Exile with Storage Space: Family Fortunes in the Barren Lands-Chapter 742 - 695: Visiting Maternal Grandmother (1)

Chapter 742: Chapter 695: Visiting Maternal Grandmother (1)

Pei Jingxiu widened her eyes, "What? It’s her?"

Outside the carriage, there was the voice of Pei Shenyan speaking to Chen Meixin’s carriage driver.

With him there, his wife must be present too, so Chen Meixin was not lying.

Pei Jingxiu snorted lightly, "Who is she? To actually want me to get off the carriage to pay respects to her? Does she really think she is someone important?"

She turned her head with a look of disdain.

Chen Meixin shook her head, "If she doesn’t return to the Pei Mansion, wouldn’t you never get to see her?"

Pei Jingxiu snorted again, "Don’t worry, she doesn’t dare not go to the Pei Family. Our old lady has helped Fifth Brother quite a bit. If she doesn’t go to see the old lady, she better not think about returning to the family. The family will use it as an excuse to kick her out!"

Chen Meixin smiled, "That’s true, there will be chances to meet in the future."

So, neither Pei Jingxiu nor Chen Meixin got off the carriage.

Outside the carriage, Chen Meixin’s driver recognized Pei Shenyan and dared not mention Pei Fusheng anymore, especially since Chen Meixin hadn’t given any command.

The driver moved the carriage aside, letting Pei Shenyan and the others pass first.

The two carriages passed each other and went their separate ways.

Li Yuwen shook her head, "The capital is really small, meeting the same carriage twice in a day, interesting."

Pei Shenyan smiled, "These neighborhoods are home to families of officials; the carriage we encountered today belongs to the house of Chen Zuo Temple Minister of the Ministry of Justice. We might run into it daily from now on."

Indeed, all the prominent families live around here. Li Yuwen sighed, how could she forget this after not coming to the capital for over two years?

The sun was leaning westward, the weather wasn’t as hot, and there were more people on the streets.

The carriage traveled through the bustling market streets at a leisurely pace.

After a quarter of an hour, the carriage stopped in front of an old residence.

Though the gate of the residence was old, it was quite grand.

Above the lintel were two large characters, "Wei Mansion."

The great ancestor of the Wei family was a Hanlin Scholar. By the generation of the father of Princess Consort Luling, few studied, none became officials, and the family began ventures in business.

The Princess Consort’s brothers, however, were fond of studying and barely held small official positions in the court.

Unfortunately, the Wei family had bad luck. They were implicated when the Emperor confiscated Lu Ling Royal Mansion because their daughter was married to Prince Luling, even their sixth-rank official brothers were stripped of their positions.

Thankfully, the family wasn’t reliant on official salaries to live, having other businesses to stay afloat.

But such matters were disgraceful, leaving the Wei Family in a prolonged slump, with many secretly blaming Prince Luling for opposing the Emperor and causing their misfortune.

Li Yuwen first stepped down from the carriage, glanced at the desolate courtyard, sighed gently, and approached to knock on the door herself.

Pei Shenyan and the little maid Cui Xi stood beside her.

Li Yuzhu and Mu Yuanxiu stood behind them.

Pei Fusheng watched the carriage as the old servant Pei Ji took out a carrying pole from the carriage and loaded it with gifts into two baskets.

There were too many items to carry by hand alone; they needed to be supported by the pole.

After a while, the door finally opened, and an old servant peered at them, raising an inquisitive eyebrow, "You are..." He widened his eyes in shock upon recognizing Li Yuwen, "Gr- Gr- Gr- Great Princess..."

"Uncle Tian, I am the eldest cousin of the Li Family, Yuwen, and now the Fifth Young Madam of the Pei Family." Li Yuwen nodded and smiled at the doorkeeper.

Indeed, not the Great Princess anymore, just a cousin.

The old servant ushered her in, "Please come in, cousin."

Li Yuwen then pointed to Pei Shenyan, Li Yuzhu, and Mu Yuanxiu, saying, "This is my husband, the Fifth Young Master of the Pei Mansion. This is my third sister, Yuzhu, and this is her husband, from Zhen An Prefecture, Mu Yuanxiu."

"Hello, Uncle Tian." The three greeted the old servant with respect.

Uncle Tian quickly waved his hands, "No, no, you mustn’t give such honors. Eldest cousin, third cousin, two cousins-in-law, please come in. I will find someone to inform the old madam and master."

Uncle Tian called another servant from the gatehouse, "Quickly pass the message that the cousin from Zhen An Prefecture has arrived."

The servant glanced at Li Yuzhu and Li Yuwen, then turned and ran without delay.

He murmured to himself, wasn’t the entire Lu Ling Royal Mansion family sent to Zhen An Prefecture for hard labor?

How come the two cousins’ attire still looked just like before?

Could it be that the Emperor showed mercy and they weren’t punished?

The servant raced to the interior courtyard and spread the news.

The entire Wei Mansion buzzed with excitement.

The two daughters from Lu Ling Royal Mansion had returned; was it possible that Prince Luling and his wife were also coming back? Would the Wei Family stop being oppressed?

The 81-year-old Mrs. Wei, overwhelmed with joy, waved to her maids, "Quick, quickly invite them in, bring them to me, let me see them."

Mrs. Wei had three sons and one daughter.

She bore a daughter in her thirties, raised her dearly, and married her into Lu Ling Royal Mansion as a Princess Consort.

The old lady never relied on her daughter for great prestige; she only hoped her only daughter lived happily. Who knew that calamity would strike, and the Emperor would exile her daughter’s entire family thousands of miles away to a desolate land for hardship?

Without the imperial decree, they couldn’t return to the Capital.

No one from the Capital was allowed to visit them either; discovery would result in punishment for both sides.

For over two years, Mrs. Wei worried daily about the Li Family’s safety.

Fortunately, Pei Shenyan came to the Capital, bringing news of the Li Family.

The old lady learned that when the Li Family first arrived in Zhen An Prefecture, they experienced hardship, but now they had escaped hunger and cold, owned a house, fields, and even gained a grandson. The daughters were married as well.

Though not living in the abundant wealth as before, they didn’t fret about food and clothing.

Only then did Mrs. Wei feel at ease.

Today, knowing her granddaughters had returned, she was even more delighted.

Not seeing them enter for long, she couldn’t wait any longer, holding onto the maid’s hand, she shakily yet eagerly went to the main house’s door to greet them personally.

Li Yuzhu followed Li Yuwen and the Wei family’s servants into a large courtyard, seeing a tall, thin old lady with white hair standing at the steps of the main house’s door.

The old lady was in good spirits, her face full of smiles.

She glanced at those around her, tapping her cane repeatedly on the ground, "Help me over there, help me over there!"

The maids and servants chuckled, supporting her down the steps.

"Third Sister, that’s Grandmother!" Li Yuwen tugged on Li Yuzhu’s sleeve and whispered.

"I know, Big Sister."

"We are here on behalf of our parents, we must perform the grand ceremony," Li Yuwen reminded.

The sisters stepped forward and called out together, "Grandmother."

A maid placed two soft cushions in front of them.

The sisters kneeled in unison, "Yuwen and Yuzhu, on behalf of our parents, pay respects to Grandmother."

Mrs. Wei’s eyes turned red instantly, unable to hold back tears, "I thought I would never see you again."

Everyone persuaded joyfully, saying that a family reunion is a happy occasion, so why the tears?

Only then did the old lady smile again, "Indeed, we should be happy, be joyful."

The sisters stood up, introducing Pei Shenyan and Mu Yuanxiu to Mrs. Wei, "These are your two grandsons-in-law."