Duan Mingxi had no idea that, compared to Bai Zhiwei, her image in Duchess Gao’s mind had improved considerably.
A few days later, Duan Ning successfully passed the imperial examination and was appointed as a shujishi, bringing more joy to the Marquis Household.
With Duan Ning’s appointment, people began inquiring about marriage prospects for Duan Huirou and Duan Qingyin, keeping Madam Jiang busy.
Madam Jiang’s biggest concern now was arranging a good marriage for Duan Huirou. Since Duan Mingxi had married into the royal family, Huirou couldn’t settle for anything less.
The Marquis Household’s circumstances had improved significantly compared to before. Now, with a son working as a langzhong, a stepson as a shujishi, and a daughter becoming a Duan Wangfei, Huirou’s value had increased, giving Madam Jiang many more choices for potential matches.
Lately, Madam Jiang had been going out frequently, sometimes taking Huirou along, which Mingxi had noticed. But she paid it no mind.
Duan Huirou’s marriage arrangements had nothing to do with her, as long as Madam Jiang didn’t use her name for anything disgraceful.
“Eldest Little Sister!”
Mingxi had just returned to the mansion that day when she unexpectedly ran into Duan Yu, who had just left court. Hearing him call her, she stopped to wait.
“Big Brother,” Mingxi greeted him. “Why are you back so early today?”
Duan Yu wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at her. “Fengcheng Marquis submitted a memorial to the capital—did you hear about it?”
Mingxi hadn’t. “When did this happen?”
“It was delivered to the Ministry of War just before the hour of Wei (around 1:30-3:30 PM). Lord Shangshu accepted the memorial and soon after requested an audience with His Majesty. I noticed he looked rather grim. When I left court, he still hadn’t come out of the palace. I couldn’t help but worry, so I wanted to ask you about it,” Duan Yu explained.
Mingxi had a guess—it was likely that Fengcheng Marquis had reported the matter of the 800,000 taels of silver to the Emperor. Of course, he wouldn’t claim all the credit himself; he would share it with Ning Qin Wang and her.
That way, the three of them could split the Emperor’s attention and, at the same time, fully tie Fengcheng Marquis and Ning Qin Wang to Duan Wang’s faction.
This was something she needed to give her family a heads-up about, especially her older brother and Third Uncle.
Thinking of this, she lowered her voice and said, “Before Wangye left the capital, the Ministry of Revenue was nearly empty, and there wasn’t much silver in reserve. The grain and provisions he took with him were quite limited.”
Duan Yu was aware of this and sighed. “The Ministry of Revenue had no choice. The Minister mentioned to me once that it wasn’t that they had no money, but in recent years, many prefectures across Great Chu had been behind on their tax payments. On top of that, His Majesty waived taxes for many disaster-stricken areas.”
Mingxi nodded. “I knew a little about that, so before Wangye left, I gave him some silver as emergency funds.”
Duan Yu: ?
Say that again?
“How much?” Duan Yu asked curiously, trying to gauge how much money his little sister could possibly have. Even if the Duan family had given her some funds, it wouldn’t all be in silver—there were also shops and land, which couldn’t be easily converted to cash.
Mingxi gestured with her fingers, showing a number.
Duan Yu thought he must have misread. “How much?”
Mingxi gestured again.
Duan Yu’s voice trembled. “Forty thousand taels?”
His annual salary wasn’t even a quarter of that.
Mingxi shook her head.
Duan Yu sighed in relief. “Four thousand taels?”
That had really scared him.
“Four hundred thousand taels,” Mingxi said.
Duan Yu had relaxed too soon. This time, he choked on his breath and started coughing violently, his face turning red.
How much?
Four hundred thousand taels!
He had never seen that much money in his entire life!
“Big Brother, are you okay?”
He was not okay!
But he couldn’t say that out loud.
Duan Yu turned away to compose himself, taking deep breaths. Finally, he turned back to Mingxi. “You’re incredible! Grandfather doesn’t know about this yet, does he?”
Mingxi shook her head.
Duan Yu gave her a thumbs-up. Looks like all the courage in their family had been concentrated in her!
“Where did you get so much money?” he couldn’t help but ask.
Mingxi replied, “My father gave me some, and I gathered the rest myself. Last year’s Dragon Boat Festival brought in quite a profit.”
Duan Yu: …
Oh right, he had made a small fortune from that too.
Hearing Mingxi mention Duan Pingchang so naturally, even calling him ‘Father’ without hesitation, Duan Yu felt a surge of complicated emotions.
Still, there was nothing to say. Duan Pingchang had raised his sister so well, had supported her without hesitation—it would be heartless of him to act ungrateful just because she had reunited with her birth father.
“Later, I’ll discuss with Father about maintaining a proper connection with the Duan family,” Duan Yu said.
Now that he had been in officialdom for a while, he had learned a lot—he was no longer as shortsighted as before.
But Mingxi shook her head. “Things are fine as they are. My father and mother are ordinary merchants; making them formally associate with the Marquis Household would only make them uncomfortable.”
She didn’t want her parents to endure Madam Jiang’s attitude. Why should they? It was better for things to remain as they were.
Duan Yu immediately understood—at the root of it, the problem was still their mother. And there was nothing he could do about her. Steadying himself, he said, “This matter is no small one. Once His Majesty brings it up, you’ll have even more eyes on you. The Duan family should be cautious as well.”
Duan Mingxi was surprised—she hadn’t expected her brother to be so thoughtful now.
Just as she was about to speak, Duan Yu continued, “How about this? In a few days, I’ll go with you to visit the Duan family. If you don’t want Old Master Duan and his wife to come here, then as their junior, I should at least pay my respects to them.”
“That’s not necessary, is it?” Mingxi was stunned. What was happening? Had Duan Yu been possessed by a spirit?
“Of course it’s necessary,” Duan Yu replied. “Old Master Duan may be your adoptive father, but he put forth a huge sum of silver this time. Our Marquis Household also benefits from this. It’s only right to visit and offer our thanks.”
“Besides, if I—Marquis shizi—personally visit, others will see that we acknowledge the Duan family as proper relatives. Even though I don’t hold much weight yet, you can at least use me to gain some influence.”
Mingxi fell silent. She truly hadn’t expected that Duan Yu would consider her parents’ well-being.
In her past life…
She couldn’t think about it. In her past life, Duan Yu had never done anything properly.
At this moment, her emotions surged—bittersweet, complex.
Was this what they meant by karma?
Because she had let go of past grievances and chosen to support the Marquis Household, was that why things had turned out this way?
For the first time in a long time, Mingxi smiled sincerely. Looking at Duan Yu, she said softly, “Alright, I’ll listen to you, Big Brother.”
Hearing this, Duan Yu felt like he was floating.
It was the first time his little sister had ever acknowledged him so earnestly—he couldn’t even begin to describe his emotions.
A mix of guilt and joy.
Actually, when Duan Pingchang first arrived in the capital, he should have paid a visit.
However, at that time, he was still an immature little sapling who didn’t quite understand things.
Now, looking at his younger sister’s happy expression, a sudden pain rose in his heart.
It turned out that making her happy was such a simple thing, yet he had never truly given it any thought.
