The most dissolute couple in the capital

Cui Qinghui shouldn't have been in the backyard today.

She came looking for Bai Li. Bai Li said she was drying winter clothes in the back, so she went around to find her. But halfway there, she saw two figures in her sister's garden in the distance.

One of them was Cui Qingyi, whom she recognized.

another--

Cui Qinghui narrowed his eyes and stopped in his tracks.

The man was quite tall, dressed in a drab gray short-sleeved brown outfit, with bits of leaves stuck to his hair, looking as if he had just crawled out of a woodshed. He was holding Cui Qingyi's hand, his head down, seemingly doing something.

Cui Qinghui's heart suddenly raced.

She instinctively shrank behind the pillar, peeked out half her head, and stared intently at the two people in the garden.

She was too far away to see the man's face clearly, but what kind of man could be in the backyard?

He held Cui Qingyi's hand, and the two were very close.

Cui Qinghui's breathing quickened, and a thought went through his mind like wildfire.

My sister is having an affair with a servant in the manor!

She covered her mouth, almost letting out a cry of surprise.

No, calm down, calm down.

Cui Qinghui forced herself to calm down and took another careful look. The man released Cui Qingyi's hand, and the two seemed to be talking. Cui Qingyi's expression was as composed as ever, and she even picked up her teacup.

Cui Qinghui slowly retreated behind the pillars, leaning against the cold pillars, his chest heaving violently.

I'm going to tell my mother!

No.

Cui Qinghui bit her lower lip.

These days, her mother has been protecting Cui Qingyi in every way. If she were to tell her mother, her mother would probably scold her first, saying that she was talking nonsense, and then suppress the matter.

On what grounds?

Just because she's the older sister? Just because she was born a few years earlier?

Cui Qinghui never thought that Cui Qingyi was much better than her. In terms of appearance, she believed she was no less beautiful; in terms of talent, although she was not as good as her cousin Cui Lingyi, she was not bad either; in terms of background, she was Li's biological daughter, while Cui Qingyi was just a motherless woman.

But all the good things happened to Cui Qingyi.

First, the Zheng family took a liking to her, and later the Prince of Liang bestowed a marriage upon her.

Cui Qinghui bit her lower lip, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in her eyes.

Okay, Cui Qingyi.

The imperial decree for the marriage has been issued, yet you are still having an ambiguous relationship with a servant in the manor.

She quietly took two steps back, turned around, and quickly left the backyard.

Cui Qinghui did not go to see Li.

She took a longer detour and went straight to Granny He's courtyard.

She was calculating carefully. If Granny He were to witness Cui Qingyi and her lover having a secret rendezvous in the backyard, then even if the marriage was personally approved by the Emperor, she would have to think twice.

Cui Qinghui stopped at the entrance of Granny He's courtyard, took a deep breath, and forced out two tears.

"Granny He!" she cried, her voice trembling with tears. "Please go and see my sister... I... I just passed by the backyard and saw... a man in my sister's garden!"

Granny He frowned: "What man?"

"I don't know who it is. He's dressed in a short robe, like a servant from the manor." Cui Qinghui clenched her handkerchief, her voice growing increasingly urgent. "He's holding my sister's hand, and they're standing very close... Granny, the imperial decree has been issued. My sister is the future Princess Consort of Liang. If someone sees them like this..."

Granny He's expression became somewhat subtle.

Cui Qinghui didn't understand the look in her eyes, only sensing that the woman didn't believe her. She lowered her head, fidgeting with her handkerchief, feigning fear: "Granny, I'm not sure if I saw wrong..."

"You'll know when you get there if you're sure." Granny He didn't look at him again and stepped out the door.

As they walked down the corridor, they happened to run into two old nannies from the Cui family who were in charge of disciplining children—Nanny Zhou and Nanny Sun.

Granny He said in a deep voice, "Both of you, come with me."

Seeing that Granny He looked solemn, Granny Zhou didn't ask any more questions. She exchanged a glance with Granny Sun and followed her.

Cui Qinghui led the way, his steps light and quick, his lips pressed together to keep from revealing his smugness.

"Grannies," she said as she walked, her voice extremely low, as if afraid of being overheard, "I don't want to believe it either, but my sister... the imperial decree was issued, how could she..."

"Second Miss," Granny He interrupted her, "be careful what you say before things are clear."

Cui Qinghui obediently shut her mouth, but the light in her eyes grew even brighter.

She imagined the scene that would unfold—Granny He would discover Cui Qingyi's affair with the servant, the news would reach the palace, the Empress Dowager would be furious, the marriage would be annulled, Cui Qingyi's reputation would be ruined, and she would never be able to recover.

As for Cui Qinghui, as the younger sister who "painfully exposed" the truth, she not only preserved the Cui family's reputation but also eliminated a major threat.

As for what will happen to Cui Qingyi in the future?

What does it have to do with her?

-

Meanwhile, in the garden.

Li Chengjing was excitedly telling Cui Qingyi about his "flawless" plan.

"...He Li was keeping watch at the street corner, and Cheng Yuan hired thirty men to lead the horses for a stroll. I took advantage of the chaos and climbed over the back wall—do you know there's a loose brick in your back wall? I stepped on it and it collapsed, almost falling flat on my face."

Cui Qingyi stared expressionlessly at the mud on his sleeves and the bits of leaves stuck in his hair, her tone calm, "You climbed over the wall without a single guard with you?"

"I brought it, otherwise it would be difficult to climb over," Li Chengjing said matter-of-factly. "It's crouching outside the wall."

At this moment, the royal guard said: I don't think Miss Cui is praising you.

Cui Qingyi took a deep breath, stood up, and said, "Your Highness, it's getting late; you should go back."

"You're kicking me out already?" Li Chengjing frowned in displeasure. "I spent ages climbing over the wall to get in."

"That's precisely why you should hurry back before it gets dark," Cui Qingyi said gently, her mind already calculating how high the nearest wall was. "What if someone sees you—"

Before she could finish speaking, she suddenly stopped.

A series of light footsteps came from outside the flower wall. There was more than one person, at least three or four, walking quickly towards this side.

Cui Qingyi's expression changed slightly.

Lee Seung-kyung heard it too.

His reaction was much faster than Cui Qingyi had expected—almost the instant the footsteps approached, he released Cui Qingyi's wrist, reached into his robes with his right hand, and pulled out a golden object.

It was a pure gold token with the character "Liang" engraved on the front and a royal dragon pattern on the back.

Li Chengjing tucked the gold medal into his waistband, then pulled out a folding fan from his sleeve—no one knew when he had put it there—and unfolded it with a "whoosh," before sitting down imposingly on the stone bench.

In an instant, his entire demeanor transformed from that of a "mud monkey climbing over a wall" to that of a "distinguished person on an incognito visit."

Cui Qingyi: "..."

So, is it really reasonable for a distinguished person to run to the backyard?

"Don't panic." Li Chengjing winked at her, waved his fan, and seemed to want to say something more.

The moon gate in the flower wall was pushed open from the outside.

The first thing that caught her eye was Cui Qinghui's face, which was filled with excitement—although she tried her best to hide it, Cui Qingyi could clearly see the gloating glint in her eyes.

She was followed by Granny He, as well as Granny Zhou and Granny Sun from the Cui family.

Wow, what a grand display!

"Sister!" Cui Qinghui rushed in first, her voice urgent and shrill, as if she had seized upon a huge incriminating evidence. "You...you dare to meet in secret here—"

"Second Miss!"

Granny He interrupted her.

She trusted her judgment; Cui Qingyi was definitely not the kind of fool who would have an affair with a servant. So, the current situation meant either someone had set a trap for her, or... there was more to the story.

Only after Granny He brought the situation under control did she look at the "servant".

Li Chengjing turned his head away.

He sat on a stone bench, his face half-covered by a folding fan, revealing only a pair of peach blossom eyes with slightly upturned corners, carrying a lazy, condescending smile.

This is definitely not the demeanor of a servant.

"Oh," he said in a light tone, as if he were strolling in his own backyard, "so lively, are you here to... bring me tea?"

As he spoke, he slightly turned his wrist, lowering his fan by half a step to reveal the gleaming gold token clipped to his waist. The token reflected a blinding light in the afternoon sun, the flamboyant character "Liang" on it so bright it hurt the eyes.

If it's this person, then everything makes sense...