Before Wen Yuwan got married, she had an average relationship with her concubine sisters. In addition, she was four or five years older than them, so they could hardly play together.

As for her impression of Wen Ye, she only vaguely remembered that he was a dutiful person. Compared with Wen Er who loved to argue about everything and Wen San who was timid and cowardly, it seemed that there was no special feature in Wen Ye.

Ordinary, just like everyone else.

It was not until she returned to her mother's home for her second brother's wedding not long ago that her mother told her some things about her fourth sister, and she began to pay some attention to Wen Ye.

Wen Yuwan collected her thoughts, praised Wen Ye a few words, and asked the maids to carry the gifts down first.

But she saw her daughter staring at the box as it left. Wen Yuwan said with a smile, "Okay, I'll let you play with it tomorrow."

Lin Shu'er's eyes lit up, but she felt shy again, and quickly buried herself in Wen Yuwan's arms: "Mom~"

Everyone present had a smile on their face.

"Oh, by the way, my aunt will be here today too." Wen Yuwan asked the maid to take her daughter back to her room first, and then she talked about business, "Mother, my aunt's cousin Cheng passed the exam in the same year as my brother. Although his ranking was lower, he passed the exam anyway."

Her mother was worried about her fourth sister's marriage, and as a daughter, Wen Yuwan couldn't help but worry about it as well.

"Are you talking about the child Shen Cheng?" Shen searched for a long time among her brothers' sons from her mother's side before she remembered.

It couldn't be Shen's fault. Her brother was very fertile. There were more than ten sons and eight or nine daughters in the family. It took a lot of effort just to recognize their faces.

"It's him." Wen Yuwan glanced at Wen Ye who was sitting at the end and said, "Cousin Cheng is 24 this year and he is an official, isn't that just right?"

Shen thought for a moment and said, "I'll think about it again."

The Shen family has a large population and a complicated situation, so Shen has no choice but to not want to marry Wen Ye into the family.

Of course, if Wen Ye is willing, she will not stop her.

Wen Yuwan had no intention of asking Shen to make a decision right away. Although she did not have deep feelings for her concubine sisters, she had never thought of cheating them.

Among all the cousins ​​from my uncle's side, apart from the two legitimate cousins ​​born to my aunt, the illegitimate cousin is Shen Cheng, who is a good student and just the right age to be the match.

Seeing that Shen was still in doubt, Wen Yuwan turned her gaze to Wen Ye.

Wen Ye lowered her head slightly, looking shy.

But in my heart I thought, Shen Cheng, nephew from Shen’s maiden side?

Wen Ye didn't know much about Shen's family. She only remembered that Shen's brother had given her a niece last month.

Wen Yuwan swallowed the words that were about to come out of her mouth.

It's hard to ask directly about things that haven't been decided.

Besides...no matter how unusual she is, she is still an unmarried girl.

Thinking of this, Wen Yuwan said, "We need to think about it carefully. It just so happens that many ladies from aristocratic families are here today."

This is also Shen's plan.

The host of the flower banquet held at the Yongcheng Marquis's residence was naturally the wife of the Yongcheng Marquis and her daughter. Most of the ladies from aristocratic families who surrounded the mother and daughter came for their unmarried sons.

Of course, there were also a small number of people who came purely to curry favor with Lady Yongcheng, because who allowed her husband and son to gain power in the court?

Shen did not join in the fun, as she already had several candidates in mind.

Before leaving, Shen lowered her eyes and said to the people beside her: "I will take you to meet some ladies later. Do you understand?"

Throughout Wen Ye's two lifetimes, the most powerful skill is knowing current affairs, and no one has mastered it as well as she has.

Because of her, Shen even left her two daughters-in-law to her daughter. No matter how ignorant she was, she just didn't want to live.

Therefore, Wen Ye lowered her eyes respectfully and said, "My daughter understands."

Shen stared at her carefully for a long while, and seemed to be sure that she would not do anything naughty. Finally, she showed a hint of slightly reluctant satisfaction and led her in front of several ladies.

Most of the people who can come to this flower viewing banquet are acquaintances. Even if they are not familiar with each other, at least they can see each other's faces.

Shen soon started chatting with one of the women, Mrs. Wu, whose husband's surname was Wu.

Wen Ye stayed beside Shen the whole time, and behaved properly and looked obedient when other ladies cast curious glances at him.

Gradually, some people became curious about Wen Ye's identity and turned to ask Shen: "Who is this?"

The person asking the question was a lady who was not familiar with Shen.

Shen said in a normal tone, "My fourth daughter."

As soon as the words fell, everyone present understood that it was the unmarried concubine's daughter of the Wen family, the fourth Miss Wen.

The purpose of Shen bringing her to this banquet was obvious.

The three or two ladies who originally thought Wen Ye was good and had some ideas about him gradually gave up the idea. Although they were anxious about their sons' marriages, Wen Si was indeed too old.

Some of their eldest sons are barely eighteen years old.

However, a lady whom Shen didn't know showed interest and asked Shen about Wen Ye: "Madam Wen's daughter is so beautiful, I guess she has found a marriage?"

Sometimes people who don't know the situation always hit the mark.

Wen Ye sighed in his heart.

Shen's heart was choked, but she said calmly, "Her father has always favored her and was reluctant to let her get married early, so he kept her until today."

This statement seems to break the "husband-killing" rumor that has been circulating in a small circle for a long time.

Shen didn't think that Wen's father would be angry about being accused of favoring his concubine's daughter. After all, it was his daughter Wen Ye who would be married off in the end, not him.

Besides, if this news gets out, who will benefit from it? Everyone knows it.

Wen Ye gave a shy smile at the right time.

Some things are not convenient to be said openly. Everyone present is smart, and no one is stupid enough to pierce the thin paper covering the truth.

But sometimes seeing is believing. Some ladies secretly looked at the person standing meekly beside Shen. She had a round and delicate face, a good figure, and clear eyes, without a trace of arrogance of being a pampered girl or the usual petty thoughts of a concubine's daughter who could not show up in public.

Not outstanding, but not shrinking either.

Although she is already twenty years old, if you look closely, if you don't know the inside story, you would think she is only sixteen or seventeen.

Noticing everyone's gaze, Wen Ye smiled again.

She had been a salted fish for twenty years, but she had not forgotten where she was. Since she had to get married, she naturally had to choose a family that would make her life as comfortable as possible in the future.

The "effort" at this moment is to be able to do better in the second half of life.

Of course, this is not the main reason.

Wen Ye knew clearly that if she still looked like she couldn't stand up to herself at this moment, her stepmother Shen would never allow it.

When she returns home, her life will be difficult.

Mrs. Cai, who was not known to Shen, raised her lips after hearing this. She did not care whether what Shen said was true or not. She said, "What a coincidence. I have one too. Her father spoils her to the point of lawlessness. If we let the two girls meet one day, maybe they can play together."

These are all code words. On the surface, they are talking about daughter, but actually they are referring to son. It is something that has not happened yet, so it has to be said implicitly.

Shen smiled and said, "Okay, I will take Ye'er to the Puqing Temple in the suburbs of Beijing to fulfill my vow in a few days. The peach blossoms there are in full bloom. Madam Cai can go and enjoy them when she is free."

Shen didn't say too much. Although the Mrs. Cai in front of her looked very familiar, she still couldn't remember where she had seen her.

Mrs. Cai had no idea what Shen was thinking. She just smiled and showed a satisfied look to Wen Ye beside Shen from time to time.

On the other side, Lady Yongcheng and her daughter Lin Xiyun were talking eagerly with a young lady.

The wife of the Earl of Yongcheng seemed to be nearly twenty years older than the other man, but she did not dare to act like an elder at all.

The young lady was dressed in light purple, she looked noble and reserved, with a gorgeous and dignified appearance. When she smiled, she was gentle and kind, and her clothes fluttered in the willow breeze.

"Who is that?" the young lady asked when she saw the young girl who appeared among the group of ladies not far away.

The wife of the Yongcheng Earl followed the other person's line of sight, understood, and answered, "She is the concubine's daughter of my mother-in-law's family."

"A concubine's daughter?" The young lady's tone remained the same as before.

But I thought to myself, I'm afraid they are not a good match...

Lady Yongcheng nodded. She saw that the man in front of her seemed to be interested in Shen's concubine's daughter. After thinking for a while, she said, "Speaking of which, my in-laws treat this concubine's daughter quite well. Unfortunately, the girl's luck is not very good. She was engaged before, but had to cancel it due to some unavoidable reasons. It has been delayed until this age. Her mother was afraid that she would suffer from a heart disease because of this matter, so she borrowed my flower viewing banquet to take her out to relax."

The wife of the Earl of Yongcheng did not say it too clearly, leaving some room for ambiguity.

"Did you wait until this age?" The young lady took a close look at the girl in the distance and turned back to ask, "How old is this girl this year?"

The wife of the Earl of Yongcheng replied truthfully, "It was not long after my twentieth birthday."

The young lady frowned slightly when she heard this.

Lady Yongcheng had no idea what the attitude of the person in front of her was. She had not expected that just because she delivered the invitation to Duke Xu's mansion as per custom, the wife of Duke Xu would actually come.

However, Lady Yongcheng did not remain confused for too long before she realized that the second master of Duke Xu's mansion had been preparing to remarry after his first wife had passed away for almost two years.

The wife of the Earl of Yongcheng wanted the youngest Duke's wife in the history of Dajin to take a closer look at her daughter.

She would never consider taking a second wife from another family, but it was different for the Xu Duke's Mansion. One should know that since the founding of the Jin Dynasty, only two dukes had been conferred, one of whom was the great-grandfather of the current emperor, and the remaining one was from the Xu family.

The Xu family's title was promoted step by step based on their military merits, all of which were real military achievements. The eldest master of the Xu family was already a third-rank general of Dingyuan before he inherited the title. Now that he has inherited the title, he has been temporarily idle in the mansion because there is no war on the border of the Jin Dynasty.

Although the second master of the Xu family did not inherit the title, he was the top scholar in the 31st year of the Qingde Emperor's reign, and he was only fifteen years old when he passed the high school entrance examination.

Today, he is the youngest vice minister of the Ministry of Justice, a close minister to the emperor, and is deeply trusted by the emperor.

If it weren't for the late emperor's later years...I'm afraid the second master of the Xu family would have been promoted even faster.

Lady Yongcheng felt so sad in her heart. It was a pity that the Duke's wife was not interested in her daughter. Although she wanted to marry into such a marriage, she was not so shameless.

Just now, she saw that the young wife of the Duke seemed to be interested in the concubine's daughter of her mother-in-law. A thought flashed through her mind. She remembered that the family background of the first wife of the second master of the Xu family was not high. She thought that the Xu family did not pay much attention to family background, so she said a few more words.

Now think about it, no matter how little the Xu family values ​​family background, they will not give up the daughter of a noble family in Shengjing and choose a concubine's daughter who is unremarkable in all aspects.

After the flower viewing banquet, Shen took the three of them back home.

In the evening, in the main courtyard.

Shen and Father Wen talked about what happened today at the Yongcheng Marquis's residence: "I can't remember where I've seen that Madam Cai before, but she seems familiar to me."

Father Wen had an elegant face, but at this moment he frowned and asked, "Your husband's surname is Cai? Could it be Mr. Cai who was promoted from the local government and came to Beijing a few months ago?"

Seeing that Father Wen looked strange, Shen couldn't help but ask, "Does your husband know her?"

Father Wen not only nodded, but also said: "You know him too."

He looked at Shen and said solemnly, "It's better for the Wen family and the Cai family to have less contact."

Shen was confused: "Why?"

She also wanted to take a look at the young master of the Cai family, as Wen Si's marriage could not be delayed any longer.

Father Wen explained with a sigh: "Do you still remember the Cai family that was once very popular during the reign of the previous emperor?"

Shen was slightly surprised: "You mean..."

Father Wen nodded: "The one you met today is from the same clan as the Cai family. The current emperor is wise and virtuous, and he knows how to appoint the right people. He does not care about the past with some ministers, but who can guarantee the future? We, the Wen family, should just be honest ministers and not get involved in those dirty things."

Shen nodded: "I understand."

During the reign of the previous emperor, the Cai family was a staunch supporter of the Ninth Prince. However, although the current emperor is the legitimate son of the Empress, he has not been favored or treated well for many years.

At that time, the Cai family relied on the power of the Ninth Prince to secretly obstruct him many times.

Now that His Majesty has let bygones be bygones and re-employed the Cai family's side branch, his mind is truly broad-minded.

After Shen sighed in her heart, Wen Ye's marriage came to her mind again. She couldn't help but say with some annoyance: "This Madam Cai probably knows that the relationship of her husband's family's direct lineage will affect her son's marriage, so she set her sights on the concubine's daughter of the aristocratic family."

After hearing this, Father Wen asked, "Does she like Ye'er?"

Shen nodded: "Yes."

Father Wen immediately shook his head and said, "Change to another family. The Cai family is not acceptable."

Shen sighed, "I know, but if this happens, we have to start looking all over again. Wan'er did mention her uncle's cousin Cheng."

Father Wen couldn't think of any good way to arrange the marriage of this concubine's daughter. After thinking for a while, he said, "If it really doesn't work, choose one from the newly-appointed scholars."

I can't stay single forever. After a long time, how will outsiders look upon the Wen family?

The spring imperial examination had just passed, so it was easy to find a good new Jinshi.

After thinking about it, Shen thought it was feasible, so she said, "Then go back and observe carefully, and if you find anything good, tell me the name."