Mad Queen Leaves the Palace

Chapter 115 Xiao Lan's Business Empire

The following morning, sunlight streamed through the streets and alleys of the capital, as if the entire city were awakening from its slumber. However, the capital was destined to be anything but peaceful today, as astonishing news spread like wildfire to every corner—the emperor's fifth son, Yan Nan Hui, had been granted the title of Prince Su and bestowed with a Prince Su's mansion! Even more remarkably, this Prince Su's mansion was located directly opposite the Xiao family's old residence.

Everyone knows that among the Emperor's many sons, only the Second Prince, Yan Jingtian, possessed an exceptionally noble status due to his birth to the Empress, which allowed him to be named Crown Prince. The other princes, however, had never been granted a title. Now, Yan Nanhui, neither the eldest son nor the Empress's son, had received this honor, which was truly unexpected. Undoubtedly, this event concealed some profound meaning and special consideration, like a mysterious signal that sparked endless speculation and conjecture.

One reason for Yan Nan Hui's recent investiture as a king was his earlier generous donation of a sophisticated formula for making charcoal pencils. With this inexpensive and practical charcoal pencil, impoverished students no longer needed to worry about the cost of expensive writing materials. This act of kindness not only solved the practical difficulties of many people but also brought new hope and opportunities to the cause of education.

Furthermore, about half a month ago, Yan Nanhui once again demonstrated his extraordinary wisdom and talent, successfully developing a marvelous method for producing sea salt from seawater. This innovative approach has already been successfully implemented in the Jiangnan region. From now on, the salt industry of the Great Xia Kingdom will be completely free from its dependence on tribute from foreign states, and may even be able to leverage its developed salt industry to engage in extensive trade with neighboring countries, thereby further promoting the prosperity and development of the national economy.

Just as the imperial court decided to bestow the title of "Prince Su" upon Yan Nan Hui, another sensational event occurred. Xiao Lan, who was about to become the fifth prince's wife, was granted the title of "Princess Lan" by the emperor for her generous donation of over one million taels of gold to the national treasury for military expenses, and was also granted Lingnan Shaozhou as her fiefdom.

At the same time, the emperor unexpectedly restored the imperial merchant status of the Jixing County Marquis family in Jiangnan and bestowed upon them salt permits. However, these salt permits were extremely peculiar—they were for refined salt! It should be noted that before this, the Great Xia Kingdom had never produced its own salt, let alone refined salt. Even the sea salt produced by Yan Nanhui this time was merely coarse salt of relatively poor quality.

This immediately sparked a flurry of discussion throughout the court. Everyone was curious about what Yan Zhen had done the previous day by keeping Yan Nanhui and Xiao Lan together in the Golden Palace. What exactly did the three of them discuss? Although no one knew the exact details, it seemed that everyone had a hunch about it from the successive imperial edicts issued.

In short, all the forces in the capital city now clearly realize that the skies over this prosperous metropolis are about to undergo a tremendous change.

Meanwhile, within just a few days, another uproar swept through the capital. Rumors circulated that the mysterious and elusive Young Master Lan was actually the future Fifth Prince's consort! This news immediately sparked a flurry of discussion.

Even more shocking is that the enormous sum of money Xiao Lan had generously donated to the national treasury all originated from the Ye family. The reason why the Ye family was so willing to pay such a huge sum to Xiao Lan is intriguing. According to reliable sources, it was Ye Lanyi, a daughter of the Ye family who had been raised by the Imperial Concubine since childhood, who dared to forge the name of Young Master Lan—that is, Xiao Lan—repeatedly deceiving high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital and swindling them out of large sums of money. However, the truth eventually came out, and Xiao Lan discovered the scheme. Therefore, Xiao Lan naturally wouldn't let it go, and demanding compensation from the Ye family was only natural. After all, the former Emperor had personally praised Young Master Lan, saying his words were "worth a thousand pieces of gold!"

Now, let's talk about Ye Lanyi, who was never one to be trifled with. Recently, a rumor has been circulating that on the day of the princess's birthday banquet, Ye Lanyi had her eye on the Third Prince Yan Linfeng, the son of the Imperial Concubine and her own cousin, and planned to drug him to force a relationship. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned; somehow, she mistakenly targeted the Prince Qin instead.

The most ridiculous thing was that later, a doctor revealed in private conversation, "That Prince Qin, because he was seriously injured two months ago, has temporarily lost his ability to have sex! Therefore, it's impossible that he could have had any physical intimacy with Ye Lanyi that day!" This news spread like wildfire throughout the capital. Within just three days, the whole city was abuzz with discussion about it, and it was a hot topic of conversation.

However, just as the fervor surrounding this scandalous news had subsided, another earth-shattering event occurred—Xiao Lan, who had just been granted the title of Princess Lan, unhesitatingly submitted a lawsuit to the Prefect of the Capital, directly accusing Consort Ye. The contents of this lawsuit were even more astonishing; it accused Consort Ye of embezzling Xiao family property and colluding with the sister-in-law of one of Xiao's concubines to steal valuable items from the Xiao Marquis's old residence in the capital.

Surprisingly, faced with such a thorny case involving powerful figures, the Prefect of the Capital not only showed no sign of backing down, but resolutely accepted Xiao Lan's lawsuit against Consort Ye. Subsequently, after a thorough and meticulous investigation, the Prefect was astonished to discover that every crime listed in the indictment was true! This put the Prefect in a difficult position, as it involved a Consort from the inner palace, and he truly found it hard to make a decision. Therefore, the Prefect decisively decided to report the entire matter to the Emperor.

Ultimately, upon learning the truth, the emperor was furious and immediately ordered Consort Ye to be confined to her quarters as punishment.

Even more bizarrely, while Consort Ye was under house arrest, Consort Tong, who had always been at odds with her, actually went to Fengluan Palace to visit her. But no sooner had Consort Tong stepped out of Fengluan Palace than an unexpected scene unfolded—Consort Ye immediately wrote to the Emperor, earnestly stating that her previous inappropriate actions were due to being misled, but knowing she had already disgraced the royal family, she voluntarily requested to go to Fahua Temple on the outskirts of the capital to sincerely pray for the unborn child of Consort Tong, beseeching Heaven to bless the dragon's offspring with a safe, healthy birth.

Upon hearing this, the Emperor pondered for a moment and then granted Consort Ye's request. So, the next morning, under the strict protection of numerous Imperial Guards and the Imperial Household Department, Consort Ye embarked on her journey to Fahua Temple, solely to pray for and bless Consort Tong's son.

Meanwhile, the Ye family suffered a severe blow due to this series of changes, and many forces that had previously firmly supported the Third Prince began to waver, with many defecting to Yan Nanhui or Yan Jingtian's side. Suddenly, the political landscape shifted dramatically, the power structure was reshuffled, and the situation became increasingly unpredictable.

However, since Xiao Lan's return, Ye Lanyi's life has never been peaceful. At first, when she learned that Xiao Lan had been granted the title of princess and a fiefdom, Ye Lanyi felt an indescribable sense of loss and jealousy.

Then, something even more embarrassing happened—the truth about the real and fake Young Master Lan was revealed; it turned out to be her and Xiao Lan. This news spread throughout the entire academy instantly, and people pointed fingers and gossiped about them. Faced with such immense public pressure, Ye Lanyi felt utterly humiliated and could no longer remain at Minglu Academy. Therefore, after careful consideration, she resolutely submitted a leave of absence application to the academy.

Afterwards, Ye Lanyi accompanied Consort Ye to Fahua Temple. As for why Consort Ye agreed to take her to Fahua Temple, and how she would be treated afterward, no one knew.

Meanwhile, Xiao Lan was tirelessly carrying out a series of actions. She successfully recovered all the precious antiques and paintings that had been sold off by her sister-in-law, Xiao Jin, and hired craftsmen to meticulously renovate the Xiao family mansion. However, since the ancestral home of the Xiao family still needed some time to be fully completed, Xiao Lan temporarily moved to her brother's house. This house was originally the ancestral home of the Jiang family, but now it had become her temporary residence. It is worth mentioning that the courtyard of the ancestral home that once belonged to the Xiao family has now completed the transfer of ownership at the government office and officially belongs to Xiao Lan.

By the time this series of complicated matters was properly handled, it was already early December. The capital city was growing increasingly cold, with a howling wind sweeping through the streets and alleys. Inside the renowned Minglu Academy, the people were still the same as before, but Ye Lanyi was nowhere to be seen.

Xiao Mu'an and Qin Shixun, who had recently transferred to the school, were assigned to the same class as Xiao Lan and were fortunate enough to become deskmates. The two of them sat quietly in front of Wu Yuyu, beginning their new school life.

Thanks to the resounding name "Young Master Lan," Xiao Lan quickly rose to fame both inside and outside the academy, becoming the focus of everyone's attention. Not only that, but many students from other academies also flocked to Minglu Academy, just to catch a glimpse of this legendary genius girl.

Initially, under the guidance of Dean Tan Si, the teachers of Minglu Academy were able to greet and communicate with visiting students with smiles and warm courtesy. However, as time went on, the number of visitors increased steadily, and the teachers gradually felt overwhelmed and unable to cope with such a large influx of visitors. In the end, Minglu Academy had no choice but to post a prominent notice: Young Master Lan needed to devote himself fully to his studies, and in addition, he also had to personally manage the business of Wutongju, so he was unable to receive visitors.

The phrase "focusing on studies" originated from Dean Tan; as for "managing Wutong Residence," it was specifically added at Xiao Lan's request. After all, wouldn't it be a pity to miss such an excellent opportunity for publicity?

As a result, Wutongju instantly became bustling with activity and crowds, and for a time it was overflowing with people! However, as time quietly passed and it was mid-December, something unexpected happened - high fences began to be erected around Wutongju.

After some inquiries, it was learned that Xiao Lan had generously purchased all the courtyards and shops around Wutong Residence. A meticulous count revealed an astonishing seven shops and six courtyards in total! It's worth mentioning that the courtyard at the back of Wutong Residence had actually been acquired by Xiao Lan before he even returned to Jiangnan, and had already been converted into a dormitory.

As the number of female practitioners and guards at Wutong Residence continued to increase, the original space gradually became cramped. Therefore, Xiao Lan decisively purchased a large four-courtyard house next door. This new courtyard was not only spacious and bright, but also cleverly separated the men's and women's residences to ensure that their lives did not interfere with each other. Of course, even in the women's area, dutiful guards would patrol regularly every night to protect everyone's safety and peace.

That said, since Wutongju was located at the end of the street, the shop at the end of the adjacent street also couldn't escape Xiao Lan's keen business sense, and she acquired it without hesitation. Now, that shop has been transformed into a store called "Mixue Tiantian," specializing in selling all kinds of delicious hot drinks and carefully prepared medicinal cuisine.

Surprisingly, based on feedback from numerous customers, the items sold at "Mixue Sweetie" truly live up to their reputation! Not only are all the raw materials of genuinely superior quality, without any adulteration or deception, but more importantly, these drinks and medicinal foods actually possess real medicinal effects! For example, their Fangfeng Tea has a significant effect on preventing colds; while their Qinghuo Tea can provide immediate and miraculous relief for mild sore throats. As a result, "Mixue Sweetie's" reputation has spread far and wide, attracting more and more people to come and try their products.