Yu Jiuqing: “…”
He put down the fragrant, enticing egg pancake in his hand, took out a handkerchief, and wiped his long, fair fingers.
In a placid voice, he said, “It seems the Marquis is hungry.
Chen Li, refill the Marquis’s tea.”
Jiang Chengyi: “!!!”
This was the last straw!
Jiang Chengyi slammed his hand on the table and exploded.
“Yu Jiuqing, you heartless bastard!
You knew I came here without eating breakfast, and it’s bad enough you won’t even offer me a bite!
But to then sit there and eat so brazenly in front of me!”
‘And I’m hungry, so what’s the point of serving me tea?!’
‘Is he trying to make me even hungrier?!’
‘The word “vicious” must be written all over this man’s heart!’
‘Most importantly, that egg pancake looks genuinely delicious!’
As if his conscience had finally stirred, Yu Jiuqing looked up at him, his voice cool.
“Want some?”
Jiang Chengyi: “…”
Although his pride was screaming at him not to accept charity from this bastard, one look at the golden-yellow pancake—which appeared so perfectly soft and chewy—made Jiang Chengyi swallow hard and surrender pathetically.
“Yes…”
Yu Jiuqing: “In your dreams.”
Jiang Chengyi: “…”
‘Damn it, why haven’t the heavens struck this black-hearted, black-lunged bastard down with lightning yet!’
Jiang Chengyi took one deep breath after another, desperately suppressing the urge to kill.
He changed the subject, his face devoid of expression.
“So, what were you trying to say earlier?
You think Prince Cheng starting to make small moves at the end of last year is a prelude to something big?”
‘Whatever.
It’s not like this is the first day I’ve known this bastard.’
‘If I got worked up over everything he does, I would have died an early death long ago!’
‘In this world, only Shen Qing can handle his vicious personality.’
As he thought this, Jiang Chengyi shot a harsh glare at the woman who had remained silent the entire time.
‘With her level of skill, she thinks she can fight this black-hearted fiend?’
‘She’s a hundred years too early for that!’
Yu Jiuqing didn’t call out Jiang Chengyi’s frustration.
He tapped his right index finger on the tabletop again and said calmly, “Correct.
He will certainly make more moves.
But more than that, I’m concerned about the catalyst for his sudden activity.”
Yu Jiuqing paused, his lips thinning into a slight frown.
“Prince Cheng still holds some influence in the Daqi Court, but he was defeated in battle.
All his public-facing people and trusted aides were eliminated by us back then.
He has been far from the Capital City, lying low for so many years.
Logically, his power base should be like a shattered mirror—completely fragmented.
“Putting it back together is not something today’s Prince Cheng or the outsider state of Daliang can accomplish.”
Jiang Chengyi understood immediately, his expression turning serious.
“You mean Prince Cheng has likely connected with someone at court?
And that person must hold a high position, with the ability to help Prince Cheng piece his scattered forces back together!”
‘No wonder Yu Jiuqing was willing to get injured just to lure out more of Prince Cheng’s Remnants!’
Prince Cheng and his remnants have been nothing short of cautious.
From the end of last year until now, we’ve only managed to get a hold of two of them.
One of them committed suicide by swallowing poison the moment we discovered him.
‘If we can really use him to lure out more of Prince Cheng’s Remnants, it would be a huge boon for us!’
“But…” Jiang Chengyi’s tone suddenly shifted.
He frowned and said, “Don’t forget you have a woman in your mansion sent by Cao Yanhua.
“It’s one thing to plot against Cao Yanhua, but don’t get careless and let that woman take the opportunity to cause trouble in this mansion.
“Besides you, Zihan is also in this mansion.
And no matter how clever and quick-witted she is, she’s still just a twelve-year-old child.”
Shen Qing’s brow furrowed slightly.
Recalling what she had heard from the other maids—that Aunt Cao had tried countless times to get close to Zihan—she couldn’t help but feel a pang of panic.
Yu Jiuqing fell silent for a moment before saying in a low voice, almost a promise, “Rest assured, that woman can’t stir up any trouble.
I won’t let anything happen to Zihan.”
Jiang Chengyi’s brow remained tightly furrowed.
“But you can’t touch Aunt Cao until Cao Yanhua is no longer useful, right?
That means the woman will be staying in the Prime Minister’s Mansion for a while longer.
You’d better keep your word.
“By the way, my Ah Fu said that for the upcoming early spring flower-viewing banquet, she won’t be sending an invitation to the Prime Minister’s Mansion, as usual.
She told me to let you know in advance, lest the esteemed Prime Minister Yu think our Wei Qi Marquis Mansion is slighting him.”
Jiang Chengyi’s words were tinged with sarcasm.
His wife, Guo Qingfu, was Shen Qing’s best friend and was furious that Yu Jiuqing had filled his own rear courtyard with so many women.
Ever since then, whenever their Wei Qi Marquis Mansion hosted a banquet, she would never send an invitation to the Prime Minister’s Mansion, because those events always required the participation of the family’s female members.
For banquets requiring male guests, she would simply have him verbally invite Yu Jiuqing.
In any case, in Ah Fu’s own words, she would never let an invitation from their Wei Qi Marquis Mansion pass through the hands of those women!
Yu Jiuqing merely gave a faint “mm” in response, clearly uninterested in what he was saying.
Jiang Chengyi frowned even more deeply.
“I’m telling you, you should find a way to get rid of those women in your rear courtyard as soon as possible.
I don’t care why you let them in in the first place, but…”
But Chen Li, who was standing to the side, suddenly spoke up.
“Marquis, the Prime Minister’s Mansion ultimately needs a matriarch to manage the household.
Setting aside other matters, every time our Prime Minister’s Mansion hosts a banquet, we need a matriarch to help entertain the female guests.
Of course, there are many other areas where a matriarch is needed…”
“Chen Li!”
A low shout, seemingly capable of freezing a man in his tracks, instantly cut Chen Li off.
“Since when have you become so ignorant of the rules?”
Normally, Chen Li would never dare to interrupt when his masters were speaking.
Yu Jiuqing’s gaze was clearly filled with anger.
Chen Li subconsciously lowered his head, clasping his hands as his voice trembled.
“This lowly one deserves death!
But, my Lord, what I just said were the heartfelt words of this lowly one, as the Chief Steward of the Prime Minister’s Mansion…”
‘It’s not that he doesn’t know how devoted his Lord is to the mistress.’
‘It’s just that ten years have passed.’
‘Regardless of whether the mistress met with an accident or left the Lord intentionally, his Lord should let go of the past and move forward.’
In Chen Li’s heart, no one was more important than his Lord.
Chen Li had no favorable impression of the mistress, who hadn’t been heard from in all this time.
‘If it weren’t for her, his Lord wouldn’t have spent the last ten years in such a daze.’
‘He also wouldn’t have been so easily bewitched by some strange woman!’
Standing to the side, Shen Qing gave Chen Li a cool glance, not particularly surprised by his words.
‘He had always been the type of person who had only one master in his heart: Yu Jiuqing.’
“Enough, Chen Li.
This is my private affair.
You have overstepped.
Do not bring this topic up again in the future.”
Yu Jiuqing, his face a cold mask, cut him off again.
“Show our guest out!”
Jiang Chengyi: “…”
‘Show our guest out…
He doesn’t mean me, does he?’
‘Chen Li was the one who angered him, so on what grounds is he kicking me out?!’
But Yu Jiuqing had already closed his eyes, raising his right hand to gently rub the bridge of his nose, looking utterly exhausted.
‘Divine Doctor Lu did say yesterday that the poison in his system was no ordinary one.
Although his life isn’t in danger after the treatment, he’s likely to be weak for some time.’
Jiang Chengyi sighed to himself and finally resigned himself to it.
“Fine, I’ll go.
You get some rest.”
With that, he shot another glare at Shen Qing, who was beside him.
“And another thing—stay away from strange women.
Those six in your rear courtyard are already enough trouble.”
After speaking, he kicked Chen Li, who was still standing there rigidly.
“Chief Chen, didn’t you hear your master?
Hurry up and see me out.”
Shen Qing’s emotions were currently in turmoil; she had no mind for other matters.
After Jiang Chengyi and Chen Li left the study, she also moved to leave.
However, she hadn’t taken two steps before her sleeve was suddenly grabbed.
The man who had looked so exhausted had, at some point, opened his eyes slightly.
His voice was a little hoarse as he asked, “Where are you going?”