Jiang Jiaojiao glanced at Su Peng warily. "Go wait outside."
She doesn't care about returning two ounces to her.
In the past, she would spend tens of taels of silver to make even a simple piece of jewelry, so she didn't care about this small amount of money.
Su Peng stood still.
He looked at Jiang Jiaojiao with a grin and said, "I'm going back to my room to sleep tonight. Jiaojiao doesn't need to get in my way."
Su Peng has a handsome appearance; he has a slightly roguish charm when he smiles.
Being attracted to beauty is not a male prerogative; women are no exception, and Jiang Jiaojiao was no exception either.
Looking at Su Peng's appearance and recalling their intimate moments, Jiang Jiaojiao blushed.
She gave Su Peng a playful glare, "Don't be like your father, who hands over his salary to the family one day and then gambles it away behind their backs the next."
“My dear, you really don’t understand your husband. Do you think I’m that kind of person? I’m busy with my uncle’s business all day long, and I often miss meals. How could I have time to gamble?”
Su Peng's words were half true and half false; there were indeed times when he was so busy that he didn't have time to eat.
But once he was done with his busy schedule and his uncle took him to a brothel to relax and have fun, he stopped mentioning it.
Jiang Jiaojiao walked towards the wardrobe and took out a makeup box from it.
Su Peng had already laid everything bare, so Jiang Jiaojiao couldn't avoid him, especially since there was nowhere to hide anything in the room.
Jiang Jiaojiao simply placed the makeup box on the table, opened the lid, and took out a silver ingot that was about one ounce in size.
"Here you go. I don't have much money on me, so I have to be careful with it."
Su Peng glanced at the makeup box as he took the silver.
"Jiao'er, isn't the Vermilion Bird hairpin inlaid with rubies?" Su Peng asked knowingly.
He recognized the hair ornament; it was his aunt's favorite but one she had never worn before, and he had only ever seen her wear it once.
It wasn't because he had a good memory, but because he loved that ruby so much.
Su Peng had heard his father mention that this hair ornament was a dowry his grandmother had prepared for his aunt, and it was very valuable.
Jiang Jiaojiao quickly closed the makeup box. "Whether it's a ruby or not doesn't matter. This is my dowry from my father, so you're not allowed to covet it."
"No, I was just asking. My aunt used to have a hairpin like this, but I don't know who ended up with it." Su Peng concealed the greed in his eyes.
Jiang Jiaojiao vehemently denied it, saying, "This is a gift I received at my coming-of-age ceremony, not your aunt's."
After receiving the silver, Su Peng didn't glance at Jiang Jiaojiao's precious makeup box again.
Upon arriving at the East Courtyard, Su Zhengxing took the silver and left in a hurry.
Qin breathed a long sigh of relief, "Thank God, I hope Yue'er still remembers your father."
Then she looked at Su Peng and said, "I wasn't very satisfied with this daughter-in-law at first, but since she's willing to spend money and is quite sensible, I'll never mention the matter of Young Master Wei again. My son, I've had enough of this hard life."
"Mother, our good days are yet to come! Once Father gets the money from my cousin, I'll go and buy back all the servants we used to have to serve you."
Thinking about how he would soon be living that happy life, Su Peng couldn't help but smile.
Qin Shi tidied her hair. "Yes, that's what I think too. Your father used to live a life of luxury, but he's been living a stifled life all these years. When things get better, we need to get him a carriage and a page, and also keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't gamble anymore."
"Mother, let's not talk about the future. I have some good news to tell you first. Jiao'er has promised me that she will take Caiyan as her concubine."
"Really?"
Madam Qin found it hard to believe that her daughter-in-law, who had only been married for three days, had actually agreed to her husband taking in concubines.
Su Peng laughed and said, "It's true, she had already slept with other people before she came into the family, but our family didn't look down on her. It's no big deal for me to take in a concubine early on."
Madam Qin smiled broadly and praised, "With a concubine, she has two children in a year. This daughter-in-law is sensible and well-behaved. Her father is indeed worthy of being the Minister of Revenue. Even a concubine's daughter is well-educated."
In the days that followed, whenever Qin thought of those words, she wanted to slap herself hard across the face, but that's another story.
Caiyan brought lunch to the room. She had brought back two catties of meat from her homecoming visit today, so lunch consisted of one meat dish and one vegetable dish.
"Miss, please eat while it's hot. It's getting colder and colder, and the food will get cold quickly if it's left out. The son-in-law's portion has been sent to the madam's courtyard." Caiyan lifted the lid of the food box, and the aroma of meat and vegetables wafted out.
Jiang Jiaojiao glanced at the food on the table, but had no appetite whatsoever.
She walked to the table and sat down. "Caiyan, you've been with me for so many years, I should have found you a servant to marry. But considering your loyalty to me, you can be my son-in-law's concubine."
Caiyan's hand trembled, and the bowl in her hand almost fell to the ground.
“Miss, I will not marry. I am already very content to be able to serve by your side.”
Caiyan cursed inwardly. A concubine is still a slave, not even as good as a mistress. At least a mistress is half a mistress.
Jiang Jiaojiao was very satisfied with Caiyan's attitude, and softened her tone, saying, "Even if you follow the young master, you will still serve in my room. As long as you behave yourself, you can drink your concubine tea after I give birth to a son."
Caiyan knew Jiang Jiaojiao's temper better than anyone; she would never take the initiative to take her in as a concubine to serve her son-in-law.
It must have been the son-in-law who brought this up. No wonder his gaze had been lingering on her these past few days; it turns out he's taken a liking to her.
Caiyan's eyes flickered, her face flushed, and she bowed her head in a gesture of respect: "This servant has nowhere to go, this servant will follow Miss's arrangements."
Having accepted reality, Jiang Jiaojiao wasn't too upset; there were plenty of men with concubines in their harems.
A concubine is different from a maidservant; a maidservant only serves her husband on the days when she is unwell.
After casually typing a few words, Jiang Jiaojiao went about her meal.
Meanwhile, Su Zhengxing changed into a new set of colored robes and went out.
With money in his pocket, Su Zhengxing hailed a carriage to Juxian Pavilion as soon as he left the house.
At this hour, the air in Juxian Pavilion was filled with the melodious sounds of a zither and the aroma of wine and food.
The sight made Su Zhengxing, who wasn't even that hungry before, swallow hard.
Seeing Su Zhengxing stride into the restaurant, Hu Qing stepped forward with a smile, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Please come in, sir. Are you here for a meal or to stay the night?"
Su Zhengxing looked around. The hall was exquisitely decorated, with the plaque of "The Number One Restaurant Under Heaven" hanging directly above.
The shopkeeper was very polite, making people feel at home.
He straightened his back and said, "I'm here to eat."
"May I ask how many guests you have? Would you like to sit in a private room upstairs or in the main hall?" Hu Qing asked habitually.
Su Zhengxing thought that there were too many people and too much chatter in the hall, so it was inconvenient for him to ask the shopkeeper or waiter for information.
With a generous wave of his hand, he said, "I'd like a private room."
"Private rooms are charged separately, please go upstairs, sir." Hu Qing said, nodding to a waiter at the counter, who quickly stepped forward to lead the way.
Su Zhengxing glanced at Hu Qing and the waiter with disdain. "It's not like this is my first time at Juxian Pavilion. Of course I know that private rooms are charged separately."
Hu Qing: "..."
I admit I was being nosy.
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