of your other brothers must also have been given similar instructions. Yin Shi barring you from the estate today proves she doesn’t yet know of this. Out of consideration for our relationship as uncle and nephew, I’ll let you stay at my home for now. If you’re truly worried about your father, you can go back alone to see him, just don’t stir up trouble with Yin Shi. By tomorrow, you must set off for Pingliang Prefecture. At this point, if you lose your position there as well, you’d best think carefully about how you’ll manage your future.”

Zhao Mingkun and his two sons, utterly dejected, returned to the guest room Zhao Kaiyue had arranged for them.

“Zufu is really willing to expel Father and us from the ancestral hall just for the sake of Taitai? We are the true bloodline of the Zhao Family! How can Zufu do this?” Zhao Huanyang said, trembling with both fear and disbelief.

“Father has been away for a year. Who knows how many slanderous things Taitai has whispered in Zufu’s ear during this time,” Zhao Huanchao said, turning to Zhao Mingkun. “Dad, in my opinion, you might as well heed Er Shuzu’s advice and endure for now. Zhao Huanxi is in Liaodong now, and Gudesiqin harbors deep hatred for our Zhao Family. If anything happens… and since he has no heir, Zufu surely wouldn’t allow the First Branch to end without descendants. Sooner or later, he will have to call you back.”

Zhao Mingkun asked Zhao Huanchao, “When you last went back to see your Zufu, how was his condition?”

Zhao Huanchao replied, “He was very ill, completely unconscious, and the imperial physician never left his side.”

Zhao Mingkun muttered to himself, “Unconscious since then? It’s been over a month now.”

Zhao Huanchao replied, “Exactly. Even if Zufu weren’t advanced in age, being unconscious for so long would take a serious toll on anyone’s vitality, even a younger man.”

Zhao Mingkun considered this and felt he could afford to wait. If his father didn’t survive this time and passed away, what then? Even if that brat Zhao Huanxi didn’t die on the battlefield and came back to inherit the title, so what? He was still his father, would Zhao Huanxi dare to go against him? And if that brat did die on the battlefield, by law, as the legitimate eldest son of the Guogong Residence, the title should fall to him. As for the letter in Er Shu’s possession… once his father was gone, they (his uncle’s family) would still need to rely on the Guogong Residence to live. Wouldn’t they then come to curry favor with the First Branch that inherited the title? At that point, offering them some benefits would naturally get the letter back.

Thinking along these lines, Zhao Mingkun suddenly felt hopeful about the future. He turned to Zhao Huanchao and Zhao Huanyang and said, “The current situation is unclear, so we must bide our time and stay low for now. This afternoon, I will return to the Guogong Residence to visit your Zufu. Tomorrow, we will depart for Pingliang Prefecture. Huanchao, you stay behind to keep an eye on the residence. If anything changes, send someone to inform me immediately.”

Zhao Huanchao looked slightly embarrassed as he said, “Keeping an eye on the residence is no trouble, I’ve already planted informants there. But living in the capital requires silver for everything…”

Speaking of money, Zhao Mingkun also felt troubled. Yin Shi’s stance was already clear, she wouldn’t give him a single coin. Borrowing from his Er Shu was unlikely to yield much either.

“No matter,” Zhao Mingkun said. “This afternoon, after I visit your Zufu, I’ll go to your San Shu and Si Shu to ask for some. And there’s also the Wu Residence and Duan Residence. Since they are in-laws, it’s only right for them to lend a helping hand in times of need.”

That afternoon, Zhao Jiaxian had left, Xu Nian’an was taking a nap, and Yin Furen was hiding in her room, secretly looking over the little clothes sent from the embroidery workshop.

She was an experienced woman and knew that whether a baby was a boy or a girl depended on fate. However, in her heart, she undoubtedly hoped this child of Xu Nian’an’s would be a boy. She had instructed the embroidery workshop to make clothes for both boys and girls, but there were noticeably more boys’ outfits. Not wanting to put pressure on her daughter-in-law, she decided to hide the boy’s clothes for now. If they were needed this time, all the better. If not, she would save them for the future.

“Taitai, Da Laoyé has returned again. He’s at the gate, saying he wants to visit Guogong Yé,” Qianhe reported from outside the room.

“He came alone?” Yin Furen asked.

“Yes, only Da Laoyé.”

Yin Furen thought for a moment, then started walking toward the door, saying, “Understood.”

She headed to Dunyi Hall, instructing her servants along the way to let Zhao Mingkun in.

Zhao Mingkun, for once, didn’t stir up trouble. He went to Dunyi Hall to see Guogong Yé, putting on a show of shedding a few tears before leaving.

Yin Furen watched him closely the entire time and, once he had finished his visit, made it clear with her demeanor that she expected him to leave.

Frustrated, Zhao Mingkun snapped, “Don’t get too smug! I’ll be back!”

Yin Furen let out a cold sneer.

Zhao Mingkun took a couple of steps toward the exit but suddenly remembered his intention to borrow money. He stopped in his tracks, turned around, and said, “I want to see my San Di and Si Di.”

Yin Furen couldn’t be bothered to engage with him and instructed her maid and young servant, “Once Da Laoyé has seen San Laoyé and Si Laoyé, escort him out.” She didn’t care who he spoke to, as long as he didn’t disturb her daughter-in-law in Jiaxiang House while she was pregnant.

However, she had underestimated Zhao Mingkun’s shamelessness. Late in the afternoon, near the Shen hour (around 3-5 p.m.), Zhao Jiaxian and Zhao Jiashan suddenly returned to Jing Guogong Residence and told her that Zhao Mingkun had gone to their in-laws to borrow money. As daughters, they didn’t want to speak ill of their father in front of their husbands’ families. Both the Wu Family and the Duan Family, considering their familial ties, had lent him several hundred taels. The two of them felt deeply embarrassed.

Yin Furen was so enraged that her hands trembled, but fearing the noise might carry to her daughter-in-law’s room and troubled her, she held back her anger. She told her daughters, “You two go back first. Tomorrow, I’ll personally visit the Duan Family and Wu Family.”

The next morning, Yin Furen rode a carriage and went to the Duan Family and Wu Family to repay Zhao Mingkun’s borrowed money.

In reality, the matters of Jing Guogong Residence’s First Branch were no secret to the in-laws. The issue was simply that one side was shamless to ask for a loan, while the other side was too embarrassed to refuse.

When Yin Furen returned to the residence, she inquired with the Third and Fourth Branch, and indeed, Zhao Mingkun had gone to them for money. However, both of them knew their eldest brother was on the verge of being expelled from the family by their father and had given him very little. San Laoyé claimed all his money had been invested in a shop and lent him around sixty taels, while Si Laoyé said all his money was with Si Taitai, so he only lent him around twenty taels.

Yin Furen, furious for two days, finally received the news that Guogong Yé had regained consciousness.

When Guogong Yé woke up, he discovered he was unable to move his legs, so an inperial physician was immediately summoned. After a careful examination, Imperial Physician Zhang diagnosed that Guogong Yé’s paralysis in his lower limbs might be caused by a blockage of the blood vessels due to a wind-induced condition. He suggested that acupuncture might help improve the situation in the future.

Despite this, Guogong Yé’s awakening brought a huge sigh of relief to everyone in the residence.

Once the imperial physician and the children and grandchildren had left, Guogong Ye asked, “Why hasn’t Huanxi come to see me? Isn’t the Ninth Month the time for the Granting of Clothes holiday?”

Xiang Zhong replied, “Guogong Yé, after you fell ill, Xi San Yé requested leave from the court to take your place in the military campaign. His Majesty the Emperor appointed him as General Yunhui, and he is now in Liaodong.”

“What?” Guogong Yé was shocked. “How could he go? He…”

He stopped mid-sentence, realizing the truth

He (Zhao Huanxi) would go. Even if he knew he was not yet ready, he would still go. After all, when Guogong Yé had asked the Emperor to appoint Zhao Huanxi as the heir grandson, wasn’t it precisely because of his ability to take responsibility, even in difficult circumstances?

“Huanxi is going to Liaodong, what about Da Taitai?” Guogong Yé recalled seeing Yin Furen earlier and noted that she seemed in relatively good health, not looking like someone who had been worrying day and night about Huanxi. This seemed somewhat unusual.

“Da Taitai was ill for a while, but after Xi San Nainai was diagnosed with pregnancy, she started to recover. Only a few people in the residence know about the pregnancy,” Xiang Zhong explained.

Guogong Yé nodded and said, “I thought so, it really has been hard on her.”

“Guogong Yé, two days ago, Da Laoyé came to visit you,” Xiang Zhong said.

Guogong Yé furrowed his brow and looked up at him. “Where is he now?”

Xiang Zhong replied, “It seems that Da Taitai didn’t let him stay in the residence. As of now, we don’t know where he is.”

Guogong Yé thought for a moment and said, “Send someone to call Da Taitai here.”

Not long after, Yin Furen arrived. She saluted Guogong Yé, who was sitting on the bed, and said, “Gongdiē, you have just woken up, and the body is still weak. You need to rest more.”

Guogong Yé said, “Enough of that. I heard that Zhao Mingkun came back two days ago?”

Yin Furen hesitated for a moment, then knelt in front of the bed and said, “Gongdiē, please forgive me. That day, Erxi received a report from the servants saying that Da Laoyé had returned. When Erxi went to the door to take a look, Erxi saw him with Du Yiniang along with Huanchao and Huanyang’s family, all looking very aggressive. Erxi blocked the door and didn’t let them in, telling them that if they wanted to visit you, only Da Laoyé could come in. Erxi actions and words were improper. Asking Gongdiē for punishment.”

Guogong Yé said, “Get up. Kicking them out was my command, it has nothing to do with you. Now, since Zhao Mingkun has returned, besides visiting me, what else has he done?”

Yin Furen stood up, her hands tightly clutching her handkerchief, her gaze lowered as she said, “Gongdiē, it’s nothing important. You don’t need to ask.”

“Tell me, I need to know,” Guogong Yé insisted.

Yin Furen hesitated for a long time before finally speaking, “He told me not to get too proud, saying that Huanxi might not return this time, and that eventually, you won’t be able to make decisions for me anymore. Then, he also went to the Duan Family and the Wu Family to borrow seven to eight hundred taels of silver. The next day, I went to repay them back.”

Guogong Yé’s chest rose and fell slightly, his voice low as he said, “I understand. You may go now.”

“Gongdiē, please take care of your health.”

Guogong Yé nodded, and Yin Furen withdrew.

After a moment of silence in the room, Guogong Yé spoke again, “Xiang Zhong, go notify the elder relatives of the family, three days from now, open the ancestral hall!”