Chapter 81 -

Chapter 81: Chapter

Yimei pressed herself flat against the cool stone wall of the corridor, using the flickering lantern shadows to mask her presence. Ahead of her, Madame Liu was fanning herself furiously, her jewel-encrusted rings glinting under the moonlight as she dragged Bai Xiuying along by her silk sleeve.

"Mother, slow down! You’re squeezing my arm!" Xiuying whined, pulling away with a sulky pucker of her lips.

"Shut your mouth before someone hears you!" Madame Liu hissed, her voice sharp as broken glass as she dragged her daughter into the privacy of a secluded pavilion. "Did you see how Madame Bai and those insolent girls humiliated us in front of the Matriarch? Calling your manners low? Comparing you to a street vendor?!"

"It was all because of that wretched An Yimei!" Xiuying spat, her eyes flashing with pure hatred. "If she hadn’t won over the ledgers, Grandmother wouldn’t be treating the First Branch like royalty!"

Madame Liu let out a cold, wicked chuckle, her eyes narrowing into dangerous slits. "Let them celebrate for now. Tomorrow, at the Minister of War’s mansion, we will wipe that arrogant smirk off Yimei’s face for good."

Yimei leaned in closer, her breath holding steady as she strained to catch every syllable.

"What is the plan, Mother?" Xiuying asked eagerly, her sullen mood vanishing instantly.

"I have already secured a rare, aged jar of Cloud-Mist Tea leaves, the kind the Minister’s wife adores," Madame Liu whispered, leaning toward her daughter with a sinister grin. "Tomorrow, during the formal tea presentation, you will step forward first and present it personally to the Minister’s wife. But before you do, my maid will discreetly ruin whatever cheap brew An Yimei tries to present.. I’m sure she is thinking of presenting her stupid tea before the family as always. We will make sure her tea spills all over the Minister’s eldest daughter’s banquet gown!"

Xiuying gasping in delight, clapping her hands together. "Ruining her dress in front of all the capital’s noblewomen?! She’ll be branded a clumsy, low-born embarrassment! Grandmother will strip her of every right she just won!"

"Precisely," Madame Liu smirked, patting her daughter’s cheek. "The First Branch will be disgraced, and our Second Branch will take all the glory. Now come, let us prepare."

Yimei watched from the dark as the two women walked away, their spiteful giggles echoing softly through the garden.

A slow, terrifyingly beautiful smile bloomed across Yimei’s face. They want to play with tea and ruin reputations at my business partner’s mansion? How wonderfully tragic for them.

....

The midnight air was ice-cold, but inside Yimei’s courtyard, the atmosphere was ablaze with silent, calculated energy.

The moment Yimei stepped into her quarters, Qinqin hurried over, locking the heavy wooden doors behind them. Yimei didn’t waste a single second. She sat down at her desk, dipped her brush in dark ink, and began writing at lightning speed.

"Qinqin, listen to me very carefully," Yimei commanded, her voice calm, sharp, and commanding. "Before the sun rises, I need you to slip out through the side gate and deliver this note directly to Lin Fang at Wenlong Teahouse."

Qinqin leaned in, her eyes wide. "Young Madame, what are the instructions?"

"First," Yimei said, her lips curling into a wicked smirk, "tell Lin Fang to send two jars of the strongest, unrefined, high-proof Fire-Wine directly to Bai Wenjiang’s personal guard tonight. Pay the guard five silver taels to place it right on Young Master Wenjiang’s table with a note claiming it’s a secret gift from An Yulan to reward him."

Qinqin gasped, clutching her mouth. "Young Madame! An Yulan explicitly ordered his court to lock away all liquor so he stays sober for the banquet!"

"Exactly," Yimei chuckled softly. "Wenjiang is a hopeless drunkard who hasn’t had a drop all day. The moment he sees a jar of premium wine sitting right in front of him, claiming to be from his own wife, his self-control will shatter. He will drink every last drop before dawn."

Yimei folded the second slip of paper and sealed it with wax. "Second, tell Lin Fang that when our supplies are delivered to the Xiao mansion kitchen at dawn, he is to swap the labels on the tea canisters. Madame Liu thinks she bought Cloud-Mist Tea, but her merchant source actually sources through the Wenlong network. Lin Fang will ensure her jar is replaced with dried Stink-Weed leaves that look identical to tea, but emit a foul, bitter odor the second hot water hits them."

Yimei blew lightly on the wet ink of the third note. "And finally... for An Yulan’s precious jade hairpin. Qinqin, have Lin Fang inform Xiao Jun’s head butler at the mansion that Madame Chen’s branch wishes to present a gift early. We will ensure that when An Yulan presents her ’rare’ hairpin tomorrow, it is exposed as a cheap, colored-glass counterfeit in front of the entire assembly."

Qinqin looked at her mistress with absolute awe and a hint of terror. "Young Madame... you’re turning all three of their schemes back on them simultaneously!"

"They wanted to use tomorrow’s banquet to destroy me and humiliate the First Branch," Yimei said coolly, standing up and smoothing her dark sleeves. "Instead, I will turn the Minister’s mansion into the graveyard of their ambitions."

Qinqin gripped the letters tightly, bowing with absolute devotion. "I’ll make sure these get to Manager Lin right away, Young Madame."

She slipped out through the side door, vanishing into the dark pathways of the estate.

Once Qinqin was gone, Yimei turned toward the outer room and called Xiao Yu, the courtyard’s young maid.

"Has the First Young Master eaten his dinner?" Yimei asked.

Xiao Yu stepped forward, bowing nervously. "No, Young Madame. Young Master Zhengyu hasn’t touched any food today. He sent the servants away when they brought his tray."

Yimei rolled her eyes. "That stubborn man will starve himself to death before tomorrow."

Shaking her head, Yimei walked straight to the small kitchen attached to their courtyard. Zhengyu wasn’t going to brood on an empty stomach, and her own stomach was growling after a long day of dealing with Xiao Jun and the rival branches.

She lit a lantern, tucked up her sleeves, and got to work. She stoked the fire, chopped fresh vegetables, and cooked a quick bowl of hot noodle soup for herself and Qinqin.

Next, she prepared Zhengyu’s meal. Since his body was weak, she made a bowl of hot chicken porridge, adding ginger and herbs to soothe his stomach.

While the porridge simmered, Yimei pulled out a heavy pot to brew Zhengyu’s medicine. She measured out the bitter roots and bark meant to strengthen his legs and body, added fresh water, and set it over the embers to boil.

Standing by the warm stove, watching the steam rise, Yimei smiled to herself.