o and invite Madam over to speak her piece." She bowed slightly to Old Matriarch Gu and immediately went outside to find a maid to go to Zhang Shi's side.Lady Gu was somewhat bewildered, not understan...Last night it snowed, and this morning when I woke up, everything outside was covered in a layer of white.

Meng Jinyao ate breakfast, wrapped herself tightly, and went to Shou'an Hall to pay respects to Old Madam Gu.

Even though Meng Jingyao's clothes were scented and she wore a fragrant pouch, she still had to take medicine baths while drinking her medicine. The smell of the medicine couldn't be completely removed from her body. If you approached her, you could smell a faint scent of medicine. So Zhang shi, who sat next to her, smelled it.

Zhang asked with concern, "Third younger sister, you seem to have a smell of medicine on you. Are you sick"

Hearing this, Old Madam Gu looked at her daughter-in-law, her eyes filled with concern.

Meng Jinyao naturally wouldn't reveal the truth. She evaded the question and replied lightly, "No, I just have a bit of deficiency in qi and blood, so I get cold easily. I took a medicinal bath, so my body has a smell of medicine."

Zhang's face lit up with understanding: "So that's it. No wonder I didn't think Third Sister-in-law looked like she was sick."

Meng Jinyao said softly, "Don't worry, sister-in-law. It's just a small problem, nothing serious."

Mrs. Gu also felt relieved, but she still reminded her, "Low qi and blood is not a big problem, but it should not be taken lightly. You need to take good care of your body. When someone has low qi and blood, they are prone to fatigue, low spirits, feeling cold easily, and other problems. In addition, it can also lead to premature aging and early gray hair."

Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyao was astonished: "Mother, could this lead to premature aging"

Madam Gu glanced at her several daughters-in-law. With the experience of someone who'd been there, she said with a kind smile: "There are situations like this, so women who love beauty should pay more attention to it. Take care of their complexion. Sometimes, applying all the beauty creams in the world is not as good as nourishing one's qi and blood internally. When you reach a certain age, people with good qi and blood look much younger than their peers.

"

Meng Jin Yao pursed her lips. Whether the medicine was bitter or not didn't matter, whether it smelled bad or not didn't matter, but she couldn't age prematurely. She couldn't be younger than her husband, and in the future, she couldn't end up looking older than him, right The medicine had to be taken on time.

Zhang and Chen subconsciously touched their faces. At their age, they were anxious about aging, especially appearing older than their peers. They had put a lot of effort into maintaining their youthful appearances. Among the ladies' circles, gatherings often involved comparisons: who looked younger, whose clothes and jewelry were prettier, and who wanted to appear the oldest

Seeing several daughters-in-law seeming worried about their appearance, Old Madam Gu smiled and shook her head. Her few daughters-in-law were all beautiful. The older two, though in their thirties, didn't look old at all. And Yao was even younger, only sixteen, full of youth.

For a moment, Madam Gu asked, "By the way, eldest daughter-in-law, I heard that Xiu Yuan's wife seems to be ill. How serious is it"

Zhang replied, "Mother, rest assured. Xiu Yuan's only caught a cold and the baby is fine, there's no impact."

Old Madam Gu nodded lightly and said, "Pregnant women are most afraid of getting sick and causing miscarriage. Drinking too much medicine during pregnancy is not good for the child either. Their yard should add more silver frost charcoal, but they can't get sick again."

Zhang nodded in agreement.

Madam Gu then asked her several daughters-in-law, "How are Xiu Yuan and his brothers doing lately Are they making progress in their studies"

Zhang's family was proud: "Mother, Xiu Yuan has been working harder than ever since he passed the exam. If he keeps up this diligence and spends another three years studying, I estimate that he should be able to get a good ranking in the provincial examination."

Chen said, "Xiu-hong's self-awareness is pretty good. When he has problems, he often asks his third uncle for advice in preparation for next year's examination."

Upon hearing this, Madam Gu was very pleased. Seeing that her young daughter-in-law had yet to speak, she asked again, "How is Xiu Ming"

Even though Meng Jinyao disliked Gu Xiuming, her stepson, she would always say nice things about him in public. "Mother, although Xiuming was a little disappointed after failing the exam, he quickly cheered up. Recently, he has been studying hard and often gets together with his classmates to discuss academics. He has also participated in several poetry gatherings."

Elder Madam Gu nodded with satisfaction: "Xiuming, this child, has become much more steady and sensible. I think it's time to find a proper wife for him. Having an aunt as his only companion isn't right; people will start gossiping.

Upon hearing this, Meng Jinyang's face turned pale. If elders were to find a wife for Gu Xiumin, wouldn't that be right up Gu Xiumin's alley

This is absolutely unacceptable. A man like Gu Xiuming, finding him a good girl would be a disaster for that girl! It would be like pushing her into a fire pit. It's immoral to harm innocent girls.

She immediately said, "Mother, I think this is inappropriate."

Upon hearing this, Zhang and Chen exchanged strange glances. This stepmother wouldn't be kind to Gu Xiuming anyway, but to outright refuse to find a wife for her stepson was too brazen.

When Old Madam Gu heard this, she was not displeased. She only asked the reason: "Why is it inappropriate"

Meng Jinyao replied smoothly, "Mother, Xiu Ming said he wanted to marry Li shi as his wife when she was taken in as a concubine. However, Li shi's status was too low, and she had run away with Xiu Ming before the marriage. She couldn't be his wife, only a concubine. At that time, Xiu Ming said he would take Li shi as a concubine but wouldn't marry another wife or take any other concubines afterward. He would spend his life with only Li shi."

The Zhang and Chen families were shocked. They never expected that Gu Xiuming would choose to remain unmarried for Li's sake, and would not have any other wives in the future. No wonder he dared to elope and treat Li with such affection. All his previous actions seemed like a man who had a beloved concubine he adored deeply, but it turns out he had made up his mind to never marry, which is why he could be so unrestrained and fearless of noblewomen refusing to marry him for lack of social standing.

Even so, both Zhang and Chen felt anger rising in their hearts. They didn't want to marry, but their brothers were expected to Gu Xiuming's actions also tarnished the reputation of their children. People would now suspect that their children might be as indulgent towards concubines as Gu Xiuming.

Zhang's eyebrows were tightly furrowed, she disapproved and said: "Third sister-in-law, how can you and Third brother just let him run wild With this kind of thought, you shouldn't have allowed Li shi to enter the household in the first place. Even if you had to, he should have married a legitimate wife first before considering it."

Meng Jin Yao let out a sigh, feeling rather helpless: “The child is determined to go his own way. Even as elders, we can’t persuade him. Even if we force him to marry another woman, he might harbor resentment towards his wife and that would be unfair to the other woman. In that case, it wouldn't be a marriage of kinship but one of enmity.”

Zhang was stunned. That made sense, too.

Grandmother Gu knew about this. She had originally intended to find a proper wife for her grandson, thinking that he was calm and sensible. However, after hearing what her daughter-in-law said, she could only temporarily give up on this idea.

Meng Jinyao looked at Gu Laofu and softly persuaded: "Mother, as for Xiuming's marriage, in my opinion, it's better to let him take the initiative. When he understands and proposes himself, we can then help him arrange the wedding. Otherwise, if we persuade him to marry, he might develop a rebellious attitude and become even more determined to only have Li Yiniang as his wife. After some time, when his initial fervor subsides and his brothers all have wives, he will naturally want to get married."

She dared to say this, also concluding that Gu Xiuming wouldn't bring it up proactively. If Gu Xiuming were to bring it up proactively, he wouldn't bother privately courting girls from suitable families. Alas, the girl didn't respond to him, and who knows what method he'll use afterwards.

Grandma Gu felt this made sense and sighed softly, "Then let's wait a little longer."y Jingning."Qing Qiu pondered for a moment and said, "The second young lady has ambitions and likes to socialize. It's estimated that they met at some banquet."Meng Jin Yao nonchalantly nodded her hea...