Xu Youran smiled at her and said, "It's from the Anle Marquis's residence. They said they're hosting a wedding banquet to celebrate the Second Young Master Lu's happiness."

Jiang Zhiyu felt a chill when he heard this.

[Auspicious? Whose happiness is this? Isn't this a disaster?]

Xu Youran and Tan Shujing both nodded.

"This invitation has bad intentions. Do you want to go?"

Jiang Zhiyu nodded: "Of course I will go."

[You're going to die sooner or later, so what if I kill you?]

Xu Youran: “…”

She pulled Jiang Zhiyu over and made her sit down. "Although the Anle Marquis's mansion is now disliked by the Emperor, it should not be underestimated. The Anle Marquis's wife is not as timid as she appears..."

[I know that if everyone in the Anle Marquis's mansion is evil, then the Anle Marquis's wife is the biggest evil.]

Xu Youran paused as she spoke.

Oh, why did she say this?

Zhiyu knows everything, so how could he not know the nature of the wife of Marquis Anle?

She stopped talking and chuckled, "Forget it. Just be careful and don't be alone. I'll ask your eldest brother to come along. There will definitely be many princes and nobles at the banquet. If you like anyone, then..."

He Yanting's face suddenly appeared in Xu Youran's mind.

If He Yanting really has feelings for Zhiyu, then...

Seeing Xu Youran paused mid-sentence, Jiang Zhiyu continued, "Mom, I'm still young, there's no need to rush."

[Being single means I’m lucky.]

Xu Youran: “…”

Tan Shujing: “…”

…

The sky was gloomy, and the strong wind blew the snow on the ground, making it fly freely. The guests who came to the banquet got off the carriage and walked into the house under the guidance of the servants without any greeting.

Even though everyone felt somewhat dissatisfied with the Anle Marquis' Mansion, they did not dare to show it on their faces.

The wife of Marquis Anle changed her usual timidity and sat in the main seat with Marquis Anle, greeting him with a smile on her face.

Although the weather was freezing cold, the ladies gathered in the warm hall, brewing tea, chatting, reciting poems and having fun.

In the other room, the noble ladies and gentlemen met each other, and everyone had a look of discomfort on their faces.

Because Lu Daizong was bedridden, his face was red, and he was covered with several layers of thick brocade quilts, and his body was still squirming.

He couldn't release his penis, so he could only hold it erect. Marquis Anle searched for many famous doctors, but none of them could make it soften. There was really no other way, so he could only cover him with several layers of quilts to hide it.

The ladies and gentlemen also knew about his illness, and they all looked away, not even looking in that direction.

Lu Daizong's chest heaved violently, and it was unclear whether it was out of shame or anger.

For some noble ladies of high status, coming here is purely to avoid offending Marquis Anle. Although the Marquis Anle's Mansion has a high status, for them, it is not worth spending their entire lives to curry favor with him.

Lu Daizong's reputation was not good to begin with, and his future was ruined by the emperor himself. He was also inhumane, and even his offspring would be a problem in the future. However, some noble ladies came for his status.

In their opinion, given Lu Daizong's current physical condition, no matter whether he was born out of wedlock or not, whether he married someone of higher status or someone of lower status, as long as he was willing to marry, he would definitely be his legal wife and the future mistress of the family.

For some people of humble status, this is a great opportunity to change their destiny.

So although almost no one looked at Lu Daizong, there were still people walking around his bed.

The wife of the Marquis of Anle picked up the teacup and took a sip. Her voice was not loud enough for everyone in the room to hear: "Is Miss Jiang here?"

Jiang? This surname...

Everyone looked at them in different ways. They seemed to be still talking, but their ears had already pricked up.

The maid replied cautiously, "Madam, Miss Jiang hasn't arrived yet. She must have been delayed because of the slippery snowy roads."

The maid carefully observed her expression and said, "Miss Song will be here soon."

Less than half a cup of tea had passed before she finished speaking when the door was pushed open.

Song Shiwei was wearing a willow-yellow satin cloak embroidered with plum blossoms and inlaid with fox fur. She looked around with her big eyes under her slender eyebrows. She seemed a little restrained by being stared at by so many people, and her cheeks were flushed.

Before she could even salute, Lady Anle Hou impatiently waved her hand, "You must be Song Shiwei, right? As the rumors say, you are as pretty as a peach in spring and as pure as a chrysanthemum in autumn."

Song Shiwei walked up to her and bowed, "Madam, you are so kind."

The wife of Marquis Anle pulled her to sit next to her. Because of the previous incident in the Dali Temple, the other noble ladies were not unfamiliar with Song Shiwei.

I hadn't paid much attention to her before, but now I was observing Song Shiwei carefully. I saw that her every move was as gentle as a willow swaying in the wind, and she was cautious when answering the words of Lady Anle. I couldn't help but feel a little suspicious about the previous rumors.

Such a woman certainly doesn't seem like someone who could do such a cruel thing.

Only the Shangshu's wife in the corner snorted coldly when she saw Song Shiwei.

Because of this person, her son has not yet married. She decided to sell the concubine, but in fact she had someone drown her in the river. For this reason, her husband and son quarreled with her and complained to her for several days.

The Shangshu's wife originally thought of letting her son marry Song Shiwei so that she could deal with her properly. However, Jiang Zhaorong refused to let her go. She sent several visiting cards to Xu Youran, but they were all returned. In the end, the matter was left unresolved.

A lady who was on good terms with her heard her and came forward to ask, "What's wrong?"

"You didn't recognize her?" The Shangshu's wife asked, her voice still high: "She's the one who set fire to my house last time."

The lady who asked the question could not hide her surprise, and the expressions of the others also changed when they heard what the Shangshu's wife said.

The hand that Lady Anle Hou was about to pat Song Shiwei stopped in mid-air, and the smile on Song Shiwei's face froze.

If the Shangshu's wife hadn't mentioned it, they would have forgotten the farce long ago. But when it was mentioned, everyone looked at Song Shiwei strangely.

The wife of Marquis Anle was not present at the engagement party, but she had vaguely heard rumors a few times. She did not expect that it was related to the people around her.

The Shangshu's wife looked at Song Shiwei with a smile, raising her eyebrows in a provocative manner.

She said it on purpose for Lady Anle to hear. Lady Anle was not around at the time, and she was kind and charitable, so she couldn't stand such vicious people.

She didn't know how Song Shiwei had coaxed Lady Anle Marquis into valuing her so much, but she had already pointed it out. Based on Lady Anle Marquis's temperament, she would definitely not associate with this person again.

However, Madam Shangshu frowned as she watched Madam Anle's hand fall on Song Shiwei, looking at her unkindly: "There's no need to talk about the past. It was all a misunderstanding. Why is Madam Shangshu still pursuing it?"

Her words were full of the meaning of protecting Song Shiwei.

Song Shiwei also cooperated by lowering his head, looking up at the Shangshu's wife pitifully, as if he had suffered a great injustice.