By a twist of fate, the illegitimate son of the Marquis's family marries the county princess.

Chapter 344 Wen Zongqi's Open-mindedness

Marquis Zhongyong's Mansion

When Wen Zongji's family arrived, they learned that Aunt Chen had gone to the Jiao residence.

Madam Jiang said, "After Shuyu got married, your aunt stayed alone in Yucui Pavilion, which inevitably made her lonely. Yansong came to visit in person and said that he was busy with official duties and was often not at home. Tongjie and Shengge are still young, and Shuyu cannot take care of them by herself. So he wanted to trouble your aunt to help take care of them. He was very filial, so I agreed."

Therefore, Aunt Chen would go to the Jiao residence every few days.

Wen Zongji's expression shifted slightly, and he cupped his hands in greeting: "Mother is kind."

The Jiao family has no shortage of maids and servants; the claim that Wen Shuyu can't manage on her own is just an excuse.

Ms. Jiang knew it was just an excuse, but she still agreed.

While Wen Chuanhong was still alive, Aunt Chen could not stay overnight outside, even if it was her daughter and son-in-law's house. However, she could help take care of the children during the day.

As the mistress of the Marquis's mansion, Madam Jiang was willing to provide convenience, and Wen Zongji naturally had to accept her kindness.

Madam Jiang said gently, "Your aunt has been by my side since she was a child, and our bond has always been strong. I'm relieved that she's happy."

Aunt Chen was once Jiang's maid, a status that set her apart from the other concubines in the mansion. In addition, Aunt Chen was always well-behaved and never overstepped her bounds, so Jiang was willing to give her face.

Wen Zongji nodded, said nothing more, but kept it in mind.

To be honest, in general, this kind of thing should be done by the son, since he has always been responsible for supporting his parents. But Wen Zongji's situation is special.

Aunt Chen always held Pei Rujing in awe, and Pei Rujing didn't know how to get along with Aunt Chen. The two of them were always awkward together. If Aunt Chen went to the county princess's mansion, she would probably be more comfortable at the Jade Pavilion.

Wen Zongji had approached Aunt Chen before, advising her that if she was bored at the Marquis's residence, she could visit the two children at the County Princess's residence.

Aunt Chen always agreed, but in all these years she has never been to the county princess's mansion even once.

Wen Zongji knew that such things couldn't be forced, so he could only send the two children to the Marquis's residence from time to time to prevent the children from becoming distant from their maternal grandmother.

Now that Jiao Yansong is willing to take Aunt Chen to the Jiao residence, this is the best possible outcome.

Since Aunt Chen was not there, Wen Zongji's family did not go to Yucui Pavilion. Instead, they stayed in the main courtyard to talk with Madam Jiang. Upon learning that Wen Zongji's family had arrived, Madam Zhong and several of her sisters-in-law also came to the main courtyard.

Ange'er was very excited to see Ruige'er and pulled him to play in the yard.

There are actually quite a few third-generation members in the Marquis's family today; both Wen Zongren and Wen Zongjing have several children.

However, Wen Zongren's eldest son, Wen Ge'er, was already grown up and focused on his studies, so it was impossible for him to play with An Ge'er.

The youngest son was just born and is still breastfeeding, so it's impossible for him to play with Ange'er.

The others were illegitimate sons, and because they were separated by a generation, they couldn't play together.

As for Wen Zongjing's side, An'ge'er also has several half-brothers and half-sisters, but because Wen Zongjing's household is not very well-behaved, various small accidents have often occurred in recent years. Although nothing serious has happened, Liu Shi is not at ease letting An'ge'er play with his half-brothers.

This resulted in Ange being very bored except when he was studying, otherwise he wouldn't have been so excited to see Ruige.

Seeing that Ruige'er had been pulled away by Ange'er, Yuejie'er took the initiative to come and keep Lingjie'er company.

Yue'er has been following Jiang Shi all these years, and her status in the Marquis's mansion is different from that of other concubine's daughters.

I started learning etiquette last year, and now I'm seeing initial results. Every move I make is now disciplined.

Pei Rujing trusted Jiang's teachings and felt at ease entrusting Ling'er to Yue'er.

Finally, Wen Zongqi's wife, Chen Xiu Nian, arrived, holding her two-year-old son, Zhou Ge'er, by the hand.

Zhou Ge'er could walk more steadily, but Chen Xiu Nian couldn't bear to let him go out and play, so she kept him by her side and watched him.

Seeing Yue'er playing with Ling'er, Zhou'er tugged at Chen Xiu'nian, looking at her expectantly: "Mother~"

Chen Xiu Nian chuckled and squeezed his hand: "Aren't you afraid your older and younger sisters will dislike you?"

Boys generally don't like playing with girls, but Zhou Ge'er couldn't resist wanting to play with his peers.

Chen Xiu Nian released her hand: "Go."

Zhou Ge'er immediately ran over with his short legs: "Big sister, fourth sister."

He remembered this beautiful cousin because whenever Lingjie came, he would have a playmate, even though Lingjie was still young and didn't talk much.

Chen Xiu Nian walked over and greeted them one by one.

Jiang looked at her and said, "Zhou-ge'er is two years old now. Don't be too restrictive with him. Boys should be more lively."

Chen Xiu Nian was also helpless: "Mother, I also want to let go. A few days ago, my husband took Zhou Ge'er out of the manor to play. When he came back, Zhou Ge'er had a bump on his forehead. My husband said he accidentally bumped it. The spot was not far from his eye. I was so scared that I felt cold all over. How could I dare to let go?"

If even her own father treated her like this, Chen Xiu Nian was even more worried about her servants.

If Wen Zongji knew Chen Xiu's thoughts, he would definitely say that servants are much more reliable than one's own father.

The servants dared not shirk their duties, but the father only cared whether he was still alive.

Upon hearing this, Madam Jiang was also startled: "When did this happen? How come I didn't know about it?"

"How could I dare tell you, my husband?"

Jiang's lips twitched.

After several years of marriage, the only change Wen Zongqi made was that he stopped going to brothels, because if he dared to go, Chen Xiu Nian would dare to embarrass him in public.

However, Chen Xiu Nian didn't manage him too strictly. There were still several concubines in the courtyard, but Wen Zongqi was not allowed to stay overnight outside.

At first, Wen Zongqi felt that being constantly controlled by his wife was too embarrassing. If his friends found out, wouldn't they laugh at him?

But Wen Zongqi later came to a realization.

Anyway, he's always been controlled by others since he was a child. Before marriage, he was controlled by his mother and older brother, and after marriage, he was controlled by his wife. Actually, there wasn't much difference, since all his friends knew he couldn't make his own decisions.

Therefore, apart from obeying his wife's orders, Wen Zongqi continued as before.

Gradually, he discovered the benefits of getting married.

Previously, he needed to please two people—the Jiang family and Wen Zongren. Sometimes, if he displeased Wen Zongren, even the Jiang family couldn't save him.

But now that Jiang and Wen Zongren felt that he was married and had brought a good marriage to the Marquis's family, they no longer cared about him much.

All he needs to do now is please Chen Xiu Nian.

Chen Xiu Nian wouldn't force him to study, nor would she criticize him for this or that. On the contrary, Wen Zongqi became even happier.

Jiang was too exhausted to say anything to Wen Zongqi, and said, "Send someone to find him and tell him to come back for dinner tonight."

Chen Xiu said, "My daughter-in-law has already sent someone."

Chen Xiu Nian's requirement for Wen Zong Qi was that he must report where he was going, in case he couldn't find him if something happened.

Therefore, it was easy for Chen Xiu Nian to find Wen Zong Qi.

Seeing how well Chen Xiu Nian handled things and how meticulously she arranged everything, Madam Jiang felt both satisfied and increasingly guilty.

What right does that wicked son of hers have to deserve this?!