Marrying a treacherous official

On his way to the palace, Cui Zemin heard about Yunji fainting while being forced to kneel in the ancestral hall.

"What did the doctor say in the past?"

"The doctor said that the lady had overworked herself and had been exposed to cold. She should take some herbal medicine to dispel the cold and relieve the symptoms, and rest for a few days to recover."

Huo Xi replied truthfully.

Cui Zemin spurred his horse forward, his voice full of disdain as he questioned, "Overworked?"

Huo Xi was at a loss for words, so he told her about Yunji moving the books from the library.

"Perhaps the First Madam has been climbing the shelves to find books for two days in a row, and then organizing the book list and carrying boxes to load the cart. She has been going back and forth for too long and has worn herself out."

"She drove two carloads of gifts to the Gu family home."

Cui Zemin glanced at Huo Xi and chuckled mockingly, "If she didn't bring back some books, how could she have the face to come in empty-handed?"

Huo Xi dared not refute the general, and could only weakly defend his wife:

"The general has never seen how carefully the lady packed those books into the box, so he probably can't understand her good intentions. The lady also said that many of the books in the box are rare and cannot be simply valued in terms of money."

Cui Zemin looked at him noncommittally.

He never doubted Huo Xi's loyalty, but this foolish man had only followed her for three days and was already speaking to her wholeheartedly. Either he was incredibly stupid and easily manipulated, or the woman's methods were too clever.

Inside the Hall of Diligent Governance, Emperor Chenghe leaned back on his dragon throne, coughing intermittently.

Cui Zemin stood tall in the hall, bowed, and asked, "Your Majesty, shall we summon the imperial physician to examine you?"

"No need. The illness I developed during my ten years of seclusion in the Eastern Palace is like a slow, gradual process of healing; it can't be cured in just a few months."

Emperor Chenghe waved his hand dismissively and got down to business: "The Prince of Qian is still nowhere to be found, and the Northwest Xuanjia Army has remained inactive. What's your opinion on this?"

The late emperor favored Prince Qian and sent him to the Jianghuai region to collect salt and tea taxes, with the intention of supporting him as the crown prince. After the Palace Guard and the Tiger Wing Army took advantage of the situation to rise up, Prince Qian disappeared. This matter thus became a major concern for Emperor Chenghe.

It is highly likely that Prince Qian fled to the northwest and hid in the Xuanjia Army of his father-in-law, Pei Ziyi.

Cui Zemin pondered for a moment and said, "Your Majesty might as well issue an imperial edict ordering the Pei family father and son to come to the capital for an audience before the New Year. Once they arrive, the rest will be much easier."

"What if they don't come?"

"Your humble servant requests permission to lead 30,000 Tiger Wing Army cavalry to patrol the Northwest, seize the opportunity to severely damage the Black Armor Army, storm Pei Ziyi's military camp, and capture all the traitors and rebels and bring them back to the capital."

"With chaos in the Northwest, how will we defend against the Northern Yan, which is eyeing us covetously from beyond the borders?"

"Your humble servant has been in the northern border for three whole years."

Cui Zemin bluntly stated, "This year is extremely cold, and coincidentally, a great fire broke out in the northern desert in the autumn, burning down most of the barren land. Northern Yan has insufficient food and fodder, and cannot raise strong and healthy warhorses. There is absolutely no way they could brave the wind and snow to go south and attack the garrison in the northwest."

Emperor Chenghe had just ascended the throne, and the court's power was not yet stable. He would not easily send troops to cause internal strife unless absolutely necessary.

"Let's send an imperial edict to the Pei family father and son, summoning them to the palace to meet the emperor. We can discuss this matter further later."

Cui Zemin wanted to advise the emperor to take advantage of the situation and wipe out the entire Pei family in one fell swoop, otherwise they would surely become a future calamity. However, seeing that Emperor Chenghe covered his mouth and coughed violently, clearly not wanting to listen to his advice, he had no choice but to leave the Hall of Diligent Governance.

The study outside Qinghui Courtyard has two windows that are wide open to the outside.

The sound of flapping wings descended from the courtyard skylight, fluttering and swirling into the window before settling on the rosewood desk piled high with books.

Cui Zemin took a scroll of letter paper from under the gray pigeon's claws and, by the dim candlelight, read through the lines of elegant, small regular script.

This is a secret letter delivered to him by a Privy Council messenger.

The letter detailed Pei Ziyi's family relationships both inside and outside the court, as well as the help and mentors who helped him rise through the ranks. Finally, it singled out his eldest son, Pei Yun, to make a point.

"The Pei and Gu families have been close for generations. Pei Yun was engaged to Gu Huaiming's eldest daughter in Qianzhou, but he had to break off the engagement due to the late emperor's bestowal of a marriage decree."

The densely packed line of small regular script made Cui Zemin's gaze turn cold and fierce.

He was extremely wary of Gu Yunji, and now that he saw that she and Pei Yun had a marriage agreement from the past, he suspected that the two had been having an affair for a long time, which he found particularly ironic.

The letter was thrown onto the bronze incense burner, where it burst into leaping flames.

Cui Zemin picked up his pen and wrote a reply, the four short characters conveying profound meaning: "I will visit Pei Yun again."

He rolled up the letter and tied it to the gray pigeon's claws. Perhaps lingering in the warmth of the room, the pigeon tucked its wings and refused to take flight. He picked up a Duan inkstone and smashed it against the celadon-glazed mallet-shaped vase in the corner.

After the thunderclap, the gray pigeon flapped its wings and flew out of the study, soaring straight into the sky.

Still furious, he picked up the white glazed carved brush holder from the desk and smashed it hard against the jade screen.

The old man suddenly flew into a rage and smashed up the study, and the news quickly spread throughout Qinghui Courtyard.

Chunxuan returned to the inner courtyard after gathering the information.

She pushed open the lattice door of the main room and saw Yunji sitting on the heated kang with her long hair loose, striking the abacus beads with one hand and carefully recording accounts in a book with the other.

"Why did you get up, Madam? Why don't you rest in bed a little longer?"

Chunxuan stepped forward to carefully attend to her, saying, "Although Madam feigned illness and fooled the doctor and Granny Tong, there are still many of the Marquis's spies in this courtyard. Madam should lie down and rest, and be more cautious in her actions."

Yunji: "It's alright. If Granny Tong comes back, I'll just lie down again."

Chunxuan picked up the teapot on the celadon stove and brewed another cup of warm tea, saying, "I don't know what's gotten into Master again, he's smashed up the entire outer study."

Yunji was already used to this, and kept fiddling with the abacus in her hands, giving a very perfunctory "hmm".

Chunxuan then added:

"I met Chi Ying in the corridor. She said that the master had broken a Duan inkstone, a jade screen, and a celadon-glazed paper mallet vase. She also said that she would come tomorrow to get the matching tokens and replace the old porcelain with new stationery in the master's study."

"The pair she wants isn't in the warehouse."

"If Madam doesn't give it to you, Master will argue with her again."

"Who said I wouldn't give it to you?"

Yunji put down his purple-tipped brush and instructed her, "Tomorrow, go to Tangjia Porcelain Shop and ask the old craftsman there to come and repair the old man's porcelain."

Chunxuan was so shocked she could barely speak, "Then...how can that be?"

"Why not?"

Yunji coldly rebuked, "When I took over the warehouse, I made it clear that the money in this yard should generate more money. The old man keeps smashing his private stash every few days, squandering the family fortune like this. How could I tolerate him?"

Unable to persuade her, Chunxuan looked pleadingly at Huachao, who was waiting nearby.

Hua Chao thought that things would be better if things were done slowly, so she gently advised, "This matter is not urgent. It's late, so Madam should rest early. We can settle this score another day."

"The old man took all my savings."

Whenever Yunji thought of this matter, the abacus beads in her hand would make a crisp, clear sound, as if they were about to shatter in her hands at any moment.

"I won't be able to close my eyes in peace until I get this money back from him with interest, without falsifying the accounts."

Chunxuan and Huachao both looked at the red mark on her throat bone, and saw unease in each other's eyes.