Chapter 8

Shen Mingzhu once saw this jade pendant in Shen Qingtan’s boudoir by accident. She was drawn to it right away, picked it up to admire, and even thought about asking Qingtan to give it to her.

Then she accidentally noticed some tiny words carved on the love knot:

“Our hearts are like a double silk net, tied with thousands of knots.
Heaven never grows old, and love cannot be broken.”

Liuyue told her that this love knot jade pendant was a token of love from Zhao Jue.

Now Shen Qingtan casually gave it to her, with an attitude that seemed like she didn’t care about the pendant—or about Zhao Jue.

It was something Shen Qingtan didn’t want anymore, so she tossed it to her.

Shen Mingzhu didn’t want it, but if she refused, it would make her seem rude.

She forced a stiff smile, took the pendant, and said, “Thank you, sister… second sister-in-law.” Inside, her heart ached—Zhao Jue had never given her a token of love.

Zhao Jue stared at the pendant without blinking, his face darkening.

When he first gave it to Shen Qingtan, it was to show his feelings and promise to be with her for life.

Back then, she tied red silk to it, meaning she agreed to spend her life with him.

Now she had cut off the red silk and given the pendant to Shen Mingzhu.

She was clearly telling him: if he wasn’t the one to spend her life with, she wouldn’t waste her emotions or stay for him.

She would simply move forward—toward someone else willing to walk with her.

Zhao Jue looked at Shen Qingtan standing beside Zhao Yi—one gentle and graceful, the other noble and refined—they really did look like a perfect pair.

He forced himself to ignore the discomfort in his heart, gave a cold laugh, and thought, “Just a woman, nothing more.”

Zhao Yi glanced at the pendant and recognized it. A hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

Was she ending things with Zhao Jue?

His gaze toward Shen Qingtan carried some hidden meaning—she was even more decisive than he had imagined.

But to those who didn’t know the truth, it looked like Shen Qingtan was just kind-hearted. Whatever Shen Mingzhu wanted, no matter how precious, she would give it.

The old madam, who knew about the wedding swap, thought this meant Qingtan bore no grudges.

She was very pleased—this was the proper demeanor a noblewoman should have.

Seeing everyone look at Shen Qingtan with admiration, Shen Mingzhu’s eyes suddenly turned red.

She couldn’t help but remember—the old madam had given her a jade bracelet, but hadn’t even put it on her wrist herself.

Compared side by side, it was clear—the old madam liked Shen Qingtan more.

In a soft, weak voice, Shen Mingzhu said, “Sister, that dowry of more than a hundred carts was originally yours, but now it’s in storage. If you want it, I can have someone send it to you.”

Shen Qingtan had always been generous to her—whatever she asked for, she would give.

Now she offered to give it back, knowing that with Qingtan’s pride, she’d never take it.

This way, she could keep the dowry, appear generous, and win the old madam’s favor.

She even secretly hoped Qingtan would fight for it, showing a greedy, ugly side so the old madam would dislike her.

Shen Qingtan sneered inside. She wasn’t the Shen family’s real daughter and didn’t crave the dowry. But Madam Shen had stolen her away, keeping her from her birth parents.

In her previous life, even when she died, her real parents had never stopped searching for her—proof that they had always suffered the pain of being separated from their child.

Since the marquis’s household insisted on giving her this dowry in her name, she would let them have their way.

If the marquis’s household wanted to play dirty, she didn’t need to be polite.

“Mother said you don’t know how to handle accounts and can’t manage the dowry well, so she gave it all to me to take care of and told me to look after you more often,” Shen Qingtan replied without hesitation. “Since you’ve brought it up, I’ll have someone move the dowry later.”

Shen Mingzhu was stunned—Qingtan actually accepted the dowry, and with such a perfectly proper excuse that no one could fault her.

“We were sisters before marriage, and after marriage we’re sisters-in-law—closer than ordinary people,” Qingtan said warmly. “So I won’t bother with polite words.”

That shut Shen Mingzhu up completely—she could only glare at Qingtan.

The second madam was furious, cursing Mingzhu in her heart for being stupid.

Once something was in your hands, how could you give it back?

She was about to speak when Shen Qingtan spoke first:

“Second Aunt, my second sister and I accidentally rode the wrong bridal sedan chairs. Our families know the truth, but if this got out, people would laugh.

If anyone asks, just tell them that after my sister was recognized by the Shen family, we privately agreed to swap engagements—me, the eldest legitimate daughter, marrying the Zhao family’s eldest legitimate son, and my sister, the second legitimate daughter, marrying the Zhao family’s second son. We didn’t spread this news to avoid gossip.

We’re one family—whoever gets the dowry, it’s the same. But outsiders know the thousand mu of farmland and ten miles of bridal procession were prepared for me. If it went to the second branch, this wedding swap would be hard to explain.

People might think it wasn’t an accident, but that there was something shady going on. That would hurt our reputation and disgrace the Duke’s household.”

She took a dowry list from her sleeve and handed it to the second madam:

“All the men in the family are officials and need a good reputation. If something like this hurts their careers, that would be a big loss over a small matter. Second Aunt, please trouble yourself today to help check the dowry.”

The second madam’s face darkened. The Duke valued the Zhao family’s century-old reputation above all else. If she refused to give the dowry back, it would look like she was keeping it for herself and harming the family’s honor.

And since the old duke hadn’t yet chosen the heir, if he got angry with the second branch over this, they’d suffer the loss.

After all, Zhao Jue wasn’t the only grandson.

“We don’t eat oily pastries, so we don’t get our hands greasy. Your dowry is yours—go count it yourself.” The second madam glanced at the list but didn’t take it. “Besides, the dowry wasn’t ours to keep—it’s been sitting in storage untouched.”

Shen Qingtan smiled. “I knew Second Aunt understood reason best.”

The second madam’s face turned even darker, thinking about how Qingtan was taking more than a hundred carts of dowry. Her heart bled at the loss.

She blamed Shen Mingzhu entirely, giving her a sharp glare.

Shen Mingzhu’s face went pale with hatred for Qingtan. This wretched woman had stolen her identity, her dowry, and even made her unpopular with her husband’s family.

If not for Shen Qingtan, everyone in the Duke’s household would be fond of her… She lowered her gaze to hide the darkness in her eyes.

The old madam hadn’t slept well the night before. This morning at the tea ceremony, the second branch stirred up trouble again. She didn’t keep anyone for the meal—she dismissed them all.

Only the eldest master and his wife stayed behind to talk.

The second madam, still worried, grabbed the second master’s arm before leaving and whispered urgently:

“Mother kept the first branch—what is she planning? She knows we worked with the marquis’s household to swap brides, and this morning she gave me a cold face to warn me. Now she’s sending us away but keeping the first branch… I’m worried she wants to give the heir position to them.”