My younger sister insisted on marrying me and made me the Marquis' wife.

Chapter 650 Getting Excited
At dawn, Qin Yuan was woken up by Gu Baozhu: "Third sister-in-law, third sister-in-law, wake up quickly, we still have to go back to the manor."

Despite her headache, Qin Yuan forced open her eyes and asked, "Why so early?"

Gu Baozhu's eyes sparkled: "Have you forgotten? We still need to get ready to go to the palace. We won't have a moment's rest today."

Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival and also the Empress Dowager's birthday. The palace will hold a grand celebration, as well as lantern displays and a grand military review... There are so many things to do.

Qin Yuan sighed and had no choice but to get up: "I was a little drunk last night, so I got up a bit late. You go to Mother's first, I'll be there soon."

Gu Baozhu responded and went to Old Madam Gu's room.

Xiao Hong came over carrying clothes and asked, "Madam, are you suffering from a hangover headache?"

Qin Yuan nodded.

Xiao Hong smiled: "I learned a method from Rong Momo. I'll massage it for you later, otherwise the dizziness from the carriage ride will be even more unbearable."

Hongye smiled and said, "You little rascal, you're so thoughtful, always finding a chance to please others. I think you're the most considerate person in the whole house. We don't even need to serve the madam anymore."

Xiao Hong quickly replied, "Not at all, I just learned it from Sister Hongye. It's only because Sister Hongye isn't here that I have the chance to curry favor."

Everyone laughed.

Qin Yuan quickly finished packing, and the family had a quick breakfast. The carriages were ready outside, and the maids and servants had also packed their things, waiting for them to board.

The clan chief and his wife came to greet them, and Old Madam Gu quickly said, "We're all family, no need for such formalities. Have you had breakfast yet?"

The clan chief laughed and said, "Of course we've used them. Yesterday, the Marquis said that the capital might be a bit unsettled these days, so I gathered all the martial arts-practicing young men in the clan and divided them into two groups to come with you to the manor to await your orders. When you leave later, let them come with you."

Madam Gu glanced at Qin Yuan, and seeing Qin Yuan nod, she agreed.

The clan chief and his wife, seeing this, respected Qin Yuan even more and said with a smile, "This is an opportunity given to them by the Marquis. We will have to trouble you, Madam, to take care of the arrangements."

Qin Yuan quickly replied, "It was all arranged by the Marquis, so it's not a hassle at all."

The clan chief and his wife stood by and watched them board the carriage. Then, the clan's young men split into two groups and rode behind the carriage, heading into the city in a grand procession.

The clansmen were even more impressed with Qin Yuan after seeing her.

The carriages and horses were moving about, and they had been away from the ancestral temple for some time. Qin Yuan lifted the curtain and looked out, and saw that there were carriages and horses of the Gu clan in front and behind.

This time, the Gu family almost turned out in full force to worship their ancestors, making it a much larger event than the last time they came to the ancestral temple.

Old Madam Gu looked tired and rested with her hand on her forehead, closing her eyes to relax. Gu Baozhu, unable to stay still, asked Qin Yuan, "Third Sister-in-law, which set of headdress will you wear to the palace?"

Qin Yuan smiled.

Before leaving last night, Lord Gu repeatedly instructed that the headdress he had chosen should be used. Not only was the style old-fashioned, but it was also somewhat ugly. Its only advantage was that it was valuable.

"Wear that set of red gold headdress."

Gu Baozhu first exclaimed "Ah!", then realized what she meant and kept glancing at Qin Yuan with a sly smile.

Qin Yuan was laughing so hard she could hardly sit still. Just as she was about to say something to her, Gu Baozhu added, "That must have been carefully chosen by my third brother. My sister-in-law is beautiful; she looks good in anything."

Qin Yuan retorted, "It's too late for you to say all this now. I'll tell Mother later that you were laughing at me and your third brother without any respect for your elders."

"Third sister-in-law, how could you be so heartless? Aren't I your best sister-in-law in the world? The tea has gone cold before she even left. Who can I complain to?" Xiao Hong couldn't help but laugh out loud. Gu Baozhu glared at her and threatened, "Oh, you! I'm almost crying, and you're still laughing here. See how I punish you."

Qin Yuan said, "Alright, alright, stop fooling around here. You should rest properly, otherwise you won't have the energy to play football."

Gu Baozhu finally calmed down, but after a while she couldn't help but say, "Third Sister-in-law, I can't sleep. I get all excited just thinking about tonight."

Old Madam Gu couldn't help but speak up: "What are you doing?"

Gu Baozhu stuck out her tongue and mumbled vaguely, "I'm going to lead the polo team to victory, how can I not be energetic? You didn't see it yesterday, half the young ladies in the capital came to watch me play polo, and everyone called me 'handsome young man.' Today, all the young ladies in the capital will come to watch."

"Where is Xu Tang?" asked Madam Gu.

Gu Baozhu coughed and said disdainfully, "Ever since he tried to harm me but broke his leg instead, he hasn't been on the field again. I'm not bragging, but his skills are only worth mentioning in the palace. He's nothing compared to us amateurs."

"You're really exaggerating," Old Madam Gu laughed. "Don't embarrass yourself tonight. The Gu family can win and lose, but we don't play those kinds of games."

"Okay, just you wait and see," Gu Baozhu replied confidently.

She didn't care whether she won or lost.

The important thing is that she's going to be involved in something really big tonight.

Before noon, the carriages arrived at the Marquis's residence. Steward Han, who had been waiting for a long time, had already ordered people to remove the threshold. The carriages drove straight in, and the two groups of young men followed into the Marquis's residence.

As soon as Qin Yuan got out of the car, Butler Han asked, "Madam, Madam, who are these people...?"

Madam Gu smiled and said, "Thank you for your trouble, Steward Han. This old woman has had a bumpy journey, so I'll go back and rest first and follow your instructions."

Gu Baozhu helped Old Madam Gu straight to the main room.

Qin Yuan said to Steward Han, "These are all young men from my Gu clan. The clan leader arranged for them to assist the Marquis, so they need to be properly settled."

Butler Han was taken aback.

These children all possess martial arts skills and will be sent to the battlefield to make a living for their masters once they grow up.

The clan has never sent so many people to the Marquis's mansion before.

Qin Yuan turned to them and said, "You can rest for now. The old lady and I still need to go to the palace. If there is anything lacking, just ask Steward Han. We all share the surname Gu, so please don't be polite or distant."

The men all dismounted and said loudly, "Thank you, Madam."

Qin Yuan smiled gently, then turned and left.

Upon arriving at Wutong Garden, he instructed someone to quickly invite Mr. Songshan over for a talk.

When we finished half a cup of tea, Mr. Songshan rushed over and said as soon as we met, "Yesterday at dusk, several men entered the city again. One of them looked like the leader of those men. He had a fair complexion and a light beard, was not tall, dressed like a scholar, was around forty years old, and had a large red mole on his left cheek. He should be at Shuhai Pavilion right now."

"Oh?" Qin Yuan raised an eyebrow slightly.

Mr. Songshan continued, “Among these people, there are a few who are short and thin, with light steps, and they seem to be Shi Qian’s fellow disciples. They have already been to the Duke of Cheng’en’s residence and the Prince of Jin’s residence, but they were not found at the Crown Prince’s residence. Moreover,” he glanced at Qin Yuan’s expression and lowered his voice, “they also came to the Marquis’s residence to scout it out.”

Qin Yuan nodded: "Since there are thieves, we need to be careful."