Zhou Yuqing walked in front of Zhou Shuqing without making a sound. He was about the same height as Zhou Shuqing, and he blocked her completely.

Zhou Shuqing's eyes darkened, and she clenched her fists tightly again.

Actually, these men were still some distance from Song Baoning and the others. Unless she specifically looked for them, they would have to keep an eye on them. But some of them, with the same goal as Zhou Shuqing, slowly pushed their way forward.

Zhou Shuqing had no choice but to silently stand on tiptoe. As she did so, she realized that this was a really good idea; being taller than the people around her made her more noticeable.

However, he didn't attract Song Baoning's attention, but he did catch Song Xia's eye.

Song Xia and her son exchanged a glance, and Zhou Yuqing nodded to her. The mother and son were of one mind, and both knew Zhou Yuqing's intentions.

What a clever scheme! Zhou Ying wasn't satisfied with marrying Prince Huai, she even dared to covet Bao Ning!

Bao Ning is the only unmarried legitimate daughter of the Prince Cheng's mansion. How could a son born out of wedlock be worthy of her?

Song Xia thought to herself with a sneer, "Wow, I'm too gentle! I actually indulged Zhou Shuqing's audacious ideas."

She remembered that in her previous life, Zhou Shuqing married the eldest daughter of the Vice Minister of Works. Although she was not as good as Bao Ning, she was still more outstanding than others of similar family background in terms of both appearance and ability.

However, the reason Zhou Shuqing was able to arrange such a marriage in her previous life was because her Yuqing had already passed away at that time, and Zhou Shuqing was undoubtedly the sole heir of the Zhou family.

But Zhou Shuqing is still just a son of a concubine. Even if he passes the imperial examination next year, the Vice Minister of Works will most likely not marry his legitimate daughter to him.

Therefore, it's time for her, as the legal mother, to arrange a marriage for Zhou Shuqing.

She remembered that the concubine's daughter of Imperial Censor Wu was quite good. Imperial Censor Wu was a man of Prince Huai, and although he appeared to be upright and honest, he had long been colluding with the prince. His concubine's daughter was also ambitious and wanted to climb up to Prince Huai. So, at a banquet in Prince Huai's mansion, she staged a drunken act and barged into the courtyard where Prince Huai was resting. She was then mistaken by the guards for a thief stealing secrets and was arrested. The incident became widely known. Later, Prince Huai still sent her into Prince Huai's mansion in a small sedan chair because of Imperial Censor Wu's influence.

Although it would be difficult to bring the two of them together in the Prince Huai's residence, it wasn't impossible.

There are plenty of people in the Prince Huai's mansion who dislike Zhou Ying and don't want to bring in new people. If they just let it slip, someone will naturally do it for her.

Zhou Shuqing, Zhou Shuqing, this is a wife specially chosen for you.

Song Baoning's coming-of-age ceremony proceeded smoothly. Surprisingly, the Empress also sent a female official with a gift.

Song Xia and the people in the Cheng Prince's Mansion all knew that this was because a few days ago, the Cheng Prince mentioned the Prince Ding to His Majesty, and then His Majesty issued an edict ordering the Prince Ding to return to the capital for the New Year.

Although Prince Ding is young, he has been guarding the northern frontier for many years and has achieved great merit. It has been two years since he last returned to the capital.

Many people believe that Prince Ding, with his 200,000-strong army, is the strongest backing for Prince Huai's succession. However, they forget that Prince Ding's deceased eldest son was His Majesty's only legitimate son and only legitimate grandson. Presumably, the Empress is aware of the intentions of the Chengjun Prince's Mansion.

However, Zhou Shuqing and the others did not think that way. They believed that because Zhou Ying had married Prince Huai as a concubine, they were now aligned with the Prince Cheng's mansion.

Zhou Shuqing's eyes lit up with excitement. Just then, Song Baoning, who had just finished the ceremony, looked over here, so Zhou Shuqing gave what he thought was a handsome and dashing smile.

Song Baoning, however, complained to Song Xia beside her, "Auntie, is that Zhou Shuqing who looks like my cousin? How come he's so much taller than my cousin?"

"I guess he stood on tiptoe."

"Are you crazy? Who are you trying to attract attention for?" Song Baoning said, glancing warily at her friends behind her. She breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that they hadn't noticed.

Song Xia found it amusing and mocked Zhou Shuqing for being so flattered by Zhou Yongli and the others that she had forgotten her own status. How could a well-educated young lady be so easily attracted to a stranger?

She initially agreed to marry into the Zhou family because she was incredibly naive, her father doted on her, and she thought the Zhou family was simple, with no proper mother-in-law and no need for formalities.

And what about you, Zhou Shuqing? You have an eldest son above you, so you are destined not to inherit the family business. There is also a legal mother, concubines, and great-aunts in the mansion. Anyone can manipulate the new daughter-in-law. Families that truly love their daughters will generally not consider you unless you are exceptionally outstanding. But you are not outstanding enough for everyone to overlook these shortcomings.

After the coming-of-age ceremony, the guests left one after another. Zhou Shuqing looked back unwillingly, but after waiting for a long time, the little maid who had given him the purse he had imagined did not appear.

Song Xia did not go back to the Zhou residence with them, but instead told her sister-in-law Ye Wanrou about Zhou Shuqing's unusual behavior during the day.

"Although he doesn't have the ability to scheme against Bao Ning, it's better to be safe than sorry. We should try to prevent the two of them from meeting in the future."

Ye Wanrou opened her mouth wide, marveling at Zhou Shuqing's audacity. These two siblings, so young, were quite cunning. The younger sister had already hooked up with Prince Huai before she even reached marriageable age, and the older brother wanted to show off at the Prince's residence. No wonder the usually low-key Yuqing was writing poems and painting all day; it turned out she was trying to suppress him.

Song Xia sneered: "I'll arrange his marriage right away."

Which company are you planning to book?

Song Xia had nothing to hide from her sister-in-law: "The concubine's daughter of Imperial Censor Wu, I heard she has always had a crush on Prince Huai."

"Where did you get this information from?"

“There’s a servant in the manor who happens to be from the same hometown as Imperial Censor Wu’s family, and he just happened to know about it,” Song Xia made up a reason. “Besides, that illegitimate daughter is always thinking about how to get into Prince Huai’s manor. I think the two of them are quite a good match.”

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