Song Zhiyu sneered, "I've never met a friend who's full of scheming. Young Master Qin, you should go find your female confidantes to be your friends."

The day after Qin Xu arrived at the Marquis's residence, she sent someone to investigate his situation, and unexpectedly, there were so many interesting things.

Outside, Qin Xu always disguised himself well, creating the image of a talented young master with a clean and tidy home.

But in private, he's a completely different person, no less so than the纨绔 (playboys) of the capital.

Qin Xu's face turned ashen. How could Song Zhiyu possibly know about those people? He had hidden them very well.

"Second Miss just likes to joke. Where would I, Qin, have a confidante? I'm only thinking about getting an official position as soon as possible so that I can do my best to help the Emperor."

He flatly denied having any female confidantes, since he had already arranged things for those women and wasn't afraid of Song Zhiyu causing trouble.

Qin Xu spoke with such righteous indignation that he almost fooled himself.

After saying this, he looked around, his expression slowly becoming serious. Suddenly, he made a promise to Song Zhiyu, "If Miss Song minds these things, I can guarantee that there will be no other woman before you enter the house."

Qin Xu became more and more enthusiastic and confident as he spoke, and he couldn't believe that Song Zhiyu wouldn't be tempted by these conditions.

But he didn't say anything definitive; he just cleverly cut off the conversation.

He had said that there would be no other women before Song Zhiyu entered the family, but he did not guarantee that there wouldn't be any after they got married.

The unsuspecting onlookers were fooled and successfully misled, completely forgetting that Song Zhiyu had just denied their relationship. They only thought that this young man was exceptionally honest and seemed like a good person.

Holding the mentality of "better to tear down ten temples than to break up one marriage," many onlookers offered words of comfort.

“A man of such high moral character as this gentleman is hard to find even with a lantern. Young lady, you mustn’t miss out.”

"Which man doesn't have three wives and four concubines? Young lady, this young master has already gone to great lengths for you. If you continue to act coy, you might not meet such a good man again next time."

"..."

Many people misunderstood the relationship between the two. They initially thought that Qin Xu's appearance was somewhat unworthy of Song Zhiyu, but now it seems that's not necessarily the case.

Song Zhiyu ignored these people's words, saying, "If you think he's so good, why not keep him for yourself or your daughter?"

Trying to use outsiders to suppress her is not so easy to do; Song Zhiyu is not so easily manipulated.

Upon hearing this, the old lady, who had been talking animatedly, shut her mouth awkwardly. But after thinking about it again, she felt that Song Zhiyu's method was feasible.

The young master Qin was dressed entirely in silk, clearly indicating his wealth. If her daughter could marry into such a wealthy family, she would never have to worry about food or drink again.

Song Zhiyu turned her head and gave Lu Bai a look, signaling that she could begin.

Lu Bai nodded slightly, cleared her throat, and raised her voice, "Young Master Qin is not only handsome, but also comes from a good family. He is a distant grand-nephew of our old lady and just passed the imperial examination this year. He is a promising scholar."

"May I ask who your lady is?" someone asked casually, showing interest.

Lu Bai chuckled twice, making no attempt to conceal her identity, "We are from the Chengen Marquis's residence. Young Master Qin is the old lady's nephew, and he is currently unmarried."

"This visit to the Marquis's residence is also because Old Madam Qin intends to choose a suitable wife for him. If any of you are interested in Young Master Qin, you might as well send someone to the Marquis's residence to inform him and discuss it with Old Madam Qin."

Song Zhiyu drew the attention of the onlookers to Qin Xu, letting them entangle him first.

As expected, after what just happened, Qin Xu has become a hot commodity in the eyes of many people.

He was of decent appearance, came from a wealthy family, and was a scholar who would soon hold an official position; his future was bright.

More importantly, his relationship with the Marquis of Chengen's mansion was not simple either; getting close to him was equivalent to getting close to the Marquis's mansion.

Even a starved camel is bigger than a horse; no matter how badly the Marquis of Chengen's mansion is doing, it's still beyond their reach.

Girls from better-off families naturally wouldn't be interested in Qin Xu, while those from less well-off families wouldn't settle for him.

And so, Qin Xu became their best choice.

Song Zhiyu looked at Qin Xu, who was surrounded by the crowd, with a smile in her eyes, and took the handkerchief that Lu Bai handed her to wipe her hands.

Shen Feng had always wanted to use her marriage to control her, and even went so far as to join forces with the Qin family to scheme against her and ruin her reputation.

Now, she's simply using the same method to retaliate.

*

On the other side of the lake, Shen Jinshu watched Qin Xu being surrounded and almost ground her teeth to powder.

What a useless piece of trash! He can't even do something this simple right, and he even managed to outmaneuver Song Zhiyu.

"Judging from Qin Xu's current state, he's probably not going anywhere." Shen Mingyi's handsome face turned completely black; he never expected Song Zhiyu to have this trick up her sleeve.

Then their well-prepared plan will probably be useless.

"In that case, let's change our plan." Shen Jinshu calmed down, and the smile on her lips looked somewhat eerie.

“But if we do that, her reputation will be completely ruined.” Shen Mingyi hesitated. He did hate Song Zhiyu, but he also knew how important reputation was to a person.

Shen Jinshu twitched the corner of her lips, "Third Brother, don't worry, I've already told those people everything, they will never lay a hand on Second Sister."

After saying that, she paused, then suddenly changed the subject, "I'm doing this for my third brother's sake. Shen's Clothing Shop is about to go under, isn't it? Without money and without embroiderers, my third brother's hard work will be in vain."

We're just asking our second sister for a small favor; we would never harm her.

Upon hearing the mention of Shen's Clothing Shop, Shen Mingyi's previously hesitant expression immediately darkened.

Song Zhiyu had no intention of letting him go, so why should he feel sorry for her?

"Make sure those people do it cleanly, so Song Zhiyu doesn't have any leverage against us." Shen Mingyi waved his hand. He knew Song Zhiyu's capabilities and absolutely couldn't give her a chance to retaliate.

Shen Jinshu nodded, her smile deepening. "I understand, Third Brother, don't worry, Second Sister will be alright."

Sure enough, when it comes to their own interests, they don't care about brotherly or sisterly affection anymore.

Shen Jinshu raised his hand to summon Xiuyue, leaned down and whispered a few words in her ear, explaining everything in detail.

After today, all the people in the capital will know that the second young lady of the Marquis of Chengen's mansion was missing overnight and was found lying on the street with her clothes disheveled.

At that time, not only His Highness the Crown Prince, but even Qin Xu would despise her.

When Song Zhiyu was driven to desperation and married into the Qin family, that was the beginning of her nightmare.

Thinking of this, Shen Jinshu didn't even try to hide the smile on her face.