His own younger sister, orphaned at a young age, endured a difficult life in the inner quarters of the household. She finally escaped, only to fall in love with the eldest son of a duke's concubine, her heart tormented and sleepless. As her elder brother, the thought of it caused him immense sorrow. Seeing the culprit who had caused his sister such pain only fueled Zheng Boyuan's rising anger.

Xu Zhi could naturally see the change in Zheng Boyuan's emotions. She pressed the angry Zheng Boyuan down to sit down and said with a smile, "Husband, what Young Master Lin said earlier makes a lot of sense. There are some things we can't decide for them. As for how to choose, it's up to them to choose for themselves."

Zheng Boyuan sighed dejectedly and said, "You're right, it still depends on them."

Seeing Xu Zhi looking at him, Zheng Boyuan said, "I'll talk to Young Master Lin. You go to the backyard and tell Yuanyuan about Young Master Lin's visit, and see if Yuanyuan is willing to come and see Young Master Lin."

Xu Zhi agreed and instructed the servants to serve her hot tea before heading to the inner quarters.

Because it was snowing outside, Zheng Yuanyuan, who lived in the last house, didn't go out. She was sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed) by the window in her room, watching the snow. When she saw Xu Zhi braving the snow and carrying an umbrella into her yard, she quickly put on her shoes and went to the porch outside her room, smiling and saying, "Sister-in-law, why did you come over in this weather? Is something the matter?"

Seeing that Zheng Yuanyuan was standing outside the room without wearing thick clothes, Xu Zhi quickly said, "Come in quickly, let's go inside first."

Zheng Yuanyuan was helping Xu Zhi take off her thick clothes and was about to serve her to sit on her kang (heated brick bed) when Xu Zhi quickly said, "No need, I came here to tell you something and see what you think."

Zheng Yuanyuan invited Xu Zhi to sit down on a chair in front of the kang. Seeing Xu Zhi's serious expression, she asked Lin Mama to take the servants from the room away. Lin Mama naturally knew that Xu Zhi must have something important to say to her young lady when she came at this time, so she stood in the corridor to watch and prevent anyone from eavesdropping.

Looking at Zheng Yuanyuan's smiling face, Xu Zhi pondered for a long time before asking, "Yuanyuan, your brother and I both hope that you can live a good and happy life. We hope that you can live your future life according to your own wishes. Your sister-in-law has come to ask you a question today: if you were to get married, does it have to be that person?"

Zheng Yuanyuan's smile slowly faded, and she lowered her head and said softly, "Sister-in-law, I envy you and my brother. I know that you have nothing but love for my brother, and my brother feels the same way. Ever since you got married, I have been hoping to find someone like that to live with me, even if we don't have a rich life, don't have fancy clothes, and don't have the daily necessities of rice and flour, we will still be happy."

In the end, remembering that the person she once had feelings for was no longer there, tears slowly dripped from Zheng Yuanyuan's eyes again.

Xu Zhi quickly handed her a handkerchief and said, "Yuanyuan, since you insist on having that person, your brother and I will grant your wish and bring that person to you. Would you like to meet him?"

At first, Zheng Yuanyuan didn't understand what Xu Zhi meant. But when she did, she stood up abruptly, shook her head, and said, "Sister-in-law, that's impossible. He clearly perished in the fire."

Xu Zhi then recounted how she had enlightened Zong Chengping with her words, how Zong Chengping had been beaten by his father and imprisoned in the ancestral hall after returning home, and how Xu Zhi had sent people to rescue him and fake her death to escape. Later, with Lin Zhining's help, she had given Zong Chengping a false identity.

Zheng Yuanyuan was stunned. After a long while, she asked, "Sister-in-law, since he is alright, why didn't he come to see me? Even if he couldn't come by himself, why didn't he send someone to deliver a message to me?"

Xu Zhi explained to Lin Zhijing, "Yuanyuan, how could we dare let anyone know about this? My fourth sister, brother-in-law, and I are doing this with our lives on the line. You know the guards around me right now, how could I dare to reveal even a whisper? If anyone finds out, it's a capital offense."

After Xu Zhi arrived, she and Zheng Yuanyuan kept talking in hushed tones. Zheng Yuanyuan thought of Jia San and the others and was speechless for a moment. It was indeed true. If the Emperor found out about this, Zong Chengping, who had already changed his name to Lin Zhijing, would probably have no way out. Taking the imperial examination under someone else's name was a capital offense.

Zheng Yuanyuan stood there blankly, momentarily stunned.