As marriage brokers, these grannies also possessed the "guilty knowledge" of secret affairs. In "The Golden Lotus" (Jing Ping Mei), the matchmaker Wang speculated that Ximen Qing was fond of the married woman Pan Jinlian, so she introduced Pan to Ximen, helped them to have an affair and hide the secret for them. According to the law married woman must be loyal to her husband, and anyone who discovered an affair of the woman should report her immediately. Although, the matchmakers were licensed to keep secrets about affairs because keeping privacy of their clients was their obligation. Even so, they were usually criticized for doing so. In "The Golden Lotus" Wang was blamed for egging ladies on having improper affairs.