Before Meng Zhao could even reach out, Xu Yunrong and Meng Dashan took the things from her. They had been worried about this for the past few days. If the Shen family were still in its previous state, their encouragement for their daughter to remarry would have been understandable. But now that Shen Qinghe had passed the imperial examination and had a bright future, if the Shen family didn't want to let Meng Zhao leave, it would be difficult for them, as merchants, to handle the situation.
Hearing Gu say this and even produce the divorce papers, Xu Yunrong was filled with emotion. She quickly stepped forward and grasped Gu's hand, saying, "My dear in-law, with your words, I can finally rest assured."
Madam Gu knew exactly what she was thinking, so she patted her hand and said, "Stop calling her in-laws. From today onwards, Zhao Zhao is no longer my daughter-in-law. But our family's feelings for Zhao Zhao will not change, and she will always be a member of the Shen family."
Meng Zhao was caught off guard when Madam Gu brought this up in front of so many people. She panicked and quickly said, "How about this? I'll just recognize you as my godmother. That way, I'll be your goddaughter, and we'll still be family."
Upon hearing this, Madam Gu's eyes lit up immediately. "That's right, this is a good idea! When Qinghe asked me to write the divorce papers, I was sad for a long time because I thought that Zhaozhao wouldn't be able to call me 'Mom' anymore. If I can really recognize Zhaozhao as my daughter and she can still call me 'Mom' in the future, then I'll truly be blessed in my past life!"
Upon hearing that writing the divorce papers was indeed Shen Qinghe's idea, Meng Zhao squinted and looked to the side. Sure enough, she saw Shen Qinghe standing not far away, staring intently at her with an unfathomable gaze, as if hiding many unspoken emotions.
Her heart tightened, and she secretly rejoiced that she had just had a sudden inspiration to bring up the matter of recognizing relatives, so that at least a kinship could be preserved.
When Madam Gu mentioned that Meng Zhao should remarry, the village head was not very supportive. After all, their village was now too involved with Meng Zhao. What would happen if Meng Zhao left once the Shen family's relationship was severed?
But these are all family matters, and he couldn't interfere. Now that he heard that Madam Gu wanted to recognize Meng Zhao as her goddaughter, the village headman immediately beamed and stroked his beard, saying, "This is truly a wonderful thing! I'll be here to witness it. From now on, you'll still be a family, living in harmony and happiness. Isn't that wonderful!"
Meng Zhao immediately smiled and called out, "Godmother!"
Mrs. Gu beamed with joy and repeatedly agreed, "Oh, my good daughter!"
Shen Qingze and Shen Qingyu, who were standing to the side, became a little anxious and grabbed Meng Zhao's hand, asking, "What should we do then? How should we call her sister-in-law from now on?"
Aunt Feng'e laughed and joked, "Hey, isn't that easy? You used to call her sister-in-law, but from now on you can call her older sister!"
"Sister! Sister!" Upon hearing this, the two children became excited and, holding Meng Zhao's hand, jumped and called out back and forth.
Suddenly remembering Shen Qinghe behind her, Madam Gu tugged at him, "Qinghe, what are you standing there for? Come over here and greet your sister."
Upon hearing this, Shen Qinghe slowly stepped forward, forcing a smile on her face, but her voice was somewhat hoarse: "Sister."
Meng Zhao raised her head and smiled slightly at him, "Second brother, once you arrive in the capital, remember to focus on your studies. If anything happens, you can send a message to your sister."
The smile on Meng Zhao's face seemed to turn into sharp thorns, piercing his heart with pain, yet he was helpless.
As everyone was saying their final goodbyes, Shen Qinghe took advantage of the moment when no one was looking and quietly walked up to Meng Zhao, whispering in her ear, "Whether you call me sister or sister-in-law, do you think I'd care?"
Meng Zhao frowned slightly, a hint of wariness flashing in his eyes. "What do you mean?"
Shen Qinghe's lips curled into a meaningful smile, his voice low and slow: "I don't mean anything by it, I just want to give my sister some advice." He paused, his gaze fixed on Meng Zhao, as if trying to take in every subtle reaction she made.
"What exactly do you want to say?" Meng Zhao frowned even more, her tone tinged with impatience.
Shen Qing leaned slightly closer to her ear, his breath brushing against her earlobe as he whispered, "Sister, you must wait for me." His tone was low and carried an undeniable threat.
Meng Zhao's heart tightened, and she was about to lash out when she saw Shen Qinghe suddenly take a step back. At the same time, he quickly raised his hand and gently flicked it, removing a jade hairpin from her hair.
Caught off guard, Meng Zhao's eyes blazed with anger. Shen Qinghe, however, paid no heed to her fury. His smile grew even more unrestrained, and he brazenly tucked the jade hairpin into his chest, a frivolous and provocative gesture, as if declaring some kind of possession to her.
Surrounded by family, he dared to be so offensive. On the contrary, Meng Zhao, mindful of those around him, could only suppress his anger and not lash out.
Seeing this, Shen Qinghe smiled even more broadly, patted his chest as if to remind her of the jade hairpin, and then turned and got into the carriage.
Meng Zhao stood there, watching the carriage slowly drive away, and murmured softly:
"He's really a tough one to deal with."
On the way back, Xu Yunrong held the divorce papers in her hand, a hint of relief on her face. "The Shen family handled this matter quite well. They gave us the divorce papers so readily and even recognized Zhaozhao as their goddaughter. Now Zhaozhao is a scholar. If Shen Erlang rises even higher in the future, our family will also benefit from it."
Meng Dashan couldn't help but interject, "What is Shen Erlang? Our daughter is so good, she can live a good life on her own."
Xu Yunrong sighed, her tone tinged with emotion: "What you said is true, but those who have money have to pay a heavy price to get power, while those who have power can get money with ease. In the end, it's still better to have power, don't you think, my daughter?"
As she spoke, she turned to look at Meng Zhao, only to find her following behind, her pace much slower, her expression somewhat dazed, as if she were absent-minded.
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