My Sister Insisted on Swapping Marriages, and I Became a Marchioness Instead

So she was waiting for him here.

Qin Yuan suddenly understood.

Marquis Gu was becoming more and more cunning.

Qin Yuan changed the subject, "Marquis, you also think these pearl strands are beautiful, why didn’t you say so in front of Mother?"

"Because Mother now only likes you, not me," Gu Jinghui leaned closer to her delicate neck, his eyes a little hazy as he spoke, his warm breath brushing against her neck.

"You’re becoming more and more favored by Mother; she treats you like a daughter and me like an outsider."

Qin Yuan felt a bit flustered, her small hand forcefully pushed Gu Jinghui’s face away, and she said with a tremor in her voice, "We’re just talking, why are you doing this? It tickles."

Gu Jinghui snorted, released her, and said with a hint of restraint, "Just wait."

Wait for what?

Naturally, it was to wait until the mansion opened.

Qin Yuan found it both amusing and annoying, not wanting to pay him any more mind. She then called Cui Ming and Hong Ye, who were waiting outside the door, to come in and said, "Hong Ye, how’s your accounting going? Doctor Li is skilled in medicine and said that if there are no more patients in the next few days, the mansion doors can be opened soon."

Hong Ye didn’t even bother with the fact that Marquis Gu was there and exclaimed, "So soon! I’m not a deity; how can I possibly finish accounting several years’ worth of account books all at once? I’ve barely covered about 30%."

"And how much can you cover by the time we open the mansion?"

Hong Ye thought for a moment and said, "At most, about 70 to 80%."

Qin Yuan said, "What if I help as well?"

Hong Ye said, "Then it certainly can be done."

Gu Jinghui raised his eyebrows and said, "Why the rush? I’ve said before that these account books are yours; just take your time with them. Don’t overwork yourself."

Qin Yuan raised her eyebrows and asked, "When the mansion opens, will I still be handling so many matters?"

Gu Jinghui gave Qin Yuan a deep look, smiled meaningfully, and said, "Do you want to manage them or not?"

Qin Yuan didn’t reply.

Gu Jinghui didn’t ask further. He stood up and said, "It’s late. I’m leaving. You should sleep early; don’t tire yourself out. You’re so frail; you should gain some weight. Are these account books worth it?"

Qin Yuan also got up to see him off, but he gently pulled her out of the main room,

with Hong Ye and Cui Ming hurrying to follow with a lamp.

The two didn’t speak, slowly walking to the courtyard gate.

Gu Jinghui said, "Remember what I said."

"Got it," Qin Yuan wrinkled her nose.

Gu Jinghui suddenly reached out, touched the small mole on the tip of her nose, gave her a deep look, and then left.

Qin Yuan: "..."

Back in the room, Cui Ming said, "Miss, does the Marquis want to hand over the affairs of the Marquis Mansion to you?"

Hong Ye came over and said, "I also got that impression."

Qin Yuan didn’t respond.

Hong Ye said, "Why didn’t you tell the Marquis just now whether you wanted to manage or not?"

Cui Ming said, "Are you silly? There’s still the Old Madam in the Marquis Mansion; it’s not just the Marquis who makes the decisions."

"But," Hong Ye said, "I feel the Marquis seems quite confident that as long as Miss is willing, he will find a way."

Qin Yuan was silent for a while, then asked Cui Ming, "Do you think I should manage them?"

She had always aspired to manage the household.

Since marrying into the mansion, the Sixth Madam had been trying every means to make things difficult for her, and she believed in reciprocating in kind.

However, to manage the whole family?

Cui Ming said, "How does Miss feel about managing things these days?"

Qin Yuan said, "It’s alright."

It was just maintaining operations, which didn’t take much effort. In recent times, Cui Ming and Hong Ye had become more capable, and the young maidservants were also clever, saving her a lot of trouble.

Cui Ming said, "Why doesn’t Miss just not rush to hand it over, just drag it out, over time it will become routine. If Miss feels uncomfortable, you can always hand it back to the Marquis."

Hong Ye said, "I see the Marquis seems to want to hand everything over to Miss. Once the mansion opens, the Marquis will be off to the Great Camp, where can he afford to manage the mansion’s affairs? Instead of having a mess and then looking for Miss to hold it together, it’s better for Miss to manage it from the start. Among the few masters in the mansion, only Miss can be counted on by the Marquis."

Cui Ming looked at Qin Yuan’s hesitant expression and said to Hong Ye, "What do you know?"

"What’s there not to know, doesn’t Miss often say that you can see the forest for the trees?"

Qin Yuan curiously asked, "Please tell, how do you see the forest for the trees?"

Hong Ye said proudly, "Can this stump me?"

"And then?"

Qin Yuan raised her eyebrows.

Hong Ye said, "The Marquis always insists on doing things himself and not liking others to serve him, but actually, he likes clinging to Miss to serve him. With dressing, matching clothes, eating meals, he always needs to be around Miss. The other day he said he wanted to hand over his private stash for Miss to manage. I think the Marquis wants Miss to manage everything for him, then he’s happy."

Cui Ming nodded, "This girl’s words do carry some truth."

Qin Yuan said, "What Hong Ye said is part of a wife’s duties, it’s done casually and doesn’t take much effort. But this private stash and the affairs of the front courtyard are significant."

Cui Ming didn’t speak.

Such matters, only Qin Yuan could decide.

If the Marquis insisted, Qin Yuan probably wouldn’t refuse either.

Hong Ye, however, said, "Miss, the Old Madam in the mansion doesn’t like to trouble herself, the Sixth Madam is selfish, the Sixth Master doesn’t manage things, as for the Seventh Miss, let’s not even mention her temper, in a few years she will marry and may need you to find a suitable family for her. Count the affairs of the mansion, who else can be trusted more than Miss?"

Upon hearing this, Qin Yuan suddenly realized something and nodded, "Hong Ye’s words have reminded me; I was overly focused on one thing and missed the bigger picture. Let’s follow Cui Ming’s advice and drag it out for now. If it becomes unsuitable, we can hand it back to the Marquis."

Cui Ming nodded.

Qin Yuan went to the washroom to freshen up, while Hong Ye was under the lamp reviewing the account books.

Cui Ming, while making the bed, asked Hong Ye softly, "What do you think changed Miss’s mind just now?"

Hong Ye distractedly said, "Why bother about it, Miss changed her mind, probably because there have been so many things happening in the mansion these days; didn’t she always say she and the Marquis are a team? It’s not proper to not manage these affairs."

Cui Ming didn’t speak again.

Qin Yuan caught the last part of the conversation and thought to herself, Hong Ye may seem carefree but she has a keen eye for the situation.

Half of her reasons for changing her mind were indeed as Hong Ye had guessed.

The next day.

Qin Yuan woke up, half-closed her eyes on the bed, thought over the things she had to do that day, and then slowly turned over, only to find herself face to face with Marquis Gu.

"Ah," Qin Yuan cried out in surprise.

Marquis Gu quickly covered her mouth and whispered, "Why are you screaming?"

Qin Yuan pulled his hand away and also whispered, "Why are you here?"

The two of them were like sneaking thieves.

"This is also my courtyard; why can’t I be here?" Gu Jinghui looked at Qin Yuan, utterly incredulous, "It hasn’t been that long, if I didn’t move back in, would you not even let me into the courtyard anymore?"