Chapter 940: Ten Feet Higher
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
The Great Zhou Dynasty valued the legitimate wife and the eldest child, so it was rare for her to be conferred the title of “Eldest”. In the past generations of the Great Zhou Dynasty, there were only a handful of women in the imperial family who had been conferred the title of “Eldest”.
Yu Youyao was the only ‘Eldest” princess in the three generations of the Great Zhou Dynasty. Her status was noble, only inferior to the Empress Dowager and the Empress.
Not only was she a meritorious family member, but she also deserved to be rewarded, let alone bestowed with a title. It was to stabilize the situation in the North, promote national policy, and stabilize the country.
She deserved a heavy reward.
It was obvious that the Empress had ulterior motives for rewarding her with the things in her private vault.
However, the Empress Dowager had clearly warned the Empress. It was impossible for the Empress to ignore it, let alone disrespect the Empress Dowager on the surface and disobey her mother-in-law.
As long as the Empress did not use the heavy reward to scheme against the marriage between Eldest Princess Shaoyi and the Fourth Prince, as the only Eldest Princess now, Yu Youyao could afford it.
Thinking about it carefully, the Empress’s scheme was impossible to guard against. If it weren’t for this warning, no matter how smart Yu Youyao was, she wouldn’t have been able to escape.
When a superior schemed against someone, it was often fatal. It still made Yu Youyao’s heart skip a beat.
Old Madam Xie immediately beamed with joy. “Since it’s a good thing, the matter of expanding the Yu Garden can be settled. I’ll contact the craftsman later. I noticed that as soon as Eunuch Li entered the house, his slender eyes glanced into the room and he looked down on the Yu Garden…”
Although the Yu Garden was not bad and was indeed not as exquisite as the capital, there was nothing they could do. They had come too hurriedly, so they could only move in first and slowly repair it later.
She had originally planned to expand the Yu Garden.
However, Little Yao’er never agreed. She kept feeling that it was not good to start building as soon as they arrived at Xiangping. Besides, there was still a famine in the North, and there were many refugees in Liaodong. It was not appropriate to make a fuss.
She thought about it and agreed, so she temporarily gave up on this idea. However, Eunuch Li’s attitude of looking down on the Yu Garden today had agitated Old Madam.
The daughters-in-law of the Wang family also agreed very much.
When their family bought this house, they had taken a fancy to it. The empty space behind the house was very big. Be it expansion or garden repair, it was an excellent place for doing so.
The old residence of the Xie Residence in Quanzhou was not like it had been at the beginning. As the family continued to have more children, the population slowly increased and kept expanding. Only then did it reach the later scale.
Yu Youyao knew that Old Madam’s heart ached for her. She kept feeling that the Yu Garden was not exquisite enough. “Grandmother, Eunuch Li came from the palace, and his taste is also from the palace. Everything is the best, so he naturally doesn’t care about the things of the commoners. The buildings in the north and south have their own styles, and they can’t be generalized. The Yu
Garden is spacious, but it can’t compare to the capital. I can’t live in a big courtyard alone.”
After living in the Yu Garden for a while, she gradually understood the beauty of everything in the Yu Garden. The garden was wide and open. It didn’t look tense at all, and it was comfortable to live in.
However, her grandmother and the others always felt that the Liaodong area was more bitter and cold. They felt that it was unfair to her, but they also felt that with her current status, it was indeed a little inappropriate for her to live in a three-way courtyard.
They had been planning to expand the Yu Garden long ago.
She had rejected them a few times.
The uncles agreed.
“Your status is different now. If you were in the capital, you might even be given the residence of the Eldest Princess. At the very least, you would be able to live in a five-way courtyard. You might even be able to live in a six-way or a seven-way courtyard. The Yu Garden indeed needs to be repaired. I can’t let you suffer.”
“That’s right. In the future, you have to stay here for a long time. It’s time to show off the dignity and rules that the Eldest Princess should have. Today is different from before. You can’t decline anymore.”
“Now that you’re the Eldest Princess, no one will say much even if you’re busy building. The layout of the Yu Garden is originally suitable for expansion. A two-way courtyard can be added. We have to find a capable craftsman. It’ll take at most a year and a half to complete the construction. The mountain behind is very big, so the construction won’t disturb you. It won’t affect you much…
Everyone spoke one after another, and the topic immediately changed to how to expand the residence, what materials to use, and so on.
Yu Youyao pursed her lips and smiled, not saying anything else to refuse.
With that, the Xie family returned to the room next door.
Yu Youyao thought of something. The first thing the Empress had given her was a pair of jade ruyi. Then, what was in the first box made of ebony and inlaid with treasures that the Empress Dowager had given her?
Since the Empress Dowager could guess the Empress’s scheme, she should know that the restrictions on the Empress were very limited.
Even she could tell that ever since the Empress opened the palace door, her words and actions were suspected of disrupting the court. How could the Empress Dowager not guess?
Since the Empress had targeted her.
The Empress Dowager also resolved it accordingly.
However, would the Empress really stop just like that?
She didn’t think so.
The Empress’s scheme was so ruthless. It was obvious that she was determined to obtain the throne.
If one plan didn’t work, there was still a backup plan.
How could the Empress Dowager not know?
Also, back then, when the Ning Residence was convicted and the emperor’s eldest son died prematurely, did the Empress really not resent him at all?
Was the Empress Dowager really at ease as the Empress was fighting for the supreme position?
Yu Youyao kept feeling that the Empress Dowager had a backup plan.
After returning to her room, Yu Youyao dismissed the servants and sat at the table. She carefully opened the golden lock hanging on the ebony box.
The things placed in the box made Yu Youyao gasp.
That was indeed the case!
Yu Youyao sighed softly and took out the bright yellow phoenix embroidery decree from the box. She unfolded it with a solemn expression. It was indeed an empress’s decree to sanction her marriage with King Yue Fei.
The Empress Dowager had already seen through the future situation in the North.
She had long planned to use this decree to bestow marriage and use the wife’s family to restrain King Yue Fei. Yu Youyao had helped King Yue Fei promote the state policy in the North, and she had also helped King Yue Fei to get rid of the harm posed by the Han family in Xi’an. King Yue Fei would definitely treat Princess Shaoyi well in the future no matter what.
In that case, it was only logical to use Princess Shaoyi to restrict King Yue Fei’s ambition.
At this moment, the situation in the court was very delicate.
It wasn’t good to betroth her with great fanfare. In order to prevent the Empress from being unyielding, the Empress Dowager could only issue a secret decree first. No matter how many schemes the Empress had later, they would still die in the womb.
The Empress wanted to control the royalists and adopt the Fourth Prince. The Yu and Song families were indispensable. However, the Yu and Song families were family friends and in-laws. They had been on the same side for many years. Both of them were conservatives and followed the Empress Dowager’s lead.
The biggest breakthrough was Princess Shaoyi’s marriage.
As long as Princess Shaoyi’s marriage was blocked, the Empress’s “Road to Heaven” would probably be difficult to achieve.
Indeed, as virtue rose by one foot, vice rose ten.
However, Yu Youyao still had some doubts. She wondered how the Empress Dowager treated the Fourth Prince..
