Guo Yi, usually a gentleman in public, was unexpectedly enraged by Li Guangcai’s few words. Losing his composure, Guo Yi lunged directly for Li Guangcai’s collar.
When scholars fight, they’re no different from village brawlers – grabbing collars, pulling ears, and exchanging punches. Since Guo Yi had come alone with just one servant to find Cui Fu, the servant rushed back to call for help once the two men started rolling on the ground.
As people from the Qingguo Gong mansion came running to assist, Cui Xingzhou’s group also arrived. Liu Miantang, walking in front, keenly observed that Li Guangcai was holding his own in the fight, straddling Guo Yi and raining punches on his face.
Seeing Li Guangcai had the upper hand, Miantang felt no urgency to intervene. As Qingguo Gong’s servants were about to swarm in, she quickly signaled to Fan Hu. Understanding the Princess Consort’s penchant for drama, Fan Hu led a few men to intercept the servants, shouting, “The two officials are discussing matters. We servants shouldn’t interfere!”
Lady Qingguo Gong, supported by her son’s concubine Yu Rao, stamped her foot in frustration, exclaiming, “Is this how your household discusses matters? My son is nearly beaten to death! Quick, save him!”
After Li Guangcai had vented his anger thoroughly, the mansion’s servants finally pulled him off and helped their young master up. Guo Yi, despite his bloody nose, remained defiant. Pointing at Li Guangcai, he accused, “That’s my son’s mother! What right do you have to fawn over her? Flower-viewing together is truly indecent!”
Li Guangcai, dusting himself off, calmly replied, “Miss Cui is my fiancée. We were accompanied by the Prince and Princess Consort of Huaiyang, admiring plum blossoms in the open garden. Which law or custom have we violated?”
This statement shocked everyone. When had Cui Fu become engaged to him? Why did no one know?
Miantang quickly glanced at Cui Fu, noticing her surprise. She too was unaware of this engagement. However, Cui Fu opened and closed her mouth without denying it. While their joint plum blossom viewing might be considered slightly improper if scrutinized, it wasn’t a major scandal.
But now, with Guo Yi publicly accusing her of a secret tryst with Li Guangcai and initiating the fight, drawing a crowd of onlookers, even a thousand explanations wouldn’t suffice. Li Guangcai’s claim of their engagement made their flower-viewing seem reasonable and proper, leaving no room for criticism.
If Cui Fu were to deny it now, a divorced woman causing her ex-husband to fight an unrelated man would be quite unsavory. Thus, despite her annoyance at Li Guangcai’s fabrication, Cui Fu could only tacitly agree.
Observing from the side, Liu Miantang understood Li Guangcai’s audacious confidence. She whispered to Cui Xingzhou, “He truly is your fellow graduate. His actions mirror yours exactly. Such deception to win a wife won’t end well!”
Cui Xingzhou, though displeased with his sister being claimed so improperly, knew that her reputation was paramount. He and his sworn brother Li Guangcai would certainly have words later.
Upon hearing of Cui Fu’s engagement to Li Guangcai, Guo Yi’s eyes widened, waiting for Cui Fu to object. But her silence seemed like tacit agreement, enraging Guo Yi further. He pointed at Cui Fu, declaring, “If you’re remarrying, Jiner can’t stay with you. I’ll send people to bring my son back tomorrow! If you refuse, I’ll file a lawsuit with the Chengxian Prefecture. Even as the legitimate daughter of the Huaiyang Prince’s household, you must obey the law! We’ll see if Great Yan’s laws allow stripping someone of their legitimate son!”
With that threat, Guo Yi stormed off, ignoring Yu Rao who was wiping his bloody nose.
Lady Qingguo Gong, trembling with anger, insisted on suing Li Guangcai.
Miantang raised an eyebrow and asked Li Guangcai’s servant, “Who struck first?”
The servant loudly replied, “Lord Guo grabbed our master’s collar without a word!”
Miantang turned to Lady Qingguo Gong, saying, “So it’s fine for your son to hit others, but not for them to defend themselves? Moreover, we need to discuss how you’ve slandered my sister’s reputation today. Even if you don’t sue, our Huaiyang Prince’s household won’t let this slide!”
Speechless with anger, Lady Qingguo Gong finally left with her people.
Cui Fu, now incensed, glared at her newly minted fiancé Li Guangcai before storming off as well.
Back in the private dining room of the restaurant, Cui Fu removed her cloak, adjusted her hair, and confronted Li Guangcai: “Who said I’d marry you? How dare you declare me your fiancée in front of everyone?”
Li Guangcai calmly replied, “As an official for many years, my salary is limited. I’ve registered all the property left by my late parents, along with my birth details, and submitted them to the Prince of Huaiyang long ago. However, the Prince stated that for your first marriage, your parents decided, but for a second, it’s your choice. He can’t make decisions for you and told me to await your approval. Today, when Guo Yi accused us of impropriety, I spoke hastily out of urgency… If you’re unwilling, once this blows over, let the Prince return my birth chart in front of our colleagues, claiming my birth sign is incompatible with yours and potentially harmful if we marry. That will end the engagement…”
“You…” Cui Fu was left speechless by Li Guangcai’s seemingly considerate words.
Seeing Liu Miantang watching the drama unfold with keen interest, almost as if she needed only a handful of melon seeds and a bench to complete the picture, Cui Xingzhou led her out of the room to the adjacent one. “Since it’s their matter to discuss, our presence is unnecessary… The food has been served. Their vinegar fish is delicious; you should try it while it’s hot.”
Due to breastfeeding, Miantang has been eating bland food without much salt lately. Now that little Yi’er was older, she could finally enjoy some flavorful dishes. Hearing Cui Xingzhou’s suggestion, Miantang’s eyes locked onto the quivering skin of the crystal pork knuckle. She first took a large piece to satisfy her craving, then moved on to the perfectly seasoned vinegar fish, feeling her taste buds come alive.
However, Miantang found Li Guangcai somewhat cunning. Reflecting on the situation, she wondered how insulting Li Guangcai’s words must have been to provoke someone as refined as Guo Yi to strike first. Could Li Guangcai have intentionally provoked Guo Yi to throw the first punch?
With this thought, Miantang couldn’t help but ask, “Was Li Guangcai serious earlier? Is he not afraid of you throwing his birth chart back in his face in front of colleagues?”
Cui Xingzhou replied calmly, “He’s likely serious. However, I’m about to cross into Lingnan to take up the position of Northern Sea Governor. He’ll be accompanying me, so in the military camp, it’ll mostly be just the two of us. He naturally won’t fear losing face there.”
Miantang stopped eating midway and stared at him. What kind of place was the Northern Sea? Even in the two Guangs, the area was plagued by miasma, surrounded by foreign tribes, unbearably hot, and historically a place for exiling criminals. Why was he taking up a post there? How had she not known about this?
Cui Xingzhou shook his head resignedly, “I had hoped to enjoy this outing with you before mentioning this. Japanese pirates are causing trouble in the Northern Sea, and the local forces have suffered several defeats. They’ve had to appeal to the court for aid. Unfortunately, that area is filled with old subordinates of the Gong family, deeply entrenched and difficult for His Majesty to command. He could only send me to fill in…”
Liu Miantang knew this wasn’t just because of the Gong family’s old subordinates being difficult to manage. Since the death of Prince Sui, the power struggle between the Shi family and the Yangshan old guard has intensified. Each faction was using every means possible to fill the void left by the Gong family. Even though Cui Xingzhou’s Zhenzhou faction had remained neutral and uninvolved, the other two factions still viewed the Prince of Huaiyang unfavorably. Assigning a high-ranking court official like Cui Xingzhou to such a place likely involved machinations from these two forces.
Alternatively, Emperor Liu Yu might be trying to sideline Cui Xingzhou after using him. Of course, if Cui Xingzhou were unwilling, he would have countless ways to decline. Yet, he had accepted this assignment that no one else wanted…
A thousand thoughts raced through her mind, but after swallowing her food, she simply said, “The children and I will go with you.”
Cui Xingzhou had expected her to be angry and unwilling, questioning why he would accept such a troublesome assignment. He never imagined that without even asking, she would unhesitatingly decide to follow him, just as she had pursued him to the Northwest before.
Cui Xingzhou’s heart warmed, but he said, “Nonsense! Yi’er is still young. How could he endure such a long journey? I’ve already arranged with His Majesty that my condition for going to the Northern Sea is that you and Yi’er return to Zhenzhou. Once my sister’s marriage is settled, she and her mother will also return to Zhenzhou.”
Miantang slowly put down her chopsticks, her expression unchanging, “You are my husband. How could I let you be thousands of miles away from me? I know it’s difficult there, but I can’t bear to be separated from Yi’er and leave him to be raised by his mother and wet nurses. Since he chose to be born as our child, he should be wherever his parents are. If he can’t endure this hardship, he should have been born into another household, resting on his ancestors’ laurels, living an idle life of luxury as a wastrel.”
Only a woman who had lived as a bandit could speak such harsh words, unthinkable for ordinary ladies of noble households. Once she had made up her mind, no amount of persuasion from Cui Xingzhou would work. If he forbade her from coming, she would surely find a way to follow secretly.
Cui Xingzhou had never regretted his decision to go to the Northern Sea to suppress the Japanese pirates. But at this moment, facing the stubborn former bandit leader, he felt a twinge of regret.