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

"Oh? With your half-baked skills, you're actually offering critiques? Don't let our second young lady hear you, or she'll be furious with you." Madam Shen assumed it was the second young lady's handwriting, hence her comment.

"I am telling the truth. I would say the same thing in front of the Second Miss." Wenqin adjusted her mindset and was now able to answer Shen Shi fluently.

"Is there anything else to say?"

"The Second Miss and the Cousin seem to have a good relationship. I arrived late yesterday, but the Second Miss went straight there after seeing off the guest of honor at the manor."

According to Granny Wang from Qingwu Courtyard, Miss Cousin was the last to receive the copy; the other young ladies in the manor received theirs much earlier. Only Miss Cousin received hers personally from the Second Young Lady. "Although it was delivered late, it showed all the importance placed upon it."

"Hmm." Madam Shen rinsed her mouth with the fragrant tea and skipped the matter. "I was worried that Rong'er wouldn't have any playmates at home. Now that Er Ya has something to talk to her about, I, as an elder, am relieved."

After Lady Shen, the wife of the Marquis, went to Fushou Hall, Lady Zhan still had a lot to say to her.

"Good morning, sister-in-law. You're here so early today." Madam Zhan and Madam Jin had come to the old lady's courtyard on official business, but they didn't come as early or as often as before.

The three sisters-in-law were gathered together now, so naturally they had a lot to talk about.

"Second sister-in-law and third sister-in-law, thank you for helping me manage the household. The old lady is kind, you don't need to come so early every day, please take good care of yourselves."

The old lady looked at the second and third sons' families, who were managing the household together without any problems, and felt relieved. She smiled and said, "Your eldest sister-in-law is right. All three of you are the same, worrying about our Marquis's mansion. You should take care of yourselves."

"I have plenty of servants here, a few more won't make a difference. I know your filial piety is enough. We don't bother with those formalities for outsiders behind closed doors."

"The old lady dotes on us, and none of us daughters-in-law would refuse her." Madam Shen led the way in bowing.

After chatting about household matters for a while, Madam Zhan began to talk about the Second Miss sending the book.

It is said that the young ladies in the manor who obtained this book all wished they could hide it away and keep it safe.

It was only because the eldest daughter mentioned on her return visit that the book had won her husband's favor, as if it were some kind of intimate pleasure in the boudoir, that the younger sisters, who had also received good books, dared not openly mention them.

Therefore, this was the first time the old lady had heard about this matter. She frowned and said, "Why did Second Sister think of sending books? What kind of books are they? They're so good that each maid gets a copy. She's so generous."

Madam Shen cursed Madam Zhan for being nosy; those benefits still went to her second branch of the family.

She replied with a forced smile, "In response to Mother, it was when the eldest daughter got married that she went to her second sister to ask for a copy of the rare book that the old Marquis left for the second daughter."

As you know, the Zhuang family's son, after all, passed the county-level imperial examination and will eventually pursue the imperial examinations. So, the eldest daughter, wanting to curry favor with him, asked her younger sister for help.

The old lady listened without saying a word.

Madam Shen had no choice but to continue, “That day when the eldest maid returned home, the sisters were chatting and laughing in the warm pavilion, and they started talking about this matter.”

Because of the book, the eldest maid and the young master of the Zhuang family had a harmonious marriage, and she wanted to thank her second sister in person. When the other maids heard this, they all wanted to ask their second sister for a copy. That's how the rest of the story happened.

The old lady nodded slightly. "Second daughter is a good girl. Chanjuan, go to my trunk later and find that set of ruby ​​jewelry and give it to Second Miss. She suffered a loss, and as her elder, I should make it up to her."

After saying that, she looked at her three sisters-in-law, glancing past Shen Shi whose expression had changed slightly, and said to Zhan Shi with a kind smile, "Second sister-in-law, you know how to teach children. Second daughter is such a good child because she doesn't hold back her knowledge."

Madam Zhan stood up, bowed to the old lady, but did not reply.

This matter also involves the ownership of a rare copy, and she was worried that things might change later, so she dared not take credit in front of the old lady.

Besides, the old lady is shrewd and experienced; she might have already seen through her little scheme.

When this matter was brought up today, it was only mentioned casually to avoid incurring open resentment, especially from Madam Shen. But she was unwilling to swallow this bitter pill.

She had even secretly planned to use it as part of the fourth daughter's dowry.

If this comes up again later, she'll have something to say.

The old Marquis found a rare book for his granddaughter. There were several granddaughters in the second wife's family, but who said it had to be the second daughter? Why give it to a concubine's daughter instead of a legitimate one? It's just a rumor that's been spread incorrectly.

Three men can make a tiger; if we find more people and spend more money, we can get this done.

But now that Madam Shen has interfered, she, as the second wife, is naturally inferior to her in the household and has no choice but to accept this loss.

Jin also chimed in, "Second sister-in-law, I also have to thank you on behalf of my two girls." In the future, with the fame of this book, the marriages of young ladies might be a bit smoother.

At the opportune moment, Madam Zhan shifted the blame, saying, "It's all thanks to my eldest sister-in-law's excellent teaching. If it weren't for the eldest daughter bringing this up, that blockhead of a second daughter wouldn't have remembered it either, and naturally, none of the sisters would have been able to benefit from it later."

Jin, that simpleton, actually thanked Shen, but the old lady, being wise and experienced, saw through the unusual nature of the situation.

After sending the other two away, the old lady kept Shen Shi behind to talk.

As soon as Jin left the courtyard, she whispered to Zhan, "The old lady is really something. She always has to talk to my sister-in-law about this and that in private. Are there things in this mansion that the two of us can't know? She's really being biased."

Madam Zhan sighed, not wanting to admit she knew this shallow-minded person. She pinched Madam Jin with a sharp pinch, "Shut up! As for Huan'er giving you the book, your family benefited, so shut up and don't go around bragging about it."

Madam Jin wasn't truly foolish; after all, she had been in the Marquis's mansion for so many years. "Second sister-in-law, could there be some hidden secret in this?"

"Don't worry about it, don't ask, don't say anything." After saying that, Madam Zhan left Madam Jin behind.

Jin was left there, holding out a beckoning cat's hand, awkwardly standing there for a long time.

Fushou Hall

"Mrs. Shen, don't you have an explanation for me?" The old lady's face was no longer filled with the kind smile she had before.

Madam Shen sat motionless in her seat. After a long silence, she slowly spoke, "Mother, why did Father, who had found that rare and priceless book that was so highly sought after, leave it to a maid from the second branch of the family?"

"At that time, my son Zhang was already showing great promise. As the heir apparent, the future Marquis of Muqing, how could he not be worthy of being the new owner of that book?"

Mother, do you know why?

Even if my father's last words were that this book should only be left to his granddaughter who could read, my daughter Zhu'er is still young. How can you assume that she is inferior to her older sister?

"You and the Marquis made the decision long ago, deciding on the ownership of this unique book as soon as Er Yatou began to show her talent. My Zhu'er didn't even have a chance to compete fairly."