Although this matter was expected to be difficult, Hong Mian still cried bitterly out of disappointment.

Her mother sighed, "I’m afraid the Matchmaker hasn’t been able to link you two together. Don’t focus your entire heart on him. It’s not necessarily a bad thing if the marriage doesn’t happen. I see that his mother is quite tough, and she also dotes on his younger brother. You’re still young and would have to wait several years before you could marry and have children, which would make being a big sister-in-law quite difficult."

Hong Mian sobbed, "What do you know?"

Her mother replied, "Fine, I don’t know, but you know best. I said that day it would be better to just break it off. Obviously, it was their family not being honorable, yet you insisted on putting your face on the ground for people to trample on. Now look, it’s better this way. Fortunate that not many people know about this, so don’t wear the desperation on your face. You can discuss your betrothal again in a few years and nobody will talk about it."

"I understand, and there are still many things to be busy with. I’ll go back to work now."

Hong Mian couldn’t listen any longer, wanting only to find a place to heal her wounds.

"Alright, don’t push yourself too hard. Why are you helping out in the sewing room out of nowhere? Did you offend someone? This work is difficult, very straining on the eyes. You’re still young and don’t understand the hardship. You need to take care of yourself, otherwise, you’ll go blind when you’re older."

Her mother couldn’t help but give a few more reminders.

Hong Mian responded perfunctorily and turned away, leaving her mother sighing behind her.

Back in the sewing room, Mrs. Li and Mrs. Lu were again competing, arguing fiercely over what stitch to use to edge the curtains, as if they were battling to the point of breaking their heads.

Hong Mian sat quietly aside doing her work, feeling as though her heart was being cut with a knife.

Yet here came Cui Ming, saying, "I was planning to come earlier, but Marquis Gu’s parents arrived suddenly to pay respects, and the madam asked me to stay near to attend to them, which is why I’m late."

In a moment of carelessness, Hong Mian pricked her finger, and a drop of blood appeared.

These days, her fingertips were already covered in needle marks.

Her eyes were strained and bloodshot.

The large dark circles had fallen onto her cheekbones.

"Not late, not late, it’s all small matters," Mrs. Li and Mrs. Lu both spoke with a smile.

Then Mrs. Li asked, "Why did Marquis Gu’s parents come to the mansion to pay respects at this time? Is there something going on?"

Although Marquis Gu was valuable, his parents held no status in the mansion.

So suddenly coming to pay respects to the master must certainly mean something big.

Cui Ming smiled, "It’s about Marquis Gu’s marriage."

"Oh my, a man like Marquis Gu still worries about such things. Don’t know how many girls want to marry him." Mrs. Lu sneered, "Maybe they’ve taken a liking to some maid in the courtyard and came to ask the madam?"

Cui Ming smiled, "Indeed, once Marquis Gu is done with his duties, the marriage will probably be settled."

Everyone was bustling in discussion, "Who might it be with such good fortune?"

Hong Mian couldn’t sit still, so she got up and made excuse to leave.

Once out the door, she heard Cui Ming ask, "How is she doing her work here? Is she behaving herself?"

Hong Mian’s vision darkened, having tried her best to perform before the madam, hoping to stand on equal footing with Cui Ming, only to be reduced to such a state over a man. Clearly, the upcoming days would be hard to endure indeed.

She had to think of some solution.

...

Here, Hong Ye naturally felt relieved, and thanked Qin Yuan profusely, "All thanks to you, miss, otherwise I wouldn’t know what to do."

Qin Yuan shook her head with a smile, "With concern comes confusion; didn’t the Marquis already say that this marriage would proceed without a hitch? Once you’re married, you’ll have other things to worry about."

Hong Ye sighed, "Miss, you don’t know. Originally, I thought it was set in stone. Who would’ve expected that a wrench would be thrown in the works halfway, almost causing the cooked duck to fly away. I never imagined in my wildest dreams that I would be set up by Hong Mian, these past nights I’ve been dreaming of Hong Mian suddenly changing her face and Marquis Gu saying he couldn’t marry me."

Qin Yuan asked curiously, "Could it be that you have fallen deeply in love with Marquis Gu and must marry him no matter what?"

Hong Ye blushed and shook her head, "At first I thought this marriage was good. We have mutual affection and both happen to be close to the master; marrying him could quickly establish me in the mansion. It was a win-win situation. But because of Hong Mian’s disruption, I feel that if Marquis Gu was taken away, I wouldn’t be able to get over it for the rest of my life."

It turned out that fighting over something made it more desirable.

Qin Yuan understood.

In a previous life, when Lin Ziqi was serving in Zhejiang, he clashed with Lord Governor’s seventh son over a Tofu Beauty, desperately winning her over, swearing countless oaths. Yet once the beauty was brought into the household, the novelty soon faded like nothing mattered anymore.

At the time, even Aunt Yu had to step aside for the beloved Tofu Beauty.

Red Leaf had said then that although the Tofu Beauty was attractive, she didn’t stand out within Mr. Lin’s inner household, and couldn’t compare to her, the rightful wife. But Mr. Lin was captivated by his affection for this girl, almost to the detriment of his future prospects. Once he got her, he didn’t cherish her, despising her vulgarity; it’s clear that stolen pleasures were sweeter, losing the contest made it lose appeal.

Qin Yuan couldn’t help but chuckle.

Hong Ye teased, "I’m speaking my heart to the miss, why are you laughing?"

Qin Yuan said, "I was just relieved that you don’t have to worry about not overcoming this hurdle in this life anymore. I’m happy for you and laugh because of that. Now that you’re not busy, go find Shi Ba."

Hong Ye ran out laughing.

Not long after, Gu Shiba arrived, standing outside the beaded curtain with hands lowered, asking, "What orders does the madam have?"

Qin Yuan said, "The Duke Zhen’s Mansion sent us an invitation saying that Madam You’s birthday is coming up, and they plan to hold a banquet in a few days. Go and find out how they intend to organize this birthday banquet? Why do they plan to hold it just before the Empress Dowager’s birthday? Who have they invited? The sooner the better."

Gu Shiba agreed and added, "I will immediately find someone to inquire. Is there anything else the madam would like?"

Qin Yuan thought for a moment and then said, "Ask around about the martial arts master hired by Sister-in-law Cheng’s family for Brother Cheng, find out who he’s frequently associating with, and if there’s anyone from the Yelv Clan among them. Be cautious during the investigation, don’t alert anyone."

Gu Shiba was shocked by this, "...This...this... I will get to it right away, madam, are you suspicious..."

Qin Yuan said, "I have my reasons for suspicion, you just do as instructed. If Marquis Gu asks, you don’t need to hide it." Gu Shiba eventually said, "Yes, I will handle it immediately."

Out of the courtyard, Gu Shiba exhaled heavily, aware of Qin Yuan’s prowess, understanding the weight of those words.

If the martial arts master by Brother Cheng associates with people from the Yelv Clan, it’s no surprise that they’ve made no progress with that Fake Yang Pozi.

Could it be that Mrs. Zhao is indeed colluding with the Yelv Clan?

What on earth is Mrs. Zhao thinking? For the future of these two children? But everyone knows Marquis Gu values emotions and integrity; as long as these two children grow up well, they will be arranged properly.

It can only mean that Mrs. Zhao’s ambitions are great.

And when considering Pang Hai’s not so clear background, Gu Shiba began to feel uneasy.