Chapter 41 "I married you just to..."

Xue Mingyao never expected that Xie Zhuo's family was so poor.

The betrothal gifts he gave were very generous, and the wedding ceremony he held was also very impressive. However, the account book revealed that these two expenses combined amounted to more than half of his net worth.

Xie Zhuo disagreed, pointing to the figures in the account book and saying, "This is almost a whole year's salary and stipend, plus gold, silver and silk filling two storerooms. In addition, this house is also quite valuable. How can you call it a small amount?"

Xue Mingyao gave her a look that said, "What nonsense are you talking about?"

"High-ranking officials don't live off their salaries. Even those of the first or second rank receive pitifully small salaries, which are simply not enough. Besides, most of the things in your storeroom are imperial gifts, which can only be viewed and not sold. How can you include them in the calculation? The same goes for your residence. As long as you are still a general in the court, you can't possibly convert them into cash!"

Xie Zhuo naturally understood this principle, but still felt that her accusations were absurd.

“Don’t forget,” he reminded her, “I don’t have any ancestral wealth to begin with, and I can’t compare to the Xue family, which has been passed down for generations.”

"Of course I'm not comparing myself to the Xue family," Xue Mingyao said irritably. "Why don't you compare yourself to Cen Zongjing? His official position isn't even as high as yours, but he's accumulated several times more money than you."

Even so, Xue Mingyao was not too satisfied with Cen Zongjing's assets back then, but little did she know that a master was waiting for her here.

“Then he must have embezzled.” Xie Zhuo said through gritted teeth.

"...What makes you say that?"

"Based on my six years of military service," Xie Zhuo's voice turned cold, "it's common for them to falsely report the number of soldiers and embezzle military funds. I would even dare to say that your father also lined his own pockets back then."

After being in the military camp for a long time, one becomes familiar with both the explicit and implicit rules, and also hears about the actions of some senior military officers.

Xue Mingyao had spent a considerable amount of time with her father and was not an innocent young lady, so she did not refute him.

"So you're so poor because you're so virtuous and have the cleanest hands?" she said indignantly.

Xie Zhuo remained noncommittal, saying, "I can distinguish between what's important and what's not."

It was common practice for military officers to exaggerate the number of soldiers in order to embezzle military pay. Xie Zhuo, aiming to achieve merit, followed the same practice. However, unlike most generals, he did not pocket the extra pay.

Xue Mingyao quickly realized that something else was wrong.

"Fine, you're so high and mighty. If you only live off your salary, the amount you've saved over the past six years must be more than this."

Xie Zhuo was so frugal and hardworking that she couldn't see anything he needed to spend money on. Back in Xichuan, he would even wash his own clothes, which surprised her greatly.

Xie Zhuo said, "The salaries in previous years were not high, and most of them were used to subsidize the soldiers."

Xue Mingyao choked, "So this is the kind of love they meant when they said you loved your soldiers like your own children."

Isn't this a money-giving boy?

"This is the art of war," Xie Zhuo said.

The border troops were full of lazy, unambitious old hands. If we didn't find a way to motivate them to take up arms and fight for their lives, that's why the generals parachuted into Gansu and Liangzhou by the imperial court couldn't command the Northwest Army, and that's how the opportunity fell to him.

“That’s not the way to accumulate wealth and manage a household,” Xue Mingyao retorted bluntly.

Xie Zhuo looked at her and said, "Although the money in your account isn't much, it's still over ten thousand strings of cash, enough for an ordinary family to live on for dozens of generations. Besides, there's the title and fief you'll receive later. Isn't that enough for you?"

“Of course it’s not enough,” Xue Mingyao scoffed. “You think having a fortune of ten thousand is enough? People have hundreds of thousands or millions of coins! I’ll spend all your money in less than a year.”

Xie Zhuo said in a muffled voice, "That's because you're too extravagant. Your fine clothes and sumptuous meals are all made from the blood and sweat of the people."

"Say what you will, I've always been this way since I was a child, you can't expect me to eat coarse food with you."

"How is it considered 'bitter and simple'? You just need to be a little more frugal—"

"I can't be frugal!" Xue Mingyao glared at him angrily. "Xie Qinglang, you said you wouldn't skimp on my food and clothing. Besides, when we were in Xichuan, I never skimped on your food, clothing, or other necessities. Whatever material I used for my clothes, that's what I made for you. I ate delicacies from land and sea, and you ate them too. And all the writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones you used were top-quality... If you dare to treat me badly in these ways, then I'll look down on you!"

Xie Zhuo was speechless.

He only thought that by marrying Xue Mingyao, he could control her, and never considered that he wouldn't be able to support her. Admittedly, he knew that Xue Mingyao lived a life of extravagance and spent money like water, but compared to her other bad habits, this was really insignificant.

"Then what do you suggest we do?" he asked.

"You're so stupid! You don't even think about how to make your money grow! Honestly, it's one thing to have so little savings, but you don't even own any land or shops. You're so aloof, truly a scholar in the making..."

Xue Mingyao spoke in a hushed tone, her red lips parting and her delicate eyebrows arching, the hair ornaments swaying in her hair, the gold accentuating her radiant beauty. Xie Zhuo stared intently at her, and for a moment, he suddenly felt an urge to kiss her.

“I don’t think your Manager Liu has much experience. Entrusting it to him might not be enough to handle things well. How about I have one of my managers help you with the property purchase? Hey, are you even listening?”

"I'm listening." Xie Zhuo snapped out of his reverie and met her disapproving gaze. "Why do you say it's to help me? Isn't this what you should be doing?"

"What kind of attitude is that!" Xue Mingyao snapped. "Beg me, beg me and I'll help you."

"I don't ask for anything," Xie Zhuo said indifferently. "You can help me or not, I don't think I have too little savings. If you don't like spending it, then go ahead and spend your dowry."

Xue Mingyao's willow-leaf eyebrows stood upright.

A dowry is a woman's means of livelihood after marriage, much like a royal treasure, meant to be kept on a high shelf and not easily used. She absolutely cannot spend her dowry!

Helpless, Xue Mingyao couldn't bear to suffer, so she took on the financial management task, snorted heavily, called a truce, and summoned Lüzhi to give instructions.

Xie Zhuo went outside and whispered to Steward Liu why he hadn't mentioned the property purchase.

Steward Liu looked troubled and stammered for a moment before saying, "General, time is too short, we haven't had time yet."

Xie Zhuo nodded. He had only been back in the capital for a little over half a year. It had already taken a lot of effort to furnish such a large house, so it wouldn't be fair to ask too much of Steward Liu.

“From now on, the accounts will be managed by your wife, which will make things easier for you,” he said.

"That's good." Steward Liu chuckled. "The lady has brought many helpers, so the general doesn't need to worry."

Xie Zhuo then asked, "How many people did she bring with her as part of her dowry?"

"There are twenty-eight people in total! Oh, and four more don't live in the manor, so that makes a total of thirty-two. Don't worry, General, I've made new entry and exit tokens and assigned them rooms. The General's manor will be much more lively from now on!" Steward Liu said with a beaming smile.

Having served wealthy families and witnessed the grand procession of nobles with hundreds of servants, he found it difficult to adjust to the sparsely populated Xie household.

General Xie is a good man, but he keeps everything simple and doesn't care about extravagance, which is like wearing fine clothes in the dark. Steward Liu muttered to himself, "The general doesn't know how to enjoy life. He owns a mansion, but he doesn't deserve fancy cars, fine horses, and beautiful maids. These things don't cost much anyway." The mansion was cold and quiet, and he felt he couldn't discipline the servants properly.

Fortunately, the princess, a princess with a notorious reputation but of first-class wealth, arrived, and the atmosphere of the entire household was immediately renewed.

As he was thinking this, he didn't notice his master's frozen smile.

Before they knew it, it was lunchtime. The servants brought over seven or eight dishes, all bright red and Sichuanese, but Xie Zhuo could tell at a glance that most of them weren't made by his chef.

He usually only has two or three dishes for lunch.

Even the people serving the food were not familiar faces to him.

Xie Zhuo's subtle feeling intensified, especially when he realized that one of the spicy mutton dishes tasted exactly the same as the one he had eaten at the princess's residence in Xichuan years ago.

Xue Mingyao had been working hard that morning, so she had a good appetite and was enjoying every dish on the table. Xie Zhuo held back and didn't confront her at the dinner table.

After she put down her chopsticks, Xie Zhuo said, "Xue Mingyao, don't you think you brought too many people with you as part of your dowry?"

"Is it too much?" Xue Mingyao elegantly wiped the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief. "It's barely enough for me to use."

Xie Zhuo snorted coldly, "I don't think even a princess would bring so many servants when she gets married."

"What do you know? I'm going to take a nap, don't bother me." After saying that, Xue Mingyao went into the bedroom without looking back.

Xie Zhuo heard the sound of the bolt being bolted shut.

She's wary of him? That's his bedroom!

Xie Zhuo's teeth itched. Had Xue Mingyao not grasped the situation? Had she really come to his residence to act like an ancestor? And she even told him to stop bothering her—those were words he used to say to her all the time—who was getting revenge on whom now?

“Princess, you need to meet with the steward this afternoon to discuss buying the estate. You really need to rest,” Green Branch said softly from the side, cautiously, even more timid than before.

When he first humbled himself in the princess's residence, the servants all looked at him with strange eyes, while the maids would giggle whenever they saw him. It's hard to say which one hurt his self-esteem more.

Green Branch was always very respectful to him. If he gave her a cold look, she would visibly shrink back and then convey Xue Mingyao's harsh words with an apologetic expression.

“Thank you, young master. The princess said that if you don’t go to accompany her tonight, you will not only miss dinner, but you will also go hungry tomorrow.”

No matter how noble one's self-respect is, it can't put food on the table; he was forced to bow down for a meager living.

Recalling the past, Xie Zhuo narrowed his eyes. He should have refuted Xue Mingyao's claim that she had never mistreated him in terms of food or clothing.

......

When Xue Mingyao woke up from her afternoon nap, she slowly came out of the bedroom and found Xie Zhuo still sitting in the outer room, reading a book with his head down.

"Why are you still here?" she muttered.

Xie Zhuo had a separate study.

"Too lazy to move." Xie Zhuo's eyes were still on the book, and he didn't look up.

Xue Mingyao glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. His left leg was bent, and his right leg was on the ground. His thick thighs stretched his robe wide open. The hand holding the book was resting on his arched left knee. He sat with a commanding posture, typical of a general. Her father, brothers, and even her deceased husband all liked to sit like that.

The elegant demeanor of Xie Qinglang, who used to read quietly, has vanished.

Xue Mingyao withdrew her gaze.

She should think less about the past.

She went to the main hall to see Wang Ji, the middle-aged man that Lvzhi had brought.

Wang Ji was her maidservant, who had been with her since her marriage, managing her dowry and private property, and was very skilled in this area. After the two discussed for a while, Xue Mingyao heard the noise, looked up, and saw Xie Zhuo also coming over with a book, sitting at the other end of the hall.

Wang Ji bowed respectfully to Xie Zhuo, and when he saw Xie Zhuo's appearance, a look of surprise appeared on his face.

Xie Zhuo responded with a cold face and remained silent.

He had met Wang Ji—when his house was forcibly taken over by Xue Mingyao.

Holding a contract, Wang Ji greeted Xue Mingyao with a kind smile, first addressing her as "Young Master Xie" and then explaining how the house had transferred from his Xie family to Xue Mingyao.

How can one not feel disgusted when bullying is carried out while maintaining a facade of harmony?

At the time, Xie Qinglang regarded Wang Ji and Qi Zhao as two dogs in front of Xue Mingyao's door, one polite and the other aggressive, one warm and the other cold, helping her to do evil. Now that they met, he was unwilling to give them a good look.

Xie Zhuo continued to bury himself in his book.

Several times, Xue Mingyao's exasperated voice drifted to his ears, and he vaguely heard the reason. A smile appeared on Xie Zhuo's lips, and the book in his hand had not been turned for a long time.

A moment later, Wang Ji took his leave and bowed to Xie Zhuo again, to which Xie Zhuo nodded.

Xue Mingyao walked up to him with a thud.

"How is it?" he asked.

Xue Mingyao took a deep breath. "We don't have enough money in the account, so it's not worthwhile to buy property."

The situation was worse than she had anticipated; after buying a decent shop, she was short of money.

Xie Zhuo hummed in agreement, then suddenly realized that Manager Liu's troubled expression that morning probably meant he was too embarrassed to speak directly.

"Then why don't we wait a little longer?" he said.

“I couldn’t wait,” Xue Mingyao said, emphasizing each word. “I used my dowry to make up for it.”

Xie Zhuo smiled.

"I'll use my dowry to buy you shops and estates!" Xue Mingyao exclaimed.

She was furious.

When have I ever done something so pathetic? But if I do nothing for a while and the money just keeps going out without coming in, then I'm still at a loss, and in the end, she'll be the one who suffers the loss.

Xie Zhuo raised an eyebrow. "Thank you."

Xue Mingyao glared at him, "You have power and influence but no money, how dare you! You can't even be a villain properly!"

It turns out that in her eyes, he was already a villain.

"Powerful but penniless," Xie Zhuo smiled, "that's what makes you even more helpless, Xue Mingyao."

"If I had known you were this poor, I would never have agreed to marry you, even if you had tormented my brother to death," Xue Mingyao said bitterly.

"You think you have a choice?" Xie Zhuo sneered.

Anyway, he's a bad guy.

Xue Mingyao said angrily, "I really regret meeting you in Xichuan."

If she had never met Xie Qinglang, what a happy widow she would have been! In the prime of her life, after losing her husband, her youth and beauty were not wasted at all. She could have indulged in her husband's company as before, having many lovers, and changing to another when she got tired of him. She wouldn't have had to hang herself on one tree, offering her affections only to be rejected, and bearing the infamy of being a predatory woman.

There's no need to be haunted by past events and dreams for so many years. Just when you finally decide to look forward and start flirting with Chen Liangqing, he comes back from the dead!

The old appearance has been replaced by a new one, and the attitude towards her is even worse than before.

She couldn't stand it before and gritted her teeth to end the relationship, so why is he still bothering her now, trapping her, and not giving her any peace and quiet!

"You should regret this," Xie Zhuo said coldly.

Xue Mingyao took another deep breath.

Calm down, calm down, stop dwelling on the past and look forward.

Xie Zhuo didn't get a response from Xue Mingyao. Instead, she called over Lüzhi and whispered a few instructions to her.

"What are you planning to do now?" he asked.

Xue Mingyao picked up a pomegranate and began to peel it.

"The princess must summon everyone in the manor and have them all face her before her," Green Branch answered on behalf of her mistress.

Soon, Steward Liu led the people into the courtyard in single file.

The servants entered one by one. Xue Mingyao adopted the airs of a mistress, inquiring about their names and duties, using both kindness and severity, and giving them rewards after reprimanding them.

Xie Zhuo, who was reading a book with his head down, thought to himself that Xue Mingyao already knew how to be a wife, but he didn't know how to be a husband, especially not how to be Xue Mingyao's husband.

With few servants at the Xie residence, Xue Mingyao finished her audience quickly and then slowly began eating pomegranates, seemingly ignoring Xie Zhuo.

Xie Zhuo spoke in a low voice, bringing up the matter of dowry again.

"Xue Mingyao, of the people who came with your dowry, keep at most half. The rest, let them pack their bags and go back to the Xue family mansion."

Xue Mingyao spat out a few pomegranate seeds. "What do you mean?"

"This is my general's mansion, not your princess's mansion. I also need to ask you, what's the meaning of bringing so many people?"

While Xue Mingyao was taking a nap, Xie Zhuo pondered it carefully. Xue Mingyao's dowry was simply unreasonable. Ordinary daughters of officials' families only had a few maids with them as part of their dowry, how could there be as many as twenty or thirty?

Upon further inquiry, it was discovered that she had brought not only a cook, but also a coachman, a sweeper, and a gardener...

Let's just move the Xue family mansion here!

"I told you, you're not someone I can do whatever I want. I'm not like you, who wishes you could be waited on hand and foot—"

"Don't try to fool me," Xie Zhuo interrupted her. "Do you need so many people at home? You even brought all the chores here. Do you think I need more people to sweep the yard and do laundry?"

Xue Mingyao forcefully pried open the pomegranate.

It was indeed intentional on her part to bring such a large dowry.

Xie Zhuo has gone mad like this, who knows what he might do to her? Bring more people to bolster her courage, lest he really humiliate her without any bottom line. Because of this, she even had a big fight with her brother, and only then did she barely get Xue Xingtai to agree to lend her the servants temporarily, and they must be returned within three months.

"Besides, I can't afford to feed so many people."

Xie Zhuo was quite at ease with his lack of money.

"You're sending my dowry back to my parents' home? Aren't you ashamed?" Xue Mingyao said sarcastically. "Fine, I'll have Lüzhi pick and choose a few to send back later."

Xie Zhuo glanced at her. She agreed so easily; she probably didn't expect to keep everyone. So why bother making this fuss, just to boost his prestige on his turf and cause him some displeasure?

childish.

He said, "Send back all those who served you in Xichuan and who have seen me."

Besides Wang Ji, there were two familiar maids in the courtyard who used to giggle at him. Today, when they saw him, they bowed their heads and greeted him as "General," while secretly glancing at him with surprise and confusion.

“You don’t need to worry about them recognizing you,” Xue Mingyao said. “I’ve already told Lüzhi that if the people below start talking, just say that you only look like Xie Qinglang. You are General Xie, and you have nothing to do with that scholar.”

"Are you being so kind?" Xie Zhuo asked skeptically.

Given Xue Mingyao's temperament, she would have made a big fuss about his past as a destitute man who was once her plaything; she wouldn't miss any opportunity to mock him.

“Because that’s what I think now too,” Xue Mingyao said decisively. “You, Xie Zhuo and Xie Qinglang, are completely different now. Why bring up the past? It makes it seem like I still have feelings for you.”

Xie Zhuo looked at her intently, just as he had when she said she regretted meeting him, and his heart felt heavy again.

He said softly, "Whether it's old feelings or not, who cares? Between you and me, there's only old resentment. But I didn't expect you to be so proactive in fulfilling your duties as a wife, saving me some trouble."

"Am I supposed to resort to crying, making a scene, or threatening suicide? This isn't the first time I've been forced into marriage. I'll accept it as it is. I know how to make myself comfortable. You don't need to overthink it."

But Xie Zhuo didn't want her to live comfortably.

I saw Qi Zhao at noon.

Qi Zhao was moving swords, spears, bows and arrows from Xue Mingyao's dowry in the Xie family's martial arts training ground. When he saw him, he just lowered his head and continued working without saying a word. The afternoon sun outlined his lean figure, and the tortoiseshell on his leather belt was shiny and lustrous.

“Send him back; he cannot stay at the Xie residence.”

Xue Mingyao refused, "No. Qi Zhao is my guard; he has to stay."

“I’m not discussing this with you,” Xie Zhuo said coldly. “This is my residence. Why should I allow you to keep a young guard? You’re up to no good. You should give up your licentious thoughts as soon as possible.”

Xue Mingyao was stunned for a moment before realizing the meaning behind his words.

He's known her and Qi Zhao for a long time, yet he's spouting nonsense and slandering them.

"Stop spouting nonsense! A guard is a guard. If I want to find a lover, I'll find one myself. There's no need to mistake a guard for a lover," she said angrily.

"You dare to come looking for him!" Xie Zhuo couldn't take it anymore. This guy was under his roof and still dared to provoke him. "I don't care who Qi Zhao is to you. If I say he has to leave, he has to leave."

"So you're starting to make decisions for me now?" Xue Mingyao retorted without backing down. "I'm not letting Qi Zhao leave; he has to stay and protect me!"

"Protect you? You're the general's wife, what danger could you possibly encounter?"

Xue Mingyao stared straight at him.

Xie Zhuo instantly understood that she viewed him as a danger.

He was so angry he almost laughed. "How do you expect him to protect you? When you and I are fighting, do you expect him to come in and break us up? Would he dare to lay a hand on me?"

"So you expect me to just let you mold me into whatever you want?"

Xue Mingyao drank, her slender neck held high, her bright eyes glaring at him without any politeness, filled with a furious gleam, bright and captivating.

The earrings on her ears swayed fluttering, and her breasts, like angry mountains, throbbed slightly, hidden beneath her tightly packed clothes.

Xue Mingyao is a great beauty. She is beautiful when she is not smiling, even more beautiful when she smiles, and even more beautiful when she is angry.

Xie Zhuo curled his lips into a smile, "If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten. I married you just to mold you into whatever you want, didn't I?"

Upon hearing this, Xue Mingyao's expression changed, and Xie Zhuo suddenly stood up and strode towards her, who was sitting on the couch.