Chapter 1: Rebirth and Marriage
"Shuwei, Xinrou likes your yard, just give it to her. She has suffered so much in the Shen family, and you have enjoyed the blessings for sixteen years under her status. You owe her all this." Chu Yunlan, the eldest young master of the Jingning Marquis's Mansion, frowned and stared at Shen Shuwei, who was standing silently below, his words full of blame.
"Xinrou's horoscope was personally predicted by Master Jinghui to be auspicious, and she was born with a phoenix destiny. She just returned home today, and I received an invitation from the White Deer Academy, asking me to enroll tomorrow. This shows that Master Jinghui's words are true."
Chen Shuwei sneered lightly, his two dark eyes like cold spring water soaking jade, revealing a hint of sarcasm.
Her elder brother was as naive as ever. The reason he caught the eye of the president of Bailu Academy was that she personally revised his essays, spent countless gold and silver to pave the way for him, and even stood at the door of the president's house for a whole day and night, putting aside her pride, to beg for him.
But he thought it was the effect of Chu Xinrou's horoscope.
As for enjoying life, the Marquis of Jingning's Mansion may look prosperous on the outside, but it's actually a raging fire inside, all thanks to her hard work.
In her previous life, when she learned that she was not the biological daughter of the Marquis's family, she asked to return home, but her mother persuaded her to stay, telling her that from now on, she and that woman would both be the daughters of the Marquis's family.
Thinking of the kindness of the Marquisate in raising her, she stayed and worked hard to manage the internal affairs of the Marquisate and arrange their careers, so that the originally declining Marquisate of Jingning would catch the eye of the emperor and become one of the richest families in Luojing.
She didn't expect that the Marquis's family would lie on her and suck her blood while building momentum for their real daughter Chu Xinrou, and transfer everything she had to Chu Xinrou, just to let her marry the third prince.
After taking away everything from her, her elder brother and mother personally locked her in a cold courtyard to die, saying that the existence of such a lowly person as her was a stain on the mansion, and if they hadn't been impressed by her ability to make money in business, they wouldn't have kept her.
The feeling of being hungry, cold and dying in the cold courtyard in his previous life was still lingering in his mind. Chen Shu lowered his eyes slightly and curled his five fingers quietly.
She wanted to see how Chu Yunlan would win the top three prizes in a row by relying on Chu Xinrou's fortune without her in this life.
"Yunlan is right, Xinrou is indeed the lucky star of our Jingning Marquis Mansion." The old lady walked in tremblingly, leaning on a white jade cane, served by the Marquis's wife Ji Jinglan. Behind her followed a weak and graceful little girl with a gentle and docile demeanor. It was Chu Xinrou who had just returned home.
"Xinrou has just returned home. My headaches, which have plagued me for days, are gone, and I've even been appreciated by Princess Hengyang. This must be the good luck Xinrou has brought me."
As she spoke, the old lady looked at Shen Shuwei with a kind smile, "Shuwei, I have discussed with your mother that you will stay in the Marquis' Mansion in the future, introduce your connections to Xinrou, and teach her how to manage the household and the shop."
"Give Xinrou the most profitable calligraphy and painting shop you own now. I won't compete with you for the rest. I'll leave it to you to manage."
Listening to the old lady's words, Shen Shuwei's eyes showed ridicule.
The Marquis's estate wasn't prosperous, and before she took over, none of the shops were profitable. She'd managed it for six months, finally turning that one painting and calligraphy shop around, but then the old lady wanted her out, leaving behind a slew of other unprofitable shops that she expected to continue to profit.
This began to squeeze her dry to pave the way for her granddaughter.
"The old lady doesn't feel any better today because I've been massaging your acupoints, performing acupuncture and moxa treatments, and reading through medical books and preparing medicinal dishes for you for days. That's the reason why it's so effective." Chen Shuwei raised his eyes to meet the old lady's. His eyes were as clear as snow, and he spoke calmly, "You earned the favor of Princess Hengyang because I gave her a prescription three days ago."
Did she think Chu Xinrou was the reincarnation of a bodhisattva from heaven, and that all her illnesses would be cured as soon as she set foot in their Marquis Jingning's Mansion?
The old lady was stunned for a moment and her expression changed slightly.
"Xinrou returns home not seeking wealth and glory, but only hoping to be filial to her biological parents and grandmother. I hope my sister won't be angry with me." Chu Xinrou walked lightly to the old lady's side and said softly, "Grandmother is the elder, and I should respect her together with my sister."
Chen Shuwei looked at Chu Xinrou, who was leaning in the old lady's arms with admiration in her eyes, and raised his eyebrows slightly.
These words seemed to be an excuse for himself, but in fact, every word implied that he was disrespectful to his grandmother and only had eyes for the wealth of the marquis's mansion.
"Grandma, I'm new here, so it's normal for my sister to dislike me. I hope you won't be angry with me." Chu Xinrou held the old lady's hand and shook it gently, acting coquettishly, with a girlish demeanor.
"You have suffered so much injustice in the Shen family, and were almost dragged into a corruption case by the Shen family, and your property was confiscated and you were exiled. Fortunately, you were found. Your grandmother will definitely compensate you well in the future." The old lady looked at Chu Xinrou with heartache, and her eyes turned cold when she looked at Shen Shuwei again.
"I heard that Princess Hengyang gave you a set of ruby headpieces that day. Today, I will give it to Xinrou as a gift from you, the elder sister, to your younger sister."
"Go get it quickly."
Seeing that no one moved, the old lady unhappily tapped the ground with her cane, "Why, is it that I, your grandmother, can no longer order you around?"
Shen Shuwei moved. She stood up straight and bowed to the few people. "Since the Marquis's biological son has been found, Shuwei is not the Marquis's child. Please ask the Madam and the Old Madam to allow me to return to the Shen family."
"As for the shop and the property you gave me in the past, I will not take any of it with me."
"Shuwei! Don't you know what the Shen family's situation is like now? A family from the second branch of a baron's mansion has been arrested and investigated by the Dali Temple for corruption. There is also a young master in the mansion who offended the Zhongcheng of the Dali Temple because of this matter and was beaten with a stick. I'm afraid he is disabled." Without waiting for the old lady to speak, Ji Jinglan was the first to speak in surprise.
"You have been raised by my mother for sixteen years. I have long regarded you as my own daughter. Now you stay here. Like Xinrou, you are also a daughter of the Marquis' Mansion."
"Besides, you still need to take care of the housekeeping affairs and my mother's dowry shops and fields."
Her family was not prominent, and she was able to gain a foothold in the mansion by relying on her ability to make money, so as not to be outshined by Concubine Liu and take over her housekeeper power.
How could Shu Wei leave!
Listening to Ji Jinglan's revealing words, Shen Shuwei sneered in his heart, but did not show it on his face. "Now that the Shen family has been disliked by the emperor, since I was born into the Shen family, if I was forced to stay in the mansion and someone with ulterior motives found out, I'm afraid it would affect the careers of the Marquis and the Crown Prince."
As soon as Shen Shuwei said this, Chu Yunlan was the first to change his expression. He said in a cold voice, "Mother, if she wants to leave, then let her go. Anyway, Xinrou has returned home now. With Xinrou's fortune and ability, my son may not be able to win some fame in the next spring exam."
"This..." Thinking of Chen Shuwei's ability in business and managing household chores, Ji Jinglan was still a little hesitant.
Listening to Ji Jinglan's words to keep Shen Shuwei, resentment flashed across Chu Xinrou's eyes, and her fingertips quietly clenched and pierced into the flesh.
Why should the internal affairs and shops of the Marquis' Mansion be given to an imposter like Shen Shuwei, when she is obviously the mother's daughter.
"Mother, I've learned some housekeeping skills at the Shen family, and Master Jinghui also said that I'm destined to be rich. Leave the household chores and the shops to me, and I'll definitely be able to take care of them."
Ji Jinglan's eyes suddenly lit up. Yes, isn't there Xinrou? Xinrou's fate has been predicted by the master, and she will definitely do better than Shuwei.
Thinking about how Chu Xinrou couldn't even do the most basic accounting in her previous life, and how he taught her step by step and made up for her deficit, Shen Shuwei couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips.
Chu Xinrou only thought that the assets of Jingning Marquis Mansion were worth millions, but she didn't know that this mansion had long been an empty shell.
She wanted to see how the Jingning Marquisate would rise to prominence without her hard work in this life, and how her eldest brother would become a high-ranking official and ask for an imperial decree for their mother.
I’m afraid I can’t even withdraw the money for the old lady’s medicine this month.
When leaving the Marquis' Mansion, Shen Shuwei only brought two maids, Yunling and Qingdai.
The two of them died because of him in their previous lives, and Chen Shuwei said he would not let them stay in the Marquis' Mansion no matter what.
As soon as the master and his servants stepped out of the gate of the Marquis' Mansion, they saw a man and a woman standing not far from the gate.
The man was a young man with a pale complexion and dry, chapped lips. He was supported by a petite girl beside him and looked into the marquis's mansion with his eyes open.
Seeing the two of them, Shen Shuwei was startled, remembering that in her previous life, she had emptied her savings to overturn the Shen family's case. When her father found out, he slapped her hard and ordered her to be confined to her house, forbidding her to have any contact with the Shen family again.
She begged Chu Xinrou to send money to the Shen family, but Chu Xinrou came to her father crying and complained that she was the daughter of the Marquis's Mansion and had long cut off all ties with the criminals of the Shen family and only recognized the relatives in the Marquis's Mansion.
When she was finally released, she received the news that Shen's father had been beheaded and the rest of his family had been exiled to a bitter and cold place.
The two of them naturally noticed that Chen Shuwei was looking at them, and immediately turned around and was about to leave.
Shen Shuwei quickly stepped forward, grasped the man's wrist, raised his face and smiled, calling out, "Second Brother."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
