Marrying a treacherous official

Cui Zemin didn't believe that Yun Ji would reach out and pull him away from that unexpected disaster for no reason, unless she had something to ask of him.

He owed no one any favors, let alone her.

Yunji apologized to the Marquis on his behalf, out of consideration for the unity of husband and wife, sharing both glory and loss. Her act of pulling him away from the flying teacup was out of kindness.

Seeing that he had misunderstood so deeply, she saw no need to explain further, and simply said that she had stumbled upon good fortune and accepted the favor:

"To be honest, my husband, I do have a request."

Cui Zemin looked at her meek and submissive appearance, sneered, and saw right through her with his sharp gaze.

He knew she had ulterior motives.

"Madam, what is it that you've gone to such lengths to show your goodwill?"

"A few days ago, the steward sent someone to deliver a message saying that my grandmother had fallen ill from worry and that her old illness had relapsed before my second uncle returned home, and she could no longer hold on and fell ill."

A hint of sorrow settled between Yunji's brows as she murmured softly:

"I lost my father at a young age and suffered a lot of cold treatment while living with my maternal grandparents. Fortunately, my grandmother took pity on me and brought me back to Shengjing from afar. She kept me by her side and raised me personally. There were also warm and tender days in my boudoir."

She paused, a lump forming in her throat, and then continued:

"Now that my grandmother has fallen ill, and I am married into the Marquis's family, I cannot stay by her side to care for her. I am filled with anxiety and unease, so I beg my husband to forgive me and allow me to return to my parents' home and stay for a few days."

His words were earnest and his feelings were deep, so much so that Chunxuan, who was standing nearby, couldn't help but wipe away her tears with her handkerchief.

Cui Zemin concealed the mockery in his eyes, and the sarcastic remark that was about to come out, "That's it—?", remained stuck in his throat.

"Have the steward arrange a carriage, Madam, please go and return quickly."

"Thank you for your kindness, my husband."

Yunji watched him walk towards the outer study, and after pondering for a while, she hurriedly called out, "Husband—"

Cui Zemin stopped and turned around at the end of the corridor, a hint of impatience showing on his face.

Yunji spoke with a hint of reproach on her face, "Husband, aren't you coming back to my parents' home with me?"

Chunxuan opened her mouth slightly in surprise, took a step back, and subtly tugged at Yunji's shawl, afraid that the master might displease her and forbid them from returning to the Gu family home.

Yun Ji ignored her attempts to stop her and, before Cui Zemin could refuse, began to ramble on:

"After our wedding, my husband never accompanied me back to my parents' home, and I missed the homecoming banquet hosted by my uncles and elders. Is my husband going to let me go back alone this time as well?"

Cui Zemin stared intently at her, determined to discern the true feelings in her face.

Then he gave a forced laugh, offering her only perfunctory response:

"I am busy with official duties at court. If you can wait, I will accompany you to your parents' home again after your leave next year. If you cannot wait, I will bring double the gifts for your return visit."

"My husband's intentions are enough."

Yunji bowed to him and thanked him, saying, "Grandmother is old and may suffer from a serious illness after this. I will go to her bedside to take care of her. Next year, after my husband takes a break, we will go back to my parents' home together to visit them."

Cui Zemin had never seen anyone so eager to climb the ladder; was this ever going to end? He instructed Huo Xi:

"Tomorrow, escort Madam back to her family home. You shall return to report whenever Madam returns."

"Your subordinate obeys."

Huo Xi dared not be negligent and respectfully accepted the task.

After the master and servant disappeared at the end of the corridor, Chunxuan still couldn't believe it and said:

"Madam, is the master referring to a double set of return gifts?"

"Um."

Seeing that she was still in a daze, Yunji took the gauze lantern from her hand and walked forward gracefully.

"Tomorrow, find two carriages and take out two sets of homecoming gifts from the storeroom in the courtyard. We'll all travel home together by carriage."

Chunxuan was overjoyed and smiled, "Don't worry, Madam, I will fill the carriage to the brim so that you can return to your parents' home in style."

As the moon sets and the stars fade, just before dawn breaks in the east, the orioles still sing incessantly on the branches.

Chunxuan got out of bed early, changed into a brand-new lotus-silk jacket and embroidered skirt, and after washing up, took the gift certificate and goods list to the old woman who looked after the storeroom to ask for the homecoming gift.

The maidservant was sent to work, busily loading the silk onto the carriage. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was around, she couldn't stop grumbling:

"The First Madam really thinks she's the mistress of the house. Doesn't she even look at the Master? She doesn't even give him a second glance. She has to put on such a show when she goes back to her parents' home. Isn't she afraid that she won't be able to enter our Marquis's mansion again after she leaves?"

"Auntie, you'd better be careful! The current Madam is not someone to be trifled with!"

The cleaning maid leaned closer to her and said timidly, "I just came back from cleaning Minghe Hall. Guess what happened to the head maid, Granny Wang, after she offended the First Madam?"

"What's wrong?"

"That's insane."

"How could someone who was perfectly healthy suddenly go insane?"

"In the morning, when Wang Mama's family came to carry her away, she threw a tantrum and refused to go back. She even went crazy, telling everyone that the master was going to kill her. She ran into the long street and knelt down and kowtowed to everyone she saw, begging people to save her."

The cleaning maid said fearfully, "It's so frightening that the servants are now afraid to work at Qinghui Courtyard."

The old woman turned pale, filled with lingering fear. Looking around Qinghui Courtyard, she felt a chill run through her.

The news of Granny Wang's madness spread like wildfire throughout the mansion.

Just before leaving, Yunji heard about this from Huachao, and her heart sank.

"When I overheard the maids gossiping that Granny Wang had gone mad early this morning, I didn't believe it at first. But I made an excuse to go to Minghe Hall, and sure enough, I saw Granny Wang... mad..."

"What caused this sudden madness?"

Hua Chao replied truthfully, "Wang Mama lay sprawled on the carrying pole with her long hair disheveled, crying and pleading bitterly, telling everyone she met that the master wanted to kill her."

"Didn't the Lady of the Marquis have the maidservants gag her?"

"Wang Mama bites anyone she sees, and no one dares to get close to her."

Yunji underestimated the capabilities of the You family.

She never expected that Madam You would resort to such a drastic measure, allowing Granny Wang to escape death. "Do you think Granny Wang is truly insane or feigning madness?"

Hua Chao pondered carefully, "If I were Granny Wang, and I found out that the master had threatened to kill me, I would have been driven mad sooner or later."

Upon hearing this, Yunji felt a wave of sorrow and distress.

Huachao was too kind.

It was precisely because of this pure and kind nature that she was beaten to death by Granny Wang in her previous life.

She never intended to let Wang Mama go after her rebirth. She planned every step carefully and meticulously, intending to use Cui Zeming to kill Wang Mama. Unfortunately, she miscalculated one step.

"Wang Mama has gone mad. Will anyone believe her if she says that?"

"Won't."

"What if she dies?"

Hua Chao immediately realized that it was the old man who had harmed her, and couldn't help but shudder.

Yunji was teaching her how to manipulate people's hearts, "Don't underestimate the madness of this old servant. Even the master wouldn't dare to touch her for a while."