The mistress who remarried has returned.

Su Yunxi lowered her head and said in a low voice, "He hasn't introduced me to his mother. You've asked the wrong person."

"Oh, is that so? I haven't introduced you to Madam Qin in seven years?" Xue Wenying exclaimed.

Su Yunxi remained silent, letting the other party revel. Being at a disadvantage, it was useless to boast. If she had a chance to turn the tables, then she would talk.

Xue Wenying apologized, "I'm so sorry, Consort Su. I didn't know he hadn't introduced you to his mother. It's just that the old lady and Madam Qin have been discussing recently that since his marriage is temporarily postponed and he's not young anymore, they're making an exception and arranging for him to have a concubine to have children before he marries. It's not against family tradition to continue the family line. I... I was nervous and worried about making a mistake in front of his mother, so I wanted to ask you for advice."

Su Yunxi didn't answer, but her shoulders stiffened slightly before she walked away. He was about to have a child with Miss Xue.

As soon as Su Yunxi left, Shuang'er snatched the silver back, exasperated, "Miss, look at her! Doesn't she look down on you, thinking your money is also a reward from the general? She's definitely jealous and putting on this arrogant act. She probably wants this money more than she wants. What woman doesn't want to find a good husband, live a life of comfort, and have someone to rely on for the rest of her life?"

As Xue Wenying watched Su Yunxi's retreating figure, a sense of crisis rose within her. If Su Yunxi had been sycophantic and attached to Qin Huai, she wouldn't have taken her seriously. Qin Huai was used to such sycophantic women. But now, Su Yunxi was rebellious, which was quite novel. What one cannot have is what one desires to conquer.

Shuang'er continued, "Miss, you've really made a name for yourself at the Xue family today! The eldest son, the eldest daughter-in-law, the madam, and the old madam all look at you differently! The Xue family will have to rely on you from now on. Miss, you're really capable. You tested the situation with Xue Ping and found out that the general doesn't care about Consort Su at all! It just so happens that it wasn't Su Yunze who hit someone today. If it had been Su Yunze, that salt-soaked leather whip would have been used on Su Yunxi! Humph! She's lucky."

Xue Wenying walked into the mansion. She had indeed outmaneuvered Su Yunxi today, but for some reason, she felt even more uneasy. She smiled at the maid and asked, "Is that what you think?"

Seeing that her mistress, though in the limelight, didn't seem too happy, Shuang'er asked, puzzled, "Is there something troubling you, Miss? What's wrong?"

Xue Wenying pondered deeply, "I always have these wild thoughts. I remember when Qin Huai was little, Madam Qin stopped him from playing with glass beads. Because he especially liked those glass beads, he hid a set. Madam Qin asked him several times if he wanted the glass beads, but he always pretended not to like them. Madam Qin was fooled and thought he had given them up, so the glass beads he hid stayed in his study drawer all this time. His behavior today is similar to his attitude towards those glass beads."

Shuang'er paused, then said "Oh," and "I understand, Miss!"

Xue Wenying raised an eyebrow. "What do you understand?"

"The general really loves those glass beads. He probably brought them with him today! He's afraid Miss will notice his fondness for them and tell Madam Qin, and then Madam Qin will take them away, isn't that right?" Shuang'er laughed as she spoke. "The general is such a grown man, yet he still has such a quirky hobby!"

Xue Wenying was amused by the maid. "Right? You could tell he was worried I'd tell Madam Qin, and that Madam Qin would take away what he liked. But that's not entirely me overthinking it."

She paused again, then continued, "I hope I'm just overthinking things. He wouldn't be so shameless as to fawn over someone after being betrayed. A young master from a prestigious family like him would never lower his head like that, and he wouldn't allow himself to be so shameless and despicable."

Butler Wang walked towards the young lady and bowed.

Xue Wenying originally intended to nod and move on, but then she remembered something and stopped to ask Steward Wang, "Uncle Wang, tell me in detail about your visit to the military camp to see Qin Huai today."

Steward Wang bowed beside the young lady, organized his thoughts, and slowly said, "When I went to the barracks and explained my purpose, the guard outside was very respectful to the young lady and went inside to invite the general's personal page to listen to my words. After the general's personal page arrived and understood my purpose, he went to report back. Soon after, the page returned and asked which official had beaten Xue Ping. I replied that it was Young Master Yunze of the Su family. Then General Qin came in person. You must say, the young lady is special in the general's heart."

Xue Wenying's lips turned pale instantly. The fact that he hadn't come immediately after Xue Ping was beaten, but only came personally after finding out who had done it, made her wonder if the General would have come personally if it hadn't been the Su family. Perhaps Qin Huai was just asking and didn't mean anything by it; perhaps she shouldn't overthink it. She should at least get more details to determine the best course of action.

Qin Huai was already twenty-eight years old. The Xue family had fallen on hard times, the Yan family had declined, Yan Yixiao was imprisoned in the cold palace, and Yan Yixiao's eldest princess, Zhou Yuan, was now being raised by Consort Shu and had lost her support, causing her marriage to be delayed again and again. Apart from Qin Huai, no one else in the Qin family was capable of maintaining the foundation of the Qin family. Indeed, a successor was needed. Moreover, everyone in the capital knew how good Qin Huai was to her. How could the old lady and Qin's mother not know?

Once she conceives a child, she will no longer be so wary of other women. Besides, Su Yunxi is a concubine of the Crown Prince, and there is no way she will have the opportunity to bear children for Qin Huai.

However, now that the Eastern Palace has been raided, those concubines have either switched allegiances or been sold off, and their relationship with the Crown Prince seems to have become meaningless. Su Liangdi is, after all, an unstable variable. If there is an opportunity, it is best to give her a definite place to settle down, so as to ensure that Qin Huai will not have any other thoughts about her.

***

Su Yunxi carried a food box and incense-making tools as she walked down the street. After walking about halfway down the street and turning two corners, she saw Qin Huai's horse parked on the west side of the road, waiting for her.

Sure enough, she guessed right. He was secretly waiting for her, afraid that Xue Wenying would see him and make him angry. Now that he and Xue Wenying had been reunited after a long separation and had reconciled, he no longer needed her as a tool to test their feelings.

Qin Huai's horse was parked on the roadside, the reins loosely held between his fingers. His tall figure leaned against the wall of a house, one foot raised and the sole of his foot against the wall. He lazily curled up and lowered his head, his gaze fixed on the snow at his feet as he pondered something.