Glory

"Alright, you may leave. Regardless of who we partner with, we must properly handle the officials and obtain more Tea Import Permits. As long as we have plenty of Crude Tea in hand, we needn't worry about others refusing to cooperate with us."

"Yes." Meng Liang promptly bowed his head and withdrew. Only after stepping outside did he wipe the sweat from his forehead, feeling as though he had been granted a new lease on life.

Just moments ago, his legs had nearly given way, and he had almost knelt down to beg for mercy, ready to confess everything.

Meng Chengwei's Manor Guard hurried over. Upon seeing Meng Liang, he cupped his hands in a brief salute before heading straight into the room.

Meng Liang watched his retreating figure and inwardly scoffed. He glanced at the attendant stationed by the door, noting that the man was looking outside. Only then did he straighten his posture, clasp his hands behind his back, and turn to leave.

Although Meng Chengwei kept him close, Meng Liang was not the only one handling affairs. The Manor Guards and Housekeepers were all capable individuals, each gathering information through their own means.

Apart from his status and a knack for flattery, Meng Liang paled in comparison to these competent subordinates of Meng Chengwei in terms of ability and methods.

Inside the room, the Manor Guard reported to Meng Chengwei, "Sir, I've uncovered information about the Tao family's recent purchase of osmanthus in the city. The Tao family's servants said it was because someone from the Ye family wanted to make osmanthus honey and entrusted them with the procurement."

"Osmanthus honey?" Meng Chengwei frowned.

Such a story sounded like a pretext.

If the Ye family truly intended to make osmanthus honey, they could have openly purchased the ingredients themselves. Why would they need to go through the Tao family? There was surely something fishy about this.

If the Ye family wasn't using the osmanthus for honey, what were they planning? Could it be related to tea?

He asked, "What about the tea? Has the Ye family's tea supply decreased?"

The Manor Guard, indeed capable, replied, "I disguised myself as an ordinary tea customer and went to the Tea House to buy various types of tea. I discovered that the Ye family's Loose tea is out of stock."

Loose tea?

Meng Chengwei's eyes widened abruptly.

Could it be that the Ye family was experimenting with some new tea by combining Loose tea and Osmanthus Tea?

At this thought, he grew restless. He stood up and paced back and forth a few times before instructing his Page, "Go check on Fifth Master and see how the delivery of the invitation is progressing. That matter must not fail—oversee it personally."

Meng Liang was ranked fifth in the clan, so the Meng family servants referred to him as Fifth Master.

The Page hastily acknowledged the order and left.

...

Meng Chengwei was drinking tea at the Ye family's Gathering Fragrance Pavilion. Ye Jiaxing had been managing affairs at the tea house during this period. Thus, it was quite convenient for Meng Liang to deliver the invitation—he simply went down from the second floor to the first, found the tea house manager, handed him the invitation, and asked him to deliver it to Ye Jiaxing.

He would have preferred to take the other staircase directly to the third floor, but Ye family Manor Guards were stationed there, strictly forbidding anyone from going up.

When Ye Jiaxing saw the visiting card sent by Lin Zhensheng, which mentioned that they had not seen each other since parting on the mountain and expressed longing to meet, he was utterly astounded by Meng Chengwei's audacity. "How does he still have the nerve to send a visiting card?"

He had arrived at the tea house early that morning and was unaware that Ye Chongming and Ye Hongsheng had returned from the mountain and Tongxiang respectively. He also did not know that Meng Chengwei had sent men to seize the Estate Holders, or he would have been even more shocked.

Lin Zhensheng had been repeatedly instructed by Ye Chongming to keep an eye on Ye Jiaxing and prevent him from getting close to Meng Chengwei, fearing that he might inadvertently fall into Meng Chengwei's trap. For this reason, an additional Manor Guard had been posted at the staircase leading to the third floor.He said with a tense expression, "We don't know what it's about yet. For this matter, you'll have to go back and ask the Eldest Master. Tomorrow is Mid-Autumn Festival, and by my reckoning, if all went smoothly, the Old Master should have returned today. You'd better consult them before replying to Meng Chengwei."

Ye Jiaxing also grew somewhat anxious and nodded, "Alright."

Just as he was about to send a servant back to ask Ye Hongchang, Lin Zhensheng said, "Young Master, there's nothing urgent at the teahouse right now. Why don't you return home early? For this matter, it would be best if you discussed it personally with the Eldest Master. There are some things the Eldest Master wouldn't feel comfortable saying to a page."

If Ye Jiaxing went home, he would also feel more at ease, rather than constantly worrying and being unable to focus on his work.

Ye Jiaxing thought this made sense and said, "Alright, I'll go back right away."

He had the page tidy up a bit, then went downstairs through the back door and directly boarded the carriage back to the estate.

Meng Chengwei had visited Gathering Fragrance Pavilion many times hoping to coincidentally meet Ye Jiaxing, so he naturally knew that the Ye family members used the back staircase, separate from the one used by regular tea guests.

Meng Liang knew Meng Chengwei was simmering with anger after being assigned this task, so he didn't dare be the slightest bit careless. After delivering the visiting card, he went to stand by another window, keeping a constant watch on the staircase reserved for the Ye family. He witnessed Ye Jiaxing going downstairs and boarding the carriage with his own eyes.

He hurried back to report to Meng Chengwei.

Meng Chengwei finally smashed his teacup.

He had originally planned to take advantage of the timing, while Ye Chongming hadn't returned from the tea mountains, to coax Ye Jiaxing and find some excuse to explain the incident of seizing the estate holders. He wanted to see if he could still salvage the situation, especially since the thought grew stronger when he considered the possibility that the Ye family might use osmanthus flowers to make tea.

Who would have thought this Ye Jiaxing wouldn't give him the slightest opportunity.

Meanwhile, Ye Jiaxing returned home intending to seek advice from his father. But as soon as he stepped down from the carriage, the gatekeeper told him that Ye Chongming and Ye Hongsheng had returned one after the other. Overjoyed, he hurried to the main courtyard.

After talking for a while, everyone dispersed since Ye Chongming was exhausted from several days of work and Ye Hongsheng was tired from traveling. Ye Chongming had just bathed and was about to lie down on the couch when a maid came to report that Ye Jiaxing had returned and urgently needed to see him. He quickly put on his outer robe and went out.

"What is it?" he asked his grandson.

Ye Jiaxing handed him the visiting card and said, "Meng Chengwei sent me this visiting card."

Ye Chongming nearly dropped the card, his eyes widening as he asked, "Who did you say?"

"Meng Chengwei."

Ye Chongming's heart clenched. He turned and instructed the maid, "Go invite Third Young Miss here."

Ye Jiaxing was stunned. He watched as the maid acknowledged the order and left, then finally reacted. He opened his mouth to say something, but seeing that his grandfather had already lowered his head to carefully examine the visiting card, he could only close his mouth again.

He had heard his grandfather and father talk many times about his third cousin's capabilities, and his father had repeatedly urged him to maintain good relations with her. He admitted that his third cousin was very capable—more capable than him—and he admired her immensely. His father had even analyzed the pros and cons with him, telling him not to be jealous of his third cousin and not to harbor negative thoughts even if her status in the family surpassed theirs.

At the time, he had agreed. He admired strength and felt that if his third cousin was more capable than him, he definitely wouldn't mind.

But now that something had happened at home, and his grandfather's first instinct wasn't to call for his father but for his third cousin, he suddenly felt somewhat uncomfortable inside.After reading the name card, Ye Chongming looked up and was about to ask Ye Jiaxing something when he noticed his expression and instantly guessed what was on his mind.