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

The old lady didn't mention herself or the Marquis's mansion; she simply shifted the blame onto Madam Shen.

Shen paused slightly, but her words carried a hint of unease: "The innocent are innocent, and I am not afraid of outsiders' opinions."

Suddenly, Madam Shen changed her tone, "Actually, there is another way, which is to make the trunks more compact, so that the dowry procession will look shorter."

On the contrary, if the chests and trunks are packed more loosely, doesn't the dowry procession look better?

The old lady and Madam Zhan instantly understood Madam Shen's intention. Madam Zhan retorted, "What if someone tries to open the chests and boxes to look inside? Wouldn't we be exposed immediately?"

Wouldn't the Marquis's reputation be even worse then?

Jin said, "Our Marquis's mansion is so big, when the two young ladies get married, they won't use the same gate, right?"

Everyone looked at Madam Jin, who continued, "The Second Miss is the mistress of our household, so naturally she should leave through the main gate."

Rong is a cousin. Logically speaking, if her family owns property in the capital, she can marry out of her own home.

However, our Marquis's household is benevolent; it is acceptable to arrange for her to marry through a side branch.

The old lady and Madam Zhan fell silent. Madam Shen's face was somber. "When the Jiang family proposed marriage and presented betrothal gifts, Master Jiang always accompanied them, and each time they visited our Muqing Marquis's residence."

"When Ke Rong got married, we told her to take the side door. Isn't that inappropriate?"

Jin rolled her eyes and shook her head, "What's wrong with that?"

To put it bluntly, she's not a proper young lady in our household. To allow a girl still in mourning to marry into our Marquis's mansion is already an immense blessing.

Shen could not say that Jin was wrong, but her and He Zhizhang's original intention was not to win over Hua Sirong, but only to help the Marquis's mansion in a critical moment.

Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, Ms. Shen was unwilling to develop a clear rift with Hua Sirong.

Finally, under the old lady's aggressive gaze, she still didn't agree immediately. "There are still several days until the first day of the second lunar month. I'll go back and think about it carefully, and I'll give you an answer later."

After saying that, ignoring the old lady's angry gaze, she hurriedly left Fushou Hall and sent a maid to the front yard to find He Zhizhang.

As evening approached, He Zhizhang finished his official duties and, upon hearing that Madam Shen had important matters to discuss, hurriedly went to Yimei Garden.

After hearing Shen's words, He Zhizhang was so shocked that he couldn't speak for a long time. "Why did the Xin family suddenly come to ask for the wedding date?"

Ms. Shen shook her head irritably, "I don't know."

I suspect that either Er Ya's aunt is pulling strings behind the scenes, or the Xin family mother and son are also plotting the same thing, trying to get Er Ya to bring more dowry to the Xin family.

He Zhizhang was shocked. "No way?"

Shen snorted, "You've been living in a wealthy family since you were a child, where have you ever seen those common people?"

Their schemes were impossible to guard against, and the second daughter was also foolish; swayed by her aunt, she defied her stepmother and agreed to the wedding date herself.

“I think she was quite intelligent when she was engaged to Meng Silang.”

But now, for some reason, the more I look at it, the more confused I get.

“If she goes to the Xin family in the future, I think she will be completely manipulated by the Xin mother and son.”

He Zhizhang frowned. He originally wanted to marry off a younger sister so that he could keep an eye on the Xin family and have Xin Yucheng serve the Marquis's mansion in the future.

Who would have thought it would turn out like this!

"Or, should I go and have a proper talk with my second sister?"

Shen stopped He Zhizhang with a look in her eyes, "I think Er Yatou is already confused. What's the use of you trying to persuade her now?"

"You don't want people to think you're protecting your cousin, that's why you're neglecting your other cousin."

He Zhizhang had a headache. "My second sister has always been intelligent. If we just watch her make a fool of herself, she won't be able to take charge of the Xin family in the future. What's the point of marrying her into the family then?"

To lose a potential marriage partner for nothing.

After much consideration, He Zhihuan's marriage was a done deal, and He Zhizhang made the decision directly: "Mother, let's prepare the same dowry as my eldest sister. It won't cost much more money."

All things considered, she and her cousin Rong were getting married on the same day, so it wouldn't look too bad on the surface.

If one side were to act a little more compact and the other a little more loose, the matter would be resolved on the surface.

Madam Shen was displeased. "Our three branches of the family have long since separated, and on the surface, we haven't shortchanged the second and third branches in the slightest."

Furthermore, over the years, because the old lady was still alive, both of their families had been living and spending money at the mansion. To put it bluntly, our eldest son's family had been supporting both of them for free.

"If we set a precedent with the second girl today, what about the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and eighth girls? Will they also try to find ways to take things from us?"

Shen Shi diligently managed the Marquis's mansion her whole life, and even shamelessly pocketed money from Hua Sirong. Who was she doing this for?

It was all for the sake of He Zhizhang and He Zhizhu, the two siblings.

If not a single penny of the Marquis's mansion's money is spent on the two children she gave birth to, her heart bleeds.

How could He Zhizhang not know what Shen was thinking?

But they were all family, brothers and sisters, and He Zhizhang didn't want to worry about every little bit of gain or loss.

Shen: "Alright, alright, you're so generous."

"I can't be bothered with it anymore. Anyway, this manor will belong to you and Yuan Shi from now on. Whether you're poor or rich, don't blame anyone else."

He Zhizhang whispered a few kind words to please Madam Shen.

Since Madam Shen was willing to contribute money and effort to support the Second Miss, the Old Madam and others had no objection to Hua Sirong's marriage through the main gate.

Granny Yan listened to Granny Zhang for a long time about the huge sacrifices Shen made to ensure Hua Sirong's smooth marriage, and how much she suffered at the hands of the old lady.

To express her gratitude, Granny Yan insisted on giving Granny Zhang a large ingot of silver.

With the major matter settled, everyone in Qingwu Courtyard felt relieved.

In the days that followed, the people from Qingwuyuan were busy making shoes, socks, and handkerchiefs.

Although Hua Sirong had money to buy things from outside, she was ultimately going to be someone's wife, so she still needed to make some things herself to show her virtuousness.

Xiaoya and Fufeng were also assigned tasks.

However, as Hua Sirong's wedding date approached, the two of them became increasingly anxious.

Their indentures were not in Hua Sirong's possession, and they were unsure whether Hua Sirong would take them with her when she got married.

If we don't take them with us, we don't know what their future holds.

However, the two women were somewhat worried if Hua Sirong wanted to take them along.

After all, the Jiang family was just a small, ordinary family in the city. If you went to their house, you might end up sleeping in the woodshed.

Even if these two women were incredibly bold, they wouldn't want to seduce a commoner.

If you have that ambition, you might as well stay in the Marquis's mansion. At least any eligible young master there is a son of the Marquis, which is several classes above those commoners outside.