Springtime Affairs in a Noble Family

"Pingping, I've been so good to you, how... how could you let me beg Cui Lingrong?" Jiang's face flushed with anger. She had never imagined that her cousin could be interested in Cui Zeyu. "Tell me, did he seduce you by being a womanizer?"

"No, cousin, I... I've barely exchanged more than a few words with him."

"So why did you fall for him?"

Aside from visiting Jiang's family, He Pingping usually only went to pay her respects to Old Madam Song; she didn't go anywhere else much.

She only occasionally ran into Cui Zeyu on the street; the two would nod at most and have no interaction.

But He Pingping noticed Cui Zeyu the first time she saw her. Cui Zeyu was beautiful and particularly gentle with the servants. Every time He Pingping saw her, Cui Zeyu never looked down on her.

He Pingping gradually took a liking to Cui Zeyu. Whenever she knew Cui Zeyu was coming, she would take a look from a distance.

Day after day, she became more and more satisfied with Cui Zeyu.

But how could she voice such thoughts of a young woman? He Pingping said with difficulty, "Cousin, the He family has lost its official position, my brothers are not good at studying, and the He family has no generous dowry for me. Even if I were to marry a poor scholar who has passed the imperial examination, he might not even be interested in me."

Jiang frowned and looked at He Pingping without saying a word.

"You've also spoken on my behalf to many potential husbands, but none of them responded. You know in your heart that I can't marry an official."

"How could that be?" Jiang said. "If we look carefully, we'll surely find a suitable family. That Cui Zeyu is a merchant, reeking of money. He was ungrateful at the autumn banquet and made the Marquis's mansion lose face. If you marry him, you'll be classified as a merchant too!"

Among the four classes of people—scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants—merchants were the lowest in rank.

From any perspective, the Jiang family looked down on Cui Zeyu.

"It's better to be rich than poor. Marrying a poor scholar means enduring years of hardship before you can afford three dishes and a soup. Besides, Cui Zeyu has no parents. My family background is a good match for him, as my cousin knows. The Marquis's prestige in recent years was maintained by his cloth shop business. Cousin, I don't care about empty titles anymore. I want something real. Cui Zeyu is a good person. I... I really want to marry him." These words were too embarrassing, but He Pingping knew that she had no other choice but to ask her cousin for help.

Jiang opened her mouth, but had no words to refute it. Cui Zeyu was indeed good-looking, and she had never heard of him being a womanizer.

But if she were to ask Cui Lingrong to propose marriage, wouldn't Cui Lingrong not only refuse but also humiliate her?

Besides, Princess Rongjia is watching. She is destined to be an enemy of Cui Lingrong. Now that she has married her cousin to Cui Zeyu, do you think Princess Rongjia will let her have an easy time?

Jiang became increasingly unconvinced and insisted, "Cui Zeyu does have some advantages, but you must understand my difficulties. I am on Princess Rongjia's side. If you marry Cui Zeyu, what will Princess Rongjia think of me?"

"But……"

"There's no 'but,' everyone else is fine, but Cui Lingrong's brother is not. Pingping, it's not that your cousin doesn't want to help you, it's just that I'm truly powerless." Jiang sighed, "Get up quickly, I will find you a good match, definitely better than Cui Zeyu."

After coaxing her for a while, Jiang left, feeling exhausted.

He Pingping sat there, stunned. "Why? Why won't my cousin help me?"

Her maid, Qing'er, came over and said, "It's not that I'm being nosy, but Second Mistress never really cared about you. Take the autumn banquet for example, so many high-ranking officials and nobles came, why didn't Second Mistress take you to socialize with them?"

"I am indeed unworthy of a noble family."

"You shouldn't belittle yourself. You're beautiful and well-educated. Even if you can't marry a legitimate son, can't you marry a son from a concubine?" Qing'er hoped her mistress would find a good marriage so she could live a better life. "Besides, regarding Young Master Yu, Second Mistress is selfish. Young Master Yu has so many advantages, yet Second Mistress can't bring herself to do it, using Princess Rongjia as an excuse. Actually, it's Second Mistress who can't bring herself to do it. Good girl, I understand your feelings. Since Second Mistress can't be relied on, why don't we make our own plans?"

He Pingping looked over and asked, "What are your thoughts?"

"Young Master Yu has no parents. His marriage only requires his and Madam's consent. As for Madam, she's not Young Master Yu's biological sister, so she probably won't take it too seriously. You should first win Young Master Yu's favor, and then visit Qiushuangzhai. Do you think Madam will make things difficult for you then?"

Hearing Qing'er's words, He Pingping's heart pounded. A young lady should be reserved, but if she continued to act so aloof, she might not find a good husband.

After much deliberation, He Pingping took a deep breath and said, "Let me think about it."

At this moment, Cui Zeyu brought over silver notes and some writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones from Qiushuangzhai.

He hid the things at the bottom of the bamboo basket, which contained some oranges.

"What a hassle! I want to bring some nice things for my sister and Xuan-ge, but I have to hide them. If you ask me, the old lady and the Marquis are just putting on a show. They don't have the means, but they insist on flaunting their wealth!" After learning that Song Shulan had married Princess Rongjia, Cui Zeyu had a lot of complaints about the Marquis's mansion, and she spoke these words without any restraint.

In the past, Cui Lingrong would have definitely told Cui Zeyu not to say such things, and now she thought the same way, so she didn't stop her brother from talking.

Cui Lingrong said, "I have already cut a lot of expenses. The old lady is angry, but she won't say it out loud. Everyone in the mansion knows that it's because Princess Rongjia is pregnant, and the old lady and the Marquis are praising Princess Rongjia, so other people's expenses have decreased."

Her tactic of shifting the blame eastward caused all the resentment in the mansion to be directed at Princess Rongjia.

"Sister, you've changed." Cui Zeyu looked over with a laugh. "You wouldn't have used such a dirty trick before."

"I'm using specific methods for specific situations. Do you think I'm a pushover, someone Princess Rongjia can manipulate at will?" Cui Lingrong laughed.

Her smile stunned Cui Zeyu.

After a while, Cui Zeyu hurriedly drank some tea and changed the subject, saying, "By the way, sister, did you know that the heir of the Duke of Dingguo is critically ill?"

Cui Lingrong has been preoccupied with the affairs of the Marquis's mansion lately and hasn't been paying much attention to what's going on outside. The Duke of Dingguo is the family that Yuan Mingzhu's sister married into. The Duke is a veteran of three dynasties and has made great military achievements. However, he has difficulty having children and only has one son, who is in poor health.

"He gets sick several times a year, so he should be able to pull through this time, right?" Cui Lingrong asked.

Cui Zeyu shook his head. "I'm afraid it won't work. If you have time, you can go and see Sister Yuan. She must be very worried about this."

Cui Lingrong and Yuan Mingzhu were the closest of friends. However, due to the discord between the two families' matriarchs, Yuan Mingzhu was not invited to the autumn banquet, so Cui Lingrong was unaware of the Duke of Dingguo's family affairs.

Now that her younger brother has said this, Cui Lingrong asked Qiu's mother to prepare an invitation so she could visit Yuan Mingzhu in the next day or two.

The siblings chatted about recent events, and Cui Lingrong invited her brother to stay for dinner.

When Cui Zeyu left, he specifically emphasized, "Sister, don't worry about money. Let others live their frugal lives. You can spend money however you want. I'll take care of everything."

"You should settle down and start a family soon so I can worry less," Cui Lingrong urged her younger brother to hurry home, lest he be unsafe walking at night.

Cui Zeyu smiled and said it was nothing; he had been a businessman for many years and had some martial arts skills.

He is now single and lives in the cloth shop instead of buying a separate house, saving money on rent and also serving as a caretaker.

Along the way, Cui Zeyu walked very fast until he saw Song Shulan vomiting by the roadside. He picked up two pebbles and threw them at her without hesitation.

It hit Song Shulan squarely on the back of the head.

Song Shulan was already drunk, and when he stumbled, he fell into his vomit.

Qingshan turned around quickly and angrily shouted, "Who did this despicable thing? Do they even know who we are?"

Cui Zeyu threw a small stone that wouldn't kill anyone, and quietly left via another route.

He had long disliked Song Shulan, and if killing her hadn't failed to solve his sister's predicament, he would have killed her long ago.

That scoundrel Song Shulan doesn't deserve such a good sister!