The next day, after discussing with Princess Imperial Yüan, Madam Yin sent a servant to bring a message to Ye Yaming, saying they were planning to open a second branch store.

Ye Yaming was delighted and instructed, “The master and mistress have been busy lately. As servants, you must be more attentive and prepare some nourishing soups for them. Do well, and I’ll reward you accordingly.”

“Young miss, please rest assured. This old servant will take good care of the master and mistress.”

In the days that followed, Madam Yin became incredibly busy.

As for the teahouse, Ye Yaming wouldn’t go there unless necessary, not wanting to create a habit of depending on the teahouse. Besides, if she received one madam today but wasn’t there when another madam visited tomorrow, wouldn’t that be discourteous?

Therefore, apart from the opening day, she never went there to entertain guests again. Even when she went to handle business matters, she wouldn’t appear to receive customers.

But Ye Hongsheng was different. A newly opened teahouse needed a master present, so he went there daily. Even if he didn’t personally attend to customers, he would stay in the residence there, which put him at ease.

Ye Yayin and Ye Yayu, aside from managing their newly opened pastry shop, spent their time following their governess and guards as they wandered through the streets and alleys, exploring the Capital and experiencing life.

Though Ye Yaming didn’t need to manage the teahouse, she couldn’t rest either.

As the New Year approached, the noble families in the Capital began hosting banquets. As the wife of the Xuanwu Marquis’s heir, Ye Yaming was naturally on the invitation list. She and Lu Guanyi were busy attending banquets every day.

Although there were many members of noble families in the Capital, only about one percent had visited the teahouse. Therefore, many people were meeting this legendary “heaven-sent” wife of the Xuanwu Marquis’s heir for the first time.

Because of this legend, and because the Xuanwu Marquis was now at the height of his power, no one without a grudge would offend him ordinarily. So even if some people privately disdained Ye Yaming because of her background, the vast majority were very polite and wouldn’t display their true thoughts openly.

However, on this particular day, when Ye Yaming arrived at Prince Kang’s mansion for a banquet and had paid her respects upon entering, Princess Imperial Yuning waved to her: “Yaming, come here. Let me introduce you to the Marquis of Zhennan’s wife.”

Ye Yaming’s eyes flickered.

If she remembered correctly, the marriage Madam Shi had arranged for her biological son, Lu Guanyu, was with County Princess Qingrong, the legitimate youngest daughter of the Marquis of Zhennan.

The former wife of the Marquis of Zhennan had left behind two sons and one daughter before her death. The current heir to the Marquis of Zhennan’s estate was the son of that wife, and the daughter born during her difficult labor was County Princess Qingrong, who was a few months younger than Lu Guanyu.

Madam Shi had pitied this niece who was born without a mother and worried she might suffer under a stepmother’s care. Thus, she often invited her to stay at the Xuanwu Marquis’s mansion. County Princess Qingrong spent more than half the year at the Xuanwu Marquis’s mansion, growing up as childhood sweethearts with Lu Guanyu.

When they were twelve, Madam Shi had arranged their betrothal.

When the Duke of Weiguo’s household was charged with treason and Madam Shi was divorced, Lu Guanyu, though not implicated because he was Lu Zhongyong’s son, was not going to have much of a future in the eyes of astute observers. In any other family, they would certainly have broken off the engagement.

But as the Duke of Weiguo fell, the Xuanwu Marquis rose, making the Lu family’s status even more prominent than before. Moreover, County Princess Qingrong refused to break the engagement under any circumstances. After a broken engagement, as the granddaughter of the Duke of Weiguo, raised by Madam Shi, who had grown up with Lu Guanyu, she wouldn’t be able to secure a good marriage elsewhere.

So the Marquis of Zhennan preserved this engagement.

Ye Yaming followed Princess Imperial Yuning to a noblewoman.

Princess Imperial Yuning smiled at the noblewoman, “Sixth Sister-in-law, let me introduce you to the wife of the Xuanwu Marquis’s heir, Lady Ye.”

She then introduced Ye Yaming, “This is the wife of the Marquis of Zhennan.”

Ye Yaming quickly bowed: “Yaming pays her respects to the wife of the Marquis of Zhennan.”

“Please, no need for such formality.” The wife of the Marquis of Zhennan stood up, smiling as she made a gesture to help Ye Yaming rise.

She was in her thirties, with a beautiful appearance, and was the second wife the Marquis of Zhennan had married to fill the vacant position. She was said to also come from a merchant family.

“People say the wife of the Xuanwu Marquis’s heir is beautiful, and indeed, she has the beauty of flowers and moonlight.” The Marquis of Zhennan’s wife complimented Ye Yaming.

“The Madam is the truly beautiful one. Standing before you, Yaming feels quite inadequate.”

Hearing these two insincere compliments, a girl standing behind the Marquis of Zhennan’s wife twisted her mouth in contempt, her face full of mockery.

As if she had eyes in the back of her head, the Marquis of Zhennan’s wife turned and smiled at the girl, beckoning her: “Yuehua, come quickly and meet the wife of the Xuanwu Marquis’s heir.” She then smiled at Ye Yaming and said, “This is my family’s second young lady, County Princess Qingrong.”

Chu Yuehua’s brows furrowed slightly as she reluctantly took a few steps forward, looking at Ye Yaming with utter disdain, her expression extremely contemptuous.

The Marquis of Zhennan’s wife’s countenance changed slightly, but she said nothing, only looking at Ye Yaming with apologetic eyes.

Ye Yaming, as if she hadn’t noticed Chu Yuehua’s expression or gaze, bowed to her: “Yaming pays her respects to County Princess Qingrong.”

Chu Yuehua nodded slightly and coldly responded, “No need for ceremony.” With that, she returned to sit behind the Marquis of Zhennan’s wife and began eating the desserts on the table.

The smile on the Marquis of Zhennan’s wife’s face immediately faltered. She wanted to say something polite to Ye Yaming, such as “The child doesn’t know any better,” but she was also aware of her stepdaughter’s terrible temper.

If she dared to say such things, Chu Yuehua would publicly humiliate her.

In the years since marrying into the Marquis of Zhennan’s family, she hadn’t suffered mistreatment from her mother-in-law or husband, but had instead endured much from her stepson and stepdaughter. Even her son had nearly been poisoned to death. Despite this, Madam Shi still spread rumors outside about the “wicked stepmother,” damaging her reputation.

When the Duke of Weiguo’s household was raided and beheaded overnight, she had secretly celebrated several times with private toasts. It was a pity that Madam Shi hadn’t died, which left her feeling somewhat unsatisfied.

Now she simply pretended not to notice, smiled apologetically at Ye Yaming, and asked Princess Imperial Yuning, “Why haven’t I seen the Second Princess Imperial?”

Princess Imperial Yuning’s face had already darkened when Chu Yuehua was rudely examining Ye Yaming, and it turned completely black when she saw that Chu Yuehua didn’t even return the courtesy.

She and the current Emperor were both born to the Empress Dowager, and even Prince Kang, who was hosting today and had been born to Imperial Consort Tai, wouldn’t dare be disrespectful to her.

But now, a daughter of a distant cousin marquis had publicly disgraced her.

Ye Yaming had been brought over by her, and even if one didn’t respect the monk, one should respect the Buddha. No matter how much Chu Yuehua disdained Ye Yaming, she shouldn’t have behaved like this in public. This wasn’t slapping Ye Yaming’s face but slapping the face of her royal aunt.

However, publicly scolding Chu Yuehua would not only make her look like a harsh aunt but would also make Chu Yuehua hate Ye Yaming even more. Princess Imperial Yuning resolved to speak to the Marquis of Zhennan about properly disciplining his daughter.

Ye Yaming, as if she hadn’t noticed Chu Yuehua’s rudeness, maintained her smile without the slightest change. She stepped back two paces to stand behind Princess Imperial Yuning, waiting for her to converse with the Marquis of Zhennan’s wife.