Mrs. Pei heard Mrs. Qi say this, and seeing her confident appearance, she thought of her husband's reminder on the way here, and smiled: "You don't have to be afraid of him, thinking that the Li family was originally just a merchant family, and it wasn't until Li Yuan's generation that they luckily became officials, and after all these years, he is only a fourth-rank official in the imperial palace."

  Her words need to be listened to in reverse. The chief historian of the Prince's Palace, although only managing the internal affairs of the palace, cannot compare with Liu Chengcai, a three-product secretary who is majestic and powerful. But that is the most trusted person by King Ning's side. If King Ning didn't have the opportunity to take power, it would be fine, but King Ning's identity is not ordinary, he has always had imperial favor, and Li Yuan, who came from a humble background, was able to ingratiate himself into such an official position, can you say he is stupid? Can you look down on him? No.

  Madam Pian Que smiled slightly: "Do you know why it's so hard to find a woman from the five surnames? Why did the imperial court specially issue an edict forbidding descendants of the five surnames from marrying on their own?"

  Mrs. Pei said: "Of course I know."

  This dynasty has five surnames and seven families that have been formed since the previous dynasty, which are high-ranking aristocratic families. They are Qinghe Wu, Fanyang Bai, Xingyang Wang, Taiyuan Qin, Longxi Xiao, Boling Wu, and Zhaojun Xiao. Through intermarriage with the royal family and among themselves, they form a group with very high power and status. In this dynasty, although the five surnames have great influence in society, their power on the court is not as great as before. Officials, nobles, and even the royal family all take pride in marrying into the five surnames. For example, the empress comes from Xingyang Wang, the wife of Ning Wangfei comes from Taiyuan Qin, the wife of the son of the Marquis of Chuzhou, Pan Rong, also comes from Fanyang Bai, and there are many other examples.

  For men, marrying a woman of the Five Surnames was an honor that even surpassed marrying a princess. But these people with the Five Surnames still wanted to elevate their own status and were not willing to easily form alliances with others, making them seem even more precious. The imperial court, in order to break this situation, specially issued an edict forbidding them from arranging marriages on their own. Under these circumstances, many newly risen noble officials finally got what they desired.

  Madam Qi sneered, "Since you know, you should understand. People like us may not be as prominent as the five surnames and seven families, but we're not comparable to those merchant-born people either. Moreover, your brother-in-law is a pillar of the country. Even if in the future... that noble person could still come to bother us with such trivial matters? Besides, it's not like Li's family is our closest relative, just a distant relative who can't even be considered as one of the eight trigrams. If he wants to intervene in such things, I'm afraid he'll be too busy." Her words were tough, but in her heart, she thought that she should secretly remind Liu Cheng not to make an enemy of Li again.

  "What if the Li family has made up their minds to help the He family?" This logic, how could Madam Pei not understand? But she understood another logic even better: why would people go to great lengths to form alliances with the Five Surnames? The desire for profit is something everyone has; what they're after is fame and greater power and benefits. Just like how the Liu family agreed to marry He Mudan, it was all about preserving their own family's wealth and glory! She completely agreed with her husband's practical words: those who can form alliances with the Five Surnames are extremely few in number; it's better to find someone more down-to-earth. This Li family will surely become rich and prosperous in the future!

  Madam Qi was taken aback by the question and after a while, she said unhappily: "He doesn't talk reason, interferes with our family's private matters, my family doesn't need to be polite to him!"

  "Then what's your take on this matter? The Duke of Qinghua is not someone to be trifled with..."

  Madam Qi heard her mention the Qinghua County Master and immediately stood up with a "whoosh", furiously saying: "I have always hated one thing in my life, which is someone forcing me to do things I don't like! There must be a way!"

  Mrs. Pei saw her get angry, so she changed her original intention at once. Such a big temper, it's better to wait for her husband to come and talk to his sister himself tomorrow. So she said, "Why don't I see Brother-in-law and Zi Shu?"

  Madam Qi hummed and said: "Zi Shu is drunk, his father has gone to look for him. Do you have business with them?"

  Mrs. Pei shook her head and smiled: "If I had something on my mind, wouldn't I just tell you directly?"

  "Stop fooling me! I still don't know what you're up to. What's the point of coming here at this hour? Spit it out quickly!"

  Mrs. Pei merely pushed it aside: "Isn't it just what I told you about the dancing horse and the Li family?"

  Madam Qi sneered and said: "You're so concerned about the Li family, aren't you interested in that young man?"

  Mrs. Pei exclaimed in surprise: "You're kidding! What are you talking about?"

  "Since it's not, after the last banquet, who do you think is good?" Mrs. Qi saw that Mrs. Pei didn't speak and coldly snorted: "Are you listening to me? That kid isn't reliable."

  "Elder sister, you are worrying too much." Madam Pei's expression remained unchanged.

  But then Liu Chengcai entered Liu Quan's courtyard and saw Liu Quan lying on a soft couch under the window, sleeping soundly. He was surrounded by a group of concubines who were dressed in bright clothes and looked as beautiful as flowers. They were all very attentive to him. Bi Yu, Yu Er, Xian Su, and even Yun Tong, who was pregnant, were all there. Two of them were fanning him, bringing him cool breezes, one was massaging his legs, and another was using a handkerchief to wipe away his sweat. They were having a great time!

  Thinking of his embarrassing appearance just now, Liu Chengcai couldn't help but feel envious and resentful! He immediately drove a group of women away and lifted a basin of water from the low table to pour it over Liu Can's head.

  Liu Chuan was having a beautiful dream. In the dream, he beat Li Wei until she was defeated and helpless, and tormented He Mu Dan until she was on the verge of death, begging for mercy again and again, but he refused to spare her. Just as he was enjoying himself, he was suddenly kicked into the lake by Qing Hua County's mistress, feeling a chill to the bone and unable to catch his breath. He sat up in panic, only to find that his head, face, and body were all dripping with water, and he became furious, just about to curse whoever had put him in this state, when Liu Chengcai's enlarged face suddenly appeared before him.

  He glanced at Liu Chengcai faintly, lay down, stared at the carved beam on the top and the silver balls spinning in the air, and said hoarsely: "What else do you want to do?"

  Liu Chengcai saw his dying appearance and got angry, kicked him hard and scolded: "Who are you putting on this show for? Isn't it all because of your own doing!"

  Liu Chong let out a cold laugh and didn't respond.

  Liu Chengcai knew his temper, the more he was pressed, the angrier he became, so he stopped scolding and sat down in a clean place, saying: "Your mother said you're going to fight with someone today? You've really made progress! Not only did you provoke a county princess, but now you want to provoke the Ning Wangfu?"

  Liu Chang hummed: "She herself is willing to be uneasy, can she blame me? The Ning Wang Fu, the father and son are about the same as a dog in the Ning Wang Fu, what's there to fear?" He knew all about being insincere and pretending to be harmonious, but the resentment of having his wife taken away was something he couldn't share with anyone!

  Liu Chengcai fell silent for a moment, then suddenly burst out laughing: "You! Are relying on the county master's reluctance to do anything to you?" In the past, Qinghua County Master had wanted to marry Liu Quan, but hadn't been able to. Even after marrying someone else, she still couldn't forget him and was very disgusted with her late husband's weak temperament. It seemed that she only loved Liu Quan's style. Thinking of this, his mood improved a bit.

  Liu Chang heard this and neither acknowledged nor denied it.

  Liu Chengcai stood up, clasped his hands behind his back and paced around the room a few times before saying in a low voice: "At this moment, she is deeply in love with you and naturally doesn't want to do anything to hurt you. But after all, she is not one of us, if she really becomes cold-hearted and starts hating you, you will be the one who suffers! Don't get involved in this matter anymore, let me handle it from now on. Starting tomorrow, you are no longer allowed to go out and fool around, stay at home honestly and pick up your studies again. After some time, I'll find a job for you, you should also make progress, it's not good to be idle every day."

  Liu Chuan was taken aback, and immediately scowled: "You can't think of it!" He turned over and got off the couch, turning his head to leave. The old thing, previously sold him once, this time again want to sell him?

  Liu Chengcai smiled coldly and shouted, "Come on! Take good care of the young master. Without my permission, no one is allowed to leave the house." After finishing speaking, he turned around and left with a flick of his sleeve. The several servants behind him politely blocked Liu Can in the courtyard.

  On the second day, coincidentally on a rest day, Liu Chengcai and Qi Fu had just finished breakfast when they heard that Qi Changlin had arrived. Liu Chengcai glanced at the sky, which was still early, and asked Qi Fu, who hadn't spoken to him since last night and had given him a good face: "What's the point of rushing back and forth from morning till night?"

  When she heard him say that, it was as if he despised his own relatives for being too annoying. Madame Qi was furious, slamming the silver cup on the table and coldly saying: "If you don't want to see them, then don't!"

  Liu Chengcai pursed his lips and ignored her, going out to see Qi Changlin. After exchanging pleasantries, Qi Changlin finally got to the point, revealing that he was the mediator invited by the He family.

  Liu Chengcai first drank a large bowl of Mengding Shihua tea soup, and then slowly said: "So to speak, is this the meaning of King Ning? I remember he's not someone who likes to interfere with trivial matters, how did he get involved in this kind of small matter? Was it Li Yuanshou asking him?"

  Qī Cháng Lín smiled and said, "Who knows? Anyway, whether it's the son or the old man who says it, aren't we all just one family?"

  Liu Chengcai smiled and said, "These two dancing horses have a big face!" Although the Ning King only mentioned it briefly and did not require anything in particular, the meaning should be clear. Moreover, he let his younger brother come to persuade himself, which is also considered quite thoughtful. The Qinghua County Master's place will eventually erupt, so it's better to acknowledge the Ning King's feelings now. He turned around with a smile and said, "I understand, but the He family must also show sincerity."

  "Of course," said Qi Changlin with a smile. "This matter can't be dragged on forever, delaying my nephew's future. I'll send someone to talk to them right away and they'll come over immediately."

  Liu Chengcai nodded slightly and said in a tone of reprimand: "I heard that you have been getting extremely close to the Ning Wangfu recently, is that true?"

  Qī Cháng Lín denied: "It's just that there happened to be some official business matters."

  Liu Chengcai pressed down on his shoulder and said meaningfully: "The situation is still unclear now, don't be too hasty."

  Qī Cháng Lín nodded slightly. But shouldn't we also take responsibility for our actions?

  At the appointed time, He San and his two sons entered Liu's gate together.

  ——*——*——*——

  About the five surnames and seven families, I'll take charge and change their surnames for them. O(∩_∩)O~

  [bookid=1736421,bookname="Joyful Gate"][bookid=1296881,bookname="Heavy Flower Shadows"][bookid=1421817,bookname="Leftover Woman is Not Virtuous"][bookid=1589709,bookname="Heavenly Clothes are Enchanting"][bookid=1797584,bookname="Imperial Husband Handbook"][bookid=1888310,bookname="Good Fate Arrives"]