Su Zhengxing moved so much that he almost knocked over the teacups on the table in front of the bed.

"What's inappropriate about it? Sunflower is my maid, and I can decide who she marries."

Qin glared at her husband, her eyes filled with a strong admonition.

Su Zhengxing realized he had been too excited when he looked at the tea swirling in his teacup.

He swallowed hard and said, "No, my wife misunderstands me. Sunflower is still young. It won't hurt if you keep her for a couple more years. Besides, our son is still newly married and has already taken in a concubine. If we take in another concubine, what kind of image will that have?"

"Are you saying I'm being nosy as a mother-in-law? Or are you saying I'm letting too many people into my son's room?"

Qin was well aware of her husband's little schemes.

He simply wanted to find an opportunity to take Sunflower for himself, and he came up with this lame excuse.

Su Zhengxing sighed seriously, "That's right. Your son has been married for less than three months and you've already given him two gifts. If word gets out, people will definitely say that you're an unkind mother-in-law, which will also damage the reputation of my Su family."

Qin rolled her eyes and spat out the melon seed shell in her mouth with a "Pah!"

"He's just a down-and-out, what kind of reputation does he have? Go ask around in wealthy families, every mother-in-law picks out a pretty maid for her son."

“Other families have several head maids in their mother-in-law’s room, so it’s not a big deal to send one or two. But Madam, you only have one maid, Sunflower. It would be inconvenient not to keep her.”

Su Zhengxing acted as if he were doing it for Su's own good, but Qin Shi remained ruthless as always.

She glared at Su Zhengxing. "There's nothing inconvenient about it. We're all in the manor, so it won't interfere with Kuihua's cooking. There's nothing in my room that needs her to serve me. I think it's you who's trying to make things convenient for me, Master."

Qin's words were a blatant accusation that Su Zhengxing wanted to compete with his son for a woman.

Su Zhengxing secretly desired the sunflower, but he had to maintain a saintly demeanor on the surface.

He rebuked her in a serious tone: "You vulgar woman, you can't even watch your mouth when you speak. I... I won't stoop to your level."

Hearing the master and mistress arguing about her fate, Sunflower pursed her lips and knelt on the ground, not daring to utter a sound.

Her heart was in her throat, fearing that the lady would relent and let her stay for another two years.

If that happens, she can't guarantee that the master won't find an excuse to call her to his study alone to serve him.

If the master were to make advances on her in the study, would she refuse or give in, thus offending people both inside and outside the home?

Kuihua was torn between two conflicting emotions. Her face flushed, she raised her head slightly and looked timidly at Su Peng.

That look was just like that of a frightened rabbit, arousing a desire to protect it.

Su Peng's heart stirred slightly, and he stood up and bowed to Madam Qin.

"I cannot refuse the gift from my elders. I will follow my mother's arrangements. Sunflower has grown up by my mother's side since she was a child and knows my preferences. Tingxue Pavilion is empty anyway, so from now on, Sunflower will live in Tingxue Pavilion. What do you think, Mother?"

Madam Qin withdrew her gaze and immediately put on a smiling face, "Son, you can make the arrangements yourself. Tomorrow, Kuihua and Caiyan will tidy up Tingxue Pavilion and move in."

Sunflower wept with joy, shifted her legs and kowtowed to Su Peng, "Thank you for your mercy, young master. Sunflower will serve you wholeheartedly from now on."

Su Peng, being a man, naturally understood his father's thoughts. Ignoring Su Zhengxing's displeased expression, he bent down and helped Sunflower up.

He said without any hesitation, "I have already asked Caiyan to prepare a room in Tingxue Pavilion. Caiyan and I have been to that room a few times. Now that Tingxue Pavilion has given it to you, I will not take Caiyan there anymore."

After saying that, he added, "That matter was kept from the Jiang family."

"Yes, young master, I will obey." Sunflower retreated with a shy expression.

Su Zhengxing was like a mute eating bitter herbs, unable to express his suffering. He originally planned to wait until he had saved up some money and found a suitable opportunity to tell Qin about taking Kuihua as his concubine.

He refrained from gambling for two months, and the easy money he was about to make slipped away, not even before it left his residence.

Watching Sunflower sway her hips as she walked away, I felt utterly humiliated.

She glared at Su Peng with annoyance, "Your mother's only maid has been given to you. When you make money, remember to add two more clever maids to your mother's room."

"Yes, yes, son will listen to his father."

Qin glanced at Su Zhengxing and said, "Do you have the money to feed so many mouths? You're almost in your grave, and all you do is think about nonsense."

Su Zhengxing was furious, roaring, "I'm not even forty yet, how come I'm almost in the grave!"

Qin raised an eyebrow. "You'll only be forty in two years, not long. There's Widow Li at the alley ahead; her husband passed away before he was even fifty. Count on your fingers how much longer you have to live."

"Foolish woman, utterly foolish! Why don't you compare yourself to a centenarian? Are you really that eager to remain a widow?"

Su Zhengxing was so angry with Qin Shi that his face turned ashen and his lips trembled.

Qin said in a way that was infuriating, "I wish you lived to be a hundred. With your frail body, you'd be lucky to live to fifty."

"You..." Su Zhengxing felt his blood surging, and he almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

He glared at Qin Shi fiercely, then hugged the quilt and lay back down.

Su Peng was used to his parents arguing and bickering. He casually ate sunflower seeds and pondered the day he would consummate his marriage with Kuihua.

Meanwhile, when Sunflower went to the kitchen, Caiyan had just left. She searched the kitchen but couldn't find the meat skewers.

She pushed open the back door of the kitchen, and a cold wind carrying snowflakes rushed towards her, causing Sunflower to shiver involuntarily.

Unsurprisingly, a trail of footprints led through the snow to the storeroom in the backyard of the kitchen, with the ice cellar in the room next to the storeroom.

That was a place that the Su family had abandoned for many years. Every summer, Qin Shi thought ice was too expensive, and there was no meat in the house that needed to be refrigerated.

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