Chapter 358: Chapter 359: A Bit Healthier

Xiao Wanyu turned to her stepmother. "Didn’t we already agree? We were going to have my brother-in-law go and say something. The Niu Family isn’t an official family anymore, so they definitely wouldn’t dare to offend him."

"Your brother-in-law has been under house arrest these past few days. Do you really think that in a mansion this large, anything can be kept a secret?"

At the mention of this, Xiao Shi Yu’s tone sharpened. ’Even with the old madam’s protection, the order came from Gold himself this time. We wouldn’t dare pretend to obey while secretly defying him.’

Tian Lanfen also chimed in, "And my courtyard—your sister-in-law is preparing to give birth soon, so it’s not suitable for you to be married from there. It could bring bad luck. You should look into renting a courtyard soon."

"You’re all being too unreasonable." Xiao Wanyu finally understood. ’It seems this mother-daughter pair no longer wants anything to do with me.’

"Are you so certain that man Ning’s career will stall here?"

"We all have our own difficulties. Instead of wasting your breath arguing with us, you’d be better off thinking about how to explain things to the Niu Family and where you’re going to live next."

Tian Lanfen offered her one last piece of well-intentioned advice. It wasn’t that they had no faith in Ning Yuchen.

It was that a single night had been enough for them to investigate the Ning family inside and out.

Although he was the official runner-up, he already had a wife and a legitimate son.

He owed his success to the Yue Family’s years of financial support, which also meant he could never break faith with them in his life.

What’s more, there was a formidable mother-in-law in the family. Though she was blind, Ning Yuchen was a dutiful son, so the entire household naturally had to obey her.

It wasn’t that they looked down on Xiao Wanyu. But with a temper like hers, cooped up in such a small rented house, they’d be at each other’s throats day in and day out.

Xiao Wanyu was still completely oblivious to all this. A few days later, when a pink sedan chair carried her through the gates under the cover of night, her first thought was to find a knife and come back to hack this mother-daughter pair to pieces.

* * *

Ever since hearing about Ancient Wen Heng’s ordeal at the Huang Mansion last night, Jin Qianqian had been seething.

"Go and see how much information they’ve gathered on the people at the Huang Mansion. Have it all sent over."

’Although they didn’t succeed yesterday, several of them conspired to set a trap, and I have to settle this score with them.’

’Ancient Wen Heng had gotten his revenge on the spot, but I am far from satisfied.’

As for Ning Yuchen, Jin Qianqian couldn’t even be bothered with him right now. With a walking disaster like Xiao Wanyu in the picture, she was actually curious to see how things would end for the Ning Family.

Qingzhu came and went in a hurry, soon delivering the collected information.

"This alleyway that Huang Zhengyong frequently visits—has anyone gone in to investigate?"

Sifting through the numerous scrawled surveillance records, Jin Qianqian circled a few places with a charcoal pencil.

"He goes there for a few drinks every time. He always stays in a private room and doesn’t come out. The people tailing him don’t seem to have noticed anything unusual."

Qingzhu had double- and triple-checked the information on the reports before delivering them.

Jin Qianqian said, "He stays in there for a long time, and he’s always alone. Given his personality, it’s impossible that nothing is going on. Have someone go back and dig deeper."

’As for the mother and daughter from the Xiao Family, they don’t seem to have any weaknesses right now. But the dowry shops they control... those are the perfect point of entry.’

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She picked up her brush and wrote down a few addresses. "Qingzhu, find a few female brokers we know. Have them try to secure storefronts near these locations. The price is negotiable."

Qingzhu guessed her intention. "Madam, these shops are all so varied. There’s a general store, a cosmetics shop, and a bookshop... We’ve never dealt with these kinds of businesses before."

Jin Qianqian said, "Then we can start learning about them. You all just focus on finding the storefronts first. I’ll take care of the rest."

For the rest of the day, she didn’t leave her courtyard. Aside from occasionally playing with her child, she spent the entire time writing and drawing.

"I hear you’ve been busy all day. You should stop and take a rest." Ancient Wen Heng gently took her brush. Only then did Jin Qianqian realize how much time had passed without her noticing.

"You’re back," Jin Qianqian said, setting down her brush and rolling her head to stretch her neck.

Ancient Wen Heng picked up a nearby sheet of paper that had already dried. It was covered in neat, densely packed small seal script.

"Are you planning to open new shops?" Ancient Wen Heng picked up another sheet. This one had drawings of small toys on it.

He flipped through a few more pages and was surprised to even find a draft for a writing contest announcement.

"What are you up to?" Ancient Wen Heng felt his wife was taking a rather large leap, branching into several industries at once.

"It’s nothing. I’m just playing around with them for now. If they make money, we’ll keep doing it. If not, we’ll switch to something else. It’s also a good chance to create some competitive positions for our people."

Ancient Wen Heng thought that made some sense. They had been constantly training people for fear of being short-staffed. Now that group after group had arrived, they all needed to be assigned positions.

This would be a way to gauge their individual abilities. After all, competition is what drives improvement.

"Well, these things can’t be done in a day. You don’t have to work yourself so hard," Ancient Wen Heng said, standing behind her and kneading her shoulders. "It’s time for dinner. I’ve already had them set the table."

Jin Qianqian said, "Oh, right. The courtyard you asked about has been prepared. It’s on a corner facing the street. When will Mr. Cen arrive?"

Although Ancient Wen Heng had been starting Luo Luo on his primary education these past few days, his time was limited. Many days had passed, and Luo Luo still had no self-discipline for studying. He’d make a fuss when he wanted to play, and if he didn’t want to learn, he’d act spoiled.

"He went back to get his family, so he should arrive in a few days. As it happens, he has two sons around Luo Luo’s age, so Luo Luo will have some companions." A big part of the reason he’d considered Cen Junren was that he had two sons of a similar age.

Jin Qianqian didn’t want to bring up yesterday’s unpleasantness again, so the conversation gradually shifted to the two children.

Just as they were taking a stroll in the back garden after dinner, Qing Mei came to ask for instructions. "Chief Steward Hu has arrived. Will the Master and Madam see him today?"

Jin Qianqian handed the child in her arms to a nearby nanny. "So soon? Have Housekeeper Fu arrange for him to eat and rest first. We can discuss business tomorrow morning."

Qing Mei curtsied and left. Only then did Jin Qianqian turn to Ancient Wen Heng with a smile and say, "Dongmei and the others have been my head maids for a while now, and their marriages are almost settled. Tomorrow, you should have a good talk with Hu Dong. It’s time he started planning for his own future too."

Ancient Wen Heng asked, "Oh? Are they all marrying someone from the estate?"

"Dongmei and Tianbao have been paired up, and Qingzhu with Lin Dapeng. Qing Lan, on the other hand, said she doesn’t want to marry. She said she feels freer living this way, and I agreed."

Ancient Wen Heng looked at her, a little stunned. "I thought you were so interested in matchmaking. Why did you agree so easily?"

Jin Qianqian stopped and looked at Ancient Wen Heng. "If I hadn’t met you, husband, I would have had the same idea as Qing Lan. Back then, I always thought it would be nice to be single—free and unburdened."

Ancient Wen Heng gently flicked her forehead. "And now? Do you still think we’re a burden?"

Jin Qianqian watched Luo Luo running ahead of them. "No. Now, I only wish I were in better health."

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