Luo Xin felt Shen Yu was ungrateful: “Hasn’t my father helped the Marquis’ Mansion enough over the years?”

Shen Yu scoffed and said, “If he had supported me half as much as he supported your brother-in-law, I wouldn’t even have to ask this.”

Luo Xin’s sister’s husband was a capable official in the court. Though his family background was not as prominent as the Shen family, he was smart and efficient, making him one of Old Master Luo’s favorites.

Meanwhile, Shen Yu had focused on his own business over the years. As he grew older, he became more self-willed and disorganized. Old Master Luo had increasingly lost faith in Shen Yu and the Wenyuan Marquis’ Mansion, leading him to avoid taking sides.

Even though the Luo family claimed they wouldn’t help, they had still offered significant assistance. Shen Yu received assignments, Shen Yue became a prince, and Shen Huan found a teacher—all thanks to the Luo family’s support. Yet Shen Yu, feeling neglected, blamed his own family for not treating him like his brother-in-law.

Luo Xin sneered, “The Marquis himself treats Ruojin and Tao Sheng differently. My father just didn’t treat them equally, which is why I can’t go home and recognize my ancestors. Compared to you, his behavior seems perfectly reasonable.”

Shen Yu couldn’t stand Luo Xin but didn’t dare to break off with her. He refused Yue’s family’s help and angrily left, ending their conversation on bad terms.

The issues with the Marquis Changxing remained unresolved, and the Duke Lingguo’s marriage proposal also hung in the air. Shen Yu felt anxious, while Shen Ruojin worried daily.

If the Duke Ling’s Mansion hadn’t proposed marriage, marrying the Prince of Changxing would have been fine. But knowing that the Prince of Ling’s Mansion had feelings for her, how could she agree to marry the Prince of Changxing?

Without a solution, the marriage troubles continued.

In just half a month, Shen Ruojin lost a lot of weight. When Princess Hui’an returned from summer vacation, she was shocked by Ruojin’s appearance.

Princess Hui’an always spoke her mind, showing her disdain for Shen Ruojin: “We were only away for a few days. How did you get like this?”

Shen Ruojin knew she couldn’t hide the truth and had to explain everything to Princess Hui’an.

Originally, she was engaged to the Prince of Changxing, but unexpectedly, the Prince of Lingguo Mansion proposed to her. Now she didn’t want to offend either side, leaving her stuck in a difficult situation.

Princess Hui’an was shocked when she heard the news. 

Since she learned that Shen Ruojin was engaged to the Changxing Marquis family, she felt relieved, thinking that if Ruojin got married soon, she could finally be rid of her presence in the East Palace. However, now a new obstacle had emerged with the Duke’s Mansion, making Ruojin’s marriage uncertain.

This realization upset Princess Hui’an, who had hoped to send Ruojin away by the end of the year under the pretext of wedding preparations. Now, it seemed that wouldn’t happen anytime soon.

Feeling irritable, Princess Hui’an lost her appetite and even struggled to eat dinner. Noticing this change, the Crown Princess summoned her to Zhaoyang Palace that night to find out what was wrong.

Princess Hui’an explained Ruojin’s situation, kicking her feet in frustration. “I’m so annoyed! Is she going to stay in the East Palace? I can’t even ask her to leave early!”

While the Crown Princess didn’t care about Ruojin’s marriage timing, she worried that a conflict with the two families might attract the emperor’s attention, similar to the incident with the Duke of Korea’s Mansion. Such attention could harm both the East Palace’s reputation and her own daughter’s.

Since Princess Hui’an’s marriage was already facing challenges, this could make things even more difficult.

The next day, the Crown Princess invited the wife of the Changxing Marquis to the palace. After giving some hints, she urged the Marquis to cancel the marriage with the Shen family, clearing the way for Ruojin.

Later, Tao Sheng heard from Tang Yizi about what had happened. She couldn’t believe the situation had come to this.

To ensure Ruojin returned home sooner and stopped lingering around her, Princess Hui’an had pressured the Changxing Marquis’s Mansion to cancel the marriage.

As expected, supporting characters shine around the main heroine, not only highlighting her grace and nobility but also helping to resolve practical issues. None of them are unnecessary.

In this way, Ruojin’s marriage was settled.

_

The Xie family and the Lingguo Mansion had a long-standing friendship. The new top scholar, Xie Huaian, and Lingguo Prince Guan Muyun had known each other since childhood and had a good relationship. When Xie Huaian heard that Guan Muyun’s marriage had finally been arranged, he prepared gifts and visited to congratulate him.

“I heard Brother Guan has found a great match. It seems like a loss in one place brings a gain in another. The future young lady of the Duke of Lingguo’s Mansion is the second Miss Shen, daughter of the Wenyuan Marquis, and a companion of the Princess of the Eastern Palace?”

Thinking of Shen Ruojin made Guan Muyun happy. He forgot the disappointment from being rejected by the Korean Duke’s Mansion and couldn’t hide his joy. “That’s right.”

“But I heard it wasn’t easy for you to get engaged this time,” Xie Huaian remarked. “You’ve had a smooth career, but your love life has had its bumps.”

Guan Muyun knew Xie Huaian was teasing him and smiled. “You know I’m not the type to take someone else’s love. When I met Miss Shen, I discovered what true love means. After over 20 years, I never thought I would desire someone so deeply.”

However, Xie Huaian had other intentions in visiting: “I remember your maternal grandparents have land and shops in the northwest. Coincidentally, Marquis Wenyuan and his wife went to Qin County in the northwest. Perhaps the Shen family also has a family business there. It might be helpful for you and Miss Shen to manage it together after your marriage.”

“I haven’t heard her mention this before,” Guan Muyun replied.

The two friends had discussed many topics recently, from poetry to geography, but Shen Ruojin had never mentioned the northwest.

Curious, Guan Muyun asked, “How do you know all this?”

Did Xie Huaian pay more attention to the Shen family than he did? Or did he have feelings for the second Miss Shen?

Xie Huaian explained, “I heard from my cousin that after Lord Shen returned from Qin County, Miss Shen fell seriously ill.”

Xie Huaian sighed, recalling that Qin County was a lovely place, blessed with beautiful mountains and rivers, and noted that it was home to Ji Zhuangyuan’s little cousin.

Remembering Ji Zhuangyuan’s cousin, Guan Muyun commented, “I heard that girl is a relative of Mrs. Luo’s family, but she doesn’t interact much with the Marquis’s Mansion.”

Xie Huaian recalled a visit to the Su family, where the Marquis’s wife held Tao Sheng’s hand, looking more like a mother and daughter than anything else.

It had only been a few years since the sensational incident of the Sui family using a concubine’s daughter to replace their real daughter.

Seeing Guan Muyun becoming absorbed in his thoughts, Xie Huaian felt he needed to offer some advice. He chose his words carefully: “That Miss Luo resembles the Marquis’s wife, but the second Miss Shen raised in the Marquis’s mansion seems to take after her grandmother.”