He was rather annoyed that he had been so distracted by a woman.
"Three days have passed, and you haven't returned to your natal home yet."
Return to my natal home?
Go back to the Prime Minister's Mansion?
She furrowed her brows slightly and nodded indifferently. "It's kind of you, Young Master, to remember."
"This Young Master is burdened with official duties. You can go back on your own."
Shang Ruoyi nodded nonchalantly. After all, it was just a formality. Whether he went or not didn't matter much.
After greeting the Consort of the Prince, she set off on the journey back to her natal home with the gifts that had been prepared long ago.
When she arrived at the entrance of the Prime Minister's Mansion, she saw that Shang Nian and the First Madam were already waiting there.
Seeing the carriage stop, they quickly stepped forward. "Greetings to the Young Master."
The coachman opened the door, and it was Shang Ruoyi who stepped out.
Shang Nian peeked inside. Seeing no one there, he said in a deep voice, "Why are you alone?"
"What? Is the Prime Minister perhaps waiting for the son - in - law you despised?" Shang Ruoyi walked into the mansion, her eyes sweeping over the servants in the courtyard. They all lowered their heads, not daring to meet her gaze.
From the memories of the original owner, it seemed that these people had all bullied her.
Now that she had suddenly become the Consort of the Dingguo Prince's Mansion, these people must be afraid of her revenge.
"What nonsense are you spouting?" Shang Nian stepped forward, raising his hand as if to slap her.
"Is the Prime Minister planning to hit me?" Shang Ruoyi said coldly. "Look clearly. I'm now the Consort of the Dingguo Prince's Mansion, not the Second Miss who could be bullied at will in the Prime Minister's Mansion."
Shang Nian was halted by her gaze. The hand he had raised didn't dare to come down.
At this moment, the First Madam came over. "Since you're here, stay for lunch before leaving. We don't want others to say that we don't even offer you a meal."
The corners of Shang Ruoyi's lips curled slightly, and she nodded in agreement.
"I'll be in my courtyard before lunch. Without my orders, no one is allowed to enter."
She said to the guards behind her, "Do you hear me?"
"This subordinate obeys."
Seeing her turn and leave, the nanny beside the First Madam whispered, "She really has become a phoenix after rising from the common flock. She doesn't show the slightest respect for the master and the mistress."
"Never mind. Her good days are almost over," the First Madam sneered. "Send the lunch directly to her courtyard when it's ready. Let her eat and leave quickly."
"Yes, this old servant understands."
Shang Ruoyi's courtyard was in the most remote corner of the entire Prime Minister's Mansion. Usually, no one would come here, and no one would pay attention to what she was doing.
The First Madam often deducted her food, so she often changed into a maid's clothes and secretly slipped out to find something to eat.
Therefore, she was extremely familiar with the layout of the mansion. She took off her outer garment, changed into the maid's clothes she had hidden before, did a simple makeup, and then slipped out through the window.
The treasury of the Prime Minister's Mansion was in the southeast corner, and beside it was Shang Nian's study.
She walked all the way with her head down and arrived at the door of the treasury.
Looking at the lock, she took out a silver wire and fiddled with the keyhole. With a click, the lock opened.
Walking into the treasury, she saw dozens of large boxes stacked there, filled with all kinds of gold, silver, and jewels.
Tut - tut - tut. Her scumbag father was really good at embezzling.
How many underhanded things must he have done to amass so many treasures?
Since these were ill - gotten gains, she wouldn't be polite.
She placed her hand on these gold, silver, and jewels. With a thought, the items inside disappeared and all entered her space.
In a short while, the treasury was left with nothing but the empty boxes.
Just thinking about the expressions of Shang Nian and the First Madam when they discovered this made her feel extremely satisfied.
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This was also the reason why she insisted on having lunch before leaving.
She walked out of the treasury and restored the lock. Just as she was about to return to her courtyard along the original path, she heard Shang Nian's voice coming from the study.
"It has already been presented to the Emperor. Now everything is ready; all we need is the right opportunity."
"Prime Minister, don't worry. The Emperor has already made a decision on this matter. We just need to wait for the good news."
"Once the Dingguo Prince's Mansion is eliminated, we can rest easy." A strange man's voice came out.
What?
Was it related to the Dingguo Prince's Mansion?
She was just about to get closer to hear more clearly when she heard a rush of hurried footsteps in the distance.
Shang Ruoyi quickly left.
Back in the courtyard, thinking about what the First Madam had said at that time, the unease in her heart grew stronger and stronger.
Just then, a scream spread throughout the entire Prime Minister's Mansion.
Had they discovered it so quickly?
It turned out that the First Madam was about to put the gifts for returning to the natal home that Shang Ruoyi had brought into the treasury. When she opened the door, she saw that dozens of large boxes inside were empty.
These were things she had accumulated over more than ten years and had planned to use as Shang Yuguan's dowry in the future.
Now they had all disappeared without a trace.
How could she not go mad?
"Shang Ruoyi! It must be her!" After saying that, she led a group of servants and guards, aggressively coming to the front of the courtyard.
Just as she was about to barge in, she was blocked by the guards. "Madam, without the Consort of the Young Master's summons, no one is allowed to enter."
"Presumptuous! This is the Prime Minister's Mansion. How can Shang Ruoyi have the final say?"
"Madam, please abide by the Consort of the Young Master's orders." How could the guards of the Dingguo Prince's Mansion be afraid of a madam of the Prime Minister's Mansion?
For a long time, the First Madam couldn't take a single step into the courtyard.
Finally, she simply started shouting at the entrance of the courtyard, "Shang Ruoyi! Come out here!"
Seeing that the time was almost right, Shang Ruoyi rubbed her eyes and walked out as if she had just woken up. "Who's barking here?"
"Shang Ruoyi! You actually dared to steal. Aren't you afraid of going to prison?"
"Steal?" Shang Ruoyi sneered. "When did I steal? And what did I steal?"
"You stole the treasures in my treasury!" the First Madam shouted angrily. "Stealing property, according to the law, is punishable by having one's hands cut off. If you take out the things now, this madam can still consider sparing you."
"What treasures are in your treasury? And how many are there?"
"Dozens of large boxes..." Before she could finish speaking, she suddenly came to her senses. The gold, silver, and jewels in these dozens of large boxes, not to mention her, even several strong men would need to carry them for a while. How could she have moved them?
The guards standing at the door couldn't help laughing. How could their Consort of the Young Master be able to carry dozens of boxes?
"First Madam, one should speak with evidence. Otherwise, slandering a member of the royal family is a serious crime!" Shang Ruoyi adjusted her sleeves and said coldly. "Also, in the future, please address me as the Consort of the Young Master. If you directly call me by my name again, I will have to punish you according to the law for disrespecting the royal family."
The First Madam's eyes were filled with hatred. Those were dozens of boxes of priceless treasures! And they had disappeared just like that.
"Then where are my treasures? Where are my treasures?"
"If you don't believe me, feel free to send someone to search. This shabby courtyard can be seen through at a glance. See if there are the dozens of boxes of treasures you mentioned."
The First Madam's body trembled uncontrollably. Unable to hold on, she fainted directly.
Shang Ruoyi walked out of the courtyard, watching the servants bustling about to help the First Madam up. A smile curled up on her lips. "Let's go back to the mansion."