Chapter 204 Ask again!
Zhou Yanxiu always had a time for meals, and this was the first time he had dinner in the afternoon.
Ji Yunzhi and Aunt Qin, who lived in the county government office, were also pulled over. Aunt Qin was obviously very shocked to see Cui Qingyi in the backyard.
Of course, this shock was not due to the rumors circulating on the streets recently, but due to other reasons.
Zhou Yanxiu told the two of them that Cui Qingyi had brought a new kind of food. Ji Yunzhi glanced at Cui Qingyi and raised his eyebrows in surprise.
Aunt Qin looked at the potato feast on the table curiously.
Cui Qingyi was sitting at the same table, but no one picked up their chopsticks for a long time. Cui Qingyi was not there to eat, so she waited obediently for the host to pick up his chopsticks first. It was not until Aunt Qin signaled her with her eyes that she suddenly realized what was going on.
I shouted in my heart, what an evil feudal empire.
Cui Qingyi took a little bit of each dish on the table and put it into the cutlery in front of her. After tasting them one by one, she really wanted to give herself a thumbs up. Potatoes are really something you can never get tired of eating!
Zhou Yanxiu didn't need anyone to serve him. He followed Cui Qingyi's movements to pick up the dishes. The steamed potatoes were soft and delicate, with a unique sweet aroma. He knew it was indeed a good thing after taking a bite.
After exchanging a glance with Ji Yunzhi, Zhou Yanxiu put down his chopsticks and said, "Mr. Cui, what do you want to get from me in exchange for this? Just tell me."
Cui Qingyi had obtained this thing for quite some time, but Zhou Yanxiu, who had come to visit today, knew it very well.
But this thing can indeed benefit the people of Dajin as she said. As the first discoverer, Zhou Yanxiu thinks he can satisfy her request as long as it is not excessive, even a title!
After a busy afternoon, Cui Qingyi finally got to the point. She breathed a sigh of relief and stood up to bow to Zhou Yanxiu again. "Sir, I originally wanted to plant this again next spring to see the yield before sending it to you. I do have selfish motives for coming here today."
It was a long story to tell, so Cui Qingyi paused and took a deep breath before continuing:
"I was born into the Linshui Cui clan. At the age of fifteen, I married Chen Lin'an, the eldest son of the Chen family in Qinghe. Before the marriage, I didn't know that Chen Lin'an and his cousin from his uncle's family were deeply in love and had already secretly decided to spend their lives together. From the moment I married into the Chen family, I became an obstacle between the lovers.
Chen Linan regarded me as the culprit who broke up him and his sweetheart. After we got married, he was always unwilling to perform the rituals of husband and wife with me, and cold words to me were commonplace.
Two years ago, the Chen family divorced me because we had no children for five years. When they drove me away, they even refused to let me take my dowry with me.
I was completely hopeless, but I still had my parents and brothers, so I returned to Linhe County with a heart full of longing. However, my parents were afraid that I had ruined my reputation and would bring trouble to my brothers, so they refused to let me in.
My stepmother, Yuan, and my uncle's family conspired to send me to the capital to be a concubine of an official. The Cui family has an ancestral precept that no woman from the Cui family is allowed to be a concubine.
I got the news in advance and severed my relationship with the Cui family under the leadership of the fifth master of the Cui family. From then on, I could not call myself a member of the Cui family to the outside world, nor could I use the Cui family's reputation to seek personal gain.
In the past few years, I have always abided by the agreement and have not taken advantage of Cui in the slightest.
But now I know that in this world, there is no logic when it comes to filial piety. People say that when you first marry, you should obey your relatives, and when you remarry, you should obey yourself. But if your parents want to control you, there is no other way for a woman to survive.
Now my biological mother and my biological uncle are spreading rumors wantonly in Dongping County. If I don't compromise and don't give up everything I have worked so hard for, and don't go back and listen to the family's orders to marry as a concubine, and use my flesh and blood to pave the way for my younger brother, they will completely destroy me.
Mr. Zhou, I once asked the Fifth Master of the Cui family a question. I heard that you also studied at the White Deer Grotto Academy. I would like to ask you the same question today:
"Men are common people in the Jin Dynasty, but women are not? The White Deer Grotto Academy is renowned throughout the world, teaching men the ways of a gentleman. Is there such a principle in the sages' books that one must step on women to climb the ladder? Are we, flesh and blood, born so lowly?"
Cui Qingyi spoke in a calm tone and had an indifferent expression, not seeming to be talking about her own affairs, but the tearful meaning in every word she said caused the scene to fall into silence.
Aunt Qin's emotions were turbulent, her eyes red. "Men in this world are so unfaithful, yet they let an innocent fifteen-year-old girl suffer such torture. It's simply hateful."
Zhou Yanxiu was a man, and a member of the highest power in the feudal dynasty, but he considered himself an upright person, and he treated his wife with love, respect, and esteem.
He had never done anything to ruin a woman's life because of his own selfish desires, and he would only sneer at people like Chen Linan.
This is not a defense of women, but a contempt for men.
"What do you want?" Zhou Yanxiu asked.
Cui Qingyi bowed again and said, "I would like to use the merit of presenting potatoes to ask the Queen Mother for an imperial decree that can be announced to the world. I want all the people of Dajin to know that I have completely severed all ties with the Cui family."
Zhou Yanxiu stared at Cui Qingyi for a long moment before saying, "There's a rule in the laws of our Great Jin that allows those who make significant contributions to the court to be promoted above their rank. The food issue is a matter of vital importance to the nation's economy and the people's livelihood. If His Majesty is so pleased, he might even grant you the title of Princess. Are you sure you want to trade your merit for such a condition?"
Cui Qingyi, "She is quite familiar with the laws of the Great Jin Dynasty, so how come she didn't know there was such a clause in it? Is it a hidden law or is this old guy cheating?"
"Yes, this is my only request. Please grant it, sir."
Zhou Yanxiu slowly smiled, "Then I will do as you wish."
When Cui Qingyi came out of the county government office and saw Konjac and Chen Ma standing outside in their cloaks, she felt the same way as when she first walked out of the Linshui County Government Office.
Once again, she protected herself.
Inside the county government office
Zhou Yanxiu, Ji Yunzhi and Aunt Qin were eating hot pot and were all amazed by the taste.
After swallowing a mouthful of chili-covered lamb slices, Aunt Qin said with a smile, "Miss Cui is at a loss."
Ji Yunzhi glanced at Zhou Yanxiu's face and said with emotion, "When I first followed you to this poor and desolate place, I was filled with resentment and felt like I was being exiled. But now it seems that this is really a blessing in disguise. We have actually made a big profit."
He, Ji Yunzhi, the dandy young man despised by his family, is now about to soar to fame.
.......
Yuan acted outside the teahouse for several hours, acting like a loving mother and relegating her daughter Cui Qingyi to the dust. She did not return to the inn until the Hongyan Teahouse closed.
Mei was warming the charcoal pot and drinking hot tea when she saw someone coming back. She smiled and said, "Sister, you have worked hard. I believe that Nian Jie'er will take the initiative to come to your house and admit her mistakes tomorrow. Sister, you must not be soft-hearted then. You still have to be polite."
Yuan Shi only felt that she had made a great sacrifice today and was deeply resentful towards Cui Qingyi. She gritted her teeth and nodded, "Of course."
Mother Cui's right eyelid twitched behind her. She felt that things might not be as easy as the Madam thought. Didn't she see that the Madam had made such a fuss today and the eldest daughter didn't even show up? This didn't look like she was giving in at all.
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