Chapter 291 - 289: Aunt Yin Wants to Cancel the Engagement Ring

Words : 1404 Updated : Oct 1st, 2025

The one who isn’t loved is the third party... Shen Yinning looked at Yin Shanshan. She had personally witnessed how this young girl clawed her way to the position of concubine, and also personally saw how she racked her brains over the years to make money for the Gao Family. Though she was only in her twenties, she appeared utterly exhausted from overworking. But, did Gao Zheng really love her? She would prattle on about "a lifetime and one true love," yet she didn’t know that Gao Zheng often entertained himself with his colleagues behind her back. In truth, Shen Yinning admired Yin Shanshan in some ways. For instance, she always had an endless number of schemes, dared to take risks, dared to act, and dared to gamble—better than many men in the world. But this girl seemed to have a screw loose, as she had blindly fallen for a man. Taking her seat, she said, "If you’re so confident in your relationship with Gao Zheng, why worry about me competing with you? I’ve simply come to enjoy a cup of wedding wine." Yin Shanshan pulled a disdainful face. In her eyes, Shen Yinning was like a stubborn plaster that couldn’t be peeled off, persistently clinging to her and her Zheng-lang as if unable to understand human language. She wanted to throw a tantrum, but recalling her modern nine years of compulsory education and comparing it to these feudal women—who were as ignorant and backward as her grandmother—she realized reasoning with such fools would be akin to playing music to cows. Feeling both contempt and a shred of pity for Shen Yinning, she raised her eyebrows and said, "Fine, watch if you want. If you’re so intent on punishing yourself, who am I to stop you?" Just as the auspicious hour arrived, Gao Zheng and Yin Shanshan were about to bow and formally wed when a commotion erupted outside. Madam Gao, displeased, rose with the airs of a family elder and demanded, "The Gao Family is hosting a wedding, what’s all the ruckus outside?!" The steward quickly returned to report, "Madam, this is not good! Over a dozen young ladies have arrived with their guards, demanding repayment from Concubine Yin!" The lively atmosphere in the courtyard instantly froze. Gao Zheng, suspicious, asked, "Shanshan, did you borrow money from someone?" "Of course not," Yin Shanshan appeared equally baffled and instructed the steward, "Bring them in. Let me see what this is about." The dozen or so young ladies were soon brought in. Shen Yinning propped her chin on her hand and observed. These ladies, adorned in silks and brocades, were clearly from wealthy and prominent families in the Capital. The leading young lady signaled her maid to toss some dresses onto the ground, her brows sharp and piercing. "Yin Shanshan, last winter, my sisters and I paid a hefty sum to preorder dresses from your shop. You personally promised us that the dresses we’d receive would be as beautiful as the ones in your catalog. Yesterday, you notified us that the dresses were ready and asked us to send our maids to pick them up. But take a good look for yourself—are these the same dresses as the ones in the catalog?!" Shen Yinning glanced at the dresses. She recalled that the dresses in the catalog were intricately embroidered, yet these had only a bit of embroidery at the sleeves and hems. The fabric was different too—those in the catalog were lightweight and vibrant, evoking an air of elegance when imagined on the body. But the ones on the ground had thick and dull fabrics, giving off a heavy, drab appearance. As she suspected, the dresses Yin Shanshan pre-sold were entirely misrepresented. "Yin Shanshan, do you take us for fools?!" "Exactly! The dresses don’t match the descriptions, and we’ve waited so long for them. We demand our deposits back!" "Refund! Refund!" "..." The young ladies clamored, clearly unwilling to let the matter go. Gao Zheng furrowed his brows and glared at Yin Shanshan with displeasure. "What’s going on? You can’t even handle business properly, and now there’s a public spectacle with so many people watching. Where does that leave my reputation?!" "Exactly, Shanshan," Madam Gao also voiced her discontent. "You know full well that Zheng-er holds an esteemed official position and values his reputation above all. How could you cause such trouble for him?" Shen Yinning lightly fanned herself. When Yin Shanshan was making money, this mother-son duo from the Gao Family proudly flaunted her achievements. But now that trouble had arisen, they didn’t hesitate to chastise her without so much as understanding the situation. True family wasn’t supposed to act like this. Yin Shanshan prided herself on being worldly and experienced, so she ought to understand this better than anyone. Yet, Yin Shanshan showed no blame toward the Gao Family mother and son. Instead, her face flushed red as she snapped at the young women, "What do you mean they’re different? These dresses are clearly the same designs!" "Do you think we’re too young to notice your deceit?!" The young women refused to back down. "The colors and materials are different, even the cuts are misaligned. Wearing these makes us look bloated and ugly, nothing like the catalog’s elegance!" Yin Shanshan planted her hands on her hips and sneered, "If you’re fat, how is that my dresses’ fault? The models look good in them, but if you don’t, isn’t that your problem?!" "You—!" The young women were stunned by her shamelessness. Yin Shanshan then ordered her maid to bring the catalog, flipped to the last page, and pointed at the small text in the corner. "Take a good look: ’Images for reference only.’ Reference—do you understand the word? And here—’Final interpretation of this activity belongs to Yin Shanshan.’ So whatever I say goes. You willingly placed your orders; I didn’t force you at knifepoint. Why should I return your deposits?! And it’s clearly laid out in the pre-sale contract, ’Deposits are non-refundable.’ Are your eyes malfunctioning? Can’t you read those four big characters?" A little maid timidly pulled out the pre-sale contract and indeed found the four words "Deposits are non-refundable" on the last page. She hesitated as she handed it to the young ladies. "Miss..." The young ladies were once again floored by Yin Shanshan’s audacity. Though they were in the right, at this moment, they suddenly seemed like the ones being unreasonable. Yin Shanshan smugly lifted her chin. "Today’s my wedding day, and I don’t have time to argue with you. Hurry up and leave, don’t delay my auspicious hour." The young ladies, still inexperienced with such schemes, felt wronged but, daunted by the clear terms in the contract, dared not pursue the matter further and reluctantly left. Madam Gao let out a sigh of relief. "Still, Shanshan is capable. If it were Shen, she couldn’t possibly handle this mess!" Shen Yinning smirked faintly. Madam Gao lacked foresight and clearly misunderstood the situation. She thought Yin Shanshan had done something commendable. People say there’s no such thing as a successful merchant without cunning. What Yin Shanshan had done today was utterly unscrupulous, and one could only imagine how the guests were inwardly ridiculing the Gao Family. "Mother, you flatter me." Yin Shanshan shyly but happily hooked her arm around Gao Zheng. "Zheng-lang, let’s continue with the wedding ceremony, shall we?" Madam Gao may have been oblivious, but Gao Zheng recognized that Yin Shanshan’s actions were highly improper. In the traditional hierarchy of scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants, merchants were at the very bottom. It was tolerable to be a benevolent merchant who contributed to society. But Yin Shanshan? She was nothing but a deceitful trader. If he were to raise Yin Shanshan to equal status as his wife, the entire Capital would view him as a man who couldn’t distinguish right from wrong, assuming he, too, must be a corrupt official. At that point, would he still have any hope of advancing his career? Suddenly, with a loud "smack," he slapped Yin Shanshan across the face. He spoke sternly, his expression one of complete disassociation from her. "I, Gao Zheng, am an upright scholar with integrity. The one thing I despise most in this world is a conniving merchant. Shanshan, you’ve deeply disappointed me. As for the matter of elevating you to equal wife status, let’s talk another time!"

Chapter 291 - 289: Aunt Yin Wants to Cancel the Engagement Ring

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