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

After Yuan Tiaotiao saw He Zhizhang off, she changed into her going-out clothes with the help of Du Juan and Wen Hua. She still had to rush to Yi Mei Garden to serve Madam Shen.

Whether it was her imagination or not, she felt that Wenqin, who was by Shen's side, had been unusually warm towards her, the young mistress, these days.

Perhaps her blind infatuation with He Zhizhang had gradually cooled down, and today she actually had the mind to secretly observe Wenqin.

She realized how incredibly stupid she had been; Wenqin's ulterior motives towards He Zhizhang were so obvious.

She could have ignored it so completely before; love really does make people blind and insensitive.

On the way back to Mixiang Garden, Yuan Tiaotiao kept thinking about one thing: should she take Wenqin from Shen's courtyard?

Can asking about music and painting achieve the goal of the fisherman profiting from the conflict between the snipe and the clam?

She asked Dujuan, who disagreed, saying, "I'm afraid we'll be inviting trouble."

Yuan Tiaotiao was also worried, "Wenqin doesn't seem like someone to be trifled with, but in the entire Marquis's mansion, besides Wenqin, I can't think of anyone else who can keep Wenhua in check?"

Du Juan whispered, "Miss Wenhua seems to have a gentle nature; she shouldn't be doing anything to harm you behind your back."

Your most urgent task right now is to get pregnant with the young master's child as soon as possible and give birth to a legitimate son.

"Once you have a legitimate son, the Lady of the Marquis won't be spending all her energy on the young master's harem anymore."

Du Juan's words made sense. Yuan Tiaotiao couldn't help but touch her lower abdomen, hoping that the little one had already taken root and sprouted inside her.

"By the way, has the medicine been delivered to Wenhua on time?" Yuan Tiaotiao was referring to the contraceptive soup. Whenever Wenhua served He Zhizhang, she had to take the contraceptive soup afterwards.

Du Juan thought of the scenes of watching Wen Hua drink the contraceptive soup every time, and felt glad that she hadn't been out of her mind that day and agreed to be a concubine. "The main kitchen would send it over early every morning, and I watched her drink it every time."

In fact, Wen Hua always readily agreed to drink the contraceptive soup. In her heart, Du Juan felt a mixture of liking and sympathy for this girl, Wen Hua.

Yuan Tiaotiao was relieved. "We're new here, and many people in this mansion are unusable. I only have a few trusted confidants like you to rely on."

After thinking about it, she became a little uneasy again, "Could the medicine sent from the main kitchen be fake?"

After all, Wen Hua was a servant born into the Marquis's household; it's entirely possible he secretly bribed the person in the main kitchen to prepare the medicine, and even replaced it with medicine meant for repairing a fetus.

Du Juan felt that her young lady had been somewhat obsessed lately; the scenes of her wits and courage in the Duke's mansion with her stepmother and stepsister seemed to be an illusion.

All she could do was to fulfill her duty as a maid. "Don't worry, it's not just us at Mixiang Garden who need to take contraceptive soup every day in this Marquis's mansion."

The head kitchen wouldn't dare to cheat, and besides, the Lady of the Marquis is in charge of the household now; she wouldn't allow such a mistake to happen in the head kitchen.

To appease Yuan Tiaotiao, she even whispered a secret: "When I was in the Duke's mansion, I heard the old women there say that the purchasing staff in the main kitchen often used inferior goods to make money."

Just like the contraceptive soup that women in the inner quarters drink, it might have come from brothels. That kind of medicine is very harmful to the body; if you drink it for a while, it might be difficult to conceive again.

Yuan Tiaotiao focused on Du Juan's last question, "Really?"

Du Juan nodded affirmatively; this was a common occurrence in large families.

Unless it's the mistress of the house or a particularly favored concubine who needs contraception, the household generally wouldn't personally invite a doctor to prescribe a remedy.

The cheapest and most effective mass-produced drugs circulating outside are those commonly used by prostitutes, but they are also the most harmful to the body.

Looking out at the shimmering lake, Yuan Tiaotiao couldn't help but sigh, "I really need to have a baby soon."

Upon hearing this, Du Juan breathed a sigh of relief and smiled even more sincerely, "You're right to think that way."

Yuan Tiaotiao seemed to have truly figured things out, and when the topic of finding a concubine for He Zhizhang was brought up again, her expression remained calm and composed.

“I said today that I would choose two more maids for my husband, and I cannot go back on my word.”

"Dujuan, should I find someone directly from within the manor, or should I hire a human broker to buy someone from outside?"

Du Juan thought about it carefully and realized that there were advantages to both sides. "When choosing people from the manor, they are usually born into the family and their backgrounds are known to everyone. Even if they are arrogant, they will still have to be wary."

The advantage of buying people from outside the household is that you have the indenture in your hands. But we don't know their background, and we're afraid of buying a troublemaker.

Yuan Tiaotiao moved forward slowly, saying, "Haste makes waste. I can't find a suitable candidate right now, so I can only ask my husband to make do for a few days."

Du Juan remained silent, following quietly behind Yuan Tiaotiao.

For the next two weeks, Wen Hua spent most of her time serving He Zhizhang. Now, she felt nauseous at the sight of the contraceptive soup, but she had no choice but to drink it and dared not utter a single complaint.

When He Zhizhang arrived, she dared not turn him away. Every day, she had to carefully serve Yuan Tiaotiao, lest something go wrong.

The young ladies in Yimei Garden thought she had come to Mixiang Garden to enjoy a life of luxury, but little did they know the hardships she endured.

She secretly vowed to herself, "No, I can't go on like this anymore. This contraceptive soup is no good at all."

"If I keep drinking, I'll end up like those old concubines in the manor, childless and alone, living a life worse than pigs and dogs in my old age."

Coincidentally, Wenqin came to Mixiang Garden looking for her again. After a few sarcastic remarks, Wenhua couldn't help but ask her, "Are you really that eager to warm our master's bed?"

Wenqin glared at her, "Having grown accustomed to the proper and polite young master, do you think I'd ever be interested in those peasants again?"

After a moment of thought, Wen Hua said, "If you are really determined to follow the young master, I can help you out of consideration for our sisterhood. I just hope you won't regret it later."

Wenqin's face instantly flushed with shyness, "How could I regret becoming the young master's woman?"

You have no idea how many maids in Yimei Garden secretly envy you.

I refuse to believe that when the young master holds you in his arms to sleep at night, you don't feel a single secret joy inside.

Wen Hua slapped Wen Qin in an annoyed tone, "What nonsense are you talking about? You're not even married yet!"

Wenqin still relies on Wenhua, so naturally she does whatever Wenhua says and tries her best to curry favor with her.

That night, Wenqin was successfully slept with by He Zhizhang.

Afterwards, He Zhizhang personally went to the Shen family to demand the person back, and Yuan Tiaotiao was the last to know.

"I was thinking of getting Wenqin so that the two of them would compete and fight over her."

Haha, who knew those two would plot something like this behind my back?

"That's really something, everyone thought I was some kind of clay idol easy to bully."

Du Juan gently massaged Yuan Tiaotiao's shoulders, and through the curtain, glanced at Wenqin and Wenhua, who were still kneeling in the corridor.

She whispered, "I've inquired and found out that the two sisters were catching up last night. Miss Wenqin got drunk and stayed at Miss Wenhua's room."