Glory

As soon as Song Yifeng entered the door, Yu Shi couldn't wait to tell him the news about the Ye family's misfortune.

"This is perfect. If the Ye family becomes destitute, you can break off the engagement," Yu Shi said happily.

But Song Yifeng shook his head: "Mother, you mustn't reveal such thoughts in front of others. I can't possibly break off the engagement with Third Miss Ye now."

Yu Shi grew anxious: "Why not?"

"If we break off the engagement as soon as the Ye family falls into decline, do you think your son's reputation will remain untarnished?" Song Yifeng replied.

A scholar's reputation was particularly important. If he immediately broke off the engagement when his fiancée's family met with misfortune, how would those officials who wanted him as a son-in-law view him? Would they still dare to marry their daughters to him?

He wasn't that foolish.

Yu Shi was stunned for a moment, then slumped into her seat dejectedly: "Then what should we do? Are you really going to marry that merchant's daughter?"

Ye Yaming had already come of age, and it was likely the Ye family would soon bring up the marriage. Especially now that the Ye family showed signs of decline—wouldn't they try their best to cling to the Song family like a lifeline?

"It doesn't matter," Song Yifeng said calmly. "If they send someone to discuss marriage, tell them I need to focus on my studies and prepare for the next imperial examination. We can discuss marriage after I've taken the exam."

"Yes, yes, that's right," Yu Shi brightened up. "Let's do it that way."

Song Yifeng fell silent for a moment before sighing softly: "If only we could give the Ye family's situation a little push..."

Yu Shi frowned.

After thinking for a long time, she sighed: "We're still too weak."

Even a broken boat has three nails. Even if the Ye family declined, their connections and foundation remained. If she and her son tried to do anything and were discovered by the Ye family, they could easily ruin Song Yifeng's future with a mere finger snap.

Her son was her life. Yu Shi didn't dare gamble with his future. While having a daughter-in-law from a good family was important, nothing compared to her son's career prospects. Only after Song Yifeng passed the imperial examination and became an official would they have the right to be picky.

She looked up at Song Yifeng: "My son, you must study harder and strive to become a Presented scholar as soon as possible. Otherwise, you'll be tied to the Ye family for life."

Song Yifeng nodded firmly.

He decided to have someone spread rumors about the Ye family at the prefectural school. If the news reached those officials' ears and they started considering having him break off the engagement, then ending the engagement would be effortless.

Currently bound by his engagement to the Ye family, he didn't even dare try to catch the attention of any official's daughter, afraid of angering the officials and ruining his future.

So for now, he could only spread some rumors.

...

Although Ye Hongchang was at home, he still kept an eye on outside affairs. He quickly received reports from servants about what had happened when his elderly father and son went to the teahouse that morning.

Thus he had been worried all day at home.

Ye Chongming, however, remained unflustered. He had tea with his old friends at the teahouse, and because his friends wanted to comfort him by treating him to a meal, he took his grandson to Taibai Restaurant for a lavish lunch. It wasn't until nearly dinnertime that he returned home with his grandson.

It was the Mid-Autumn Festival, and the Ye family was to celebrate together in the main hall of the central courtyard.

Therefore, as soon as Ye Hongchang heard that his father had returned, he had someone carry him to the central courtyard to ask about the outside situation.

At the mention of this, Ye Chongming smiled wryly.He shook his head and said, "Everything used to be fine. But now that our family is facing a slight setback, these people immediately distance themselves, as if I were going to borrow money from them."

He sighed, "Indeed, adversity reveals true hearts."

He shook his head again, seemingly unwilling to mention those who stood by indifferently, probed with questions, or kicked him when he was down, focusing only on the positive side: "Of course, there are a few who are genuinely good. Some even offered to lend me money, even though our usual friendship wasn’t particularly deep. It’s just that once, when they were in trouble, I helped them out."

As the head of the tea guild, he often mediated disputes among tea merchants.

Moreover, being kind-hearted, he would lend a hand when others were in difficulty—provided it was within his means and the person was deserving. Over the years, he had done many such deeds.

Yet, when he encountered hardship, few were willing to extend a helping hand. What was most remarkable was that one or two whom he had helped in the past proactively sought him out, offering to lend him silver.

Adversity reveals true friendship—this is indeed the case.

He finally understood why Ye Yaming had initially suggested letting the rumors circulate for a while, to sift through and identify true companions.

He had indeed grown too complacent over the years, losing sight of people’s true natures.

"Being able to see clearly who is genuine and who is false through this opportunity isn’t a bad thing," Ye Hongchang comforted.

Ye Chongming nodded.

"Are the Estate Holders in the mountains still stable?" Ye Yaming asked.

At this, Ye Chongming smiled, feeling relieved. "Most Estate Holders understand gratitude. Our family has treated them well over the years, and they don’t want to see us fall and have to deal with another merchant. So, they’ve expressed willingness to help us through this difficult time."

Ye Jiaxing nodded vigorously beside him.

…

On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, a time for family reunions, during dinner, Ye Yaming met her third aunt, Cai Shi, whom she hadn’t seen since her transmigration, as well as her third uncle’s posthumous daughter—her twelve-year-old cousin, Ye Yayu.

Cai Shi was dressed in a moon-white gown with a light blue beizi over it. Her hair was adorned with only a single jade hairpin, without any other ornaments.

She wasn’t particularly beautiful, but she carried a delicate, scholarly air. Her demeanor was quiet and refined, giving her an excellent aura. Her complexion was also quite good—her face calm, without any trace of sorrow.

This appearance was completely different from what Ye Yaming had imagined of the third madam.

In her mind, Cai Shi, who had lost her husband at eighteen while pregnant and had been widowed for twelve years, living in seclusion and avoiding social interactions, should have been silent, wooden, and emaciated.

Not that widows necessarily had to be that way. Many women who lost their husbands but chose not to remarry still lived fulfilling lives, no different from anyone else.

Ye Yaming had formed this assumption mainly because Cai Shi had isolated herself too much. She rarely went out, paid no attention to worldly affairs, and didn’t even interact with others in the mansion. Unless it was a major festival, no one in the household ever saw her.

Not only was she like this, but her daughter also seldom moved about the mansion and had little contact with her cousins. This inevitably led Ye Yaming to speculate.

Now, seeing Cai Shi with her rosy complexion and graceful demeanor—though quiet and expressionless, her eyes were lively—she didn’t seem like someone who had closed herself off at all.As for her daughter Ye Yayu, likely due to limited social interaction, she appeared timid and clung closely to her mother's side, keeping her head lowered and showing fear of engaging with others—truly fitting the image of a young girl who had been kept too sheltered.

Ye Yaming couldn't help but frown slightly.

After Cai Shi lost her husband, if she wished to lead a reclusive life, that was her own choice, and Ye Yaming wouldn't judge whether such an approach was right or wrong.

However, as a mother, restricting her daughter from interacting with relatives in the household to the point of fostering an introverted personality—this was simply not appropriate.