Lu Guanyi smiled, “You needn’t ask so many questions. If I do join the military, please look after the Ye family for me.”

Qi Ji felt both happy and worried.

He was happy because, with his friend’s exceptional martial skills and strategic talents, achieving military merit wouldn’t be difficult. Avenging his mother and escaping the shadow of the Shi family was within reach.

Yet he worried because the Shi family’s influence was vast, the border was a dangerous place, and with weapons all around, it was hard to say whether his friend’s life could be preserved.

“What about your marriage…” he looked at Lu Guanyi, “You should know that Miss Ye won’t wait for you indefinitely. Perhaps when I return to Lin’an, I’ll hear news of her engagement.”

Lu Guanyi’s Adam’s apple bobbed, but he remained silent for a long time.

At that moment, Lu Guanyi’s steward, Lu An, hurriedly entered and whispered something in Lu Guanyi’s ear.

“What did you say?” Lu Guanyi stood up, his expression drastically changing.

Qi Ji’s eyes widened.

From childhood to adulthood, Lu Guanyi had always been composed in any situation. He had never seen Lu Guanyi look like this.

Lu An glanced at Qi Ji, then repeated, “The Third Princess suggested to the Duchess Ying that she arrange a marriage between Fifth Young Master Jiang and the Third Miss Ye from the Jiangnan tea merchant family.”

Qi Ji’s expression also changed.

“What’s going on? Why is this happening?” Qi Ji asked.

Lu An explained, “Our Young Master has always had us keeping an eye on the Meng family. The day before yesterday, we saw the Meng family send someone to the Third Princess’s residence. That night, the Third Princess returned to Duke Ying’s mansion. I sent someone to investigate and learned of this matter.”

“So the Third Princess told the Duchess about this the day before yesterday, and you’re only telling me today?” Lu Guanyi revealed an angry expression.

“Please forgive me, Young Master.” Lu An bowed deeply.

Lu Guanyi suppressed his inner turmoil, striving to remain calm.

He waved his hand, “This isn’t your fault.”

The Crown Prince had his intelligence network in the capital, and so did Lu Guanyi.

To avenge his mother, he had planted countless pawns in Duke Wei’s household over the years. Killing Lady Shi wouldn’t be difficult. The difficulty was that if Lady Shi died, Duke Wei’s household would likely suspect him, creating a rift with the Crown Prince and affecting the bigger picture.

So he willingly bore the reputation of a pitiful figure, pushed by his stepmother to conduct merchant affairs in Jiangnan, but never made his move. He was waiting for the right opportunity.

After his visit to Lin’an, inspired by Ye Yaming, he had Lu An organize the street idlers, ruffians, and beggars in the capital’s streets and alleys to form an intelligence network upon his return.

Such people were everywhere, and living at the bottom of society, they didn’t participate in political struggles, so people didn’t guard against them. Gathering intelligence through them was more comprehensive than collecting information from teahouses.

As soon as Meng Chengwei and the Third Princess made a move, their activities were reported to Lu Guanyi, who immediately sent people to investigate Duke Ying’s household.

Although Duke Ying had achieved illustrious military merit, he was aging, and none of his sons were capable of commanding troops, so in recent years, Duke Ying’s household had gradually been marginalized.

Lu Guanyi’s intelligence network was newly established and hadn’t prioritized Duke Ying’s household, making it difficult to infiltrate quickly. This had delayed obtaining clear information until now.

“Have you found out what the Duchess Ying said? What actions has she taken? Has she sent people to Lin’an?” Lu Guanyi asked a series of questions.

“As you can imagine, Young Master, the relationship between the Third Princess and her mother-in-law, the Duchess, is subtle—they don’t think highly of each other. When the Third Princess suddenly brought up this matter, the Duchess outwardly thanked her but inwardly grew suspicious. She’s currently investigating why the Third Princess is involved and whether there’s a grudge between her and the Ye family. She’s still waiting for feedback, so she hasn’t sent anyone to Lin’an yet.”

Lu Guanyi stood up and instructed An Tai, “Go make preparations. We’re heading to Lin’an shortly.”

It was already afternoon, and traveling to Lin’an at this hour wouldn’t be convenient. But An Tai knew his master’s temperament and didn’t dare to advise against it. He acknowledged the order and went to make preparations.

Qi Ji looked at the sky, sighed, and said, “I’m going too.” He gestured to his servant to return and pack, preparing for the journey.

Soon, everything was ready. The two men, accompanied by their escorts and guards, rode out of the capital on horseback, heading straight for Lin’an.

…

At this moment, Ye Yaming was sitting in the main room of the Ye residence, listening to Old Madam Ye ramble on: “The Zhang family has three rooms in their main house and thirty mu of medium-quality land. Zhang Scholar’s parents are still in good health. His father and elder brother work the fields and do odd jobs during the farming off-season. His mother and sister-in-law run a small food stall. His elder brother and his wife have two children, one three years old and the other not yet six months.”

“I had people inquire thoroughly. Zhang Scholar himself is quite promising. His father, elder brother, and sister-in-law are all honest and reliable people. The family is very harmonious.”

After saying all this, seeing no expression on Ye Yaming’s face, Old Madam Ye felt uncertain.

She steadied herself and continued, “Their family doesn’t look down on merchants. When the matchmaker approached them to gauge their interest, they were quite pleased to learn that you are a well-educated, beautiful, and capable young lady. After all, with their family’s circumstances, it would be difficult for them to continue supporting Zhang Scholar’s studies for the civil exams.”

She looked at Ye Yaming and asked, “Well? Would you like to meet him?”

Ye Yaming didn’t address this question directly but asked something else instead: “Grandmother, since Longjing tea hit the market, have many matchmakers come to propose marriage?”

“Oh my, you’ve been up on the mountain and don’t know. It’s not just matchmakers seeking marriage proposals! So many acquaintances and relatives have come to propose matches for their sons and nephews. Once the matchmakers spread word that you weren’t looking for a live-in son-in-law and were willing to marry out, they’ve been coming non-stop.” Just talking about this gave Old Madam Ye a headache.

She then pursed her lips, “These people… do they think I don’t know what they’re after? They’re just coveting our family’s wealth.”

At this point, she suddenly paused and asked Ye Yaming, “Why? Are you thinking of choosing someone from among those who have proposed?”

Ye Yaming shook her head.

“Grandmother,” she said seriously, “When Eldest Uncle returned last time, and Grandfather gathered everyone to discuss whether to sell Longjing tea outside the family, were you present?”

Old Madam Ye nodded, “Yes, I was.”

“You know that since Longjing tea has been praised by the Emperor, it might become a tribute tea in the future, and many people will try various means to discover our tea-making methods, right?” Ye Yaming asked again.

“Yes, I know,” Old Madam Ye nodded again.

“Then if my father and I encounter trouble, offend powerful figures from the capital, or if those authorities target our family because of the tea—if I were to marry one of the men you mentioned, wouldn’t they blame me for bringing trouble upon them and divorce me?”

Old Madam Ye was stunned, her eyes wide with shock.

The answer was obviously yes.

Zhang Scholar was pursuing an official career—how could he allow his wife’s family, or even his wife herself, to provoke the powerful?

As for the others, even if they weren’t from humble families, they weren’t from great noble houses either. Who wouldn’t fear the powerful figures from the capital?

In such a case, Ye Yaming’s fate would be divorce!