Chapter 20 Who will hold the power to manage the family?

The woman fell silent. Who would have asked a maid to clean up such a vicious tyrant? It would be better to let him go after getting dirty and smelly!

However, Xie Changsheng still didn't leave.

He lay on Fu Danjun's pillow and asked casually, "What is your relationship with the pawnshop owner?"

Her head buzzed, and she said absentmindedly, "We're just acquaintances, it's okay."

Xie Changsheng didn't believe it and pinched her chin tightly with his slender fingers.

Pretending to cry was a common occurrence for Fu Danjun: "My dowry was sold to the pawnshop by the Lu family, so I had no choice but to ask the shopkeeper to keep it safe until I had the money to redeem it. Your Majesty, you could have stopped the Lu family from doing such a stupid thing, but you watched them die without helping."

Xie Changsheng frowned at first, then jokingly said: "I see, since you plan to redeem it, it means you are very rich, why should I worry about it?"

Fu Danjun continued to complain: "I don't have any money. I'm just trying to figure out how to make more money."

Xie Changsheng was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "Go to the pawnshop and keep an eye out for me to see if there's a Coiled Dragon Jade Pendant there."

Fu Danjun was confused: "How could the emperor's things end up in a pawnshop?"

Xie Changsheng scolded: "Don't ask questions that you shouldn't ask."

Fu Danjun's face froze.

To ease the awkwardness, he smiled and said, "I understand. The emperor left a dragon seed outside, and this coiled dragon jade pendant is a token of his love."

Xie Changsheng hissed and frowned: "Your stupid head can only think of this."

After saying that, he smiled coldly and left with a wave of his sleeves.

On the other hand, Lu Yu came in the morning to pay his respects and ask the old lady to let Pei Xi marry into the family formally.

"There's been some unpleasant gossip circulating in the mansion these past few days."

Lu Yu frowned, his face showing sadness: "My son was worried that Wu'er and the others would hear it. The children are sensible now."

Madam Hou accepted Pei Xi's marriage, but the problem was that it would cost money to formally marry her.

So he dismissed all the maids and asked Lu Yu: "Where are you going to raise this money?"

Lu Yu said without hesitation: "My son didn't save any private money, so it was naturally taken from the official account of the mansion."

The old lady of the Marquis replied, then sighed: "You know the financial situation of our Marquis's Mansion. There is not much money left in the public account."

Lu Yu paused and said, "My son asked someone to check the accounts yesterday, and they found that he still had over 30,000 taels of savings."

Seeing his determination, Madam Hou asked, "How much are you planning to spend? You won't spend all 30,000 taels, will you?"

Seeing his mother unhappy, Lu Yu could only smile and say, "Ten thousand taels is enough."

In fact, he was eager to go out and borrow another 10,000 taels to make up the total of 40,000 taels.

But Madam Hou was already feeling the pain.

"You're used to a good life, only caring about the present and not the future. Our family hasn't had any money come in for four or five months, and you just keep spending it. If this continues in a year or two, even our tables and chairs will have to be pawned!"

Lu Yu saw that his mother was reluctant to part with the ten thousand taels, so he smiled and said, "Of course, my son knows that our family is in a difficult situation, but we are the Marquis of Guanyang after all, and we still have to maintain our external appearance. Xi'er has given you three grandchildren, so for the sake of your grandchildren, you must not let Xi'er down."

Madam Hou sighed and said, "Is it because I don't want to live a glorious life? I'll give you 7,000 taels, and you can figure out what to do with the remaining 3,000 taels."

At this moment, both mother and son thought of Fu Danjun's dowry.

Madam Hou hoped that Lu Yu would pawn her dowry to make up the remaining three thousand taels.

Lu Yu had no other choice but to use Fu Danjun's dowry to make up for the loss.

However, the problem was finally solved.

Lu Yu flattered my mother again.

Seeing that my mother's complexion had recovered, I took the opportunity to say, "After Xi'er gets married, you might as well let her manage the household. That way, you and your sister-in-law will have an easier time."

Madam Hou had long considered the issue of Pei Xi being the head of the household, and felt that she came from a small family and could not handle it.

Not wanting to spoil his son's fun, he pushed the issue aside and said, "Let's talk about it after we get married."

Lu Yu didn't think his mother would object, after all, Pei Xi had three children.

My younger brother’s sister-in-law Yuanshi didn’t give birth to a child, let alone a daughter-in-law for my second son.

So he served his mother a meal and came out with a rosy face.

Just then, Yuan Shi came over to pay her respects. Seeing Lu Yu, she bowed and said, "Greetings to my elder brother."

Lu Yu also replied: "Good morning, sister-in-law. The old lady hasn't had breakfast yet. Come in quickly."

Yuan agreed to leave, but then asked curiously, "Brother, you look so happy. Did something good happen to you?"

Lu Yu thought for a moment and smiled, "The old lady has already agreed to let Xi'er marry into the family."

Yuan was shocked, but a smile spread across her face: "This is truly a happy occasion. After I serve breakfast to the old lady, I will go find my sister-in-law and notify the servants at home to prepare."

In fact, Yuan was extremely unhappy.

Pei Xi's hasty marriage was simply due to her concern for the power to manage the family.

The last time Pei Xi insisted on following him into the warehouse, he could no longer hide his true colors.

Madam Hou has finished washing up and is waiting for breakfast.

After washing her hands, Yuan came up to serve and started by telling some interesting things to make the old lady happy.

Then he talked about welcoming Pei Xi into the family: "When I first arrived, I met my eldest brother. He said he was going to formally marry my eldest sister-in-law. This is a big happy event for our family. I was so happy."

Madam Hou knew that Yuan was a cunning person and might not really be willing.

After Pei Xi gets married, she will naturally suppress her as the eldest sister-in-law, and may especially compete for the power to be the head of the family.

"Your elder brother suddenly brought this up, how could I not agree? He wants another ten thousand taels of silver. Where can I find that much money to spend?"

Yuan Shi was indeed very interested in this topic and asked hurriedly: "How much does the mother-in-law plan to give?"

Madam Hou sighed, "I promised him seven thousand taels. You have to find a way to get the rest. Are you going to let him have a wedding and leave others to live their lives?"

Yuan Shi came up with a plan and said with a smile: "It would be unreasonable for us not to pay for the eldest brother's wedding. When I go back and discuss it with Wu'er's father, we will take care of the seven thousand taels and save my mother-in-law from spending money and worrying about it."

Madam Hou was not happy, but she also knew that Yuan's generosity had ulterior motives.

"You are such a sensible and good daughter-in-law. In fact, in my eyes, no one can be as generous and considerate as you."

The implication was that Pei Xi was not as good as her. Yuan Shi felt proud and took the opportunity to bring up the matter of the housekeeper.

"Once my sister-in-law officially marries us, we'll have someone to manage the household. I can relax a little, and my mother-in-law won't have to worry too much."

Madam Hou saw through her more and more, and said with a smile: "I don't care how much. On the surface, I am in charge, but in reality, you are the one running around. Although Miss Pei is not bad, you entered the house earlier than her, so it is more appropriate."

Yuanshi smiled modestly and said, "I came in early, so my mother-in-law is partial to me."

Madam Hou took her hand and patted it with a smile: "From now on, you will have to worry about the affairs of the mansion. I will leave it all to you."

Yuanshi suppressed her excitement and knelt down to kowtow.

However, she forgot that she had already promised seven thousand taels of silver to solve the problem.

Madam Hou wanted her to pay the money and not use the public funds or her own private money, so she agreed to let her be the housekeeper.

In order to manage the household well, Yuanshi must have tried her best to make Pei's marriage decent.

She also brought a lot of dowry from her parents' home. Although it was not as much as Fu Danjun's, she could still afford a thousand taels of silver.

At this time, Pei had already heard from Lu Yu that the old lady only gave 7,000 taels of silver for the wedding.

How could she feel comfortable? She came here with her three children after breakfast.

When Mrs. Hou saw that Pei looked unhappy, she guessed the reason.

She took the opportunity to tell the story of Yuan's housekeeper: "Your sister-in-law said she would find a way to get the 7,000 taels of silver, so I wouldn't have to spend any money. I was very happy about it, so I simply handed over all the affairs of the mansion to her and let her officially take charge."