Marrying a treacherous official

A faint spring thunder rumbled, followed by a deafening roar in the dark night, and then the rain fell softly like tender raindrops.

Yunji was trapped in a nightmare, rising and falling several times.

A sudden roar echoed throughout the courtyard, startling her so much that she sat bolt upright on her daybed, clutching her chest to calm her racing heart.

Hua Chao, carrying a celadon lamp, entered the inner room. Seeing the person sitting up on the bed, she went to the table, lit the palace lantern, and lifted half of the gilded curtain, hanging it on the hook. She hurriedly asked:

"Was the sound of thunder and rain startling you, Madam?"

"I was terrified by a nightmare."

Yunji, her face pale, stared in disbelief at the shadowy figures in the room, still shaken.

For some reason, she had a bizarre dream in which Cui Zemin was impeached by the court officials, and the civil officials stood up to advise the emperor to execute his entire family.

Then she saw the Palace Guards burst in to search the mansion. As soon as she looked down, she caught a glimpse of her pregnant belly and was so frightened that she fainted.

Fortunately, a clap of thunder pulled her out of her nightmare.

Hua Chao gently wiped the beads of sweat from his wife's neck with a handkerchief, and said with concern:

"Madam is overwhelmed with worries during the day, and is easily disturbed by evil spirits at night. Tomorrow, I will instruct the cook to prepare a bowl of lotus seed and lily bulb soup to soothe Madam's heart fire."

"I'm afraid of being dragged down by the old man."

Yunji held a cup of warm water and sipped it slowly.

If the death of her entire family were to be the cause of her death, that would be one thing, but to also implicate her unborn child and have them executed would be horrifying.

Hua Chao assumed that the lady was upset by the master again and couldn't even have a peaceful dream.

"This servant will keep watch by Madam's bedside for the rest of the night, so Madam can sleep peacefully."

"There's no need to guard it."

Yunji was always kind to her servants, especially the head maid in the house. "Go to the couch in the outer room and rest. Open the straight window and I'll listen to the sound of the rain."

Hua Chao obediently pushed open a straight window and bowed as she left.

Yunji lay on the daybed, unable to fall asleep despite the incessant sound of rain.

She had no idea how Cui Zemin in her previous life had driven Cheng Wengong to his death.

But a person who is willing to risk his life to expose the cheating and fraud in the imperial examinations must be fearless of power and willing to die for the sake of so-called righteousness.

From this point of view alone, Cheng Wengong is very much like his deceased father.

Cui Zemin must have used some means to coerce Cheng Wengong, so that Cheng Wengong resolutely chose to die when faced with the choice between public justice and private interests.

She absolutely could not let Cheng Wengong be forced to his death by Cui Zeming. If it aroused the indignation of scholars all over the country, she would also be caught in the crossfire and suffer the same fate.

Yunji, standing in Cui Zemin's shoes, wondered what he was trying to gain by scheming all this. She also reviewed the power struggles between factions in the court and what the divination stick in her hand could actually change.

After much thought, she seemed to understand how Cui Zemin had gradually driven Cheng Wengong to his death.

The spring night lasted until dawn, leaving the ground wet and muddy.

Xi Kui, holding an oil-paper umbrella, went out to the outer courtyard and instructed the guards to prepare the carriage, as the First Madam was going on a long trip.

Li Xiuji trudged through the soaking rain and rushed over as soon as he heard the news.

"Where is the First Madam heading so early in the morning?"

"We'll find out once Lieutenant General Li goes with them."

Xi Kui turned to go back to the courtyard to work, but Li Xiuji blocked her way by stepping across the moon gate.

Li Xiuji raised a smile at the corner of his eye and pressed on with a series of questions:

"Is the First Madam going out of the city to the estate, or is she going back to the Gu family?"

"Lieutenant General Li should refrain from inquiring too much about the lady's affairs."

Xi Kui continued to advise him, "Lieutenant General Li, just do as Madam says. That is the duty of serving Madam."

Li Xiuji gave a perfunctory smile, but he felt that this matter was of utmost importance.

If it weren't for something urgent, the First Madam wouldn't have made this long journey in the rain.

The general ordered him to keep a close eye on the First Madam's every move and to report to the general immediately if anything seemed amiss.

He had only keenly sensed something was amiss, and before anything was clear, he rushed to the palace to report to the general, fearing he would be asking for trouble and get beaten with twenty strokes of the cane for no reason.

"The First Madam is going to the North Manor to visit the old steward."

Xi Kui closed her umbrella and stood under his green silk umbrella, looking up at him and saying, "What nonsense are you thinking about?"

Seeing that it was a false alarm, Li Xiuji laughed and said, "I will immediately gather the guards to escort the First Madam out of the mansion."

Xi Kui returned to the backyard with an oil-paper umbrella and immediately reported her errands upon entering.

"Lieutenant Li has gathered guards in the front yard, ready to await the First Madam's arrival in her carriage."

"Didn't he suspect anything about this trip?"

"Absolutely not."

Xi Kui smiled slyly and proudly told the First Madam, "This servant used some tricks to fool Vice General Li and tricked him into submission."

Yunji couldn't help but smile. "Is your brother here?"

Xi Kui replied with a smile, "My brother heard that Madam had summoned him to drive the carriage again, so he waited in the stable early, not daring to delay Madam's important matter."

"Have you explained everything I asked you to say about him?"

"Please rest assured, Madam, that I will handle this matter well."

Yunji nodded in satisfaction, instructed Huachao to distribute the rewards, and then went out to board a carriage, heading towards Beitai Gate.

Li Xiuji led eight guards, closely accompanying the carriage.

As they passed Caomen Street, Yinxiang yelled into the carriage, "Madam, hold on tight!" He then raised his whip and lashed it out, and the chestnut horse galloped wildly through the rainy street.

Seeing this, Li Xiuji tightened his grip on his horse's belly and spurred it on to catch up. Just as he was about to catch up with the carriage at the end of the long street, Yinxiang suddenly pulled on the reins and turned the horse into a side alley.

He reined in his warhorse, turned around, and galloped into the alley. In the distance, he saw the carriage stopped in front of the city gate. When he got closer and saw the plaque of the Right Prison, he knew that something bad was about to happen!

With Hua Chao holding an umbrella and helping her up, Yunji had already climbed the steps of the Right Prison.

The guards blocked their way.

"See Li Xiuji, the deputy general who's following behind? That's the Martial Judge of the Tiger Wing Army."

Xi Kui, using her connections to intimidate others, commanded, "Nobody get in Madam Cui's way, everyone move aside!"

She winked at her brother, and Yinxiang rushed forward to stop the guards at the gate, forcibly allowing the First Madam to pass.

Yunji strode into the rain and went straight to the prison gate. Soldiers with swords in hand blocked her way and refused to let her pass.

Upon hearing the report from his subordinates, Zhou Boren rushed over from the yamen.

When Li Xiuji saw him from afar, he gestured to him, "This is the general's wife."

Zhou Boren bowed in greeting, smiling憨憨地, "This subordinate greets the First Madam. May I ask what brings you here today?"

"To be honest, Zhou Tuicheng, my younger brother Gu Jinyu is imprisoned in the Right Prison."

Yunji sighed with regret:

"He was implicated in the examination cheating case and has been imprisoned for more than ten days. I came here to bring him two spring clothes. I hope that Magistrate Zhou will be lenient and allow me to visit him in prison."