When Zhenniang arrived at the Li family’s ancestral home with Manager Zheng, the place was in chaos. As she entered the front courtyard, she saw several yamen runners lingering by the entrance. After some consideration, she beckoned Manager Zheng to enter through the side door first to reach the back hall—she needed to speak with First Sister-in-law before anything else.
“I must say, how could you all hand over such a major ink workshop—a hereditary family business—to an eighth-branch servant girl to manage?! The eighth branch was long since expelled from the Li family workshop. Have you all lost your minds? Well now that such a disaster has occurred, I want to see how you’ll resolve this mess!”
“This was arranged by Mother-in-law’s written instructions—her final wishes before she fell unconscious. How could we not comply? Besides, since Zhenniang took over managing the workshop, she has been doing quite well, running everything properly,” Madam Chen explained from the side.
“Even if Mother left written instructions to entrust it to her, you shouldn’t have let her have free rein! Doing quite well, you say? Then how do you explain the current situation? Who can tell me what’s going on?” That cold voice continued.
Just as Zhenniang reached the second gate of the back hall, she unexpectedly heard these scolding voices from afar. The voice was unfamiliar—Zhenniang couldn’t identify who was speaking.
Who was being so presumptuous? This was practically scolding the Li family’s First Madam to her face.
However, hearing her refer to Seventh Grandmother as “Mother,” could this be First Aunt?
The seventh branch of the Li family had three sons and one daughter. This person was the First Aunt from the seventh branch. Her given name was Li Ninghong. As the only daughter, both Seventh Grandfather and Seventh Grandmother doted on her greatly. When she was at home, all her brothers would yield to her. Later she married into the Weaving Guild in Nanjing to the Han family. While not necessarily prestigious, they were certainly wealthy.
She turned to Manager Zheng and asked, “Is that First Aunt who has arrived?”
“Yes, the Young Miss arrived early to see the Old Madam,” Manager Zheng replied.
“Oh.” Zhenniang nodded.
It was indeed First Aunt. Over these years, the Li family’s eighth branch hadn’t had much contact with the seventh branch. Moreover, as Zhenniang was a transmigrator who had arrived halfway, she naturally had never met this aunt.
She just hadn’t expected their first meeting would be under such circumstances. First Aunt’s timing was quite convenient.
This show seemed to be getting more and more interesting, Zhenniang thought.
Upon reaching the second gate, Manager Zheng couldn’t properly enter, so Zhenniang went in alone while Manager Zheng went outside to busy himself with attending to others.
“First Sister-in-law, Second Aunt, Third Aunt, First Aunt, I’m here.” Zhenniang entered the back hall directly and greeted everyone. She raised her eyes to look at First Aunt seated on the right.
She looked very much like Seventh Grandmother, though naturally younger, but there was an irritable air between her brows. She lacked the imposing presence that Seventh Grandmother had.
“Well, let me see, this must be Zhenniang from the eighth branch. You’ve made quite a name for yourself,” Madam Han Li sized up Zhenniang, with a hint of disdain in her eyes.
“I dare not accept First Aunt’s praise.” Zhenniang could hear the sarcasm in her words but paid it no mind, responding indifferently.
“You dare not? I think you dare plenty! You even dared to do business with pirates—where do you intend to place our Li family?” Madam Han Li pressed on with her accusations.
“The matter is not yet clear. First Aunt’s accusations are unfair, and I cannot accept them,” Zhenniang remained calm in her response.
“That’s right, First Aunt…” Madam Chen tried to intervene. She had many things she wanted to say to First Aunt, but she hadn’t expected First Aunt to start making accusations as soon as she arrived, making it difficult to say much of anything.
“First Sister-in-law, don’t make excuses for Zhenniang anymore. Not only did she dare to do business with pirates, but she even let them owe money. I heard the price for that batch of ink was especially low. I wonder how much Zhenniang must have pocketed from this deal,” Madam Tian remarked sarcastically from the side.
“Third Sister-in-law, don’t talk nonsense!” Madam Da Huang glared, wondering how she could say such things.
“How am I talking nonsense? You know all about what’s happened with their family lately. Such a major crisis and their eighth branch was so capable—not only did they resolve the situation, but they even got an oil workshop. I’m just curious, where did the eighth branch get so much money to resolve this crisis? What do you say, Zhenniang?” Madam Tian said. She knew her Second Sister-in-law and others had contributed, but that was far from enough.
“Third Aunt, there’s something you might not know,” Zhenniang asked with a slight smile.
“What is it?” Madam Tian raised an eyebrow.
“Recently, my eldest brother and legitimate cousin went to Wuyuan and dug several inkstone pits. Thanks to heaven’s help, they discovered a batch of fine inkstones and made a small fortune. It was because of this fortune that we were able to resolve the recent situation,” Zhenniang explained.
“Hah, what a coincidence,” Madam Tian said disbelievingly.
“Whether it’s a coincidence or not is hard to say, but this matter caused quite a stir in Wuyuan. Anyone can verify it there,” Zhenniang replied.
Madam Han Li raised an eyebrow from the side.
“Enough, what time is it now? Stop discussing these matters,” Madam Chen interrupted, then turned to Zhenniang and asked, “Zhenniang, how do you think we should handle this current situation?”
The two women exchanged glances. Ever since Wang Cuiqiao had privately paid that batch of goods’ payment to Madam Chen, she understood there was more to this business. Now, she wanted to see what tricks everyone had up their sleeves.
After giving Madam Chen a look suggesting they should wait and see, Zhenniang said, “I think there must be some misunderstanding. We should clarify things first. We only did business with Huiyuan Money House—we knew nothing about any pirates.”
“You make it sound so simple. Do you think just saying you didn’t know makes it true? That would only work if the Commander believes you,” Madam Tian interjected again.
“Why do I feel like Third Aunt hopes the workshop will get into trouble?” Zhenniang said calmly.
“Nonsense! Where are your manners? I’m just concerned,” Madam Tian glared at Zhenniang.
Ignoring her, Zhenniang turned to Madam Chen and asked, “First Sister-in-law, what did the Commander say?”
“Arrests and sealing the workshop,” Madam Chen replied.
Zhenniang narrowed her eyes, thought for a moment, and said, “First Sister-in-law, I’ll go to the front. I suppose if they want to arrest anyone, it would be me.” After all, Zhenniang was currently in charge of the workshop.
“I’ll go with you,” Madam Chen said.
Then they both left the back hall for the front hall. Madam Tian and others followed.
In the front hall, Manager Shao, Li Jingdong, and a county clerk named Yun were accompanying a Commander wearing a flying fish uniform from the Imperial Guard.
The Commander sat in the guest position, sipping tea with narrowed eyes and a bland expression.
As soon as Madam Chen entered, she took the host position, with Zhenniang seated below her.
“Commander, this is truly an unwarranted disaster for our Li family. Huiyuan Money House is a local merchant. Although they opened recently, they’re all local people whom we know well. Who could have imagined they were involved in maritime smuggling? Our Li family would never dare to collude with pirates. Please investigate thoroughly, Commander.”
Madam Chen spoke with composure, fully displaying the dignity of the family matriarch.
Today, Huiyuan Money House had kept their doors closed, with yamen runners patrolling outside.
“I’m afraid that’s not quite right. Logically, with such a large transaction between you and Huiyuan Money House, if it were normal business, how could other merchants in the trade not know about it? How could they not compete? Yet from my investigation last night, none of the merchants in Huizhou knew about such a transaction beforehand. How could there not be something more to this? Isn’t it because this batch of goods was meant for overseas trade, so everyone kept it low-key? Don’t try to claim you didn’t know—that would fool no one. However, Madam, please rest assured. We will naturally investigate this matter thoroughly. So, I request the workshop’s manager accompany me to the Nanjing Surveillance Bureau branch,” the Commander spoke coolly, glancing at Zhenniang.
He knew Zhenniang was the workshop’s manager. Zhenniang curled her lips—since Li Jincai had set this trap, this official naturally knew who he was targeting.
“If the Commander insists, then I should be the one to go,” Madam Chen said steadily, her intentions unreadable.
“Commander, I think I should go. They’re all women—the Commander should show some mercy,” Li Jingdong said to the Imperial Guard Commander. He usually spoke harshly, so these words didn’t sound particularly pleasant.
“Yes, Commander, let us old folks go with you,” Old Manager Li said hurriedly as he arrived with Li Dalang and others.
“Oh? Do you all want to go? Very well, I’ll oblige,” the Imperial Guard Commander said sinisterly. With a wave of his hand, he ordered the yamen runners outside, “Take them all.”
Li Jingdong wore a cold smile, while Zhenniang noticed Li Jincai slipping in and couldn’t help but curl her lips again—it was time for his entrance.
Sure enough, Li Jincai spoke to the Commander with feigned confusion, “Brother Yang? Is that you?”
The Imperial Guard Commander heard the voice and carefully examined Li Jincai. After a while, he clapped his hands and said, “Isn’t this Brother Jincai? What are you doing here?”
“Me? I’m the Li family’s son-in-law,” Li Jincai laughed.
“You’re the Li family’s son-in-law?” Commander Yang still looked disbelieving.
Seeing Li Jincai nod, Commander Yang smiled bitterly and said, “Then isn’t this a case of not recognizing our own family?” Then he turned to Clerk Yun and said, “In Suzhou, Brother Jincai once saved my life.”
“Then Commander, what about today’s matter?” Clerk Yun was quick to ask.
At this point, Li Jincai said to the Imperial Guard Commander with a righteous expression, “Brother Yang, I can stake my life that the Li family has never colluded with pirates. Please investigate thoroughly.”
“I might not believe others, but I must believe Brother Jincai’s words. Very well, for the sake of Brother Jincai saving my life, regardless of whether the Li family colluded with pirates or not, I’ll take responsibility for this matter today,” Commander Yang said rather grandly.
Then he continued, “However, this batch of goods is still troublesome. After all, it was seized from a pirate ship—that’s physical evidence that can’t be denied. If someone wanted to pursue this matter, it would be difficult to explain.”
“May I ask where this batch of goods is now? Would it be possible for us Li family to purchase it? We will bear all costs for smoothing things over,” Li Jincai said, glancing at Madam Chen.
Madam Chen remained silent, just watching Li Jincai with a meaningful expression. After all, she knew some of the inside story.
Li Jingdong frowned from the side but agreed with Li Jincai’s approach. If they could handle it this way, losing money to avoid disaster was an unavoidable solution.
“Good, since this matter involves Brother Jincai, I naturally must help. I’ll handle smoothing things over up and down the chain, and will find a way to get this batch of goods back,” Commander Yang promised, patting his chest.
“Thank you, Brother Yang,” Li Jincai said gratefully.
Watching these people’s back-and-forth performance, Zhenniang thought this show was truly spectacular. Brother-in-law Jincai had managed a major reversal, using his past connections to help the Li family resolve a major crisis at their most desperate moment.
The Li family would have to be grateful to him from now on, and with Commander Yang as a patron, they would have to treat Li Jincai differently whether they wanted to or not. It could be said that with this one scene, Li Jincai had completely achieved his goal.
“I’ve had a question I wanted to ask the Commander,” Zhenniang said. After watching enough of the show, it was her turn to take the stage.
“What question? Ask away,” Commander Yang said.
“Are you certain that the ink seized from the pirate ship belongs to our Li family?” Zhenniang asked.
“What do you mean by that, Miss Li? Are you suggesting I’m wrongly accusing your Li family?” Commander Yang raised his eyebrows.
“Haven’t you wronged our Li family? As far as I know, just last night, the batch of ink we sold to Huiyuan Money House was still in their warehouse. I don’t understand—did this batch of ink fly to Zhoushan overnight? Did it fly onto the pirate ship?” Zhenniang said mockingly.
Hearing this, everyone except Madam Chen was shocked. Li Jincai began to sweat, feeling something was wrong. How did Zhenniang know that a batch of goods was originally stored in Huiyuan Money House’s warehouse?
“Zhenniang, what’s going on?” Li Jingdong asked sternly.
“What nonsense are you talking about?” Commander Yang snarled at Zhenniang. Then he turned to Li Jincai and said, “Brother Jincai, it’s not that I’m ungrateful, but your family’s Miss Zhenniang is too unreasonable. She wants to confirm whether the seized goods belong to the Li family. Fine then. Come with me, and you can see for yourself.” Commander Yang waved his hand again.
Before the yamen runners could rush forward, several Li family brothers had already positioned themselves in front of Zhenniang.
“I think before going with Commander Yang, we should first check Huiyuan Money House’s warehouse. Overnight, that batch of goods certainly couldn’t have flown to Zhoushan—perhaps it’s still in Huiyuan Money House’s warehouse right now,” Zhenniang said coldly.
“Let’s go check the Huiyuan Money House,” Li Jingdong said coldly, knowing Zhenniang’s character well. When Zhenniang spoke, she was always prudent. If she suggested checking the Money House, they should do so.
Though the situation wasn’t entirely clear, everyone present felt uneasy – today’s events were becoming increasingly strange.
Official Yang’s forehead began to show traces of sweat. He glanced quietly at Li Jincai beside him, who gave an imperceptible nod. Li Jincai was always meticulous in his work. As a precaution, he had already arranged for Sun Baiyi to move the goods out the previous night. If they went to check now, they would find nothing.
Seeing Li Jincai’s signal, Official Yang finally relaxed. “Very well, let’s pay a visit to Huiyuan Money House.”
The group then headed out, their grand procession drawing the attention of passersby.
Today, Huiyuan Money House remained closed.
Official Yang stepped forward to knock on the door. It was opened by yamen runners, followed by Sun Baiyi who came forward sweating profusely, with two more officials behind him.
“Sir,” the two officials bowed to Official Yang.
“Take us to the warehouse,” Official Yang commanded.
The Li family members who had come along grew worried again. Seeing Official Yang’s confident demeanor, they wondered if Zhenniang might have been mistaken.
Only Zhenniang knew what was happening. This was what she and Wang Cuiqiao had planned – first reveal the location of the hidden goods, knowing everyone would want to investigate. Wang Cuiqiao had promised to give everyone a grand surprise when the time came.
Zhenniang was also looking forward to Wang Cuiqiao’s surprise.
The group quickly arrived at the warehouse. A yamen runner opened it, revealing several boxes full of ink cases, all bearing the Li family seal.
Official Yang was dumbfounded, forgetting to hide his reaction as he glared at Li Jincai beside him.
Li Jincai’s face darkened as he turned to look at Sun Baiyi, who could only manage a bitter smile. Last night when he had tried to move the goods, Madam Xu had caught him in the act. Now he could barely save himself.
Seeing Sun Baiyi’s expression, Li Jincai felt a chill down his spine, realizing he might have fallen into a trap.
He needed to save himself. Turning to Official Yang, he said, “Brother Yang, what is the meaning of this? You owe me and the Li family an explanation!”
“You…” Official Yang was caught off guard by Li Jincai’s sudden accusation, nearly choking on his words.
Just then, the sound of applause rang out.
“Seventh Madam, wasn’t today’s show spectacular?” Wang Cuiqiao emerged from behind the crowd, supporting an elderly woman.
The elderly woman’s face was frost-like, though her eyes held mockery.
Everyone was stunned upon seeing her.
This elderly woman was none other than the Li family’s Seventh Madam, the family matriarch who had supposedly been bedridden for half a year.
Wasn’t she supposed to be paralyzed at home? Wasn’t she supposedly in a coma? Why had she suddenly appeared here?
Was this Wang Cuiqiao’s promised surprise? Had Seventh Grandmother suddenly recovered? Or had she been pretending all along?
The thought flashed through her mind, and Zhenniang became certain that Seventh Grandmother had been pretending all along.
Regarding Seventh Grandmother’s condition, Zhenniang had harbored suspicions these past few days. It was mainly because after their family’s troubles began, the First Sister-in-law’s actions had been very uncharacteristic. First Sister-in-law had always been steady and good-tempered, but recently when she appeared, her words and actions greatly resembled Seventh Grandmother’s style, carrying Seventh Grandmother’s distinctive air of authority.
Thinking about it now, these must have all been Seventh Grandmother’s instructions.
But when had Wang Cuiqiao established contact with Seventh Grandmother? As Zhenniang pondered this, she glanced at First Sister-in-law and understood. After she had Wang Cuiqiao give that shipment payment directly to First Sister-in-law, Wang Cuiqiao and First Sister-in-law had begun interacting. Through this connection, it made sense that Wang Cuiqiao would also have contact with Seventh Grandmother.
The result was this grand surprise, and indeed it was grand – everyone was completely stunned.
“I’ve watched plays all my life, but I’ve never seen one as spectacular as this, though the plot is rather troubling. I must be quite amusing to Miss Xu,” Seventh Madam said self-mockingly. After all, these were family scandals.
“Madam, we’re quite alike in this. I also have those who cause me worry,” Wang Cuiqiao said coldly, glancing at Sun Baiyi.
Sun Baiyi’s face turned pale as he continuously wiped sweat from his brow, despite it being the dead of winter.
“Official Yun, thank you for your trouble as well,” Seventh Madam then said to Clerk Yun, who had been accompanying Official Yang.
“Madam is too kind. I had never acted in a play before, but today I’ve had my fill of the experience. Moreover, Madam has given me quite a merit – this gentleman has been impersonating an Imperial Guard for quite some time, making his way from Suzhou and victimizing many along the way. Thanks to Madam’s guidance, I’ve now cracked this major case,” Clerk Yun replied with clasped hands.
“Then let me give you another merit – recently, someone has been selling Qimen patterned stones as Wuyuan ink stones. That was also his doing. Several shops on our Four Treasures Street were deceived. Official Yun can now give them an explanation as well.”
“Many thanks to Seventh Madam,” Clerk Yun responded.
By this time, the so-called Official Yang had collapsed on the ground, with yamen runners already placing chains on him.
Zhenniang looked at Seventh Grandmother with genuine admiration. While Li Jincai had been plotting, she had been digging a trap, but the true master pulling the strings had been Seventh Grandmother. From the moment she appeared, she had commanded the situation with complete control.
Now, hearing her Seventh Grandmother’s conversation with Clerk Yun, she realized that this Official Yang was the same con man who had deceived Jiang Laiyun. If she hadn’t happened to encounter him then, Uncle Jingdong would have lost everything.
This meant that the fake ink stone incident hadn’t been a coincidence but rather a premeditated scheme – Li Jincai’s scheme. He had laid his plans deep, first using fake patterned stones to trap Uncle Jingdong, then fabricating the coastal pirate’s plot to ensnare her along with Manager Shao and Manager Zheng. This way, the ink workshop would be his alone.
With the Tian family being so unscrupulous, no wonder Li Jincai had managed to take over the Li family ink workshop according to the clan records.
“Sister-in-law, what’s going on?” Old Shopkeeper Li spoke up, his face full of emotion. He had thought his sister-in-law was in a coma, yet she suddenly appeared before everyone in this manner – it felt like a dream.
“Eighth Brother, it’s a long story. Let’s leave this to Official Yun to handle and discuss it when we return home,” Seventh Madam calmly told Old Shopkeeper Li, then beckoned to Zhenniang.
Zhenniang hurried forward to support Seventh Madam’s arm, naturally complaining, “Seventh Grandmother, you’ve kept everyone in such suspense!”
“Yet when I looked at you just now, you didn’t seem surprised at all,” the old madam patted Zhenniang’s hand and asked curiously. She was certain her daughter-in-law hadn’t told Zhenniang, but this girl had been the calmest of everyone just now.
“I had guessed some of it before,” Zhenniang said as she helped the old madam walk.
“Oh? When?” the old madam raised an eyebrow.
“During the tung oil poisoning incident, when First Sister-in-law appeared at the yamen,” Zhenniang replied.
Madam Chen, who was supporting the old madam on the other side, gasped, “So I was the one who gave it away?”
“Hehe, First Sister-in-law has a steady but gentle nature and couldn’t have spoken with such authority that day. But the First Sister-in-law’s tone then was exactly like the Seventh Grandmother’s. Additionally, I visited my Seventh Grandmother daily. Though she was supposedly comatose, her complexion wasn’t too poor, and her breathing was steady and even, unlike someone truly ill and unconscious. So I had my wild speculations, though I never imagined they would turn out to be true,” Zhenniang said with a smile.
“Indeed, I was the one who gave it away,” Madam Chen laughed.
“I told you – it’s easy to fool anyone else, but not this girl. She’s too clever,” Seventh Madam teased Zhenniang. In her heart, she also felt touched that only Zhenniang had paid such close attention to her complexion and breathing out of concern. This girl was truly kind-hearted.
“But Seventh Grandmother, you played too big a game this time,” Zhenniang said seriously, her voice choking with emotion as her eyes reddened.
Since Seventh Grandmother’s farewell letter, she had shouldered so much alone. Now, all that pent-up grievance could no longer be contained.
Even Old Shopkeeper Li gave the old madam a reproachful look. The old madam could play her games, but she shouldn’t have pushed Zhenniang to such a precarious position – she was just a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl.
It was fortunate that she had proven capable. An ordinary person couldn’t have handled such pressure.
“Yes, Seventh Grandmother has wronged Zhenniang. But Grandmother had no choice. There, there – Grandmother will accept any punishment. Later, I’ll prepare a dowry for Zhenniang that will make everyone envious, how about that?” Seventh Madam teased.
At this moment, Seventh Madam’s heart was full of emotion.
After she first regained consciousness from her stroke and saw the chaos in the family without its backbone, she entered a state of panic.
She wondered what would happen to the ink workshop after her death. What would become of her daughters-in-law and granddaughters-in-law? What about Young Master You?
There were so many things she couldn’t see clearly or understand. Moreover, the ink workshop was the Li family’s centuries-old foundation and her husband’s life’s work. If she passed away, given the workshop’s condition then, it would be difficult to maintain.
But she saw promise in Zhenniang. Zhenniang’s recent ink-making work and her diligent study of ink-crafting techniques made her feel that revitalizing Li Ink might fall to Zhenniang. However, Zhenniang was both a girl and the granddaughter of the eighth branch – even if she wanted to pass the workshop to Zhenniang, it seemed somewhat improper.
Furthermore, she wasn’t entirely confident whether Zhenniang could truly sustain this family business. Thus, she painstakingly orchestrated another stroke that left her seemingly paralyzed and comatose. Then she passed the ink workshop to Zhenniang – firstly to test Zhenniang’s abilities, and secondly, even if Zhenniang didn’t do well, she could still salvage the situation. By keeping Zhenniang by her side, with one failure and her guidance, there would be much less resistance when Zhenniang took over the workshop again.
These were her thoughts and plans.
Through this, she could also see everyone’s true faces.
Now everything had indeed gone as expected. The only surprise was Zhenniang’s performance, which truly opened her eyes. Zhenniang hadn’t just done well – she had done exceptionally well, far exceeding her expectations.
Of course, the girl had suffered quite a lot of grievances, but Zhenniang’s suffering wouldn’t be in vain. She would repay the eighth branch.
“Grandmother is teasing Zhenniang,” Zhenniang said irritably.
As they spoke, the group returned to the Li family mansion.
“Mother, wasn’t it said you had a stroke? I just went to the Buddha Hall but didn’t see you there. I was wondering where your First Sister-in-law had taken you! Mother, you scared me. I was blaming First Sister-in-law – if Third Sister-in-law hadn’t mentioned it, I wouldn’t have known so many things had happened at home,” at the entrance, Madam Han Li approached Seventh Madam with relief and asked.
Madam Chen had known all along that the old madam was pretending to be ill, so naturally, she hadn’t written to Madam Han Li.
“When someone mentioned it, you came running, then started lecturing this person and that person. Madam Han, quite the air you put on,” Seventh Madam said irritably, stinging Madam Han Li’s face red.
“How could I not come when Mother was ill?” Madam Han Li said with a bitter expression.
“Stop pretending. Do you think Mother doesn’t know what you’re thinking? Stand aside for now, Mother will settle accounts with you later,” Seventh Madam glared at her. She knew her daughter well. Though this girl had come because of her illness, she had immediately started pressuring Madam Chen and Zhenniang – wasn’t it because she envied the eighth branch getting the workshop and wanted a piece of it? With such thoughts, she deserved to be used.
Chastised by Seventh Madam, Madam Han Li sheepishly retreated to the side.
By now everyone had entered the main hall. Even Sixth Uncle and Aunt Jinhua from the sixth branch had arrived. Seeing Seventh Madam well, they were still excited, though they didn’t yet understand what had happened.
“Light the lamps! Close the doors!” Seventh Madam sat down and coldly commanded Manager Shao outside.
The date-red main gates slowly closed.
Seventh Madam was about to begin cleaning the house!