Chapter 17: The Matter is Resolved

His daughter was fond of Song Yifeng, his father was determined to find a political backer, and Song Yifeng was particularly ambitious. The entire Ye family was counting on him to pass the imperial examination so that the Ye family could have more freedom in the business world. There was no other way, so he reluctantly accepted the engagement.

Upon hearing Ye Yaming’s words, even he, who was usually good-tempered, was furious.

“This boy is truly ungrateful. How did he get to study and pass the scholar and provincial exams? If it weren’t for our family’s support, where would he be now? He hasn’t even passed the imperial examination yet, and he’s already looking down on you. If he passes the imperial examination, what then? This engagement should be called off immediately.”

In the end, he added with relief, “Ming’er, it’s great that you realized this in time. I always said that boy wasn’t a good match. You’ve always been kind to his mother and him, but has he ever given you a smile? He’s using our family’s money and treating you like this. If you marry him and he passes the imperial examination, who knows what kind of life you’ll have.”

He snorted, “That Madam Yu, I don’t think she’s a good person either. She hides her true intentions behind a smile and is very calculating.”

In fact, Madam Yu’s acting was quite convincing. If it weren’t for the original owner’s memories from her past life, Ye Yaming wouldn’t have seen through her facade.

Old Madam Ye and Madam Tao, who had spent their lives in the inner courtyard, had dealt with Madam Yu many times but hadn’t seen through her true nature. Of course, maybe they did see through her but were blinded by Song Yifeng’s “talent” and their hopes for the future.

Madam Yin, as the original owner’s biological mother, was also very fond of her, but she was deceived by interests and preferred to believe in the Ye family’s financial power to suppress and restrain Madam Yu. So, even if she notices something is wrong with Madam Yu, she deceives herself and doesn’t want to believe her own eyes.

Therefore, Old Madam Ye and Madam Tao’s actions were understandable.

Ye Hongsheng’s words, though filled with his emotions, hit the nail on the head. Compared to Madam Yin, he was more clear-headed and cared more about his daughter.

Who said her father was dull and incompetent? Didn’t he see things clearly?

“Father, don’t make this public yet. You can give a hint to Mother, but don’t tell her directly that I want to break off the engagement. The Song family won’t let us break off the engagement easily. I’ll talk to grandfather about this and make the Song family return the money they’ve received over the years,” Ye Yaming said.

“Alright, alright,” Ye Hongsheng said, finally believing that Ye Yaming was serious about breaking off the engagement. “Everything else is secondary; your reputation must not be damaged.”

“Yes, I know. Don’t worry,” Ye Yaming smiled. “Let’s go, we have important things to do.”

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The father and daughter visited the remaining customers. Since Ye Chongming had chosen honest families, the tea exchange went smoothly.

Although they had more customers to visit, Ye Chongming’s customers were more difficult to deal with, so the completion rate was about the same. When they returned to the Ye family, they happened to meet Ye Chongming getting off a carriage at the door.

“Grandfather, was everything smooth?” Ye Yaming quickly asked.

Seeing Ye Yaming, Ye Chongming’s eyes softened, and he smiled, “It went well. Although there were some difficulties, it was resolved. How about your side?”

“It went smoothly,” Ye Yaming said curiously. “What difficulties did you encounter? Are there any hidden dangers?”

Ye Chongming saw his second son approaching and entered the gate. Once they were far from the gate, he said, “Hmph, they threatened to report to the authorities. I told them I’d report their collusion with Ding Jian and their fake Ye family tea, and they quieted down.”

If the private tea didn’t bear the Ye family’s name and they only collected other people’s tea, it wouldn’t cause much trouble. Ye Chongming could just accuse them of slander. After all, it’s common for ruffians to extort merchants with fake goods.

The Ye family had been operating in Lin’an City for generations and had considerable wealth, so they had connections with the government.

The prefect, Qi Zhipei, needed funds for bridge repairs, disaster relief, and public welfare, and the Ye family always supported him generously. His assistant, Advisor Wu, received annual contributions from the Ye family. Whether Advisor Wu kept the contributions for himself or offered a large portion to Qi Zhipei, everyone understood.

The political factions in the capital were extremely complex. Meng Chengwei’s involvement in the Jiangnan tea market was so convoluted, indicating that he wasn’t in the same faction as Qi Zhipei and couldn’t influence the tea affairs office. Therefore, as long as the Ye family’s private tea incident didn’t become widely known, the Ye family had nothing to fear from the authorities.

Unfortunately, Ye Hongrong, that fool, put the Ye family’s tea label on the private tea under Ding Jian’s instigation. Those two wanted to use this to threaten him, but without others’ cooperation, they couldn’t cause much trouble.

When they heard Ye Chongming mention Meng Chengwei, they backed down. They were locals and had to live in Lin’an. Helping Meng Chengwei secretly was one thing, but openly opposing the Ye family was not in their best interest.

After Ye Chongming promised some benefits, they agreed to drop the matter and keep it quiet.

So, this hidden danger was resolved.

“I’m curious. How did you know this was Meng Chengwei’s doing?” Ye Chongming asked.

After successfully handling the matter, he returned to the tea shop and sent Ding Jian and the two workers to the authorities, accusing them of colluding with Meng Chengwei to set up the Ye family.

He did this to file a case with the authorities, preventing Meng Chengwei from causing more trouble and indirectly informing Qi Zhipei that the Lin’an tea market was being targeted.

On the way, he questioned Li Fu and Liu Chunxin and learned about Ye Yaming’s interrogation of Liu Chunxin.

Ye Yaming had already prepared an explanation for this.

“Brother fell off his horse, and it was such a coincidence that Meng Chengwei was nearby. Knowing that Brother had attendants, he still insisted on sending him home. Unsolicited kindness is suspicious. I felt it was a trap. When I returned to the tea shop and found trouble, I used Meng Chengwei’s name to test Liu Chunxin, and he confessed.”

Hearing this, Ye Chongming was speechless for a while. He didn’t know whether to praise the child’s sharpness or criticize her for being too suspicious.

At her age, having never experienced any worries and growing up in a carefree environment, she should see everything as beautiful and trust people. Even he, an old man in his sixties, wouldn’t suspect Meng Chengwei, who appeared kind at first meeting. He didn’t know if Ye Yaming’s attitude was good or bad.

But regardless, thanks to her sharpness, the Ye family avoided a disaster.

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