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

Madam Shen stared at the box on the table and said quietly, "Then it's up to their fate."

As Madam Yuan aptly put it, we owe Rong-jie an explanation.

Even if we don't have to give an explanation today, we will have to give one in the future.

These words left Granny Zhang completely bewildered.

She was secretly alarmed. How could this cousin, who had suffered so much grievance and was not valued at all when she first came to the mansion, regain her place in Madam Shen's heart after getting married?

---

Yuan Tiao Tiao returned to Mixiang Garden, first smashing a set of her favorite porcelain, and then calling Du Juan to come into the inner courtyard to keep her company.

Du Juan arrived in a hurry, and was still out of breath when she entered the room, which made her chest appear even fuller, clearly showing that she was well nourished by the autumn air.

Du Juan carefully observed Yuan Tiaotiao's expression. "Young Madam, there are two joyous occasions in the manor today. What's with this unusual irritation?"

Ignoring the beautiful scenery on Du Juan's chest, Yuan Tiaotiao deliberately scolded, "She's still from that courtyard. She's already married, and she still can't settle down."

This statement is a double entendre, referring to both Hua Sirong and Xiaoya and Fufeng.

Du Juan had already found out most of the details when she arrived, but she insisted on pretending that she knew nothing.

"Young Madam, are you perhaps referring to the cousin?"

"It was quite a scene at the front today, and I went to serve the guests. I wonder what happened that might have upset our young mistress?"

After hearing Yuan Tiaotiao's account, Dujuan also felt that the young lady was lucky, but she still spoke with a hopeful tone:

“If Miss Cousin had tried on the wedding dress that Second Miss sent yesterday, even if she didn’t wear it today, she might still have made a fool of herself during the wedding ceremony.”

Yuan Tiaotiao's hand paused slightly, a hint of joy on her face. "That medicine is really that miraculous?"

Even a tiny bit of it can cause someone to lose their composure, embarrass themselves, or become a laughingstock in public the next day.

Du Juan was speechless for a long time before finally speaking, "I heard that Miss Biao is not in good health and has been sickly all winter."

"It's possible that this medicine might be harmless to others if they smell it, but if Miss Biao smells it, it might take effect."

She used her words carefully, fearing that Yuan Tiaotiao might settle scores later.

Yuan Tiaotiao heard what she wanted to hear, and a glint of light flashed in her eyes. "Originally, she was my husband's cousin, and I was happy to see her get married and have children smoothly."

"But who told her to have such a seductive face, bewitching her own cousin so much that he's completely infatuated. I'm not trying to ruin her marriage, I'm just using a little trick to make her look bad today."

"The original idea was that after she wore the wedding dress that had been soaked in the medicine and went through the wedding ceremony at her husband's house, the medicine would take effect."

It would also be good to let her husband's relatives see her shamelessness.

"With this leverage over her, she can forget about having a good life in her husband's family. Her husband will beat and scold her, her mother-in-law will despise her, her sister-in-law will hate her, and the neighbors will laugh at her. That will be her daily life from now on."

"Just thinking about it makes me feel all the frustration in my heart disappear."

"Moreover, since such a shameful thing happened to the Jiang family, the Jiang family would have to cover it up if they didn't want to be embarrassed. It wouldn't affect the reputation of our Marquis's Mansion at all."

"Ah, it's a pity. I wonder how effective that medicine really is."

I don't expect her to lose face in front of the guests; if she can only appear a little more eager in the bridal chamber, I will thank all the gods and Buddhas for their protection.

At this moment, Du Juan dared not say a word more, wishing she were deaf and mute.

If that young lady truly didn't know the young master's feelings for her, then she had truly suffered an undeserved calamity.

Yuan Tiaotiao, perhaps comforted by Du Juan's earlier words, was no longer in as bad a mood as she had at the beginning.

So she casually mentioned the final punishment for Xiaoya and Fufeng for their poor performance.

As for Shen's offer to take Fufeng into Mixiang Garden, she couldn't refuse in front of Shen, but when it came to actually doing it, she had a hundred ways to prevent Fufeng from getting his way.

Dujuan thought of the two old stablemen in the manor who couldn't find wives; one had a leg ailment and could only wander around the stable all day.

The other one wasn't lame, but he was said to like drinking and beating his wife.

Du Juan felt her teeth chattering, but she had to try her best to control herself, for fear that Yuan Tiaotiao would find out that she, the maid who had served her since childhood, was actually afraid of her master.

After she finally overcame her fear, she advised Yuan Tiaotiao, "As far as I know, Fufeng and Xiaoya are definitely not good people."

If the young mistress is dissatisfied with them, then send them far away to the estate.

Why do you have to leave two poisonous snakes in the mansion? Aren't you afraid they'll turn on you one day?

Since her miscarriage, Yuan Tiaotiao's makeup has become increasingly sharp, but it also makes her look more dignified and less gentle.

"I don't want to be too harsh on the servants who make mistakes."

But if I show mercy this time, next time, all those servants will think I'm a weak and easy target.

"If that's the case, how am I supposed to manage my subordinates?"

"Xiaoya and Fufeng are merely stepping stones for me to establish my authority in the inner quarters."

These two were just unlucky to run into each other.

Du Juan couldn't voice her objections, so she turned her attention to other matters, "Since Xiao Ya and Fu Feng have both been married off, won't Miss Wen Hua be all-powerful in the Fragrant Garden?"

"This is very disadvantageous for you, young mistress."

Yuan Tiaotiao frowned deeply, and Du Juan took the opportunity to drop another bombshell, "Young Madam, this servant has something to say, but I don't know if I should."

Yuan Tiaotiao first looked at Du Juan unhappily, but then, as if remembering something, she affectionately pulled her up from the ground.

"Although you are married, you can no longer serve me by my side often."

But in my heart, you are the person I trust most. What could you possibly hide from me?

Du Juan then lowered her head and replied, "A couple of days ago, Qiu Yi got drunk. When I was serving him, I vaguely heard... I heard..."

Yuan Tiaotiao pressed on, "What did you hear?"

Du Juan steadied herself, closed her eyes, and said, "I heard that the young master sent people to search for beauties among the common people."

Yuan Tiaotiao was shocked. "What?"

What a bolt from the blue.

A moment later, Yuan Tiao Tiao slumped into a chair with a bitter laugh. "Heh, they say the most poisonous heart is a woman's, but the reason why a woman's heart is so poisonous is because she is driven to a dead end step by step by these stinking men."

"Dujuan, I already know about this. Remember not to give yourself away to Qiuyi."

"Furthermore, you can secretly inquire where the young master keeps those beauties. I'm not trying to stop him, just don't be blind and deaf to it."

Du Juan knelt down and kowtowed, "Young Madam, please don't worry, this servant will go and inquire again."

Furthermore, wealthy families often have a tradition of keeping beautiful maids. The young master's actions don't necessarily mean he intends to bring one into the household.

After the initial shock, Yuan Tiaotiao gradually calmed down.

As Du Juan said, the beautiful maids in wealthy families served more than just warming the bed for the male master of the house.

She definitely lost her composure just now.

Sure enough, she hadn't completely given up on He Zhizhang.