To cover up the soft cough coming from the wardrobe, Wei Shuwan curled her hand to her lips and coughed a few more times, deliberately lowering her voice to make it sound more harmonious with the previous cough.

Li Qingchen, who was hiding in the wardrobe, tugged at the corner of his lips. He thought she was clever. At the same time, he moved the cloak trimmed with long fox fur further away. It was this thing that had scratched him earlier, causing him to cough.

Wei Shuyao, who had glanced at the wardrobe with a hint of suspicion for a moment, was now free of doubt and returned her attention to Du Xun's matter, rambling on about her deep affection.

"I'm not afraid of being laughed at by you, Third Sister. Ever since Young Master Du caused such a commotion when he came to the manor last time, I've already lost all face. After my near-death experience in prison, I've come to a clearer understanding. I no longer want to compete with you, Third Sister. I just want to live a peaceful life with the one I love. I beg you, Third Sister, to grant my wish!"

Hearing this, Wei Shuwan found it amusing and asked her, "You want to live with the person you love, so why do you want me to say these nonsensical things? If Du Xun were honest with me, I would definitely tell him everything without reservation. But Du Xun has never said anything to me about his love. How can I refuse him?"

"But you know perfectly well what his feelings are!"

"Even if he does have some feelings for me, it's an unspoken understanding. He doesn't want to make it official, so wouldn't it be ridiculous for me to be delusional?"

Unable to win an argument with Wei Shuwan, Wei Shuyao looked at her with a mixture of frustration and resentment, remaining silent for a long time.

Wei Shuwan stared back at her with a serious expression, not giving an inch.

A moment later, Wei Shuyao said bitterly, "I almost lost my life for Third Sister in prison, but Third Sister can't even grant this small request. Fine, I won't ask you for anything again."

After saying that, he stormed off in a huff.

Wei Shuwan opened the window, watched Wei Shuyao walk away, closed her eyes, and let out a long sigh of relief; the anxiety that had been hanging in the air finally subsided. However, she looked at the wardrobe with some dissatisfaction, "Do you know you almost killed me just now?"

"With your cleverness, you'll be more than capable of handling your cousin at home." As he said this, the cabinet door was pushed open from the inside, and Li Qingchen walked out.

At this moment, Wei Shuyao, who had already reached the gate of the courtyard, suddenly remembered that she had been so focused on talking about Young Master Du that she had forgotten to tell Wei Shuwan about the unfortunate incident of someone splashing dog blood on the new house today. This matter was originally caused by Wei Shuwan, and the eldest branch of the family could not bear the responsibility alone, so she turned back, intending to find an explanation.

As soon as Wei Shuyao reached the window, she heard hushed voices inside. Remembering that Zi Qiao and Miao Xiang were clearly not there, she became suspicious. Luckily, the window was open, so she bent down to peek inside and was surprised to see a man's figure inside!

Although it was only a view from behind, one could still discern the man's elegant physique, refined demeanor, and impeccably tailored attire. Such bearing would lead anyone to believe he was a noble young master from a powerful and influential family.

At this moment, Wei Shuyao couldn't help but recall the soft cough that had come from the closet earlier. Clearly, this person had been there all along. Who in the world could hide in a woman's closet?

Wei Shuyao couldn't help but come up with another idea.

She had heard in Jiangzuo that the women of Shengjing were unrestrained and passionate, and that many wealthy women would secretly bring men from brothels and pleasure houses back to their boudoirs, and some would even openly keep male lovers.

Wei Shuyao had only listened to these stories as amusement, but she was shocked to find that her own elder sister had also gone astray!

Shocked, she quickly realized that this was a golden opportunity. Her third sister was unwilling to explain things to Young Master Du in person, but if Young Master Du knew that she was such a dissolute woman in private, he would definitely despise her and stay away from her.

Thinking of this, Wei Shuyao was overjoyed. Yes, she had to let Young Master Du know!

Wei Shuyao hurriedly left Fuquxuan and instructed Caizhu, who was waiting outside the courtyard, to whisper in her ear: "Go to the Du residence and send a message to Du Xun, saying that I have agreed to his request. If he really wants to see Third Sister, tonight is the perfect opportunity. Tell him to come to the Wei family at 7 p.m., but he must not come through the main gate. You bring him in through the back gate."

The hour of Xu (7-9 PM) is when most of the servants of the Wei family finish their duties. Except for the gatekeeper who remains at the main gate, the other gates are locked. The guards patrol every half hour, making it the easiest time to bring people into the mansion.

After instructing Caizhu to go out of the mansion to handle some business, Wei Shuyao still had a problem: how to stop the man from leaving Fuquxuan.

The best solution would be for someone to linger at Fuquxuan and chat with Wei Shuwan, so that the man would have no choice but to continue hiding in the cabinet as before, until Du Xun came at 7 PM to expose him.

However, Wei Shuyao couldn't do it herself. After all, she had spoken resolutely to Wei Shuwan when she left, and it would be awkward to turn back now.

After her eyes darted around for a moment, Wei Shuyao had her eye on the perfect candidate – Cai Die!

Cai Die is talkative; if she wants, she can chat with anyone for a whole day without any awkward silences. Moreover, having been influenced by her mother from a young age, Cai Die naturally doesn't have a good impression of the second wife's family. Once she understands that what she did tonight can damage the second wife's reputation, she will probably be happy to do her part.

Having figured this out, Wei Shuyao instructed another maid to stay and keep an eye on the situation at Fuquxuan, while she quickly went to find Caidie for help.

Ever since Wei Ping and her daughter arrived at the Wei family, they've been glued to the old lady's room all day. So when Wei Shuyao went straight to her grandmother's room, she caught her red-handed. After explaining that she wanted to speak with Cai Die alone, Cai Die followed her to the side room.

"Fourth sister, what brings you here?" Cai Die asked with a smile.

With time running out, Wei Shuyao felt that tonight was crucial, so she got straight to the point: "I know that you don't like Wei Shuwan either. If you have a way to expose her true colors tonight, would you be willing to lend me a hand?"

Butterfly was taken aback at first, then asked curiously, "What's your idea?"

“Wei Shuwan is keeping a male concubine in Fuquxuan. Whenever someone goes there, he hides in the wardrobe. I’m going to expose this tonight. But I need to wait for one more person. I need you to keep Wei Shuwan occupied first to make sure that the male concubine doesn’t run away halfway.”

Two glints flashed in Cai Die's eyes, but she still asked warily, "Why don't you go and keep her occupied?"

"Because I lost my temper today and we broke up. If I go back now, even if she doesn't kick me out, she'll still become suspicious."

Seeing that Wei Shuyao spoke frankly and earnestly, and that the matter would not do her any harm regardless of whether it succeeded or failed, Cai Die hesitated for only a short time before readily agreeing.

Wei Shuyao's face lit up with surprise: "Then, sister, have you decided on what excuse you will use to go?"

Cai Die raised her hand to her forehead, feigning discomfort: "I've long heard that Third Sister is skilled in perfumery. Ever since I came to Shengjing, I've been experiencing some signs of acclimatization issues, and I always have trouble sleeping at night..."

Wei Shuyao smiled, and the two formed a temporary alliance.