I support the army through farming and business.

Chapter 390 Drunken Trivial Talk
What leverage does the Jin family have over the Yang family?

Miss Yang Qi shook her head, "Grandfather didn't say, he only said that Old Master Jin has an account book. Once Old Master Jin hands the account book over to the government, the Yang family will face annihilation!"

Madam Jin's vision went black. What exactly was written in that account book that could lead to such serious consequences?
No, that won't do. If something were to happen to the Yang family, how could she face their ancestors after she died?

Madam Jin bit her tongue hard, the sharp pain clearing her muddled mind. "Mei'er, don't be afraid," Madam Jin said, holding Miss Yang's hand tightly. "You tell your grandfather that your great-aunt will definitely find a way to get the account books. Until then, make sure your grandfather keeps the Jin family calm!"

Miss Yang, with tears in her eyes, said, "Mei'er understands!"

"Stop crying, lest someone notice something," Old Madam Jin said, wiping away her tears with a handkerchief. "I assure you, I will never let you marry Jin Ge!"

Her tragedy must never be repeated in the life of Yang Jia Nu!

Having received the assurance, Miss Yang felt a slight sense of relief, and the smile on her face became much more genuine.

The banquet lasted until sunset. Madam Jin excused herself by saying she was tired and went back to her inner room to rest early, dismissing all the servants except for the maids brought by the Yang family.

"Have you asked clearly?"

"This old servant has inquired and found out that some time ago, the eldest young master brought a woman from a pleasure boat into the old master's courtyard. I don't know what the woman said, but the old master actually kept her in the courtyard," said Granny Yang while massaging the acupoints on the top of Madam Jin's head. "The people this old servant kept in the courtyard said that the old master not only gave the woman a room to live in, but also assigned two maids to serve her."

"What about the young master?"

"Ever since tea-frying was banned, the eldest young master has fallen out of favor with the old master, and he hasn't even been allowed into the courtyard to pay his respects several times."

"Ever since the eldest young master brought that woman back, the old master has allowed the eldest young master to pay his respects to him every day again."

With her eyes closed, Madam Jin said, "It seems the problem lies with that woman."

"Should this old servant send someone to approach that woman?"

Madam Jin shook her head, "We went to great lengths to place people in the old master's courtyard. It would be a loss if we lost them because of this."

"Then we can only find out the woman's identity from the young master."

"Is the young master's most favored maid named Ping'er?"

"The old lady has a good memory," Yang Mama chimed in. "Her name is Ping'er. That girl is thoughtful and has tried to befriend our courtyard many times."

"Then let her find out the truth," said Madam Jin, as she was helped onto the bed by Granny Yang. "If she can figure this out, I will reward her with the position of a concubine."

"The old lady is kind and benevolent."

In the Green Garden, Ping'er, who had received a personal message from Granny Yang, sat by the bed, her pretty face showing both nervousness and excitement.

She was originally a maid bought from outside the Jin family, and it was her good looks that allowed her to outshine all the servants born into the household in Cui Ting Garden.

But she's already twenty this year, and no matter how beautiful she is, she can't escape the passage of time. Unfortunately, the young master values ​​status and is unwilling to even take her as a concubine, let alone a mistress.

But if she were to marry just any servant or steward, she would refuse. Having seen wealth and glory, how could she possibly live a life of hardship where she didn't know where her next meal would come from?

For the sake of her future, Ping'er set her sights on Old Madam Jin. As an elder, if Old Madam Jin were to propose making her a concubine, the eldest young master would have no choice but to comply, no matter how unwilling he was.

Once she becomes a concubine, she will be half the mistress of the Jin family. Before the next wife enters the family, she will try her best to win over the eldest young master's heart and strive to give birth to a son or daughter. In this way, her wealth and honor for the rest of her life will be guaranteed.

Ping'er felt more and more excited as she thought about it, but then she frowned: How should she do what the old lady asked her to do?
Ping'er thought about it all night and decided to use the old method again—getting drunk to get information out of him.

The servants at Cui Ting Garden all knew that their young master looked respectable, but he was actually a hypocrite, all show and no substance. Especially after drinking, he was like a mad dog unleashed from its cage, biting anyone he could get his hands on.

But the young master has one great advantage when he's drunk: he's incredibly generous. As long as you can make him happy, gold and silver treasures are within your grasp.

So when the servants of Cui Ting Garden heard that Young Master Jin was drunk, they were both happy and worried. Before they could weigh the pros and cons, a maid who had just been assigned to Cui Ting Garden to serve him and wanted to climb into his bed got there first.

The maid cautiously entered the inner room, and a strong smell of alcohol wafted towards her. She frowned in disgust, but resisted the urge to walk to the bedside and said softly, "Young Master, would you like me, ah!"

Before the maid could finish her sentence, Jin Ge kicked her away.

"Damn you dog servant, how dare you disturb my sleep!" Jin Ge, awakened by the noise, opened his eyes, got off the bed barefoot, walked to the maid who was lying on the ground groaning in pain, and kicked her several times. "You unruly thing, I'll beat you to death!"

The maid dared not dodge, and covered her head with her arms, shrinking into a ball and begging for mercy, "Young Master, spare my life, this servant will never dare to do it again!"

"Dogs only learn to obey after being beaten," Jin Ge said, his spirits rising as he listened to the maid's pleas for mercy. His blood, soaked in alcohol, was boiling. No longer satisfied with just punching and kicking, he picked up the wooden frame beside him and smashed it down on the maid.

One, two, three times, and the maid's pleas for mercy gradually subsided.

Without the soft pleas for mercy, Jin Ge instantly lost interest, casually threw the wooden frame on the ground, and called over the servants standing outside to carry the person out.

Seeing the maid covered in blood in the dim candlelight, the servant secretly gasped, feeling incredibly fortunate. If he had been beaten like that, he didn't know if he would have survived until tomorrow.

"Bring me more wine!" Jin Ge said, sitting on the edge of the couch.

The servants looked at each other, none of them wanting to stay at this moment. Just then, Ping'er, dressed in pink, came in carrying a wine pot and wine cups. "This servant will serve the young master wine," she said, while winking at the servants.

The servant was overjoyed, picked up the maid from the ground and ran out, making sure to close the door behind him.

Jin Ge sniffed, inhaling the aroma of wine in the air. "The wine brewed by the Zhong family's winery is just so fragrant! What a pity..."

Ping'er sat down next to Jin Ge, holding a wine glass. "What's a pity?"

Jin Ge tilted his head back and drank the wine in his glass. "It's a pity that the Zhong family winery sided with Tang Zhao early on, otherwise my Jin family would definitely have gotten involved."

This will also help make up for the money lost in tea-making.

"It's the Zhong family's bad luck that they didn't seek favors from the young master and the Jin family, which are such powerful figures, but instead chose to seek favors from a woman! What does a woman know about business?"

"If the Zhong family had come to ask for your guidance, young master, their wine would have been sold all over Jiangnan long ago. Why would they be struggling to survive?"

Hearing the flattery, Jin Ge happily drank a whole jug of wine, and still wasn't satisfied, "Give me another jug!"