After being reborn as a man, the woman improved her family's fortunes through education.

"Madam, the Xue family has arrived! They're already outside the gate!"

"Quick! Get me dressed!"

Lin Yueniang, who had already eaten dinner, had just removed her hairpins and jewelry. Now, she didn't have time to tidy herself up properly and could only put her outer robe back on.

Because the New Year was approaching, Lin Yueniang dressed rather casually and did not neglect her duties in receiving guests.

After a quick tidying up, Lin Yueniang finally arrived before the Xue family entered the backyard flower hall.

He immediately ordered people to serve the best tea and snacks.

The Jiang family didn't bring many maids to the capital. Each of the young ladies only brought one personal maid, and Lin Yueniang only brought Cui'er.

The remaining few were all female nurses, trained from the first batch of maids who entered Xinghe Mansion.

Cui'er has now succeeded Granny Zhou as the head housekeeper of the inner courtyard, known as Aunt Cui.

Cui'er, the head steward of the inner courtyard, had been married to the head manager of the Jiang family's shop several years ago, arranged by Lin Yueniang.

However, it was only because she insisted that Lin Yueniang allowed her to leave her family and career behind and come to the capital to serve her.

Since I didn't have time to go out and greet them myself, I asked my trusted steward to do so, which wouldn't be considered a breach of etiquette.

Cui'er is now extremely respectable. The mistress and young master have always been very generous to their own people. Just looking at Cui'er's current attire, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that she is the mistress of some local gentry or wealthy family.

This also made Madam Xue somewhat unsure of what to do when she saw Cui'er.

According to the information she received from her son, the Jiang family also had concubines, and the third Miss Jiang, whom they favored, was the daughter of one of the Jiang family's concubines.

Of course, she didn't feel slighted by being greeted by a concubine, since her family hadn't informed her in advance and the arrival was sudden.

It's the holidays again, which lady of the house isn't busy?

So when she saw Cui'er who came to greet her halfway, she remained calm and showed no displeasure, and followed her into the backyard flower hall.

At this time, Aunt Pan was also invited over, and after some deliberate dressing up, she looked more dignified than usual.

Sitting on the armchair to the left of Lin Yueniang, he felt a mixture of anticipation and trepidation.

My daughter has been chosen by a scholar? Wouldn't she be the future wife of an official?

Lan'er is really lucky; she's going to have a son-in-law who's a scholar!

Cui'er personally lifted the curtain, and the three members of the Xue family entered the flower hall. A warm feeling enveloped their bodies, causing them to breathe a sigh of relief.

This is so warm! You can tell from the way they keep warm that the Jiang family is extremely wealthy.

Moreover, although there weren't many flowers and plants along the way, the exquisite decorations for the New Year holidays still revealed the Jiang family's wealth and status.

Sure enough, unlike their modestly wealthy family, the Jiang family was, after all, a scholarly family.

After everyone was seated, Madam Xue, as a member of the groom's family, politely exchanged pleasantries and compliments with Lin Yueniang.

This wasn't Lin Yueniang's first time meeting her in-laws, so she was naturally very experienced. Unlike Madam Xue's slight nervousness, Lin Yueniang was very proper and polite.

Madam Xue, accompanied by Consort Li, naturally told Lin Yueniang that Consort Li was Xue Xu's aunt, and also introduced Xue Yu.

Lin Yueniang also introduced Aunt Pan to the group, and it was only then that Madam Xue realized she had made a mistake.

It turns out that the elegant lady from earlier was actually Madame Chiang's trusted head housekeeper. Luckily, I didn't say anything out of line.

This is not Madam Xue's fault, because in her haste, Cui'er did not introduce herself.

She was only thinking about quickly bringing in her future son-in-law's mother, aunt, and sister to warm them up, since it was freezing cold and she didn't want them to suffer in the cold just because she said a few extra words.

Aunt Li and Aunt Pan were of equal status, and they both stood up to greet each other.

Seeing that the Xue family members looked exhausted, and even though they had covered their faces with powder, there were still dark circles under their eyes, Lin Yueniang knew that the mother and daughter had been traveling day and night.

The nearby courtyard was indeed tidied up, but it's not proper to make guests stay outside on their first day since they've come all this way.

The Xue family originally planned to visit their in-laws before staying at an inn, but the Jiang family had already made all the arrangements.

"It's getting late today, so I've already instructed someone to prepare some warming soup. My future in-laws, please don't mind having a little bit."

The courtyard has been prepared; it's right next to Young Master Xue's. We'll trouble you all to stay in the side courtyard for now and rest a bit before we discuss anything further.”

Madam Xue was at a loss for words. All her worries before coming had vanished the moment she saw Madam Jiang.

This in-law is truly a wonderful person; not only is she young and beautiful, but she is also incredibly kind and gentle, without the slightest arrogance.

Their words and actions were so pleasant to behold; Xu'er must have been incredibly lucky to find such a wonderful in-law family.

"We're really troubling our future in-laws. We'll be looking for a house in a couple of days, so we'll be bothering you for the next few days."

Standing behind Lin Yueniang, Cui'er smiled and said on behalf of her mistress, "Madam Xue, the day after tomorrow is New Year's Eve, and it's too late to find a broker at this time."

Our wife had thought of this long ago, so she rented the house at the end of this street well in advance. It's less than a 15-minute walk from here.

You can just move in when the time comes; everything has been prepared in advance, including all the New Year's goods!

Cui'er didn't want her mistress to be an unsung hero. What's done is done, so what if the Xue family remembers it well?

Upon hearing this, Madam Xue's eyes reddened slightly. She rose, stepped forward, and took Lin Yueniang's hand, saying:

"Our in-laws are so considerate, we really don't know what to do."

Lin Yueniang gently patted Madam Xue's hand and smiled, "We'll be family sooner or later, why bother with these formalities?"

Xue Yu, who was standing to the side, was also silently observing Lin Yueniang, secretly marveling at the extraordinary nature of the matriarch of the Jiang family.

She is meticulous in her work and has the air of a matriarch of a large family, making even her own mother appear somewhat inferior in comparison.

This is the principal wife of a prominent family; I must never become a concubine in the future…

Looking at her mother and Madam Jiang, and then at Aunt Li and Aunt Pan from the Jiang family, Xue Yu became even more determined that she would be happy even if she married a poor scholar.

With her older brother keeping her in check, she was never going to suffer any losses or be mistreated. She didn't seek great wealth or status; she only wanted to be in control of the household.

Just like now...

In the important matter of Miss Jiang's marriage to her brother, it was always the wives of the two families who spoke on her behalf.

As for her birth mothers, Aunt Pan and Aunt Li, they could only sit in positions even further back than her, the illegitimate daughter.

It's only because the two matriarchs are kind and forgiving that they didn't hold a grudge; if it were any other family, the two of them probably wouldn't even have had the chance to show their faces...

There's no rush to exchange birth dates late at night. Temples are bustling with worshippers during the New Year holidays, so we'll get together then to ask for auspicious names and blessings.

Both Lin Yueniang and Madam Xue were thinking of completing most of the necessary rituals (three letters and six rites) by the end of the first month of the lunar calendar.

Then, after the results of the imperial examinations are announced, the formal betrothal ceremony will be held, and a wedding date will be chosen.

If you arrange your marriage before the imperial examination, it will save you a lot of trouble afterward.

Jiang Lan'er's coming-of-age ceremony was at the end of the first month of the lunar calendar, and the Xue family happened to be in Beijing to attend.

After another round of thanks, Cui'er led the Xue family to a side courtyard to rest.

The servants of the Xue family have all been settled, and as for the bodyguards, their mission was completed once they arrived in the capital.

More than twenty people had already taken a large sum of money to the station in the capital, planning to rest for a few days before returning to Puyang.

Xue Xu naturally knew that his mother, aunt, and younger sister had arrived in the capital, but by the time they returned to their courtyard, it was already quite late.

Even though they were mother and son, it wasn't appropriate for him to go to the backyard to meet them at this time.

Although the two courtyards are close to each other, he lives in the front courtyard, so he still has to behave more properly.

No rush, we're already in the capital, it's not too late to see each other tomorrow.

Xue Xu slept soundly that night, but Madam Xue and Xue Yu suffered from insomnia.

As dawn broke, Xue Yu got up and took a walk in the courtyard to get some fresh air.

Xue Xu had also woken up by this time. After a quick wash, he hurriedly sent a message to the side courtyard where his mother, aunt, and sister were temporarily staying.

Fortunately, Xue Yu got up early and, upon learning that her elder brother was coming, went to Aunt Li's place to call him.

As for her mother, she didn't dare go there. She could have asked her older brother to come over for breakfast first, and then wait for their mother to get up together.

Seeing her aunt and younger sister, her eyes and heart were filled with joy.

Aunt Li looked her son up and down, and was relieved to see that he was in better spirits than when he was at home and hadn't lost much weight.

After the three of them had breakfast together, they waited at Aunt Li's place.

Of course, the topic of the Chiang family also came up at this time.

"Is it really true? This young master of the Jiang family is so talented that he even prepared the materials for your imperial examinations?"

Xue Xu could tell that his aunt was somewhat skeptical. After all, he was just a Xiucai (a successful candidate in the county-level imperial examinations), and even if he achieved the minor top honors, he had never participated in the provincial-level examinations, let alone the metropolitan-level examinations!

"Yeah, I only found out later. There are always people more capable than you, and there's always something beyond your understanding."

The world of geniuses is truly terrifying. The entire Jiang family is incredibly hardworking; I think they'll be the big winners in this year's imperial examinations!

"Alright, alright. Wait until Madam wakes up, then you can talk to her properly. I don't understand these things either, but if you say something, it will make Madam happy."

Aunt Li knew she was uneducated; Xue Xu and Xue Yu had been taught by the Madam since childhood.

Aunt Li was extremely grateful to her mother for raising her son to become a successful candidate in the imperial examinations.

What could possibly make me happy?

Madam Xue entered the room with the help of her maid. Before she even came in, she heard something that made her happy.

Is there anything more joyful than the marriage between the Xue and Jiang families?