"Is this still a man? He relied on his original wife to rise to prominence, but not only is he ungrateful, he also treats her as a concubine and corrupts his children. He's pushing people to death!"
"No wonder Madam Wang asked him to return the dowry. With a man like this and a son like this, what's the point of leaving the dowry to them? To bring disaster to more people?"
"Exactly. I don't know how such a person became the Minister of State. The Emperor must have been deceived..."
Gu Jinyu originally thought that Gu Jinding would be able to deal with Wang Yanran.
Wang Yanran loved her son dearly and would never let him suffer. But he never expected that Gu Jinding's departure would bring him even greater fame.
The censor received the news and rushed to confirm the situation. He wrote a memorial on the spot, intending to impeach Gu Jinyu at the court tomorrow morning.
When Gu Jinyu got the news, he felt like he was stuffed into an ice cellar and his heart went cold.
"Hurry, go get the dowry and return it to Wang Yanran."
If he is really impeached, his life will be completely over.
"But where can we get so much money?"
Shen Yunyun also panicked and hurried to the Xiangfu to raise money. The Shangshu Mansion and the Xiangfu were closely related, so it was naturally impossible for him to watch them get into trouble.
However, Shen Yunyun was also severely scolded. She took back all the money she had previously given to the Xiangfu as a filial gift, but it still could not make up for the squandering over the years.
By the evening, they had only collected 80% of the dowry.
The matter of the dowry had become known to the whole city. When the dowry was delivered to the Imperial Master's Mansion, the people of the capital were watching from both sides.
"No wonder the Shangshu Mansion is so wealthy. It turns out it's all thanks to the original wife's dowry."
"You probably don't know that when the daughter of the Prime Minister married into the Shangshu Mansion, her dowry was pitifully small!"
Some older people have seen Shen Yunyun's wedding, and the shabby scene is still fresh in their memory.
Back then, Shen Yunyun and Gu Jinyu had a secret affair, and the Prime Minister did not agree. However, because she was pregnant, he had no choice but to agree to the marriage. Although he agreed, he only sent Shen Yunyun out of the Prime Minister's residence. Or the Prime Minister's wife could not bear it and secretly prepared some dowry for her daughter, but the dowry was pitifully small.
Compared with the dowry that was returned to Wang Yanran now, it was simply disgusting.
The dowry was carried to the Imperial Master's Mansion in a grand procession, and Wang Zhong took the dowry list and checked it one by one.
The Censor also arrived at the scene and joined in the verification.
"Is this the right dowry?"
The crowd watching was curious.
Gu Jinyu sweatdropped. He knew the dowry was still 20% short. He had originally thought he could get away with it, but who knew Wang Zhong would check so carefully, and even the censor would join in the fun.
"I want Yanran."
As long as Wang Yanran doesn't mind the 20% loss of her dowry, the matter can be suppressed.
"I'm sorry, but our wife is still in confinement and won't see outsiders. As for checking the dowry, I will be very careful. Moreover, with the censor here, there will be no mistakes. Please rest assured, Your Excellency."
I only feel uneasy if nothing goes wrong!
Gu Jinyu's back was covered in sweat. If any more bad words were spread about him, he was afraid that he would be completely finished.
"Butler Wang, I've tried my best, but I can only collect 80% of the dowry. Please tell Yanran that I will try my best to collect her dowry and return it to her, and ask her for some grace period."
Wang Zhong gave him a shocked look. "Minister Gu has lived such a glamorous life these past few years, but it turns out it was all just a facade? He actually used his wife's dowry to keep things looking good, and now he can't even pay it back?"
These words really hit Gu Jinyu in the face, but what else could he do?
In the face of real economic strength, all backbone was crushed into dregs.
"Butler Wang, please do me a favor."
Wang Zhong shook his head: "Alright, we can't force Minister Gu to death, right? I'll go ask Madam how to deal with this."
Gu Jinyu gritted her teeth. What did he mean? Was he saying that he would die without Wang Yanran?
Wang Zhong did not lower his voice when he spoke. The onlookers were staring at him and had already heard their conversation.
"Oh my, Minister Gu can't even pay back his first wife's dowry. How shameful!"
"After serving as a minister for so many years, he should have some savings. How come Minister Gu hasn't saved even a single cent?"
"You probably don't know, but the daughter of the Prime Minister probably felt it was shameful to marry without a dowry, so she squandered her wealth after marrying into the Shangshu Mansion. I used to think Shangshu Gu had a rich family fortune, but I didn't expect he was actually sucking the blood of his first wife..."
Gu Jinyu came from the bottom of society and was very concerned about his reputation. When he heard these discussions, he felt as if his face was being trampled on.
Wang Yanran, how could you treat me like this!
He hated this woman.
"Minister Gu, our wife said that, considering we are husband and wife, she can refuse the 20% dowry, but she must release her concubine's documents!"
Gu Jinyu frowned fiercely. Wang Yanran was about to draw a clear line between them.
"How could she be so cruel!"
If Wang Yanran was still his concubine, then he would have the opportunity to bring her back to the Shangshu Mansion in the future, and her dowry would continue to be his.
"Tell Yanran that I have her in my heart. Don't be so angry with me..."
Wang Zhong rolled his eyes and spoke directly without waiting for Gu Jinyu to continue pretending.
"Madam also expected you to say so. She said that if that was the case, then she would follow her previous statement. She would definitely bring this matter to the court and let the emperor judge it."
Gu Jinyu's heart trembled. Now the emperor was clearly on Wang Yanran's side. If the matter was brought to the court, he would not only have to return the dowry, but also be dismissed from office.
"Butler Wang, I want to discuss this matter with Yanran in person."
He didn't believe that Wang Yanran was really so heartless.
"Madam doesn't want to see you. You'd better make a decision quickly. The prince will be here soon."
If the prince saw it, it would mean that the emperor also knew about it. At that time, he wouldn't even have to make a choice and would just ruin his own life.
"Okay, I'll write the document to release the concubine."
After a cup of tea, Wang Zhong entered the yard with the document to release his concubine.
"Madam, this is the document for releasing my concubine."
Wang Yanran looked at the documents and felt relieved.
"From now on, I am free."
She hugged Fubao, and tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Don't be sad, mother. A scumbag father is not good. We don't want him. Let's find a good one!"
Fubao didn't know how to comfort her mother. After she turned into Fubao from the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, she was pampered by all the gods for several years. She had a rough understanding of some of the laws of the fairy world, but the laws of the fairy world were very simple and did not have the grudges and hatreds of the human world.
Her understanding of the world was limited to reading a few storybooks, which was not comprehensive and she did not understand it very well.
In her opinion, if the man is not good, then just pick a good one, just like choosing radishes and cabbages.
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