On our wedding night, my wife acted strangely.

The old lady seemed determined, refusing to get up no matter what, muttering, "Why can't I take it? The Fairy Goddess has spoken, this is a gift from the Prince! If you don't let me take it, do you want me and your cousin to starve to death? How can you be so heartless, child!"

Mimi watched all this with a cold eye, feeling incredibly pleased. She crossed her arms and said coolly, "What's fifty taels of silver? As long as the prince is happy, let alone fifty taels, even five hundred or five thousand taels would be no problem."

Yifei's eyes welled up with tears of anger, knowing that no matter how much she tried to persuade her grandmother, she wouldn't listen.

Faced with absolute poverty and enormous profits, so-called kinship and integrity seem so fragile.

She turned around, no longer helping the old lady, and looked directly at Mimi.

"MiMi, listen to this: we must have principles! I'm willing to give my own money to my grandmother as a way of showing filial piety. But my family can't take a single penny of the Wang family's money!"

These words were spoken with such conviction that Yang Mi's previously smug expression changed slightly.

She hadn't expected that even at this point, Yifei would still be so stubborn.

"Hmph, that's easy for you to say." Mimi sneered. "She's your grandmother! You really have the heart to watch her kneel here begging for help? You call that having principles? I think that's heartless and ruthless!"

Yifei was speechless after being rebuked, and in desperation, she actually pulled a hairpin out of her hair.

It was a gold-inlaid jade hairpin, exquisitely crafted.

Although it's not as valuable as the hairpin Yang Mi wears, this hairpin was a gift from Lin Yi a few years ago. It's her most treasured possession, and she usually doesn't wear it. She only wore it today to celebrate the royal banquet.

She took the hairpin, walked up to the old woman, and forced it into her hand.

"Grandma, we can't take the money from the Prince's mansion! A person should have backbone! This hairpin is my own, you can keep it and take it to the pawnshop, it'll be worth at least several dozen taels of silver. If the family really can't make ends meet in the future, just tell me and I'll think of something."

The old lady's eyes lit up when she saw the heavy, shiny hairpin in her hand; she couldn't care less about anything else.

"Oh, my dear granddaughter! With this, our family won't go hungry this year!"

"That's good. Go back now. There are many things to do at the manor, and I can't stay with you all the time."

"Alright, let's go now! Grandson, hurry up, let's go home and eat meat!" With that, she grabbed the little boy and ran off without looking back, afraid that if she was a step too late, her precious little one would fly away.

Only Yifei and Mimi remained in the room.

Mimi tidied her hair and pouted, "You're really bored. That hairpin was a coming-of-age gift from the prince."

"So what? I am me, and I will never let the Prince's Mansion support my family." Yifei sat down angrily.

Actually, she was also very reluctant to part with that hairpin.

Ultimately, it was Mimi's meddling that caused the problem; otherwise, I would have only needed to go back and collect a few taels of silver.

Seeing her spirited demeanor, Mimi nodded: "Alright, you have backbone. Let's see what you have to say to the Prince later."

"To tell you the truth!"

"Hmph." Mi Mi snorted coldly and left.

"Hmph!" Yifei also got up to do her own thing.

......

Night was falling.

Tomorrow is the day of the wedding to the princess. The whole mansion is bustling with excitement, with everyone speculating about what kind of temperament the princess will have and whether she will be difficult to get along with.

There was still no movement from Luo Qingyu's side, but Luo Qingwan came to see Lin Yi several times, bringing him tea and water, but seemed hesitant to speak.

Lin Yi didn't ask any more questions, nor was he in the mood to pay attention to the two sisters.

study.

Lin Yi sat alone behind the rosewood table, holding a policy treatise he had snatched from the Guo family.

Nowadays, the imperial examination system is no longer popular, and many officials still rely on recommendations and hereditary succession to rise to power. Scholars and literati all hope to get recommendations from officials, so they keep submitting their applications.

Lu Dehao is a stubborn guy. When you ask him to raid a house, he almost takes back the toilet from the Guo family's house.

But to be honest, through this basic strategy, Lin Yi developed new prejudices against contemporary literati.

Yes, it's prejudice.

This policy treatise is filled with classical Chinese phrases and quotations, praising Confucius to the skies, yet it knows nothing about local governance or imperial policies.

To put it bluntly, he's just a bookworm.

How can someone like that possibly govern a country well?

Ugh.

"Your Highness." Lin An pushed open the door and came in, carrying a bowl of bird's nest soup.

"Still not resting so late?" Lin Yi put down his strategy paper and rubbed his temples.

Lin An placed the bird's nest on the table and said, "This time, the wedding is different from before. It's a princess we're marrying. This old servant has to keep an eye on things to prevent those young rascals from getting into trouble."

Lin Yi picked up the spoon and took a bite.

It has a sweet and refreshing taste, and is cooked to perfection.

"Just say what's on your mind." Lin Yi knew that Lin An had come so late for more than just to deliver a bowl of bird's nest.

Sure enough, Lin An spoke up: "Your Highness, it's about that girl Yifei."

Lin Yi paused for a moment: "What's wrong with her?"

Lin An recounted everything that had happened in the back room during the day to Lin Yi. This included how Yi Fei's maternal grandmother and cousin came to their door, how Mi Mi flaunted her money, and how Yi Fei finally gave the hairpin that the prince had bestowed upon her to her maternal grandmother.

Upon hearing this, Lin Yi frowned slightly. His first thought was not about the maids fighting over a man, but about the safety of the Prince's mansion.

"Have you checked those two people? They might be scammers."

Lin An bowed and said, "Your Highness, rest assured, this old servant has already sent people to investigate. When that old lady left, this old servant also sent two clever servants to follow her from a distance. They live in Liu Family Village outside the city, and all the neighbors know them. Her son, who is also Yifei's uncle, works for a butcher in the city and often delivers meat to our kitchen, so I think... he shouldn't be a fraud."

"That's fine then." Lin Yi nodded, then suddenly remembered something, "I only remember giving Yifei a hairpin when she came of age, could it be that one?"

"That's right, it's that gold-inlaid jade butterfly hairpin from back then." Lin An replied with a smile, "That girl treasured it very much, usually hiding it away. She only took it out to wear these past few days because of the happy occasion in her family. I never expected that she would actually give it away."

Lin Yi sighed inwardly.

Anything he casually gave away was the servants' private property, and they were free to do with it as they pleased. But the thought of Yifei giving away the hairpin he had personally given her to a pair of relatives who were practically strangers made him feel uneasy.

It wasn't that I felt sorry for the hairpin, but rather that I thought the girl was too foolish.

"That silly girl, she's so stubborn." Lin Yi put down his spoon and shook his head. "Although Mi Mi wanted to take this opportunity to put her ahead, she's right. What's fifty taels of silver going out of the Prince's account? She just had to show off and throw her own things away."

Lin An, who was listening nearby, was startled.

The prince used to never worry about such trivial matters, which shows that Yifei is indeed special in the prince's heart.

He said sincerely, "Your Highness, that's just how Yifei is. She clearly distinguishes between public and private matters and is unwilling to take advantage of the Prince's mansion in any way. This old servant thinks that's a good thing."

Who wouldn't like a loyal and tactful servant?

"It's good, but it's too rigid." Lin Yi sighed. "Alright, I understand. Tomorrow, send someone to the pawnshops in the city to inquire. If they see that hairpin, redeem it. The money will come from my private treasury."

"Yes, Your Highness."