The mistress has no feelings, why do you provoke her?

The next day, Gu Huaizhou received orders to go to Qingzhou on official business.

A murder has occurred there, and the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review is going to investigate the case, requiring Gu Huaizhou to lead the team and accompany him.

They said they were accompanying someone, but they were really just acting as bodyguards.

Since being demoted to the position of Commander of the Garrison, Gu Huaizhou has been depressed and unhappy.

He thought his career prospects were hopeless, but unexpectedly, things took a turn for the better.

Lady Xue, the wife of the Minister of Justice, was on good terms with Song Wenjun. It is likely that she went to great lengths to secure this opportunity for him.

If the case goes smoothly, he will also be rewarded.

Gu Huaizhou thought for a moment and realized that he still needed to properly appease Song Wenjun.

But he was beaten up yesterday and he can't bring himself to do it.

After much deliberation, he personally bought a valuable piece of jewelry, put it in a box, and had the housekeeper deliver it to Song Wenjun.

The steward beamed with joy. He knew he would be rewarded by Song Wenjun for this wonderful job, and he told everyone he met, "The Marquis treats his wife so well. He bought her expensive jewelry because he was worried that she would be sad when he went on a business trip. She will surely be happy to see it."

Before long, the entire Marquis's mansion knew that Gu Huaizhou had given the young mistress a gift.

Jiang Miaoyin hadn't heard about it; she saw it with her own eyes in the courtyard.

A lacquered red box with peony scrolls painted in gold lacquer alone costs ten taels of silver, and the contents inside must be incredibly valuable.

Disappointment flashed in her eyes, and her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

Yesterday she went to Gu Huaizhou to ask him for a solution, but Gu Huaizhou made excuses, saying that the solution was already being implemented and that soon the old Marquis would be bedridden, and the entire Marquis's mansion would fall into his hands.

But Jiang Miaoyin clearly saw the old Marquis practicing boxing in the courtyard, his movements powerful and vigorous.

His physique was so robust that even young people were envious.

Gu Huaizhou was simply deceiving himself.

In a fit of emotion, Jiang Miaoyin pulled out a knife and demanded of him, "Do you want to go with her?"

Gu Huaizhou remained unmoved and declared, "If you have the guts, then slit your own throat. I want to see if you have the courage."

From that moment on, Jiang Miaoyin's heart turned completely cold.

She sacrificed so much for Gu Huaizhou, yet he was so heartless.

Jiang Miaoyin couldn't sleep all night after thinking it over. She just couldn't bring herself to be completely ruthless towards Gu Huaizhou. She convinced herself that it was because she had pushed him too hard that Gu Huaizhou said hurtful things to her.

Jiang Miaoyin didn't want to break ties with Gu Huaizhou, so she could only lower her head and look for him.

But then she stumbled upon Gu Huaizhou giving Song Wenjun a gift, which was incredibly ironic.

"As expected of the proper young mistress of the Marquis's mansion, the Marquis is very generous. I heard that the jewelry was custom-made for the young mistress by the Marquis a long time ago, and he waited for half a year. Such a precious item is really tempting."

Xue Qingwan had no idea what was in the box, but she was willing to make up anything that could hurt Jiang Miaoyin.

"What are you so smug about? If it's not for me, it's not for you either," Jiang Miaoyin scoffed disdainfully.

Xue Qingwan adjusted the gold hairpin in her hair and said, "How could I not have one? Wasn't this a gift from the Marquis?"

That hairpin was clearly given to her by Song Wenjun on the day she served tea to her concubine.

She, however, said it was a gift from Gu Huaizhou.

Jiang Miaoyin's expression immediately changed, and an indescribable feeling welled up in her heart.

She burst into laughter, laughing until tears streamed down her face.

Xue Qingwan wasn't afraid of her being ruthless, but she was afraid of her going crazy.

A madman is capable of anything.

"why are you laughing?"

Jiang Miaoyin stopped laughing and said, "I'm laughing at you, and I'm laughing at myself too."

In a way, she and Xue Qingwan are the same kind of people.

Both of them harbored fantasies about Gu Huaizhou, but Gu Huaizhou was a man driven by profit, and love was utterly worthless in his eyes.

Even Song Wenjun was just a stepping stone for him to climb higher.

What puzzled Jiang Miaoyin was that she had neither power nor influence, so why did Gu Huaizhou love her so passionately back then?

She once thought it was love, but now Jiang Miaoyin doesn't think so anymore.

"You should think more about yourself. After all, you're getting married soon. How can you go out with a swollen face?" Xue Qingwan snorted coldly.

Jiang Miaoyin's expression froze: "What nonsense are you talking about?"

"Where did I lie? The old Marquis has already chosen a husband for you. Who would keep a ticking time bomb in the mansion?"

"A time bomb?" Jiang Miaoyin looked puzzled. What was that?

Xue Qingwan quickly shut her mouth, accidentally uttering a modern word.

Fortunately, Jiang Miaoyin didn't understand either, so she didn't need to explain: "Don't you know? How pitiful. Everyone in the manor knows about such a big thing, but you don't. Oh dear, could it be that the Marquis knows too? Didn't he tell you?"

With each sentence Xue Qingwan spoke, Jiang Miaoyin's face grew paler, until finally her face was as white as a sheet of paper.

She could no longer remain calm: "No, I have to go find the Marquis."

"You can forget about it. My cousin is going to Qingzhou to handle a case. He asked me this morning if I wanted to come along, just to relax. But I refused. After all, he's on official business. How can he concentrate on his work with me by his side?"

Xue Qingwan didn't utter a single truth; her words were a string of lies. Jiang Miaoyin seized on the key point in her words and asked, "Lord Marquis, he's gone?"

"Yes, they left this morning. Otherwise, why would they have entrusted the caretaker to deliver gifts to the young mistress?"

As if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head, Jiang Miaoyin felt a chill run through her body.

Helplessness, despair, being deceived and abandoned by a lover—all sorts of negative emotions suddenly surged into my heart.

A cold smile played on her lips as she walked back, looking utterly dejected.

I thought I would cry my eyes out, but to my surprise, not a single tear came out.

When heartache reaches its extreme, there are no tears.

Xue Qingwan looked at her crazy appearance and curled her lips in disdain: "She really is a madwoman."

I thought Jiang Miaoyin's methods were quite clever.

I never expected that just a few words would provoke her like this.

The butler delivered Gu Huaizhou's gift to Song Wenjun.

Without even glancing at it, she rewarded the steward with one tael of silver.

The steward happily withdrew, the errand having proven worthwhile.

"The Marquis is really disgusting. He was beaten by the Madam yesterday and today he has the nerve to send gifts. Is he a masochist?"

Xiao Tao was unaware, but Song Wenjun knew what was going on.

She tapped the box lightly with her fingers and said, "He only got the job in Qingzhou. Knowing that I am on good terms with Sister Xue, he guessed that I was the one who worked hard for him to get it. He said some harsh words to me yesterday, but today he has seen my value. How can I not coax him?"

Song Wenjun pushed the box in front of Xiao Tao: "Pawn it."

She finds the food disgusting, but she doesn't mind the money.

"Yes, Madam." Xiao Tao was about to leave with the box when Song Wenjun called her back: "Send a message to Qingshan, telling him to have his brothers in Qingzhou take good care of the Marquis. If he does well, I won't be able to eat."