The brocade curtain opened and closed again, and Lan Qiu stared at Qian Zhiqing with a pale face.

The young lady has lived in the Marquis's mansion since she was a child. In previous years, there has never been any talk of sending her back to her hometown to fulfill her filial duties. Now that she is older and it is time for her to get engaged, why is the madam bringing it up now?

Qian Zhiqing took a deep breath, picked up the vase, carefully arranged the flowers, and pointed to the blue and white porcelain vase, saying, "Go and give this to Madam."

There were two first-class maids in the room. Bao Xia was lively and usually did the errands that people liked to go out to. This time was no exception.

Lan Qiu turned to look at Qian Zhiqing, waiting quietly for instructions.

But then Qian Zhiqing carefully examined the remaining bottle of flowers, gently trimming away any excess branches and removing any slightly damaged buds. She only stopped after a while, satisfied with her work.

Seeing Qian Zhiqing reach out to take the bottle, Lanqiu quickly stepped forward and said, "This bottle is heavy, let me do it."

Qian Zhiqing shook her head and said, "No need, I can do it myself." With that, she picked up the vase, got up, and walked outside.

Lan Qiu respectfully agreed, took two steps forward, lifted the brocade curtain, and followed her out of the courtyard.

At this moment, Yi Hong had already relayed Qian Zhiqing's words to Madam Qian in their entirety.

Upon hearing this, Qian's expression darkened.

The Qian family had completely declined by her generation. The title was passed down only to her father's generation. Fortunately, her brother was quite promising and passed the imperial examination. Although he only achieved the third rank, it was still a great achievement. The family spent almost all their money to secure him a real position. They thought the family business could be revived, but unexpectedly, he passed away from illness just two years later. Now, only her elderly parents are left in the family. Even if they still have the title, it is just a nominal one. They rely on her for everything, including food and drink.

Ms. Qian sighed softly, resting her chin on her carefully maintained wrist, looking quite depressed.

Zhiqing has already left a bad impression on the Marquis, and it will probably be difficult for her to come back after this trip.

The thought that she would never see the child she had raised since childhood caused Qian a pang of heartache.

Seeing that Madam Qian was troubled, Yi Hong wanted to share her mistress's worries, so she quietly stepped forward and whispered, "Madam is distressed that Miss Biao is leaving. You could have kept her here. Why make things so difficult for yourself?"

Madam Qian glanced at her and said listlessly, "Why would I want to make things difficult for myself? The Marquis has already given his orders, how can I disobey?"

Yi Hong smiled and said, "Of course, Madam will obey the Marquis's arrangements, but since Miss and the young master are in love, how can Madam stop them?"

Mr. Qian raised his eyebrows slightly. "That's right, that's the point."

Granny Ruan, who had just been nearly strangled to death by Qian Zhiqing, immediately said upon hearing this, "The Marquis disregarded the Madam's reputation and spoke ill of the Cousin in that way. In my opinion, the Marquis is still angry. If any rumors spread that are related to the Cousin," Ruan Momo tilted her head to the side, "that courtyard is not easy to deal with either. If the Marquis thinks that the Madam is deliberately going against his wishes, that would be bad."

Granny Ruan glosses over the unspoken meaning, but Madam Qian recalls from her words Zhu Xian's cold and cruel face, like that of a Yama, and the cold words he uttered when he told her to guard the nunnery.

Qian was startled and remained silent for a moment.

Yihong just wanted to curry favor, but she was humiliated by Granny Ruan's combination of insults and beatings, leaving her feeling resentful.

She glanced sideways at Granny Ruan, whose eyelids were drooping, and covered her mouth with a smile, saying, "This servant only said this because I couldn't bear to see Madam and Miss separated. In the end, this matter is between the two of them, what does it have to do with Madam? If you ask me, as long as the young master is willing, the Marquis probably won't say anything." She secretly glanced at Madam Qian, and seeing that she was somewhat moved, she continued, "Our mansion has been cold and aloof all these years. If this can liven things up, perhaps the Marquis will look at Madam in a different light."

Because Madam Qian had not conceived, people in the manor had to be careful with their words. Even when Yi Hong tried to persuade her, she was careful with her words and dared not mention offspring, but she still hinted at something.

Madam Qian's eyes flickered. Over the years, her biggest problem was that she had no children. She did have one when she first married into the family, but it died inexplicably before the due date was over.

Most men are cold-hearted and indifferent, but they value offspring very much. Qian Shi has experienced the changes in her relationship with the Marquis over the years since she married into the Marquis's family, from deep affection to indifference. She has a deep understanding of this.

Zhu Xian is no longer in the running. Zhu Yi has just gotten engaged, and there is still at least half a year before the wedding. If she takes advantage of this time to let Zhi Qing go with him, Zhu Yi is in the prime of his life and will naturally not be able to resist. Zhi Qing has always been in good health, and it is only a matter of time before she becomes pregnant with his child.

Ideally, when the new bride enters the house, Zhiqing should make sure her belly is swollen. If God blesses her, she will give birth to a son, who will be the eldest son. Then she can work her way out of Shi Er's inability to have children, and the Marquis's mansion will be under her control.

Madam Qian secretly made her plans. She knew she couldn't be the principal wife, but she could be a favored concubine, and the only one with children. With her help, she could live a life of wealth and honor, which was much better than going back to her parents and marrying into a similarly impoverished family.

Seeing the changes in Madam Qian's expression, Granny Ruan knew that she had been moved. She sighed inwardly, lowered her eyes, and refused to utter another word.

As Qian had predicted, she ordered Yihong to invite the young master over.

A spring breeze blew into the room through the brocade curtain. Granny Ruan cleared away the tea that had gone cold from the table and helped Madam Qian move from the side room to the main hall.

Less than fifteen minutes later, Zhu Yi, dressed in a blue brocade robe, strode in.

"Madam, you wanted to see me?"

Madam Qian smiled and nodded, saying, "There is something."

Zhu Yi looked around and found a seat.

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