Chapter 667 There is no answer to the matter of favoritism.

"Yeah?"

Shen Wantang's eyes were full of suspicion. She prepared a gift for A Ning separately because they knew each other in their past lives and had a good relationship.

She's not familiar with the Duke of Zhenguo at all!

She was a newlywed who had just entered the family and hadn't done anything good for the Duke's mansion; she had no merit whatsoever.

If one had to name a contribution, it would be that he "saved" Madam Gu once before the marriage.

But the Duke's mansion had already sent a thank-you gift for the time they saved someone, so there was no reason for them to send another.

Seeing that Shen Wantang didn't believe his explanation, Gu Qianhan couldn't help but smile. She was too smart to be fooled.

However, he didn't explain further. Anyway, it wasn't a big deal for that old man to send gifts; at most, he just wanted to establish a good father-in-law image in front of Shen Wantang.

That old man was clearly out of control, so he decided to try and control Shen Wantang.

"Alright, don't worry about this little thing. Just be polite to that old man. If he's a father-in-law and has any sense of shame, he won't make things difficult for you."

Shen Wantang looked at him helplessly: "How does Father-in-law seem to be trying to make things difficult for me? He gave me such a generous gift as soon as I entered the house. He is clearly helping me to save face. When others see how much he values ​​me, no one will dare to look down on me, right?"

"You don't need him to give you face, it's enough that I give you face."

As Gu Qianhan spoke, he pulled her into the study, handing her a box and a stack of account books.

His box was ordinary, not as ornate and dazzling as the golden nanmu box that Gu Rongchang had sent, but as soon as Shen Wantang opened it, she knew how heavy this box was.

Inside were land deeds and house deeds, a whole box full, which showed how wealthy Gu Qianhan was.

Looking at the account books again, which contained the operating status of his various businesses over the past three years, Shen Wantang quickly discovered that his monthly income was at least 100,000 taels!

Shen Wantang was shocked. She knew that Gu Qianhan, as the eldest son of the Duke's family, must be rich, but she did not expect him to be this rich.

Seeing her wide-eyed in surprise, Gu Qianhan pulled her down to sit and said calmly, "These properties were all acquired by me in the past. I would buy up any area that seemed to be developing well. It's been ten years since then, so the returns are barely acceptable now."

Shen Wantang was even more shocked: "Ten years of accumulation? How old were you when you started doing business and making money?"

"Actually, I started when I was six years old, but at the beginning it was all small-scale and I didn't have enough capital, so I didn't earn much."

"You're a child prodigy, why don't you study hard and instead go into business to make money? Isn't that a waste of your talent?"

Gu Qianhan was slightly taken aback, then chuckled: "Do you think it's a good thing that I'm a child prodigy? My father and mother were afraid that I would steal my brother's limelight, so after I grew up a little, they stopped taking me out and into the palace. Because if I went into the palace, my brother would be overshadowed, and the Emperor, Empress, and Empress Dowager would just look at me in amazement and keep testing me."

Shen Wantang's expression gradually darkened.

She knew that the Duke of Zhenguo and Madam Gu were biased, but she didn't know that they would treat Gu Qianhan like this when he was young.

No wonder he was so cold; it turns out he experienced the harsh realities of life at a very young age.

Seeing her slightly somber expression, Gu Qianhan pulled her into his arms and kissed her forehead, saying in a light tone, "Actually, I don't really care about going out, let alone going to the palace. Every time I go to the palace, I'm surrounded like a monkey, and they ask me all sorts of stupid questions. It's so boring."

“My father was very strict with his children. He was afraid that we would become arrogant and extravagant, so our monthly allowance was only five taels of silver. Oh, on the surface, my older brother and I were the same, and so was Aning.”

A pang of pain rose in Shen Wantang's heart. If he said they were the same on the surface, then it meant that in private, his older brother and he were different.

She couldn't understand why her parents would favor the eldest child and suppress the second child openly and secretly, since they were all their own children, and Gu Qianhan was the youngest.

Is it simply because he's a child prodigy? Because he's too intelligent and stole the limelight from the eldest child?

But since he is so intelligent, shouldn't he receive more favor? Why is the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion doing the opposite?

Gu Qianhan could tell what she was thinking just by looking at her expression. He said softly, "In private, my elder brother and I do receive different amounts of money."

"My father and mother felt that my eldest brother was the heir apparent, the prince’s companion, and older, so he had many social obligations and needed to spend money."

"They didn't want their eldest brother to be laughed at for being poor, nor did they want him to develop a stingy habit. So, their eldest brother received an extra thousand taels of silver every month as a supplement. If that wasn't enough, he could ask his mother for more."

Shen Wantang knew she shouldn't judge her in-laws so easily, but Gu Qianhan's experience was so similar to hers!

Her father was also a very biased person. On the surface, Shen Mingxuan received the same monthly allowance as her, but in private, Shen Guannian would also give her extra money to spend. Not to mention Qi Shi.

But she was an illegitimate daughter, and her birth mother died early, so it's understandable that her father ignored her at home.

Gu Qianhan is Madam Gu's biological son; he is a legitimate legitimate son!

She held back for a long time, but finally couldn't hold back anymore: "They're afraid your older brother will be laughed at, afraid your older brother will develop a stingy habit, but aren't they afraid you'll be laughed at, afraid you'll develop a stingy habit? Giving you five taels and giving your older brother one thousand and five taels, this favoritism is just too much!"

Gu Qianhan hugged her tightly and comforted her, "Don't be angry. It's not worth getting upset. It's all in the past now."

He had been angry, questioned, and felt lost in his childhood.

But there's no answer to the question of favoritism.

"What about A-Ning? Does she also receive a monthly allowance of five taels of silver?"

"On the surface, they are all the same, but in private, my mother would also give A-Ning extra subsidies. When she was little, she would give her tens or hundreds of taels of silver. After she turned ten, she would receive the same amount as her older brother, a thousand taels of silver. If it wasn't enough, she could ask for more."

Shen Wantang felt genuinely sorry for Gu Qianhan and couldn't help but hug him: "Were you picked up by your in-laws? That rule of five taels of silver, was it set just for you?"

Gu Qianhan smiled: "I also doubted that I was their biological child, but unfortunately, after my verification, I am indeed their biological child, but I am not very well received by my father and mother."

"So you started earning money on your own?"

Gu Qianhan nodded: "Yes, five taels of silver isn't even enough to fill a tooth gap. It'll be gone in a casual tip to a servant, not to mention I need to buy books and writing materials."

"At first, I didn't think too much about it. I just wanted to have the same monthly allowance as my older brother, and earn a thousand taels every month."

"But I didn't expect that as I made more and more money, my businesses became more and more diversified. Once I had enough money, I didn't pay much attention to managing them, and Uncle Long always helped me with them."

"Now, all of this is in your hands. I'll have Uncle Long come to see you this afternoon, and from now on he'll be at your beck and call."