After I awakened my inner voice, I became the treasure of my family.

Chapter 92 The Unlucky Shen Xiujin

Jiang Mianmian and her mother-in-law had just returned to the Marquis's residence. As soon as they stepped inside, Li Tingxue couldn't wait to find an excuse, saying that she needed to hurry back to breastfeed her child.

Before she finished speaking, she dashed back to her own little courtyard like a gust of wind.

Watching her eldest daughter-in-law's hurried and slightly flustered departure, Jiang Mianmian felt no anger at all; on the contrary, she was quite happy.

Oh dear, she felt that her eldest daughter-in-law's eagerness to rush back to take care of her granddaughter showed that she truly cared about the child. This attention and love for the child made Jiang Mianmian feel very gratified and satisfied.

Right then and there, she made up her mind to take Li Tingxue out to play more often in the future. This would not only improve the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, but also make her daughter-in-law pay more attention to her granddaughter.

Meanwhile, Li Tingxue jogged back to her own yard. After entering the house, she quickly picked up the crying baby Le'an, gently held him in her arms, and began to feed the child.

After Xiao Le'an had eaten and drunk his fill and drifted off to sleep contentedly, Li Tingxue finally had a chance to chat with Shen Xiuyan about what had happened that day.

After listening to his wife recount the story of Zhou Liang and his wife, Shen Xiuyan was completely stunned, his face filled with disbelief.

After a long while, he finally came to his senses and couldn't help but exclaim, "Holy crap, there are truly all sorts of strange things in this world! Strange things happen every year, but this year I know of an unusually large number of them."

Especially the story of General Zhou and his wife this week, it almost made my jaw drop. This kind of melodramatic and inhuman plot is really rare.

These two oddballs are truly a perfect match, befitting their couple status. They're both each other's saviors, yet they both mistakenly rescued the wrong person. It's utterly absurd and unbelievable!

Immediately, Shen Xiuyan couldn't help but burst into laughter: "Oh my, if Mother hadn't accidentally let it slip today, they probably would have been kept in the dark until their deaths! Tsk tsk tsk..."

At this point, Shen Xiuyan couldn't help but shake his head, his lips twitching slightly, making no attempt to hide his contempt and mockery of the matter.

Li Tingxue looked at her husband with a shocked yet slightly excited expression, as if he were enjoying a juicy piece of gossip.

A look of bewilderment, like a mix of laughter and tears, involuntarily appeared on her face. Oh dear, did this person not catch the point she was making?

Li Tingxue gently shook her head, let out a long sigh, and said in an annoyed tone, "Alright, Shen Xiuyan, I'm not telling you this to make you laugh or react like this!"

Did you even listen to what I was saying? Are you only focusing on the minor details and ignoring the main point I wanted to make?

At this point, Li Tingxue paused for a moment, then continued with a sorrowful expression:

"The reason I brought this up with you is because I'm worried that my mother's reckless words might have inadvertently offended the General's Mansion. If we make enemies with them, it could cause unnecessary trouble later."

Furthermore, I was originally planning to arrange a marriage with the General's Mansion for Shen Xiujin's sake, but now what am I going to do?

She hesitated for a moment, then added, "Oh, right, there's something else I need to tell you. When we left, Mrs. Zhou actually fainted on the spot! I really don't know how she is now, whether she's woken up yet."

Moreover, I've heard that General Zhou Liang is usually quite domineering and arrogant. Now, after what Mother said... what if Zhou Liang is petty and holds a grudge? Will he retaliate against us?

As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Xiuyan frowned slightly. Indeed, as Li Tingxue said, Zhou Liang was not only a general with a large army in his hands, but also a favorite of the emperor, who valued him highly.

If one were to accidentally offend him, he would likely be quite troublesome. Thinking of this, Shen Xiuyan's expression gradually became serious.

Shen Xiuyan thought for a moment and then said slowly, "How about this? Let's send someone to inquire about the situation at the General's Mansion first, and especially to have someone pay special attention to whether the General's wife is safe and sound."

Furthermore, their general's mansion currently lacks conclusive evidence and sufficient reason to blame Madam Zhou's fainting on the mother, since no one else can hear the mother's true feelings, right?

Moreover, my mother is a first-rank imperial lady, and was appointed by the late emperor. As long as my mother does not commit any serious mistakes, even the current emperor cannot do anything to her without a good reason.

Our Marquis's mansion is by no means one to be bullied. Even if Zhou Liang attempts to make a move, the Emperor will certainly not stand idly by and allow him to act recklessly. Do not forget, our grandfather was once granted a pardon from death!

Upon hearing Shen Xiuyan's words, Li Tingxue's previously anxious heart finally settled down.

However, as her thoughts shifted, she couldn't help but think of Shen Xiujin and Zhou Jingyao, and couldn't help but sigh softly, saying with some worry:

"I wonder how Shen Xiujin will react after learning about this. Will he resent his mother-in-law and harbor resentment towards her?"

Shen Xiuyan smiled slightly, shook his head gently, and comforted him, "Hehe, you don't need to worry about this. In my judgment, the second brother would never do such a thing. You can just relax."

…………

Night fell quietly, and all was silent except for the moonlight streaming through the window, bringing a faint glow to the room.

The brothers Shen Xiujin and Shen Xiuyan were sitting upright in the study, with a candle on the desk in front of them, the flickering flame illuminating their handsome faces.

"Second brother, you should have heard about what happened today. I had someone inquire, and Madam Zhou is fine now. Moreover, Zhou Liang seems to be making no moves. In short, the General's Mansion is very quiet, as if nothing has happened."

However, after Madam Zhou woke up, it's unclear what she said to Zhou Liang, but it's said that Zhou Liang would stand guard at Madam Zhou's door like a doorman whenever he had nothing to do.

Shen Xiujin was taken aback by his elder brother's words, then nodded to indicate that he understood the situation. Recalling Zhou Jingyao's complicated background, he couldn't help but sigh softly.

He couldn't help but feel a little worried, and frowned as he said, "Sigh! This is really a bit of a headache. I finally found a suitable female supporting character, and I thought it would be able to smoothly advance and change the direction of my plot."

"This is bad. What if Zhou Liang interferes and makes it impossible for me to change the current plot? Will I be completely hopeless and end up with the female lead?"

Shen Xiujin rubbed his temples and continued, "Brother, do you think I should go back to Mother and try to get some more information out of her, to see if there are any other people who can help me?"

Shen Xiuyan: "..."

"If you want to go, then go ahead! I reckon the reason Mother mentioned Zhou Jingyao is simply because her cannon fodder female supporting character storyline is just too powerful."

After all, the role of the first cannon fodder female supporting character is no joke; her screen time and influence are estimated to be quite substantial.

However, I'm afraid those insignificant supporting characters simply can't withstand the overwhelming power of our female lead, Su Qianqian.

"If any of them were to cause any trouble, wouldn't you be in real trouble?"

Ha ha!

Hearing this, Shen Xiujin couldn't help but wonder: What exactly did his older brother mean? Was he subtly implying that he shouldn't be immoral? Hmph, how annoying!

However, he was truly helpless about it, filled with resignation and speechlessness. He thought to himself, "There are countless princes and nobles in the capital, so why was I chosen as the male lead?"

If God could hear his inner complaints at this moment, He would probably reply with disdain:

"It's not that your family background isn't good enough, but you can make up for it with your looks. Who told your own daughter to be obsessed with looks? Otherwise, do you think you can rely on your family background?"

"Hmph! If it weren't for your decent looks, our daughter would never even look at you! So, be content, kid!"

…………

The next day at noon, the bright, warm sun hung high in the sky, casting a golden glow.

Jiang Mianmian lay comfortably on an exquisite recliner, holding a wonderfully captivating storybook in her hands, reading it with great interest and ease.

Just then, Shen Xiujin strode into Songhe Courtyard with a gloomy face.

However, when he saw Jiang Mianmian's leisurely appearance—she was chewing on crystal-clear grapes, occasionally letting out a soft chuckle—he was surprised.

His mother's eyes never left the sketchbook in her hands—and looking at himself, Shen Xiujin couldn't help but sigh even more at how miserable his life was!

Jiang Mianmian sensed someone approaching and looked up to see Shen Xiujin's face, which looked as if his father had died. Oh dear, thinking about it, it seems he really did lose his father!

So, she asked with a puzzled look, "What happened? Who made you so angry?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Xiujin was immediately enraged and complained indignantly, "Who else could it be? It's that damned Su Qianqian! I've been too scared to step out the door these past two days because of her."

I was thinking of going out for some fresh air today, but unfortunately, I ran into that jinx not long after I stepped out.

Do you know what? She actually stared at me with that same mournful look as a heartless man, as if I had done something utterly unforgivable to her.