Spring Courtyard Forbidden Pet

Li Chengge's mother, Zheng, was the one arranged for him by Dingyuan Hou's mother. She could have been his principal wife, but Dingyuan Hou fell in love with Li Chengge's mother, Taoist Priest Zhen, so she became Dingyuan Hou's concubine.

Although she gave birth to the eldest son, he was not as smart as Li Xuan'an since childhood, and was not favored by Marquis Dingyuan, so he joined the army.

Marquis Dingyuan followed Li Chengge's mother to practice Taoism outside and handed the marquis's mansion to her to manage. It was unprecedented for a concubine to exercise the authority of a mistress. Unfortunately, the marquis's mansion was extremely poor, and it was better after Ye Rong married into the mansion.

Zheng lived a hard life in her early years, so she loved to collect clothes and jewelry. With Ye Rong's subsidy, she lived a very comfortable life. In the seven years of her previous life, Ye Zhen also spent a lot of money on her. Whether it was food or clothing, she was on par with the top ladies in the capital.

As soon as Ye Zhen entered the Orchid Courtyard, she smelled the finest agarwood. The price of this thing was almost as high as gold, but Zheng was willing to use it to fumigate her clothes.

Since I don’t have to pay for it out of my own pocket, I won’t feel bad about it.

Ye Zhen bowed perfunctorily and said, "Greetings to the old lady."

Zheng was enthusiastic. She waved her hand with three gold rings and told the maid, "Hurry up and serve tea to the mistress. Make the newly arrived Longjing tea."

Ye Zhen said indifferently, "Ye Zhen dare not live as the general's concubine. Besides, I don't like Longjing, I prefer Biluochun."

Zheng's smile froze for a moment, and she immediately understood what she meant.

"Look at me, I'm getting old and confused. Come, have some pear cakes first. I just bought them from Chunxi Tower. They're still hot."

Ye Zhen did not move. Chunxi Tower had a noble person behind it to support it. The price of the cakes was enough to cover an average family's expenses for a year, which gave the people below them the opportunity to curry favor with them.

Zheng didn't know the reason, but still insisted on following others in wasting money.

"What instructions did the old lady give me?"

Seeing that she looked calm and not as enthusiastic as before, Zheng felt uncomfortable for a moment, but she also understood Ye Zhen's personality, so she said a few soft words first, "I heard about what happened yesterday."

"Chengge was drunk and that vixen got the better of him. He was really unfair to you and Ye Rong."

"Fortunately, Ye Xue is also your sister. She can't blame anyone for her own depravity. She will never be able to climb higher in the future."

Zheng pretended to be angry and said, "Wait until your elder sister gets better, and I will make the decision to let Chengge marry you immediately!"

Ye Zhen looked at her without blinking, "What about the third sister?"

Zheng said helplessly, "For the sake of her reputation, I just gave her the position of a lowly concubine."

After saying that, she carefully stared at the changes on Ye Zhen's face. Seeing her cold eyebrows and eyes, Zheng was unsure.

"The general cheated on his eldest sister while she was ill, and even beat Zhou Ma for his third sister. If she were just a lowly concubine, it would be a disgrace to the general."

Upon hearing this, Zheng's eyebrows relaxed, and she immediately took Ye Zhen's hand and praised, "Good child, I knew you were a rare talent. Even when you were wronged, you still thought about Chengge."

"It would be best if you could speak up."

She didn't care who her son slept with. As long as Ye Rong and Ye Zhen were around and it didn't affect her good life, anything was fine.

"As long as I am here, she will never surpass you in her life. Whether she lives a good or bad life is up to you."

Just as Zheng was relaxing, Ye Zhen slowly pushed her hand away. Her eyes were like a pool of clear water, so bright that it made people feel chilled. "There is no reason for the three daughters of the Ye family to serve the same husband. If we tell anyone about it, we will become the laughing stock of the whole capital."

"The general and I haven't gotten married yet. Since he likes Ye Xue more, we can just cancel the engagement."

Zheng was dumbfounded. "What?"

break off an engagement?

Her face suddenly turned cold, "I don't say that casually."

"I know you've been wronged and you're not willing to accept it. But who doesn't have three wives and four concubines in a noble family? Chengge is a new noble, and there are many people who are jealous of him."

"Your elder sister and I will help you to become the legitimate one, so as to prevent Chengge from being schemed against by others. But if some noble person insists on forcing someone in in the future, what will you do?"

Zheng had a serious look on her face, as if she was scolding her for being ignorant but also trying to persuade her earnestly. However, Ye Zhen knew that she was afraid that other people's daughters were not as smart or rich as them.

Ye Zhen sneered in her heart. In her previous life, weren't the seven concubines of Li Chengge arranged by her? They all sucked her blood and kept plotting against her. If she had been a little dumber, they would have been eaten up long ago without leaving any residue.

Has Zheng ever helped her in any way?

"That's the general's business, it has nothing to do with me."

"You!" Zheng didn't expect her to be so stubborn and immediately lost her patience. "Don't blame me for not reminding you. Chengge doesn't like women like you who don't know how to adapt."

Ye Zhen didn't intend to explain to her, "If there is nothing else, I won't bother you anymore."

"Wait!" Zheng looked unhappy and lowered her voice. "A new batch of materials arrived from Huichun Pavilion yesterday. I guess you've been so busy taking care of Rong'er recently that you forgot to cut new clothes."

This was not the first time she asked for money, but Ye Zhen's attitude today made her feel a little uncomfortable. She added, "There are two batches of light-colored satin. I asked someone to leave some for you and Rong'er."

Ye Zhen remained calm, "I'm afraid it's not a good idea, elder sister. The satin will probably not be used, so let's return it."

Zheng's eyes widened with anxiety. Normally, Ye Zhen would understand without her saying much. This time, she must have done it on purpose!

But she really liked the material, and she couldn't sleep at night if she didn't make two sets of clothes.

So he gritted his teeth and said, "You guys can do whatever you want, but for my two dresses, you should send someone to pay the deposit quickly, otherwise the materials will be gone."

Ye Zhen said, "I don't have any money."

Ye Zhen left after she finished speaking. Zheng was so angry that she felt dizzy. "You!"

"What a rebellion! Does she still want to marry Chengge?"

When Ye Zhen came back from Lanyuan, Liuxia said that the housekeeper had been waiting for her for a cup of tea.

"Second Miss, there were quite a few guests at yesterday's banquet. The general also brought quite a few brothers from the North Camp with him. We had five more tables than scheduled, and we agreed to settle the bill today."

The housekeeper smiled and handed the bill to Liuxia. Liuxia was about to hand it to Ye Zhen but Ye Zhen waved her hand and stopped her. "This is the normal expense of the Marquis' Mansion. Just go to the accounting office and sign to get the money. Why are you waiting for me?"

The housekeeper knew what his general had done yesterday, and was prepared for Ye Zhen's anger when he came. He was not in a hurry at the moment, but just a little embarrassed.

The Marquis's salary was not much, and he had to send it to the Taoist temple every month. Although the general's salary was barely enough for daily expenses, after such a big banquet, the little money in the account was not enough to fill the gap.

If it weren't for Ye Rong's subsidy, who knows what this marquis' mansion would be like.

"You know the amount of money in the account. We prepared all the delicious dishes for this banquet, so they are a bit expensive."

Ye Zhen's brows were calm, without any sympathetic words as before, "The things for the small banquet were all approved by the general, and most of them were also exchanged for better ones at the general's suggestion. There is no money in the account, so go find the general."

The housekeeper choked, "Madam is ill, and the second young lady has been taking care of everything for the past six months..."

Before he could finish, Ye Zhen interrupted him mercilessly, "The past is the past. From now on, I will not be involved in the affairs of the Marquis' Mansion. Don't come to me for any matters, big or small."

The housekeeper became anxious when he saw that she was serious, but before he could say anything, Ye Zhen had already ordered the guest to be sent away.

Rong Fei was brought over by Ye Zhen from home. He was quite skilled and almost chased the housekeeper out. "This is a dignified mansion, and the general is a new noble. Since they ordered the best food, how could they not have money to pay the bill?"

"Our young lady has not even entered the Marquis's house yet and she is giving you subsidies. Aren't you afraid of being laughed at?"

Rong Fei's words ignited the butler. He stood further away and thought to himself, "You are the ones who came here to get her! If the general didn't have money, would he have kept her?"

*

Ye Zhen was quiet for two days, and she had almost sorted out the accounts in her hands.

She had never been to Ye Rong's place once. Liuxia said that people from Cheng'en Court went to the West Courtyard every day to invite Li Xuan, and she was afraid that it would not last long.

When Ye Zhen mentioned Li Xuan, she thought of the day when he barged in, and her breath held for a moment. Fortunately, he didn't come again in the past few days!

If I remember correctly, Ye Rong would only be gone for a day or two. Once she left, Ye Zhen would have no reason to stay in the Marquis' Mansion.

The old woman next to Zheng came to urge twice, but Ye Zhen didn't see it. She heard that the material had been ordered by someone else early this morning. Zheng was very angry, and Li Chengge was called to the Orchid Courtyard as soon as the court was over.

"Chengge, although the Ye family is the head of a fifth-rank imperial hospital, Ye Yunsheng's wife is from the Cui family, the richest family in the Great Zhou Dynasty. When Ye Rong married, her dowry alone was as high as the entire street. She treated Ye Zhen with respect, and I know that she gave her a lot of land and shops."

"Talk to her nicely and coax her back. The key is to make sure she doesn't stop giving money to the Marquis's Mansion!"

Li Chengge didn't like what Zheng said, "In a few days, my reward will come, and I won't need their money."

"You are stupid!" Zheng poked his shoulder with her index finger. "What's yours is yours. Someone is willing to subsidize us, why don't you take it?"

"I am a fourth-rank general! With me in the mansion, it is meaningless to rely on a woman's dowry."

"She likes you! She is willing to give us flowers, and sooner or later we will be a family, so why bother dividing hers and yours?"

Li Chengge felt uncomfortable, but in order to prevent Zheng from being too anxious, he finally agreed.

As a result, before leaving the Lan Courtyard, the housekeeper came over and said, "General! The debt collector is here again. I can't delay any longer."

"There is no money in the account, and the second young lady is unwilling to pay. I really don't know what to do."

Li Chengge didn't know that the bill for the small banquet was delayed. After asking, he realized that he had ordered several seafood dishes worth hundreds of taels, which resulted in an additional expense of nearly three thousand taels.

But that doesn't mean there won't be enough money in the account.

"We've held banquets in the mansion in previous years, and there's never been a time when we didn't have enough money." As soon as he said this, he reacted and his face suddenly turned dark.

The housekeeper said, "It was all paid for by the Madam. The Second Miss has been managing the Marquis' Mansion for the past six months. In order to welcome the General back to the capital, everything is new, and it was all paid for by the Second Miss out of her own pocket."

"It doesn't matter if we continue to make trouble this time. If we continue to make trouble, people will laugh at our mansion."

A dignified marquis's mansion, and a general, actually owed money to merchants! Ye Zhen didn't mean to embarrass him!

Li Chengge narrowed his eyes, "She is using this to force me on purpose! Does she think this general is a coward?"

"Go tell her that since she doesn't want to take care of it, just take out the butler's cards."

He still doesn't believe that he can't control a woman!