She mistakenly got into the bridal sedan chair and married a sickly but powerful minister, becoming

Shen Qingtan struggled to wake up from a nightmare, her body covered in a cold sweat, her eyes staring blankly at the fiery red wedding tent.

After a long while, she slowly regained her senses and realized that she had been reborn and was no longer imprisoned in Zhao Jue's villa.

She calmed the oppressive feeling and let out a long breath.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps beside me.

Like a frightened bird, she turned her head in alarm and looked over, meeting the man's dark eyes.

Shen Qingtan froze, then opened her mouth to explain, "I..."

"A nightmare?" Zhao Yi didn't miss the moment she looked over, his eyes filled with vigilance and defensiveness.

He handed over the celadon porcelain cup in his hand and said gently, "Want a sip of warm water?"

Shen Qingtan's throat was dry. She propped herself up and took the teacup with both hands: "Thank you."

Zhao Yi stared at her pale face and said in a gentler tone, "We are husband and wife, there's no need to be so formal and polite."

Shen Qingtan responded softly, and after drinking a glass of water, the palpitation subsided slightly.

Zhao Yi took the teacup and saw her leaning limply against the bedpost, her jet-black hair hanging down to her waist, making her slender body appear delicate and fragile.

"It's still early, why don't you sleep a little longer?" Zhao Yi was worried that she still couldn't accept the scene of Zhao Jue and Shen Mingzhu serving tea together: "It's okay if we serve tea later. The elders know that I'm not in good health, so they've spared me the trouble of getting up early to pay my respects."

"Second Master, today is my first day as a married man. Making a house full of elders wait for me might cause gossip." Shen Qingtan knew that Zhao Yi was thinking of her, and that was why she also wanted to think of him.

She was already embroiled in a scandal involving a bride swap, and there was also the fact that she and Zhao Jue had been childhood sweethearts for over a decade.

If she takes too long to serve tea on her first day after entering the family, people with ulterior motives will surely think that she is unwilling to marry Zhao Yi and will definitely talk about him behind his back.

Moreover, the tea ceremony later will inevitably involve a grand spectacle.

How could she possibly miss it?

Shen Qingtan said gently, "Some things must be faced. As long as Second Master acknowledges me as his wife, I have nothing to fear."

Zhao Yi was speechless for a moment, his gaze sweeping over her gentle face. There was no resentment or bitterness, only a calm acceptance, as if she had truly accepted the fact that she had married him.

Women have a weak status, and even if Shen Qingtan is dissatisfied with her husband, she cannot divorce him. Marrying him seems to be her only way out.

He whispered, "As you wish."

Shen Qingtan watched Zhao Yi leave the inner room, then rang the bell on one side of the wedding tent. Chun Jiao and Qiu Chan, who were waiting outside the door, came in and carefully helped her to get up.

Upon seeing the two people, Shen Qingtan raised an eyebrow, not at all surprised.

Before she married, she had four maids by her side, all of whom she had grown up with.

Tingxue and Liuyue had an accident and were recuperating at home, so they couldn't accompany her to the Duke's mansion as part of her dowry.

The other two refused to be part of the dowry and each received a portion of the dowry, marrying instead the sons of the stewards of the Marquis's mansion.

Madam Shen originally wanted to give her four new dowries, but she only accepted two new dowries, leaving the remaining two empty slots for Tingxue and Liuyue.

After all, with many people and differing intentions, trouble is easily brewing.

Shen Mingzhu sent Chun Jiao and Qiu Chan back instead of returning the two dowry items that were originally given to her, which seems to indicate that she wanted to take Ting Xue and Liu Yue away.

Shen Mingzhu wanted anything that belonged to her, whether it smelled good or bad.

After dressing up, Shen Qingtan went to the outer room and saw Zhao Yi sitting at the octagonal table waiting for her to have breakfast.

Two breakfasts were laid out on the table, each containing four or five dishes.

One was placed in front of Zhao Yi, and the other was placed opposite him; it should belong to her.

Shen Qingtan was stunned.

Zhao Yi explained, "I have a light palate, and the others don't like it, so we usually eat separately."

Shen Qingtan nodded, sat opposite him, and quietly finished her breakfast with the help of her maid.

The couple went to the main hall together.

On the way, Zhao Yi carefully explained the interpersonal relationships within the Duke's mansion, as well as some taboos.

-

The First Madam and the Second Madam arrived at the entrance of the front hall one after the other, each accompanied by their own maids.

Seeing that the First Madam seemed unaffected, the Second Madam deliberately called out to her, "Sister-in-law, you don't look well. Did you not sleep well last night because of what happened yesterday?"

The First Madam glanced at her and said, "She didn't sleep well, she's just happy."

The second wife's expression froze for a moment, realizing that the first wife was just being stubborn.

She then sighed and muttered, "The marriage was arranged so clearly, but this happened at the last minute. It's a pity that my Jue'er and Qingtan were childhood sweethearts, but in the end..."

Sigh, thankfully Yi'er and Jue'er are brothers, and they reconciled in private, so this matter was dropped.

"When word gets out, don't say anything like it's a marriage exchange; it's all predestined, and my Jue'er has to accept it."

Hearing her tone of feigned innocence after getting a good deal, the First Madam curled her lips and said, "Of course, marriage is preordained. It can't be that the upper beam is crooked and the lower beam is crooked, can it?"

The second wife had stolen her elder sister's marriage proposal and used some underhanded means to marry into the Duke's mansion.

The second master broke his promise and betrayed his former fiancée.

The second wife's face turned pale and then red when her sore spot was touched.

The First Madam came from a military family; she wasn't one for mincing words, and her sharp tongue could be deadly.

The second wife was seething with anger, but the thought of the more than one hundred loads of dowry that had gone into the second wife's storeroom made her feel a little better.

She put on a wronged look and was about to speak.

The First Madam, too lazy to deal with her, simply ignored her and led her maid into the main hall.

The second wife gritted her teeth in anger. It was that arrogant person again, who never pretended to be polite, always straightforward and capricious, who had embarrassed her countless times.

She entered the main hall with a dark expression and saw the old lady speaking to the first wife in a kind tone.

The second wife quickly put on a smiling face: "Mother."

The old lady glanced at her coldly, without responding.

The second wife's schemes showed no regard for her mother.

The second wife was rebuffed and left feeling humiliated, standing awkwardly next to the first wife.

Before long, all the gentlemen of the manor arrived.

The old Duke was suddenly summoned to the palace this morning and was therefore absent from today's tea ceremony.

The younger generation arrived one after another.

They each took their seats.

Next, the newlyweds Zhao Jue and Shen Mingzhu arrived.

The people in the Duke's mansion had all heard rumors last night, and as soon as they saw the two people, everyone in the room turned their attention to Shen Mingzhu.

Shen Mingzhu nervously clenched the handkerchief in her hand, not daring to look at the elders in the mansion, and secretly glanced at Zhao Jue beside her.

Zhao Jue did not notice Shen Mingzhu's unease. After all, Shen Qingtan had always been poised and graceful in front of her elders when she attended banquets at the Duke's mansion.

He led Shen Mingzhu to prepare to bow and offer tea.

The old lady interrupted, saying, "Following the rules, let your second brother and sister-in-law serve tea first."

Zhao Jue's jaw tightened, and he replied, "Grandson understands."

Shen Mingzhu's face turned pale, and she could sense the old lady's dislike for them.