Reborn as the Blissful Wife in the countryside

It is indeed that the Old Madam has been in power for so long, pampered by others, that she's started to see herself as above anyone else.

Moreover, the fact that Miss Gu could discern the Old Madam's disdain from a mere invitation, and thus chose not to attend, shows her insightfulness. Without some insight, how could she have detected the problem with the invitation?

Nanny Chen is not senile yet; she knows full well who is at fault in this matter, but she is a servant of Old Madam Qi, and has done well in life thanks to Old Madam Qi. She can't afford to offend her, so she did not point out the mistake directly, but instead said, "Miss, in my opinion, let's put this matter aside for now, lest the Second Young Master finds out and becomes displeased with you."

Because the Eldest Young Master Qi rose to become a Capital Official, Old Madam Qi always talked about this most successful eldest son of hers. The Second Young Master felt uncomfortable, sensing that Old Madam Qi favored his elder brother too much and cared less for him, the second son.

But Old Madam Qi was unyielding: "For a mere few pieces of silver, he'd trade his own son for a farmer girl, and am I not supposed to speak a few words about that? If he dares to be unhappy, that would be utterly unfilial."

In Great Chu, old ladies love to press others with the principle of filial piety, a tactic that never fails. They particularly like using it, and Old Madam Qi is no exception; she uses it most skillfully.

After hearing this, Nanny Chen went on to say, "Miss, the Second Young Master respects you the most. You must not let him be disappointed."

She continued, "Why don't you endure it for one day, and when the Gu Family People come to the banquet tomorrow, then summon that girl and have a look. At that time, you can intimidate her however you like, there will surely be plenty of opportunities."

The reason Old Madam Qi was so anxious to send out the invitation was because she knew that Master Qi was going to invite the Gu Family People over for a meal tomorrow. She feared that Master Qi would bring up the marriage issue during the meal, thus, she hastily sent out the invitation to give the Gu Family People a rap on the knuckles and let them know that they should be afraid, that the Qi Mansion was not a household their farmer family could aspire to.

In this way, even if the hint of a marital alliance is made at tomorrow's banquet, the Gu Family would not dare to accept.

But who could have expected that it would be she, Madam Imperial Decree, who would ultimately be the one snubbed!

Seeing that Old Madam Qi's expression was still not good, Nanny Chen hurriedly said, "No matter what, you are still the Old Madam of the Qi Mansion, the biological grandmother of the four legitimate grandsons. Without your consent, even Eldest Young Master and Second Young Master cannot agree to the marriages."

She advised softly, "My dear miss, please rest assured, without your nod of approval, that Miss Gu can't even dream of becoming a concubine in the Qi Mansion, let alone a mere maid."

These words pleased Old Madam Qi, who grudgingly said, "Given the circumstances, that is the only choice."

The following morning.

Master Qi called for Housekeeper Lin as soon as he woke up, instructing him, "Make sure the banquet is well-arranged, double the quantity of all the dishes. The Gu Family are farmer folk, and such people enjoy having ample food; we cannot allow them to run out of dishes after just a couple of bites."

"Yes, I've noted that," Housekeeper Lin replied, then reported on the progress of the banquet arrangements: "The male guests' banquet will be held in the front courtyard's Water Pavilion Hall by the lake. The late lotuses are blooming fairly well, allowing guests to enjoy the scenery while dining."

Master Qi nodded his approval and said to Housekeeper Lin, "Inform Brother Yun and Brother He that they only have half a day of lessons today and to return after noon to get ready to meet the guests with me."

These were his two legitimate sons, whom he highly valued. Having heard that the young Qin family lad had arrived—a boy with merits in bandit suppression and who had met the Lord Magistrate—it was certain that his future prospects would be excellent. Even if the young lad from the Qin family did not end up with great prospects, having his sons meet Elder Gu and, through Brother Gu Jia'an, getting to know the Zheng Family and the Shangguan Family would also be favorable.

Master Qi stretched out his hand for the maid to help him dress and said, "How is the Li Family doing? Write down their recent affairs for me, I have a use for it."

The young lady of the Gu Family would not let the Li Family off easily. The more miserable the Li Family, the more delighted she would be.

"Yes," Housekeeper Lin responded and, after listening to a few more instructions from Master Qi, withdrew.

Having finished washing up and dressing, Master Qi went to the side hall to have breakfast with his wife, Ms. Zheng, and instructed her: "You will have to entertain Miss Gu from the Gu Family. That girl cannot tolerate slight, so you must instruct the servants not to let those careless maids offend her. Otherwise, if she gets angry, it will be our silver that we're losing."

Ms. Zheng felt somewhat uncomfortable upon hearing this: "Second Young Master, although our family has earned quite a bit of silver thanks to the Gu Family's spices, do we really need to be this... cautious?"

She wanted to say 'servile,' but feared provoking Master Qi and dared not say it.

Master Qi was drinking porridge, and upon hearing this, he put down his porcelain spoon and said to Ms. Zheng, "My dear, the benefits that the Gu Family can bring us are not limited to spices. The Gu Family's boy, who is the older brother of Miss Gu, is now in Jinling Prefecture, accompanying the legitimate heirs of the Zheng Family and Shangguan Family into the government office. He has met Ming Shaoqing. No matter what great future awaits these young men, if we manage our relationship with the Gu Family properly now, we can use it to connect with the Zheng Family and the Shangguan Family. This can benefit our descendants, and we must not take it lightly."

It was not easy to knock on the doors of a true noble family, and he did not want to miss this opportunity.

As a well-bred lady, Ms. Zheng, though not fond of her husband valuing a farmer's family, was knowledgeable about etiquette. After hearing Master Qi's explanation, she temporarily put aside her displeasure and agreed.

After hesitating for a while, she tentatively asked, "Second Young Master, should we also invite Sister Zhu to entertain Miss Gu together?"

Sister Zhu was the daughter of Aunt Tang and always favored. Master Qi often instructed Ms. Zheng to bring Sister Zhu along when attending banquets.

Master Qi thought about it and shook his head, "No need. Regardless of her circumstances, Sister Zhu is still a concubine daughter, while Miss Gu, even though she's from a farming family, is born of the official wife and is legitimate. She's also quite temperamental, so it's not appropriate to have a concubine daughter accompany her."

Sister Zhu was also known for her temper, and if she were to upset Miss Gu, his attempts at ingratiating himself could fall apart, and he might even lose the business deal.

The contract clearly stated that the Gu Family could stop selling spices to the Qi Family at any time. The thought of this turned Master Qi's otherwise handsome face into one as bitter as a melon.

Ms. Zheng was very pleased to hear this and wore a smile as she attended to Master Qi's breakfast.

After finishing breakfast, Master Qi rose to attend to his various affairs. He returned home at noon and started awaiting the arrival of the Gu Family People.

However, from noon until the end of the evening, when it had already grown dark, he still had not seen anyone from the Gu Family, and he began to feel anxious: "Did the Jiang Residence's gatekeeper act arrogantly and fail to deliver the card to the Gu Family People?"

Housekeeper Lin said, "It's impossible. I've had someone inquire at the Jiang Residence just today. The gatekeeper said that he has already delivered the card to Miss Gu."

"Then why haven't they come?" Master Qi was puzzled.

His eldest son, Qi Yun, suggested, "Father, could it be that they are unfamiliar with the city streets and have been delayed? How about we send Housekeeper Lin to pick them up? This can also show our mansion's sincerity."