Chapter 21: The Past Revealed by the Gift
Meanwhile, Songhetang also heard the news.
Granny Fang was so angry that she immediately went to the Begonia Courtyard to argue with Madam Wu, but was stopped by someone sent by Madam Min Qiao.
"Madam, aren't you angry?" Granny Fang's eyes were bloodshot, her tone full of indignation. "This must have been a rumor spread by the Marquis's side! She clearly wants to pin everything on you!"
Madam Min was deeply moved. Whether in her past life or this one, whenever she was in trouble, Granny Fang was always the first person to stand up for her.
She waved for Wei Jia and Lü Wu to release Fang Mama, then personally took Fang Mama's hand and led her to a small table to sit down. She poured her a cup of hot tea before saying, "Don't worry. I know what I'm doing. I won't let myself suffer."
Seeing that Granny Fang was about to say something, Madam Min Qiao waved her hand to stop her and continued, "Have you forgotten? The birthday banquet of the Prince of Chang'an's mansion is the day after tomorrow."
Granny Fang was taken aback. What did attending the birthday banquet have to do with Lady Zhao's questioning?
Wei Jia, standing to the side, smiled and explained, "Granny Fang, what the Grand Madam means is that going to see the Lady of the Marquis now will not help. Wouldn't it be better to clarify any rumors at the birthday banquet in front of all the old ladies and grand ladies of the capital?"
Granny Fang also realized what was going on and nodded repeatedly, saying, "Yes, yes, yes. But, can we just let the Lady of the Marquis off like this? She's only been in charge of the Marquis's mansion for a short time, yet she dares to slander the Grand Madam like this! If we don't teach her a lesson this time, won't she start to look down on the Grand Madam in the future?"
Madam Min Qiao smiled and scoffed, "Do you think she'll have a good life after the birthday banquet? Besides, without money, running a Marquis's mansion isn't so easy!"
Granny Fang was still a little confused, but Madam Min Qiao had already changed the subject.
"Are all the preparations for the birthday banquet complete?" Madam Min Qiao looked at Wei Jia.
Wei Jia said solemnly, "Everything is ready. I have prepared the clothes and jewelry that the Grand Madam will wear that day. The carriage for the trip has also been arranged in advance."
"On the day of the trip, Fang Mama and I will accompany the Grand Madam closely. I also prepared a little maid to accompany her, so that she can run errands and deliver messages in case of emergency."
"As for the birthday gift for the old princess, I prepared a half-meter-tall red coral ornament for the Grand Madam. There are really no valuable items left in the Marquis's storeroom, so I found this ornament from the Grand Madam's private treasury."
Madam Min nodded repeatedly as she listened.
However, when Granny Fang heard what the congratulatory gift would be, she jumped up in surprise.
"You, you said you wanted the Grand Madam to send you something? A red coral ornament?! How can that be! That's the most valuable thing in all of the Grand Madam's dowry!"
"Back when the old master first acquired this ornament, someone offered 100,000 taels of silver, but he refused to sell it. He kept it as a treasure in his study and wouldn't let anyone touch it."
"In the end, because the old lady was going to marry into the Marquis's mansion, the old master was afraid that she would be looked down upon in the Marquis's mansion, so he gave this red coral to the old lady as part of her dowry."
"How can you just give away something so important?"
Granny Fang looked at Madam Min Qiao and said, "Madam, this is the old master's sincere affection for you! Although later the Qiao family..."
At this point, Granny Fang suddenly stopped talking, her eyes looking a little uneasy. She glanced cautiously at Madam Min, and seeing that Madam Min wasn't angry, she felt slightly relieved. But she didn't dare continue the topic.
Seeing Fang Mama's appearance, Madam Min Qiao gave a helpless bitter smile.
She knew what Granny Fang was wary of.
When she married into the Marquis's family, the Qiao family was genuinely happy for her and prepared her dowry with utmost sincerity.
When the Marquis of Xuanping's household needed a large sum of money to cover its financial deficit, Lady Wang, the then-wife of the Marquis of Xuanping, revealed the details when she arranged the marriage with the Qiao family. She stated that the dowry could not be less than 500,000 taels of silver, of which at least 300,000 taels of cash was required.
At the time, the Qiao family was one of the largest merchant families in Jiangnan. While focusing on the silk industry, they also got involved in salt business and shipping.
Therefore, when preparing the dowry for Madam Min Qiao, 500,000 taels of silver were prepared, and the other treasures, jewelry, screens, ornaments, silks and satins, estates and shops were countless.
Afterwards, Madam Min calculated that the dowry prepared for her by the Qiao family exceeded 800,000 taels! Not to mention anything else, the red coral ornament alone was worth 100,000 taels!
Min Qiaoshi originally harbored some resentment towards her family, angry that they had made her become someone's concubine.
But when she saw the dowry, especially the red coral ornament, her anger subsided considerably. What remained was gratitude towards her family and apprehension about marrying far away.
However, as it turned out, the more generous the dowry the Qiao family gave her, the greater the rewards the Qiao family wanted to gain from her once she had established herself in the Marquis's mansion.
Especially after Wang's death, when she was promoted to the position of Marquis's wife, the Qiao family's ambitions were fully exposed to Min Qiao.
It can only be said that the Qiao family's appetite was too big, and the small Xuanping Marquis's mansion was simply not enough for them to take the blame.
Therefore, the ruthless Min Qiaoshi and the decisive Xuanping Hou joined forces to cripple most of the Qiao family's resources, severely damaging the family and causing it to fall out of the ranks of major merchants in Jiangnan.
From then on, the Qiao family severed ties with the Min Qiao family.
If you calculate the time, it has been almost twenty years since Min Qiaoshi last contacted the Qiao family.
"Never mind, let's get a new one." Madam Min sighed and instructed Wei Jia.
“Yes, Madam,” Wei Jia replied.
“Granny Fang, let’s go to Jiangnan next spring,” Madam Min Qiao said nostalgically. “I haven’t been back for over thirty years, and I suddenly miss the good things and scenery of Jiangnan.”
In her past life, she never returned to Jiangnan until her death, nor did she ever contact the Qiao family again. It's unknown whether the Qiao family was more happy or saddened when news of her death reached them.
I imagine most of them are happy.
After all, the Qiao family gave birth to her, raised her, and paved the way for her, making her the high and noble Lady of Xuanping, while she caused the Qiao family to suffer a great loss of vitality and decline in prestige.
Not only did the Qiao family fail to obtain the title of the number one merchant in Jiangnan, which they had coveted for generations, but they also couldn't even retain their original status...
"Really? Madam, are you serious?"
Granny Fang looked at Madam Min Qiao with disbelief and anticipation in her eyes. "Madam, did I hear that right? You mean we're going back to Jiangnan next spring? Did I hear that right?"
“You heard me right, we’ll go back next year,” Min Qiaoshi replied affirmatively.
"That's wonderful! Miss, that's wonderful! We can go home now!" Granny Fang excitedly rushed over and hugged Madam Min.
At this moment, Granny Fang was as excited as a child.
Going home, shall we?
Min Qiao suddenly felt a soreness in her nose.
Wei Jia waved to Lv Wu and led the people out. Min Qiaoshi and Granny Fang were left behind, reminiscing about Jiangnan and the past.
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