Chapter 42 "When I saw Lu Erlang, it was also..."

Meng Yuanxiao's heart pounded, and after a long pause, she asked, "So, Brother Tang, you married me because of this?"

"How come Yuanyuan is taking care of all the housework for me?" Cui Xintang asked with amusement.

"Before you came into the family, I didn't care about anything at home. After I married you, besides being busy with my duties at the government office, I also had to worry about you all the time, afraid that you would be bullied by your aunt or scolded by your mother."

"You didn't want to manage the household finances, but Brother Tang didn't force you. He just waited until you had had your fun before slowly settling down?"

Meng Yuanxiao: "..."

Cui Xintang stopped teasing her. After a moment's thought, he said, "When I wanted to marry you, Yuanyuan wouldn't believe me if I said there was absolutely no such consideration. But if it were just for that reason, I wouldn't have needed to marry you at all."

Lord Meng was only a fourth-rank official, and he was often sent away from the capital, so it was not of much help to him.

And if he wanted to, he could indeed marry a woman who would be more beneficial to him.

Fearing she wouldn't believe him, Cui Xintang added, "After all, several years have passed, and I am no longer the person I was back then, nor do I need to rely on the help of others."

Perhaps due to the hardships he endured in the government office over the past two years, he gradually became more tactful in his dealings with others, learning to feign compliance and even to show weakness to Cui Zhen in order to achieve his own goals.

Therefore, he became much more at ease. So, on the day he suddenly had the idea of ​​marrying Yuanyuan, he indulged himself this time.

If it were the old him, he would probably have been full of concerns and hesitated before acting.

"Does Yuanyuan have any other questions?" he asked.

Meng Yuanxiao's mind was in turmoil, a jumbled mess. Tears still clung to her long eyelashes, and after a long pause, she finally asked, "Miss Lin, did you return to the capital because of you, Brother Tang?"

Cui Xintang paused briefly, but did not deny it.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "After Lord Lin's incident, the Lin family was also implicated. Lord Lin unfortunately fell ill and died during his exile. Later, he was pardoned by the court, but only his wife, his two children, and a few servants returned alive."

"When the Lin family fell from power, their former acquaintances avoided them like the plague. Madam Lin and her son had nowhere to turn and could not return to their hometown, so they went back to the capital and sought help at the Cui family's door."

"There were some things I didn't know before. I only learned about them after the Lin family was exiled. I was also somewhat involved in what happened to Lord Lin. It was because one of my articles caught the eye of the Eldest Princess. She wanted to use me, but she didn't like Lord Lin, so she decided to get rid of him."

He declined to elaborate on the specific reasons, only saying, "Later, when the eldest princess became regent, she pardoned several people, including Lord Lin, in order to win over the hearts of the people."

"For this reason, I felt guilty. When Madam Lin and her daughter came to my door for help, I lent them a place to stay and a shop, and also arranged for someone to help them get their business started."

After a slight pause, he continued, "The Lin family had only been in the capital for a year when they arrived, and not many people knew Miss Lin. However, Lin Yu was studying at the academy and became acquainted with the young masters of various families in the capital. Because of Lord Lin's involvement, she will find it difficult to make a name for herself in the capital in the future."

“Lin Yu is still young. Madam Lin asked me to help him find a respectable family outside the capital to raise him under her name so that he can study and take the imperial examinations in the future. I agreed.”

Mentioning Lin Yu, Meng Yuanxiao couldn't help but think of his "brother-in-law." Even knowing how pathetic he was, her eyes still welled up with tears again.

Cui Xintang also regretted bringing her to Yunping County, which led to her running into Lin Yu.

He sighed softly and said, "I never allowed him to call me that, and I don't think I have any relationship with him."

Before Lord Lin's accident, Lin Yu called him that, which disgusted him. However, out of consideration for Lord Lin, he didn't say much and just ignored him.

But since he was going to borrow Lord Lin's influence, he had to put on a show. So when he saw Lin Yu being bullied that day, he couldn't just stand by and do nothing.

But these days, he always seems to be in the wrong when facing Yuanyuan.

Cui Xintang whispered a few words to coax the person, then called Hongshao in and instructed her, "Go find Qingzhu and bring Lin Yu's letter."

Hong Shao agreed and returned quickly.

Besides the last letter, there is another one that has not been opened.

Cui Xintang paused briefly, then reached out and took the letter. "When did this letter arrive again?"

Hong Shao said, "Reporting to the young master, Qingzhu said it was yesterday."

Cui Xintang nodded. "Go down."

Having said that, he unfolded the letter from last time and handed it to Meng Yuanxiao, "Yuanyuan, would you like to see it?"

Meng Yuanxiao didn't want to look, but she couldn't help glancing at it a few times. After glancing at it, she felt wronged and angry, and tears streamed down her face.

Cui Xintang wiped away her tears, saying, "If Yuanyuan keeps crying, your brother Tang will become even more of a scoundrel."

Meng Yuanxiao remained silent, while Cui Xintang said, "Brother Tang has already avenged you. I have done everything I could for Lin Yu, and I have repaid what I owed him. I will not interfere with him again in the future."

"Didn't the Lin family take another estate from the Cui family? I've already sent someone to take it back and have someone manage it for now. Once we take back the Ye family's land, we'll give it to Niu Niu along with this estate."

Meng Yuanxiao was stunned and looked at him in surprise.

Cui Xintang raised an eyebrow slightly, "Or if Yuanyuan is still angry, can your brother Tang write a letter for you and give him a good scolding?"

Meng Yuanxiao sniffed and pursed her lips without saying a word.

Cui Xintang didn't force her. He casually picked up another letter, opened it, and handed it to Meng Yuanxiao.

Meng Yuanxiao turned her head away, refusing to look. Cui Xintang chuckled and glanced at her casually.

"Well, it's the same old thing. He said he knows he was wrong and wants me to help him settle things with the Lin family and the county school."

He paused slightly at this point, his brows furrowing imperceptibly.

"What's going on with the county school?" Meng Yuanxiao asked.

This letter was longer, spanning two pages. Cui Xintang glanced at the second page and casually remarked, "It says that the Lin family caused trouble at the county school, and the county school supervisor got angry."

After saying this, he handed the letter to Meng Yuanxiao, only to see Meng Yuanxiao staring at him with slightly red almond-shaped eyes that were not blinking.

"...Why are you looking at me like that?" He found it somewhat amusing. "Brother Tang said he wouldn't interfere with him anymore, and he won't. Yuanyuan, won't you take a look?"

Meng Yuanxiao turned her face away.

She didn't look at them. Cui Xintang waited for a while, then casually tossed the two letters, along with their envelopes, into the charcoal brazier at her feet.

The letter fell into the charcoal brazier, and the flames instantly engulfed it, turning it to ashes.

Cui Xintang looked away and pulled the person closer to him. "I told Qingzhu that if he writes again, just throw it away. I'll ignore him, and he'll eventually shut up."

Seeing that she didn't answer, he teased her again, "Yuanyuan has been angry for so long, let me ask you a question too."

"If I hadn't stopped Lu Erlang that day, and if I hadn't called you away when I saw you with Lu Erlang the previous times, would Yuanyuan still be thinking about Lu Erlang, or... would she already be married to him?"

Meng Yuanxiao: "..."

She couldn't help but get annoyed. "Didn't you say that it was because your elder brother disliked Lu Erlang that he asked you to stop him that day?"

If the eldest brother doesn't like Lu Erlang, how could he agree to her marrying Lu Erlang?

Cui Xintang laughed, "Has Yuanyuan ever considered why Meng Xu dislikes Lu Erlang?"

His phoenix eyes were filled with laughter as he said meaningfully, "Lu Erlang is outstanding in both appearance and learning. There are many people in the capital who want to take him as their son-in-law. Why does Meng Xu dislike him alone?"

Meng Yuanxiao's heart pounded.

Tears still clung to her long eyelashes, her delicate brows furrowed slightly, and she wondered if she had misunderstood something.

Cui Xintang kissed her on the cheek. "Yuanyuan, do you really think that Brother Tang marrying you is just a passing fancy?"

He said, "I was also unhappy when I saw Lu Erlang."

"..."

Cui Xintang wrapped his arms around her waist, his large hands gently stroking her waist. "What happened before was Tang-gege's fault. If I had known this would happen, even if it had been difficult, I would not have provoked others."

“Yuanyuan liked someone else, and Brother Tang didn’t blame you. He just nipped your feelings in the bud. I never thought I would resort to such dishonest means one day.”

"Therefore, Yuanyuan really doesn't need to worry about the Lin family or their cloth shop. If I had even the slightest interest in Miss Lin, I wouldn't have intentionally made her a merchant's daughter in the first place."

“Your brother Tang is different from Meng Xu.”

Meng Yuanxiao: "..."

Cui Xintang's words were not without a hint of teasing her. After speaking, he became more serious and said, "When I gave the Lin family mother and daughter the shop and asked them to convert it into a merchant, it was also to remind them not to have any other thoughts."

Meng Yuanxiao's mind was in turmoil, and she turned her face away, not wanting to look at him.

Cui Xintang sighed softly and said, "Brother Tang shouldn't have kept it from you, but it's still a shameful thing. I wanted to rely on the Lin family back then, but I broke my promise. Brother Tang also has his pride and doesn't want Yuanyuan to know about these things."

"When Yuanyuan heard all this just now, wasn't she disappointed in Brother Tang?"

His expression was somewhat complicated, and his whole body was slightly tense.

Meng Yuanxiao was indeed surprised when he heard those words.

She always thought that Brother Tang was a gentleman of noble character, only sometimes a bit foul-mouthed and liked to bully her, but in other matters he was always upright and honest.

However, she didn't entirely believe him. Although Brother Tang was upright, he was never a warm-hearted person and was too lazy to meddle in other people's affairs.

Putting everything else aside, just considering the affairs of his elder brother and sister-in-law and the Cui family, he wouldn't allow her to interfere.

Given his nature, he gave the Lin family a residence and a shop, and he certainly wouldn't care about them anymore.

But the Cui family has been keeping it a secret from her and taking care of the Lin family.

It's not that simple.

“I understand,” she said.

She said she knew, but she clearly didn't believe it.

Cui Xintang said, "I did instruct the household to take care of the Lin family's business before, but I really didn't have the time to pay attention to the Lin family's affairs. Now that the Lin family's business has improved, if Yuanyuan doesn't like it, I will give the order again, and there's no need to take special care of them in the future."

If Yuanyuan doesn't like it.

So he was just afraid of upsetting her, not that he felt there was anything wrong with continuing to take care of the Lin family.

"That's your own business, Brother Tang. You don't need to tell me," Meng Yuanxiao said in a muffled voice.

It's really pointless to pin some things on her.

Cui Xintang: "..."

He stared at Meng Yuanxiao for a moment, then reached into his robe and took out a purse embroidered with gold thread, from which he took out a jade bracelet.

The bracelet has excellent clarity, without any impurities, and is far superior to the bracelet that Qin gave me that day.

Meng Yuanxiao pursed her lips.

Cui Xintang took her hand and put the bracelet on her wrist.

The bracelet was the perfect size, hanging on her wrist, delicate and elegant, making her arms appear even whiter and slimmer.

"Brother Tang promised Yuanyuan that he would give her a jade bracelet. After I made that promise, I sent people everywhere to search for it, and we finally found a suitable jade a few days ago."

After saying that, he took her hand and placed it on the jade pendant at his waist.

"This jade pendant and the round bracelet are made from the same piece of jade. The round one is a bracelet, and Brother Tang's is a jade pendant. They are a pair."

He paused, then looked at Meng Yuanxiao and said, "We don't care about other people's things. Whatever Yuanyuan wants, Brother Tang can give you."