Soon, Mr. and Mrs. Yuan were led into Yan Qingqing's courtyard by A Si.

Old Mrs. Li insisted on coming in, and Ah Si and the others couldn't very well chase her away, so they had no choice but to turn a blind eye and let her in.

This was the first time Old Mrs. Li had come since Yan Qingqing's family bought servants. She felt a pang of sadness seeing how well the courtyard was kept.

She had never lived in such a nice house in her life. If she hadn't been so biased and had been kinder to Yan Shi and her children, would Yan Qingqing have been kinder to her? Would she have been able to live in such a nice house too?

Thinking about this, Grandma Li felt very regretful, but she couldn't bring herself to apologize to Yan Qingqing.

Even if she were willing to apologize to Yan Qingqing, given Yan Qingqing's temper, she wouldn't forgive her.

So Grandma Li felt it was unnecessary. As long as she didn't cause trouble, and as long as Grandpa Li was there, she wouldn't lack food or drink.

Perhaps it was because of her age that Mrs. Li suddenly had a change of heart.

Yan Qingqing's courtyard was decorated with exceptional taste. The several precious peonies and roses that Old Zhang had planted were all in Yan Qingqing's yard, adding even more elegance.

Yan Qingqing was sitting in her room organizing account books.

There are workshops, mushroom farms, organic orchards, peony gardens, and shops.

Currently, the mushroom cultivation workshop is still in the investment stage. The ecological orchard provides supplies to both shops and workshops by raising chickens and ducks, so it is not considered to be losing money.

Yan Qingqing actually remembered each item of the account very clearly, but she needed to summarize them and make a general ledger.

She was usually quite busy, and now that she had finally managed to free up some time, she had to deal with the Yuan family's affairs. Yan Qingqing could only sigh resignedly and sit down on a chair to the side.

When Mr. and Mrs. Yuan came in, Yan Qingqing only gave them a cold look, and as for Old Mrs. Li, she simply pretended that she didn't exist.

They didn't know if it was because Yan Qingqing had been granted an imperial title, but they all felt that Yan Qingqing's aura was particularly strong today, making them feel a little suffocated.

Seeing this, Ru Xue scolded, "How dare you! You don't even bow to us when you see us!"

Mr. Yuan, Mrs. Yuan, and even Old Mrs. Li were already terrified. Upon hearing such a shout, they were so frightened that they knelt down on the ground with a thud.

After kneeling down, Old Mrs. Li felt somewhat annoyed. Why did she have to get involved in this mess? Now she even had to kneel down to her daughter-in-law. If word got out, she would be even more ashamed.

Yan Qingqing was speechless. Ru Xue had asked them to bow, but she hadn't asked them to kneel.

After all, this old lady Li was her nominal mother-in-law, and she had been behaving quite well lately. It wouldn't be appropriate for word to get out that a mother-in-law was kneeling before her daughter-in-law, so she said, "Alright, get up, everyone."

Just then, Li Xiangping and Yuan Huiniang arrived.

The two first bowed to Yan Qingqing, and then Yan Qingqing asked them to sit down to the side.

When Yuan Huiniang saw her parents, disappointment was evident in her eyes, and her father didn't even dare to look at her.

Yan Qingqing glanced at Yuan's mother and said, "Speak, I heard you were making a scene and shouting insults at my doorstep. Do you have some grievance against our family?"

Mother Yuan hesitated, unsure how to begin, but remembering that her son was still in jail, she questioned, "I heard that someone arrested my son and put him in jail."

He's young, and he's Hui Niang's younger brother. Even if he's done something wrong, you can give him a beating out of respect for Hui Niang.

But why send him to jail? Is that a place fit for a human being?

As Yuan's mother spoke, she suddenly burst into tears. Yuan Huiniang was also very surprised that her mother-in-law had actually sent her younger brother to jail.

However, she knew that her mother-in-law was a reasonable person, and if Yuan Huicong hadn't really angered her, she would have turned a blind eye for her sake.

Despite her humble and tearful plea, no one was moved by what Yuan's mother saw.

Then, enraged, he glared at Yuan Huiniang and cursed, "As expected, a married daughter is like water spilled from a bowl. I've raised a heartless wretch. If I had known this would happen, I should have drowned you in a chamber pot."

Yan Qingqing glared at her and said, "Didn't you already do that? It's a pity my Hui Niang is lucky to be alive."

A hint of fear flashed in Yuan's mother's eyes upon hearing this, but then she thought that this matter was from a long time ago and Yan Qingqing must be making things up, so she stubbornly said, "Don't talk nonsense. Hui Niang is my daughter. How could I possibly harm her?"

Yan Qingqing gave her a half-smile and said, "You know best whether it's true or not."

Today, let's make things clear in front of everyone. I had Yuan Huicong sent to the authorities because he colluded with outsiders to push my daughter Xinniang into the water.

He even tried to take this opportunity to ruin Xinniang's reputation. I have both witnesses and physical evidence; he can't deny it.

"And you should thank me for putting him in jail, otherwise he probably wouldn't even be alive now."

Yuan's mother naturally disagreed with Yan Qingqing's words, and retorted, "Do you expect me to thank you for sending my son to jail?"

Yan Qingqing nodded as a matter of course and said, "You should indeed thank me. If it weren't for me, your son might have been killed."

Seeing the incredulous look on Yuan's mother's face, Yan Qingqing sneered and said, "Do you know that your son failed to take advantage of my Xinniang, but turned around and started to have designs on the third young lady of the Shen Tongzhi family?"

In front of so many people, he was hugging and embracing her. Do you think Madam Shen, with her vengeful nature, would let Yuan Huicong off the hook?

Furthermore, they orchestrated a scheme to make Yuan Huicong owe a large sum of money at the gambling den. The debt collectors will probably be knocking on his door soon.

Mr. and Mrs. Yuan were terrified. If Yuan Huicong really offended them as Yan Qingqing had said, then they would be in big trouble.

But based on their understanding of their son, Yan Qingqing was probably telling the truth.

Mother Yuan kept giving Father Yuan meaningful glances, urging him to plead with Mother Yuan Hui to save Yuan Huicong.

Finally, Mr. Yuan spoke up, saying, "Hui Niang, no matter what, Cong'er is still your own brother. You must find a way to save her."

When Yuan Huiniang heard that Yuan Huicong had plotted to make Li Xinniang fall into the water, she was already completely disappointed in her parents.

She didn't believe her parents were unaware of Yuan Huicong's plan. Since they knew but didn't try to stop him, it proved they didn't care about her situation at all. How could that not break her heart?

Yuan Huiniang said indifferently, "Xinniang is my sister. When he plotted to frame Xinniang, why didn't he consider me, his older sister?"

Furthermore, he should be punished for his wrongdoing; your constant favoritism and indulgence will only harm him.

Neither Mr. nor Mrs. Yuan expected Yuan Huiniang to be so heartless. So Mrs. Yuan started throwing a tantrum and accusing Yuan Huiniang of being an ingrate, using very offensive language.

Hearing her mother's words, Yuan Huiniang felt extremely distressed.

It would be hard for anyone to accept being scolded like that by their own mother.

Li Xiangping kept comforting her, but Yuan Huiniang's tears still flowed like a broken string of pearls.