Jiang Wanru knew that Mugen Niangqin was not a person who spoke randomly, and she called Mugen over to discuss this sudden marriage proposal. So, this marriage proposal must be true. She sat alone in the courtyard for a long time, waiting for a word from her stepmothers side. On the second day, after lunch, she remembered what had happened at the bookstore the previous day. She thought of Jiang Wenqis surprised and heartbroken gaze at that moment, and softly let out a sigh, not wanting to lose the only person in the Jiang family who treated her with kindness, aside from Yu Niangqin.

  Jiang Wanru slowly walked out of the courtyard gate, carefully scanning the area outside as usual. Seeing no one around, she quickly turned to a corner. When she arrived at the corner, Jiang Wengui had not yet come. She squatted down and used a twig to write on the ground, writing each character with care until she heard Jiang Wenguis footsteps. Then she stood up and turned her head. Jiang Wengui walked over, looking down at the characters on the ground, examining them for a long time before softly saying: "So it was Third Sisters handwriting, written so beautifully."

  Jiang Wanru heard this and couldnt help but sigh inwardly, knowing that Jiang Wenqis little heart still minded the fact that she hadnt been honest with him. However, she couldnt explain her unavoidable circumstances to a child, and could only hurt his sincerity towards her. After thinking about it, Jiang Wanru felt that if she did it again, she would still handle it the same way. With a calm and peaceful heart, she looked at Jiang Wenqi and said: "I have nothing else to do all day, every day, I usually come here to write."

  Jiang Wenqi looked at her with some indignation and said, "But every time I come here, I never see any words on the ground." Jiang Wanyu listened to this and couldnt help but smile bitterly. After she learned to recognize and write characters, only Mugen knew about it at first. Later, when it was impossible to keep it a secret anymore, she let Mugens parents know. When Mugens parents heard that Jiang Wanyu was writing on the ground with twigs every day, they gritted their teeth and spent some silver to buy two brushes through their steward who often handled outside affairs. One brush was given to their son, and one was secretly given to Jiang Wanyu.

  Jiang Wanmu looked at Jiang Wengui, who had a sulky expression on his face, and saw that he didnt have his usual arrogant look. He was like an innocent younger brother, following his own sister around and causing trouble. Jiang Wanmus heart softened, and she opened her mouth to say: "Wengui, Ive never attended a day of clan school, and my birth mother hasnt come to see me since I was four years old due to various reasons. Only you taught me how to recognize characters and write. If I were to leave any written marks here, what if someone stumbled upon this place and saw them? What if they found out it was me who wrote them? Would I still be able to live on? And wouldnt that also implicate you?"

  Jiang Wenqi stared at Jiang Wanyu, listening to her words, and looked at her with a stunned expression. "Third sister, you think too badly of Auntie. Auntie is a rare good person. Every time she smiles at me, its very kind, more sincere than my own mother towards me. She also cares about my paper, ink, brush, and inkstone, whether I have enough or not? How could she let you live in poverty?" Jiang Wanyu didnt say much after hearing his words, but simply stretched out her foot and lightly erased the characters she had written.

  Jiang Wanru passed by the back door and accidentally overheard the conversation of the people below, everyone thought that their own mother was a rare kind-hearted stepmother. Even Mugens mother also believed that in those years, Yu Niang was too excessive, giving up a good marriage and coming to covet someone elses wife and husband. In the end, she got nothing and harmed her own daughter. How could Jiang Wanru explain to this child in front of her that stepmothers would treat everyone in the world with equality? Only Yu Xi and herself were the thorns in her heart.

  Jiang Wanru quietly left the corner, leaving Jiang Wengui standing there in a daze. Jiang Wanru waited for several days, but no one from her mothers side came to visit, and she didnt hear Mugen mention the matter again. She gradually forgot about what Mugen had said. After the incident at Hong Shu Xie, she treated him as usual, but Jiang Wengui couldnt treat her the same way as before. He carefully observed her from time to time.

  Jiang Wanrus carefree and casual attitude towards Jiang Wenqi gradually allowed him to open up his heart. He returned to his former self, often mentioning many things about himself to Jiang Wanru. However, unlike before, when facing Jiang Wanru, he no longer repeatedly mentioned his highly respected older brother Jiang Wenyu and older sister Jiang Wanyi, but instead would unintentionally mention the two of them while observing Jiang Wanrus expression.

  Jiang Wanru knew that some things had happened, and they couldnt be treated as if they hadnt. Jiang Wenqi may have grown up in that instant, and he was somewhat concerned about himself. Except for his biological mother and sister, the others in the Jiang family were naturally closer to him than to Jiang Wanru. Jiang Wenqis feelings towards the Jiang family members were naturally deeper than his own feelings towards them.

  The days still passed slowly, Jiang Wans unnoticed life began to be disrupted by someone. The housekeeper beside Old Lady Jiang personally came to the courtyard to take a look at Jiang Wan. When she arrived, Jiang Wan was holding a broom and carefully sweeping the courtyard. A light knock on the door sounded, and she thought it was just the wind blowing against the door, so she didnt pay attention to listen.

  Until the courtyard gate opened, a woman in green stood outside the door, looking at her loudly and saying: "Hey, call your miss? The old lady has something to tell me to tell her straightforwardly." Jiang Wanru held the broom and stood still, expressionlessly raising her head to say: "This mom, who has something to say to me?" The woman looked at her in surprise and said: "You are Miss Wanru?"

  Jiang Wanruo hadnt set foot in Jiang Old Madams courtyard since the accident when she was three years old. She was a stranger to the people around Jiang Old Madam. The woman looked at Jiang Wanruo carefully, seeing that she had grown taller, but her expression still seemed dull and stupid. The woman stared at her, feeling somewhat uneasy, saying: "Third Miss, call someone else from your courtyard to come out and listen to Old Madams instructions together."

  Jiang Wanru felt strange in her heart, but she had to pretend to be calm on the surface. She said dazedly: "There is no one else in this courtyard, only me." The woman couldnt hide the surprise in her eyes, but she spoke calmly: "Oh. Then Ill tell you what Old Lady told me to say. She asked me to come over and instruct Third Miss to remind you of the kindness Jiang family has shown you in raising you, and the love and care your elders have given you."

  The woman finished speaking, looked down at Jiang Wans still expressionless face, and had no other reaction to her words. She thought to herself that this silly Third Miss was quite lucky. The woman saw that Jiang Wan only kept her head bowed and didnt even bother to react, so she repeated what she said again, adding emphasis: "Third Miss, if someone asks you, you must remember to speak like this to others."

  After the woman left, Jiang Wanru slowly swept the yard clean. She thought carefully and felt that Old Lady Jiang treated her like a fly that had flown into the Jiang family, wanting to swat her but unable to do so, and keeping her around was only a nuisance, so it was better to keep her at arms length and out of sight. If there wasnt something important, she definitely wouldnt have gone to the trouble of sending someone to pass on this message, and it was probably her birth mother Yu Niangniang who had done something big for her.

  It wasnt until a few days later when several maidservants accompanying Lian familys Fourth Young Master to her courtyard that she realized her own birth mother, Yu XiXi, although being a white lotus-like person, still used all her heart and energy to arrange for the future of this daughter.