The young eunuch kept his head lowered, not daring to speak.
Xiao Yi slightly closed his eyes.
All along, he had respected the Cui family. Even though Yunfeng, that older sister, was as annoying as a fly, he had never touched a single hair on her head.
And Prime Minister Cui.
In the royal court, he avoided his sharp edge; in private, he restrained himself and observed etiquette, without any lack of thoughtfulness.
Even when Prime Minister Cui helped the Crown Prince against him, he turned a blind eye and never made a move against the Cui family.
Why couldn't he learn mutual respect?
Or was it because he was too easy to talk to, which made the Cui family so unscrupulous?
Well, people are like that. After all, everyone loves to pick on the soft persimmon, and he, Xiao Yi, was just too soft.
"Tell me, what should I do to teach my future father-in-law a lesson?"
Xiao Yi pinched the cat's chin, squeezing harder and harder. "If it's too light, I'm afraid he won't remember. If it's too heavy..."
"Meow~" The white cat might have been hurt by the pinching. Its hair stood on end, and it opened its mouth to bite Xiao Yi's fingertip.
"Your Highness." The young eunuch was startled.
Xiao Yi's expression was calm. He lowered his eyes to look at the tooth marks on his fingertip, a smile in his eyes, but his strong, bony hand slowly grabbed the white cat's neck.
"Even you can't be fed to be familiar with me?"
"Your Highness, that was chosen by you for Second Miss Cui."
The young eunuch's words successfully made the coldness in Xiao Yi's eyes dissipate quickly.
He let go of his hand and smoothed the white cat's fur. "I scared you."
He smiled slightly, wrapped his fingertip with a handkerchief, and continued what he was saying just now. "If it's too heavy, that girl will bite me. Tell me, what should be done?"
The young eunuch kept his head lowered for a long time before he whispered hesitantly, "Second Miss Cui is fiercely protective. If Your Highness wants to teach a lesson, why not... start with the Tang family."
Xiao Yi tapped his fingertips on the desk, looking up at the young eunuch, making it impossible to read his expression.
The young eunuch immediately knelt down. "This old servant was just saying it casually. Please don't blame me, Your Highness."
Every tap seemed to hit the young eunuch's heart, making his spine tingle.
After a long time, Xiao Yi's voice slowly sounded. "What you said... makes some sense."
She was fiercely protective of the Cui family, so they couldn't have a falling out. Then he would start with the marriage between Tang Qingwan and the Crown Prince.
He didn't want the two of them to get married in the first place, but because of Yunfeng's suppression, he had never made a move. Now, using this as a warning to the Cui family, it could be considered killing two birds with one stone.
A smile curled up on Xiao Yi's lips. He bent down and hugged the white cat into his arms. "I'll take you to see her tomorrow, okay?"
The white cat whimpered a few times and struggled hard, but his head was tightly locked by him, and it couldn't break free at all.
It could only curl up into a small ball, showing that it was very afraid of Xiao Yi.
"Don't be afraid," Xiao Yi stroked its fur. "She is a soft person and will treat you well. You also have to coax her to be happy, so that she can remember me all the time."
"Your Highness," the young eunuch advised in a difficult position, "You are still grounded."
"It's just a trip to the Cui Manor." As soon as Xiao Yi let go, the white cat immediately ran away and hid in the wardrobe.
"A group of scholars, can they still impeach this prince?"
The Emperor's punishment was not heavy and would not affect his status in the court at all. Those who were smart would naturally not come to find fault with him.
The new Jinshi scholars were mostly poor scholars with no family background. They would not have the guts to offend him and do such a thankless thing.
Early the next morning, Cui Yunchu became busy. Cui Yunfeng followed her closely, although she was mostly useless.
But Cui Yunchu was already very satisfied with this, at least she didn't have to divide her attention to coax her.
Prime Minister Cui's banquet was held in a hurry, but fortunately, all the guests invited were men. She only needed to decorate the front yard and put some thought into the food and drink, and there was nothing else to do.
When everything was arranged properly and most of the guests had arrived, Cui Yunchu pulled Cui Yunfeng to Old Madam Cui's Songhe Courtyard.
"Eldest Sister, can't we go back to our own courtyard?"
Cui Yunchu looked back at Cui Yunfeng. "Father chose this year's new top scholar, Zhou Yuanmo, for you. I think he will go to Grandmother's courtyard to pay his respects. Don't you want to take the opportunity to see him?"
"No." Cui Yunfeng shook her head listlessly, but she had already been pulled into Old Madam Cui's Songhe Courtyard.
"Eldest Miss, Second Miss." Nanny Li guarded the door and bowed to the two. "Old Madam has guests in her room."
Cui Yunchu looked sideways at the tightly closed door and raised her eyebrows slightly. "Who is it?"
Why was she so careful, closing the doors and windows?
Nanny Li frowned and answered after a long time, "It's... Dowager Shen."
Dowager Shen. Shen Xiabai's mother?
Cui Yunchu was stunned.
Cui Yunfeng was also quite surprised. "Eldest Sister, why would the Shen family's Old Madam come to our manor?"
How would she know?
Cui Yunchu frowned, suddenly remembering the pleasantries exchanged between Dowager Shen and her grandmother on the palace road that day. They didn't seem like enemies at all.
Grandmother said that Dowager Shen was also a pitiful person.
What exactly happened back then? Why did Shen Xiabai hate the Cui and Tang families to the bone, while Dowager Shen and her grandmother...
Cui Yunchu always felt that there was something strange about this.
Neither of the sisters spoke, both frowning. Nanny Li whispered, "The Shen family's young master is also among the new Jinshi scholars this year. Dowager Shen passed by along the way, so she came over to sit."
Along the way?
Cui Yunchu raised her eyebrows, turned around, and took Cui Yunfeng's hand. "Since Grandmother has guests, let's leave first."
Cui Yunfeng nodded.
Nanny Li hurriedly said, "Don't go too far, you two misses. Old Madam will be looking for you later."
The front yard was now full of guests, and Prime Minister Cui personally entertained them. For those people, being invited by the Prime Minister was a great blessing.
Separating the front and back yards was a hanging flower archway.
Cui Yunchu and Cui Yunfeng could only stroll around slowly, waiting for Dowager Shen to leave and Old Madam Cui to call them.
The two sisters didn't enter the middle gate, but they heard discussions coming from the middle gate. "Prime Minister Cui has never held such a banquet in previous years. I wonder what his intention is this year?"
"No matter what the reason is, being able to walk in the Prime Minister's Manor is our good fortune."
"Exactly. Prime Minister Cui has outstanding knowledge. Even if he gives us a few pointers, it can save us a lot of detours."
Cui Yunfeng was a little tired of walking, so she pulled Cui Yunchu to sit in the pavilion separated by a wall and listened to those people chatting.
"I have heard some rumors." One person suddenly lowered his voice and said, "It is said that Prime Minister Cui intends to choose a son-in-law for the two young ladies in the family."
The others were silent for a few breaths before refuting one after another.
"How is that possible? With the status of the Cui family's young ladies, how could they be betrothed to us? You must be dreaming."
"It's true," the person said anxiously. "The one Prime Minister Cui chose for Second Miss Cui is the new top scholar, Lord Zhou."
Everyone had naturally heard of Zhou Yuanmo's great name.
"Lord Zhou has outstanding knowledge and courage, which is beyond compare for us. If he can get some support from Prime Minister Cui, his future prospects will be limitless. If it's him, then it's very possible."
Several people echoed one after another.
Cui Yunchu looked sideways at Cui Yunfeng. "That new top scholar seems to have a good reputation."
Cui Yunfeng twisted her handkerchief tightly in her hands, remaining silent.
Since the words were in praise of Zhou Yuanmo, Cui Yunchu naturally intended to make sure Cui Yunfeng listened to them carefully. Doing so would also mean she had successfully fulfilled the task their grandmother had entrusted to her.
