Sir Song, do you want to pledge yourself to me?

As the ladies and daughters of each family were led into the flower hall by their maids, the place gradually became lively. Among them, Madam Chen and Madam An were also invited, along with Chen Rong and Qiao Qiao.

After Mrs. Chen was ushered in, she first bowed to Shen Songhe, who was seated at the head of the table. Seeing this, Ji Nuan took the initiative to introduce them to Shen Songhe, saying, "Aunt Shen, these four are the wife and daughter of the Chen family, a family of great kindness, and the wife and daughter of Yanzhihong, the head of the family. I'm familiar with them and have collaborated on business."

Being introduced by Ji Nuan herself, Shen Songhe immediately smiled at the four people and said, "Oh, so these two are Madam Chen and Madam An. Come with me to enjoy the flowers later."

Madam Chen and Madam An were overjoyed, their faces brimming with unconcealable joy. To be personally invited by the Marquis's wife to accompany them on the flower viewing was a tremendous honor. After all, today's guests were all ladies of prominent status in the capital. Who wouldn't want to take this opportunity to get close to the Marquis's wife and earn her respect?

The other ladies were secretly jealous when they saw this. They saw that Madam Chen and Madam An were so valued by the Marquis's wife, and they secretly regretted why they didn't have such an opportunity.

At the same time, they also realized that Ji Nuan held a special place in the Marquis's heart. After all, the fact that she could push two money-grubbing ladies to her with just one sentence showed how much she valued Ji Nuan.

As a result, the other ladies' eyes changed when they looked at Ji Nuan. They put aside their previous contempt and became more wary of her. After all, Ji Nuan was not only the Crown Prince's fiancée, but also deeply loved and valued by the Marquis's wife. Such a woman was not someone they could easily afford to offend.

Madam Chen and Madam An glanced at Ji Nuan with gratitude. They knew full well that their ability to be so highly regarded by the Marquis' wife today was entirely due to Ji Nuan. Despite their successful businesses and the enormous profits they made, they were ultimately just merchants. In the past, the wives of officials had always prided themselves on their status and shied away from associating with them. But today, seeing them so highly regarded by the Marquis' wife, those wives of officials showed a glint of envy in their eyes, which invisibly elevated their status.

Shen Songhe watched the guests arrive one after another and figured most of them were here, having already met everyone they needed to know. She didn't want to burden Ji Nuan with staying here all the time, and seeing the formalities between the ladies of the various families was too boring for a young girl, she wanted to let Ji Nuan go play with other ladies her own age.

"Nuannuan, since your friends are here, you can take the other ladies for a walk in the garden first. Most of the guests have arrived, so you don't have to stay with me all the time." Shen Songhe said gently to Ji Nuan.

Ji Nuan stood up with a smile, "Aunt Shen, let's go out then."

After a brief bow, she called Chen Rong, Qiao Qiao, and several other young ladies out of the flower hall.

Stepping into the garden, Qiao Qiao smiled and congratulated Ji Nuan: "Sister Nuan Nuan, congratulations on your happy marriage!"

Chen Rong also chimed in sweetly, "Hey, Sister Nuannuan, congratulations on your engagement!"

Freed from the restraints of the ladies in the flower hall, the young ladies from various families heard the two of them congratulating each other and gave them intriguing looks. Ji Nuan pretended not to notice and accepted their congratulations with a smile.

As the cousin of Tongzhi, Shen Mingzhu also made friends with some daughters of minor officials who wanted to curry favor with Tongzhi Qi during her time in Kaiyun Prefecture.

Hearing the congratulations, she led the two young ladies forward, her words laced with sarcasm and provocation: "It's just an engagement, don't congratulate too soon! I don't know where this came from? Don't think you can really enter the Marquisate just by flattering the Marquis's wife! There are many beautiful women in wealthy families. Without the appropriate family background, having good looks but no knowledge or talent will not last long."

Chen Rong's face instantly turned livid when she heard this. She stood in front of Ji Nuan angrily and shouted, "Shen Mingzhu, we didn't provoke you when we spoke to you. What gives you the right to say such things?"

Shen Mingzhu sneered disdainfully, "Am I wrong? A woman who crawled out of the mud, who probably can't even read a few words, how can she be worthy of the illustrious Lord Song?"

The little girl next to her, with an air of fawning and sycophantic, held her head high and echoed, "That's right! If Lord Song were to marry someone like that, we'd all feel sorry for him!"

Chen Rong wanted to rush forward, but was gently pulled back by Ji Nuan.

Ji Nuan's gaze flickered past Shen Mingzhu, a faint, mocking smile playing on her lips. "Tsk, you act like you're so talented and knowledgeable! Are you really that talented? Why would you even come all the way to our Kaiyun Mansion to borrow the influence of Qi Tongzhi to find a husband?"

Shen Mingzhu's face was filled with embarrassment. She had just tried to use those words to please the Marquis' wife, but she didn't expect that Ji Nuan would use them to mock her.

The young ladies from the surrounding families who had come out together witnessed the tit-for-tat confrontation between the two groups and stood in groups of three or four to watch the fun. Many of them coveted the position of Song Jinbai's wife, but no one was stupid enough to show it openly after Song Jinbai was engaged.

Ji Nuan took two steps forward and walked in front of the little dog. Taking advantage of her height advantage, she looked down at her with a condescending attitude: "And you! Do you think you are the Marquis or the Marquis's wife? Do you get to dictate who Lord Song marries and who he doesn't marry? How can you make such unwarranted judgments?"

The little dog's legs retreated repeatedly after being asked by Ji Nuan.

How could a peasant girl have such a powerful aura?

"You...I...I...you are a bully."

She stammered for a long time before she could utter a single word weakly.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Shen Mingzhu quickly stepped forward to pull back his dog legs, and said with dignity: "Hmph, we'll see." After that, he hurried away with the two men.

Ji Nuan chuckled and said to the other girls, "I'm sorry to have made such a fool of myself. The chrysanthemums in the garden are in full bloom. Let's continue enjoying the flowers."

Everyone responded, but there was more awe in their eyes when they looked at Ji Nuan.

Chen Rong started flattering him, "Sister Nuannuan is so awesome! No matter how much Shen Mingzhu acts like a dandy and likes to bully others, she's still like a worm in front of Sister Nuannuan, unable to move!"

Qiao Qiao smiled and tried to dissuade him, "Rong'er, please keep your voice down. Even if Shen Mingzhu is a bad person, she still has her uncle, Qi Tongzhi, to back her up. There are so many people coming and going here. If someone overhears and exaggerates what they say, it will cause a lot of trouble for the family."

Chen Rong stuck out her tongue and lowered her voice, "She might not be very bright, but she's quite scheming. Even though Mr. Song is already engaged to Sister Nuannuan, she's still trying to make a move. She thinks I can't see through it! Humph, she's really shameless!"

"You see it quite clearly." Ji Nuan praised and pulled the two of them towards the pavilion. "Come on, I'll take you to eat mooncakes."

- ??(?????) Thank you Xuanying Baoer for the tip! Please urge for more updates! Please follow!