Glory

Ye Chongming and Old Mrs. Ye's faces turned extremely grim.

Had Ye Yaming said these words a few days earlier, they would have dismissed them, thinking she was poor at judging character, indulging in wild fancies, or simply being cynical and overly suspicious of others.

What a modest and courteous young man Song Yifeng was—how could he possibly be as Ye Yaming described?

But now, Ye Yaming had just demonstrated her astonishing capabilities. Her depth of thought, foresight, and keen insight made Ye Chongming, despite decades of life and a lifetime in business, feel utterly inadequate.

Hadn't she immediately detected something amiss with Meng Chengwei?

As Song Yifeng's fiancée, she naturally paid him more attention than anyone else and understood him better than anyone. If she said Song Yifeng was problematic, then he truly was.

Thinking of Meng Chengwei, of Ding Jian, and of Song Yifeng, Ye Chongming suddenly felt a surge of fear and deep self-doubt from the depths of his heart.

His judgment of people was truly abysmal. The Ye family had nearly been ruined by his hands.

He wanted to pick up his teacup and take a sip to calm his nerves, but his trembling hand nearly caused the tea to spill.

He quickly set the teacup down, withdrew his hand, and took several deep breaths.

"Then what do you think of this engagement..." he asked, looking at Ye Yaming.

"He is not a good match. I want to break it off," Ye Yaming said. "But doing so now would easily give others leverage. We've waited all these years anyway, and he has said he wants to pass the imperial examinations before marrying. This matter is not urgent. Let's first deal with Meng Chengwei properly."

Even if she were to break off the engagement, she wanted Song Yifeng to be disgraced and forced to return all the silver the Ye family had given him.

Although the Great Jin Dynasty treated women slightly better than in the Ming and Qing dynasties of history, society was always harsh toward women. Based on her understanding of Song Yifeng, he would surely manipulate public opinion to pin the blame on her and the Ye family, casting himself as an innocent victim. If the engagement were broken off, people would not criticize Song Yifeng but would instead point fingers at her and the Ye family.

She refused to let Song Yifeng walk away unscathed after using the Ye family's money to study for years and attain an official rank, while she bore the stigma of a broken engagement and the Ye family faced condemnation after years of support.

To ensure he was the one disgraced, she needed to devise a plan.

"Right, right." Hearing that the matter was not urgent, Ye Chongming's thoughts immediately returned to the family's pressing affairs.

"While I was still on the mountain, your maternal uncle from the Tao family came up and told me some details about Meng Chengwei. He is an Imperial merchant from the capital, with an aunt who is a consort in the palace. However, this is all according to his own claims, and we don't know if it's true or not."

Mentioning Meng Chengwei gave him a headache.

Over the years, the Ye family had conducted business with benevolence, righteousness, and integrity, never resorting to underhanded tactics. Thanks to their ancestral legacy and substantial assets, the Ye family held some respect in Lin'an, and Ye Chongming had never encountered an opponent who sought to destroy others without any prior grievance.

Someone like Meng Chengwei made Ye Chongming deeply apprehensive. The Ye family had shallow roots, while Meng Chengwei had powerful connections, ruthless methods, and no regard for principles. Confronting him, the Ye family could only passively endure the blows.

At this thought, Ye Chongming began to seriously consider Ye Yaming's suggestion about seeking cooperation.

"Ming'er, tomorrow, bring a jar of Osmanthus Tea and come with me to Chongshan Temple," he said.Ye Yaming searched through the original host's memories but found no knowledge of Chongshan Temple. Old Madam Ye preferred taking the women of the household to Jingde Nunnery for incense offerings instead.

She couldn't help asking: "Why are we going to Chongshan Temple? To meet someone?" She didn't believe Ye Chongming would take her to a temple for incense offerings at such a time.

Ye Chongming nodded: "Master Zhineng of Chongshan Temple is a great tea enthusiast. Although Chongshan Temple grows and processes its own tea, he still prefers the loose tea your father made, purchasing some every year. I maintain some acquaintance with him. He is kind-hearted, holds an esteemed position, and associates with many influential figures. I want to take you there to brew some Osmanthus Tea for him to taste."

After some thought, Ye Yaming tactfully reminded: "Grandfather, I think we should first focus on selling the Osmanthus Tea. After we begin sales, you can send some to Master Zhineng, explaining that our family has developed a new tea for him to sample. Let's not mention other aspects for now." Ye Chongming's pupils contracted sharply as he nodded firmly: "You're right."

His concern had clouded his judgment.

With the Ye family facing a crisis and having resolved to find partners, his first thought had been Master Zhineng, wanting to immediately present the new tea to him.

Ye Yaming's words made him realize his mistake.

While presenting the new tea and brewing technique to Master Zhineng might indeed impress him and potentially lead to finding a good partner, taking the initiative would mean the Ye family would lose the opportunity to choose their partners, becoming passive recipients of selection instead. They would then have to rely on luck regarding who might take interest in the Ye family and their new tea.

Of course, he trusted Master Zhineng's character. But what if? Master Zhineng had no obligation to vet partners for the Ye family.

Seeing Ye Chongming was receptive, Ye Yaming continued: "We should purchase large quantities of osmanthus flowers now, under the pretext of making osmanthus honey or brewing osmanthus wine. Then I'll lead the maids and servants in making Osmanthus Tea at home. If our family's loose tea supply is insufficient, we can have people buy some from other tea houses."

"After the osmanthus blooming season passes, we'll release the Osmanthus Tea for sale. With no osmanthus flowers available then, even if others want to develop their own Osmanthus Tea, they'll have no means to do so."

"This approach both buys time for next year's Osmanthus Tea production and gives us ample opportunity to carefully select partners."

"Exactly, this way we can maximize our benefits," Ye Chongming nodded vigorously.

He also understood why Ye Yaming suggested buying tea from other tea houses.

The Tea Monopoly Bureau had crude tea made from summer and autumn tea leaves. Even with full taxes paid, the price would be cheaper than at other tea houses, since the Tea Monopoly Bureau needed to leave some profit margin for tea merchants.

But buying from the Tea Monopoly Bureau posed problems: first, it was crude tea requiring further processing, and with osmanthus flowers being time-sensitive, they had no time for additional tea processing; second, large purchases from the Tea Monopoly Bureau combined with bulk osmanthus acquisitions in the city would easily lead people to connect the dots and guess the Ye family was making Osmanthus Tea.

Therefore, they could only send servants to buy small batches of loose tea from other tea houses under personal pretenses, avoiding bulk purchases from the Tea Monopoly Bureau.

As for the higher cost of buying loose tea in small quantities, that wasn't worth worrying about now. Compared to maintaining the secrecy of the Osmanthus Tea production method and the future profits it would bring, the slightly higher price of loose tea meant nothing.Old Mrs. Ye looked at her granddaughter, then at her husband, and a strange thought suddenly arose in her heart.

Why did she feel that Ye Yaming was like a stabilizing pillar, the one who truly made decisions in the family? On the contrary, the old man—usually wise, steady, and strategic—had become the subordinate following orders. The most absurd part was that he seemed completely convinced and content with this arrangement.