Chapter 348 Dowry Dispute
The princess consort of a prince only had forty-eight taels of dowry; it's shameful to even mention it!
When the Earl of Enping next door got married, she had a dowry of 108 tiers! This is still talked about with great interest to this day!
Upon comparing the two, Wu couldn't help but shed tears.
Seeing this, Wu Qin thought and thought and finally spoke up, saying, "Mother, when I got married, I brought a lot of dowry with me. Why don't we take some out and add it to my younger sister's dowry?"
Madam Wu looked at Wu Qin with surprise and delight, "This...you, you're willing? A dowry is a woman's means of survival. Are you really willing to give it to your sister?"
Wu Qin smiled and said, "What's there to be reluctant about? Mine belongs to the Marquis's mansion, doesn't it?"
“My younger sister is going to marry the Third Prince. Her dowry is too ugly. It’s not just my younger sister who will lose face, but also our Marquis’s mansion.”
"Besides, if I treat my younger sister well now, she'll remember how good I am to her as her sister-in-law when she's doing well in the future, won't she?"
Wu Qin's words carried a degree of sincerity, but more than anything, they reflected helplessness.
Wu, the mother-in-law, had cried countless times in front of her about Min Yuexi's meager dowry.
What she meant, how could she not understand?
Isn't the hope that she can use her dowry to help Min Yuexi?
She has been considering whether or not to do this.
Now that she had said it, she had no reason to hesitate any longer.
"Alright, alright, don't worry, I'll definitely make sure Xier repays you many times over in the future." Madam Wu excitedly grasped Wu Qin's hand and asked with expectant eyes, "How many dowry items can you scrape together for your sister?"
Several dowry items!?
Wu Qin trembled and almost pulled her hand away from Wu's grasp.
There were only a few of them when she got married.
Her father was an illegitimate son, and she was his illegitimate daughter. How much dowry could she get when she got married?
When I mentioned bringing a large dowry, it was just a casual remark.
But since the words had already been spoken, Wu Qin couldn't go back on her word, so she gritted her teeth and said, "Two sets, no, three sets, I can prepare three sets of dowry for my younger sister."
Upon hearing this, a deep disappointment welled up in Wu's expression. She involuntarily loosened her grip on Wu Qin's hand.
Just then, Madam He quickly smoothed things over, saying, "Madam, the dowry for Santai is already quite substantial. It's already very kind of the eldest young mistress to be able to contribute so much."
Madam Wu glanced at Madam He and sighed helplessly. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she said with a hint of reproach, "It's all the old lady's fault for being so heartless! If she had cared about Xi'er even a little, Xi'er's dowry wouldn't be so paltry!"
"Madam, be careful what you say!" Madam He was so frightened by these words that she quickly spoke up to stop her.
Madam Wu realized she had misspoke and immediately stopped talking. But after a short while, she couldn't help but mutter to herself again, "The old lady is so generous to Su Rongrong, an outsider, and so lenient to those servants in the Yang family, so why won't she give her own granddaughter a dowry?"
"Madam! Please stop! Miss has repeatedly told us not to let anyone speak ill of the old lady behind her back!" Madam He was truly terrified.
Min Yuexi repeatedly emphasized this point, telling her to persuade Wu Shi more and not to complain about the old lady.
“I didn’t slander the old lady at all; I was just telling the truth,” Wu retorted, unconvinced.
No sooner had she finished speaking than Min Yuexi walked in from outside the door.
Seeing Min Yuexi's unpleasant expression, Madam Wu opened her mouth guiltily, but finally couldn't help but say, "Xi'er, your grandmother doesn't care about you or our whole family at all. Why do you still defend her like this?"
She can't even complain a couple of times!
I really don't understand what this daughter is thinking.
Min Yuexi earnestly advised, "Mother, without Grandmother, I wouldn't have been able to marry the Third Prince. Without Grandmother, my health wouldn't have fully recovered. Just remember the kindness Grandmother showed me. Don't worry about anything else."
Seeing that Wu was about to say something more, Min Yuexi's eyes suddenly turned fierce.
Ms. Wu had no choice but to give in, saying, "Fine, whatever you say."
Min Yuexi nodded in satisfaction before continuing, "Don't give me your dowry, sister-in-law. It doesn't matter if I have a few more or a few less dowries."
Moreover, even if her dowry is meager, the Third Prince will still happily marry her.
The next day was the day to display the dowry.
People from the Xuanping Marquis's family and relatives came, and the palace also sent female officials. The Third Prince's maternal family also sent a lot of people.
Previously, with Old Master Liu keeping them in check, no one dared to approach the Third Prince. The Third Prince, in turn, was kept in check by Consort Liu Hui, and dared not harbor any designs on him.
But ever since the Third Prince was encouraged by Li Sanqi, he gradually developed the idea of competing with him.
The Liu family naturally noticed the signs and began to have dealings with the Third Prince both openly and secretly.
This time, the Liu family naturally took notice of the Third Prince's wedding.
To be honest, the Liu family didn't really think much of Min Yuexi, a woman with such a terrible reputation. Some even considered marrying their daughter to the Third Prince.
But the Third Prince had his eye on Min Yuexi. No matter how unwilling the Liu family was, they were powerless to stop him.
Taking advantage of the opportunity to display the dowry, several members of the Liu family who disliked Min Yuexi worked hard to secure the chance to come to the Xuanping Marquis's residence.
They had heard early on that the Marquis of Xuanping's mansion was penniless, and they came here to see Min Yuexi make a fool of herself.
Sure enough, when the Liu family members saw the forty-eight dowry items displayed in the flower hall of the Marquis of Xuanping's mansion for people to admire, they all showed disdainful expressions.
The third wife of the Liu family sneered mercilessly, "The Min family is a marquis's mansion, how come their dowry is so meager?"
This Mrs. Liu was someone who wanted to marry her daughter to the Third Prince, but failed to do so.
The eldest aunt of the Liu family had always been on good terms with the third wife of the Liu family. Upon hearing this, she immediately chimed in, "Last month, when the Crown Prince got married, the dowry of the Zhong family's daughter was a full 108 loads."
"Why is it that when it comes to the Third Prince, Miss Min's dowry is so meager?"
"Could it be that you look down on the Third Prince?"
Hearing the Liu family's blatant contempt, Wu Qin and He Shi, who had been standing by, couldn't help but turn pale.
Wu was even more furious and gritted her teeth.
Fearing that Wu would quarrel with the Liu family, Wu Qin and He Shi immediately separated Wu and the Liu family without making a sound.
Thinking that her daughter would have many dealings with the Liu family in the future, Wu suppressed her anger.
However, the Liu family seemed to have no idea what it meant to know when to stop, and they went further and further as they spoke. Mrs. Liu even reached into the dowry chest.
"Oh dear, why is this box so empty? It doesn't seem very substantial at all. I see brocade on top, but underneath it's all quilts?"
Mrs. Liu's loud shouting immediately drew strange looks from everyone.
The eldest aunt of the Liu family casually rummaged through the dowry chests and said with a mocking expression, "Aren't these brocades old patterns from a few years ago? How come you can't even afford a few bolts of the latest patterns as part of your dowry?"
"Let me take a look. Shops in the west city, shops in Linjing, and shops in Hezhou Prefecture... Tsk tsk, how come there isn't even a decent shop?"
Mrs. Liu looked at the dowry in disbelief. "Anyone who didn't know better would think this was the marriage of a concubine's daughter from a humble family."
That's it? You want to be a prince's consort?
Where's the face? Where is the face?
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