A Treacherous Minister Has His Eye on My Family

During the Jingning era of the Yuan Kingdom, corrupt officials and upright scholars struggled for power, and the court was a stormy place.

My family was an insignificant peripheral branch, merely a backdrop to the struggle between the two factions. We didn't have to get involved, and whenever anything happened, people tended to overlook us.

My father in particular was an extremely low-profile man, the sort whose existence was so unremarkable that even the court historians would consider one extra word about him a waste of ink.

Yet for some reason, the notorious chief villain of the Yuan Kingdom had set his sights on my family.

As part of a distinguished family of upright scholars, we had the unyielding character to stand firmly against corrupt officials. We should have fought them to the bitter end, but instead we were forced into a marriage alliance with them. My sister and I were each married to one of the villain's two sons.

Whenever I thought of it, I couldn't help weeping.

Just then, my husband came in and looked at me in confusion. "Why are you crying?"

I replied, "I got a brick in my eye."

My husband fell silent for a moment, overlooking my slip of the tongue, then handed me a list.

It listed tribute goods from the provinces, intended for the Sixth Princess, the emperor's most beloved daughter.

The Sixth Princess had recently quarreled with me over some trivial matter.

I couldn't make sense of my husband's intentions, and gazed at him in bewilderment.

He sauntered over and sat beside me, saying unhurriedly, "See if there's anything you like. I'll go intercept it for you."

Premise: Don't judge things by appearances.