Grace Watches Grace Wan from Afar
Edward Lawrence smiled and nodded.
Although Grace Wan held the household's financial power, she had never overstepped her bounds all these years.
The Prime Minister was quite pleased with this aspect of her.
Moreover, because of the incident where the Imperial Advisor was struck by lightning, Lian'er had always felt guilty toward her.
Now, things are as they should be... She received what she deserved, and he and Lian'er have kept their marital vows. It's all good...
"Grace Wan, now that you have the Emperor's reward, you can finally relax!" Dowager Lady Evelyn Zhu said with a smile.
"Mother, it's all thanks to your blessings!" Grace Wan said, holding Dowager Lady Evelyn Zhu's hand. "The Empress Dowager often says, with you in the Lawrence family, our family is upright and blessed. I suppose the Empress Dowager and the Emperor granted me this honor because of you!"
The Old Madam was delighted by the flattery and laughed heartily.
Seeing this scene, the servants all knelt down and congratulated her in unison: "Congratulations, First Lady of the Blue Moon Kingdom! Congratulations, First Lady of the Blue Moon Kingdom!"
Grace Wan turned around and saw all the kneeling servants. An intense aura of authority gradually emanated from her as she said, "This imperial edict today is not for me. It's an honor and courtesy from the Emperor to the Empress Dowager, and for our household, everything remains as before. Dowager Lady Evelyn Zhu is still the mistress of our house, and Miss Lawrence is still the legitimate eldest daughter. Remember that!"
The servants all looked convinced and replied, "We will obey First Lady of the Blue Moon Kingdom's teachings."
Grace Wan nodded with great authority, "You may all rise! In gratitude for the Emperor's kindness, and to celebrate the Empress being favored by His Majesty, every servant in the household will receive an extra three months' wages, and this year's wages will be doubled!"
"Thank you, First Lady of the Blue Moon Kingdom! Madam, you are truly kind and charitable..." The servants were overjoyed.
......
Grace stood among the crowd, watching Grace Wan from afar.
Her skill and cunning are far beyond what ordinary women from small families could ever hope to match.
Toward Dowager Lady Evelyn Zhu and Edward Lawrence, everything she did showed her virtue and understanding—never crossing their boundaries.
With the family members, she was sociable and well-liked.
With the servants, she balanced kindness and authority, managing them with ease.
In my previous life, my naïve self was completely played by her.
It wasn’t until the Lawrence family was utterly destroyed that everyone finally saw her true colors...
She really is no ordinary person...
......
Back at Serenity Pavilion, Grace called for Tenner and asked, "How did your contact with Eric Chen go?"
Eric Chen is that servant from the Wan residence. He once stalked and spied on me, colluded with Cecilia Chen, and accused me of being Lily Bai.
Tenner nodded, "Eric Chen has a young daughter. One day, she was almost run over by a carriage in the street, and I took the chance to save her. Eric was very grateful to me, and now we've built some rapport."
"I want to meet him tonight," Grace said.
"It's easy enough to arrange a meeting," Tenner replied. "But he's very tight-lipped. If you want answers, it won't be easy."
"Just set it up," Grace said, unfazed.
A servant trusted by both Leon Wan and Grace Wan has to be tight-lipped.
"Yes, Miss," Tenner said as he went to make the arrangements.
That night, at a quiet tavern near Eric Chen's house, Grace went to meet him.
"...I happened to hear Tenner mention you, and you actually became friends," Grace said with a smile. "So I specially came to find you today because I wanted to ask you about something."