Pampered Poisonous Royal Wife Chapter 109

Chapter 109: The Fifty Return

Mu Yunyao remained at home to recover in peace, while the whole of Jingling City seethed with talk.

Every shop belonging to the Ding family was sealed. Only after asking around did many commoners learn that the great fire at Niyun Pavilion had very likely been set by the Ding family. In an instant, whatever goodwill the people had toward the Dings vanished cleanly. Everywhere, voices rose, demanding that the Ding family be severely punished and that Miss Mu receive justice.

The Ding family members were thrown into prison. After only a brief interrogation, they confessed that they had acted under the orders of the Jingling Assistant Prefect and the Pacification Commissioner. Only then had evil courage risen from the edge of their hearts, leading them to set fire to Niyun Pavilion.

The moment those words spread, the entire city fell into uproar.

The Jingling Assistant Prefect and the Pacification Commissioner both had fairly decent reputations outside, and many commoners had once supported them. Now that people had heard they had ordered someone to burn down Niyun Pavilion, quite a few wondered whether the investigation had gone astray.

Immediately afterward, Governor Zhang publicly interrogated the two men, drawing countless people to the yamen gates to listen.

Neither of them admitted to burning the Niyun Pavilion. Yet after the investigation continued, other secrets—far more difficult to believe—were dragged into the light.

The Jingling Assistant Prefect had used his authority for private gain, embezzling several hundred thousand taels from the riverworks funds. He had even used his own wife, Ding Yuexin, to curry favor with higher officials, helping him conceal evidence and collude in corruption.

When the Pacification Commissioner heard this, he began fighting with the Jingling Assistant Prefect right there in court. The scene descended into chaos. Governor Zhang nearly broke his startling block from striking it so hard before he barely managed to restore order.

The news that came out afterward made people’s jaws drop. Ding Yuexin had actually maintained intimate relations with five men at the same time. The Ding family had risen so quickly and so gloriously entirely because she had traded away the dignity beneath her silken skirts.

In an instant, the Ding family became a target for public scorn. Even Ding Yuelan and the other Ding daughters were implicated, their reputations ruined beyond recovery.

Whether or not the fire at Niyun Pavilion had truly been set by them, the Jingling Assistant Prefect and the Pacification Commissioner no longer had any chance to turn the matter around.

Su Qingwu wrote a memorial detailing what had happened in Jingling City and submitted it to the court. Because the matter was urgent, and because he feared it might disturb the hearts of the people, he had the report sent overnight to the capital by courier horse.

As soon as the news entered the capital, the censor-officials submitted memorial after memorial, requesting that His Majesty punish the matter severely.

Mu Yunyao naturally heard of what had happened to the Jingling Assistant Prefect and the Pacification Commissioner. She even sent Jin Lan to inquire about Ding Yuelan’s situation. Unfortunately, after asking around for quite some time, Jin Lan still could not obtain any reliable news.

After seven or eight days of rest, the small wounds on Mu Yunyao’s body had already healed as before. Only the wound in her palm still ached faintly. Counting the days, she estimated that Liu Liang and the others should be returning soon, so she wanted to go to Jinxiu Garden.

Even though it was only next door, Su Qing refused to let her leave, no matter what. Mu Yunyao exhausted every trick she knew and made promise after promise before she was finally permitted to take Jin Lan and Jin Qiao with her to the neighboring residence.

As soon as Steward Qin heard the news, he hurried out to welcome her. “Greetings, Miss Mu. How are your injuries?”

“Thank you for your concern, Steward Qin. They are no longer serious.”

“Miss’s complexion still looks worn. You must rest more. This old servant prepared some bird’s nest and ginseng, but I did not dare send them over rashly for fear Madam might misunderstand. When Miss leaves later, you must take them with you.”

“Then many thanks, Steward Qin.”

Mu Yunyao sat beside the pavilion to wait. The agreement had been made: fifteen days later, at this same hour, the fifty people would return here. Aside from others, Liu Liang would certainly come back on time.

Just as she was thinking this, a servant came forward to report. “Miss, Steward Qin, Wei Yi, Yun Chun, and the others have returned.”

A brightness entered Mu Yunyao’s eyes. “Invite them in.”

Steward Qin was also full of curiosity. He did not know whether half a month along the banks of the Qinhuai had changed those people at all.

Liu Liang walked at the front. After entering, he was the first to bow to Mu Yunyao. Then he silently stood at her side, his gaze quietly resting on her all the while, carrying a shade of emotion that could not quite be named.

Wei Yi and Yun Chun followed slightly behind. Their expressions were still mild, as though no different from before, yet upon closer look, something in their bearing had indeed changed.

Mu Yunyao’s gaze swept over them one by one, and a trace of approval passed through her eyes. “Go prepare yourselves and change your clothes. After that, return here and brew a pot of tea.”

“Yes, Miss.”

Before long, all fifty had changed and returned. The fifty sat behind their respective tea tables and bowed in unison toward Mu Yunyao and Steward Qin.

Steward Qin’s eyes widened despite himself. They were clearly still the same people, yet their bearing had become entirely different. Before, they had also worn smiles, but no matter how bright those smiles were, there had always been a cold edge beneath them. Now, looking at them made one feel far more at ease, far more natural.

Mu Yunyao gave a slight nod. “Begin.”

The fifty moved as one to prepare tea. White sleeves drifted gently with each motion. Water poured into the clay kettles with a clear, tinkling sound. Before long, the fragrance of tea rose into the air. Lids touched lightly against cups, producing a crisp note. Then the fifty bowed in unison once more, hands gathered neatly before them as they knelt behind their tea tables.

A gleam of pleasant surprise appeared on Steward Qin’s face. These people already possessed five or six of the charms Mu Yunyao carried while brewing tea. In particular, when so many of them moved together, the sight was deeply striking. “What does Miss think?”

The people below also raised their heads one after another to look at Mu Yunyao, waiting for her approval.

Mu Yunyao, however, shook her head slightly. “It is overdone.”

“Overdone?” Steward Qin did not understand. “Please enlighten us, Miss.”

“When our tea house opens its doors to guests, among so many visitors, how many will truly love tea? I believe not even one or two out of ten. Of the many guests, some will come for social dealings, some merely to pose as refined. If we cannot stand apart, then among so many tea houses and tea establishments, why should others choose ours?”

As Mu Yunyao spoke, she rose, sat behind a tea table, and began preparing tea.

Her face was still somewhat pale and weary, and her clothes were extremely plain. Yet the moment her hands began to move, every gaze settled upon her. It was clearly the same method of preparing tea, but when she performed it, there was a beauty like flowing clouds and running water that others could not imitate.

“Without my saying it, you all know that this tea house is not merely for earning silver. If we cannot draw in as many people as possible, then there is no meaning in opening it at all. After returning, your expressions are indeed much more vivid than before. But remember this: ours is a tea house. What we seek is to wash away worldly dust and uphold refined elegance. What you display is not yourselves, but the tea in your hands. Therefore, your own presence must also merge with the tea.”

Her voice was clear and crisp. As she prepared tea, her words flowed unhurriedly. It was as though each sentence drifted with the tea fragrance into the depths of the heart, leaving the mind quiet, with only her voice echoing softly within it.

Mu Yunyao drew her movements to a close and placed the teacup gently before Steward Qin. Her smile did not deliberately pursue gentleness or beauty. It even seemed somewhat faint, somewhat distant. Yet everyone felt that she ought to be exactly so. Without realizing it, a few traces of yearning and admiration rose in their hearts.

Mu Yunyao lifted her eyes to look at the crowd. “You must please the guests, but you must not be humble or fawning. Instead, you must make them willingly lower their guard and regard you as confidants. Only then can you obtain what you need. As for the measure within that, you must grasp it yourselves.”

Such things could only be understood in the heart and could not be fully passed on through words. Even she had no way to explain them clearly. Among these people, some had already glimpsed the path. With more practice, they would be able to reach completion.

Steward Qin sighed in admiration at himself. When it came to training people, Miss Mu truly had methods. Even he could not help feeling respect. The fifty people selected at the beginning could not be considered especially outstanding; their strength lay in loyalty, sincerity, and the ability to carry out His Highness’s orders without hesitation. But now, he suddenly had a feeling that these fifty people might one day become capable of great things—far beyond His Highness’s expectations.

Edited by Little Kitty on 13/06/20

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