Another voice sighed, "Mrs. Guo, there's no point in discussing the details of this matter here. I already know why you've come, but whether my nephew is willing to accept this marriage still needs to be carefully inquired with him."

Su's expression changed. Sure enough, it was her aunt's former third daughter-in-law, Guo. She was also the third daughter-in-law in her maiden home. Now that she had returned home, people called her Third Sister Guo.

"Yes, yes, yes," Madam Guo said with a fawning smile, "Second Madam Qin, I'm entrusting this matter to you. You've met Yin'er before; she's very healthy and has been well-behaved and sensible since she was little. If it weren't for..."

She seemed to choke up before saying, "It's just that we're so unlucky, we didn't have the chance to stay in Taizhou and share the joys and sorrows with the Yun family. But since my mother-in-law has already asked me to come home, how can I not leave and become a burden to them? They're already struggling so much, they even have to rely on my cousin from the Su family for food..."

Old Madam Yun couldn't listen any longer and gestured to Zhao Mama to kick the door, "Zhao Mama, kick the door open for me!"

Zhao's mother smiled broadly, said "Hey!" and kicked the door open with a "bang".

The people inside were stunned.

As soon as Madam Yun stepped over the threshold, she pointed at Guo's nose and scolded, "When you were in the Yun family, you were always causing trouble. When you left the capital, you knelt down on the carriage and begged this old woman to let you go. I didn't agree immediately because I was afraid that your current reputation would implicate Yin'er and Yi'er. And what trouble did you cause in Taizhou? You complained that we mistreated your Yi'er, that Yin'er couldn't find a good match in the village, and that you looked down on the business we worked so hard to get in the county town. All of this is because you wanted to return to the capital first, and that's why I let you go home later."

Guo's face turned pale and then red.

A lady standing nearby quickly stood up and nodded to Old Madam Yun, "Old Madam Yun, it's been a while."

Only then did Madam Yun look over, her voice cold, "So it's the wife of the Minister of Rites."

Just as Madam Qin was about to leave, she said, "I heard that the old lady and her entourage have returned to the capital. I've been so busy that I haven't had time to send a formal invitation to visit... This must be Lady Su, right? Perhaps we could meet in a few days..."

Madam Su smiled and said, "No need, Madam Qin, you don't need to be so polite. We are complete strangers, and it's not like we can become friends just by exchanging invitations."

Ignoring Madam Qin's changed expression, she turned to Madam Guo and said, "Third Sister-in-law, others may not know, but didn't you see it with your own eyes that day? I did intend to help my aunt, but on the day we arrived at Sanyang Village, my aunt refused the money and grain from the Su family, and even scolded the Yun family's children and grandchildren for not accepting a single grain of rice or a single thread from the Su family. How could you possibly forget?"

Guo's face turned even uglier.

Madam Qin glanced at Madam Guo and then prepared to take her leave.

Madam Su turned to Old Madam Yun and said first, "Aunt, now that things have been clarified, let's go. After all, Yin'er is her daughter. If Third Sister-in-law wants to find her a good marriage, we shouldn't say too much. She was raised in luxury, so it's only natural that she wouldn't accept a country bumpkin as her son-in-law."

Guo screamed, "Of course! I returned to the capital for my two children, so that my son could study hard and make a future, and my daughter could find a good marriage. What's wrong with that?"

Madam Yun looked at her with disappointment. "No one said you were wrong. They say it's better to destroy a temple than to break up a marriage. If it weren't for your children, I wouldn't have agreed to your request to divorce your wife on behalf of my son."

Madam Guo continued, "Mother, you keep saying you won't accept the Su family's charity, that you'd rather let your children go hungry than accept their rice, but haven't you still managed to make a living by relying on them? Now that you've returned to the capital, aren't you still living in the Su family's mansion? Isn't this a slap in your own face?"

Madam Su sneered, "I don't want to talk to you about anything in Taizhou anymore. The Yun family's current situation has absolutely nothing to do with the money I have. And the place you're living in now isn't the Su family mansion, it's the county princess's residence. My daughter's surname is Jiang, you haven't forgotten, have you?"

Before Guo could say anything more, Su interrupted her, "Aunt, let's go. We don't want outsiders to laugh at us. If it weren't for someone distorting the truth and damaging your reputation, we wouldn't have had to come in and waste our breath, breaking up a good match for nothing."

“What I’m looking for for my daughter is naturally a good marriage,” Madam Guo replied firmly. Madam Qin was right there; she had to say it no matter what.

Madam Su nodded and helped Old Madam Yun up, "That's right, it's better to marry anyone than to marry a peasant."

Madam Yun immediately smiled and said, "You're right. The Minister of Rites' nephew is, after all, a scholar. I just wonder if he participated in this year's autumn imperial examination?"

She turned and left as she spoke, but her question was not directed at Madam Qin.

Sure enough, as soon as Su helped her step out of the door, she said, "Whether you passed or not, just go and check the list."

"After all that picking and choosing, she ended up going back to the capital and picking the nephew of the Minister of Rites?" Old Madam Yun's voice had faded into the distance, but it was still clearly audible.

Madam Qin clutched her chest, too angry to speak.

Her nephew was preoccupied with keeping concubines and maids, so of course he couldn't pass the imperial examination. Now that he was getting old and his reputation was bad, it was difficult for him to find a wife. That's why she suggested considering the daughter of the Guo family, who also had a bad reputation.

Moreover, the meaning behind Madam Yun's last sentence was to imply that Guo's judgment was not very good, and that after all the picking, she only chose a nephew of the Minister of Rites who had no real power.

If it weren't for the fact that Guo's father was the Minister of War, she wouldn't have looked down on this Guo who had been divorced and sent home!

Seeing that she looked unwell, Madam Guo quickly came over to help her sit down and poured her a cup of hot tea in a conciliatory manner, saying, "Second Madam Qin, please have some tea to calm your nerves."

Madam Qin stood up and chuckled coldly, "No need, I'll take my leave too."

Jiang Mingyi rested for another hour in the private room before slowly and dejectedly returning to the Earl's mansion, only to find a sedan chair parked in front of the mansion.

Beside the sedan chair was an old acquaintance he recognized, Zhao's mother.

Could it be that Su Yarong came to see him alone?

Overjoyed, he braced himself forward, nearly falling off the carriage.

When Zhao Mama saw that his carriage had returned, she came forward and said loudly, "Oh, the Third Master of the Jiang family is back? The old lady said that since Miss Yunni is carrying your child, there is no reason for your ex-wife's daughter to raise your concubine and son. It is better to send her back to serve you. Besides, I heard that you have lost your ability to have sex. The child in Yunni's belly may be your only son. You must take good care of him."

The onlookers immediately erupted in uproar and crowded around.