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

Song Wenjun looked closely and couldn't help but smile.

Who else could be wearing that light green dress but Xue Qingwan?

Her arrival was quite timely.

“She is my mother-in-law’s distant niece. Her mother passed away a couple of years ago, and the old lady took pity on her and brought her to live with her,” Song Wenjun replied with a smile.

As they were talking, Xue Qingwan had already arrived in front of them.

With no way to avoid it, Song Wenjun beckoned to her, "Miss Xue, come and sit down."

“Okay.” Xue Qingwan stepped forward generously, without bowing to Song Wenjun, and sat down next to her.

This surprised Jiang Miaoyin so much that her eyes almost popped out of their sockets, and she looked at Xue Qingwan with a hint of disdain.

Such a lack of understanding of etiquette explains why they come from humble backgrounds.

Xue Qingwan took in the disdain in her eyes, looked her up and down, and asked Song Wenjun, "Who is she?"

This nearly made Jiang Miaoyin explode with anger.

No one in this mansion has ever dared to ask such a question.

Her face immediately darkened.

Song Wenjun smiled faintly and replied, "This is your sister-in-law, quickly call her sister-in-law."

"Sister-in-law?" Xue Qingwan's voice was somewhat surprised, then she looked at Jiang Miaoyin with a sympathetic gaze: "Oh, I know you, you are that widowed sister-in-law, right?"

Jiang Miaoyin clenched her fists tightly, intending to teach her a lesson.

However, before she could speak, Xue Qingwan spoke again: "Sister-in-law, you look quite young, but there's something I don't understand. Why do you choose to remain a widow when you have the best years of your life ahead of you? Is remaining a widow the only way out?"

Her words were so impolite that Jiang Miaoyin could no longer bear it: "Miss Xue, watch your words. I only remained chaste for my deceased husband."

In her view, remaining chaste was a sign of extreme chastity.

But when it reached Xue Qingwan's mouth, it tasted different.

As if she were some kind of idiot.

Xue Qingwan shook her head slightly, expressing her strong disapproval: "Sister-in-law is confused. Women should not be bound by these outdated ideas. You have the right to pursue happiness. Chastity is just a method devised by feudal society to control and oppress women. It is a shackle that you should break, instead of being trapped here and bullied by people."

"Miss Xue." Jiang Miaoyin's breath was unsteady, and her chest heaved rapidly.

At this moment, the way she looked at Xue Qingwan was like a raging flood.

Her words were naturally blunt: "Who do you think you are? What right do you have to interfere in other people's lives? Do you think we know each other?"

Xue Qingwan was taken aback: "I was just telling the truth."

"Do I need you to make sarcastic remarks here? What I do is my business. Don't bring your fallacies and nonsense to my face again."

After saying these words, Jiang Miaoyin stormed off in a huff.

Xue Qingwan blinked and sneered, "Rotten wood cannot be carved."

It's like a good deed being wasted; you're clearly trying to help her, but she doesn't appreciate it at all.

Song Wenjun was now absolutely certain that this young lady had indeed had her soul replaced.

Interesting, really interesting.

Xue Qingwan looked at Song Wenjun and asked her, "Does the young mistress also think what I said is wrong?"

"What you said was indeed quite bold."

“This isn’t boldness, it’s cowardice. Fate is in your own hands, but you only know how to resign yourself to fate. No wonder you’ll be trapped in this dark cage for the rest of your lives.” Xue Qingwan became more and more convinced that she was right.

None of these women have any opinions of their own; they deserve to be bullied.

Song Wenjun smiled and asked her, "Then what do you think we should do?"

"Forget it, you've already been brainwashed, there's no point in me saying anything more."

Xue Qingwan shook her head and sighed, looking at Song Wenjun with pity and sympathy: "People have different fates, in short, I am different from you."

Song Wenjun smiled and nodded, "Yes, you're right."

For the next few days, Xue Qingwan kept herself locked in the courtyard, fiddling with something.

Except when Song Wenjun saw Gu Huaizhou during meals, he ignored her the rest of the time.

Even at the dinner table, he only stared at what was right in front of him.

He was protesting silently, trying to make Song Wenjun give in.

Gradually, he found that he no longer saw Song Wenjun at meals.

Only after asking the servants around him did he learn that Song Wenjun had started her own private kitchen in her own courtyard.

Gu Huaizhou laughed in exasperation: "She's getting temperamental."

He just wouldn't believe it was the Cold War.

Since Song Wenjun was avoiding him, he had even less reason to see her.

The study was cold and hard, and Gu Huaizhou slept with a sore back.

He wanted to find Jiang Miaoyin, but when he thought about what she had done before, he gave up the idea.

Actually, the conflict between him and Jiang Miaoyin wasn't that big; it was just that neither of them was willing to admit their mistakes first because of pride.

Feeling agitated, Gu Huaizhou simply returned to his own courtyard.

The room was quiet and deserted, and it was easy to overthink when lying in bed.

Before I knew it, Xue Qingwan's beautiful figure appeared before my eyes.

Her amazing act that day left a deep impression on him.

But that's all.

Gu Huaizhou was not a womanizer; he only admired Xue Qingwan.

With a nonchalant laugh, Gu Huaizhou erased Xue Qingwan from his mind.

As the year draws to a close, Gu Huaizhou's social engagements have increased.

After a few rounds of drinking and feasting, his wallet quickly became empty.

When he went to the accounting office to withdraw his money, the manager told him with difficulty, "My lord, your monthly allowance has already been withdrawn and you cannot withdraw any more."

"Then give me the overdraft for next month," Gu Huaizhou said.

"As Madam has said, the household is currently short of funds, and no one is allowed to overdraw their money."

Gu Huaizhou frowned, his anger rising.

That Song Wenjun, she actually tried to trip him up.

He angrily went to confront Song Wenjun, only to find that she was not in Qiufeng Courtyard, but had gone to Zhou's courtyard.

Gu Huaizhou had no choice but to go to Zhou's place to find her again.

As soon as I approached the yard, I heard cheers coming from inside: "Wow, this is so useful! It even smells nice after washing!"

The room was filled with the laughter of women, which annoyed Gu Huaizhou.

But curiosity drove him to go inside, and as soon as he entered, he smelled a pleasant fragrance.

"What's that smell? It smells so good!" Gu Huaizhou asked, puzzled.

As if she had found some incredible treasure, Zhou beckoned to him, "Huaizhou, come and take a look, this is a good thing."

In Zhou's hand was a square object, white as jade.

The fragrance comes from this thing.

Gu Huaizhou looked puzzled. Xue Qingwan stepped forward and explained to him, "My lord, this is called soap. It can be used to wash hands, face, and clothes. Just a gentle wipe is enough to remove dirt. You see?"

After she finished speaking, she demonstrated it to Gu Huaizhou.

Gu Huaizhou's pupils trembled slightly, and his gaze towards Xue Qingwan was filled with shock.

Isn’t this making a fortune?

As long as we mass-produce this thing and sell it to the powerful and wealthy, we'll never have to worry about money.