When Rong Xi saw these old women coming over, his first thought was to break their hands, but he changed his mind and knelt down before they came over.

"Mother, I know I was wrong. Please spare my life."

Seeing her behavior just now, the Minister's wife thought she would resist, but it turned out that she was still a soft persimmon like before.

"Jiang Rongxi, where have you been these days? Do you know how important a girl's reputation is? It's fine if you're not acting properly, but if you implicate your brothers and sisters in the mansion, how can you bear the responsibility?"

Jiang Rongxi could hear the hidden meaning in her words, which was that she was saying that she was not decent.

"Mother, please calm down. I didn't do that. I just met a friend who was injured. I took care of him for a few days. He should have sent someone to our house to tell us about it. I didn't..."

The Shangshu's wife interrupted her.

"Don't try to quibble. If it weren't for the fact that you're the daughter of the Shangshu Mansion, I would have kicked you out long ago. Do you think about your father and brother's reputation, and our reputation, when you do such a dirty thing?"

The Shangshu's wife hadn't seen her for a long time. She always looked dirty in the past, but now that she has cleaned up, I don't know if she has grown up, but she is so beautiful. She is just like her bitch concubine, both of them are vixens. The more she looks at them, the angrier she becomes.

The maid beside her quickly tried to dissuade her.

"Madam, please don't get angry. It will hurt your body."

"Forget it. You are not my biological child after all. If I punish you and let outsiders know, they will think that I, as your legitimate mother, cannot tolerate you, a concubine's daughter. Kneel here first. I will decide what to do with you when your father comes back."

After the Shangshu's wife finished speaking, she took her people away with a look of regret, acting as if she was disappointed in someone.

Seeing that she was about to leave, Rong Xi quickly knelt down and crawled a few steps towards her.

"Mother, please keep this a secret for me. Nothing has happened to me, and I'm going to get married."

The Shangshu's wife looked at her coldly. She was indeed old enough to get married, so she would find a "good" marriage for her.

She didn't respond and just left.

The servants all left, leaving Rong Xi kneeling here alone. The weather was so cold that they didn't even leave her a charcoal brazier. If it weren't for the system's help, she might have caught a cold again.

Everything that happened here was soon reported to the palace. The emperor looked at the letter in his hand and was so angry that he almost left the palace.

.

Jiang Heng returned to the mansion in the evening. He knew that Jiang Rongxi had been found and punished to kneel in the front hall, but he was too lazy to care. He even hoped that she would die outside.

It was not until he lay down at night that his wife told him this.

"Master, Rong Xi has been missing for a few days, I'm afraid he has..."

She didn't finish her words, but as someone who had been together for so many years, Jiang Heng already understood what she meant.

"Ah, this rebellious girl has caused Madam to worry."

"My husband, what are you talking about? I am their legitimate mother. How can I let her fall into depravity and do nothing? But I am not her biological mother after all, so this matter still requires the master to make the decision."

"So, what do you think?"

"This... Rong Xi has been missing for so many days. I thought I'd find her a home as soon as possible before anyone knows about it. If it's left for too long, I'm afraid it might cause a scandal."

The implication of this statement is that Rong Xi had lost her virginity to someone outside, so she should find someone to marry as soon as possible, otherwise she might get pregnant after a long time.

Jiang Heng nodded, thinking that this made some sense.

"Then does the lady have a suitable candidate?"

The Shangshu's wife hesitated for a long time but still didn't say it out loud. Seeing her hesitant look, Jiang Heng knew that she must have made up her mind.

"Madam, it's already this time, just tell me."

"Then sir, I'm just giving you some advice. Please don't blame me if it's not suitable."

"No."

"I do have a few candidates, but considering that she is the daughter of the Shangshu Mansion, she can't marry too poorly. I also want her future husband's family to be on the same page with us and to benefit us. After screening, there is only one."

Jiang Heng was very happy that his wife was so considerate of the family. "Who?"

"It's a city gate guard named Liu Cheng. Although his official position is not high, he has a lot of power at the city gate. Our shop has been seized by the people at the city gate for the past two years. If he becomes our son-in-law in the future, he will definitely help us."

Jiang Heng was very clear about this matter. Two years ago, he had even gone to see the city gate leader specifically for the matter in the shop. The leader's official position was not as high as his own, but he had great authority. He had to flatter him and spend a lot of money before he let him go.

After hearing what his wife said, he felt that this was a good arrangement.

"Madam, you are very thoughtful."

"Master, you are so kind, but..."

"Just what?"

"But Liu Cheng is a pitiful man. His wife passed away two years ago, and now he's raising a child alone. He's a second-time married man."

Jiang Heng thought about it for a moment and then agreed.

"What's wrong with a second marriage? It's good that she's not despised by others. She was originally a concubine's daughter, and now she has done such a shameful thing, and she still chose him."

"But what if Rong Xi doesn't like it?"

"Marriage is a matter of parents' orders and matchmaker's words. How can she decide on it? Just arrange it for her."

"Then I will make the decision myself. Master, you are very busy with official duties, so you should rest early."

"Um!"

.

Early the next morning, Rong Xi heard a commotion outside the house. No one usually came to her house, so when she heard the noise, she quickly got up to check.

As soon as the door opened, she saw maids and servants in the yard cleaning up for her.

The yard, which was originally overgrown with weeds, is now clean and tidy, and the stone table and benches covered with mud have also been cleaned up.

The spider webs on the beams, the lanterns that had been broken for a long time, the sunshades in the corridor, the broken window paper, the broken ones replaced with good ones, the dirty ones cleaned, made her almost not recognize this place anymore.

Many servants saw her coming out and hurriedly saluted her respectfully.

"Hello, Miss. The fourth lady has finally woken up."

After hearing that Rong Xi had woken up, two maids came in from outside, holding boxes in their hands and smiling flatteringly.

"Oh my fourth lady, you finally got up."

The two of them pulled her to sit down and started to put on makeup. The powder they applied was too white and did not suit Rong Xi at all. After finishing the bun on her head, they even put a big red artificial flower on the right side.

The clothes she chose were also very gaudy, pink and thin, neither warm nor good-looking.

Rong Xi could see that this makeup didn't suit her, but she had roughly guessed what was going to happen from the beginning.

Even while they were dressing, two maids came in with new bedding to replace her original one.