With something weighing on her mind, Hua Zhi set aside the seafood business for the time being. There was still time for that, and no matter how she looked at it, Haoyue’s situation was far more pressing than any business deal.

Yet that did not stop trouble from coming to her door.

Early the next morning, Hua Zhi had just arrived at the front courtyard when Liu Xiang came to report, “Young Miss, Miss Qin requests an audience.”

“Hua Qin? I’ll head to the back courtyard right away.”

She was already rising to her feet when Liu Xiang said, “Miss Qin did not go to the back courtyard. She is waiting outside.”

“Please invite her in at once.”

“Yes.”

Before long, Hua Qin came in holding up the hem of her skirt. She was about the same age as Hua Zhi, and though still in the prime of her youth, she now carried about her an air of a young matron — something no unmarried girl could ever possess no matter how she tried.

“Cousin.”

“You look well.” Hua Zhi extended her hand in welcome. The maidservants served tea, then quietly withdrew.

“Is something the matter?”

Hua Qin smiled. “The moment you said that, I could tell you’re someone people come to see quite often. But yes, I do have something I’d like to discuss with you today.”

“Go ahead.”

Hua Qin was well aware that her famously capable cousin preferred directness and had no patience for preamble, so she dispensed with pleasantries and came straight to the point. “I’ve come regarding the marriage prospects of the younger sisters at home.”

This was indeed something Hua Zhi had been keeping in mind, searching for a way to address it. After what had happened with Hua Yan, she knew the responsibility fell partly on her — she had been negligent. In this era, it was not hard to understand why a girl who had had a betrothal broken might take drastic measures. She could not allow the other sisters to be left to find their own way out of such situations.

“What are your thoughts?”

“I heard about what happened with Hua Yan… as has most of the capital by now. You handled it with remarkable boldness, Cousin — pressing hard and resolving everything at a stroke. You preserved the reputation of the Hua Family’s daughters while using the incident to make your stance unmistakably clear to everyone. Even my husband’s grandmother said that if it had been her, the most she could have managed would be to give Hua Yan a white silk cord to end things with, and that would have done nothing to help the broader situation.”

Hua Zhi merely smiled and said nothing more. What was done was done. As long as the outcome was good, that was enough.

Hua Qin had only come to understand the full picture after her husband’s grandmother — the matriarch on her husband’s side — had quietly explained things to her. Someone had intended to use that incident to gnaw away at whatever remained of the Hua Family’s foundation. Those with even more crooked intentions had hoped to tarnish the Hua Family’s name entirely, reducing it to the same fate as the He Family. When she had first heard this, she had gone cold all over. She could not bear to imagine what would have happened had her cousin not acted swiftly and decisively — the sisters’ lives would have been ruined, and the blow to the entire Hua Family would have been devastating.

The Hua Family had struggled so hard under her cousin’s leadership just to gain a foothold. If they stumbled again, no one could say whether they would ever be able to rise once more.

How vicious those intentions were.

She was a married-out daughter, but she still wanted to help. Only after consulting with her husband’s family and having a serious discussion with her husband had she made today’s visit.

“Let me share my modest observations.” Hua Qin did not expect any particular response from her cousin and continued, “The Hua Family’s situation is not as bad as it might seem. First, you are capable. You have led everyone to conduct themselves with integrity, and over this past year, there has not been a single blemish anyone can point to. From that alone, the value of the sisters has not been diminished by much — anyone with discernment can see that clearly.”

Hua Zhi nodded, gesturing for her to continue.

Encouraged, Hua Qin sat up a little straighter. “Second, though the men of the Hua Family have been sent into exile, their offenses are not of the kind that cannot be reversed. Should the right moment come, a restoration is not out of the question. To take a Hua daughter as a bride at this time would be like making an investment that looks unpromising at first but yields rich returns in the end. The great noble houses would not take that risk, but families just one step below them very well might.”

“Continue.”

“Third, the Hua Family’s clan school has not been shut down, which means the foundation of your family’s scholarly tradition remains intact. Even if there is no hope of the men returning to prominence, the younger generation may prove well worth watching as they grow up. The Hua Family may not have students filling positions throughout the realm, but it is far from having no one in court.”

“Fourth, because you are here, Cousin, even my husband’s grandmother says that when she looks at you she feels the Hua Family is full of promise. You hold the household together, and the others are willing to follow your direction. A family that is united in purpose cannot be brought down.”

At this point, Hua Qin smiled with an expression of shared pride. “This is not just my husband’s grandmother speaking on her own behalf. She says that when the ladies of various households get together and the Hua Family comes up in conversation, quite a few have expressed the very same sentiment.”

Hua Zhi had been quietly organizing her own thoughts as she listened, and at that last remark she immediately asked, “So the prevailing opinion of the Hua Family in the capital is not unfavorable?”

“That is correct.”

That was enough. She was not counting on others to reach out a helping hand. As long as they stayed out of it and did not kick them while they were down, that was already honoring whatever courtesy had passed between them over the years.

By now, Hua Zhi had also worked out why Hua Qin had come. “You wish to act as a matchmaker for the sisters? Did your husband’s family agree to this?”

Hua Qin’s smile was open and unclouded, with no sign of bitterness — clearly she was genuinely content in her husband’s household. She answered honestly, “I came only after consulting with them. To be quite frank, if my husband’s family had not agreed, I would likely not have dared to do this.”

Hua Zhi smiled. At least she was forthright. It seemed the Cai Family truly did have good values — worth associating with.

“Your husband is still studying at the Imperial Academy, if I recall correctly.”

Hua Qin was startled for a moment, then quickly nodded. “Yes.”

“I won’t deal directly with the rest of the Cai Family. But when your husband has some free time, bring him by. I have a business venture I’d like to offer the Cai Family a share in — provided, of course, that we can come to an agreement.”

Once a woman was married, her first duty was to her husband’s household rather than her own. Hua Qin knew that what was being offered to her was an enormous advantage. By now it was no secret in the capital that her cousin had a remarkable talent for business. If she could secure this benefit, she would be able to speak with greater confidence in her husband’s home.

At the very least, she could simply look after her own family a little more in return. With that thought in mind, Hua Qin agreed with a flushed face.

Hua Zhi had not thought that deeply into it. The Cai Family, while not yet among the top three ranks of officialdom, was an old and established family that had taken root in the capital for many years. Their network of connections was far beyond what any newly risen family could compare to. Giving up a little in terms of profit to draw them into her circle was no loss at all.

“Cousin, do you have any particular requirements for the sisters’ marriages?”

“Look for families with clean records. None of those who are all surface and no substance. It does not have to be a grand household. Once you have some prospects in mind, come and let me know first, and I will have someone look into whether the match is suitable.”

“Understood. I know how much is at stake and would never be reckless about it.”

“And for now, please do not mention this to anyone else at home. Nothing is certain yet, and there is no need to have everyone remembering it and coming to find me every day with questions. I am already busy enough just managing the people around me.”

Hua Qin covered her mouth with a laugh. “Before I got to know you, Cousin, I always thought you must be difficult to get along with — which was why all these years you never really spent much time with us sisters. But having seen you a couple of times now, I think I understand. You just find us all too tiresome, don’t you?”

She had hit upon the truth, that girl. Hua Zhi inwardly gave a small nod, though her expression remained entirely unchanged. “I was never someone who enjoyed managing things. How pleasant it is to be free and at ease on one’s own.”

Hua Qin simply laughed, and whether she believed it or not was anyone’s guess.