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

"Hmph! If Jin Yaoyao hadn't interfered today, Zeng Ke might have won the beauty's heart. What a pity!"

However, several things have happened in our household today. Although my cousin's innocence remains, her tarnished reputation will surely spread throughout the capital.

Shen was taken aback. "Is this your purpose?"

He Zhizhu smiled and said, "Yes, it's such a pity that we couldn't ruin her in front of everyone this time."

Ms. Shen exclaimed in disbelief, "Zhuzhu, how did you become like this..."

He Zhizhu chimed in, "Have you become so repulsive?"

Seeing Shen shake her head, He Zhizhu chuckled, "Let's talk about Second Sister's matter first. I was actually helping her. The Meng family is a pit of fire. Second Sister won't be happy marrying Meng Silang. I was saving my own sister's life."

Madam Shen couldn't believe it. "Zhuzhu, do you know anything?" What exactly happened to Er Yatou after she married into the Meng family in her past life? Could she have lost her life?

He Zhizhu: "After my second sister married into the Meng family, she became pregnant very quickly. However, during her ten months of pregnancy, she and her unborn child died at the time of delivery."

Madam Shen was getting restless. After all, he was a child she had watched grow up. Even though there was a distance between them, there was still some genuine affection between them.

"But your second sister is going to get married eventually. We know that her pregnancy is not going well, so we try to make her get pregnant later, or find a good imperial physician or a skilled midwife."

Why would you want to ruin this marriage with the Meng family?

You need to understand that your second sister isn't you. She's just an illegitimate child born to a concubine in the Marquis's household. She's only pretty; finding someone like Meng Silang in the capital is difficult."

Seeing that Madam Shen was only blaming her for ruining her second sister's marriage, He Zhizhu thought for a while and decided to reveal some of the truth to Madam Shen.

“My daughter suspects that the Meng family is hiding a secret that concerns the life and death of the family. As long as we are not related to the Meng family by marriage, if something happens to their family, it will not affect us.”

Madam Shen was shocked: "What secret?"

He Zhizhu shook her head, looking confused. "I don't know the specifics either."

In my past life, after I became a wandering ghost, my initial activity area was limited to the vicinity of my cousin's house. The information I could know each day was also limited, mostly trivial matters from the neighbors.

Later, my cousin went to the palace. Because the palace had a dragon aura, I, a ghost, dared not approach it. But my range of activities was no longer limited to my cousin's old home.

During my time wandering the capital, I witnessed the execution of the entire Meng family for treason.

Shen was so shocked that her mouth could have fit a goose egg. "My God!"

But upon further reflection, it seemed a bit off. "The Meng family is now on the path of civil officials, so how could they be labeled with such a serious accusation?"

"If his family had a high-ranking general guarding the border, I might believe it." "A civil official, how can he rebel? He can't just talk the talk."

He Zhizhu: "I don't know the specifics. Although our whole family was exiled, we still had a chance to return to the capital if there was a general amnesty."

But because of the Meng family's affairs, and because my second sister married into the Meng family, the two families are related by marriage. Even if someone from our family survives to reach the place of exile, they can forget about ever turning their lives around.

"Therefore, for the sake of the future of the Marquis's mansion, we must prepare for the worst. Even if we are exiled one day, we must leave a way out for our descendants."

The first priority is to sever ties with the Meng family.

Madam Shen couldn't bear to hear about things like confiscating property and exile, and felt a little panicked. "You shouldn't keep such a big matter to yourself. We should talk to the old lady and the marquis about what to do."

He Zhizhu interrupted her, "But the marriage with the Meng family was arranged when my grandfather was alive. Even my grandmother cannot easily make the two families break off the engagement."

"Besides, today is my brother's wedding. Even if I schemed against my second sister, I believe no one would think of targeting us."

Shen hesitated for a moment, then finally spoke, “There are many talented young men at the banquet, why did you choose Xin Yucheng?” Any one of them would be better than a pit of fire like Xin Yucheng.

He Zhizhu chuckled, "Mother, you usually only care about me and my brother, and I've never seen you care about any of your sisters like this. Why are you defending Second Sister today?"

Madam Shen: "Your second sister has called me aunt for so many years. Although I can't stand others taking advantage of you and your brother, I still have some kindness in me and know that it's not easy for a woman to get married."

Provided they don't jeopardize your interests, I sincerely hope they can find a good home.

He Zhizhu: "My mother is very good. I also had a kind heart in my past life, but in the end I died without a burial place."

In this life, my abilities are limited; I only need to take care of the few of us. As for the others, I'll save as many as I can. I can't possibly worry about the happiness of anyone else.

"Besides, my brother and I discussed and selected Xin Yucheng after comprehensive consideration."

If Meng Silang had any sense of decency, he would have called his elders to come and break off the engagement when his second sister was embraced by a stranger in public.

If my second sister likes Xin Yucheng after the engagement is broken off, then she can marry him.

If we don't like him, Xin Yucheng is just a poor scholar. We can easily offer him some benefits, and who knows, we might be able to find a suitable match for my second sister to marry in another place.

Mother, don't you think our plan is a good one?

Madam Shen nodded in satisfaction, "That's more like it. In life and in business, you should always leave room for others, and also for yourself."

He Zhizhu breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that her mother was no longer pursuing the matter.

She never mentioned that she and her brother had planned to matchmake their second sister with Xin Yucheng.

Her brother wanted to win over this promising young man, while she wanted to get rid of Xin Yucheng completely.

Then, it would be even better if Xin Yucheng could marry one of the other sisters in the family.

He Zhizhu then brought up Hua Sirong's matter, "As for Cousin Rong's matter, I was just going with the flow. Who told her to be so determined and not on our side?"

If she had agreed to become my concubine and help me secure my favor, I wouldn't have resorted to such scheming against her.

Shen was speechless for a moment. "Zeng Ke is not a good match." After all, she was her third sister's child. Although the sisters in the large family were not close, Shen would sometimes soften her heart.