"The Xue family is really going too far. Don't be afraid, Qingqing. Auntie will definitely take care of it for you!"

Shen's face turned livid. In her opinion, the Xue family didn't take their Changning Marquisate seriously at all. How could a member of the Xue family who had no title but only served as a prime minister dare to do this?

But Shen didn't think about it. Shen Qingqing was just the legitimate daughter of a bastard who was separated from the Changning Marquis's Mansion. Even if she was the legitimate daughter of the Changning Marquis's Mansion, she was not an unattainable existence in the big families in the capital.

The Changning Marquisate has been on a downward trend in recent years. If it weren't for the powerful in-law Zhenyuan Marquisate, it would have been marginalized long ago. Only people like the Shen family, who were only educated by the Houzhai family, still think that the Changning Marquisate is still as prosperous as ever.

"Tell the concierge that if the Xue family comes to visit, tell them that the mansion is not seeing guests these days!"

Shen was extremely angry and gave orders to Nanny Zhu. Xiao Yunrou did not stop her and just sat quietly drinking tea. Now it was useless for anyone to reason with Shen.

"Mother, my cousin was frightened today and should have a good rest. Hongzhuang, take the snow swallows from the small storeroom to my cousin. It will be my token of appreciation as a cousin's wife and my apology for not taking good care of her."

"Thank you, cousin."

Shen Qingqing couldn't refuse Xiao Yunrou's words, so she could only agree with a smile. Shen Qingqing raised her head slightly and looked at Xiao Yunrou. She didn't know if it was her illusion, but she always felt that this cousin's sister-in-law was hiding something under her amiable appearance. She began to feel uneasy in her heart, wondering if she had seen through what happened today.

"Yun Rou is right, Qingqing, go and rest first. I will send someone back to tell your mother that you will stay in the Marquis' Mansion for the next few days."

Shen Qingqing was naturally not unhappy with Shen's request to stay. The Zhenyuan Marquis's Mansion was a hereditary noble residence, so it was naturally magnificent and much better than the Shen Mansion where she lived now, which only had two courtyards. She thought, how nice it would be if she could live in the Marquis' Mansion forever.

Shen Qingqing squeezed the handkerchief in her hand, bowed to Shen and Xiao Yunrou, and then left with the help of a maid.

Xiao Yunrou looked at Shen Qingqing's soft and weak back with her eyes flashing, but she didn't say anything. She chatted with Shen for a while, and then left under the pretext of doing housework.

No one expected that something bad would happen in the Xue family’s mansion the next day before they even arrived.

Concubine Shen, who was under house arrest, got the news from someone that a cousin of the Shen family had moved into the mansion. She was very beautiful and was very much loved by Shen. Concubine Shen couldn't stay there anymore. Now she had lost her son and could only guard the dilapidated courtyard alone. Now another girl from the Shen family had come. Did Shen want to give up on her and bring in another girl from the Shen family to replace her?

The more Aunt Shen thought about it, the more she thought this was possible, and she became more and more anxious. So she made a decision, ran out when the gatekeeper was taking a nap at noon, and quietly came to the guest house where Shen Qingqing lived.

Shen Qingqing was only fourteen years old, a budding age, young and beautiful. Xiao Yunrou didn't want to be criticized for falling into the water, so she had two sets of clothes and jewelry delivered to her early in the morning. Although they were not expensive, they were treasures that Shen Qingqing could not get normally. As a result, this outfit made her look more elegant and refined, and Aunt Shen became more jealous after seeing it.

Aunt Shen was not a person who was good at forbearance. In the past, she was protected by the Shen family. Although she acted weak, she would provoke Xiao Yunrou from time to time. Although Shen Qingqing was also weak, judging from the incident in the Xiao Mansion, she was much more capable than Aunt Shen.

So at this moment, Aunt Shen rushed into Shen Qingqing's bedroom and slapped her twice, saying a lot of nonsense. Shen Qingqing was caught off guard and didn't even understand what was happening. She was beaten for no reason.

"You bastard, you dare to seduce the prince without considering your status! I will beat you to death, you little bastard!"

Shen Qingqing was stunned by the first two slaps. When she came to her senses, she would not allow Aunt Shen to beat her unilaterally. She hid while shouting at the frightened maid beside her, and hurriedly scolded:

"What are you still standing there for? Pull this crazy woman away...ah...quickly, pull her away and tell your aunt, tell your aunt!"

Shen Qingqing was in so much pain that she cried. She struggled with Aunt Shen desperately, but her hair was torn off. Her face was red and swollen, her clothes were messy, and she looked miserable. Shen Qingqing was no match for Aunt Shen's ferocity. Although she resisted desperately, she only messed up Aunt Shen's hair. Compared with her, the two were so different. This made Shen Qingqing's eyes glow with viciousness.

Aunt Shen felt relieved when she saw that she was no longer as beautiful as before. She stopped and pinched Shen Qingqing's chin tightly, saying viciously:

"You shameless bastard, I am the prince's wife. How can you, a side branch, get in? I tell you, get out of here right now, or I will make you live a life worse than death."

"Cousin, I'm your sister, how can you not believe me? I don't know where you heard it from, but I really didn't seduce my cousin..."

Shen Qingqing felt a little aggrieved. She lived in the Marquis' Mansion, but she listened to her aunt and built a good relationship with her cousin's wife so that she could marry Xiao Yunyan. She didn't dare to think about marrying her cousin. Pei Lingfeng looked cold and ruthless, and never looked at her straight in the eye. She still had some self-knowledge.

"Bah, cousin? You can call me cousin?"

Aunt Shen refused to listen and raised her hand to slap Shen Qingqing in the face again.

"stop!!"

After receiving the news, Shen rushed over and forced Aunt Shen to stop unwillingly. Shen was supported by Aunt Zhu into the house and felt dizzy when she saw Shen Qingqing's appearance.

"Aunt, please save Qingqing. My cousin, I heard from somewhere that Qingqing was going to... and she actually ignored our sisterly relationship and tried to kill Qingqing..."

Shen Qingqing couldn't utter the word "seduction". She just raised her head with tears in her eyes, revealing her face that had been hit by Aunt Shen.

Seeing this, Shen became even more furious and started cursing at Aunt Shen.

"You bastard! Who gave you the guts to do this? Have you lost your upbringing? She is your cousin, and you actually used such a heavy hand on her even though her bones were broken!"

Aunt Zhu supported the furious Shen, holding her breath with one hand while sighing silently. Earlier, she saw that Aunt Shen was the niece of the Shen family and secretly helped her a lot, but now, she was afraid that this person would be disgusted.

Wouldn't beating Miss Qingqing disrupt Madam's plan? I'm afraid the Xiao family's marriage will not be possible in the near future. If Madam's support for the Changning Marquis's wealth and prosperity is cut off, Madam Shen's good days will also be over.

"Aunt, it was you who brought me into the mansion to serve the prince. Why do you want me to give up my position to this bastard?"

Aunt Shen was also very aggrieved, but these words made Shen even more angry. Marrying two daughters into a family is not like marrying a second wife after the wife dies. There is no such thing in the capital. Shen was shaking all over, but she couldn't help but slap Aunt Shen hard.

"You fool, when did I tell you that Qingqing was going to marry into the Marquis's mansion? You, this evil creature, did something wrong and didn't reflect on it, and you made Qingqing suffer so much for you."

Shen was really angry and sad. She thought about how she had tried her best to suppress Xiao Yunrou, a proper daughter-in-law, for her niece, but now she was being doubted by her. She was really sad. She had thought that she would be confined for half a year, and she would talk to her son to release her on Chongyang Festival, but now it seemed that it was not necessary.

"Qingqing, I'm sorry for what happened today. I'll have the doctor come over to check you out. I'm sure you won't be left with any scars."

Shen suppressed her anger and comforted Shen Qingqing. Seeing her well-behaved appearance, and thinking of Aunt Shen's crazy and domineering look when she just entered the room, Shen's heart was distracted.

"Come here, if you don't send Madam Shen back to Begonia Garden, the servants guarding Begonia Garden today will be caned 20 times. If anyone dares to release Madam Shen again, they will be sold directly."

Shen really doesn't want to see this confused niece now. Not only will her good plans be disrupted, but she will also doubt her previous judgment of people.

"Aunt, aunt, don't..."

When Aunt Shen saw that Shen was really angry, her mind came to its senses from her jealousy. She quickly knelt down, hugged Aunt Shen's legs, and cried for mercy.

"Aunt, Tang'er just likes the prince too much. The thought of having a younger sister than Tang'er entering the mansion can't help but make her think too much. Aunt, Tang'er doesn't mind. It's okay to let a younger sister enter the mansion. Aunt, please don't be angry with Tang'er..."

Seeing that Aunt Shen was still misinterpreting her meaning, Shen's temples were throbbing, but Aunt Shen didn't know that and kept begging, and still linked Shen Qingqing and Pei Lingfeng together in her words. Shen finally couldn't stand it anymore and reached out to pry open Aunt Shen's arms that were hugging her legs.

"You, you are going to piss me off to death!!"

Shen rolled her eyes and fainted. The room became even more chaotic. Aunt Shen fell to the ground, and Shen Qingqing could no longer care about crying. She and Nanny Zhu hurriedly sent Shen back to Zhining Garden and asked someone to take the sign of the Marquis' Mansion to invite the imperial physician.