"Not you? If it's not you, why does this portrait depict your likeness?"

Liu Youlin never expected that his wife of so many years would be so ruthless and heartless. He had pretended not to see their past jealousy and rivalry, but now she was trying to harm him. If he had stayed with Aunt Zhao for a longer period of time, would he have become like Aunt Zhao?

Zhang was so frightened that she knelt on the ground. "I didn't do it. I didn't do it myself. It was Zhao and the steward who colluded to frame me. Yun Laijian, yes, Yun Laijian would never sell a merchant's identity. It must have been them who conspired to frame me."

As soon as Zhang finished speaking, she realized she had let something slip. Two lines of tears welled up in her eyes, and she kept shaking her head. This time, it was all over.

"I didn't even know that you, a mere woman, knew the rules of Yunlai. And you still say it wasn't you?" Liu Youlin trembled with anger, pointing his finger at Zhang Shi, his lips twitching. After catching his breath, he kicked Zhang Shi in the stomach.

Yunlaijian does indeed have this rule. If Liu Xuening hadn't bribed a steward with three hundred taels, how could the steward have obtained this portrait, especially one belonging to the Zhang family, from Yunlaijian with a mere six hundred taels?

Locked in a secluded courtyard in the northeast, Liu Ruyan learned of the trouble at the mansion. The gates were locked, so she had to climb over the wall to escape. There she happened to witness Liu Youlin kicking Zhang Shi in the abdomen. "Mother."

Because Liu Ruyan was poisoned by the Beauty's Intoxication and had no money to buy more, her body was now covered in wrinkles and she was becoming increasingly frail, as if she could be blown away by a gust of wind. In her haste, Liu Ruyan suddenly fell to the ground and struggled to crawl toward Zhang Shi, completely unaware that her veil had fallen off. She helped the heartbroken Zhang Shi up.

"Father, what did Mother do wrong that you have to treat your wife of several decades like this?"

Liu Ruyan looked up and questioned Liu Youlin. "Ah!" Aunt Wang, who had never seen such a scene before, was so frightened by Liu Ruyan that she fainted. Liu Youlin was also frightened by Liu Ruyan's face and took a few steps back.

Only then did Liu Ruyan notice that her veil had fallen off, and she quickly crawled over to pick it up and put it back on.

"I told you to reflect on your actions in the garden, so why did you run away?"

Liu Youlin did not answer Liu Ruyan's question. He rubbed his forehead, making no attempt to hide his disapproval, blame, and disdain for Liu Ruyan.

After so many days, Liu Ruyan finally understood that her father was a selfish and hypocritical man, and she no longer had any hope for him.

"The daughter asked her father what her mother had done wrong to deserve his physical abuse."

"Sister, don't blame Father. It was Madam who harmed Father and Mother, and even killed our unborn brother. The evidence is now conclusive."

"This is impossible, this is impossible, Mother would never do such a thing." Liu Ruyan stepped forward and hugged Liu Youlin's leg, begging him to spare his mother for the sake of their years of friendship.

Upon seeing Liu Ruyan's face, Liu Youlin felt increasingly disgusted and kicked her away. "Zhang is vicious and wicked. She murdered her husband and killed her children. This is against all reason. Considering the years of affection between husband and wife, she is demoted to a concubine and will live with the eldest daughter in the Northeast Garden. She is not allowed to come and go as she pleases without permission. Zhao is kind-hearted and has also lost a son. She is promoted to a secondary wife and will manage the inner courtyard."

"That's it. Carry these two back to the garden. They're not allowed to come or go as they please." Liu Youlin didn't even give them a disdainful look.

After being kicked and hearing that she had been demoted to a concubine, Zhang fainted and was carried out by the servants.

Liu Yanyi and Liu Xuening were talking to themselves about Zhang's fate that day by Zhao's bedside, completely disregarding whether the person on the bed needed to rest.

"Big brother, how's the Beauty Intoxication I found for Liu Ruyan? Isn't it incredibly effective! Hahahaha."

Liu Yanyi felt disgusted just thinking about Liu Ruyan's old, wrinkled face. "My sister is so clever. No one will bully us anymore. From now on, I will be the only legitimate son of the Minister's Mansion, and you will be the only legitimate daughter. Hahahaha."

"Today's plan was truly brilliant. My sister is so clever. That idiot Liu Ruyan is not worthy to be compared with my sister."

"Hahaha... She really is an idiot. Being bullied by her for so many years is truly an insult."

Zhao fell into deep thought, looking at her two children who had almost gone mad with greed, having traded their lives for status and position. For a moment, she didn't know whether it was right or wrong.

Zhao stroked her belly, feeling sorry for her unborn child, who had been plotted against by the whole family before even being born. But it was all for the best; perhaps the child would be happier if he were to be reborn into another family.

Bai Lan naturally wouldn't know so much about what happened at the Minister's residence. She only told Yan An and Gu Yanan the general story of Zhao's miscarriage and Zhang's demotion to concubine. But Yan An and Gu Yanan were quite happy to hear it. Bad people always have their own bad people to deal with them!

"Miss, during the morning court session today, the Emperor asked Minister Liu if he had a son late in life, which infuriated him." Bai Lan's face was flushed from drinking a few cups of wine, and she even let out a burp.

"Little Bailan, you know about what's happening in the imperial court?"

Yan An felt that this little girl was becoming more and more gossipy. She knew about the affairs of the Minister's mansion, and even about the affairs of the court.

"Hehehe... It was all told to me by An Si. An Si said to let me tell you this to cheer you up. If Miss is happy, the Prince will be happy. If the Prince is happy, he can increase his monthly salary."

Bai Lan realized something was wrong as she spoke and quickly covered her mouth. Oh no, An Si had told her to be more discreet, but she had spoken so bluntly...

"Miss, please pretend you didn't hear anything, okay?" With a thud, Bai Lan collapsed onto the table, drunk.

“This guy can’t hold his liquor, yet he drank so much. It’s getting late, you should take Bai Lan back and get some rest too.”

"Yes, Miss." Bai Zhi carried Bai Lan on her back, and the four of them left.

Gu Yanan stretched and lay down on the tatami mat. "Ah! So comfortable. I haven't felt this comfortable in a long time."

Is getting married really this tiring?

"...You don't know, I'm lucky. Yu Feng doesn't make me learn those complicated procedures, but I still need to know the process of the wedding and the day of the coronation. I've been studying from morning till night, it's exhausting. It's only because you came back that I was able to finally get out."

"Then I should have it a little easier than you, at least I don't have a coronation ceremony."

Gu Yanan sat up abruptly, pouting, "Xiao An'an, how far have you and Xiyuan progressed? Why haven't I got any snacks?"

"Huh? Aren't instant noodles and mosquito repellent products already out? Don't rush things, you can't eat hot tofu in a hurry."

"Haste makes waste, but you can always have a cold piece of tofu."