Madam Shen immediately beamed with joy, "Grandmother knew you were a good child."

The presence of the eldest princess at the banquet was a great honor.

Thanks to Shu'er's reminder, otherwise she wouldn't have thought of using Song Zhiyu to invite the Princess over.

"And what about the Duke of Ling's mansion..." Old Madam Shen hesitated, but her eyes were fixed on Song Zhiyu, wanting her to express her opinion.

The fact that Song Zhiyu was able to invite the Princess and the people from the Duke of Ling's mansion not only enhanced the grandeur of her birthday banquet.

On the other hand, it can also show the Eldest Princess and the Duke of Ling that Song Zhiyu is ultimately a member of the Marquis's family. Family members don't hold grudges overnight, and helping the Marquis's family is also helping Song Zhiyu.

Perfect timing! Feng'er and Rushan can also take this opportunity to strengthen their relationship with the Marquis's mansion.

With the powerful figures of the Eldest Princess and the Duke of Lingguo around, Grand Tutor Chu would have some reservations in court.

“I’ll go and invite the Duke of Ling’s family.” Contrary to his usual behavior, Song Zhiyu took on the task of inviting the Duke of Ling’s family to the banquet.

"Good, good, good! Grandmother was right about you." Old Master Shen stood up excitedly, grasped Song Zhiyu's hands, and said "good" three times in a row.

She didn't realize that Song Zhiyu always addressed her as Madam Shen, not Grandmother.

Song Zhiyu withdrew her hand without showing any emotion. "Madam, if there's nothing else, I'll head back now. After all, delivering invitations takes some time."

Having understood Madam Shen's scheme, Song Zhiyu was too lazy to feign politeness with them.

"Alright, you should go back now. Don't tire yourself out." Old Madam Shen awkwardly withdrew her hand; she couldn't quite see through Song Zhiyu anymore.

Only after Song Zhiyu's figure had completely disappeared from sight did Old Madam Shen close her eyes and rub her temples.

Although she couldn't figure out Song Zhiyu's thoughts for the time being, she just needed to use her to invite the person over.

"Grandmother, did Second Sister agree?" Shen Jinshu appeared behind Old Madam Shen at some point and gently massaged her shoulders.

Madam Shen nodded slightly and couldn't help but praise Shen Jinshu, "Shu'er, you are so clever to have come up with such a good idea."

"Shu'er isn't as capable as Second Sister, who has won the favor of the Eldest Princess and Duke Ling. But I'm already content to do things for Grandmother and Father." There was a hint of disappointment in Shen Jinshu's words, and even the way she massaged his shoulders slowed down.

"You're always too considerate of others." Old Master Shen sighed deeply, gently patting Shen Jinshu's hand. The last trace of resentment he had for her vanished with her words.

Shu'er's reputation was ruined because she was framed by thieves, which also implicated the Marquis's family, but this was not what she wanted.

Madam Shen did harbor some resentment towards Shen Jinshu.

But after all, she was his granddaughter whom he had doted on for many years. While he was disappointed in her for not living up to her potential, he felt even more heartache for her.

After what happened, Shu'er will not only suffer criticism from others, but her marriage to Prince Li will also likely fall through.

She knew perfectly well how much Shu'er cared about Prince Li and the position of Princess Li.

Thinking of this, Old Madam Shen slowly opened her eyes, turned her head to look at Shen Jinshu, and carefully said, "As for your relationship with Prince Li, it's most likely not going to work out. Although you can't be the principal wife, with the Marquis's family's status, you're more than qualified to be a concubine."

Moreover, given how much Prince Li values ​​your father and Rushan, he will surely treat you well once you enter the Prince's household.

Shen Jinshu lowered her eyelids, her voice somewhat muffled, "Granddaughter understands. Grandmother is thinking of her wholeheartedly, but she has brought shame to the Marquis's mansion. It is truly wrong of her."

"Let bygones be bygones. Be more careful in your actions from now on, and don't let others scheme against you again."

"When Jinhua marries that General Ming in the future, the Marquis's mansion will only be more valued by Prince Li. In that case, your status in Prince Li's mansion will not necessarily be lower than that of the principal wife." Old Madam Shen had planned everything and paved the way for Shen Jinshu.

Shen Jinhua pouted in annoyance, looking down on Mingxuan, that roughneck. "Grandmother, there's still no chance for me and General Ming to get together."

She should prefer a refined and elegant nobleman like Minister Ling, not a rough and unromantic military general like Mingxuan.

Moreover, she was even more unwilling to use her marriage to pave the way for Shen Jinshu.

I heard that General Su, Mingxuan's good brother who fought alongside him, is handsome and has an outstanding temperament. He seems more like a civil official than a military general.

If only the man she was to marry was General Su.

As Shen Jinhua thought this, a faint blush rose to her cheeks.

Madam Shen chuckled twice. Although her little granddaughter wasn't very bright, she had a beautiful face.

Mingxuan hadn't seen a woman in the military camp for three years, so with Shen Jinhua's looks, winning him over shouldn't be difficult.

Just then, a noise came from the courtyard gate. It turned out that Shen Feng and Shen Rushan had returned from court and walked in.

The two men looked rather grim, and a chill emanated from them.

"What's wrong with you all?" Old Madam Shen frowned and couldn't help but ask.

His voice was unusually cold and gloomy. "Father was impeached again this morning."

"Could it be Grand Tutor Chu..."

Before Shen Jinshu could finish speaking, Shen Rushan raised his hand to interrupt her, "It's Mingxuan."

Upon hearing this, Shen Jinshu opened her mouth wide in surprise, her eyes filled with confusion, "That General Ming who just returned from a victorious battle? Didn't he just meet Jin Huaxiang a couple of days ago? Why is he impeaching Father today? Does he no longer want to form a marriage alliance with the Marquis's family?"

Once the impeachment comes out, forget about marriage; it would be good enough if the two families didn't become enemies.

Shen Jinhua found it even more hard to believe. She could sense that General Ming was very satisfied with her, so why...?

"Uncle, is there some misunderstanding here?" Although Shen Jinhua looked down on the rough and uncouth Mingxuan, she couldn't tolerate Mingxuan looking down on her.

"What misunderstanding could there be? They never even liked you, and they know all the stupid things you did at Old Madam Ling's birthday banquet!" Shen Feng snorted coldly. Shen Jinhua had really made him lose face in front of his colleagues.

Shen Jinhua's voice grew softer and softer, her conscience prickling, "He only recently returned to the capital, how could he know about those things?"

Even though the Marquis's mansion went to great lengths to suppress what happened that day, there are no secrets that stay hidden forever. As long as one investigates carefully, clues will eventually be discovered.

Enraged, Shen Feng gasped for breath, "You still dare to say that? If you hadn't been so stupid, why would I have had to clean up this mess for you?"

None of these younger generation members are easy for him to handle.

Even the usually well-behaved and sensible Shu'er caused a major scandal, and the reputation of the Marquis's mansion was completely ruined by them.