Xu Shaoqing was relatively obedient this time, but the key issue is that in the year or so since she married into the family, her life has become increasingly worse than before.

Although the couple from the Earl's Mansion were annoyed with her for food, clothing, and other necessities and didn't give her the same allowance as the eldest daughter of the Earl's Mansion, the 20% of her third uncle's assets was still quite a lot.

She doesn't suffer in that respect, but the wife of a concubine is not well received in the household, especially since she is the wife of a second son.

Not to mention her, the maids she brought with her really suffered a lot of cold looks and disdain.

They never bothered to pick out the usual fruits, fabrics, jewelry, salary, or charcoal.

They only call the maids over when others have left, especially Guilan, whose personality is completely different from when she was at home.

People become more taciturn and cautious.

At home, even before Xu Shaoqing's older sister got married, the third young lady always got to choose everything first.

Her two older sisters doted on her, and 60% of the pearls and gems bestowed by the emperor ended up in her possession. Not to mention the silver shops and clothing stores, which she visited once a month.

But here, they have to make four sets of clothes a season, and there are so many elders to support them, plus the third young master is not popular.

It drags my young mistress down with me; every time she takes something, it's something that others have rejected, yet I can't get angry about it.

Guilan finally realized that the preferential treatment she had received at the Earl's mansion was nothing compared to what she had experienced here. Even the young eighth young lady of the mansion, who was only a few years old, was no match for her.

The second wife didn't like them either. At least the eighth young lady could win the second wife's favor, and because of her young age, she picked out clothes and jewelry earlier than her own sister-in-law.

Even a little girl like Guilan could understand this, so how could Xu Shaoqing not know it and not be angry?

During this time, I have come to realize the benefits of having money. If the things provided by the household are not satisfactory, I can still buy them myself.

However, there's nothing one can do about being looked down upon or neglected, but money can make it through.

Gui Xiang had a different idea from the other two. Weren't the two old masters in the mansion also born out of wedlock? Why didn't the servants treat them this way?

Ultimately, it's because the Third Young Master's branch of the family is too troublesome and doesn't know how to win people's hearts. In just over a year since Guixiang entered the mansion, they have already done several stupid things.

Although they were servants, they had a complex network of relationships within the household and were relatives.

The person in charge of the flower room might be someone's aunt, or the person helping out in the kitchen might be someone's uncle.

If you arbitrarily beat, scold, and humiliate someone's relatives, they won't dare to confront you openly, but they'll secretly make things difficult for you. Isn't that also unpleasant?

But the third young master seemed oblivious to this, making foolish mistakes every day.

And he's so smug, thinking the servants won't notice and he can just grab a handful of money as a reward? What a joke!

Moreover, he has been giving money less often lately. Ever since Aunt Yang left, Gu Ting doesn't seem to have any money in his hands.

Could it be that a mere concubine could afford to support the Third Young Master's spending? Gui Xiang found this very strange!

She couldn't control the Third Young Master, but Gui Xiang would go out and win people over for her young mistress.

Although the servants had a good impression of the young mistress, the third young master was too troublesome, and Guixiang was really having a hard time every day!

Fortunately, the young lady was obedient this time, not daring to bypass her in anything, and knew to consult with her maid before making a decision.

……………………………………………………

"Gui Xiang, you make some arrangements and have Gui Lan pick out an outfit for me. My husband is taking me on a boat trip."

Xu Shaoqing came over with a big smile and gave instructions. She was very happy to finally get a chance to go out with Gu Ting.

The lotus flowers in Mirror Lake outside the city were in full bloom. Gu Ting personally piloted a small boat and went boating on the lake with Xu Shaoqing.

Gui Xiang and the other servants followed in a small boat behind them.

It was nearly evening, a cool breeze was blowing, and a corner of Xu Shaoqing's sleeve was being lifted by the wind. She was lying on the side of the boat, watching the ripples created by the oars, and she was very happy.

A small boat glides among the lotus leaves and blossoms, and one might accidentally bump their head against a lotus leaf. Such a beautiful scene is truly captivating.

After the boat trip, I took them out to eat a few days later, and we happened to walk onto Ma Xing Street. Chantilly House is located on this street.

"I heard that his family recently developed a Bazhen cake that strengthens the spleen and stomach and replenishes vital energy. Would you mind taking my wife to buy some?"

Eight ingredients—gorgon fruit, yam, poria cocos, coix seed, hawthorn, lotus seed, malt, and hyacinth bean—are ground into a fine powder.

Mix glutinous rice flour, rice flour, and sugar together, then add the fine powders of eight other ingredients, and add boiling water to knead into a dough.

Press the pastry into shape using a pastry mold, then steam for 15 minutes.

The aroma was irresistible, and the texture was soft and sweet. Xu Shaoqing only tried one before a smile spread across her face.

Instead of going to a restaurant, the group ate street food as they walked.

Everyone else was beaming, but Gui Xiang remained expressionless and couldn't manage a smile. Occasionally, Gui Lan would come up and tease her, causing her to manage a slight twitch at the corner of her mouth.

Sure enough, in less than a quarter of an hour, Gu Ting led Xu Shaoqing to his family's rouge shop.

Xu Shaoqing, looking rather silly, took Gu Ting's hand and said, "Husband, look, this is our family's shop."

Gui Xiang watched coldly as this idiot introduced the shop to Gu Ting, explaining how it came about, how rare the balm recipe was, how much profit it generated per month, and how much the Marquis's mansion purchased each month.

Gu Ting feigned surprise, "This is the shop my brother brought to my wife for her dowry last time? It's not much smaller than the clothing store next door?"

Xu Shaoqing, beaming with pride, looked up at the signboard of the rouge shop, about to speak...

"Didn't you say you weren't using enough perfume at home? The gardenias just came in, and the shopkeeper sent word a couple of days ago that he just made a new batch of perfume. Why don't we take a few boxes home today?"

Gui Xiang interrupted her quickly, changed the subject, and led everyone inside to get the gardenia ointment.

Xu Shaoqing was in a good mood today, "Everyone who came with me today picked out three items and put them on my tab!"

Everyone was overjoyed and hurried off to choose things, even if they didn't need them for their own use, they could still take them home to their families.

Gu Ting looked up and around at the two-story shop. Not to mention the shop's monthly profit, just these two floors alone must have made at least five thousand taels of silver.

Guilan, following Guixiang's instructions, subtly observed her son-in-law and saw that his eyes were indeed darting around. She couldn't help but sneer inwardly.

Gui Xiang, under the pretext of taking her mistress to try on rouge, led her aside and asked, "Miss, do you remember what I said a couple of days ago?"

Xu Shaoqing was just getting excited when a bucket of cold water was poured over her head, making her shudder.

"I... I didn't say that, and we just happened to end up here."

Gui Xiang rolled her eyes inwardly, but smiled and tried to coax her.

"It's good that you don't want to say anything, Miss. How would you 'know' about the shop's profits? Just wait until the year-end accounting report so you can look through the ledgers and reconcile the accounts."

"These everyday chores can be left to us servants, like me and Granny Lin."

Xu Shaoqing nodded. Although he dared not go against Guixiang's wishes, after all, it was thanks to Guixiang's quick wit that they were able to maintain a respectable image in the Marquis's mansion over the past year.

But she still felt a little uncomfortable, thinking that Gui Xiang had misunderstood Gu Ting. Thinking this, she showed it on her face.

Seeing this, Gui Xiang sighed softly.