Xu Keke didn't get out of bed until the sun was high in the sky. Little Du Wei had been waiting for her for some time.

It turned out that Hu Jiaru had sent a message that morning. She had already spoken with her parents, and they agreed to meet Kang Quan. They only had one condition: Du Wei must bring his eldest sister with him when he came.

Xu Keke didn't pay much attention when she heard the news. She assumed that Mayor Hu and his wife were just worried and wanted her to go over and find out more about the situation, so she readily agreed.

When Xu Keke learned that the Du family had received numerous invitations that morning, and even Du Rui's classmates had personally come to see her, she realized that Yan Shuo's visit to the Du family the previous evening had become common knowledge throughout the city.

Xu Keke was somewhat puzzled. Based on what she had learned yesterday, it was impossible for anyone to openly follow Yan Shuo. Even a family like the Du family, which was barely considered upper-middle class in the city, wouldn't have someone constantly watching them. Why did the news spread so quickly?

"Big sister, my classmate heard you're sick and wants to visit you. She just wants to see you for a moment and then leave immediately," Du Rui said cautiously to Xu Keke.

"Who told her I was sick?"

Du Rui was surprised that Xu Keke would ask this question so suddenly, and replied matter-of-factly, "As soon as the young marshal left yesterday, Third Sister called all her close friends. However, she couldn't talk to you and didn't dare to let them come up."

Xu Keke looked at the somewhat naive girl in front of her. She looked like the second concubine, with a delicate and refined charm, but because the second concubine had protected her, she was a little not very thoughtful, and the second concubine had also taught her to like to play tricks.

Xu Keke's sudden silence made her a little uneasy. "Big sister, could you meet my classmate? She's downstairs."

"No!" Xu Keke answered decisively.

As soon as she finished speaking, she heard a soft thud outside. Someone was eavesdropping outside the door. Xu Keke walked over, pulled open the door, and saw Du Shan standing outside, with a little girl about the same age as them standing next to her.

Caught by Xu Keke, Du Shan wasn't afraid. She said rudely to the girl next to her, "I told you, my older sister won't see you. Only Du Rui thinks she's important. Alright, you've seen her, so hurry up and leave."

The little girl was a bit timid, and didn't move even after being treated like that by Du Shan.

"Why aren't you leaving? Are you still planning to stay at our house?" Du Shan shoved her. The little girl looked like she was about to cry, tears welling up in her eyes, but she gritted her teeth and swallowed them back.

"Third Sister..." Du Rui walked a few steps to the door, wanting to stop her but not daring to. Although she hadn't invited her, the person had come to see her. It was her best classmate. But she really didn't dare to offend Du Shan.

Especially this morning, after Du Bingtian said that his aunt would be in charge of the household from now on, Du Shan has been causing her trouble all day.

"Third sister? What third sister? From now on, I'm afraid I'll have to call you fourth young lady. What, you think that by currying favor with Jin Nan, you can marry Jin Yan? You think that just because you're registered under my mother's name, you're no longer my aunt's daughter? Even if Jin Yan agrees, Mrs. Jin can't do it."

"Third sister, don't talk nonsense, I didn't..."

Judging from Du Rui's expression, Xu Keke knew that Du Shan was probably not lying. Sure enough,

"I'm talking nonsense. Your second concubine went to see my mother yesterday..."

"Alright, Third Sister!" Du Jue came up from downstairs and interrupted Du Shan. "You're teasing Fourth Sister again. Jin Nan doesn't know you're joking. You'll scare her again."

Du Shan was unmoved. "She's scared. Don't let her fool you. She's just a lowly woman born of a concubine. She's just trying to seduce..."

Du Jue hadn't originally planned to come over, but after hearing Du Shan's increasingly outrageous remarks, she rushed over, covered Du Shan's mouth, and pulled her away. Before leaving, she didn't forget to discuss with Xu Keke, "Big sister, if it's convenient, could you talk to Jin Nan for a while? Otherwise, she won't be able to explain it when she gets back."

Xu Keke became somewhat interested at this point. While telling Du Jue to rest assured, she led this Miss Jin into the house.

After chatting for a while, I learned that the Jin family had sent her here to befriend me. If I didn't see her, she would be punished when she got home. Looking at her rolled-up sleeves, I could see marks on her wrists from being hit with a ruler.

It must have taken a lot of effort to leave such a clear mark. Xu Keke, on the other hand, felt fortunate that Du Shan had made such a fuss.

"Doesn't Jin Yan care?" Xu Keke asked curiously. How could that young man who championed new ideas allow such a thing to happen in his home?

“He’s my cousin. He’s already helped me a lot. They live and eat at home, and if they interfere too much, my second aunt, who is his mother, will get scolded by my wife.”

Xu Keke chatted with the girl for a long time, but couldn't find any clues that Du Shan had mentioned about her trying to seduce Du Jue.

Instead, she hinted to Du Rui that her second aunt didn't care whether her cousin was born to her aunt or not, but if her cousin disagreed, her second aunt would probably turn against the family and wouldn't agree either.

Upon hearing this, Du Rui's face immediately changed, and she didn't even try to hide it. Jin Nan was truly a rare person; afraid of embarrassing her, he deliberately talked about other things with Xu Keke, avoiding looking at Du Rui. Only after Du Rui felt better did he call her to chat again. However, Du Rui's mind was clearly no longer on this.

Although this girl is a bit weak, she is not a bad person.

"I have an appointment to visit Mayor Hu's house tomorrow. Do you have time?"

"Me? Are you asking me?" Jin Nan pointed at herself, somewhat incredulous. If Du Jue hadn't interceded on her behalf, this eldest daughter of the Du family wouldn't have been willing to see her.

"Yes, if you go back and say you met me, your wife will definitely make more demands. Rather than that, I'd like to arrange a meeting with you first. However, I'm a bit short on time later, so I can only arrange for you to go to Mayor Hu's house together. This way, it will be easier for you to explain when you get home."

Xu Keke never expected that after she said those words, the little girl would burst into tears. At first, she choked up a little, but then the tears just kept falling like they were free.

Du Jue just pushed the door open and came in. "Big sister, Jin Nan is still young. She might say something wrong. Please don't blame her."

Seeing the anxious look on his face, Xu Keke instantly understood what Du Shan meant.

"No, Brother Du, no..." the little girl tried to explain, but she choked on her sobs and couldn't form a coherent sentence.

"I know my older sister isn't a bad person, she's just a bit blunt..."

Without a word, Xu Keke grabbed Jin Nan and pushed Du Jue out together. She said to Jin Nan, "Come over first thing tomorrow morning, don't be late."

Just as he was about to close the door, he suddenly remembered that Du Rui was still sitting inside, looking distracted. He went over, pulled her up, and asked her to leave. Only then did he close the door.

Xu Keke had considered that Yan Shuo would be useful, but she hadn't expected him to be so intimidating. She needed to strike while the iron was hot and accelerate her mission's progress.