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

Wenqin quickly explained, "The spot I prepared for the Second Miss to fall into the water is not there at all."

He Zhizhu pondered for a moment, "Have you arranged for someone to secretly watch my second sister?"

Wenqin shook her head. She was busy keeping an eye on the cousin. She had only made arrangements for the second cousin, but had not asked anyone else to keep an eye on her. After all, the more people who knew, the greater the risk of exposure.

He Zhizhu pinched the bridge of her nose. "You should go back to Yimei Garden first, so that Mother won't suspect anything. I'll keep an eye on Second Sister's matter."

After Wenqin left, He Zhizhu thought of He Zhihuan's agreement to annul the engagement with the Meng family and couldn't help but chuckle. She muttered to herself, "So everyone has secrets hidden in their hearts. This is getting more and more interesting."

Second Sister used to be so afraid that Meng Silang would be snatched away by other noble ladies in the capital, but this time she so readily agreed to Grandmother's request to break off the engagement with Meng Silang.

How interesting! Could it be that Second Sister has really taken a liking to that scoundrel Xin Yucheng? Hehe, Second Sister doesn't have as much dowry as I do to support that Xin family who are sucking blood from me.

Without my blessing as the legitimate daughter of a marquis, could the Xin family have reached the same status as in their previous life?

Xin Yucheng, oh Xin Yucheng, I'm waiting to see.

In the room of the second daughter, He Zhihuan, sat a weeping middle-aged woman, none other than Aunt Ge, who had given birth to her.

Aunt Ge wiped away her tears, "Second Miss, why do you want to break off your engagement with Meng Silang? Falling into the water today wasn't your own choice."

The Meng family is a reasonable family. Meng Silang would be too embarrassed to come to their door to break off the engagement after rescuing someone from danger.

As long as the Meng family doesn't break off the engagement, we won't. After the New Year, you can marry into the Meng family and become their young mistress.

"No, I'll go beg the old lady right now to retract her order. We won't back down, absolutely not!"

He Zhihuan was already exhausted from falling into the water, and then he went to Fushoutang and learned that the lost book was the rare copy. Now he was even more physically and mentally exhausted.

Unfortunately, her aunt wasn't the kind of person who knew how to be understanding; she was now trying to get her to talk about her troubles.

But she still had to brace herself and say, "Auntie, if I told you that Xiangcao and Meng Silang have been having an affair for a long time, would you still think Meng Silang is a good choice for a husband?"

Aunt Ge was shocked and forgot to cry. "When did this happen? That wretched girl Xiangcao, she's a traitor! If I catch her, I'll skin her alive!"

Looking at her daughter's calm and indifferent eyes, she changed her tone, "However, Xiangcao is your maid, and she will be marrying into the Meng family with you anyway, so she will have to serve her husband in the future."

This was bound to happen sooner or later; just think of it as Vanilla giving you, her master, a trial marriage.

Why be so temperamental?

Why would you turn down such a wonderful marriage just for a piece of vanilla?

Aunt Ge knew she was incompetent and couldn't help He Zhihuan with her children's marriages.

It was only by virtue of the old master's good marriage arrangement that it fell to the second daughter. Her aunt, who was illiterate, thought it was a windfall and was not willing to let the second daughter give it up so easily.

She continued to persuade her, "You're still young, and all you know is to value those superficial things like love and romance. Once you have children and have a stable position in your husband's family, you'll understand that men are nothing but a fart, and for us women, the most important thing in life is to be practical and self-sufficient."

The Meng family was, after all, a large clan. As long as there was a patriarch above, the younger generation had to respect their wives, and the rights of the legitimate sons could be protected.

Who cares how many children Meng Silang raises in the future? They'll never surpass you anyway.

Besides, you still have Xiangcao's indenture in your hands, what are you afraid of? You brat, you've really given me so much trouble."

"I said, you used to fawn over Madam Zhan all the time, how come you never learned the spirit of our Second Madam?"

Look at our Second Madam, does she live off the Second Master? She only cares about your father out of politeness. Only your father, that fool, thinks Madam Zhan is generous and a good person, and he's always thinking of him.

"Hmph! If I weren't still working for the Zhan family, I would definitely go to the master and expose her hypocrisy."

He Zhihuan had found it amusing at first, but now she gave her aunt a hard time, saying, "You're getting more and more absurd. Just shut up, my dear aunt."

"You know how formidable our lady is, yet you're still shouting loudly inside, as if you're worried the house isn't drafty!"

Aunt Ge said awkwardly, "Can't I speak a little softer? You're my daughter, if I don't say this to you, who else can I say these things to?"

Besides, all I've said is so that you can live like your stepmother. The Meng family is definitely much better than that Xin family; your life will be easier if you marry into the Meng family.

"If I were to marry into the Xin family, my life might not be as carefree as that of a mere steward in our Marquis's household."

As far as she knew, many of the managers in their Marquis's mansion, after getting old, would use their spare money to buy a small house in the suburbs of the capital, hire a few maids to serve them, and in an instant, they would become old masters and old ladies, living a very comfortable life.

If He Zhihuan were to marry into the Xin family, wouldn't she instantly become their maid and money purse?

He Zhihuan knew that what Aunt Ge said made sense, but when she went to the lakeside at the banquet today and found that the messenger maid was missing, she felt that something was amiss.

But she remained calm and observed along the way, and as expected, she discovered something amiss.

She decided to play along and deliberately fell into the water.

Unfortunately, she was saved by an unknown man named Xin Yucheng, while the several high-quality men brought by her second brother missed their chance.

However, with Meng Silang following her second brother, who knows, Meng Silang might end up rescuing her from the water in the end, which would make her suffer for nothing!

He Zhihuan, lost in thought, comforted Aunt Ge, "Aunt, please don't be sad for me, or you'll hurt yourself. I don't feel any regret at all that we were able to break off the engagement smoothly with Meng Silang."

You don't need to try to persuade me anymore. Besides, this is Grandmother's wish, and I can't go against her wishes.

As for Xin Yucheng's character, I'll ask my second brother to inquire about him carefully. If Xin Yucheng is worthy of my marriage, then I will marry him.

Aunt Ge glared at her, "Have you lost your mind?"

He Zhihuan retorted without backing down, "I must have lost my mind. Did I fill a bucket with water in the lake today?"

She couldn't help but laugh after saying that, and she took Aunt Ge's hand, "Auntie, I'm perfectly sober."

My elder brother, the Crown Prince, said that Xin Yucheng has the talent to be ranked among the top three. With the Marquis's mansion behind me, I believe Xin Yucheng can truly be among the top three. I don't believe my future will be any worse.

It was certainly tough at the beginning, but having lived in the Marquis's mansion for over ten years, looking back, besides having enough to eat and wear, how much happiness could I possibly have?

Aunt Ge knew the suffering of her illegitimate daughter and dared not say anything more.