My stepsister tried to steal the prince's hand in marriage, but little did she know I had been

Wen Shuyao's arrival at Tingquan Garden with so many people naturally attracted a lot of attention.

The person who cared most about this matter was Madam Wen.

Seeing Wen Yitong and Granny Lin walk in together, she didn't even have time to speak to Wen Yitong, but hurriedly instructed, "Granny, go and take a look at Tingquan Garden!"

"Tingquan Garden?" Upon hearing this, Granny Lin stopped in her tracks, thinking she had misheard.

Hasn't Tingquan Garden been abandoned long ago?

Madam Wen gritted her teeth and said, "It's all that little slut Wen Shuyao's fault. She insisted on bringing up Tingquan Garden today, and Master actually agreed. After so many years, her sudden desire to go to Tingquan Garden must be part of some conspiracy."

At this point, Madam Wen's face twisted in pain.

After these incidents, she no longer dared to underestimate Wen Shuyao.

Therefore, whenever there was any movement from Wen Shuyao's side, she would be on high alert, racking her brains to find out Wen Shuyao's intentions.

Granny Lin also felt that the matter was of great importance, and said with a cold face, "In that case, it is indeed suspicious."

"Could it be that the Chu family has hidden something in Tingquan Garden?" she lowered her voice. "Is the young lady planning to take that thing away this time?"

These words struck a chord with Madam Wen.

She said coldly, "That's what I think too. When you take your men there, you must find out the truth."

Granny Lin nodded quickly, not daring to delay for a moment, and hurriedly led her people toward Tingquan Garden.

Wen Yitong stood aside, listening to the conversation between the two, and felt confused.

“Mother, what does what Chu left behind have to do with us?” Wen Yitong said through clenched teeth. “Wen Shuyao took away the most valuable part of the dowry.”

Upon hearing this, Madam Wen paused for a moment.

She looked at Wen Yitong with a complicated expression, yet dared not tell her the truth.

So she only vaguely said, "I'm worried that Madam Chu left her something that might be detrimental to us, which is why I wanted to ask Granny Lin to take a look."

Seeing that Wen Yitong wanted to continue asking questions, she added, "Tong'er, you need to know that no matter what I do, it's all for you and Yu'er in the end."

“But what Mother did… was clearly making things difficult for me.” Wen Yitong’s eyes reddened, and her expression became indignant. “Mother, if you really care about me, you should think more about me.”

"You look down on Chen Che now simply because he hasn't achieved any official rank. But what if he had achieved the third-highest rank in the imperial examinations..."

"Alright." Madam Wen's head throbbed at the mere mention of "third-place scholar."

She frowned. If someone like Chen Che could become a third-ranked scholar in the imperial examination, then heaven would truly be blind.

However, despite Wen Yitong's firm resolve, she couldn't bring herself to say these words aloud.

However, Wen Yitong's words did serve as a reminder to her.

Madam Wen lowered her eyes, her tone ambiguous: "Chen Che does indeed need an official title."

“Now that you’ve married Chen Che, even if it’s just for your sake, I should still do my part for him.” Madam Wen muttered to herself, head bowed. “I probably can’t achieve the third-highest rank, but a Jinshi…”

Hearing Madam Wen's words, Wen Yitong frowned: "Mother, what do you mean by that? You don't trust Chen Che?"

"The imperial examination hasn't even started yet, why are you so certain?" Madam Wen said impatiently. "Tong'er, you're not young anymore, why are you still so naive?"

“Even if Chen Che truly has the talent to be a third-place scholar…” Madam Wen changed the subject, “it’s all uncertain until the results are announced.”

After Madam Wen finished speaking, she patted Wen Yitong's hand and whispered, "What you should be thinking about now is how to gain a foothold in the Chen family."

Wen Yitong paused: "Stand firm?"

What assets does the Chen family still have to maintain its foothold? Besides, she is the legitimate daughter of the Duke's mansion. Once she goes to the Chen family, wouldn't she become the mistress of the house?

Madam Wen glanced at her and said, "What power do you wield in the Chen family now?"

Upon hearing this, Wen Yitong looked up, her eyes filled with disbelief, before she suddenly realized what was going on.

"After I toasted her, she told me to go to the hot spring resort..." she murmured, "but she didn't give me anything."

Madam Wen sneered, "You haven't even been given the power to manage the household, yet you think you've secured a foothold in the Chen family and can have everyone's word?"

“Even though you are the legitimate daughter of the Duke’s mansion,” Madam Wen said in a deep voice, “after you get married, your husband’s family will have a hundred ways to torment you. In this dynasty, filial piety is the most important virtue. If you do not respect your mother-in-law, you will be unfilial.”

“With just the label of being unfilial, you’ll be at the mercy of others,” Madam Wen said unhappily. “What you need to do now is to take the power of managing the household from your mother-in-law.”

“Your mother-in-law is not easy to get along with.” Madam Wen said with disgust. “I saw through her true colors at the last wedding banquet. She is treacherous, stingy and mean. If you want to take over the management of the household, you will have to spend a lot of money.”

Wen Yitong frowned, but still listened to what Madam Wen said.

Seeing that her face was quite similar to her own when she was young, Madam Wen sighed softly, gently touched her face, and whispered, "Tong'er, everything your mother has done is for you. You must not... you must not let me down."

"I..." Wen Yitong hesitated, unable to finish her sentence.

She knew that what Madam Wen was still bothered by was the matter of the marriage exchange.

But how could she recount her bizarre dream?

However, after some thought, she still grasped Madam Wen's hand in return: "Mother, there is something I don't know if I should tell you."

Upon hearing this, Madam Wen's heart skipped a beat: "What is it?"

She felt that what Wen Yitong was talking about was very important.

Wen Yitong swallowed hard and said with difficulty, "The fall into the water that day was intentional on my part."

Madam Wen closed her eyes and let out a long sigh: "I know everything."

“You are my daughter, of course I know you.” Madam Wen’s expression changed and she said in a low voice, “I guessed it the day you fell into the water.”

"But..." Wen Yitong's voice trembled, "Don't you want to know why I did this?"

Madam Wen's eyes flickered slightly; her intuition told her that there must be something hidden behind this.

"You say it," Madam Wen tried to make her voice calm, "Tong'er, with me here, no one can bully you."

With tears in her eyes, Wen Yitong said, "Before making this decision, I had a dream."

“That dream…it felt so real, like I really lived a lifetime.” Wen Yitong could no longer hold back her tears as she spoke. “In that dream, I became Princess Jing, following your plan.”

“You have no idea how despicable Prince Jing is!” she said through gritted teeth. “He left the capital on our wedding night, and I became a ridiculed abandoned woman.”

"Not only that... he was also implicated in a treason case."