Remarrying Chun Yuan

Chapter 379 Stepmother

The purse looked ordinary, but it was embroidered with mandarin ducks playing in the water, a harmonious couple.

Liu Yuechu smiled faintly, "This humble woman is ignorant and short-sighted. I only know that the items for a child's first birthday celebration include scrolls, writing brushes, inkstones, abacuses, copper coins, ingots, military books, wooden swords, and more broadly, food and farm tools. This is the first time I've heard of purses being included."

What is the meaning of the "first birthday celebration in the palace" where a purse is placed inside the baby?

"If we catch her, will we make her into an embroiderer of purses, or a seller of purses? Or will we make her a lecherous womanizer?"

Her words became increasingly sharp, and everyone present was stunned. No one expected such an absurd mistake to occur, and they could only look at the Empress.

"What's going on?" Emperor Qi Xiao was also very dissatisfied.

Although it wasn't explicitly stated, everyone knew that these two little ones were his grandson and granddaughter, and yet they dared to make a mistake in this matter.

Upon seeing the color and embroidery of the purse, the Empress immediately turned to the Chief Eunuch of the Imperial Household Department. "Is this purse listed in the register I provided? You are incredibly audacious to place such a vile object before His Majesty! What is your punishment?!"

The head steward of the Imperial Household Department was also startled and immediately knelt down to beg for mercy, as he truly knew nothing about the matter.

"This servant was unaware; it was all due to my momentary oversight. Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

"Investigate for me! Find out who did it, drag them out and beat them to death with sticks!" The Empress was ruthless for the first time.

She had to use all her persuasion to convince Yuan Cuo and Liu Yuechu to agree to hold a full moon celebration in the palace, which was also a deliberate attempt to bring the Emperor closer to Yuan Cuo.

But someone just had to drag her down at this crucial moment, and she really wanted to tear the mastermind behind it all apart with her own hands!

The head eunuch of the Imperial Household Department was so frightened that his legs went weak. He crawled out of the palace, trembling, and summoned all the palace servants who had handled the full-moon celebration, interrogating them one by one.

At this point, no one was interested in watching the full-moon celebration; the festive atmosphere had vanished. Everyone's attention was focused on this farcical scene involving money, and they were curious to know who had the audacity to deliberately cause trouble at this crucial moment.

In the square outside the palace, a grand interrogation was taking place.

The hall was completely silent, so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Only two little ones lay on the table, their big eyes darting around, trying to grab everything in sight.

The little dumpling grabbed an abacus, while the little steamed bun grabbed a freshly baked hot steamed bun.

When Liu Yuechu saw that the abacus was made of gold, she thought her daughter was more sensible. She hoped her son wouldn't be like his uncle, only knowing how to eat, drink, and have fun... However, no one was paying attention to them. They could only hear the "bang bang" of sticks hitting flesh outside the hall, waiting for the final result.

With a cleaver pointed at their heads, the matter quickly shifted to the inner palace, specifically to the palace of Consort Yu.

Consort Yu had been watching the spectacle with disdain, thinking that Liu Yuechu's two children were just like her, greedy for money. But when she suddenly heard that she was the culprit, she was terrified and immediately knelt before Emperor Qi Xiao.

"Your Majesty, I am innocent! I do not recognize this thing at all, nor do I recognize that palace maid. She is not one of my servants!"

"Your Majesty, I have been working diligently on the selection of concubines, using servants from the Imperial Household Department. Someone must be deliberately framing me and confusing these two matters..."

Liu Yuechu raised an eyebrow and subconsciously looked at Yuan Cuo.

Yuan Cuo remained serious, revealing neither his joy nor anger. "The imperial concubine selection will be held in four months. Does Your Majesty need to prepare all your purses now? Anyone who didn't know better would think you were arranging a marriage for my child."

Emperor Qi Xiao: "??? Who are you calling your son?!"

Consort Yu's expression changed drastically in an instant. She hadn't expected Yuan Cuo to be so direct and blunt, showing no mercy whatsoever. "Serving His Majesty naturally requires one to do one's best, prepare in advance, and strive for perfection."

Of course she knew that the selection of concubines would take place four months later; she just wanted to create momentum in advance so that she wouldn't be looked down upon by the people in the palace again!

"To strive for perfection, you end up with such a nonsensical purse? If I hadn't encountered it in the palace, I would have thought it belonged to some brothel girl in the capital. Even its appearance is so vulgar and inelegant, the embroidery is clumsy and unbearable to look at." Yuan Cuo was clearly determined to fight to the death, and he didn't care about Consort Yu's status, directly retorting.

Consort Yu's face instantly turned ugly. The embroidery skills of that purse were indeed not very good, but it was not enough to tear off the mask of accusation like this. She was, after all, a consort of Emperor Qi Xiao and an elder of Yuan Cuo!

"Duke Baoguo, you should watch your words. This is the palace, not your own residence. Please be respectful!" In the end, she couldn't hold back her words.

"Oh, this is the palace. I've come to the wrong place."

Yuan Cuo clasped his hands and bowed to Emperor Qi Xiao, saying, "Your Majesty, I am ignorant of the gravity of the matter and do not know my place. I am unworthy of Your Majesty's generous treatment and reward. I will take my wife and children home to reflect on my mistakes and meditate in seclusion."

"I apologize, everyone, I'll take my leave now."

He bowed respectfully, then prepared to leave with Liu Yuechu.

Granny Fang and Huajiao immediately followed behind, carrying the two little masters on the first birthday celebration table. The two little ones were holding toys in their hands, and their giggling laughter was quite out of place with the atmosphere at the time.

The officials were astonished; none of them had expected Yuan Cuo to leave so suddenly.

"Alright, what's with the tantrum at a time like this? Go back! The Duke of Yuan is the impregnable fortress of the Great Qi. Who dares to say you lack self-respect?" Emperor Qi Xiao found Yu Fei displeasing at this moment, his expression serious and displeased. "You did something wrong, and instead of apologizing immediately, you keep making excuses and arguing? No wonder the Third Prince is so arrogant and domineering; it's all because of your corrupting influence!"

Consort Yu did not expect that Emperor Qi Xiao would scold her first!

"Your Majesty, I truly know nothing about this purse. I am truly innocent..."

"You were in charge of this matter, yet you were unaware of it, which only compounded your mistakes." The Empress stepped forward directly, effectively condemning Consort Yu's wrongdoing.

Consort Yu clenched her fists, her face streaked with tears. She hadn't expected His Majesty to speak so harshly to her because of a few words from Yuan Cuo.

This had never happened before.

"Your Majesty, I was a little hasty in my actions, but it was all for Your Majesty's sake! Your Majesty has worked hard and diligently for the Great Qi, and the people also want to see Your Majesty healthy and blessed... I failed to properly supervise the palace servants, and I was wrong, but it was all for Your Majesty's sake."

"Moreover, I not only select beauties for Your Majesty, but also bestow them upon the officials of the court to ensure the continuation of the imperial line."

"Originally, I had my eye on two young ladies, both beautiful and intelligent, and I was thinking of asking them to be given to the Duke of Baoguo..." She changed the subject and began to flatter Yuan Cuo.

Which man can live without a woman?

In the current situation, the only option is to find two women to shut Yuan Cuo up, make him shut up as soon as possible, and give her a way out.

Liu Yuechu: "???"

"Then why bother with the baby's first birthday celebration? Why not just bring out all the young ladies and let my children choose a stepmother for their father?"