Marrying the Sweet Story’s Melodramatic Villainess [Transmigration] - Chapter 40

The farce at the Huaiyin Manor had yet to reach its conclusion. After Cheng Erlang insisted on separating the households, the Marquis of Huaiyin, Cheng Dalang, felt extremely aggrieved. He believed his younger brother was refusing to recognize his own flesh-and-blood elder brother over a trivial matter. With everyone he knew laughing at him, Cheng Dalang was too ashamed to leave the house, so he vented his anger on the culprit, the Marchioness of Huaiyin.

Treated this way, the Marchioness was both furious and aggrieved. She had merely uttered a few sour words; how had things escalated to such a severe degree?

To make matters worse, her youngest son, Cheng Xianming, was still clamoring to marry Liu Yun.

Harassed until she was at her wits’ end, the Marchioness sent someone to invite her eldest daughter, Cheng Kangle, to come and offer some advice. Cheng Kangle served as a teacher at Bailu Academy. Upon reading her mother’s letter, she sighed faintly and chose a rest day to return to the Huaiyin Manor.

Cheng Kangle resembled her mother in appearance, but her demeanor was peaceful and composed, carrying a refined, scholarly air.

As soon as the Marchioness saw her eldest daughter, she began to complain: “If not for your second uncle, your father would have divorced me.”

Cheng Kangle wore a dignified smile. “Was that not because you were being foolish, Mother?”

This manner of speaking was exactly like her aunt, Yang Jinrong. Seeing this, the Marchioness instantly grew angry. “You ungrateful girl, I am the one who gave birth to you!”

Cheng Kangle’s smile remained unchanged. “What a coincidence; I truly wish I hadn’t come from your womb.”

The mother and daughter traded a few more barbs before finally settling down for a calm conversation.

Cheng Kangle said placidly, “Regarding Lady Liu, tell Seventh Brother to stop his ‘toad dreaming of swan meat’ fantasies. As for the matter with the Duke of Lu and the County Princess of Yongjia, do not concern yourself; Second Uncle has already handled it. Do not cause any more trouble.”

The Marchioness’s eyes widened as she prepared to protest, but Cheng Kangle gave her a fleeting glance that made the Marchioness stop dead, not daring to leak another word.

Before leaving, Cheng Kangle dropped one final sentence: “If you truly want what is best for Seventh Brother, send him to Bailu Academy.”

With that, Cheng Kangle left without having even sipped her tea.

The Marchioness was not bright, but she knew her daughter was a rare and clever person. After tossing and turning for an entire night, she had Cheng Xianming bound and sent to Bailu Academy.

This incident caused quite a stir at the academy. Seeing Cheng Xianming working as a laborer there, Lin Fuyao felt that Teacher Cheng was indeed decisive. Recalling the origin of the whole mess, she felt a bit regretful that she hadn’t been there to witness the drama herself.

Having settled her grudge with the Cheng family, Pei Mingjiao stopped paying them any mind. She was currently chatting with Gu Yue, who was on her rest day. This was the first time Pei Mingjiao had seen Gu Yue since the latter started her official post. She felt that in just a few short days, Gu Yue’s aura had been completely refreshed, showing a sharpness she had never possessed before.

It was a very positive transformation.

Pei Mingjiao sighed in wonder: “It is truly wonderful, Yueniang.”

Gu Yue laughed happily: “Yes, I used to be somewhat muddled, but now I feel a clarity like never before.”

After this meeting, Pei Mingjiao’s mind began to wander. She said to Cui Yi, “Yi-niang, what do you think about me finding something to do as well?”

Cui Yi looked up from her ledger, showing full support: “Do you have a plan?”

Pei Mingjiao knit her brows in thought, then said dejectedly, “I don’t.”

Cui Yi’s expression was gentle. “You love beautiful clothes and jewelry most, and you have enjoyed the very best of them. You could try designing a few styles. Perhaps one day everyone will wear your designs, and a hundred years from now, you might even be called a Master Designer.”

The more Pei Mingjiao listened, the brighter her eyes became. By the end, her chin was tilted high.

Cui Yi could not hide the smile in her eyes. “So, when will our Master begin designing her styles?”

Full of motivation, Pei Mingjiao urgently ordered the servants to prepare pigments, paper, and brushes.

The materials were quickly readied. Pei Mingjiao began to work at a nearby table while Cui Yi watched for a while before turning back to her accounts.

The confident Pei Mingjiao was soon humbled. She was stuck at the very first hurdle: her drawing skills were poor, and her artistic ability could not support the ideas in her head.

Noticing this, Cui Yi stood up and walked to Pei Mingjiao’s side. Glancing down at the “work,” she remarked, “Even geniuses require training. Let’s first hire two artists to teach you the basics.”

Pei Mingjiao nodded dejectedly.

Cui Yi drew Pei Mingjiao’s attention back with a nonchalant air: “I happen to be looking to buy a shop recently. Why don’t you help me pick one and see where your future clothing store should be located?”

Pei Mingjiao was indeed enticed. “Quick, let me see which shops are available. The shop cannot be too small.”

The clothes of a “Master Designer” would certainly not lack customers.

Cui Yi allowed Pei Mingjiao to lead her back to the desk. As the information on the commercial properties was laid out, Pei Mingjiao immediately let go of Cui Yi’s hand and began to study them.

Feeling the warmth leave her hand, Cui Yi’s fingertips twitched slightly as she waited quietly for Pei Mingjiao to choose.

Pei Mingjiao studied them meticulously, occasionally visualizing the geography of Chang’an in her mind. Finally, she selected a two-story shop with the best location and the largest area. “I want this one.”

Her finger pressed firmly against the selected page.

Cui Yi raised no objections and agreed: “Fine.”

The artists Pei Mingjiao needed were soon provided. Pei Mingjiao’s drawing skills were akin to a three-year-old’s; everything had to start from the beginning. Learning to draw requires patience and forbids haste, but Pei Mingjiao was naturally restless. Seeing this, the artists smiled and praised her: “Thinking that I might teach a future Master, and that my name might be recorded in history because of it—would that not mean I’ll be famous for eternity?”

The other artist chimed in: “Indeed, it’s as if the smoke is rising from our ancestral graves!”

The brush Pei Mingjiao had been about to set down was instantly gripped tight, and her posture straightened.

The two artists exchanged a look, sharing a knowing smile. They thought to themselves: Lady Cui is the one with the real ideas.

Pei Mingjiao’s head was spinning from all the knowledge she had been fed, and her hand was aching. However, by evening, she began to show off to Cui Yi: “The teachers all praised my talent! It won’t be long before I’ve completed my studies.”

Cui Yi played along. “Perhaps in the future, everyone outside will have to call me ‘Madam Pei’.”

Pei Mingjiao was charmed by the title and threw herself into Cui Yi’s arms, giggling.

The corners of Cui Yi’s mouth turned up, the coldness in her features replaced by tenderness.

While Pei Mingjiao, the “villainess,” was starting her career, the male and female leads were naturally not falling behind. Yan Zhen looked at his dwindling profits, his brow furrowed as he asked Shen Li, “Is Gu Ning still refusing to relent?”

Shen Li smiled bitterly. “Yes. Lady Gu simply will not see me.”

Thinking of this, Shen Li revealed the news he had gathered. “Lady Gu has been very close to the County Princess of Nanping recently.”

Yan Zhen’s furrowed brow smoothed out. He didn’t care much; she was just a cousin who had just reached her coming-of-age ceremony. Anyone with a brain would know which side to choose. He believed Gu Ning was simply playing hard to get. At this thought, Yan Zhen knew he had to show even more “sincerity.”

Gu Ning was unaware of Yan Zhen’s thoughts; otherwise, she would have cursed him for being an “overconfident man.” On the day of Yan Yuanyi’s Ji Ji, Gu Ning had given her a formula for cement as a gift.

Gu Ning only remembered the general idea of the cement formula; she had only obtained the complete version by asking her “fellow transmigrator” for help.

The first thing Yan Yuanyi did after receiving the formula was to arrange for craftsmen to replicate it. Then, through the influence of the Prince of Jin’s manor, Yan Yuanyi entered the Ministry of Works.

Gu Yue, who suddenly found herself colleagues with the Prince’s daughter: “…”

It was no secret that Gu Ning had been close to the newly titled County Princess of Nanping. It was a bit awkward, but not overly so; the main issue was the vast difference in their social statuses.

Surprisingly, however, Yan Yuanyi put on no airs in her dealings. When going out for surveys on normal days, she never complained of hardship or used her privileges.

Gu Yue marveled that her elder sister’s head had finally become “bright” for once.