Marrying a treacherous official

Chunxuan and Huachao both sensed that this matter was extraordinary, and obediently awaited their mistress's orders.

"My grandmother brought me from Qianzhou to the Gu family and then gave you to me as her personal maids."

In this endless night, Yunji suddenly recalled the past.

"The late emperor bestowed this marriage upon me, and I married into the Cui family. I only brought you two with me. In the entire Marquis's mansion, the only people I can truly rely on are the two of you."

Hua Chao couldn't bear to hear such sad words, so he bowed to the lady.

"Please feel free to give me any instructions, Madam. I will do my best to fulfill your request, even at the cost of my life."

Chunxuan hurriedly curtsied and greeted them as well.

"This servant will not ask any questions. Whatever Madam says is what I will do. This servant will just do as Madam instructs until Madam is satisfied."

They had said everything Yunji needed to say, so she opened her mouth, but after a long while, all that remained was a sigh.

"The tasks I've assigned you these past few days must not be revealed to anyone. Even if Granny Kong asks, you must give vague answers."

"Yes, ma'am."

"I need to make a new ledger overnight."

Yunji then proceeded to explain in detail:

"The old man's three boxes of silver are of dubious origin, so we need to count them all to find out how much silver is inside. Chunxuan went to count the silver in the vermilion box, separating the silver ingots from each merchant. Huachao found the silver notes in the box, categorized them according to the money shops, and gave them to me to register."

"Yes, madam."

The three of them went about their respective tasks.

The candles in the tent burned brightly all night, and the lights were only turned off when dawn broke.

Hua Chao gently pushed the door open and went out, startling Xi Kui, who was dozing outside. She quickly stood up and called out anxiously:

"Hana-chan sister."

"You've worked hard guarding the tent all night. Madam is resting now. It's still early, you can go home, wash up, and go to sleep."

"This servant will take it away now."

Xi Kui had only taken a few steps outside when a soft call from behind brought her back.

Hua Chao placed the bag of roasted melon seeds into her arms, and looking at this girl who was only ten years old but had a thin, bean sprout-like frame, he felt a pang of pity and said:

"Sleep until noon, then go to the back room to find me and Chunxuan. We'll save you a good meal."

"I'll listen to my sister."

Xi Kui put the sunflower seeds in her mouth and cracked them open with a loud, satisfying crackling sound.

Yunji had barely slept for an hour while lying on her desk when she was awakened by the sound of hooves from the outer courtyard. She looked up blankly.

Chunxuan entered the room with a cold face. Although she tried her best to suppress the panic in her heart, her voice still carried a hint of fear.

"Madam, the master has returned home."

"What's going on outside? Why is it so noisy?"

"When the old man was reorganizing the troops in the Tiger Wing Army, he heard about what happened in the courtyard last night, and led his personal guards back to the mansion in a grand procession."

Chunxuan calmed herself down and forced herself to remain composed. "Right now, the master is in the front yard, personally supervising Judge Wu as he punishes the twelve guards."

"What will be the punishment?"

"Forty strokes of the cane."

Yunji's heart sank. This elaborate punishment was clearly a "deterrent blow" to her.

After washing up, she changed into a peacock-green long coat with phoenix and peony patterns and went out.

The punishment was being carried out in the outer courtyard. The thick sticks were raised high and then brought down heavily, landing on the guards' buttocks, forcing them to break out in a fine sweat. But the guards gritted their teeth and endured it, all remaining silent.

Yun Ji walked straight to Cui Zemin's side without looking to the side. Looking at his cold and fierce expression, she silently lowered her head and waited for him to reprimand her.

"Why has Madam come here?"

Cui Zemin didn't even glance at her, saying, "Beating a guard with a cane, such a bloody scene, aren't you afraid of offending your eyes?"

Yunji showed him weakness, saying listlessly, "Husband, I barely slept a wink all night."

Cui Zemin turned his head to look at her, his eyes filled with a hatred that seemed to want to tear her apart, but she kept her head down, pretending not to see anything.

She robbed him of tens of thousands of taels of silver in the middle of the night, and yet she still felt wronged.

"What are you so busy with that keeps you up at night, Madam?"

Yunji leaned close to his ear and said intimately, "Count the silver in the vermilion box."

Cui Zemin curled his lips into a smile and asked, "How much?"

Yunji whispered in his ear, covering his ear with her hand, "Nearly 80,000 taels of silver."

Cui Zemin got up from the ebony chair, grabbed her wrist and dragged her out. He kicked open the study door and threw her onto the heated kang.

"Who gave you permission to touch my box?"

Yunji was so dizzy from being thrown around that she lay on the warm kang (heated brick bed) for a long time, unable to get up.

She took a key from inside her narrow sleeves and gently placed it on the table. "This is the key to the private treasury, inside which are my husband's three vermilion chests."

Cui Zemin took the key and examined it carefully. "What private vault?"

Yunji said bluntly, "There is only one bronze door in the storeroom. After opening it, you will find the private vault. There is only one key, so please keep it safe, my husband."

Cui Zemin looked at her noncommittally.

If Yunji wants to keep the 80,000 taels of silver firmly in her hands, she must gain his trust.

"May I ask, sir, who do you intend to have count the silver inside these three chests after they were brought in?"

Seeing that he remained silent and deep in thought, she took out the account book she had prepared overnight and placed it on the table. "This is the account book. Please take a look, my husband."

Cui Zemin took the account book and read it line by line.

"There were a total of 30,000 taels of silver notes in the box, nearly 50,000 taels of silver. The ledger recorded the name of the bank, the amount, and the serial number of each silver note. All the silver notes were recorded in a ledger for my husband."

"All the silver came from the three major merchant guilds: 'Jingtai,' 'Changsheng,' and 'Qinghe.' The year of minting, source of tax revenue, weight, and purity of each ingot are recorded in a register so that my husband can refer to it at any time."

Yunji struggled to sit up, but even as she leaned on the table, she couldn't stop feeling dizzy.

Cui Zemin put down the impeccable account book and asked her directly:

Why are you doing the accounts overnight?

"All I know is that no one is better suited to do this than me."

Yunji looked at him firmly, "Husband and wife are one; one's glory is the other's glory."

On that beautiful face, Cui Zemin could no longer distinguish between genuine feelings and feigned sincerity.

"My lord, do you know what first thing came to mind when I saw that chest full of gleaming silver?"

When he looked over, Yunji said earnestly, "I will hide this money carefully for my husband."