Marrying a treacherous official

Even with his great magnanimity, Yunji could not tolerate such a thief crying "stop thief!"

She took several deep breaths, but still couldn't calm down her resentment. Chi Ying, who was serving tea to her, spoke up.

"Master, it's all my fault."

Cui Zemin coldly looked at Chi Ying, who was kneeling on the ground, and heard her say in a low voice:

"This servant went to Minghe Hall to find Lady Hou. She thought that since Master is busy with official duties day and night, how could he be without the Duan inkstone? What if it delayed his important business?"

"But Lady Hou said that the master's writing materials are always precious, and there are no good inkstones in the mansion's storeroom at the moment. She said that she would send them to the master after she found a Duan inkstone. It is my incompetence, and I beg the master to punish me."

Cui Zemin asked her directly, "Isn't there an inkstone in the courtyard? Why did you have to go to the Lady of the Marquis to ask for one?"

Chi Ying pursed her red lips, keeping her mouth tightly shut, refusing to speak.

Granny Kong stood far away by the door, her brows furrowed in a solemn expression.

Yun Ji calmly handed the warehouse inventory to Cui Zeming, and said sincerely:

"Sir, you can take a look at the list of gold and silk artifacts in the storeroom in the courtyard. The storeroom does indeed contain inkstones, but they are soft limestone and sandstone inkstones that are slippery when ink is applied, not the four famous inkstones: Duan inkstone, She inkstone, Tao inkstone, and Chengni inkstone."

She glanced at Chi Ying with a flickering gaze and said softly:

"The old man has refined taste and would never look favorably upon these inferior inkstones. So I found a craftsman to recarve and decorate half of the broken inkstone. If all goes well, the new inkstone can be finished by the beginning of the month and delivered to the old man."

"I just don't know which lazy servant left half a broken inkstone in the outer study, an eyesore to you, sir. I'm thinking of finding this maid and selling her off. What do you think, sir?"

Chi Ying was trembling with fear, but she couldn't admit it, much less beg for mercy.

Cui Zemin did not sell Chi Ying to her as she wished, but only rebuked her:

"What are you still kneeling for? Get out of here!"

"Yes, ma'am."

Chi Ying was unusually quick-witted; as she bowed and retreated, she made sure to take the half-broken inkstone with her.

Yunji secretly cursed Cui Zemin half to death. If he couldn't bear to part with him now, there would be plenty of times for him to cut his own flesh later.

"Madam hasn't replied to me yet."

Cui Zemin remained unperturbed by the matter, looking steadily at her and saying, "What kind of porcelain screen is this porcelain repairman coming to fix?"

Yunji didn't rush to explain, but instead picked up the Dongpo teapot and brewed him a cup of Wuyi rock tea.

"It was indeed my presumption that made this decision. I will offer tea instead of wine to my husband as an apology."

Cui Zemin ignored her and did not take the cup of fresh tea.

Yunji smiled bitterly as she placed the cup of tea back on the desk, and said sadly:

"Why is my husband so biased, always favoring one over the other?"

"What nonsense is Madam spouting?"

"Chi Ying left half of the broken inkstone in the outer study, deliberately trying to frame me. Not only did my husband not hold her accountable, he also stopped me from punishing her."

The cloud-like curtains seemed to weep sadly as they spoke:

"I took the broken mallet-shaped bottle and the jade screen to have them baked in a porcelain vase. I didn't want to bother my husband, and I was so focused on repairing the cracks that I put the porcelain back in the outer study intact. But my husband kept scolding me for squandering our family's wealth."

She slammed the storeroom ledgers onto the desk, and said forcefully:

"Whether I've squandered money or not, my husband can check these account books before he speaks, instead of being fickle and finding some excuse to nag me and insist on punishing me."

Cui Zemin stared at her with a gloomy expression, remaining silent for a long while.

He kept Chi Ying around not out of intentional favoritism, but to leave a force to be reckoned with in the courtyard and to restrain her power in the inner courtyard.

But she deliberately shattered the facade of harmony, revealing everything and leaving him humiliated and unable to save face.

Yun Ji stared at him with a chilling gaze, her performance becoming increasingly realistic, her bright eyes, like pools of autumn water, glistening with moisture.

"Since my husband likes Chi Ying so much, why not just take her into the family?"

"Shut up!"

Cui Zemin suddenly raised his voice and harshly reprimanded her.

Yunji originally thought that it would be good if he took Chi Ying as a concubine, so that he would get tired of her sooner and she could divorce him and leave the mansion. She never expected him to react like this. She couldn't even say these words in front of him.

Her eyes were brimming with tears, and she was suddenly startled by the angry rebuke. The tears welled up and fell, catching her completely off guard.

She turned her head away, avoiding his piercing, angry gaze, and inadvertently caught sight of Granny Kong standing to the side. She suddenly smiled knowingly:

"I was confused for a moment and forgot about the important matter. I came here today with Granny Kong, the manager of the estate, to pay my respects to you, sir."

Upon hearing this, Granny Kong stepped forward to greet him, saying, "This old servant greets you, sir."

Cui Zemin recognized the person as soon as he heard the old voice, but when he saw the weathered face, he almost didn't recognize him for a moment.

Granny Kong kept her head down the whole time, not daring to overstep her bounds and peek at his expression.

Cui Zemin spoke indifferently, "How did you get here?"

"Replying to you, sir, this old servant came along with the Madam's carriage."

Granny Kong was always taciturn and cautious, and every word she spoke was appropriate.

"The First Madam was busy with the matter of the three hundred acres of land. After finding the head of the village in Beizhuang, she hurriedly drove back. Upon hearing that the First Master had been appointed as the Privy Councilor, she could not hide her joy and waited for him in the north wind for a full half hour, just to congratulate him in person."

Yunji gradually discerned a different meaning: was Granny Kong pleading on her behalf?

Granny Kong stepped forward slowly, picked up the cup of Wuyi rock tea, and presented it to Cui Zeming with both hands.

"The warm tea still has a pleasant aftertaste; please, sir, savor it."

Cui Zemin did not refuse and took the cup of tea, drinking it all in one gulp.

Granny Kong accepted the empty cup with both hands and gently advised again:

"These porcelain vases and writing implements that the First Madam arranged for the outer study are the finest private collections of the mansion, far superior to the piles of old stock in the storerooms."

"Even if it is broken, it can still be repaired flawlessly. The problem is that if the fragments cannot be pieced together, no matter how skilled the craftsman is, he will not be able to repair the porcelain properly."

Yunji listened silently, secretly admiring how eloquent the old nanny was; her well-intentioned and persuasive advice was always pleasing to the ear.

Cui Zemin silenced Granny Kong with a single sentence: "Are you finished?"

Granny Kong lowered her head and stepped aside to wait, saying no more.

Yunji didn't want to stay in the outer study for a moment longer. She bowed to him and said, "My husband is busy with government affairs, so I won't disturb you. I'll take my leave now."

"The 27-day national mourning period has passed, so Madam need not perform the mourning ceremony again."

Cui Zemin glanced at her rosy cheeks, his gaze lingering on her slender waist, and said with undisguised approval:

"Madam, you no longer need to wear plain clothes; this outfit is perfect."