Zhu Yuanmo, reminded by her, instantly realized.

“Miss Yan, there’s a devious technique called planting a love charm.”

“What’s planting a love charm?” Young Master Pei was startled, thinking the name alone sounded quite frightening.

Zhu Yuanmo: “Young Master Pei, do you have someone you desire but cannot obtain?”

Pei Xiao glanced at Yan Sanhe, then at Xie Wushi, and said disdainfully:

“Ridiculous. Someone as handsome as me—how could I not be able to obtain someone?”

“If Young Master Pei had such a person, you could write your birth characters and her birth characters on a sheet of paper, have an expert cast a spell and burn it to ash. Put a bit of ash in tea and have her drink it.”

Zhu Yuanmo: “That’s planting a love charm.”

Pei Xiao: “What happens to someone with a love charm planted?”

Zhu Yuanmo: “From then on, she’ll have eyes and heart only for you. Unless the charm is broken, she’ll be devoted for life.”

“Then…”

Young Master Pei said in alarm: “Was the Madam planted with a love charm?”

Eight Gates Formation, Seven Killings Formation had appeared—what was one love charm?

Zhu Yuanmo gritted his teeth: “A bit of ash from incense on a fingernail, placed in Mother’s palm—though it wouldn’t have great effect, it was enough to make Mother’s heart race, her emotions confused.”

Yan Sanhe had only asked casually, never expecting to actually discover a love charm. She couldn’t help recalling Lady Mao’s words.

“It was as if I’d lived eighteen years just to meet such a person.”

“That night, my mind held nothing but him.”

Indeed, heart racing, emotions confused!

“So then…”

Yan Sanhe sighed. “What happened later at the Mao family banquet followed naturally.”

Lady Mao’s mother asked the Old Master to help divine Lady Mao’s marriage prospects.

The Old Master controlled the Directorate of Astronomy, divining matters of state and nation. How could he divine such trivial matters of young love? So he had Zhu Xuanjiu divine for Lady Mao.

As Zhu Xuanjiu divined, he divined his own prospects, finally adding meaningfully—

“A match made in heaven. Prosperous for husband, prosperous for wife, prosperous for household.”

At this point, the room fell silent again.

Not even a loud breath dared be drawn.

From tampering with Third Uncle before departure, to planting a love charm on Lady Mao, to calmly arranging the match at the family banquet…

Even the worldly Old Master was kept in the dark.

A fifteen-year-old youth with such deep scheming and such rigorous calculation—it truly made one’s hair stand on end, sent chills down one’s spine.

“Third Master.”

Yan Sanhe: “Do you now understand how he targeted your mother?”

Zhu Yuanhao nodded silently.

No matter how good a person’s fate, it cannot withstand a malicious heart.

The worst thing Mother did in her life was going to Jietai Temple and meeting him.

“Old Steward.”

Yan Sanhe: “Did the Old Madam object to the marriage between Zhu Xuanjiu and Lady Mao?”

The old steward: “No one could object to what the Old Master decided. But the Old Madam specially sent a trusted confidant to Luoyang Prefecture to make inquiries, saying she didn’t quite trust the Old Master’s judgment.”

“Look how well this scheming was employed—not a single person suspected the one truly arranging this marriage was Zhu Xuanjiu himself.”

Yan Sanhe smiled coldly at the three Zhu masters.

“Zhu Xuanjiu was already intelligent, just lacking a bit of spiritual aptitude compared to Fifth Uncle.

After marrying, with Lady Mao’s good fortune and good fate, he became even more unstoppable. No one could block him. Old Steward, is this correct?”

“After the master married, he truly became increasingly outstanding. The Old Master’s praise grew more frequent.”

The old steward was silent for a moment before continuing:

“Moreover, the dowry the Madam brought to the Zhu family was the most substantial, which made First Madam’s, Second Madam’s, and Third Madam’s dowries seem rather shabby.

The Madam is skilled—she’s willing to send anything to the Old Madam’s courtyard, willing to spend any amount of silver on the Old Madam.

Plus the Madam has a sweet tongue, knows how to manage things, and smiles at everyone. The Old Madam was very satisfied with this concubine-born daughter-in-law. Even the legitimate daughters-in-law were pushed aside.”

No wonder Second Madam Zhang was full of bitter sarcasm toward Lady Mao—the root was here.

Yan Sanhe: “Lady Mao’s goodness toward the Old Madam wasn’t just this, was it?”

“Of course not just this.”

The old steward: “Whenever the Old Madam had a headache or fever, the Madam ran over most frequently, even paying from her own pocket, varying the ways she made good food for the Old Madam.

If the Old Madam mentioned yesterday that she wanted sugar cane, tomorrow sugar cane would appear before the Old Madam, cut into small pieces so the Old Madam wouldn’t chip her teeth. Hearts are made of flesh, Miss Yan.”

Yan Sanhe: “So at first, the relationship between the Madam and Old Madam was extremely good?”

The old steward: “Indeed so for the first year or two. The Old Madam constantly praised the Madam’s filial piety. The Madam also often praised the Old Madam’s caring nature.”

Yan Sanhe: “Later, the Old Madam discovered the concubine-born son’s excellence and feared he’d seize the family head position. Only then did she grow cold.”

The old steward: “Yes!”

“I think…”

Yan Sanhe’s gaze shifted to the three Zhu masters. “This is reason number one why Zhu Xuanjiu detested Lady Mao.”

Everyone in the room was stunned.

Wasn’t it good that the Madam tried to please her mother-in-law?

If she kept the mother-in-law happy, their concubine-born household benefited most!

“Because in Zhu Xuanjiu’s heart, Lady Mao’s true mother-in-law should only be Concubine Fu. When Lady Mao tried to please the Old Madam, that was betrayal of Concubine Fu.”

There’s an old saying: A daughter-in-law who endures a thousand years becomes a mother-in-law.

Being a daughter-in-law is difficult. Even though Zhu Weixi’s natal family was so powerful, before Madam Wu, Zhu Weixi could only be submissive.

This was the rule.

But becoming a mother-in-law was another matter entirely.

Even though Madam Wu was so foolish, the Xie family’s younger generation could only treat her with utmost respect.

When Concubine Fu was a concubine, she survived in the cracks, wronging herself everywhere, pleasing others—it truly wasn’t easy.

When Zhu Xuanjiu married, if Concubine Fu were alive, the person Lady Mao should be filial toward should be Concubine Fu. The person she should please should be Concubine Fu. The person who should enjoy blessings should be Concubine Fu.

Yet…

Concubine Fu never enjoyed a single day of being a mother-in-law. All the blessings went to the Old Madam. What would someone with a twisted heart like Zhu Xuanjiu think?

“He wouldn’t think Lady Mao was being filial to the Old Madam for his sake.”

Yan Sanhe sneered. “He would only think Lady Mao was trying to please the Old Madam everywhere—Concubine Fu didn’t exist in her eyes at all.”

Young Master Pei smacked his lips. “Why would he think this way?”

Li Buyan frowned. “It seems a bit far-fetched!”

“Not far-fetched.”

Zhu Yuanmo, seeing everyone’s gazes turn to him, felt his spine stiffen.

“His only quarrel with Mother was over Concubine Fu.”

That year, Zhu Yuanmo was five years old.

During Qingming, the Old Master, Old Madam, and the whole family went to pay respects at ancestral graves.

The Old Madam was elderly and the mountain path difficult. Mother and Third Aunt supported her the entire way.

Because Concubine Fu had borne a son, she was buried in the ancestral cemetery, in a corner in the northeast.

Near the end of tomb-sweeping, Father pulled him to the northeast corner to look, pulling some weeds.

The Old Madam couldn’t be left without attendants. Mother only glanced their direction a few times but didn’t come over.

Father didn’t react at the time. After returning to Wutong Court, he reportedly smashed a listening-wind vase and said Mother was unfilial to Concubine Fu.

Mother was so angry she didn’t eat all day and ignored Father for three days, saying he was unreasonable.

Later, Father reportedly coaxed her for many days before winning her back.

“Miss Yan, I’ve also thought of an old matter.”

At this moment, the old steward suddenly spoke.