Marrying a treacherous official

Madam You was the first to regain her senses. She climbed onto Cui Tingyan's arm and gently persuaded him:

"Ming-ge'er spoke without thinking; how could he commit such a heinous act of cruelly murdering servants? At best, he'd be punished with a hundred strokes of the cane; at worst, he'd be sentenced to a year in prison. That's an unforgivable crime. He was just arguing for the sake of wit; why should Your Highness be angry with him?"

"Hasn't he killed enough people?"

Cui Tingyan slammed his fist on the coffee table, causing the tea to spill all over the spout of the silver teapot.

"What are the enemy soldiers buried alive at Jiuping'ao? What are the thousands who perished in the fire? If he dares to kill an old servant like me now, he'll dare to draw his sword and chop me down one day!"

"Father, please calm down."

Yun Ji released Cui Zemin's hand, stepped in front of him, and said in a dignified and composed manner:

"Granny Wang is old and frail. How could she possibly endure thirty lashes? She has suffered so much this time. It's hard to say whether she can survive this ordeal after being expelled from the manor. Even if she does die of illness, you must not blame the master."

A few words revealed her keen mind, and the tangled knot was easily untied.

Cui Zemin looked at the graceful figure with amusement, casually brushing away the folds on the bat-patterned narrow sleeves, removing her marks one by one.

Upon hearing this, Cui Tingyan's raging anger was instantly extinguished.

By balancing both ends in this way, everyone can emerge unscathed.

For Madam You, the best explanation for leaving the mansion alive was for Wang Mama; for Cui Zemin, executing Wang Mama outside the mansion would firstly prevent any evidence from being presented, thus avoiding the mansion's responsibility, and secondly, give him an excellent excuse to do so, that Wang Mama died from serious injuries rather than being murdered.

What Cui Tingyan wanted from beginning to end was nothing more than to maintain his son's dignity.

Yunji lowered her eyes, and seeing that the Marquis remained silent, she guessed that he had heeded her advice. Before Madam You could speak up to sow discord between father and son, she spoke first:

"My husband is not good with words. He couldn't contain his anger and blurted out some wild words, unintentionally offending Father. His words of righteous indignation should not be taken seriously. I hope Father will consider that it was an unintentional mistake and send him back to reflect on his actions."

Cui Zemin had never heard such a statement before, and it was truly strange. His gaze towards her became more intense.

Seeing that Yun Ji was so sensible and reasonable, worthy of being the eldest daughter of the noble Shi family, and seeing that Cui Zemin was standing behind her without doing anything out of line, Cui Tingyan's anger subsided somewhat.

He waved his hand outwards, "All of you, get out of here."

"Yes, Father."

Yun Ji curtsied and bid farewell to Cui Tingyan, then obediently retreated, so much so that she didn't see the look of hatred that You Shi gave her.

Madam You took out a handkerchief, wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, and pleaded pitifully:

"My lord, Granny Wang is an old servant of the manor and has taken care of me for so many years. She has done her a great service, even if she hasn't made any great contributions. I beg you, my lord, could you allow Granny Wang to leave the manor only after she has recovered from her injuries?"

"Between Ming-ge and Granny Wang, who is more important?"

Cui Tingyan suddenly raised his voice, glaring at her angrily, "For the sake of an old servant, you disregarded the dignity of the mistress of the house, and tore ties with the eldest son. How could you be so foolish?!"

Madam You's knees buckled, and she knelt on the ground again, weeping uncontrollably:

"Before I married into the Cui family as a concubine, I was just a concubine's daughter in the Duke of Wei's mansion. My mother died early, and it was Wang Mama who took care of me out of the kindness between us as mistress and servant. Even crows have the sense of repaying their parents' kindness. Even if Wang Mama has made a thousand mistakes, I cannot abandon her life."

Cui Tingyan angrily stood up from his seat and gave her an ultimatum.

"Since you are so filial, then move to the West Villa and take good care of your wet nurse so that she can live out her days in old age. Otherwise, just do your duty as the mistress of the house and don't mention this matter again."

Lady You collapsed to the ground, staring at Cui Tingyan's retreating figure with a look of despair, tears streaming down her face.

Granny Tong knelt down and pleaded with her earnestly:

"Even if Lady Hou is reluctant to part with Granny Wang, she has to let go this time. Even if she doesn't consider herself, she has to think about the future of the Second Master, the Third Master, and the eldest daughter. Has Lady Hou forgotten how we got here all this way?"

Madam You swallowed the sob in her throat with resentment; how could she forget?

Her concubine was poisoned and tortured by her stepmother, and gradually became emaciated. After losing her husband's favor, she was trapped and died in the desolate courtyard.

It was only after Granny Wang knelt down and begged the old lady that she was brought out of the abandoned courtyard.

She endured the mistreatment from her stepmother and the oppression from the servants, gritting her teeth and hoping that one day she could climb the social ladder and escape the hellish Duke of Wei's mansion.

When the devastating news of her elder sister's sudden death arrived, her grandfather urgently needed to select a suitable granddaughter to marry into the Marquis's mansion as his second wife. She knew then that the opportunity she had been searching for had finally arrived.

Dressed in mourning clothes, she attended her elder sister's funeral and, despite the advice of her clansmen, insisted on staying at the Cui residence to keep vigil and mourn for her sister.

That night she met Cui Tingyan.

Perhaps it was her tearful tears that moved Cui Tingyan to pity, which led him to replace his intended half-sister with her and arrange for her to remarry into the Marquis's mansion.

The clansmen all hoped that she would marry into the family and raise Cui Zeming to be a talented man with both literary and martial skills, so that he could inherit the title of Marquis. But she did not grant their wishes and instead forced him to become a madman hated by everyone.

She could not forget her stepmother's dry and withered eyes before she died. She could not harm her stepmother or her step-sister, so she would let the living Cui Zemin pay for their blood debt.

Yu's eyes gradually reddened.

She rose from the cold, hard blue bricks, brushed away the hand that was helping her up, and strode towards the outside.

Granny Wang, barely clinging to life, lay sprawled on the long bench, straining to lift her head. Through tear-filled eyes, she watched as Madam You slowly approached.

She heard voices inside the house, and knowing she was doomed, she said in a barely audible voice:

"This old servant is afraid that I will no longer be able to serve you, Madam. Please take good care of yourself while you are at the manor..."

Madam You grasped the hand holding the old tree bark, slowly squatted down, and looked steadily at her, saying:

"Your wet nurse will go mad first thing tomorrow morning. On the way home from the mansion, she'll tell everyone she meets that the master is going to kill you. The more insane your wet nurse becomes, the less likely anyone will dare to touch you. Remember that?"

In those tearful, restrained eyes, Granny Wang saw the obsession that compelled her to live.

She gripped Madam You's hand tightly and said solemnly, "Madam, rest assured, this old servant will never disappoint you again."

Under the long, foggy night sky, the back garden was shrouded in lush shadows.

Chunxuan carried a slightly worn gauze lantern and walked gracefully ahead to lead the way.

Yunji followed the swaying lights back to Qinghui Courtyard.

She picked up her skirt and stepped across the threshold, only to see the dim light suddenly freeze, casting a long, slender black shadow that stood arrogantly in front of her.

Cui Zemin suddenly stopped on the long steps, turned around and glanced at her.

"Madam, please feel free to speak your mind."

Yun Ji looked at him blankly, only to see him wave his hand outside. Huo Xi strode back and slammed the courtyard gate shut behind him.

The front yard was quiet and deserted.

Cui Zemin showed her exceptional magnanimity, saying, "There are no outsiders here, Madam, you can speak freely. What do you need from me this time?"