"Ah, no, no, sir. The good life we enjoy now is entirely thanks to Boss Xue and you. We are already very content. Just stick to the original price, please," Wang Youfu refused.

Seeing the Wang family's attitude, Steward Xu quickly chuckled, "Hey now, you shouldn't say that. It should be us thanking you; without you, neither I nor Boss Xue would have acquired so many rare huā varieties. Furthermore, these four pots of huā have all bloomed, so the price naturally should be different from before. It’s just that setting the price is not my decision alone, so I must trouble you to wait a few more days."

As a joke, Steward Xu genuinely wanted to foster a good relationship with Wang Qingchen. Even though the Wang family was sincerely modest, he would not act arrogantly in front of them. As soon as he finished speaking, Steward Xu promptly took eighty taels of silver from a servant accompanying him and handed it to Wang Youfu.

Wang Youfu still intended to decline, but upon a glance from Wang Qingchen, he accepted it.

"Steward Xu, have you eaten breakfast yet? If you don't mind, please stay and have a bite with us!" Wang Youfu asked with a smile.

"Oh, thank you, thank you, but I don't need breakfast. I ate before coming over," Steward Xu politely declined.

Since Steward Xu had already eaten early that morning, Wang Youfu did not insist further.

With the matter settled, Steward Xu remembered that Wang Qingchen still had to go to the town school, so he asked, "Qingchen, you're still going to the town school, right? And your elder brother also needs to go to your family's mill? I happen to be heading back to town as well; I can give you both a ride."

Steward Xu was very happy to do something that pleased Wang Qingchen.

Wang Qingchen figured it would be convenient, so he did not refuse. He replied, "Then thank you, Uncle Xu."

Steward Xu laughed heartily, "Why are you being so polite with me? Let's go then!"

Thus, Steward Xu bid farewell and took Wang Qingchen and Wang Qinghua back to town.

Over at the old house, Wang Guifang had also woken up very early. Upon rising, she helped prepare the meal for the old household. Wang Guifang had always felt uneasy about eating and living there for free. A few days prior, Tian Shi had complained to her about how busy she was now—the eldest daughter-in-law was unreliable, and the second daughter-in-law was pregnant, meaning all the housework now fell to her alone.

Wang Guifang, already feeling somewhat subdued from being dependent on others, understood Tian Shi's implication when she spoke. Thus, over the last few days, Wang Guifang had started assisting with some of the housework at the old house.

When the Old Madam saw this, her first reaction was that Tian Shi must have said something to Wang Guifang. Under Tian Shi’s loud protestations of innocence, the Old Madam personally questioned Wang Guifang. However, Wang Guifang did not implicate Tian Shi, only saying that she felt uneasy eating and living there for free, and doing some chores helped alleviate that anxiety.

The Old Madam considered Wang Guifang's precarious situation, sighed, and said nothing more.

In truth, for Wang Guifang, whether she worked or how much she worked was of little concern. The only thing she still cared deeply about was her daughter. Since Wang Guifang’s last visit to the Shen Residence, she had not seen her daughter again. Yet, during that last visit, her daughter had clearly told her she would find a way to see her again before the New Year. There had been no news since. All this worried Wang Guifang immensely.

Preoccupied with her thoughts, Wang Guifang was somewhat absentminded, and inadvertently, she burned a pancake. Just as she was frantically wondering how to deal with the scorched bread, Tian Shi happened to arrive.

"Eldest Sister-in-law, I... I didn't do it on purpose," Wang Guifang said, feeling very guilty when she saw Tian Shi approach.

Tian Shi, seeing the burnt pancake, felt her already poor mood worsen, but thankfully, she immediately recalled the consequences of starting an argument with Wang Guifang. She forcibly suppressed her anger and said stiffly, "Forget it. It’s already burnt; what can be done now!"

Wang Guifang heard that although Tian Shi wasn't overtly furious, the tone of her voice clearly betrayed her suppressed anger. This made Wang Guifang even more unsure of what to do.

Tian Shi saw that even after she had said that, Wang Guifang was still standing there foolishly, as if she were the one being bullied, which made her even more displeased.

"Just throw this burnt pancake away; no one will eat it anyway," Tian Shi sniffed.

"Oh, I'll take it away right now." Wang Guifang took the scorched pancake and went outside.

Tian Shi watched Wang Guifang's retreating back and spat, "Honestly, can't even cook a pancake properly. No wonder she was divorced and sent back."

Meanwhile, Tian Shi's concern, her daughter Liu Qian'er, was suffering the full hardship of lost favor. Because the residence lacked a main wife, there was no one to suppress these concubines. Upon learning that Liu Qian'er had fallen out of favor, many came to mock her. That wasn't the worst part; after all, back when Liu Qian'er was at home, her paternal grandparents and father treated her with the same attitude. What Liu Qian'er found hardest to bear were the servants in the residence.

After Liu Qian'er lost favor, the servants, seeing which way the wind blew, immediately changed their demeanor. Her daily allowance for food and clothing was drastically cut, leaving her with next to nothing. Within a short time, Liu Qian'er had become visibly much thinner and haggard.

What Liu Qian'er could not tolerate most was that her loss of favor was caused by her own father. It was one thing that she had never enjoyed the benefits of her own father while at her maternal home; to be burdened by him even after being sold by him was unbearable. Was she truly fated never to live a comfortable life?

After enduring countless slights, Liu Qian'er felt she could not continue like this. She refused to believe this was her destiny; she decided she must earn what she desired herself.

With a goal, there came motivation. Liu Qian'er looked at her current haggard appearance and knew it was impossible to regain the Master's affection immediately. Therefore, her first step had to be taking good care of her face.

When Liu Qian'er stopped being so despondent, her personal maid, Zhu'er, was the happiest. After all, only when the mistress prospered could they, the servants, have a chance to advance.

Not long after, with the help of her maid, Liu Qian'er was no longer so worn out. Only then did Liu Qian'er begin considering how to regain the Master’s favor.

Liu Qian'er thought deeply about why she had previously earned the Master's affection, but after racking her brain, she couldn't come up with a clear reason.

"Zhu'er, go and inquire for me who the Master favors most recently," Liu Qian'er instructed.

"Yes, Yiniang." Zhu'er quickly went to investigate.

The news Zhu'er brought back was that Master Shen currently favored a recently arrived concubine whom Liu Qian'er had never heard of, as this concubine had entered the residence after Liu Qian'er had fallen out of favor.

Concubine Liu pondered for a moment and decided to see what made this new concubine different from the others.

Zhu'er managed to find out that the newly arrived concubine enjoyed strolling in the garden during the evening. So, that evening, Liu Qian'er took Zhu'er to the garden as well.

Liu Qian'er spotted a person walking with a maid from a distance. Upon learning this was the new concubine, she quickly hid to the side with Zhu'er so she could observe. Unexpectedly, just as they hid, before she could observe properly, Concubine Zheng from the residence also arrived.

Coincidentally, the two stopped not far from where Liu Qian'er was hidden. This was even better for Liu Qian'er, allowing for a more detailed observation.

Concubine Zheng seemed to have initiated the confrontation, her words clearly aimed at belittling the new concubine, leaving the new concubine completely unable to retort. Liu Qian'er glanced between the new concubine and Concubine Zheng, feeling as if she was grasping a clue but unable to hold onto it.

Just as Liu Qian'er was thinking that the conflict between the two was escalating and perhaps she should leave first, she saw Master Shen approaching from afar.

Liu Qian'er hadn't seen Master Shen for a long time and was momentarily stunned. Fortunately, Zhu'er beside her reminded her of the current situation, so Liu Qian'er could only remain hidden.

The moment Master Shen arrived, he saw his newly favored concubine being badgered to the point of tears by Concubine Zheng, and he immediately felt very displeased with Concubine Zheng.

"What are you two quarreling about noisily?" Master Shen asked in a deep voice.

Concubine Zheng, standing with her back to Master Shen, had absolutely not expected him to be right behind her. She was startled and quickly turned around, saying stiffly, "Master, we were just joking around!" "Is that so? Nuan'er, tell me what happened?" Master Shen clearly did not believe Concubine Zheng's explanation.

Nuan'er, the new concubine’s name, timidly raised her head when Master Shen called her name, then cautiously glanced at Concubine Zheng. Noticing Concubine Zheng glaring at her, she was startled again and stammered, "Ma... Master, we... we really were just joking!"

Evidently, this answer made Master Shen even more convinced that Concubine Zheng was bullying her, seeing as she couldn't even speak clearly; he instantly felt a pang of heartache.

"Concubine Zheng is fined three months' allowance and confined for one month. Take your Yiniang back to Plum Garden for reflection!" Master Shen commanded Concubine Zheng's maid.

"Yes." Concubine Zheng's maid was about to take her away when Concubine Zheng realized what was happening and struggled fiercely.

"Master, how can you punish me like this? What wrong have I done?" Concubine Zheng was very dissatisfied.

"What? Don't you know what you did wrong? Are my words useless now? Hurry up and take your Yiniang back!" Master Shen said angrily to Concubine Zheng's maid.

"Master, you are truly biased! Why only punish me and not her?" Concubine Zheng pointed at the new concubine, unresigned.

"Take your Yiniang away." Master Shen uttered this, then went to comfort the new concubine, paying no further attention to Concubine Zheng.

The maids, afraid of trouble, quickly dragged Concubine Zheng away. (To be continued.)