Ziyu stopped looking at the tearful Yun Niang and turned his gaze back to the rain-dampened emerald bamboo leaves outside the window. He spoke to her in a low voice, “When my father, the king, faced that crisis, it was your father and a group of loyal officers who protected me and my brother as we left the Eastern Palace. Unfortunately, my brother was too weak and couldn’t survive the poison in that cup. I was lucky to have your protection and barely managed to survive. I am grateful for all of this…”
He paused for a moment, then continued, “However, although Mian Tang wasn’t originally from the Eastern Palace, she has made significant contributions to Yangshan. Those businesses and cash flows you say she embezzled – which one wasn’t carefully arranged and managed by her? Even if she wanted to take them, it would be her due.”
What Yun Niang couldn’t bear most was that no matter what mistakes Liu Mian Tang made, in the young master’s eyes, they all became countless virtues.
She bit her lip and said, “If Sister Liu felt wrong, it would be fine if she took the cash flow from the shops. But the accounts are also missing your private assets, young master. Those were funds that your father… carefully hidden for emergencies!”
Ziyu smiled bitterly and said wistfully, “That old fortune was placed in a very secure location. Mian Tang informed me of it before she left. You needn’t worry about this matter anymore.”
Hearing this, Yun Niang was stunned. The young master had never mentioned Liu Mian Tang transferring the private assets before. She couldn’t help but feel alarmed and hesitantly asked, “I took over the accounts before Sister Liu left. Why didn’t she tell me about this? Could it be that she didn’t trust me?”
As she said this, Yun Niang’s eyes welled up with tears again as if hurt by Liu Mian Tang’s suspicion.
However, Ziyu hadn’t noticed her aggrieved appearance. He continued standing by the window without turning around.
Yun Niang wanted to say more, but Ziyu interrupted her: “Let’s end this matter here. I’ll find a way to deal with the deficit in the accounts. Don’t cause any more trouble for Mian Tang in the future… I’m tired. You may leave now.”
Yun Niang bit her lip. With the loss of six elite guards today, she was in the wrong no matter what she said. It would be better to wait for Ziyu’s anger to subside before making further plans…
So she curtsied, gently reminding Ziyu to rest well, and then turned to leave.
After Yun Niang’s figure disappeared from the window, Secretary Qin finally spoke, “Young master, did Miss Liu make such careful arrangements because she discovered irregularities in the accounts?”
Ziyu nodded slowly and said, “Someone has been siphoning money from the stronghold’s cash flow, and not just one person. So Mian Tang simply removed the entire cash flow, hid the old assets, and created a separate set of books. This way, those greedy individuals would have no trail to follow and would naturally reveal their true colors…”
As he said this, his heart ached slightly, and his eyes couldn’t hide the pain, “But back then, I blamed her for being jealous and unwilling to delegate power, always groundlessly envious of Yun Niang… Mr. Qin, did I make a mistake back then?”
Secretary Qin shook his head helplessly and comforted him, “Miss Liu’s ambitions didn’t lie here. It would have been useless for you to force her to stay, young master. Moreover, you are destined to return to the capital in the future and reclaim the throne. Miss Liu has a strong personality, which is suitable for a military officer, but as an empress, she lacks the necessary breadth of mind. It can only be said that she’s not meant to walk the same path as you!”
However, Secretary Qin left one thing unsaid: judging by Miss Liu’s abilities alone, she was unparalleled. Although Yun Niang had the strong support of the former Eastern Palace faction, compared to Miss Liu, she fell far short! If Miss Liu had reliable support from her paternal clan, she could not only be an empress but even become an empress regnant!
But Secretary Qin was not part of the former Eastern Palace faction. Currently, Yun Niang’s influence in Yangshan was at its peak, and her father, Sun Liansheng, held military power. Secretary Qin didn’t want to incur the hostility of the Eastern Palace faction, so he naturally wouldn’t voice his true thoughts.
Ziyu remained silent. He understood that Secretary Qin’s words represented the sentiments of the former Eastern Palace faction. Liu Mian Tang’s abilities were too strong, and being a woman, it was naturally difficult for her to win everyone’s approval. In the past, he had maintained the balance by intervening personally.
But when he considered marrying Mian Tang, numerous obstacles arose. Moreover, at that time, the Huaiyang Wang’s troops were closely watching Yangshan, causing significant losses to their forces. More and more people on the mountain advocated for surrendering and taking a conciliatory approach.
He let her go, not because he had truly given up, but in hopes of uniting the scattered hearts and overcoming the temporary crisis.
However, he hadn’t expected her heart to be so resolute that she would marry someone else as soon as she left the mountain.
This time, the hidden piece she had planted took effect again. When news of the account deficit spread, the amount of money reported from various places was even more than what Liu Mian Tang had hidden and transferred. Many people thought Mian Tang had absconded with the money and took the opportunity to report inflated deficits, attempting to frame the already departed Mian Tang.
Looking at the figures Secretary Qin had compiled, Ziyu let out a cold laugh – what a bunch of shameless opportunists! They couldn’t wait to frame Mian Tang.
Looking again at the thick book of true accounts that Mian Tang had stayed up late writing for him before she left, Ziyu’s heart ached once more.
Her handwriting was still so ugly. Such a brilliant woman, yet she lacked patience for holding a pen… Turning to the last page of the accounts, there was a line written with great effort to make it neat – “Those who achieve great things must have a well-thought-out plan. There’s no need to rush for momentary satisfaction. Once you have a clear understanding, proceed slowly and steadily…”
According to Mian Tang’s suggestion, even after the embezzlers were exposed, they shouldn’t act hastily. Yangshan was at a critical juncture, and if they moved too quickly to purge the Crown Prince’s faction, it could easily lead to unrest.
If she hadn’t left, she would certainly have had a way to deal with these people by now. And seeing him angry because of these people, she would surely nestle on his shoulder like a kitten, gently comforting him.
Thinking of this, Ziyu felt another pang in his heart. Everyone around him said she wasn’t suitable for him. But who knew the other side of Mian Tang – her fiery competence? Her heart was the softest, which is why she couldn’t bear to see him in a dilemma and gave up everything in Yangshan.
Having loved a woman like Liu Mian Tang, how could his broken heart accommodate anyone else?
Even if everything went as planned and he successfully reclaimed the position that should have been his, what meaning would it have if she wasn’t standing by his side?
But now, with great affairs unfinished and power struggles sprouting like weeds after rain, he could only forge ahead alone through dangerous times. When the great task was accomplished, he would personally kneel before Mian Tang and bring her back to his side.
As night fell and bamboo shadows flickered outside the window, Liu Yu, Liu Ziyu, the fourth-generation direct descendant of the founding emperor of Da Yan, touched the pouch close to his chest, spending another long night as usual…
Meanwhile, in the residence on North Street, life continued as usual with smoke rising from the kitchen chimney daily.
With money in hand, Mian Tang hired many more painters for ceramic painting and coloring. These people were all personally vetted by Mr. Chen.
Although these people’s painting skills were not as good as Mr. Chen’s, with their help, tasks like drawing branches and flowers could be delegated to them. Mr. Chen only needed to create samples and design unique patterns, leaving most of his remaining time to slowly enjoy Mother Li’s delicious food with a small pot of wine.
Mian Tang checked the progress of the orders daily, feeling confident that they could complete the work before the deadline. This allowed her some free time for socializing.
Since arriving in Lingquan Town, most of Mrs. Cui’s social activities on North Street had been on the neighborhood benches, and she wasn’t very familiar with the noble ladies of Lingquan Town.
But with the introduction from the He family’s third young lady, things were quite different. Liu Mian Tang finally had the opportunity to attend tea parties with the ladies and young misses of Lingquan Town.
Mian Tang knew that these social engagements were necessary for business, as knowing more people meant more opportunities. So she took these activities seriously. However, her jewelry box was rather sparse, and she needed to add some pieces to maintain her appearance. But after visiting several shops, the beautiful ones were too expensive, and the affordable ones weren’t to her liking. It seemed better to wear the old pieces from her jewelry box!
Unexpectedly, on this morning, her husband quietly handed her a box wrapped in plain silk. When she opened it, inside was a complete set of beryl-inlaid headdresses. The designs were unlike anything available in the shops, and both the bird-head hairpin and the flower-vine-like necklace perfectly matched Mian Tang’s radiant temperament.
However, you get what you pay for, and such intricately inlaid headdresses wouldn’t be cheap!
Mian Tang looked at them with wide eyes, not daring to wear them, and carefully asked her husband how much they had cost.
Cui Xingzhou said calmly, “I had them made through an acquaintance. The materials and craftsmanship are more thoughtful than those in regular shops, so they didn’t cost much. If you like them, I can order more for you in the future.”
Counting back, this was the second time her husband had personally bought something for her since the perfume. As the son of a wealthy family, her husband had refined taste, so although he didn’t give her many things, each one was exquisite.
Mian Tang then felt at ease to put them on, but the clasp of the necklace was a bit complicated, and she couldn’t fasten it properly. Cui Xingzhou walked to the dressing table and reached out to fasten it for her.
Mian Tang’s skin was fair, and her slender neck appeared even more translucent white against the emerald-green beryl. Mian Tang looked very satisfied, feeling endless joy in her heart, and couldn’t help but look up and smile sweetly at her husband behind her.
Cui Jiu unconsciously reached out to gently caress her cheek, feeling its smoothness like mutton-fat jade…
Just then, they heard Mother Li’s heavy cough. She was standing at the door holding freshly ironed clothes.
To be honest, Mother Li had watched the previous scene with her heart pounding, doubting if her old eyes were deceiving her.
The Wang had never been one for romance, and even if he was acting to reassure Miss Liu, personally helping her with the necklace and caressing her face… was going too far!