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

Because the old Marquis had returned to his residence, Jiang Miaoyin could not go to the front yard all the time.

She kept to herself as a widow, staying quietly in her own courtyard so as not to give anyone a reason to gossip about her to the old Marquis.

Unexpectedly, instead of causing trouble, the waves crashed down on her.

Ever since she and Gu Huaizhou fell into the lake together, Zhou Shi has arranged maids and old women for her courtyard.

On the surface, it was said that he was taking care of her, but Jiang Miaoyin knew that he was actually just watching over her.

Although Zhou tacitly approved of her relationship with Gu Huaizhou, it was still a shameful matter and should be covered up when necessary.

Jiang Miaoyin was bored in the courtyard and wanted to practice calligraphy to calm her mind.

But just as he picked up his brush and ink, he heard a servant's voice from outside: "Hey, do you know? The old Marquis summoned the young mistress today and asked her to find suitable husbands for the young ladies and gentlemen in the manor."

"What's so strange about that? The young masters and ladies have all grown up, and it's only natural for them to get married."

The old woman sneered, clicking her tongue: "This time it's different. The old Marquis is going to marry off our son."

"What?" The person on the other end immediately lowered their voice, and Jiang Miaoyin's heart also tensed up.

She quietly moved to the window and listened carefully. She heard the old woman whisper, "The old Marquis said that the Gu family is not the kind of unreasonable family. This person has been guarding the manor for three years. If we don't let him leave the manor soon, people will inevitably gossip that the Marquis's manor is ruining a person's youth. That's why the old Marquis has this idea."

Jiang Miaoyin's mind went blank when she heard this. She never expected that the old Marquis would let her leave the mansion.

How can that work?

Her son is still in the mansion; how could she possibly remarry?

Besides, the person she likes is Gu Huaizhou.

No, she had to go to Gu Huaizhou and beg him to save her.

Jiang Miaoyin lifted the curtain and came out; the two old women were no longer outside the window.

Seeing that she was about to leave, the maidservant hurriedly stepped forward and curtsied: "Is Madam going out?"

Her position in the household was awkward; without a husband, the servants could only call her "Madam."

"You don't need to follow me. I'll just get some fresh air in the backyard." Jiang Miaoyin didn't let the maid follow her and strode out on her own.

When the two old women saw her leave, they exchanged a glance, and one of them went out the back door.

There were spies there, planted by Song Wenjun, who immediately relayed the message.

Jiang Miaoyin was very agitated. She originally wanted to go find Gu Huaizhou, but when she stepped out of the courtyard and was blown by the wind, her mind cleared up.

Now that she's a widow, what excuse could she possibly use to go see Gu Huaizhou?

I'm afraid that no sooner had she gone than someone told the old Marquis.

I'm afraid she'll be kicked out of the manor then.

Standing in the vast garden, Jiang Miaoyin felt as if she were surrounded by eyes, and even her slightest movement would be magnified infinitely.

She was truly tired of this clandestine existence.

"Sister-in-law, why are you here all alone?" Xue Qingwan walked over from not far away, a smug smile on her face.

Upon seeing her, Jiang Miaoyin turned to leave, but Xue Qingwan blocked her way.

Jiang Miaoyin looked at her coldly: "What do you want to do?"

"I'm not doing anything, I just saw that you were all alone and I felt sorry for you so I wanted to keep you company."

"You should spend your time taking care of yourself. You're not much better off than me in this manor. At least I have a status. What about you?" Jiang Miaoyin smiled sarcastically. "You're just an outsider cousin. To put it nicely, you're here to seek refuge. To put it bluntly, you're here to freeload. Where does your sense of superiority come from?"

She struck a nerve with Xue Qingwan, causing her expression to change instantly.

"Jiang Miaoyin, who are you calling a freeloader?"

"Whoever talks to me, I'll talk to them." Jiang Miaoyin's mood improved as she saw Xue Qingwan was about to explode with anger: "She's just an unfavored concubine's daughter, and you really think you're a rich young lady? You're so eager to become a concubine, you have quite the nerve."

Xue Qingwan couldn't stand being called a concubine's daughter; her background was a major flaw.

Jiang Miaoyin said this on purpose, which was like rubbing salt into her wounds. How could she bear it?

"You, a widow, have done something shameless, and you have the nerve to criticize me? Believe me or not, I'll expose your affair and make you lose all face." The reason Xue Qingwan didn't expose the affair immediately was simply to make Gu Huaizhou owe her this favor.

But if Jiang Miaoyin is so ungrateful, then she shouldn't be blamed.

Jiang Miaoyin, however, seemed to have a "what's the use" attitude. She said nonchalantly, "Go ahead and try if you dare. When the old Marquis takes away his title, you won't even get a concubine. Let's see how a powerless illegitimate daughter like you can stand on your own in the capital. Oh, right, you still have your mother-in-law to stand up for you."

"Let me think about it. What will your mother-in-law do with you? Oh dear, she won't kick you out of the manor, will she..."

Xue Qingwan's face turned pale, and blood rushed to her head.

Looking at Jiang Miaoyin's hateful face, she wished she could rush up and scratch her face.

That damn bitch, how dare she mock her like that.

Jiang Miaoyin had been holding back her anger for a long time, so she decided to speak her mind: "You'll be kicked out of the Marquis's mansion and won't even have a place to stay. Tsk tsk, I'm afraid you'd be willing to marry a butcher if he gave you a bite to eat."

"You bitch, I'll beat you to death!" Xue Qingwan charged at Jiang Miaoyin like a madwoman.

Jiang Miaoyin was also afraid of her; she had long disliked Xue Qingwan.

The two immediately started fighting.

They were scratching each other's faces and pulling each other's hair, as if they wanted to kill the other person.

Xue Qingwan's tricks were completely ineffective against Jiang Miaoyin, who swung her arm around and scratched and clawed at her face.

Just as she was about to get into position, Jiang Miaoyin grabbed her hair.

Left with no other choice, she had to abandon her fancy moves and fight Jiang Miaoyin using the same tactics.

However, the two were very tacit and neither of them shouted, for fear of attracting the attention of people nearby.

Both of them were gripping each other's hair and neither was willing to let go. The intense pain in their scalps finally made them stop.

“I’ll count to three, then we’ll all let go,” Xue Qingwan suggested.

Both of them were panting heavily; they could have fought again if they had the strength.

Jiang Miaoyin snorted coldly, which was taken as an agreement.

Immediately, Xue Qingwan counted to three and let go of her hand first. Unexpectedly, Jiang Miaoyin grabbed her hair hard before letting go.

She immediately kicked her, sending her flying a great distance.

Jiang Miaoyin lay on the ground for a long time without getting up, and Xue Qingwan wasn't in much better shape, her face was scratched all over.

Looking at Jiang Miaoyin again, she had a bald patch on the top of her head.

The ground was covered with the hair that the two of them had shed.

If anyone were to pass by and see the two in such a disheveled state, they probably wouldn't recognize them as the usually gentle and dignified Jiang Miaoyin and the lively and cheerful Miss Biao.

The two glared at each other hatefully, like mortal enemies.

Then, in perfect unison, they all began to tidy their clothes and hair, and quickly left before anyone noticed.