I'm already dressed like a fool, what's wrong with taking the regent into the bridal chamb

Wen Qingzhi glanced sideways and saw Xia Niang's worried face. She said, "Although this place is not as good as the Marquis' Mansion, no one will let you suffer any injustice!"

Xia Niang's eyes dodged. It was the first time she spoke in front of so many important people. She was scared!

She was afraid that her words would be impolite and bring discredit to Wen Qingzhi, but she was even more afraid of letting Wen Qingzhi suffer injustice.

"Did I say something wrong?"

Xia Niang hugged the child tightly in her arms to hide her nervousness.

Wen Qingzhi saw that she was tightly gripping the child's straps, so she raised her hand to cover it, "Don't be afraid, no one says you're wrong."

"Yes."

Zheng's mother's face was filled with joy. "Azhi treats you as family, so we are also family."

"When a family is talking, how can there be right or wrong?"

Mother Zheng's seemingly kind appearance made Xia Niang feel more at ease than ever before, and she smiled even more easily.

Mother Zheng said, "You all sincerely want the best for Ah Zhi. No matter what you say, as long as it's good for her, you should say it."

They looked at Wen Qingzhi, and seeing that she had a kind expression, they began to agree.

You talked to him and the atmosphere soon became lively.

Seeing that they were chatting with each other, Wen Qingzhi found an opportunity to leave.

Zheng Lin noticed and followed quietly.

"Azhi, let's go for a walk together?"

Zheng Lin was wearing a dark long gown today, a black jade crown on his head, and his long legs stretched forward to catch up with Wen Qingzhi.

Wen Qingzhi was wearing a lavender skirt embroidered with pomegranate flowers today. Flowers and plants were embroidered on the hem of the skirt, and it trembled as she walked, making her look vivid and lifelike.

She wore a pure cotton cloak to protect her from the cold.

The two walked side by side. Zheng Lin deliberately slowed down his pace to wait for Wen Qingzhi. "Azhi, is there something on your mind?"

"Why do you ask?"

Wen Qingzhi turned her head to look over. Zheng Lin's delicate profile was like a beautiful picture. He blinked his long eyelashes twice and said, "You don't look very happy. Is it because of something at home?"

Zheng Lin had only been with Wen Qingzhi for a short time, but he had learned a little about Wen Qingzhi's personality from what others had said: a typical person who was cold on the outside but warm on the inside.

Zheng Lin also asked the servants in the mansion about Wen Qingzhi's childhood. Knowing that she became what she is now because of her own misfortunes, he felt a little more distressed.

During this period, he also saw what Wen Qingzhi did, and she also cherished her family.

But this time, letting her mother be the head of the family may very well become a reason for a rift between her and her sister-in-law.

He didn't want to add more troubles to Wen Qingzhi's already tiring life.

Wen Qingzhi didn't respond, which meant Zheng Lin guessed right.

The two walked all the way to the foot of the mountain. Wen Qingzhi looked at the tree stump in front of her and couldn't help but squat down and touch it.

The rough growth rings rubbed Wen Qingzhi's delicate fingertips so hard that they hurt, but she didn't stop.

Zheng Lin watched her abnormal behavior and squatted beside her to watch her caress.

Later, Zheng Lin also raised his hand and rubbed it. The numb feeling and the small thorns made him feel prickly.

Feeling the pain in his hand, Zheng Lin suddenly looked up at Wen Qingzhi, then grabbed her hand and said, "Azhi, stop grinding."

He saw that Wen Qingzhi's white fingertips were covered with red marks and blood, and in some places the skin and flesh were flying off, which looked very scary.

He immediately took out his handkerchief, bandaged Wen Qingzhi's wound, and tied a small bow on it.

“Don’t punish yourself for the mistakes of others.”

Zheng Lin said quietly, helping her up from the ground. "Before, you were all alone, and you had to handle everything by yourself. Now it's different. You have me... us. You have a family, and you don't have to bear it all by yourself anymore."

"If it's difficult, you can ask mother to help your sister-in-law manage the household."

Zheng Lin's brows were sometimes furrowed and sometimes relaxed. Looking at Wen Qingzhi's indifferent expression, he finally let out a long sigh.

He felt distressed.

How much hardship did one have to endure to develop such a calm and composed ability?

Wen Qingzhi looked at her hand held by Zheng Lin and was stunned for a moment.

She could sense that Zheng Lin was genuinely concerned about her at this moment, without any other emotions mixed in.

Wen Qingzhi also felt strange...

Why didn't I push him away and let him grab my hand so easily?

Perhaps Zheng Lin sensed something was wrong. He instantly let go of Wen Qingzhi's hand, turned his head away and apologized, "I'm sorry..."

Wen Qingzhi raised her eyes and saw the crimson tips of his ears, which she found interesting for a moment.

At his age, he should normally have a maid in the same room with him. Why would his ears turn red just by holding hands?

She was indeed thinking about Jiang Yao just now, and she felt a little depressed.

But now...it doesn't seem so annoying anymore.

"Brother is right, I have a family now."

She ignored Zheng Lin's shy look, walked straight forward, sat on a wooden stake, and looked into the distance.

“There are some things I don’t know how to explain.”

Wen Qingzhi spoke first, "Do you want to listen?"

She turned her head and smiled at Zheng Lin.

"it is good."

Zheng Lin nodded seriously, his dark eyes shining, and sat down on a wooden stake next to Wen Qingzhi. "You speak, I listen."

Wen Qingzhi withdrew her gaze and looked up at the blue sky. "I wasn't such an indecisive person before. I don't know why I became like this."

She thought about her bloodthirsty self in the past. If the current Jiang Yao met her then, she would really kill her.

"I don't intend to occupy the Marquis' Mansion, but I will never let it fall into the hands of others."

She said calmly, "That's why I just said I wanted to find a live-in son-in-law."

Zheng Lin was puzzled and asked, "Is there any connection between the two?"

"of course."

She nodded. "The Wen family and the rest of the Jiang family are at war until death. I even suspect that the deaths of my parents and brother are related to the Jiang family. Although there is no conclusive evidence at the moment, the Jiang family also has no evidence that they had nothing to do with the incident back then."

"Especially in the past two years, the Jiang family has been even more overbearing and bullying our mansion. I was dissatisfied with what my brother said, so I had someone investigate Jiang Nian. The results proved that my suspicion was correct - this Jiang Nian is a pawn sent by the Jiang family."

Zheng Lin was not surprised by this answer, after all, it was too obvious.

He just didn't understand why the Jiang family would do such an obvious thing?

Could it be that the Jiang family still thinks Wen Qingzhi is a fool who can't see anything?

"From my sister-in-law's perspective, Jiang Nian once did her a favor. She's someone who knows how to repay a favor, so she won't stand by and watch someone die."

"Since Jiang Nian arrived, my sister-in-law and Little Stone have changed a lot. I've seen it all. I didn't stop them, not because I didn't want to care, but because I knew in my heart that stopping them at this critical moment would be pointless."

"Sister-in-law won't listen to me and will think I'm making a big deal out of nothing. What can a weak girl like Jiang Nian do to harm her?"