After being forced into a marriage with a wealthy family, the virtuous wife caused a huge uproar.

"I only have suspicions, not concrete evidence." This was the first time An Yi had followed the young mistress today, and he felt that her conversation with the fourth prince was very strange.

The young mistress and the fourth prince were clearly very familiar with each other, and the young mistress even claimed to be her sworn brother.

How did a young lady from a respectable family manage to have such a good relationship with the Fourth Prince? She even saved the life of the Prince of Liao's heir.

Should he tell the Emperor about these things?

"Since there's no concrete evidence, there's no need to overthink it. We'll discuss it again when we have concrete evidence. For now, the young mistress and I are of one mind," Gu Ce said.

As long as she doesn't do anything to betray or harm him, they will remain allies.

Back at Silver Willow Courtyard, Gu Ce saw Rong Yingluo having Yinghong set out the meal.

"Husband, you're back just in time. Dinner is ready," Rong Yingluo greeted him.

The couple had been married for a month and had already developed a tacit understanding.

"Hmm." Gu Ce took off his cloak and naturally handed it to Rong Yingluo.

The two sat down at the table.

It was quite unusual for Gu Ce to pick up a spoon and ladle a bowl of three-delicacy soup for Rong Yingluo.

This was the first time Gu Ce had taken the initiative to feed Rong Yingluobu after so many meals together.

But Rong Yingluo didn't seem to care much.

"Did you leave the manor today?" Gu Ce asked casually.

"Yes, but we didn't go through the main entrance." Rong Yingluo was very honest. She was always true to herself in front of him.

"Oh? Why?" Gu Ce was very satisfied with her answer.

"Ugh, I have to inform my mother-in-law every time I go out and get her permission before I can leave the mansion. It's such a hassle," Rong Yingluo pouted.

"Then you can get the stewardship sooner, and you can leave the mansion at will." Gu Ce ladled himself another bowl of soup.

"Soon. Grandmother will be able to leave Shousong Courtyard soon." Rong Yingluo recounted how she had taken her second younger sister to visit her grandmother that day.

"Are you just asking your grandmother to fight for the management rights on your behalf?" Gu Ce felt that the chances of getting the management rights that way were slim.

"Of course not. My grandmother hasn't been involved in the household affairs for over a decade, and my mother-in-law has managed the Gu family business for so many years; she won't give up easily. I still have a backup plan." Rong Yingluo thought that soon Su Shi would be bald, which would be the perfect time to control her.

"What backup plan?" Gu Ce's curiosity was piqued.

"You'll find out then," Rong Yingluo said with a mischievous smile, keeping everyone in suspense.

Gu Ce smiled helplessly. She really was a young girl, very playful.

"What did you do outside the manor today?" Gu Ce wanted to probe further.

"He went to the Fourth Prince's residence. I suggested that he find some wounded and retired soldiers to form a caravan for the Rong family." Rong Yingluo thought this was a good thing, and there was no harm in telling him directly.

"Did your ex-fiancé stop waiting for you?" Gu Ce paused and asked.

"What do you mean by that?" Rong Yingluo scooped up some soup and put it back into the bowl, looking at Gu Ce with a puzzled expression.

"Are you getting so close to the Fourth Prince because you plan to marry him after leaving the Gu family?" Gu Ce asked with a hint of coldness in his eyes.

"That's not true," Rong Yingluo immediately denied.

"That's good. Even if his legs are crippled, the Emperor won't let you marry him after you leave the Gu family," Gu Ce said firmly.

"Are you trying to say that I am of lowly status and not worthy of the Fourth Prince?" Rong Yingluo threw down her spoon, clearly displeased.

"That's not what I meant." Gu Ce felt like he had shot himself in the foot. His original intention was to keep his wife at a distance from the Fourth Prince so that people wouldn't gossip.

She has no sense of propriety as a lady from a respectable family, and completely disregards the proper separation between men and women.

One fourth prince wasn't enough, and now there's another one, Li Xuanye.

That day at the teahouse, he clearly sensed that Li Xuanye treated his wife differently.

She also has a former fiancé waiting for her.

If this continues, his wife will attract countless men to her side.

He has regretted signing that agreement more than once.

Now he doesn't know where to begin to change their relationship.

These days, the two have spent a lot of time together and developed a habitual way of getting along. However, the wife doesn't give him any chance to take things further and is very wary of him.

She knows medicine, poison, and some martial arts. If he dares to force anything, she will fight back with all her might, and their relationship will definitely be very strained. It's better to be like this now.

"Don't worry, during my time at the Gu residence, I will do everything a wife should do and won't bring you shame. At most, if anyone bullies me, I'll retaliate and make you clean up the mess. As my husband in name, this is what you should do." Rong Yingluo picked up her spoon and continued drinking her soup.

When it was time to go to bed, the two lay down on the bed as usual, turned off the light, and went to sleep.

Tonight, Gu Ce pretended to be asleep until he heard the even breathing of the person next to him, then he opened his eyes.

After sharing a bed for a month, he discovered that his wife slept very quietly, and the biggest movement she made was turning over.

How did she manage to be so self-disciplined?

He hoped that his wife's sleeping posture would be unseemly, breaking the distance between them and drawing her closer to him.

As the weather gets colder, one would expect the lady to move to a warmer place, but she didn't.

He once overheard his colleagues chatting privately, saying that their women would snuggle into their men's arms and wrap themselves up tightly when it got cold at night, disturbing their sleep.

But Rong Shi never crossed the line.

The two of them each had a blanket, and were two feet apart.

Gu Ce opened his eyes and looked at Rong Yingluo's sleeping face.

A dim yellow nightlight was still lit in the corner, burning out as soon as it was extinguished; it was a small nightlight specially lit before bedtime.

Gu Ce shifted his body, getting closer to Rong Yingluo.

Rong Yingluo did not react.

He moved closer until they were almost touching, but he didn't dare go any further. Despite being separated by two blankets, he felt safer than ever before.

He dared not make any further moves; being able to sleep next to her tonight was already a transgression of his boundaries.

He soon fell asleep, a faint smile on his face, his usual coldness gone.

The next day.

September 11th was the day she had arranged to meet Li Xuanye at Mingyue Tower. Even though she had already treated him, he threatened to wait until dark.

Knowing that he wasn't feeling well, she felt a little guilty about making him wait in vain.

After thinking it over and over, Rong Yingluo decided to go anyway.

She had never eaten at Mingyuelou before.

The restaurant is packed with customers every day, just how delicious is it?

With the token in her hand, she could go eat whenever she wanted.

Rong Yingluo arrived at the main courtyard to pay her respects, while Su Jingyi was busy with household chores.

What's rare is that Gu Qingya is also there.

Su Jingyi was teaching her how to assign tasks to the household managers.

"Greetings to Mother." Rong Yingluo acted as a dutiful daughter-in-law, her bow becoming increasingly perfect, leaving no room for criticism.

"Liuli is here? I've been thinking, so I'd like to ask your father to buy some flowers for our Duke's mansion. He has many connections and will surely be able to get better flowers. I'll give you three hundred taels of silver, is that enough?" Su Jingyi said gently, as if the little quarrel between the two of them yesterday had never happened.

Rong Yingluo was stunned. Had she compromised so quickly?

She truly is the best stepmother in the capital.

Suddenly, Rong Yingluo had an idea: perhaps she could exchange it for her freedom.

"Mother, actually, this amount of money is nothing to our Rong family."

"If Mother grants me even a small request, I can ask my father to buy flowers worth a thousand taels of silver and send them over without any problem." Rong Yingluo smiled sweetly.