She remarried a cold-faced, powerful man, and the scumbag regretted it and cried his heart out.

Jiang Jin'an stood up, his expression slightly helpless. "There have been many events in the capital recently, and I haven't had a chance to tell you yet, but it's not too late now that you know."

He pressed Gu Changyi down to sit in the armchair beside him and personally poured her a cup of tea.

Gu Changyi slammed the teacup aside, splashing tea onto the corner of the table. He frowned, leaned closer to Jiang Jin'an, and said unhappily, "Stop trying to fool me. I'm asking you, are you truly sincere towards Shen Jingshu? Don't use marriage as a pretext to hide some scheme behind it!"

Jiang Jin'an found it somewhat amusing. "Changyi, this marriage may be just a connection of power and interests for others, but for me, it is something I have been eagerly anticipating and longing for."

Upon hearing this, Gu Changyi leaned back and clicked his tongue. "Hmph, I didn't know you had any designs on that girl. But Miss Shen seems to be quite courageous; she's not a bad match for you."

Jiang Jin'an coughed lightly, then changed the subject, suddenly asking, "You spend all day wandering around the capital, do you know what the girls in the capital like these days?"

Gu Changyi rolled her eyes at his reddened ears and said without thinking, "Is that even a question? It's nothing more than gold and jade ornaments, shiny and dazzling things. What girl wouldn't love them?"

Jiang Jin'an thought he was unreliable and shook his head, "Jing Shu is different from others."

Gu Changyi tilted her head, carefully examining Jiang Jin'an, and teased, "Oh, you're quite attentive."

Jiang Jin'an's gaze lingered on Gu Changyi's face for a moment before he asked, "Did your aunt scold you again?"

Gu Changyi waved her hand dismissively, "Sigh, when does she not scold me? She's been like this since we were little. Whatever my brother does is right, and I'm always wrong. I've gotten used to it over the years. I just let it go in one ear and out the other, pretending I didn't hear it."

He stood up, shaking his head and saying, "I have my own way of living. I don't care about fame or fortune; I just want to be carefree."

Seeing this, Jiang Jin'an didn't try to persuade him any further. After chatting for a few more minutes, Gu Changyi got up to take his leave.

Before leaving, he seemed to remember something, turned around abruptly, poked Jiang Jin'an with his finger, and solemnly instructed, "You have to be careful about giving Miss Shen a gift. If you mess it up, I'll be waiting to see you make a fool of yourself."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Xie Wanqing sat in the room, the candlelight on the table flickering. She finished writing the letter, called Chunlan over, and instructed in a low voice: "Be sure to hand it to Young Master Cheng in person tomorrow."

After receiving the letter, Chunlan secretly went to Shaoguang Courtyard before dawn.

When Cheng Wenhao received the letter, he was reclining on a chaise lounge, listening to a Jiangnan folk song, with a beautiful woman beside him, her body soft and warm, serving him with utmost care.

He casually opened the letter, glanced at the apologies on it, and tossed it to the servant beside him, scoffing, "Now you know how reckless you are? A few days ago you were acting like you were going to die for Fu Zijin, now you're probably desperate and have to throw yourself at him."

Although he was full of disdain, it still aroused a bit of his curiosity.

When the appointed time arrived, Cheng Wenhao still kept his promise.

Xie Wanqing stood at the bow of the boat, wearing a light red silk dress, her black hair loosely tied up, with a few strands falling around her fair neck, her eyes full of flattery.

Cheng Wenhao cursed inwardly, but remained outwardly calm. He closed his folding fan and gracefully boarded the painted boat.

After exchanging a few words, Cheng Wenhao reached out and put his arm around Xie Wanqing's waist, then leaned in and kissed her haphazardly a few times. Xie Wanqing half-heartedly resisted, but eventually leaned into Cheng Wenhao's arms.

Shen Jingshu sat in the private room, watching Jinse tease the caged bird.

"Miss, can Chunlan really be trusted? After all, she has been with Miss Biao for many years. If she turns against us, we'll be in trouble." Yaoqin said with some unease.

"Don't worry, she won't."

Shen Jingshu spoke with certainty. In her memory, Chunlan was eventually given to a wealthy man by Xie Wanqing to be a concubine, and it seemed that she was abused to death.

The reason for this was simply that Chunlan, with her kind heart, did not want to see Xie Wanqing make the same mistake again, so she offered a few more words of advice, which touched a nerve with Xie Wanqing.

"Go, once Xie Wanqing leaves, invite Young Master Cheng up."

……

A short while later, Cheng Wenhao was led into a private room by Yaoqin. He was surprised to see Shen Jingshu sitting inside.

He raised an eyebrow and said mockingly, "What? Are you two sisters setting up a trap to force someone into marriage?"

Shen Jingshu held a round fan, half-covering her face, and chuckled, "Does she deserve my concern? To be honest, I don't care at all who she marries or how well or poorly she lives."

As she spoke, she put down her fan and looked directly at Cheng Wenhao. "I'm just curious, does the Cheng family really intend to marry her?"

Cheng Wenhao thought to himself, if Fu Zijin doesn't want a woman, why should he, Young Master Cheng, take her in? Being a cat servant and teasing her when he has nothing to do is about right.

But then she thought again, this woman in front of her was a genuine daughter of a marquis. Although she said she didn't care, noble families always shared the same fate, and her words were clearly not to be trusted.

Thinking this, Cheng Wenhao smiled, closed his folding fan, clapped his hands, and said in a deliberately generous manner, "Marrying her is not impossible. Although I have no feelings for her, according to my mother's wishes, once she enters my Cheng family, I can be considered half a son-in-law of a marquis's family. I can get a taste of her nobility, so it won't be a loss."

Shen Jingshu shook her head, got up and walked to the window, reaching out to tease the canary, and said casually, "The Cheng family is probably about to face a great calamity."

Although Cheng Wenhao doesn't usually care about family affairs, he is still a descendant of the Cheng family.

Upon hearing this, his face instantly darkened, and he said unhappily, "Miss Shen, my Cheng family is perfectly fine, what great calamity could there be? If you are making fun of me, this joke has gone too far."

Shen Jingshu turned around, her expression serious. "The Cheng family is a royal merchant family, extremely wealthy, and to outsiders they are undoubtedly very successful. But whether their accounts, goods, and transactions are clean, legal, or even... to what extent they have gone is something I don't need to elaborate on."

“My father said that the business world is like a battlefield. I don’t understand the intricacies of it all, so you don’t need to tell me all this.” Cheng Wenhao waved his hand impatiently, but felt inexplicably uneasy inside.

"really."

Shen Jingshu smiled and said, "But now you're being targeted, you have no choice. Either you watch the Cheng family perish, or you marry Xie Wanqing and make her believe that you are deeply in love with her."

Cheng Wenhao was silent for a moment, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes, before asking, "Just now she told me she was willing to marry me, but was someone acting on her orders?"

Shen Jingshu nodded.

He pressed further, "Is it for the Cheng family's money?"

"more than."

Cheng Wenhao stroked the ribs of the folding fan in his hand. After a long while, he frowned, raised his eyes and said, "Miss Shen, you've come all this way to tell me all this today. How can you prove that what you've said is true?"

Map of the Northern Mountains.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Wenhao stiffened.

"Whether you believe it or not is entirely up to you, Young Master Cheng. Whether you advance or retreat is up to you. If there are any changes in the Cheng family in the future, do not regret your choice today."

He pondered for a long time, then stood up and cupped his hands to Shen Jingshu, saying, "Miss Shen, I will trust you this time. In the future, I hope you will give me more guidance, so that my Cheng family will not be plunged into utter ruin."

"Xie Wanqing is inherently foolish. I think Young Master Cheng has the ability to keep her in check."

Shen Jingshu opened the carved cage door, and the canary cautiously poked its head out, then spread its wings and flew out of the window.

Cheng Wenhao watched the bird fly away, as if answering his own question, "What did Miss Shen say just now?"

He pressed his folding fan against his forehead, then smiled as if he had just realized something, mimicking Shen Jingshu's tone.

"She doesn't even deserve my attention?"