Dad, open the door. I'll bring your mistress back for you.

"This child is alone, should he be registered under the name of the Third Madam?" The second elder of the Shen family asked.

He also planned to send his daughter into the palace, but the head of the Shen family at that time, Shen Huaizhong's father, insisted on choosing his own daughter to enter the palace. Therefore, the second elder and Shen Huaizhong's lineage have been at odds over the years. Although the second elder is a generation older, he has always been committed to making things difficult for Shen Huaizhong.

Shen Huaizhong frowned. He remembered Chu Ning saying that the concubine had already entered the mansion, but it was not impossible to register the child under the name of the third son's wife. Anyway, as long as the child was included in the family tree, the impeachment by the censor could be avoided.

"Third son's wife, please tell me." Shen Huaizhong said to Qin Qimei.

Qin Qimei said respectfully, "I'll leave it to my father-in-law to decide. If he says the child should be registered under his son's name, I'll absolutely agree and will treat him as my own. But please send someone to inform my parents. After all, if the child is registered under my name, then I'll be the granddaughter of the Duke of Qing's mansion, and it's not good to keep it a secret."

Shen Huaizhong was stunned for a moment. For so many years, this third daughter-in-law had been so underrepresented that he had forgotten that her family was the most prestigious of the three. Even though she was a concubine's daughter, registering a concubine's daughter under the name of the wife was a slap in the face of the Duke of Qing's mansion.

"Why bother with so much trouble? Just take the concubine back and the child will be registered under her own mother's name. She will be the illegitimate daughter of the third wife." Shen Huaizhong said firmly.

Second Elder Shen: "Taking a concubine is a matter of the harem, and we shouldn't get involved. But Qingjiang's mother is not here today, and it's still unclear whether she agrees or not. Should we wait until she comes back and discuss it another day?"

Shen Chuning stood up and bowed to the Second Elder Shen, "Second Uncle, you're joking. Grandmother is naturally very satisfied with Auntie."

Second Elder Shen snorted coldly, "Since when has it been your turn as a little girl to interrupt the elders' meeting? You are satisfied just because you say you are satisfied. You were the one who brought that little girl in just now, weren't you? You can control your parents, and now you can control your grandmother?"

Shen Chuning was not angry, but continued, "A Ning is of course not making the decision on behalf of Grandmother, but Grandmother took Aunt to Daxiangguo Temple to pray for blessings today. She must be very satisfied with Aunt."

……

As soon as Old Madam Shen entered the Shen family's gate, the gatekeeper told her that the master asked her to go directly to the ancestral hall when she came back.

"What are you doing at the ancestral hall? Which naughty kid in the family has made a mistake again?" Old Madam Shen asked the doorman.

The doorman lowered his head and replied, "I don't know, but all the elders are here today."

Madam Shen quickened her pace. "Qixia, how come you're becoming more and more careless? You don't report anything, and we're left in the dark. We don't even know what's going on."

Nanny Gui wiped the sweat from her forehead and said, "Madam, Qixia has gone to work for Miss Nine, and no one has been appointed to fill her position yet."

Old Madam Shen glared at Nanny Gui fiercely.

When she entered the ancestral hall and saw Shen Jingwan standing in the middle, her eyes went dark and her body swayed. It was only because of Aunt Gui's support that she did not fall to the ground.

"Why are the elders here?" Old Madam Shen asked with a smile.

Second Elder Shen snorted coldly, "I'm dealing with your family's affairs, but you're hiding away."

Elder Shen quickly stepped out to smooth things over. "This isn't any one family's business. This is our Shen family's business. We're currently discussing registering this child in the family tree."

Old Lady Shen showed a look of surprise on her face. Over at the Daxiangguo Temple, Abbot Shikong had just said that Jingwan was of noble birth, so they could open an ancestral hall and include her in the family tree. It seemed that the total donation of five thousand taels of incense money was still too little.

"After all, he's the third son's child. It's not good to always keep him away. It's better for him to come back. I'll register him under the name of the third son's wife."

Old Madam Shen took Madam Shen San's hand and said, "Qimei, I'm sorry for putting you in such a pity. I have a set of kingfisher feather headpieces and will have someone send them to you later."

Madam Shen San pulled her hand away from Madam Shen's. "Mother, it's not registered under my name. My father-in-law said that this child has her own mother and it's not good to separate her from her. I have already agreed to my husband taking a concubine. Although she is a concubine's child, I will definitely treat her as my own."

Old Madam Shen's eyes were like poison as she looked at Qin Qimei, "You don't agree to Jingwan being registered under your name? How can you, a vicious woman, be so jealous? My Shen family is truly unlucky to marry you."

Mrs. Shen looked at Mr. Shen with fear.

Shen Huaizhong felt that Madam Shen was being too extreme and said, "The third son's wife originally agreed to register the name under her name, but I felt it was inappropriate. Besides, she has already agreed to let the third son take a concubine, so how can she still be associated with jealousy? If you are tired, go back and rest. There is no need to embarrass yourself here."

Madam Shen said excitedly, "She has agreed, so what are we waiting for? If Jingwan is registered under her name, she will be a legitimate daughter. Why would Master stop us?"

Second Elder Shen added fuel to the fire, "That's right, your lineage already has few daughters, so why not adopt a few more and send them to the palace to compete for favor?"

Shen Huaizhong glared at the Second Elder and said, "You have your own mother, why do you want to register her under someone else's name?"

But the Second Elder's words touched Mrs. Shen's heart. She immediately said, "Jingwan has no mother. Her mother is dead. Let her be registered as the Third Elder's wife."

Shen Chuning was really confused about why Madam Shen was so obsessed with giving Shen Jingwan the identity of a legitimate daughter. She used to think that having a son and marrying a concubine meant letting Xiangxue enter the house, but now it seems that everything was for Shen Jingwan.

If we say that in the previous life, Shen Jingwan was rewarded for offering a prescription to cure the plague and was named a county lady, and also had a good business acumen and made a fortune every day, then it would not be an exaggeration to say that Shen Jingwan in this life had no outstanding qualities. Why did Old Madam Shen take a liking to her so much?

Shen Chuning didn't know whether her move was right or not, but the arrow was on the string and had to be shot.

She quietly walked to Xiangxue's side and whispered, "Grandma, you want to leave the mother behind and keep the son."

Xiangxue's eyes widened instantly. She had just heard what Old Madam Shen said and thought it was just an excuse. But now she thought that Old Madam Shen had always had her eyes on Shen Jingwan.

Xiangxue stood up, crying and saying, "Old Madam, how can you curse me like this? I'm clearly alive and well. You said that if I bring Jingwan back, you'll let the Third Master take me as his concubine. How can I not keep Jingwan now that she's back?"

Xiangxue knelt down in front of Shen Huaizhong again after she finished speaking, "Master, you have to make the decision for Xiangxue. If we are separated today, Xiangxue might as well just kill herself."

After Xiangxue finished speaking, she kowtowed to Shen Huaizhong, then got up and rushed towards the pillars of the ancestral hall.

Before Mr. Shen could say anything to stop them, Xiangxue had already hit her head against a pillar and fainted. There was a big gash on her head and blood was flowing down.

"What are you still standing there for? Take my aunt away quickly." Shen Huaizhong's order was considered to have determined Xiangxue's status.

The maidservant beside Qin Qimei and two old women from the ancestral hall carried the person back to the third room.

Shen Jingwan's name was also written on the family tree. Shen Chuning quietly slipped away from the door and left everyone's sight.