Springtime Affairs in a Noble Family

The next morning, Song Yu hurriedly washed her face, asked Qiu Tang to comb her hair into a simple bun, and rushed to Qiu Shuang Zhai.

The first day of the Lunar New Year is a big day. Cui Lingrong had already finished washing and dressing when she saw her daughter running over in a panic. She asked what was wrong.

"Mother!" Song Yu looked around, then leaned close to her mother's ear and told her what she had overheard the night before, "Why aren't you surprised at all?"

Cui Lingrong calmly replied, "Given Princess Rongjia's personality, if she's going to raise Huadie's child, she can't possibly let Huadie live. Otherwise, with a thorn in her side, how could she possibly sleep at night?"

Cui Lingrong had guessed this before, and now it has been confirmed.

"So Mother already knew."

"Think about it and you'll understand. Princess Rongjia can't have children herself, so she brought Huadie's child to raise as her own. But it's good that it's clear now. We need to find an opportunity to let Huadie know about this, and then we can sit back and watch the tigers fight without us having to lift a finger." In this way, the prescription that You Shuyi gave her will no longer be needed.

Song Yu seemed thoughtful. "What does Mother plan to do?"

"No rush. Only when the people of Wutong Garden spread these rumors will Huadie feel threatened. She won't believe what we say," Cui Lingrong said. "Alright, quickly let Aunt Qiu comb your hair again. We still need to go and pay respects to our ancestors."

On the first day of the lunar month, the entire household goes to the ancestral hall for the sacrificial ceremony.

Cui Lingrong was talking to her daughter, which took some time. By the time she arrived, the people from the second and third branches of the family had arrived, followed by Song Shulan and Princess Rongjia, as well as Old Madam Song, who was being helped by Princess Rongjia.

Grandma Song glanced at everyone. Overall, she was quite satisfied with the past year. Her eldest son had been promoted, and the Marquis's mansion had gained the help of Princess Rongjia. The whole place was thriving.

After the worship ceremony, everyone had breakfast together. Grandma Song asked her grandchildren to stay behind to talk, while Princess Rongjia took the initiative to serve them.

Cui Lingrong had household chores to attend to and was about to leave when the old lady suddenly asked about her younger brother.

"Why didn't Cui Zeyu come to pay his respects today?" Ever since the Marquis's mansion stopped receiving dividends from the cloth shop, Old Madam Song had become somewhat disdainful of Cui Zeyu. "He's made something of himself now, buying a new house and a shop. Has he forgotten the Marquis's mansion's kindness in raising him?"

In previous years, Cui Zeyu would come to the door early on the first day of the Lunar New Year, but it's almost noon now and I still haven't seen him.

Cui Lingrong was also puzzled. Her younger brother hadn't said he wouldn't come, so it should have been the same as in previous years.

When speaking to the old lady, Cui Lingrong had to speak up for her brother, saying, "Zeyu has a new house and has some things to take care of at home. He will come over naturally once he has finished taking care of them."

"Never mind, I was just asking casually, I wasn't waiting for him." Old Mrs. Song snorted and gestured for Cui Lingrong to hurry up.

Princess Rongjia asked curiously, "Grandma, Young Master Yu grew up with Sister Cui, so why didn't he pursue the imperial examinations and instead went into business?"

Merchants have a low social status, and the Marquis's mansion is not unable to afford to send Cui Zeyu to school.

"That boy can't concentrate on his studies, he insists on going into business. He's not cut out for anything. Our Marquis's mansion has wasted its time raising him." Old Madam Song turned to look at her son. "I heard that Cui Zeyu hasn't sent you anything these days?"

Song Shulan thought about it and realized that there really wasn't any. In the past, Cui Zeyu would always send him the best writing materials for his study in advance, but he hadn't gotten used to using inferior ones these past few months.

"Heh, he really is a petty person. We shouldn't have kept him in the first place." Old Mrs. Song had also been struggling financially for a few months. Thinking about how Cui Zeyu had the money to buy a new house, she felt even more annoyed. "Just wait and see what happens to this ungrateful person. Business has its ups and downs. It'll be a good thing if he doesn't come begging to us when he's desperate."

As she said this, Princess Rongjia slightly curled her lips, as if she had thought of something.

Cui Lingrong was also wondering why her younger brother hadn't come, so she asked Ershun to go and see what was wrong with him.

Back at Qiushuangzhai, Caiyue spoke up for Young Master Yu and the First Madam, saying, "When you brought Young Master Yu back, the Old Madam told you to treat him like a servant, saying that the Marquis's mansion wouldn't support someone of dubious origin, and that he shouldn't take any money from the mansion for food or drink. So all those years, you were the one who supported Young Master Yu with your own money. Now you're talking about the debt of raising him, but that's because you, First Madam, were kind to Young Master Yu. What debt of kindness did the Marquis's mansion owe you?"

Although Young Master Yu rejected her, Caiyue was reasonable and still sided with the eldest mistress.

Caixia gave Caiyue a wink, signaling her to stop talking.

Caixia disagreed, "Later, Young Master Yu went to the clan school, and his grades were clearly better than the Marquis's. It was only because those people at the clan school bullied him that Young Master Yu stopped studying and went into business instead. Now that Young Master Yu has made a name for himself, the Marquis's mansion is short of money, and Young Master Yu refuses to give it to them, so he starts acting sarcastic and unreasonable!"

If she weren't a servant in the Marquis's mansion, she would have pointed at the old lady's face and cursed her.

"Caiyue," Qiu's mother called out, "That's enough. Do you think Grandma wouldn't understand what you're saying? Let the old ladies say what they want; we'll just pretend we didn't hear it."

"I feel sorry for Young Master Yu." Caiyue thought to herself, Young Master Yu is such a good person, it is the old lady who is ungrateful.

Madam Qiu, at a loss with Caiyue, shook her head and looked at her mistress, "Grandma, why aren't you saying anything about Caiyue today?"

“Caiyue is right. I’m using my own money to support Zeyu. What favors has the Marquis’s mansion done for Zeyu?” Cui Lingrong said, almost laughing. “In previous years, we provided them with good food and drink. If it weren’t for Princess Rongjia’s marriage, we would definitely continue to contribute money and effort.”

Caiyue's words revealed what Cui Lingrong was thinking. She herself wouldn't say these things, but hearing others say them gave her a unique sense of pleasure.

However, she is now more worried about why her younger brother didn't come.

While busy with her work, Cui Lingrong pondered for two hours until Ershun returned and said that the cloth shop had caught fire last night.

"How could there be a fire?" Cui Lingrong frowned, especially on such a big day as New Year's Eve.

Er Shun said they were still investigating. "In the past, either Young Master Yao Yu would be guarding the cloth shop, or it would be the shop assistant. Yesterday was New Year's Eve, and the shop assistant drank a few too many drinks. By the time the fire started, it was already quite large."

"Foolish!" Cui Lingrong wanted to go and see, but it was getting late. "What things were burned?"

"Young Master Yu said everything is fine, so you don't need to worry. He'll come to pay his respects tomorrow," Ershun said.

Cui Lingrong didn't believe this. Her younger brother only reported good news and not bad news. For him to be unable to take time out to pay New Year's visits today, it must be something serious.

The next day when her younger brother came over, Cui Lingrong asked directly about the losses, "Tell me the truth, how much cloth was burned?"

"I did burn some cloth, but fortunately, I transported the precious fabrics back to the new house. Sister, you don't need to worry about me; I can handle it," Cui Zeyu said with a smile.

Cui Lingrong was still worried. "Many people get married in the first month of the lunar year. What will we do if you can't produce the fabric we ordered in time?"

"Even if I lose some money to restock from others, it won't affect my reputation. I know what I'm doing. At most, I'll lose some money in the first quarter, and then I can make up for it later," Cui Zeyu said, still insisting it was no big deal.

Cui Lingrong then asked, "Can you determine whether it was intentional or an accident?"

Cui Zeyu shook his head, "Yesterday, people were setting off firecrackers from house to house, so we really couldn't find the source."

However, it was most likely deliberate, because the area around the cloth shop is full of shops, and no one would set off firecrackers at night. But Cui Zeyu wouldn't tell his sister this, because he didn't want her to worry.

Since things had come to this, Cui Lingrong asked Qiu's mother to take out her savings, saying, "In business, integrity is key. You can use this money to cover the costs first."

Cui Zeyu said no need, "Sister, you can keep your money for yourself. It's nothing to me. If I really need money, I certainly won't stand on ceremony with you."

"Don't be stubborn. If anything happens, you must tell me." Cui Lingrong sighed and led Cui Zeyu to Shou'an Hall.

When Grandma Song learned that the cloth shop had gone bankrupt, she frowned. "How could such a thing happen during the New Year?" When she went to see Cui Zeyu again, she felt it was bad luck and didn't want to talk to him anymore. She waved her hand and said she was tired and told Cui Zeyu to go back.

Cui Zeyu made a brief visit to the old lady, then hurriedly left before even having a meal, as he had to attend to matters at the cloth shop.

He returned to the cloth shop and looked at the warehouse in the backyard, which had been burned to a crisp. His face turned ashen.

Upon arriving after hearing the news, Xie Yunting immediately began cursing, "You son of a bitch, who the hell did such a despicable thing? Brother Cui, who have you offended recently?"

Cui Zeyu said no, "I have been doing business for many years, especially in Bianjing. I can't afford to offend anyone. I always value harmony."

"Was that an accident?"

"That's not it." Cui Zeyu took a deep breath; he hadn't told his sister the truth. He had an order to submit after the New Year, but the fabric in the warehouse had been burned, and he would have a hard time replacing it. Even if he could, he would lose a lot of money.

This was the first time in all his years as a merchant that Cui Zeyu had encountered such a big problem.

Where did things start to go wrong?

He thought and thought, and suddenly he had a direction.

Starting from the end of last year, some big-name clients suddenly started doing business with the fabric shop. At the time, I didn't think much of it, but now that I think about it, something seems very wrong.