Wei Changying and Shen Canghui went to visit Shen Cangfeng. In the back hall stayed only Gu Rouzhang, Duanmu Xinmiao, Deng Wanwan, and Deng Zongqi. Accompanied by Shen Chu and his wife, they chatted with each other about what happened during the journey.

The greetings didn't last for long before Duanmu Xinmiao woke up and disrupted the conversation. She appeared to be in a bad state of mind and asked directly, "Any rooms available for us?"

Mrs. Zhou replied right after her question, "Sure. Rooms were cleaned as soon as the news was received in the morning. The brick bed is now warm. The only problem is that we're afraid to make you guys feel uncomfortable due to incomplete daily utensils."

Waving her hands, Duanmu Xinmiao said, "Don't matter. Western Liang is not a place where we can have fun." That was almost what it was. However, her words embarrassed those on the spot. And then she added, "Can someone show me the way to the bedroom? I got really tired during the trip. Wanwan, you have got a wind chill. Come with me and I will get a prescription for you." She brought the medical devices and some herbs rarely seen in Western Liang with herself.

Coming a long way here, Deng Wanwan expected to see how her only brother Deng Zongqi was getting on recently. Having known everything was fine with Deng Zongqi, she was more willing to stay with her brother despite she was now coughing. So, she replied, "Thanks a lot. Now I think I'd better catch up with my brother..."

Duanmu Xinmiao said, "Okay, come back to me if you don't feel at ease." They were not familiar with each other in the capital, especially Duanmu Xinmiao. Due to her queer temper, her bosom friends were few. However, during the long journey, they stayed together for days. Duanmu Xinmiao slept along the way. But for dinner time or some tidy-ups, they had no choice but to talk to each other. So, the trip brought them closer.

Rejected by Deng Wanwan, Duanmu Xinmiao turned to Gu Rouzhang and said, "What about you?"

Gu Rouzhang behaved casually. She couldn't even believe that her two brothers got injured so she came here mainly for the story. Only Wei Changying and Gu Rouzhang were in good spirits because they could either ride a horse or have a rest in the cart along the way. Gu Rouzhang was now in rapture and said without hesitation, "This is my first visit to Western Liang. I am gonna look around."

Mrs. Zhou said in surprise, "Don't you want to go to Xian City or Wangliu Castle?" Gu Xinian and Gu Yiran were stationed at those two places.

Gu Rouzhang said with dignity, "My brothers are fighting for the country. How can I disturb them? I'd rather look around and have fun myself." It seemed that Gu Rouzhang came to Western Liang for sightseeing.

When Mrs. Zhou received the news that Wei Changying and her party were coming to Western Liang, she heard that Gu Rouzhang had sneaked into Wei Changying's team. Gu Rouzhang was the lineal daughter of the Gu Family in the capital. It was apparent that she was poorly educated and was a nasty piece of work.

What Madam Su told Mrs. Zhou was that she must send Gu Rouzhang to Gu Xinian's home immediately after reaching Western Liang. First, Wei Changying hadn't got time to look after her. Second, it was not necessary to attend to Gu Rouzhang for the Gu Family. So, she should just leave the headache problem to Gu Xinian.

Hearing what Gu Rouzhang had said, Mrs. Zhou mentioned Xian City and Wangliu Castle again on purpose. She thought Gu Rouzhang might be afraid of the embarrassment and was ready to give in. But no one expected that she gave an excuse. The excuse was...

Deng Zongqi asked Shen Youjia for leave because he was concerned about his weak sister Gu Rouzhang. Now he was embarrassed and didn't know what to say. Moments later, Deng Wanwan said with an open mouth, "The war is undergoing a mild stage."

Gu Rouzhang came to realize that she indeed offended the brothers and sisters in the Deng Family, so she said hastily, "You are right, Wanwan. Since they are not busy and they are not coming to pick me up. I think there is something else holding them up. Therefore, I'd better not disturb them for the moment."

Mrs. Zhou fell into silence. How could she just send away Miss Gu right now? That Gu Xinian and Gu Yiran were not busy working things out meant that they didn't dote on their sister more than Deng Zongqi did. The point was that Gu Rouzhang was not willing to disturb them.

Duanmu Xinmiao said with a bored voice, "Well. I'm gonna go inside. By the way, Aunt Zhou, are there any servants in the room?"

Both Zhou Yueguang, Duanmu Xinmiao's step-mother, and Mrs. Zhou were daughters of the Zhou Family in Xilin. So, Duanmu Xinmiao called Mrs. Zhou her aunt. Mrs. Zhou was a little surprised and then answered with a smile, "Absolutely..." No sooner had she finished the talking than she became to realize something was off. Looking around the hall, Mrs. Zhou found that the maidservants in red and green were standing right behind Gu Rouzhang and Deng Wanwan.

Mrs. Zhou said subconsciously, "Just a few rough fellows. Are these your maidservants?"

"I didn't take any with me." Duanmu Xinmiao said in surprise.

Mrs. Zhou fell silent again. These days, there would be more or less one or two maidservants waiting upon those distant branches in gentry families. Even Gu Rouzhang brought with her two maidservants. It was hard to imagine Duanmu Xinmiao, the lineal daughter of Jinxiu Duanmu, should go on her own.

Duanmu Xinmiao said, "It is Zhu Lan and Zhu Shi who waited upon me along the journey. They are Wei Changying's maidservants. If there is none in the room, I will go and ask Sister Wei for some."

Mrs. Zhou replied in a haste, "Not really. I thought you must have come here with some maidservants. But don't worry. I will get someone conscientious for you."

That was what the whole talk was. Duanmu Xinmiao headed to the bedroom. Deng Zongqi got the chance to talk to Deng Wanwan. While Gu Rouzhang, not feeling so tired, decided to look around in Western Liang. Mrs. Zhou said she was too busy handling things in Mingpei Hall, but she would send someone to show Miss Gu around.

What Gu Rouzhang wanted was to have fun. She didn't even care about whether Mrs. Zhou was really busy with that. And then she asked for a tour guide and left.

After the guests left, Shen Chu said to his wife, "Not only does Duanmu Xinmiao belong to the lineal daughter of gentlefolks but she's also the best student of Ji Qubing. Yaoye is now ill in bed. It was said that Duanmu Xinmiao was sent here in case of emergencies. If our servants don't meet her expectations, that would be an offence to her. I think we'd better let her go her own way. After all, the two maidservants served her all the way. She is bound to be satisfied with the service. Moreover, Wei Changying has brought with quite a few servants. Just think about it, how can we get out of embarrassment if the servants don't live up to her expectations."

Mrs. Zhou said with a lower voice, "How stupid you are! There is a ready-made candidate, am I right?"

"What's that?" Shen Chu said. Shen Chu and Mrs. Zhou had been in charge of Mingpei Hall. Due to its large scale, Mingpei Hall was home to the lineal generations living in the capital and those living in remote places. Nowadays the Shen Family was flourishing. So, lots of mechanics and cleaners were needed to keep the ancestral house clean every day.

Shen Chu was in charge of external affairs, so when it came to something like maidservants, he was not familiar. Surprised with Mrs. Zhou's words, he said, "Her haughty behaviors can definitely tell that she is not easy-going. Madam wrote to tell us not to slight her. Can you tell who will be the best maidservant?"

"Over there..." Mrs. Zhou pointed to the place where Shen Cangfeng was resting and said, "Ruanyu is no worse than Wei Changying's maidservants. Just let her wait upon Duanmu Xinmiao."

Shen Chu said with a frown, "Ruanyu was appointed to wait upon Yaoye after he got injured. Now Yaoye hasn't got a full recovery and Ruanyu will be assigned to serve Duanmu Xinmiao. So, what's the point of doing that?"

"Bonehead!" Mrs. Zhou whispered to Shen Chu, "Our niece is here right now. Before that, Yaoye came to Western Liang alone with just a footboy around. So, I decided to have a nice maidservant wait upon him. But now our niece has arrived. Wei Changying's servants are absolutely qualified for attending to Yaoye. In that case, Ruanyu can be assigned to serve Duanmu Xinmiao. In that way, misgivings can be dispelled."

Shen Chu then said, "Of course it is. Ruanyu is likely to become an eyesore of our niece. The lineal eldest son of Yaoye was born. I told you earlier that our niece was extremely doted on in her mother's home and her foothold had been well established. Also, I reminded you at an early stage that you'd better not send Ruanyu to serve him. On the contrary, you changed the name for her. On hearing the name Ruanyu, one would definitely get a hit. It's likely that our niece will think something is going on due to Ruanyu's charming look. Perhaps you and I have to be responsible for that."

Having heard Shen Chu's words, Mrs. Zhou turned sullen and said, "You are absolutely clear about the reason why Ruanyu was sent to Yaoye. Being in charge of the front yard, you were not satisfied and often wandered in the back yard to look for beautiful maidservants. You tried a lot of times to approach Ruanyu after the acquaintance. Ruanyu is even younger than our daughter, otherwise, you would have taken her as a concubine. Am I right?"

"What if I ever thought of taking her as a concubine?" Embarrassed by Mrs. Zhou, Shen Chu came right to the point, "I have never thought of spoiling the concubine while abusing my wife. If you were then considerate enough, you should have advised me to do that instead of sending her to Yaoye."

Mrs. Zhou spat on his face and said, "Be realistic. You mean you can do whatever you want including the violation of the rules of the Shen Family, right? I would rather Ruanyu go back to the place where she was from than let her be your concubine. It makes no difference to you whether Miss Duanmu receives her or not. Think it yourself. Will Ruanyu take a fancy to you?"

Outraged by Mrs. Zhou's words, Shen Chu said with a sneer, "It will be a big fortune for Ruanyu, a maidservant, to be my concubine..."

Mrs. Zhou replied, "In terms of identity, you and I belong to the Shen Family. We are also the uncle and aunt of Yaoye. But in a larger sense, it is mainly because Yaoye is generous to us. When it comes to age, Yaoye is at a young age. As for appearance, Yaoye totally outperforms what you have. Had it not been for your power, would there be any charming look cast on you in the Mingpei Hall? On the contrary, Yaoye is handsome and outstanding. Ruanyu would rather stay around him than be your concubine."