The cousin's family is extremely wealthy; she deserves to be a concubine.

If you want to hear her opinion on Miss Biao, Granny Zhang has a lot to say: "Today, when I paid my respects to Miss Biao, she was still polite and gave this old servant some face by returning half of her greeting."

However, when Miss Biao served tea to this old servant, it went a bit too far. In reality, it was just a casual refill of tea, but the way Granny Zhang described it made it sound different.

“Girls from merchant families, even if they are adorned with gold and silver from a young age, are inherently uncouth.” The Lady of the Marquis was in a good mood at the moment.

Even when she was still living in the Shen family, she didn't like going out with her third sister who had died young. But since her third sister's aunt had died early, her mother, as the legal mother, had no choice but to take her in and raise her.

Having figured out the lady's attitude, Granny Zhang spoke more boldly, "That's right, this old servant thinks that Miss and her two servants really have no manners whatsoever."

However, Miss Biao is indeed quite beautiful. "There are quite a few eligible young men in the manor; we mustn't let this little vixen from the outside take advantage of us."

"Oh~ even prettier than our sixth young lady?" The sixth young lady's birth mother, Aunt Shui, was a courtesan and the most favored concubine of the Marquis of Muqing. She was also the most beautiful woman in the entire backyard of the Marquis of Muqing's mansion.

When she was still a young woman, she had a younger sister to compare herself to; after marrying into the Marquis's household, she had a concubine to compare herself to. To be honest, the Marquis's wife didn't have a good impression of beautiful women.

However, now that it was the younger generation's turn, she became somewhat interested in this unfamiliar niece with an overly vibrant appearance.

"Yes, she is even more beautiful than the Sixth Miss, but her overall demeanor cannot compare to that of the young ladies in the manor. After all, the young ladies in our family are all taught by the Madam, how can other people's young ladies compare?" Granny Zhang flattered the Madam of the Marquis.

"If she's really as beautiful as the old woman says, it's no wonder her family didn't teach her proper manners. No wonder her uncle from the same clan wanted to take her as a concubine. Her only use is her face." Wenqin suddenly said this. She actually knew that the madam intended to betroth the sixth young lady to a noble family as a concubine.

The Marquis's mansion is already a high-ranking family. The only family higher than the Marquis's mansion is the royal family. It is acceptable to send a concubine's daughter from the Marquis's mansion to be a concubine. Who knows, she might have great fortune in the future.

However, it seems that the sixth young lady's aunt has other plans. Aunt Shui is favored by the Marquis, and the lady's insistence on making the sixth young lady a concubine may damage the relationship between the couple.

So, what a coincidence, a cousin came along. Even if the plan with the sixth cousin fell through, there's still a substitute.

When Lady Hou heard Wenqin's words, she smiled and praised her, "You are a good one."

"It's a pity that Miss Biao is in mourning and has to observe three years of mourning for her father. She is already sixteen years old this year, and in three years, she will be almost twenty. I'm afraid that marriage will be difficult then." Granny Zhang knew Wenqin's plans, but Miss Biao's calculations were not easy to come by.

She was also reminding her wife that her cousin's fate was to bring misfortune to her family, so even if they were to make plans, they should be cautious.

"It's certain that the marriage will be difficult. My cousin lost her mother at a young age and has now lost her father. To put it bluntly, good families might think that my cousin is unlucky." To be even more harsh, they might say she's bringing bad luck to her family.

Wenqin was also surprised to realize that she had indeed thought it wrong. Even a concubine in the royal family had to be careful about the fact that her cousin's parents were dead.

It was a close call that I almost caused trouble for my wife.

Lady Hou casually poured a cup of tea for Granny Zhang.

She didn't openly praise Granny Zhang, nor did she give Wenqin a hard time for saying the wrong thing. She just teased her, saying, "She hasn't even arrived yet, and you two are already worrying about her."

When Miss Cousin arrives at the manor, we might as well assign the two of you to serve her. As for the matter of Miss Cousin being betrothed to a nobleman, she neither said yes nor no; we'll only know for sure once we meet him.

"This old servant has served Madam my whole life, and I will only ever serve Madam in this lifetime." Granny Zhang was the first to express her loyalty. Even if a new master were to be chosen, it would be the Seventh Miss of the manor; no one else would be worthy.

Wenqin even went so far as to act coquettishly, "Is Madam going to have a cousin who is as beautiful as a fairy? Does she look down on someone as shameless as me? I don't care, I'm definitely sticking with Madam for the rest of my life."

Even if they were to change masters, it would be someone who serves the deceased prince, not some concubine's daughter.

"Alright, alright, I know you're loyal. I'm used to using you all. If I were to let you go to serve other people, I, your wife, would definitely be the first to feel unhappy."

"When Miss Cousin arrives, you all better watch your mouths and refrain from saying anything about whether she's blessed or not. If Miss Cousin's parents were still alive, would she have had the opportunity to stay at our Marquis's residence? Does it sound better to say she's a daughter of the merchant Hua family, or to say she's a cousin of the Marquis's residence?"

Wenqin and Granny Zhang lowered their heads and remained silent, only thinking to themselves, "If Madam says that, then it's good that Miss Biao's parents are dead? Otherwise, how would they have had the chance to live in the Marquis's mansion?"

Before the two of them could think any further, the voice of the Lady of the Marquis came again.

"Besides, how could we possibly know the Emperor's preferences? Anyone who has the ability to catch his eye, even if they are a widow remarrying, will be very fortunate." Apart from the seventh daughter born to Lady Shen herself, she valued the interests of the other maids more.

"Yes, we've got it." Wenqin and Granny Zhang both replied, their master's thoughts were truly hard to fathom.

However, the most particular people in this world are the royal family, and the least particular are also the royal family. The common people can only watch helplessly.

The following day, when Lady Hou went to pay her respects to the matriarch of the household, she mentioned that she wanted to bring her half-sister's daughter from her maternal family to stay at her residence temporarily. Of course, such an important matter as wearing mourning clothes required prior consultation with the matriarch.

"You are a good person. Back then, many ladies of equal social standing wanted to marry into our family, but I chose you because I liked your kind heart and your harmonious relationship with the sisters in your family." The old lady felt that she had a good eye. Over the years, the Marquis's family had kept a low profile and avoided attracting attention, and their lives had been stable and smooth.

The Marquis has no shortage of offspring. Although he only has two sons, she knows that Madam Shen did not tamper with the issue of having children.

Her son, Zhang Ge'er, seems to be more promising than his father, and the family will be wealthy for another two or three generations without any problem.

It was a source of great joy for everyone that Lady Shen, the daughter of a minor official of the sixth rank, became the mistress of the Marquis's household.

However, Ms. Shen, the person involved, did not like to hear others mention her background again and again.

Over the years, relying on the influence of the Marquis's mansion, she has ruthlessly promoted her own family members. Now, when people talk about the Shen family, they are referring to Master Shen, the Director of Studies at the Imperial Academy.

Once the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy retires, her elder brother, Master Shen, is expected to be promoted again, reaching the third rank, which should not be underestimated.

However, in the entire Marquis's mansion, apart from the old lady, who would dare to make a veiled reference to a minor official of the sixth rank in front of her, the lady of the house?