Glory

The Meng family's roots were crooked to begin with. These pages were trusted servants of the Meng household who had frequently assisted the Meng father and son in framing and entrapping others. They had profited handsomely from these schemes; the Meng family was wealthy and influential, and the father and son were generous, rewarding them lavishly. The three servants had accumulated more wealth than ordinary commoners.

Now that Meng Chengwei was dead and the Meng family had fallen, Meng Xianzong—whose intellect paled in comparison to his son's—had no other heirs. Even if he fathered one now, it would be over a decade before the child came of age.

Seeing that the Meng family was beyond recovery, these three capable and well-off servants planned to take their wives and children and leave the Meng household to regain their freedom.

Unfortunately, Meng Xianzong stubbornly refused to let them go, insisting they help the Meng family with one final task.

Now the opportunity had arrived. The task Meng Xianzong assigned them was nothing difficult—they were well-practiced in such matters and could handle it with ease. Thinking that in just a few days they would be free—able to purchase a house, start a small business, and perhaps even be addressed as "Master"—the three were brimming with energy.

"Don't worry, Master. We will surely accomplish this task."

"Indeed, I have Qian Yongshou and his page's temperaments figured out thoroughly. I guarantee I can lure him over."

Watching the three pages stride out with fervor, Meng Xianzong let out a sinister, icy chuckle.

He didn't dare harm Ye Yaming's life—the Meng family could no longer withstand Lu Guanyi's wrath. His plan was merely to ascertain Ye Yaming's outings and routes, then orchestrate an encounter with the lecherous young master of the Qian family.

Having suffered the retaliation from the Duke of Ying's estate, Meng Xianzong was too frightened to provoke powerful families again. Instead, he targeted the powerless Qian family, and Qian Yongshou was a fool driven by lust.

Rumors said Ye Yaming was exceptionally beautiful, sure to captivate Qian Yongshou. Once he was enticed, someone would whisper in his ear that she was a merchant's daughter from Lin'an with no influence or backing. Qian Yongshou would inevitably be unable to resist harassing her.

With the Ye family's manor guards present, Qian Yongshou wouldn't get far—just a few lewd remarks. And since Ye Yaming was in the capital to prepare for her marriage, she would likely keep quiet to protect her reputation. The incident wouldn't cause much of a stir.

Meng Xianzong intended to wait until after Ye Yaming's wedding. Then, he would have someone coax Qian Yongshou into publicly boasting about harassing her and ensure the story spread among the nobility.

Ye Yaming, already looked down upon for her merchant background, would face scornful stares and mockery at social gatherings. She might even be cold-shouldered by Lu Guanyi right after marriage. After all, no man could tolerate the shame of a publicly known cuckolding.

In such matters, even if Ye Yaming had ten mouths, she could never clear her name.

This was precisely the effect Meng Xianzong desired.

She had ruined his son and his family—did Ye Yaming truly think she could live happily ever after with Lu Guanyi, flaunting her status as the future marchioness? Dream on. He would plant a thorn between Ye Yaming and Lu Guanyi, one that would remain between them for a lifetime.

If executed discreetly, the Meng family would never be implicated. As for how Lu Guanyi and Ye Yaming might retaliate against the Qian family—that was none of Meng Xianzong's concern.

...

The Meng family was the Ye family's archenemy. Ye Yaming had never let her guard down, keeping them under constant surveillance.Previously, with the Duke of Ying's residence targeting them, the Meng family was constantly harassed and exhausted, leaving them no energy to seek revenge against the Ye family.

Now that the Meng family had been reduced to their last remaining assets and had few servants left, the Duke of Ying's residence finally ceased their attacks. This was also a gesture of not driving them to utter ruin.

After all, the Meng family still had Min Fei and the Third Princess backing them. Pushing things to the extreme would inevitably lead to future troubles. The Duke of Ying's residence was also in decline, and if the Third Princess were to take action against them, they would face difficulties as well.

Thus, the Meng family now lived idly, guarding their last remaining assets.

Idleness breeds trouble, especially for a family like the Mengs, who never reflected on their actions. And now that she had come to the capital, she didn't need to inquire to guess that the Meng family would not accept their fate quietly and would likely try to cause trouble for her.

Therefore, the next day, she summoned Yun'er to inquire about the Meng family's affairs.

Yun'er was the person responsible for gathering intelligence in the capital and was considered Zan'er's subordinate.

Before Yun'er was dispatched to the capital, Meng Chengwei had already been imprisoned. Yun'er had not yet reported the specific details of the Meng family to Ye Yaming. Having been closely monitoring the Meng family during this time, he intended to provide a detailed account.

"...Meng Chengwei's father, Meng Xianzong, caused the death of his elder brother and seized the position of the Meng family head. As a result, his two younger brothers were not close to him. Over the past two years, as their family was repeatedly targeted by the Duke of Ying's residence, his two younger brothers became even more unwilling to associate with him, to the extent of not allowing him to enter their homes."

"Meng Chengwei was Meng Xianzong's legitimate eldest son. His mother, Kong Shi, gave birth to him, but during her second pregnancy, which resulted in a daughter, she injured her body and could no longer bear children. Originally, Meng Chengwei had two younger half-brothers—one two years younger and another five years younger—both born to a highly favored concubine of Meng Xianzong."

"However, when Meng Chengwei was fourteen, the twelve-year-old half-brother drowned in a pond. Less than a year later, the nine-year-old half-brother also died of illness. The concubine accused Meng Chengwei of causing their deaths and tearfully demanded that Meng Xianzong take action. Shortly after Meng Xianzong left, Meng Chengwei had the concubine poisoned to render her mute and sold her to a brothel."

"Over the years, other concubines had become pregnant, but each time, they miscarried for various reasons. If a child was miraculously born and was a daughter, it might survive, but if it was a son, it would die young due to various reasons. Initially, suspicion always fell on the favored concubine. Meng Xianzong, out of consideration for his two half-sons, only punished her and distanced himself from her. But this time, the incident pointed directly to Meng Chengwei, and Meng Xianzong began to suspect that all the previous events were Meng Chengwei's doing. He prepared to return home and severely punish Meng Chengwei."

"Unexpectedly, Min Fei sent someone to warn Meng Xianzong, revealing that the concubine had previously harmed Kong Shi during childbirth, nearly causing the deaths of both mother and child. She said the concubine had brought this upon herself and forbade Meng Xianzong from punishing Meng Chengwei. She also reprimanded Meng Xianzong for favoring a concubine over his wife."

"From then on, Meng Xianzong realized how terrifying his son was—how he had harbored such hatred for so many years since childhood, diligently currying favor with Min Fei and waiting for an opportunity to take revenge. Meng Chengwei was the legitimate eldest son and was nearly an adult. Besides him, Meng Xianzong had no other sons. Moreover, Meng Chengwei was exceptionally cunning and ruthless, making him an outstanding heir. With Min Fei watching over him from above, Meng Xianzong gave up his intentions and stopped taking concubines.""Now that Meng Chengwei has died without a son, he wished to take a concubine to bear him an heir. Unfortunately, his other concubines had all been dismissed by Kong Shi when the family fortunes declined. Though resentful, Kong Shi had no choice but to purchase a beautiful woman and bring her into the household, intending to keep the child and dispose of the mother once she bore a son."

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