Springtime Affairs in a Noble Family

"Cui, don't go too far!" Prince Rong gritted his teeth. "Your Majesty, Rong Jia hasn't done anything seriously wrong. Why strip him of his title?"

Cui Lingrong did not respond to Rong Wang's words.

Song Shulan didn't want Princess Rongjia to not be a princess, since she was his concubine and his status would be elevated.

Xie Yunting said, "Why not? To use the title of princess to do bad things is what truly disgraces the Emperor!"

"Xie Yunting, the Emperor hasn't spoken yet, it's not your place to interrupt!" Prince Rong was furious!

Xie Yunting, however, didn't care. "Is Your Highness angry out of embarrassment? There's no need for that. You are you, and your daughter is your daughter. I didn't say that if the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will be crooked too. What's the rush?"

Xie Yunting raised an eyebrow and smiled.

Prince Rong was seething with anger, and just as he was about to plead with the Emperor, the Emperor spoke first.

"Yunting is right. Since Rongjia isn't a first-time offender, she should be demoted to a county princess." The emperor had no choice but to concede. "As for that Cui... Cui what was it again?"

Xie Yunting: "Cui Zeyu."

"Oh, Cui Zeyu, he was wronged, so let Rongjia compensate him double. Cui, is that enough?" The emperor was tired, and his tone revealed impatience.

Knowing that this was the best she could do for the day, Cui Lingrong decided to stop while she was ahead. "Thank you, Your Majesty. On behalf of my brother, I express my gratitude to you. You are a wise ruler, and my brother and I are deeply grateful to you."

Princess Rongjia, no... now Princess Rongjia, wished she could go over and beat Cui Lingrong to death, but as soon as she looked up, she met her father's shaking head.

Now that things have come to this, if Cui Lingrong doesn't press the matter further, and the Rong Prince's Mansion still refuses to budge, the Emperor's favor towards the Rong Prince's Mansion will diminish.

Prince Rong was still hoping that the Emperor would adopt his son so that he could rise to prominence.

Princess Rongjia bit her lip tightly. She hated Cui Lingrong and wished she would die immediately!

The officials ordered them all to return home and instructed Princess Rongjia to reflect on her actions for a month afterward.

When Cui Lingrong stood up, her knees trembled slightly; this was the result of her best efforts.

She walked out of the main hall first, and when she turned around, she saw Song Shulan walk to the side of Princess Rongjia and walk out without looking back.

"Sister Cui, wait a moment." Upon reaching the palace gate, Xie Yunting approached and spoke, "Are you going to see Brother Cui? Shall I go with you?"

Cui Lingrong agreed.

When Song Shulan left the palace, he saw this scene: Xie Yunting was standing by the carriage, smiling at Cui Lingrong as if they were husband and wife.

"Song Lang, I..."

"Princess, there's no need to explain. I know you were just confused for a moment. Besides, that brat Cui Zeyu is indeed annoying." Song Shulan wasn't angry because Princess Rongjia was targeting Cui Zeyu. If it were him, he would also want to kill Cui Zeyu.

Hearing Song Shulan say this, Princess Rongjia felt even more certain that marrying Song Shulan was the right decision.

She and Song Shulan shared a bond forged from childhood.

The two boarded the carriage together. Princess Rongjia held Song Shulan's hand tightly, saying, "Song Lang, I will never do anything foolish again. The fact that you spoke up for me today proves that you care about me."

"In my heart, you are naturally the most important." Song Shulan looked at the gentle and considerate Princess Rongjia and felt very pleased.

Thinking of Cui Lingrong who had left with Xie Yunting, Song Shulan's expression softened again.

"Sister Cui and Xie Yunting just left; they must have gone to see Cui Zeyu. I really don't understand why Sister Cui values ​​Cui Zeyu so much?"

Song Shulan said he didn't understand either, "People who don't know them would think they are siblings."

He finished speaking and snorted, then called Qingshan over, "Go to Cui Zeyu and tell the eldest mistress to remember her place. She is the eldest mistress of the Jiangyuan Marquis's mansion. If she doesn't come back tonight, then she should never come back!"

It was getting late, and Song Shulan was speaking out of jealousy, especially when she thought about Xie Yunting and Cui Lingrong together. She wondered what kind of thoughts Xie Yunting might have about Cui Lingrong.

The more Song Shulan thought about it, the more likely it seemed. He became restless and sent someone to urge Cui Lingrong to return home after returning to the Jiangyuan Marquis's residence.

At this moment, Cui Lingrong and Xie Yunting had just met her younger brother.

Xie Yunting glanced at Cui Zeyu and sighed, "Brother Cui is so lucky to have such a wonderful sister like Sister Cui. It must be a blessing you earned in your past life."

Cui Zeyu had lost a lot of weight and said apologetically, "I'm the one who made you worry."

"Don't mention it." Cui Lingrong felt guilty. "It was because of me that Princess Rongjia went against you. Fortunately, this incident left a bad impression on the Emperor, and I also had her story spread throughout Bianjing."

"Won't your old lady be angry?" Cui Zeyu was afraid that her sister would be blamed by Old Madam Song.

"Let her be angry. Even if she believes I spread the rumors, she has no proof." Cui Lingrong is now assertive and doesn't care about such trivial matters as reputation and face.

Cui Zeyu clenched his fists and suddenly regretted, "If I had gritted my teeth and persisted in taking the imperial examinations back then, I would have passed the exams today and wouldn't be humiliated to this extent."

Cui Lingrong disagreed, saying, "Being an official certainly brings status and prestige, but you're going into business so that we can live a better life. In my opinion, you're not inferior to anyone."

Hearing her sister say that, Cui Zeyu felt even more upset.

His sister valued him so much, but he wasn't capable enough, got schemed against, and was unable to save himself.

All of this stemmed from his background as a merchant.

Having been a merchant for many years, Cui Zeyu knew very well that people looked down on merchants.

As they were talking, Ershun came to deliver a message, saying that Qingshan had come to urge the eldest mistress to return to the mansion.

It was getting dark, and it really wasn't suitable for Cui Lingrong to stay any longer. "I'll have Aunt Qiu stay and take care of you. You should rest well and not think too much."

Cui Zeyu said it wasn't necessary to go to such trouble, but Cui Lingrong insisted on keeping Qiu's mother.

Xie Yunting also took his leave, catching up with Cui Lingrong and calling out "Sister Cui" from the side.

Cui Lingrong was filled with gratitude towards Xie Yunting. "This matter has troubled General Xie again. If you need anything, please feel free to tell me, and I will do my best to help."

"There is something I'd like to ask Sister Cui. Brother Cui should have told you about my marriage. This marriage is an imperial decree, and there's no going back. The Qin family knows they're in the wrong, so they're letting me choose for myself. But I don't know either of the Qin family's daughters well, and I don't know which one is better or worse. Could you help me find out more, and it would be best if you could meet them and get to know them better?" Xie Yunting said.

Cui Lingrong readily agreed, "The Qin family and the Duke of Dingguo's mansion are related by marriage, and we have a complicated relationship, so we do run into each other on some occasions. Since you've entrusted this matter to me, I will definitely help you find out the details. However, General Xie, marriage is a lifelong commitment. If you've already had a falling out with the Qin family before the wedding, is this marriage really impossible to cancel?"

Xie Yunting gave a wry smile, "You've seen it for yourself today; the Emperor truly cannot back down."

"Alright." Cui Lingrong walked to the door, thought for a moment, and said, "General Xie, you are a very good person, and I sincerely hope that you can have a smooth marriage. I will help you with this matter, but if neither of the two Qin girls are suitable, you should try for yourself, after all, it's a lifelong matter."

Thinking of how Xie Yunting confronted Prince Rong in front of the Emperor, Cui Lingrong felt that Xie Yunting was a person who was willing to go all out.

Xie Yunting said "okay," but in his heart he was thinking of something else... something that Cui Lingrong would never have thought of.