My wife wants a divorce; if she ruins my life, I'll leave.

Silent all night.

The next day, as usual, they went to Rongxi Courtyard to pay their respects. This time, Song Xi, Song Ming'an, and Meng Ruohua arrived one after the other, and they no longer stood foolishly in the courtyard in the cold wind.

Meng Ruohua nodded in satisfaction; it seemed that Aunt Sun understood her thoughts.

Once inside, after exchanging a few greetings as usual, the second madam waved them away listlessly.

No one was surprised, because everyone saw the second wife's disdainful look.

Even Meng Ruohua, who was her good daughter-in-law yesterday morning, couldn't escape it and was also disliked.

After leaving the courtyard and walking straight to the fork in the road, Song Xicai said, "I originally wanted to go to Qingfeng Courtyard to thank my sister-in-law, but my aunt is sick and I've been taking care of her, so I'm afraid I might not be clean."

Meng Ruohua smiled nonchalantly, "Fourth sister, just take good care of your aunt. When you have time, feel free to visit Qingfeng Courtyard. Your sister-in-law will be waiting for you."

"Okay." Song Xi readily agreed. She was in a great mood today, and her tone was also quite cheerful. "Next time I make some desserts, I'll let my sister-in-law have a taste too."

The three then parted ways and returned to their respective courtyards.

With nothing to do during the day, Meng Ruohua wandered around the house for a while out of boredom before finally deciding to go for a walk.

He sent someone to inform the Second Madam, and then took Yu Ye and Shan Hu and went out.

On the way, I bought several kinds of pastries, specifically choosing two or three kinds that the children liked, and then returned to the Meng residence.

She came to visit Meng Sixiu. The day before yesterday at the Wang family, Meng's mother said he was not feeling well.

Upon meeting, Mencius' mother inevitably nagged her a few more times, repeating the same old things, until she knew exactly what to say next.

However, as a dutiful daughter, Meng Ruohua did not refute a single word and obediently agreed to everything.

As for whether she does it or not, and how she does it, no one can control her.

Seeing her daughter so obedient, resting her chin on her soft hand and looking at her with such delight, Meng's mother couldn't help but feel a little puzzled: "Why are you looking at me? Is there dust on your face?"

"No." Meng Ruohua hadn't really looked at her mother in recent years, and felt that she was the same as before, without any change.

Mencius' mother felt slightly uncomfortable under her gaze and said in an annoyed tone, "I think you're just too idle. You'd have something to do if you had a child sooner."

Sigh! They can't stop talking about the kids.

Meng Ruohua rolled her eyes and turned her head away, staring blankly at the light streaming in through the crack in the door.

Before long, Meng Sixiu skipped into the house and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Auntie, you're finally here! I've missed you so much!"

One sentence made everyone present burst into laughter, but Meng Sixiu looked at everyone with a puzzled expression, not understanding what they were laughing at.

Meng Ruohua teased him, "Who said we were going to the Song residence to see Auntie? Why aren't you going either?"

Meng Sixiu recalled his conversation with his mother and repeated it to Meng Ruohua in a serious tone: "I am still too young to go to the Song family to stand up for my aunt. I will go to the Song family to stand up for my aunt when I am older!"

Meng Ruohua felt a lump in her throat from hearing the child's innocent words; she too had someone to help her out!

Seeing his bright, lively eyes and cheerful personality, Meng Ruohua knew he would surely be as capable as his older brother in the future. She couldn't help but pat his head, "Little bean, you need to eat well to grow up!"

Meng Sixiu clenched his fist. "Don't worry, Auntie, I can eat a bowl of rice at every meal."

After Fang Ling entered the house, the group chatted for a while. Meng Sixiu, being small, couldn't sit still and ran around the house making noise. In the end, he complained that the house was too small to run around in, so he ran outside in a flash.

The others didn't care about him; they were just hoping he would run around in the yard. If he didn't release all his energy, no one would get a break at noon.

At noon, Fang Ling instructed the kitchen to prepare a table full of dishes that Meng Ruohua loved, and personally served her a full bowl of food, saying, "Eat more, I see you've lost weight."

Meng Ruohua chuckled to herself, holding her chopsticks; she even felt she had gained a little weight recently.

In the beginning, she lost her appetite due to excessive thinking and did lose a lot of weight. However, she has been in a better mood recently, and with Aunt Liu feeding her soup, porridge and snacks every day, she has gained the weight back.

Mencius' mother opened her mouth, but ultimately didn't say anything.

Meng Ruohua and Fang Ling exchanged a smile and quickly served each of Meng's mother a piece of food.

After lunch, without disturbing Meng's mother's afternoon nap, Meng Ruohua led her entourage out of the mansion. First, they went to a bookstore and bought several newly published novels, then visited several fabric shops to get a feel for the market beforehand.

She never used to care about these things; if she wanted to make new clothes, she had her own dowry of fabrics and materials. In recent years, she has rarely gone out to choose.

I asked at every shop, and the shop assistants all said that the leather was selling well, especially the ones in good condition; they had no trouble selling them at all.

Meng Ruohua felt a little relieved; as long as the products sold, that was fine.

I don't know when Uncle Yang and the others will be back. The weather is getting colder and colder, and the journey is really tough.

Having finally managed to get out, he instructed Shanhu to visit the people left behind by Uncle Yang San, inquire about Li Lin's situation, and left him ten taels of silver.

Yu Ye sat to the side, drinking tea, and looked at the snow-white silver ingot with a pained expression. "The second young mistress has been too generous lately, giving people silver at the drop of a hat."

"What reward? This is for doing serious work!"

She had just borrowed the second steward of the Meng family from Meng's mother, asking him to help find a suitable shop to open a bookstore. The location didn't need to be great, just a large place would be fine.

She planned to open a bookstore, specifically for scholars to read and copy books, as a way to provide some convenience for impoverished scholars.

These days, she has not only read storybooks, but also several books that she used to find boring, and has vaguely come to understand some of the truths.

Originally, she only wanted to establish a good relationship with Li Lin and help him when he was in trouble. Later, after hearing about Li Lin's situation from Uncle Yang, she got the idea to open a bookstore.

Literati and poets wield their brushes and ink just as soldiers brandish swords and spears; they do not go to the battlefield, but they have their own battlefield!

We will try our best to open the bookstore before the end of the year, so as to do our part for these poor people.

A short while later, after Coral returned, the three of them prepared to return to the mansion.

Passing by Cuilu Tower on the way, Meng Ruohua recalled Yu Yan's words and couldn't help but lift a corner of the curtain to look over. The Cuilu Tower was adorned with luxurious carriages and fine horses; it was clear at a glance that it was not a place for ordinary people.

The still-cool afternoon sunlight shone on the gleaming golden signboard, the powerful characters contrasting sharply with the magnificent and beautiful interior, creating an inexplicable sense of incongruity that left a deep impression.

People in the capital say it belongs to Princess Yangcheng. Meng Ruohua guessed that it might belong to Yu Yan, otherwise he wouldn't have sent her here to find him.

Perhaps Meng Ruohua was overthinking it, but she always felt that Yu Yan's talent and ability were being somewhat wasted by the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

She has her own problems to deal with, so she should worry about herself more!

Upon returning to the gate of the Song residence, they saw an old reddish-brown horse pulling a carriage with a blue cloth curtain and an oilcloth roof. The gatekeeper was carrying two wooden boxes inside.

Old Tian saw Meng Ruohua's carriage from afar, ordered the side gate to be opened early, and then personally took the reins and pulled the carriage through the gate.

As soon as Meng Ruohua got out of the car, she said without waiting for anyone to ask, "It's my eldest aunt's cousin."

Shen Yunlan is here?