She refused to marry.

That evening, Su Wanwan sat in the courtyard, applying ointment to Su Jinning.

"How did you manage to chase someone's carriage into a ditch?"

Su Jinning grimaced, "So we chased and chased, but who knew his driver was so weak, and he himself was even weaker."

Outsiders say the men of the Pei family are all good, but to me, they're just so-so...

He fell into the ditch himself, and when I went to help him, he got angry and dragged me into the ditch too! He did it on purpose! Tomorrow, I'll definitely get my revenge! I'll push him into the stinking ditch!

Su Wanwan smiled as she applied the medicine, "Okay, but be gentle, after all, he's the Pei family's most beloved grandson."

"That won't do, he deliberately dragged me down." Su Jinning became angrier the more she thought about it.

"Since you were injured, why didn't you come back sooner? It's already past 5 PM." Su Wanwan blew on it.

"Of course I need to find out when he leaves and where he's on duty, otherwise how can I catch him!" Su Jinning gritted her teeth.

"Have you figured it out yet?" Su Wanwan laughed so hard she almost choked.

"I've figured it out. He works at the Imperial Library, leaving home at dawn and returning at dusk. Tomorrow is his death day!" Su Jinning tugged at his whip.

"Go easy on him. He's a civil official; he can't withstand your whipping." Su Wanwan finished applying the medicine and lowered her rolled-up trousers. "We can settle the score in a couple of days. This wound can't get wet."

"Sister Wan, you're wrong. We need to let him see the wound so we can settle the score!!!"

Su Jinning stood up with a smile. "Sister Wan, why hasn't Su Xian replied yet? Does he have a lover outside and refuse to come back?"

Su Wanwan put away the ointment, lowered her eyes for a moment, and said, "He went to join the army."

"What? Join the army?" Su Jinning's eyes widened, and she almost dropped the whip in her hand.

"Shh, don't tell Third Aunt, she'll worry." Su Wanwan pulled her to her side. "Su Xian's career prospects are hopeless, joining the army might be a good way out."

Su Jinning frowned, puzzled, and asked, "That slippery guy, could he really join the army?"

"Mm." Su Wanwan nodded.

Su Jinning sat down and drank three cups of tea before snapping out of her reverie over the message. She finally asked, "Sister Wan, when he comes back, will I be able to beat him?"

"Perhaps," Su Wanwan said, puzzled.

"Snap!" Su Jinning stood up and cracked the whip. "Then I'd better practice harder!"

For the next ten days or so, Su Jinning trained diligently.

Aside from keeping an eye on Jiang Sheng, Su Wanwan spends the rest of her time reorganizing the family business.

She took a closer look and realized that the family's storeroom had become so small that it was practically skin and bones.

Two months ago, the Crown Prince took his father and third uncle away. Almost all the family's silver was used to bribe the yamen runners and build relationships, leaving very little.

The business that expanded last year is already shrinking.

Qiu Shi brought out all the account books for the past three months, and there were many cases of debtors who were in arrears or had gone bankrupt and had not repaid their loans.

Those who can still pay are having poor business, and their goods are piling up in their shops.

"Your Majesty was right, business is indeed tough this year." Su Wanwan tossed the account book aside.

I bent down and wrote a new plan.

This time, it's not a matter of receiving the goods first and then paying.

Instead, they offer free jewelry with top-ups, and there's no one in the world who doesn't like getting a bargain.

"Qiushi, go out and find a batch of gold dust. Make it into jewelry to reduce costs." Su Wanwan put down her pen.

"Miss, this is placer gold. If the authorities find out, you'll be in trouble," Qiu Shi said, standing at the door.

"I didn't say it was pure gold. Everyone's holding onto their money tight these days. They care about their image when they go out, but they're also reluctant to spend money. Each one is unique, and no one can resist it." Su Wanwan handed the contract to Qiu Shi.

Although Qiu Shi was unwilling, he admired the young lady's intelligence from the bottom of his heart.

No sooner had Qiu Shi left than Zhao Shi appeared at the door.

"Third Aunt? Is something the matter?" Su Wanwan stood up.

"Wanwan, what do you mean by this?! You're taking charge now, leaving no way for people to live!" Zhao walked straight in.

"What do you mean, Third Aunt?" Su Wanwan stood up.

"I only need to withdraw fifty taels of silver, why won't you give it to me?" Zhao said aggressively as she sat down, fanning herself.

"Third Aunt, look, we already gave fifty taels twenty days ago, and now we need another fifty taels. Isn't that a bit too much? The household is in dire straits, and we're almost running out of money." Su Wanwan pointed to the account book.

"You approve all the expenses, big and small, in this mansion, but you specifically cut off my third branch's expenses. It's obvious you're trying to make things difficult for me!" Zhao raised her voice.

This caused the servants sweeping outside to stop what they were doing and prick up their ears to listen.

"Third Aunt, that's not what I meant. We're short on money right now, and if we keep spending lavishly, we might not make it to the end of the year."

"But we can't just look after your second wife. Jinse lives under someone else's roof. If you don't take care of her, won't you be at their mercy?" Zhao stopped fanning herself.

"Third Aunt is right. Even if Third Aunt doesn't bring it up, I'd like to find some time to talk to Third Aunt about whether we can bring Jinse back to live with us," Su Wanwan tentatively suggested.

"Bring him back?" Zhao scoffed coldly. "If it weren't for Jin Ning, I wouldn't have wanted to stay here either."

Your second wife has made a huge mess. Not only did she not get a promotion, but she also dragged her whole family down with her.

"I'm so unlucky. I thought coming to the capital would be a blessing, but it turns out I'm not as fortunate as I was in Suzhou..." Zhao muttered to herself.

Su Wanwan lowered her head and thought for a moment, "Third Aunt, how about this? I have some other items here. You can take them and pawn them. You can decide how much money you want to get. What do you think?"

Lu Huai'an gave her many nice things, but now things have changed and she feels sad looking at them. She might as well pawn them.

Madam Zhao shook her fan, weighing the options in her mind.

"Chunhua, go and take that jade ruyi to the Third Madam's room," Su Wanwan said, turning to Chunhua.

"Alright then, that's all we can do for now." Zhao thought of the jade ruyi; it was quite valuable.

After saying that, he got up and left Jinxiu Hall.

Chunhua reluctantly went to the back cabinet and took out the jade ruyi.

Although she didn't know much about jade, even a blind person could tell that this fine jade ruyi was of exceptional quality.

Su Wanwan lowered her eyes, her fingertips resting on the jade ruyi. Her fingertips felt cool, and so did her heart.

"Things have changed, and everything is over. Don't mention the Crown Prince again." Su Wanwan closed the box. "Take it."

"Yes." Chunhua reluctantly delivered the items to Jinrong Courtyard.

Su Wanwan thought of the Crown Prince, and then of her father still being in his hands. She was feeling annoyed when suddenly a falcon landed in front of the window, with bamboo tubes tied to its feet.

Su Wanwan opened the bamboo tube and took out two letters, one of which was from Su Xian.

The other letter was written by Fengchen Jun.

The first line stirred something within her.