In the evening, the family rarely had a reunion dinner together.

After finishing the meal, the sky was already dark, so Jiang Yanyi and her brother decided to stay at the Chu family.

The next day, remembering she needed to pay her respects to Old Madam Chu, Jiang Yanyi woke up half an hour early to tidy herself up before heading over.

The three Chu sisters hadn’t arrived yet, but Liu Shi’s daughter-in-law, Xue Shi, was already in Old Madam Chu’s room with her child.

Xue Shi was not particularly striking in appearance, but she had great poise and demeanor.

She was originally the illegitimate daughter of the former capital’s magistrate and was fortunate to marry into the Chu family because at that time, Chu Changping was the General of Yunzhou.

Old Madam Chu was very satisfied with this granddaughter-in-law.

She understood the priorities of every situation and was capable of managing the household properly.

“Look, Nian An is smiling at his grandmother,” Old Madam Chu said, holding her great-grandson.

Her eyes crinkled with joy, revealing the lines of age.

She wore a satin coat decorated with the auspicious symbols of happiness, wealth, longevity, and good fortune, and a forehead ribbon set with emeralds, her expression kind and gentle.

The great-grandson was named Nian An, which aligned with the “Nian” generation. Old Master Chu named him Nian An, hoping for stability and peace in the Da Xuan dynasty.

Xue Shi, dressed in an autumn-hued gown, smiled and said, “Nian An always cries when he’s with me, but he doesn’t cry here with you, grandmother. It seems he’s just looking forward to your embrace.”

This made Old Madam Chu laugh. “Your words are as sweet as honey.”

As Old Madam Chu grew older, her arms became tired from holding the baby for too long, so Jiang Yanyi took the child to help her hold him for a while.

The children of the Chu family were all quite handsome.

Even the usually timid Chu Chengbai had a rather good-looking face, which was why Xue Shi had agreed to marry him back then.

Although the baby was just over a month old, he looked exceptionally cute and lovely.

Xue Shi seemed eager to get closer to Jiang Yanyi and said with a smile, “I heard that the second younger sister has started a teahouse business. That’s quite a heroic venture in the world of cosmetics.”

Jiang Yanyi replied, “It’s just a small endeavor, nothing grand.”

This was naturally a humble response.

Old Madam Chu then asked about Chu Chengbai, “I heard Bai Ge’er drank too much yesterday. Has he gotten up this morning?”

Xue Shi said, “I gave him a bowl of hangover soup, but he’s still complaining of a headache and hasn’t gotten up yet.”

Old Madam Chu sighed, holding Xue Shi’s hand, “Good child, you’ve had a hard time. Yue Niang has been by Bai Ge’er’s side since she was young, and he has deep feelings for her. Yue Niang went to give birth to Nian An for him, so he must be feeling quite distressed during this time…”

Xue Shi smiled generously, “What are you saying, grandmother? It’s not about hardship. It’s good that my husband is affectionate.”

She spoke without a trace of jealousy or bitterness, which surprised Jiang Yanyi, who looked at Xue Shi with some astonishment.

Noticing Jiang Yanyi’s gaze, Xue Shi responded with a gentle smile, making Jiang Yanyi feel a bit embarrassed.

When Chu Shubao and her sisters arrived, the courtyard became lively.

Chu Shubao was quite adept at entertaining the baby, using a rattle to coax the infant into smiles.

Seeing this, Chu Huibao wanted to use the rattle as well, with the nurse and nanny nearby, fearing any accidents.

Xue Shi said, “Please help me watch over Nian An for a moment. I’m going to the kitchen to prepare soup for grandmother; I need to check on it.”

“Sister-in-law, go ahead. We’ll be here,” Chu Shubao readily replied.

Xue Shi then took her personal maid and left the courtyard.

She prepared a bowl of soup to send to Chu Chengbai, and the maid couldn’t help but complain on her behalf: “After Aunt Yue goes, the young master will probably lose his mind. You’ll have to personally care for the young master Nian An at night, getting up before dawn to make soup and give the young master hangover soup, and then endure his drunken rants. After all this, you’re still remembering to send him soup…”

Xue Shi stirred the chicken soup with dangshen, a faint smile on her lips: “What I do is not to win his favor.”

The maid looked puzzled, but Xue Shi didn’t elaborate, simply instructing her to take the soup to Chu Chengbai.

The maid assumed Xue Shi was just being stubborn and refused to admit it, her eyes turning red as she said, “Aunt Yue is just a fox spirit; no matter how favored she was, she’s dead now! The young master will eventually forget about her!”

Xue Shi shot the maid a glance: “Why bring her up?”

The maid slapped her own mouth and said, “I deserve to die.”

Xue Shi glanced outside the door and smiled slightly, “Alright, if we’re really talking about it, I should thank her.”

She poured the remaining soup into another bowl, her movements unhurried. “She risked her life to help me give birth to a son. After going through this ordeal, I won’t have to face that gate of hell again in this lifetime.”

The maid was so shocked she couldn’t speak. “You… don’t plan to have your own child?”

Xue Shi replied, “Nian An is my son.”

At that moment, Mama Yang, who was beside the old lady Chu, entered from the kitchen.

She arrived late and only caught the last two sentences of Xue Shi and the maid’s conversation.

She sighed and said, “Young Madam, everyone in the Chu family knows your feelings for Young Master. Just now, I saw Chang Sui, who’s always by the Eldest Young Master’s side, at the door. If the Eldest Young Master knows how much you care for Young Master Nian An, he will surely appreciate you too.”

Xue Shi feigned surprise. “Chang Sui came by? I suppose it’s because my husband is hungry. Timya, quickly take the soup to my husband.”

The maid clearly didn’t understand what was happening, looking confused as she took the bowl of soup and went out.

Mama Yang came to the kitchen at this time every day to check on the medicine being prepared for Old Lady Chu.

The medicine on the stove still needed some time to cook, so Mama Yang waited in the kitchen while Xue Shi packed the chicken soup into a food box and returned early to the old lady’s courtyard.

---

Xue Shi brought the freshly cooked soup over, and the young ladies of the Chu family each took a small bowl to have as breakfast.

When Mama Yang entered from outside and glanced at Xue Shi, she whispered something to Old Lady Chu.

Jiang Yanyi, sitting nearby, heard the words “Eldest Young Master,” “broken,” and “divorce.”

Old Lady Chu’s originally kind expression instantly darkened with anger. “How increasingly unruly! Over a concubine, what trouble is he trying to stir up? He should be content to marry someone like Awen!”

Old Lady Chu’s voice was somewhat loud, causing Chu Shubao and the other sisters, who were still teasing Chu Nian An, to look over.

Old Lady Chu ordered them to leave, keeping only Xue Shi in the room to talk.

Before long, the room was filled with the sounds of Xue Shi crying and Old Lady Chu scolding Chu Chengbai.

The servants also brought news from Chu Chengbai’s courtyard, saying that Xue Shi had stewed chicken soup and sent a maid to serve it to Chu Chengbai, but unexpectedly, he suddenly went mad, smashing the soup bowl and cursing that he wanted to divorce Xue Shi.

As Chu Chengbai’s biological sister, Chu Shubao naturally understood her brother’s character.

The beautiful Yue Niang had always been favored by Chu Chengbai, while Xue Shi was average in appearance, and Chu Chengbai had little affection for her.

However, whether to Chu Chengbai or to the whole family, her sister-in-law had always treated everyone well.

Chu Shubao exclaimed angrily, “Is my brother’s brain coated in pig oil? I have to go scold him!”

She turned and ran towards Chu Chengbai’s courtyard like a cannonball.

Chu Huibao glanced at Jiang Yanyi and Chu Jiabao, then at Chu Shubao, unsure of which side to follow.

Jiang Yanyi said, “Huibao, go find your mother.”

It was better for Liu Shi, as the mother, to handle matters in the main family.

Chu Huibao nodded and ran towards Liu Shi’s courtyard.

Chu Jiabao looked at Jiang Yanyi and said, “Our eldest sister-in-law is quite clever.”

Earlier, Jiang Yanyi had some doubts about Xue Shi’s attitude, and now that Chu Jiabao had said this, she felt her suspicions were probably correct.

Xue Shi didn’t seem to harbor deep feelings for Chu Chengbai as she pretended, and it was even possible that she felt nothing at all.

Chu Jiabao and Xue Shi were similar in nature; she understood Xue Shi’s situation, which is why she knew her motives for doing all this.

Before long, Chu Chengbai was brought to the old lady’s courtyard.

Aside from the Second Young Master, who was still drunk from last night, both the Eldest Young Master and the Third Young Master had come.

Chu Chengbai pointed at Xue Shi and shouted, “You venomous woman, I want a divorce!”

Old Lady Chu, enraged, threw a cushion at Chu Chengbai. “You ungrateful brat, what madness has taken hold of you today?”

Chu Chengbai knelt before Old Lady Chu and said, “Grandmother, this venomous woman is duplicitous, with a heart as cold as a snake’s!”

Xue Shi cried out, “Then tell me, how have I been cruel?”