The news gave everyone quite a fright, and immediately no one had any heart left for wine.

Sheng Hong sat in stunned sighing silence. Changfeng lamented that “Fourth Sister truly has a hard life.” Minglan inwardly remarked it was the father-in-law who had died, not the husband. Rulan leaned close to her elder sister’s ear and murmured: “So Fourth Sister wasn’t making excuses after all.” Hualan glanced at her younger sister, thinking rather that it was Molan’s loose tongue that had spoken things into existence — what had started as a mere pretext had somehow become a prophecy fulfilled.

With matters standing thus, the gathering dispersed hastily, and everyone returned home.

Back at the estate, Minglan summoned Steward Hao to ask: “The death of the Yongchang Marquis — how did word of it come to us through the Marquis?”

Hao Dacheng wiped his brow and delivered his report from outside the covered walkway: “Reporting to Madam, it was Gu Lu who came running back with the news and had me immediately send someone to inform Madam at the in-laws’ household. Afterward, young Gu Lu said the Marquis still had other matters to attend to and rushed off elsewhere in great haste. As for the details of what happened, this servant truly does not know.”

Minglan rested her left hand on the chair’s armrest and tapped it lightly, sitting in thoughtful silence.

Hao Dacheng ventured carefully: “Shall we… Madam… prepare mourning gifts for the Liang household?”

Minglan gave a wry smile: “Since they have neither sounded the cloud plank nor issued funeral notices, how could we properly go to pay condolences uninvited? Still, the Marquis would not have sent word of something like this if it were not certain, so it is surely the truth. You may begin making preparations just in case. As for quantities, use what we prepared for the young master Gu Tingyang, and add twenty percent. And I do not know yet whether the Liang household will require a paper-figure ceremony; if they do, we will need to arrange several paper effigies as well. Please give this your attention.”

Hao Dacheng agreed to everything without reservation, then respectfully withdrew.

Reflecting on Madam Liang’s age, the Yongchang Marquis should have been not yet fifty — how had he died just like that? And stranger still, it was the husband who had come to report the news first. Could it mean… the old Marquis had not died of natural causes?

Minglan turned the matter over with great curiosity, but could come to no conclusion no matter how she speculated, until Gu Tingye returned to the room that night and the full picture became clear.

“You should have seen it — the training ground today was completely chaotic.”

The man had apparently not eaten since morning. He worked through a steaming bowl of scallion-seared lamb and dried mushroom and white cabbage soup, eating two full bowls of rice in short order, then wiped his hands on a cloth. He asked first whether the old Sheng matriarch and the party had departed smoothly, and then slowly began to recount the day’s events to Minglan.

Since the current Emperor had ascended the throne, the Liang Old Marquis had constantly sought opportunities to demonstrate his loyalty, but military men were different from civil officials — without troops deployed or crises to manage, there were few occasions to shine. In this current period, seeing that the Emperor was most eager to overhaul the military, the Liang Old Marquis had thrown himself into the work day and night with his whole heart, drilling and equipping without a single day’s rest.

On this particular day, the Emperor himself made a rare visit to the western outskirts garrison. The Liang Old Marquis would not have missed this opportunity to distinguish himself for anything. Suppressing whatever discomfort he felt in his body, he donned his armor, mounted his horse, and personally led the military formation through its exercises. Just as the exertion was reaching its height, those present saw the Liang Old Marquis cup his own head and sway, then clutch at his chest — apparently seized by a sudden bout of dizziness and chest pain — then fall from his horse. The scene descended into confusion, and before the physicians could even arrive, the Liang Old Marquis had already breathed his last.

The physicians concluded afterward that the Old Marquis had died suddenly — apparently a combination of exhaustion and heart disease.

— Could it be a cerebrovascular episode combined with heart failure? Minglan was quiet for a moment. “Such devotion and loyalty to the state — the Emperor will surely grant honors and bequests?”

Gu Tingye nodded, then shook his head slightly: “In matters of the military, omens and auspice matter greatly. The Emperor was in high spirits today, and to have cold water poured directly on the occasion… he will extend honors, of course — but whether he is pleased about it in his heart is another matter entirely.”

Minglan reflected on this, and felt it was exactly so.

It was rather like a proprietor who had worked hard all year and was jubilantly about to open a new branch — the auspicious date had been chosen, the celebrated guests invited — and then on the very day of the opening ceremony, scissors still in hand, one of his oldest employees dropped dead of overwork right there on the spot.

— The word “inauspicious” would scarcely cover it. The proprietor would undoubtedly be deeply aggrieved: Old Liang, your diligence and hard work are commendable, but if your health was failing you ought not to have come out at all. I never forced you to attend the opening ceremony — and now it looks as though I am some kind of heartless taskmaster.

It was sad, and it was realistic.

She nodded, then asked: “And the Liang estate’s title and rank? I heard that the Liang family’s eldest son is… quite remarkably capable.”

“He will not inherit. It is certain the Old Marquis’s legitimate eldest will receive the title.”

Minglan smiled: “How can the Marquis be so certain?”

Gu Tingye sighed: “First, the distinction between legitimate and concubine-born must be upheld. Second… heh heh, do you think the Liang Old Marquis was pushing himself this hard for nothing?”

Minglan was perplexed: “Was he doing it for the sake of the legitimate heir?” Then why had he never formally appointed an heir, and instead gone about quarreling with his wife?

Gu Tingye lifted his teacup with a faint smile: “The Liang family’s eldest son already has powerful wings — his connections outside are broader even than his father’s. If not for the sake of the legitimate heir, then who else? And the Emperor cannot be unaware of this. Ah — Liang’s second son, I’ve met him. He is an amiable and decent fellow. Pity…”

He shook his head and said no more.

Minglan felt a pang of sympathy: “The four words — fame, profit, rank, and ambition — they are truly like a blade hanging above all men’s heads.”

Gu Tingye curved the corner of his mouth, and said with deliberate provocation: “For the sake of wife and children’s security, even I — even if it meant fighting for my life at the sword’s edge — would do the same.” Then he fixed her with a bright, expectant gaze, waiting with great anticipation for his wife’s reaction.

But Minglan shook her head and said: “That reasoning does not hold. If not for the Old Marquis’s relentless effort in cultivating him from the start, how would the Liang eldest son have reached where he is today? The legitimate heir was weak while the concubine-born son grew powerful — yet he never sought an early formal appointment of the heir, until it was too late and he was left desperately overexerting himself. Was the Old Marquis without fault in this?”

She then returned the bright, expectant gaze with double the intensity, eyes brimming with hidden meaning: “Come to think of it — our Tuan Ge’er also has an elder brother born of a concubine, does he not?”

Gu Tingye shook his head and smiled ruefully. He had meant to move Minglan and stir her admiration, but this cunning woman had inherited the Second Elder Monk’s supreme technique and made a career of turning everything back around.

“Tuan Ge’er has no elder brother. You know this.”

According to those who kept watch over that household, Chang Ge’er remained as sickly and frail as ever, and Man Niang still showed no interest in supervising the boy’s studies or martial training. She kept him clutched anxiously at her side at all times, barely allowing even the neighboring children to come near — practically raising a son as though he were a delicate daughter. Gu Tingye shook his head, but also felt a quiet relief.

It was precisely this concern that had led him, from early on, to arrange matters so that Chang Ge’er would simply live out his days as a rural farmer. Accordingly, he had not only declined to enter Chang Ge’er in the family register, but had brought Zheng Commander General and Duan Chengqian as co-witnesses — both men steady and reliable — and filed a formal declaration with the Clan Registry Office. It stated that he did indeed have a son by a kept woman, the result of youthful indiscretion. As the mother was of lowly origin, Gu Tingye could not allow the Gu clan to bear the dishonor. Appropriate provision had already been made for mother and son, ensuring they would lack for nothing. However, Chang Ge’er would henceforth not be permitted to identify himself as a grandson of the Gu household, nor would he receive any share of the Marquis’s estate or his father’s assets — it amounted to an early formal severance.

By cutting all ties completely from the start, he eliminated the possibility of various future scenarios: someone claiming the Gu Marquis was unaware of a blood son wandering the world; someone suggesting the Marquis secretly missed the boy but simply could not find him; or claims that Minglan’s jealousy was blocking a father from reuniting with his child… None of that nonsense.

Minglan had long known of this arrangement. She rose and hugged her husband’s head, pressing a kiss to it, and said softly: “I know the Marquis has done so many, many things for me and our children.”

It was not as though one could simply do away with Chang Ge’er — the boy was old enough to remember things by now (given Man Niang’s intensive cultivation), and even if he were placed in another household, sooner or later someone seeking personal gain would goad the child into causing trouble. If by then both parents were already gone, would Tuan Ge’er not have endless headaches to deal with?

She pressed another kiss to his nose: “In my view, the Marquis is far superior to the Liang Old Marquis.” She considered for a moment, then added: “Also — please do not fall from your horse, eat more vegetables, and drink less wine.”

Gu Tingye rubbed his nose, then drew Minglan’s head down and gave her nose a light retaliatory bite, the corner of his eye creasing with a smile: “You and your nonsense again — what does eating vegetables have to do with staying on a horse?”

Minglan said seriously: “If you eat too much meat and wine, the horse gets angry.”

Gu Tingye pressed his palm against her gently rounded belly, then slowly moved his hand upward. Because of the pregnancy, Minglan’s body had grown softer and more rounded with each passing day — everywhere his palm pressed, there was yielding warmth. He bit at her earlobe gently, breathing warm air against it: “I’ll give up wine and meat — but what about… other things?”

Minglan’s cheeks burned, her ear was unbearably warm, and when she became aware of a certain firmness pressing against her, she squirmed bashfully: “That… it would be best to give that up too.”

A threat to essential interests — the man’s expression turned immediately aggrieved, the face of one owed a great debt. “Don’t play innocent. Haven’t we been past the first trimester? Give up everything and I might as well go be a monk.”

Minglan twisted her waist and slipped neatly out of his arms, pressed her palms together in a reverent gesture, and giggled: “The Great Master must let go of his irritation.”

The man caught her around the waist and strode with great purpose toward the inner room, laughing loudly: “Since the little Madam is so devoted in service, this Great Master shall relinquish his irritation.”

Minglan, hoisted up high, pinched the flesh at his waist with vigor and bit at his ear, face red: “Keep your voice down! If anyone outside hears this, they’ll think some debauched monk has broken in to abduct someone!”

……

Two days later, the Liang household sent someone to announce the mourning formally.

By this time, Rulan had already set out with her husband that very morning, and since Minglan was with child and the presence of mourning was considered inauspicious, she had every legitimate reason not to attend. Among the sisters, only Hualan was able to go and pay a proper visit. The rest of the arrangements were largely managed by Molan’s official sister-in-law Liu Shi.

Throughout the process, Liu Shi was not only impeccable in ceremony but warm and considerate in manner, knowing exactly where to draw lines, and quietly handled a number of small logistical matters for the bereaved family. Even the Duchess of the royal household, when she came to pay her respects, remarked upon it to Zhang Shi on the way back.

“…My mother says that our aunt rarely praises anyone — yet this time she commended your sister-in-law.” Zhang Shi had come to visit with her child, bringing a generous selection of warming and restorative foods, and studied Minglan’s belly as she said with a smile that it was surely a boy.

Minglan laughed: “It was only today that I learned the Liang Second Young Madam is your maternal aunt — and she is Fourth Elder Sister’s sister-in-law, which makes the generations all confused.”

Zhang Shi waved a hand: “My family has many relatives. After girls marry out, everyone tends to just call each other loosely. Maternal Aunt is close with my mother — I myself have rarely seen her.”

“That’s a relief — I was worried about what I would call her in the future.” Among the capital’s prominent families, the intermarrying of connections was a thoroughly tangled web; even the Zheng First Madam’s relatives were too numerous to count.

Minglan turned to look at the kang. Tuan Ge’er was lying there quietly, peering with great curiosity at the pale, soft baby resting in a red satin swaddling embroidered with twin carp, occasionally stretching out one chubby finger to scratch or pat experimentally. The baby had an exceptionally even temper and made no cry of protest, only emitted small sounds like a kitten’s contented purring.

“That time he was barely bigger than a little kitten, and now look at him — it’s been such a short while and he’s grown so much.” Minglan observed the baby’s healthy color and good complexion. From all appearances, Zhang Shi and her daughter were being well cared for. “Has he a name yet?”

“A pet name — Wang Ge’er, written with the character for ‘hope.'” Zhang Shi watched her child with eyes full of tender fulfillment. She bore almost no resemblance to the pale and despairing woman of just a few months ago.

“Speaking of which — Tuan Ge’er has passed his first birthday, and he still hasn’t a proper given name?”

Minglan smiled wryly: “Still being deliberated. I only hope we settle it before the New Year.” Old Gongsun was extraordinarily slow and meticulous when it came to naming, and Gu Tingye found fault with every character he considered — so the days had slipped past one after another.

“The Gu Marquis is being too much of a perfectionist.” Zhang Shi laughed. “On another note — there is something I would like to ask of you.”

Minglan grinned: “I thought you had come purely out of fondness for me, just to visit — and now it turns out you need a favor! When I came to see you while you were carrying Wang Ge’er, I had absolutely no other agenda, you know.”

Zhang Shi laughed good-naturedly: “I am nothing like you — quick-witted and sweet-tongued. Those of us who are blunt and straightforward have no choice but to say things plainly; we haven’t even a hint of roundabout cunning, and just have to accept being laughed at for it.”

Minglan clicked her tongue: “I said one single sentence, and you already had all of that ready and waiting. And you call yourself blunt? If you are blunt, there is not a quick-tongued person left in the world!”

“Dear Sister, this favor won’t be one you’re helping for nothing — consider it something you are owed in return.” Zhang Shi smiled. “Rest assured, I would never bring you something that would put you in a difficult position.”

With that assurance, Minglan relented and asked Zhang Shi to say what the matter was.

“The Gu Marquis is one of our own people, so I won’t hide it from you. Among the Shen branch family — our Marquis has little interest in most of them — but there is one uncle, long past the fifth degree of kinship, who followed my father-in-law’s household from an early time and was unfailingly loyal and steadfast. When my parents-in-law passed, his family stayed close throughout, attending devotedly to the care of the Marquis and his sister, and afterward they followed us into Sichuan. In terms of nominal relation, this couple is only a distant relative — but in terms of genuine feeling, the Marquis regards them as a true uncle and aunt, and they now hold the hereditary rank of garrison commander in the Jianghuai region.”

After this long preamble without yet arriving at the point, Minglan very much wanted to prompt her to get to it — she held herself back.

Zhang Shi took a sip of tea to wet her lips and continued: “This old uncle and aunt have one daughter, now exactly ten years of age. I have seen her myself — she is the very image of her parents: the most honest and warmhearted of girls…”

Minglan was more confused than ever. She glanced at the round little mass on the kang. “But my son is still quite young…”

Zhang Shi gave her a scolding smile and a light tap. “You and your quick tongue.”

Minglan rubbed her shoulder, smiling, and invited Zhang Shi to continue.

“Several months ago, the old aunt went to a temple to offer incense. On the way back, it began to rain, and the mountain path became slippery. As her attendants were only servant women, and the old aunt had twisted her ankle and could not walk, she was stranded. At that moment, two young schoolboys came along and together helped support an elderly woman down the mountain. At the bottom, one of the boys escorted his grandmother home, while the other turned back up the mountain — specifically to search for the old aunt — and carried her down on his back. When they struck up conversation along the way, it came out that the young man was the son of an official family in the capital. The old aunt was struck by his sincerity and his dedication to his studies, and she became interested.”

Minglan turned this over in her mind at length and said blankly: “It couldn’t be… my youngest brother… Changdong?”

“Precisely.” Zhang Shi smiled warmly.

Minglan’s jaw dropped open and she sat there in stunned silence for a good moment before saying awkwardly: “Changdong is… still very young, isn’t he?”

“He is just the right age — it is time to start thinking of a match.”

Minglan collected herself. That old woman must have been Nanny Chang, and the other boy must have been the young Chang Ge’er — she supposed Changdong had been accompanying the Chang family grandmother and grandson to the temple, and in the course of doing a good deed, the heavens had rewarded him with a fortuitous encounter.

“It is great honor that the Shen old aunt should take notice — but Changdong, he is… the son of a concubine-born mother…” Minglan was reluctant to say it, but in such matters, things had to be made plain.

Zhang Shi waved it away with a smile: “Whatever needed investigating, my old aunt has already investigated. They are elderly and their only daughter — their sons and brothers all dote on her dearly. Their only wish is that the young man have a good character. Everything else is secondary.”

Moreover, the old couple had inquired and discovered that Changdong was already on the verge of passing his initial civil examination — and at such an age — so his future prospects could hardly be poor. Though that young man surnamed Chang did better in his studies, his family background was too modest. The Sheng household, on the other hand, was a family of scholars with established elders, proper values, and a solid foundation. Such households rarely produced sons who went wildly astray, and there were many illustrious connections in the extended family; even if one could not draw on them directly, mentioning them in conversation had its uses.

Minglan let out a breath of relief: “As for everything else, I would not presume to speak — but in terms of personal character, my youngest brother is beyond reproach. However…” She hesitated. “With both parents living, this is not something I can decide on my own. It would depend on what Father thinks.”

By Sheng Hong’s way of reasoning, he would most likely want to wait until his son had attained some civil distinction before setting the bar higher when seeking a match. The future father-in-law would presumably also be an official, though perhaps of a lower grade than the Hai or Liu families.

Zhang Shi saw her uncertainty and had her own reckoning. She said: “I understand the way your father views marriage arrangements — he fears his son will have fewer connections and advantages, and prefers not to have a military family as in-laws. That is reasonable.”

Minglan let out a sheepish laugh, thinking: you certainly have a talent for saying things plainly.

Zhang Shi said earnestly: “Let me put it this way. Our old uncle is a military man, yes, but he has enormous respect for scholars and learning. He has been having his own second son privately tutored since childhood, and the boy already passed his preliminary examination some years ago.”

“Oh, well, that changes things!” Minglan’s eyes lit up. Having a capable younger brother-in-law made all the difference. The Jianghuai garrison was also a prestigious and profitable posting; the dowry would surely be generous. The hereditary rank of an assistant military commander from the fourth grade, combined with a father-in-law and brothers-in-law who could offer guidance and assistance to Changdong in his career — Sheng Hong would likely find this appealing.

She quickly reached over and took Zhang Shi’s hand with a soft smile: “If anything, it is my youngest brother who would be the fortunate one in this match.”

Zhang Shi also relaxed. The old Shen couple were among the rare few in Shen Congxing’s inner circle who had never once approved of how the Shen household treated its main wife — upright people of genuine integrity whom one could only respect.

She laughed: “Sister, what do you mean by that? The Gu Marquis’s youngest brother-in-law, with a distinguished father and elder brother, and the family a household of scholars — our old uncle has only been worried that your distinguished scholarly family would look down on military men like them.”

This match would benefit both sides. The Shen family’s second son, on an official path, would naturally need social connections and networks in civil circles. And from Changdong’s perspective — he did not match Changbai or Changfeng in either looks or natural gifts, and might not have the fortune to encounter another woman like Liu Shi. Better to plan ahead now.

The two of them talked on at length, growing more animated and congenial by the moment, the prospect of a happy outcome practically visible before them.

In the course of conversation, they naturally touched on their respective family affairs. Minglan’s household situation was simple and took only a few words to summarize. The Shen household, on the other hand, was genuinely eventful.

First, Zou Yiniang — though beaten half to death and shut away for quite some time — refused absolutely to leave the household. Any mention of dismissal would send her to attempt to hang herself, and with several children also weeping and pleading together, and Zhang Shi herself saying she found it too cruel and had no wish to be thought lacking in compassion, the national uncle ultimately came away without accomplishing his goal. Wives and concubines now maintained an uneasy peace — though new troubles had taken the place of old ones. The Shen family’s eldest son was nearly of age to be matched, and everyone knew that any bride would find herself with two mothers-in-law: a high-born legitimate mother who held the formal position, and an aunt who had become a concubine of her sister’s husband, who held the practical emotional influence — a situation both improper and bizarre. Any new bride would be caught between them with no good path forward.

Families of lesser standing, Shen Congxing refused to consider, since this was his legitimate eldest son who would carry on the title. But prestigious noble families guarded their reputations carefully. They all knew this was no advantageous match — and if they agreed to it despite knowing that, would they not earn themselves the name of “selling their daughters to curry favor with the national uncle”? Furthermore, the Shen household refused to offer a concubine-born daughter.

And there was the example right before their eyes: what good had it done to have a high-born daughter-in-law? The young Madam Zhang — granddaughter of the Duke of the Kingdom of England — had not had an easy time of it in the Shen household either.

So the national uncle was meeting walls at every turn.

Minglan had heard vague murmurs of this. Shen Congxing had set his hopes on a legitimate daughter from the Zheng family of the Loyal and Respectful Marquis — specifically a paternal niece of the two Zheng brothers — and had sent his sister Xiao Shen Shi to sound out their intentions. The Zheng family’s branch cousins discussed it for several days before ultimately declining.

Xiao Shen Shi had felt a quiet hurt, as though everyone looked down upon her family. The Zheng First Madam, in order to console her, spoke without concealment, and admitted she did not much support this match herself.

Consider: after the wedding, if the new bride showed filial devotion to Zhang Shi, Zou Yiniang would certainly be dissatisfied and the husband would be displeased as well — yet to expect their own precious legitimate daughter to attend to a concubine as though she were a proper mother-in-law, and have this be known, would be a humiliation. A family like the Zheng household moved in circles of illustrious and respectable acquaintances — for their legitimate daughter to be lowered in status in this way would tarnish the family name whenever they went out in society.

Xiao Shen Shi knew this to be the honest truth. And besides — after giving birth to her daughter, she was no longer the same person she had once been. When her beloved elder sister-in-law, upon whose support she had long depended, asked her gently: “If this were your own daughter, would you be willing to give her to your nephew in marriage?” — Xiao Shen Shi immediately clutched her daughter to her chest. This might well be the only flesh and blood she would ever have in this life — so tiny and fragile, and she loved her so fiercely she felt she could carve out her own heart and give it to this child. She shook her head without the slightest hesitation. She would not put her daughter through that suffering.

And so she went before her elder brother and helped conceal the real reason, simply saying in accordance with the agreed-upon story that the Zheng family had already arranged a match for a girl back in their ancestral home of Xunyang.

Having failed in his marriage inquiries on every side, the national uncle inevitably turned to his principal wife and asked her to look into possibilities among her social connections. Zhang Shi nearly burst out laughing on the spot and desperately wanted to throw the request right back in his face — do you imagine it is some tremendous blessing to marry into the Shen household? You trapped me in it — must I also trap the daughters of my friends and family?! Absolutely not!

Having a child had changed her entirely. She was no longer the Zhang Shi who swallowed her grievances in silence. She looked her husband in the eye and said coolly: “The eldest young master has never so much as called me ‘Mother’ even once. The one in his heart is only his aunt. Once he takes a wife, the one that wife will be serving is not me either. Does the Marquis truly have such a remarkable sense of humor — taking advantage of my good nature, and bullying us of the Zhang family just a little too much?”

Shen Congxing found this impossible to refute, and could only clench his teeth and say he would drag the boy to come bow before his wife and beg her pardon.

Zhang Shi stopped him and sighed: “You gave him his flesh and blood but you could not give him his heart. Forcing him to acknowledge me, when he refuses in his heart, serves what purpose? He misses his birth mother — that is only natural. The fault lies with those of twisted heart and malicious intent who meddled and stirred discord, turning the eldest young master against me and making it seem as though I had driven his mother to her death.”

She allowed her tears to fall: “When Lady Zou passed, I was still a thousand miles away. The Zhang and Shen families had barely any connection at all back then. To be saddled with this crime for no reason whatsoever — I have truly been wronged beyond measure.”

Shen Congxing naturally knew who the “person of twisted intent” was. He still could not speak that name aloud, but his resentment toward the Zou family for causing this mess, and his frustration with his son’s foolishness, softened his tone toward Zhang Shi considerably. He said: “As he grows older, he will come to understand on his own.” Though inwardly he already felt he had wronged her greatly.

Zhang Shi pressed her advantage and put on an air of sorrowful resignation: “So be it. Fortunately I need not rely on the eldest young master to care for me in old age. We shall simply keep out of each other’s way. But now — if the eldest young master already harbors resentment toward me, and were he to learn that his future wife was someone I had arranged, would he be pleased? That poor girl would be caught up in something she has nothing to do with and end up suffering for it — and the in-laws’ family would be offended without cause.”

Shen Congxing heard this and found it entirely reasonable. Afterward, he no longer pressed Zhang Shi to make efforts toward his son’s marriage. Having gone around in circles for several more months without any avenue remaining, he was eventually compelled to go before the Empress and beg her assistance. And in the end…

Minglan nearly sprayed out a mouthful of tea: “What?! The national uncle wants to have his eldest son take a princess as his consort?!”

Zhang Shi idly toyed with the fringe of her skirt: “Is that not a perfect arrangement? The first princess and the eldest young master are of a suitable age and are close cousins — family ties known to all, well suited for the match on both sides. Two birds with one stone. …One imagines the princess will be well positioned to appreciate the depth of the Shen family’s profound benevolence toward the Zou household.”

In any case, when Shen Congxing died, she would immediately take her child and move out to live independently — far more comfortable and free.

Minglan was speechless for a long time. This was… genuinely creative thinking.