The sickly son died young? After the marriage exchange, I will bring prosperity to his entire clan f

Whether Du Mingxian was willing or not, Lord Wen entrusted this matter to her.

So... the next day, Madam Wen came to see her. "I heard that your father intends for you to talk to your younger sisters. After all, you were personally taught by the palace matrons. It would be good for you to give your half-sisters some guidance."

"If they enter the palace, it will be of great benefit to our Wen family in the future."

Du Mingxian was speechless. Couldn't her second aunt see the situation clearly?

The Wen family is currently in a stable position; there's no need for them to step forward, much less for anyone to enter the palace as an empress or marry a prince. None of that would be good for the Wen family.

Knowing that these people's thoughts differed from Lord Wen's, and having been ordered by Lord Wen, Du Mingxian simply went straight to the point and said, "Second Aunt, it would be best if none of the younger sisters in the family went to the palace."

"This..." Madam Wen's face was obviously stiff. She naturally hoped that a daughter in the family could enter the palace. Her eldest brother and fourth brother were both in official positions, and the family had not yet separated.

If the families really separate in the future, what will happen to the second and third wives? They won't have anyone to help them, and that will be troublesome.

Now that such a good opportunity is here, how can I not seize it? Even if I don't enter the palace, it would be good to enter the residence of any prince.

Although he disagreed in his heart, he didn't show it on his face. He just hadn't managed his emotions well for a moment, and didn't say anything more, waiting for Du Mingxian to continue.

Du Mingxian knew that Madam Wen was intelligent, so she began to explain to her, "His Majesty is in good health now, and entering the palace seems like a good path, but actually... it's not."

"If they really go to the palace, our Wen family will have a lot of trouble. It's not good if the sisters who go to the palace get pregnant or not."

"Pregnancy is good for the individual, but for the Wen family, the choice they have is inevitably to passively become the maternal family of the princes and then get involved in the power struggles."

"The struggle for power has always been brutal. Even behind the victory lies the effort and bloodshed of countless people. Can the Wen family afford to suffer such losses?"

“The Wen family is already in a high position, and there is absolutely no need to send their daughter back to the palace to receive more favor. Sometimes, this favor is more of a burden.”

"If my sister who entered the palace doesn't get pregnant, with so many people in the harem, what will become of her after the Emperor passes away?"

Madam Wen understood Du Mingxian's meaning, but she still hadn't given up on that idea. "Then why don't we just... just let them enter the harems of the princes? No matter which one rises to power in the future, it will be good for us."

"Don't bite off more than you can chew." Du Mingxian was speechless. Did they only see the benefits and not consider the drawbacks?

Entering the prince's harem, one is truly afraid of not dying quickly enough.

Seeing Du Mingxian's disapproving expression, Madam Wen was also very upset. Such a good opportunity! "Even the princes seem to have a chance. Actually, sending a concubine's daughter over wouldn't be so bad."

Seeing that reasoning with her was ineffective, Du Mingxian said bluntly, "Father is unwilling to take this path, and even less willing to get involved with the princes and be forced to choose sides. The Wen family is loyal to the Emperor."

Madam Wen immediately became alert. She knew that this was what her eldest brother had Du Mingxian tell her. She felt somewhat sad, but since Lord Wen had already made his decision, what could she say? She could only accept it.

“Then we should not let them enter the palace. But there are three women in the household who have reached the required age, and all three of them who meet the criteria must participate. We cannot stop them.”

Du Mingxian naturally knew that the Wen family was unwilling to get involved in these matters, but that didn't mean the princes didn't want to be associated with the Wen family. Simply taking a woman into their harem would win over the Wen family, which was a good thing.

"Second Aunt, I need to talk to my sisters and see what they think before making a decision."

"Okay, I'll have them come over this afternoon."

“Then let’s come one by one, each person has 45 minutes.”

"Okay, I'll make arrangements."

Du Mingxian wanted to ask Madam Wen to see if she could find a suitable wife for Wen Yibin, so that her aunt could take care of things in the future.

However, given the Second Madam's limited vision... she felt she should still discuss this matter with Lord Wen again.

In the afternoon, Madam Wen made arrangements for several of her illegitimate daughters.

The three illegitimate daughters—one from the second wife and two from the third wife—all met the requirements.

The first to arrive was the illegitimate daughter of the second wife.

As soon as Miss Wen entered, she bowed to Du Mingxian and said, "Greetings, Miss."

"Sit down, we're all family."

Miss Wen was more cautious and did not look down on Du Mingxian just because she was not a young lady of the Wen family. She was very respectful and went to sit down on the side.

Do you have any thoughts on this draft?

Miss Wen hesitated for a moment before tentatively saying, "I... don't want to go to the palace."

Du Mingxian asked directly, "Do you have any thoughts about entering the prince's residence?"

“No.” Miss Wen answered very decisively, then blushed and said, “Miss, I…I already have someone I like, but…but his status is too low.”

"Oh? Tell me."

“The guards in the manor,” Miss Wen recounted her story.

Du Mingxian understood. When Miss Wen went out to offer incense, she was robbed. The guard was slightly injured on the spot while protecting her. After returning, Miss Wen felt guilty and often went to deliver things to him.

The two gradually developed feelings for each other.

Miss Wen had never dared to tell anyone about this matter, not even her own aunt. Because she was born into the Wen family, she knew that she might be pushed out for a marriage alliance in the future.

But she wanted to live for herself for once, even if it was just to fight for it, and if it didn't work out, she would accept it.

At first, Madam Wen was in charge of the household affairs, and as a concubine's daughter, she had no chance. Later, she became the second wife, and her mother took charge of the affairs, so she dared not mention the matter even more.

Because she knew that her mother hoped her daughters would marry into other families, and that she had always been very strict with them in her upbringing.

But this time, she felt that meeting the young lady was her only chance, and she wanted to try regardless of whether it worked out or not.

Du Mingxian felt that Miss Wen was quite clever. "I will tell my father about this matter. Although I am helping to manage the affairs of the manor now, there are some things that I cannot decide."

"Thank you, Miss. Whether it works out or not, I am grateful to you." This was her chance, nothing more.

Du Mingxian nodded gently, "It's good that you don't want to go to the palace or the prince's residence. That's not a good place. I will also find a way to help you, as long as that guard is someone you can truly entrust with your life."

“He is fine. Miss, you may send someone to investigate.”

Looking at Miss Wen's confident eyes, Du Mingxian suddenly thought of three words: love-struck.