Chapter 262

Chapter 262: The Cui Family "Song Yu, how dare you speak like that? You have no respect for your elders—I am your elder!" Cui Lingying flared up. Hearing this, Song Yu revealed a satisfied smile. "Grandmother, you heard that too. Third Aunt herself said it—she is my elder, and not a young one at that." Song Yu deliberately emphasized her words. Mrs. Cai hadn't seen Cui Lingrong and her daughter in years, and hadn't expected Song Yu to be so sharp-tongued. Still, she quickly put on a smile. "Yes, your third aunt is old enough to be betrothed now. This visit, I was hoping to ask your mother for help with that." "Grandmother, why are you dodging the question? Third Aunt just spoke to my mother that way. As her mother, shouldn't you teach her how to speak properly?" Song Yu had no intention of letting the topic go. Mrs. Cai's smile froze instantly. She had tried to change the subject, but this girl Song Yu was truly insufferable. Seeing that Mrs. Cai said nothing, Cui Lingrong smiled slightly. "Yu-jie, your third aunt is your grandfather's late-life daughter, very much doted on at home. I've only met her a few times, so it's only natural she doesn't show much respect to me as her elder sister. But guests are guests—let's not quibble with them. As for the marriage matter..." Cui Lingrong paused deliberately, using this as an excuse to decline. "I don't have that kind of capability. Madam is a capable woman, and I'm sure she'll be able to find a satisfactory match for Third Sister herself." "Lingrong, you—" "Madam must be tired from the journey. I'll go prepare the courtyard for you." Before Mrs. Cai could finish, Cui Lingrong rose to her feet first. Song Yu followed closely behind, not even sparing the Cui family a glance. Old Madame Song watched this scene with considerable satisfaction. She had no way to deal with Cui Lingrong herself, but now that Mrs. Cai and her daughter had arrived, they could make Cui Lingrong uncomfortable. Except that Cui Lingying's attitude toward Yu-jie was poor, and Old Madame Song didn't like that. A daughter-in-law was a daughter-in-law, and a granddaughter was a granddaughter—Old Madame Song kept that distinction clear in her heart. Mrs. Cai had been put in an awkward position but couldn't lose her temper on the spot. She patted her daughter's hand, then turned to Old Madame Song and began inquiring about recent affairs of the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion. "Old Madame is truly blessed, gaining a County Mistress as a daughter-in-law. I wonder, how do Lingrong and the County Mistress get along?" "Ah." Old Madame Song deliberately let out a sigh, then said, "Let's not talk about that. You've come all this way—I must receive you properly." Old Madame Song had the servants prepare the evening meal. Mrs. Cai chatted with her for a while, until Dongyun came to report that the courtyard was ready, and only then did Mrs. Cai take her daughter over. When they arrived at the courtyard, Cui Lingying looked around and found it acceptable. "At least Eldest Sister has some conscience—she didn't put us in some shabby little courtyard." Mrs. Cai curled her lip. "You really think this is good?" "Is it not?" Cui Lingying didn't see what was wrong. "It's even a bit better than our own residence at home. What's the problem?" "When we came over, I made a point of asking—this place is the farthest from your Eldest Sister's Qiushuang Zhai. And it's not close to anywhere either. How can that arrangement be good?" Mrs. Cai's face fell. "Besides, it's not that she prepared a nice courtyard for us—it's that the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion has no bad courtyards. That dead girl has a petty heart; she's still holding a grudge against your father for sending her off to the Zhuang family. Otherwise, when Cui Zeyu rose to prominence later, she should have thought of you!" Speaking of this, Mrs. Cai grew angry. Her daughter was no worse than Cui Lingrong—why should Cui Lingrong get to marry into Bianjing and become a marquis's wife, while her own daughter could only marry into an ordinary family? When her second daughter, Cui Lingyao, was being matched for marriage, she had written to Cui Lingrong asking her to help find a suitable match. But Cui Lingrong said there was no one suitable, so Lingyao could only marry into a sixth-rank official's family in Yangzhou, and to this day her son-in-law still hadn't passed the Jinshi examination. For her youngest daughter, Mrs. Cai was holding in a breath of frustration. On top of that, Cui Zhihong had failed the provincial examination, and the Cui family wanted Cui Lingrong to look after him—that was why Mrs. Cai had brought the whole family to Bianjing. As for Cui Zeyu's matter—years ago, Cui Lingrong said she had found a child and wanted to recognize him as a younger brother, but the Cui family refused to let Cui Zeyu be added to the family registry. Since he wasn't on the registry and had no blood relation, when Cui Zeyu was later recognized by the Duke of Dingguo's household, they should have strengthened the bond by having Cui Lingying marry him. But the Cui family had never heard Cui Lingrong mention this—it was only later, from other people's mouths, that they learned Cui Zeyu had risen to prominence. Earlier, Mrs. Cai had asked and learned that Cui Zeyu was now Vice Minister of Personnel and would one day inherit the Duke of Dingguo's title—which made her even angrier. If her daughter had married into the Duke of Dingguo's household, she would be a duchess now—wouldn't that be more impressive than Cui Lingrong? "Not born from the same womb—no wonder she doesn't care!" Mrs. Cai snorted. Just as she finished speaking, she heard footsteps outside and, learning that it was her son and Cui Zhihong from the senior branch returning, Mrs. Cai quickly signaled her daughter with a look. When the two men came in, Mrs. Cai looked at her son. "Did you see your eldest brother-in-law?" Cui Junyan nodded, sitting down with a displeased expression. "I asked him to see if there was anything suitable for me in Bianjing, and he told me to focus on my studies first. At my age, what's there left to study?" Cui Junyan wasn't cut out for scholarship—at twenty-two years old, he hadn't even passed the xiucai examination. "Your eldest brother-in-law does have a point. Maybe the tutor in Yangzhou isn't good enough—once you get to Bianjing, things might just click for you." Mrs. Cai still hoped her son would amount to something. He was her only biological son, and she would have to rely on him in her old age. Cui Junyan didn't want to talk about his studies. He hated studying more than anything, and if he were truly forced to go, he wouldn't want to. "I think we came all this way for nothing. They never intended to help us!" Cui Lingying nodded as well. "Yes, Mother. Just now, Eldest Sister and Song Yu were ganging up on us, trading barbs. How could they possibly be willing to help us?" Only Cui Zhihong remained silent, standing quietly to the side. It wasn't until Mrs. Cai prompted him that Cui Zhihong looked up. "To answer Grandmother, I did bring up the marriage alliance, but just as I mentioned Yu-jie, Eldest Uncle-in-law cut me off. From what my father says, Eldest Uncle-in-law is the most snobbish of men—I'm afraid he won't agree to a marriage between our two families." "If he doesn't agree, then you find a way. You saw Song Yu today—though she's sharp-tongued, her looks are more than enough for you. Our Cui family has no outstanding young men, and you failed the provincial examination. Only by forming a marriage alliance with the Song family will they be willing to lift you up." Mrs. Cai said, "The Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion certainly won't approve, but you've been blessed with a handsome face. Whether you can secure a future depends on your own abilities." Since he wasn't her own grandson, Mrs. Cai wouldn't expend much effort on him. Whether he succeeded or failed made no difference to her. What Mrs. Cai cared about most was the marriage prospects of her own son and daughter. Her son had already been betrothed, but the girl's family had insisted on breaking off the engagement just days ago—that was one of the reasons she had come to Bianjing. Cui Lingrong? Hmph. She would always find a way to make Cui Lingrong follow her arrangements. While the Cui family was scheming among themselves, over at Qiushuang Zhai, Song Shulan stormed in furiously, demanding to know what Cui Lingrong meant by this. "I would rather see Yu-jie marry into the Prince Wu's mansion as a Successor Wife than ever let her marry into your Cui family!" Song Shulan looked down on the Cui family from the bottom of his heart. In his view, the fact that Cui Zhihong dared to mention Yu-jie meant the Cui family had informed Cui Lingrong, and she had agreed. "No wonder I said this one wasn't good enough and that one wouldn't do—so this was your scheme all along!"