Shen Rong was speechless after being rebuked by Shen Wan, and could only feel angry.
The third wife then attacked the fourth wife, saying, "The eldest and fourth young ladies are too young to understand, but the fourth sister-in-law should know. She kept such a big thing a secret, which has also caused Madam Sun to lose face."
The old lady's face was cold. The fourth wife said, "It's not that I don't want to say it, but I didn't expect the Duke of Wei's heir to take a liking to Wei'er. If I go around making a fuss, and I guess the Duke of Wei's heir's intentions wrong, it's a small matter if people laugh at me, but if it gets out, it might implicate the Duke of Wei's heir in his marriage."
Things are accomplished in secrecy, and ruined by being revealed.
Few people in this Marquis's mansion wish the fourth branch of the family well. The eldest daughter didn't even dare to tell Wei'er, so she certainly wouldn't dare to say anything. She's annoyed that she's keeping it a secret, but if she really did tell, she would definitely laugh at her for wishful thinking. They've lived under the same roof for over ten years, how could she not understand the third wife's temperament?
Besides, she really didn't dare to think that way; she only harbored a sliver of hope.
Even now, with the marriage arranged, she is still somewhat dazed. How could the heir of the Duke of Wei have taken a liking to her daughter?
The old lady knew that the fourth wife was not lying, otherwise she wouldn't have forced the fourth wife to agree to betroth her daughter to the third young master Sun. "It would be a good thing for the Pingyang Marquis's family if Wei'er could marry the heir of the Duke of Wei."
Fourth Madam nodded hastily.
The old lady was a little tired, so she waved her hand, and everyone took their leave.
After leaving Qinghui Courtyard, the Third Madam said with a forced smile, "Congratulations, Fourth Sister-in-law."
Fourth Madam said, "Wei'er married well, and the Third Miss will only marry even better in the future. Our Pingyang Marquis's Mansion will probably produce three princesses."
These words sounded nice, and the third wife's jealousy vanished instantly.
After the third wife left with her daughter Shen Rong, Shen Wan looked at the fourth wife, hesitant to speak.
The fourth wife noticed and said, "Is there anything the eldest daughter can't say to her fourth aunt?"
Shen Wan called Fourth Madam aside and said, “Let me tell you the truth, Fourth Aunt. The day I put a mask on Fourth Sister was not a coincidence. I had previously consulted a fortune teller at Huguo Temple to predict Fourth Sister’s marriage. The fortune told me that Fourth Sister would be in danger of eye injury during the marriage negotiations. If she could avoid this calamity, the marriage would be successful. That’s why I wanted to use nail polish to make Fourth Sister wear a mask.”
"The divination also said that it would be best for Fourth Sister to get married next spring..."
"The Duke of Wei's son will be out of mourning in four months, and my fourth sister will be of marriageable age in five months. According to the Duchess of Wei, she wants to marry my fourth sister as soon as she turns 18. I think since the divination has been partially accurate, it's better to believe it completely. It's just a matter of postponing the wedding by three months."
The Fourth Madam and the Fourth Master both felt that what happened that day was a coincidence. Normally, Shen Wan never painted floral patterns, but on that particular day she did, and it was the kind that couldn't be washed off. Shen Ying also pushed her to paint the floral patterns crookedly, so she had no choice but to wear the mask. It was as if someone was protecting their daughter in the dark.
Only now does the Fourth Madam realize that it was Shen Wan who protected her daughter.
Fourth Madam felt indescribable gratitude and said, "That divination has already helped Wei'er escape a calamity, so we must believe it. It's just that the Duchess of Wei will not refuse to let her marry three months later."
Shen Wan dared not reveal the matter of her rebirth, and could only use divination to gloss over it. She arranged for Shen Wei to marry next spring because the eldest son of the Duke of Wei's heir had not survived the winter. The Duke of Wei's heir's deceased first wife came from the Marquis of Wuding's family. In her previous life, the Marquis of Wu'an's family believed that the heir's wife had failed to take good care of the young prince, which led to the young prince contracting smallpox and dying young. Shen Wan did not know the truth of the matter, but the Marquis of Wu'an's family's relentless pursuit of the heir's wife's family was common knowledge in the capital.
To prevent such a situation from occurring, Shen Wan felt it was best to avoid this winter. If the young master was alright, the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion had no reason to target the fourth master. If the young master really couldn't avoid the smallpox plague, Shen Wei hadn't even gotten married yet, so the Marquis of Wu'an had even less reason to blame the fourth master.
Seeing that the fourth wife had agreed, Shen Wan breathed a sigh of relief.
The two turned around and saw Shen Wei looking at them suspiciously, her lips pouting so much they could almost hang a gourd. "Mother and eldest sister are the real mother and daughter, right? They always keep it from me."
The fourth wife couldn't help but chuckle, "You sisters play together, I'll go back to the north courtyard first..."
Before the Fourth Madam could finish speaking, a maid ran over and said from afar, "Eldest Miss, the Emperor has sent an eunuch to the mansion to deliver an imperial decree, asking you and the Second Miss to go to the front courtyard to receive it."
Shen Wan was stunned.
It's one thing for the Emperor to issue an imperial decree to Chen Ying, but why does he have to make her go to receive it as well?
Inside the room, the old lady sat on a daybed, her eyes dim and unfathomable.
The third wife, sitting at the lower end, said, "Fourth sister-in-law is always tight-lipped. I'm not surprised that she kept quiet about the matter of the Duke of Wei's heir, but the eldest daughter didn't reveal a single word either..."
If the eldest daughter hadn't said anything, they could have said it was just a minor matter and not worth explaining. But since the eldest daughter left the mansion with her maid and coachman, no one had informed them of this.
Moreover, Wu Mama and Ziyu, who served the eldest daughter, were both flogged and sold off. Several maids in Qinglan Garden were also dismissed by Zhou Mama for committing crimes. During the days when the old lady and the second lady were copying Buddhist scriptures, the eldest daughter even summoned human traffickers to the mansion, selected six maids, and refused to let Cheng Mama discipline them. She insisted on taking them directly back to Qinglan Garden to discipline them herself.
This looks like she's aware that the old lady and the second wife are planting people around her, and she's on guard.
Even the Third Madam could sense it, let alone the Old Madam. She clearly felt that Shen Wan was not as affectionate towards her as before. Ever since Shen Wan got engaged to Prince Ling, she had never clung to her arm and acted coquettishly like Shen Ying and Shen Rong.
The old lady slowly fiddled with the prayer beads in her hand, her eyes growing increasingly dark. At this moment, a maidservant hurried in and said, "Old Madam, someone from the palace has come to deliver an imperial decree, instructing the eldest and second young ladies to receive it together."
The old lady's brows furrowed instantly.
Although the imperial edict was addressed to Shen Wan and Shen Ying, every single master of the Marquis's mansion had to go and receive it.
The old lady, supported by her maid, got up and went to the front yard.
In the main hall, with Shen Jing at the head, a large group of people knelt on the ground as the eunuch read aloud the bright yellow imperial edict.
The man's hoarse voice echoed in the main hall.
Shen Wan knelt on the ground, her brows furrowing more and more as she listened.
The first half of the imperial edict was to bestow a marriage upon Shen Ying and Xie Jingyin. Although it was somewhat unexpected, it was also within expectations. However, what completely surprised Shen Wan was the second half of the edict.
The Emperor arranged for her and Shen Ying to marry on the same day.
On the sixteenth of next month, the day Xie Jingyan will marry her, Xie Jingyin will also come to take Shen Ying away.
The Emperor felt that the marriage of two daughters from the Marquis of Pingyang's household in one day was a double celebration.
But Shen Wan felt only bad luck coming towards her.
Weren't there enough days for Xie Jingyin and Shen Ying to choose from? Why did they have to put her and Xie Jingyan together?
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