The mistress who remarried has returned.

Su Yunxi coldly removed the clothes from Shuang'er's hands, neither retaliating nor compromising.

Seeing that Su Yunxi remained silent and her face was calm and patient, she felt extremely dissatisfied with the humiliation she was enduring. Since the other party did not retaliate or knock away the clothes from Shuang'er's hand, Xue Wenying felt it was inappropriate to find fault with her. Just as she was about to say something to test Su Yunxi's strength, she heard Qin Huai's voice coming from the courtyard gate.

He was delighted and quickly looked over.

Butler Wang arrived first and whispered to Xue Wenying, "It's all thanks to the young lady's influence. Who else could easily invite someone like that?"

Xue Wenying blushed slightly and lightly wiped her mouth with a handkerchief. "I just arrived too. You've come at the perfect time, Rongzhi."

As Xue Wenying finished speaking, Qin Huai walked up to her.

A faint, bitter smile played on Su Yunxi's lips. The person who arrived was not her husband, Qin Huai, who had doted on her for seven years, but Qin Rongzhi, who had used her as a tool. She was no longer the foolish Xixi whose heart and eyes were full of Qin Huai, but the fallen Consort Su of the Eastern Palace.

Things have changed, people are no longer the same, there's no need to expect anything.

"I rushed over without stopping as soon as I heard the news," Qin Huai said in a low voice, his gaze lingering on Su Yunxi's downcast face. In the glittering Xue mansion, she looked like a delicate orchid growing in a secluded valley, out of place with her surroundings, a world unto herself. Sharing a room with Meng Qian in such a murky environment was like suddenly taking a breath of fresh air. He looked away and said, "I know you're worried about the child."

Su Yunxi didn't have the courage to look up at Qin Huai, nor did she want to see Qin Huai's concerned gaze towards Xue Wenying. Noticing Qin Huai's gaze on her, Su Yunxi clenched her hands tightly on the hem of her dress, which had turned white and stiff from washing. She was indeed too plain.

His old clothes and Xue Wenying's gorgeous skirt formed a stark contrast in his line of sight.

Flowers need a backdrop; after comparing them, Qin Huai must like Xue Wenying even more.

He would choose a target for his anger. How could that haughty Miss Xue not be angry when she learned that he doted on her, who was so humble?

Originally, she thought that if it was just dealing with the Xue family, since she had no grudges against them, she could leave with her younger brother after clarifying the facts.

Unexpectedly, Xue Wenying invited Qin Huai, and upon hearing the news, Qin Huai put aside his important matters and rushed to take charge of the situation for Xue Wenying. However, she met Qin Huai here again, which reminded him of her words four years ago, "Compared to the Crown Prince, you are nothing." She was no longer confident that she could protect her younger brother, and a strong sense of fear and worry rose in her heart.

For a moment, she gripped the hem of her old dress so tightly that her knuckles turned white, and her palms ached from the pressure of her fingertips.

But she still stood there with her back straight. Even though she had nothing and no one to rely on, she was her brother's support. She could not cower and back down and let her brother take the blame for someone else.

Xue Wenying hurriedly said to Qin Huai, "I was actually worried about Xue Ping's matter. Luckily you came. Otherwise, it would have just passed by without a trace."

In front of the general, Shuang'er pushed the stack of clothes she was carrying a little further towards Consort Su, saying, "Consort, this is a token of my lady's kindness. Please accept it without hesitation. We know you need some help right now..."

Su Yunxi kept her eyes down and remained silent. She didn't want other people's servants to wear their unwanted old clothes, especially the old clothes that Xue Wenying's servants were about to throw away. She clenched her teeth tightly, enduring this humiliation.

Qin Huai glanced at the clothes in Shuang'er's hands. They were in the Xue family's style, with bright and vibrant fabric. Then he looked at Su Yunxi's hand, which was trembling as she gripped the hem of the skirt so tightly that she was holding the clothes too tightly. Her eyes were already red, but she stubbornly refused to utter a word. She was still as stubborn as ever.

He then looked at Xue Wenyin, "What's wrong?"

Xue Wenying quickly gestured with her chin towards Su Yunxi, "She used to be incredibly glamorous in the Eastern Palace. Look at what she's wearing now. That dress is so worn and faded from washing that you can't even tell its original color. I couldn't bear to look at her like that, so I asked Shuang'er to get some old clothes for her to wear. It's better than her dressed like this. I don't usually live here; my clothes and trunks are all in your outer residence. If she doesn't like them because they're Shuang'er's, I'll send her some of mine another day. Tell her to accept them. I've always admired her character and can't stand seeing her in such a sorry state. After all, she took an arrow for you; she's done you a favor."

Su Yunxi looked up at Qin Huai, who was also staring at her face and examining her clothes. She had nowhere to hide, like an ugly duckling next to the swan Xue Wenying. She quickly lowered her head. She had just grabbed an old dress and hadn't noticed that there was a hole in the hem, which made her even more embarrassed.

"I don't want it." A thousand polite refusals were reduced to these four blunt words; not even a pleasantry could be exchanged.

Because of the Crown Prince's follow-up medication and her brother's innocence, both were now in Qin Huai's hands. If Qin Huai asked her to take over Xue Wenying's maid's old clothes and wear them, she would force herself to do so even if she didn't want to. However, she simply didn't want them.

Shuang'er said softly, "General, look at this, Liangdi keeps making my young lady feel awkward. My young lady means well. She's been begging her for half a day, but it's as if she's begging her for help."

Xue Wenying looked at Su Yunxi quietly. She looked so aggrieved that she was about to break down. If the general asked her to accept it, she would have to accept it even if she didn't want to.

Qin Huai said calmly, "Just throw these clothes away. She has high standards; she doesn't even like me, so how could she possibly like these? You don't need to force her. She said she doesn't want them, and forcing her won't work."

Xue Wenying felt a sudden pang in her heart.

Su Yunxi breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, he was an important person and did not waste time on such petty matters as a girl's clothes. Although his words were also sarcastic about her trying to climb the social ladder, they also relieved her embarrassment.

Shuang'er withdrew her hand. What did the general mean? It sounded like he was praising or admiring her.

Xue Wenying didn't continue to disobey Qin Huai's wishes. She knew when to advance and when to retreat. She waved for Shuang'er to leave and changed the subject, "Xue Ping is a weak-willed child. Don't be fooled by his tyrannical behavior at home; he's actually a bully at home and always gets bullied outside. This is because my brother disciplines him too strictly. Unlike Su Yunze, the young master of the Su family, who is very wild and likes to hit people. This shows how important family education is."

When Su Yunxi heard Xue Wenying mention her brother, and that she said in front of Qin Huai that her brother was poorly raised, she stopped keeping silent. She could endure all the humiliation, but she couldn't tolerate any slander against her family. She raised her head and said calmly, "Su Yunze is also a sensible child. There are other reasons for this, and it has nothing to do with him."

Xue Wenying interrupted her, displeased, "Of course you're all protecting your own young master. What's the real story? Did Xue Ping injure himself? Madam Wang came to apologize. Is this your attitude of apology? Didn't you even see how badly Xue Ping's eye was hit?"

Steward Wang hurriedly told Qin Huai, "The school teacher said it himself that it was Wang's only son who injured the person. Wang also brought the person here today. There's no mistake."

Su Yunxi wanted to say something more.

Qin Huai spoke first, "Don't worry. I'm here to stand up for you. No need to say more, I know what I'm doing."

Su Yunxi was not fond of arguing with people by nature. At first glance, she thought that Qin Huai was being considerate of her and trying to reassure her. However, she felt a chill run down her spine. Qin Huai's words were not meant for her. She had been deluding herself into thinking that Qin Huai was being considerate of her and trying to prevent her from arguing with others. But now he was just trying to reassure Xue Wenying.

Upon hearing this, Xue Wenying's heart skipped a beat. She hadn't originally wanted to concern herself with the matter of her brother and nephew, but since it involved Su Yunxi's biological brother, and Qin Huai had been neglecting her for the past two days, she decided to take this opportunity to test Qin Huai's intentions. Now that Qin Huai showed no favoritism towards Su Liangdi, she felt relieved. After all, she had taken Su Liangdi too seriously. Qin Huai was a man who hated evil and would not be merciful to those who had betrayed him.

"Rongzhi, it's cold outside, let's go inside." Xue Wenying pointed to the inner hall, "It's much warmer inside."

When Qin Huai heard that she was addressed by her courtesy name, she frowned slightly, but didn't say anything and just let her be.