Need I tell you how to look at it?
Qin Wan tapped her forehead in anger: "You're already a mother, and you still want to climb walls and trees. You're not setting a good example for your children."
"They can't see us, so we're doing it quietly."
Qin Yan was eager to try.
In the end, Qin Wan didn't agree to her request. She had been out for most of the day and was already tired. Now that she had finished watching the excitement, she went back to rest. "Come to my place tomorrow and I'll tell you about it."
The next day, Qin Yan listened to enough gossip and left satisfied.
Lu Yan sent the betrothal gifts and started preparing for the wedding.
If he saved some of the remaining money, he could still afford a decent wedding, but the things Bai Wanyi proposed would cost him nearly half of the money just for a wedding dress.
Add in the wedding carriage and horses, and half of it is gone.
What's more, the greenhouse hasn't been built yet. Hiring Yangshi Lei for work would cost a lot of money, not to mention the cost of roof tiles. After the greenhouse is built, can it be left empty? Buying flowers and trees to put in it also requires money.
If the banquet is expanded to 100 tables, we can't just deal with it by offering dishes that cost only one or two taels of silver per table.
What's more, half of these one hundred tables should be used to entertain former comrades, so they naturally have to be prepared decently. They cannot feel that because I have returned to the capital and my status as a marquis has been elevated, I have become estranged from them.
By this calculation, it would cost at least more than two thousand taels of silver, not including the cost of drinks, tables, chairs, benches, tea plates and cups.
Qi Jing fiddled with the abacus and showed the calculated list to Lu Yan: "The account book that Miss Qin left behind was calculated by the accounting office, and there is no mistake or omission. Therefore, we cannot get the money back from Miss Qin, and we still owe her 30,000 taels."
"The Marquis's wedding banquet, apart from other expenses, will cost over two thousand taels of silver to purchase tea trays and cups. There are only about twenty sets of tables, chairs, and benches in the mansion, and some of them need repairs, so there are only about ten sets that can be used. These also need to be purchased."
Qi Jing had several more sets of tea sets and bowls and plates brought out: "These are the bowls and plates sent from various places. My Lord, please decide which ones you want. These two sets are more expensive, one tael of silver. These two sets are fifty wen."
A set of bowls, plates and tea sets includes at least eight items, including soup bowls, rice bowls, wine cups, plates, chopsticks, spoons, tea cups, plates, etc. A table for eight or ten people requires ten sets of such tableware.
In addition, a full set of plates were needed for serving the dishes. Lu Yan also wanted to save face, so he ordered twenty-four dishes, including bowls of soup, which also required a lot.
Even if all of them used tableware that cost fifty wen per set, it would cost fifty taels of silver. But could the mansion of the Marquis of Pingyang use tableware that cost fifty wen per set?
Even if you choose the high-end one, which costs 500 wen per set, it will cost 500 taels of silver.
Adding the plates needed for the banquet, the expenses for this would also cost two thousand taels of silver.
Lu Yan's teeth ached: "Aren't there tableware in the storeroom? Can't we use it?"
Qi Jing took out the warehouse account book and handed it to Lu Yan: "Yes, but they are not complete sets. If we hold a small banquet, ten or eight tables are enough, but this is a banquet for a hundred tables. We can't divide them into different levels. Everyone uses different tableware, right?"
For a banquet with a hundred tables, even if the tableware used is different, the difference cannot be too big, otherwise it will easily lead to criticism.
Lu Yan looked at Qi Jing: "You must have a way, right?"
Qi Jing nodded and then shook her head: "I do have a way, but if I tell anyone, I'm afraid it will bring shame to the Pingyang Marquis's Mansion."
Qi Jing didn't want to take responsibility. She said, "Although the old lady is ill, matters of marriage still need to be consulted with the old lady. Why don't you discuss it with the old lady? If there is really no other solution, then I can use my method."
"You speak first." Lu Yan wanted to ask Old Madam Lu, but he also wanted to hear Qi Jing's method.
Qi Jing said, "When I was living in the other courtyard, I heard that when merchants in the surrounding area held banquets and were short of tables and chairs, they would go to the restaurant to rent them. Firstly, it saved me a lot of trouble. Secondly, tables and chairs are rarely used after purchase and are basically put away. The money I spent is not recouped. Renting them saves me money and saves my face. If they are damaged, I only need to pay for one or two sets."
Lu Yan's eyes lit up. Yes, the account just calculated was only the price of cups, plates and bowls, and did not include tables, chairs and benches.
The prices of tables and chairs will only get higher. Not counting the existing ones at home, we need to purchase 70 or 80 sets. This price...
Lu Yan immediately stood up and said, "I'll go discuss this with Grandmother. If it works out, you can contact the person."
"Okay." Qi Jing nodded obediently. The Marquis' Mansion was now stretched thin. Qin Wan was gone, and the new mistress was married off by His Majesty, and had been with the Marquis through thick and thin. She didn't think she could compete with Bai Wanyi for favor, so she had to plan for herself early. If she couldn't hold on to his feelings, she would try to control power. If she couldn't control power, she would try to control money.
With the imperial decree granting the marriage, Old Lady Lu felt much better. After hearing Lu Yan's plan, she nodded and agreed: "Renting tables, chairs and benches is not a shameful thing. If we can save money, let's save some."
Old Lady Lu asked again, "On the day the betrothal gifts were delivered, I heard that several princes came to visit. Did you take note of the gifts they brought?"
Lu Yan's brows relaxed when he talked about this. "The eldest prince gave a statue of Guanyin, the goddess of fertility. The third prince gave a famous painting by a great figure of the previous dynasty. The fifth prince gave a folding screen. The sixth prince gave the most unique gift, a box of homemade cakes."
Old Lady Lu frowned: "These princes are obviously trying to win you over. Isn't the Fourth Prince making any moves?"
Lu Yan shook his head and nodded again: "At the end of the banquet, the Fourth Prince sent someone to deliver five hundred taels of silver."
"That's quite practical." Old Lady Lu didn't ask any more questions, only saying, "You have the final say on the wedding banquet. But since the princes have stepped forward, it can't be too shabby. We should raise the level of the banquet. If you don't have enough money, you can mortgage the shop and redeem it after collecting the gifts from the banquet."
"Don't worry about not collecting enough gifts. With the princes setting such a good example, the other ministers will surely follow suit. There will be no shortage of money."
Lu Yan was reluctant to mortgage the shop: "How embarrassing would it be if this got out?"
Old Lady Lu snorted softly and said, "Who do you think those pawnshops rely on for their livelihood? Aren't they just the wealthy and powerful like us? Everyone has their money short sometimes, so they just borrow money to make ends meet."
Lu Yan had never dealt with such matters before, so he didn't quite believe it. "Really? Isn't it shameful to go to a pawn shop?"
"You can ask the butler."
Lu Yan really called the butler over to ask.
The steward had been in the mansion for many years, and had been in charge for over twenty years. He said, "When Madam Li was still alive, she had mortgaged her shop to a pawnshop, borrowed money, and then redeemed it after the money was turned over. This was a common practice in the homes of the powerful."
Lu Yan was relieved and took the deeds of the two shops to the housekeeper: "Go and mortgage these two shops."
The housekeeper took the deed and asked, "Which pawnshop are you going to?"
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