Seeing Yuan Zhao's actions, Zhou Shiyuan, several elders of the Zhou family, and many others shouted loudly:

"Stop! Don't tear it! Don't tear it..."

Zhou Shiyuan ran to Yuan Zhao as fast as he could, but he was too late. The visiting card in Yuan Zhao's hand had already turned into a pile of crumbs.

"You? Foolish, ignorant."

Zhou Shiyuan's face turned bright red with anger:

Do you know what this visiting card means?

Zhou Shiyuan was so anxious he was about to jump up and down. Yuan Zhao smiled mockingly and said coldly:

"I know, but so what?"

“I asked him for it, but he said I was abusing him.”

"If that's the case, why keep it?"

Yuan Zhao's calm tone brought Zhou Shiyuan back to his senses. He looked at Yuan Zhao with a complicated expression and finally understood that Yuan Zhao was doing it on purpose.

She had clearly received the invitation long ago, but she kept it a secret. She wanted them to see it with their own eyes before destroying it, making him regret it deeply.

This woman is utterly wicked.

You bitch!

You bitch!

The words that were about to come out were forcefully swallowed back by Zhou Shiyuan, who used almost all his strength to keep himself from uttering them.

Moreover, he not only couldn't scold them, but he also had to carefully apologize.

He bowed to Yuan Zhao, feeling aggrieved, and said:

"It was my fault in this matter. I had no idea what my wife had done for Jie'er."

"The child is too young to understand his wife's good intentions."

After saying that, he glanced at Zhou Yujie and said:

"Aren't you going to come over and apologize to your mother?"

Zhou Yujie hadn't said a word all day, which was very much in line with his two-year-old age. He looked like he was frightened by the big scene, but in fact he had been observing Yuan Zhao the whole time.

The more I observed him, the more alarmed and envious I became.

This woman is amazing; she plans every step of the way without missing a single detail.

How wonderful it would be if he were inside Yuan Zhao's belly?

With a woman like that as his mother, he would definitely have a lot less trouble, but unfortunately, he was born into the womb of that idiot Bai Mianmian.

As he thought about it, he walked up to Yuan Zhao with his short legs, his big eyes wide open, looking completely innocent.

Anyone who saw him like that would soften their heart, but Yuan Zhao was not among those people.

Just as he was about to bow to Yuan Zhao, he heard Yuan Zhao say:

"No need, I can't accept that."

"Being a stepmother is difficult. From now on, I hope my husband will personally teach this child."

After speaking, Yuan Zhao looked at the elders and slowly said:

"Now that everything is clear, I implore the elders to clear my name."

The clan elders were quite speechless after Yuan Zhao's retort.

They looked at Yuan Zhao for a long time, and finally the most composed one spoke:

"I was wrong about you. You did nothing wrong; on the contrary, you are a model of womanhood."

"It's all our fault for believing the rumors. We apologize to you here."

These people are also flexible and adaptable; given the circumstances, this is all they can do.

After all, Yuan Zhao had the upper hand in every aspect and her arguments were reasonable and well-founded. If they were to express their dissatisfaction with her again, wouldn't they just become a laughing stock?

"Thank you very much, elders."

Yuan Zhao slowly bowed.

Even though the elders were unwilling, they could only accept it with smiles on their faces.

Unable to vent their anger on Yuan Zhao, they could only direct it at the Zhou family father and son.

“You two, one a marquis and the other a former heir of a marquis’s mansion, are not as insightful as a woman. No wonder the marquis’s mansion has become like this.”

"Yes, Shiyuan, how can you take the imperial examination with such a muddle-headed attitude? In my opinion, you should wait until next time."

Upon hearing the elders' words, Zhou Shiyuan's expression changed. He had sacrificed his mother to participate in the imperial examinations, but these old men were now trying to cancel his participation with just a few words. He immediately said:

"Elder, the imperial examination is held only once every three years. I still want to give it a try."

He gestured to the elders with his eyes, signaling them not to block his way, or he didn't know what he might do.

Several elders snorted coldly upon seeing this:

"Since you're so stubborn, then so be it!"

After saying this, the elders left, and the farce of the day came to an end.

The Zhou father and son entered the mansion with grim faces. Finally, Yuan Zhao glanced at Zhou's mother, who lay dead on the ground with her eyes wide open, and spoke:

"Have someone find a coffin to bury the body."