Cheng Yujin sighed. Why was Cheng Yuanjing angry again? This was truly an eternal mystery.
Could it be that Cheng Yuanjing was an upright man who couldn’t tolerate a shred of impurity? But if the water were too clear, there wouldn’t be any fish. Cheng Yuanjing shouldn’t be so rigid.
Cheng Yujin’s mood was complicated, and for a while, she didn’t know what to say.
When Cheng Yujin and Cheng Yuanjing talked just now, they let their servants away. Now Cheng Yuanjing left, Du Ruo cautiously walked over and asked: “Eldest Miss, what did you say to Ninth Master? He looked unhappy when leaving.”
Cheng Yujin snorted lightly. She also wanted to know. Cheng Yujin shook her head and said: “With such an expressionless face, who can guess his mind? Anyway, I will never can.”
Du Ruo replied softly. Since even eldest Miss couldn’t guess the reason, let alone them?
The master and servant walked back. On the way, Cheng Yujin’s mind was filled with another thought.
Cheng Yuanjing was still observing the mourning. It stood to reason that when a parent died, a man couldn’t work as an official for three years. But Cheng Yuanjing was not an ordinary person. From the beginning, his situation was very special. Cheng Yuanjing might use a transfer to disguise his departure. From the initial dispatching order to the time of departure, it usually took one to two months. After Cheng Yuanjing left, Lin Qingyuan had no reason to visit the Cheng family again.
In other words, during this period of time, Cheng Yujin must catch Lin Qingyuan at any cost.
Cheng Yujin’s eyes couldn’t help but moved towards the direction where Cheng Yuanjing was gone. Resources must be used fully, and people must be used accordingly. It seemed that she had to borrow His Highness’s help once again.
Cheng Yuanjing walked to his yard, emitting a cold aura all the way. His people saw their master back. Upon seeing Cheng Yuanjing’s icy demeanor, they trembled in fear and bowed from a distance.
Liu Yi hurriedly ran to catch up. He followed Cheng Yuanjing into the main building and saw the crown prince went straight to the study, spreading a paper to practice calligraphy.
Liu Yi watched for a while, and the faint guess in his heart became more and more apparent. His master, His Highness the crown prince, has always been calm and restrained since childhood, and rarely had his emotion been exposed. It was truly rare to see him full of cold momentum like today. Every time His Highness had his mood disturbed, he would practice calligraphy. Often, after writing just one page, His Highness would already restore his usual calmness.
When His Highness and eldest Miss Cheng were talking, they dismissed the servants. Liu Yi didn’t hear what their conversation was about. But after seeing Cheng Yuanjing’s immediate departure upon hearing the plea from eldest Miss Cheng’s servant girl, combined with his bad mood right now, which similar to either anger or jealousy, Liu Yi had a guess about what the eldest Miss probably said to His Highness.
Alas, this matter was indeed difficult. Liu Yi pondered for a moment and saw Cheng Yuanjing moved the brush. With vigorous and elegant penmanship, a large character was born on the white paper. But the momentum on Cheng Yuanjing’s body was not diminished in the slightest.
Since the tiger has determined his prey, he must snatch it at any cost.
Liu Yi lowered his eyes, then stepped forward to replace Cheng Yuanjing’s tea. He casually said: “After Your Highness spoke with eldest Miss Cheng, before this servant went back, eldest Miss Cheng came to this servant. She said that she is young and ignorant. If she inadvertently offended, asked Your Highness to please consider her being your junior and do not take it into the heart.”
Cheng Yuanjing knew clearly. It was hard to determine whether Cheng Yujin really said it or not, but the word ‘junior’ obviously came from Liu Yi. Cheng Yuanjing slowly put down the brush and said: “Her surname is Cheng. How can she be my junior?”
When Liu Yi heard Cheng Yuanjing’s words, he knew that his bad hunch was correct. Originally, it was merely a guess, but now His Highness clearly acknowledged it, showing that he had truly moved his mind.
Initially, Liu Yi only tried to probe lightly, but after Cheng Yuanjing admitted so clearly, he no longer dared to say anything. What kind of woman their master liked, there was no reason for subordinates to intervene. Eldest Miss Cheng was beautiful, talented, and her age was just right. Any man would fancy her. Although His Highness wasn’t lustful, he was still a normal man.
What’s more, if not for his unfortunate circumstances, the crown prince would have married a crown princess. Having been single without a wife or concubines at this age was already very late.
Because of the scruples in his heart, Liu Yi did not dare to persuade. Instead, he said euphemistically: “Your Highness, this servant is truly unqualified to intervene in your private affairs, but the future Her Highness is not only your wife, but also the crown princess of the imperial family. She is the role model of all women in the world. The choice of your future wife must pass His Majesty’s criteria.”
“Only the crown prince might be unqualified for the Eastern Palace, not the crown princess.” Cheng Yuanjing’s tone was indistinct. “The crown princess’ position is her glory, not her duty. Only I have the duty and responsibilities. She only needs to don a high crown, wear beautiful clothes, and do anything she likes. If I am incompetent and cannot fulfill my duty as the crown prince, what does it have to do with her? Having criteria for the so-called crown princess’s duty, it’s ridiculous.”
Cheng Yuanjing had always looked down upon the saying, ‘she can be a good wife, so marry her.’ In his opinion, it should be the man’s duty to protect the inner household. Expecting to marry a wife to take care of one’s parents, managing the servants, raising children, and looking after the concubines was a manifestation of a man’s incompetence. They evaded their own responsibilities and used high-sounding reasons to blame their wives for not being capable and virtuous. Towards this kind of behavior, Cheng Yuanjing truly looked down completely.
Liu Yi remembered the late Empress Zhong and didn’t dare to say more. He sighed inwardly. Judging from his attitude, the crown prince should be determined to take eldest Miss Cheng as his own. Liu Yi didn’t have any objection. As long as his master liked it, it didn’t matter. Besides, eldest Miss Cheng wasn’t an ignorant beauty either. She was indeed capable and talented. However, since they still didn’t know what His Majesty’s arrangement for His Highness’s marriage was, this matter wouldn’t be easy to determine.
After some inner struggles, Liu Yi finally said again: “Your Highness rarely takes fancy of something, and this servant is truly happy for you. But after all, Your Highness and Cheng family has an adoption relationship, and you are the uncle of eldest Miss Cheng’s generation. In the future…I am afraid this will be detrimental to Your Highness’s reputation. His Majesty hopes that Your Highness will bring back order out of chaos and return the righteousness. His Majesty probably will not agree with Your Highness’s decision.”
“I know.” Cheng Yuanjing dipped the brush into ink and slowly but firmly wrote another word. “I have my own plan; you don’t have to say much. Retire.”
Liu Yi knew that he shouldn’t overstep the boundary. He bowed and went out.
Translator’s note:
Tuesday’s regular release.
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