The Female Lead Decides to Act Wickedly

Chapter 698 - 283 My Mother-in-law is a Loyal Servant (Part 27)_3

Indeed, Marquis Pingnan was very pleased with Feng Yanting’s demeanor.

"I know that Mr. and Mrs. Feng have been extremely kind to you over the years, especially Lady Feng, who has been genuinely sincere towards you!"

"Your reluctance to part with her is within reason. In the future, you can still maintain contact with the Feng Family, and as for Lady Feng—"

Marquis Pingnan certainly hadn’t forgotten about Gu Xiuniang’s audacious remarks at the doorstep of Magistrate Mansion that morning.

Nor had he forgotten that this woman seemed intent on being petty with Mrs. Zhang.

Hmph, a woman from a minor household, merely lending a hand to the Marquis Mansion, now truly fancies herself as a benefactor of the mansion, presuming to disregard her status and behave recklessly?

Setting others aside, Marquis Pingnan couldn’t believe Gu Xiuniang was completely devoid of feelings towards the child she raised herself.

Then there was Feng Zhongliang, no matter how bold Gu Xiuniang was, she was just a woman of the inner quarters.

If Feng Zhongliang was close to the Marquis Mansion and disagreed with Gu Xiuniang’s rash actions, then Gu Xiuniang would—

Marquis Pingnan was about to tell Feng Yanting that he could continue to be close to Gu Xiuniang.

But then, he heard Feng Yanting say somewhat gloomily, "My Mom, she, she has divorced Daddy!"

Marquis Pingnan was taken aback.

Then, he scoffed in his heart: Ridiculous, thinking that after the divorce, no longer being a Feng family woman, she could escape the control of the Marquis Mansion?!

Even now, if "Gu Xiuniang" coaxes Feng Zhongliang to let her take her daughter away, the Marquis Mansion has ways to make Feng Zhongliang go after her and fight for their daughter again.

Not to mention, the Marquis Mansion represents nobility. As long as Marquis Pingnan shows a reluctance to part with his foster daughter and expresses a wish to acknowledge Wei Yuanniang as his adopted daughter, both Wei Yuanniang herself and public opinion would lean towards the Marquis Mansion’s side.

After all, the Marquis Mansion is wealthy and noble, everyone knows that staying in the mansion is truly for Wei Yuanniang’s own good.

It was only because Wei Yuanniang was currently in Qingyun Temple that Marquis Pingnan hadn’t brought her back along with Feng Yanting.

Nevertheless, even though Wei Yuanniang was in Qingyun Temple, Marquis Pingnan was temporarily unable to interfere in her affairs.

But Wei Yuanniang couldn’t stay in Qingyun Temple forever; once she descended the mountain and returned to secular life, Marquis Pingnan, her "foster father," would find ways to arrange Wei Yuanniang’s future.

"If Gu Xiuniang cares for her daughter at all, she won’t dare to act rashly."

Upon returning to the Marquis Mansion, Marquis Pingnan’s first order of business was to interrogate Mrs. Zhang.

Facing Marquis Pingnan’s stern gaze and harsh demeanor, Mrs. Zhang dared not hide the slightest bit and confessed everything about her and Nanny Zhao’s scheming from those years!

This included the fact that Gu Xiuniang originally intended to exchange her son. As she mentioned these points, her tone couldn’t help but carry a hint of pride.

Proud of what?

Proud of her ability to "counter scheme"?

Marquis Pingnan: ...I no longer wish to call Mrs. Zhang a fool.

It’s a fact, after all, and no amount of scolding is going to change it.

Even if Gu Xiuniang was also to blame, she has striven to build a good reputation over the years, achieving a better name than the loyal servant Nanny Zhao!

You say she favors sons over daughters?

But she treats the concubine son and concubine daughter in the house with impartiality.

Even if her behavior is an act, Gu Xiuniang’s performance is superior to Mrs. Zhang’s!

Thinking of disguises, Marquis Pingnan is again filled with irritation.

If Mrs. Zhang had any sense of restraint and had been kinder to Wei Yuanniang, their Marquis Mansion wouldn’t be in such a passive position now!

However, through the interrogation, Marquis Pingnan still arrived at a somewhat consoling conclusion:

Although Mrs. Zhang made a foolish mistake back then, either Mrs. Zhang had a rare moment of intelligence or she trusted Nanny Zhao too much.

During the swap, the entire process, all the details, Mrs. Zhang did not participate.

The person solely responsible was always Nanny Zhao.

And those pieces of evidence, witnesses, the only person they could point to was Nanny Zhao!

Therefore, Mrs. Zhang is "innocent"; the only thing she would be criticized for is poor judgment of character, lax household management, allowing a troublesome slave to exploit the opportunity!

The large blame for the switch squarely lands on Nanny Zhao’s shoulders, and even if she regrets it, wanting to recant, she has no way to prove her innocence.

"Truly a blessing in disguise! Although there are still suspicions, there is no clear evidence!"

Marquis Pingnan quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

But, he still needed to guard against "Gu Xiuniang" causing trouble. After all, she had a good reputation, and Mrs. Zhang did indeed treat Wei Yuanniang quite harshly.

Luckily, the Marquis Mansion is noble, while "Gu Xiuniang" is merely a commoner. The gap between civilians and officials, the noble and the sorrowful, can’t be bridged by embroidering a few embroidery pieces and befriending a few nobles.

It’s really incomprehensible where "Gu Xiuniang" got the confidence to dare threaten him, the esteemed Marquis Pingnan.

However, three days later, Marquis Pingnan learned the reason—

"What? Yuanniang was recognized for contributing high-yield quality seeds, and the Saint conferred her as Princess Yonghe?!"