Tan Yue's eyes widened immediately, and she glared at him fiercely.
The maid in purple trembled with fright, but managed to stay upright and not back down.
In this noisy and chaotic environment, Jiang Sheng kept her head down and remained silent.
Even Old Madam Jiang stood up in confusion, wanting to come over and ask.
Filial piety is paramount; no matter what, one must always acknowledge one's parents.
Before she could even speak, Jiang Liaoshi stopped her sneer, shoved the object in her hand over, and said indifferently, "Since you are unwilling to acknowledge me as your mother, I will not force you. This is your greeting gift."
The cold silver ingot was a bit rough to the touch. Based on Jiang Sheng's experience in taking stock of Jiuzhenfang's accounts, it should be about fifty taels in size.
She pursed her lips.
Jiang Liaoshi, who was standing to the side, seemed heartbroken and kept dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief.
Jiang Chengyuan stood by and offered words of comfort in a low voice, interspersed with a few words of pleading.
Jiang Sheng sighed, her fair palm opening to reveal a plump, round, yet slightly trembling silver ingot.
She still wore the necklace given to her by Jiang Chengyu around her neck, the gold bracelet given to her by the Second Madam on her wrist, and held a gold hairpin with a hidden mechanism in her other hand. A corner of a five-hundred-tael silver note was slightly visible in her bosom.
The contrast between gold and silver, and the difference between having more zeros and having fewer zeros.
Madam Jiang stopped in her tracks, her face filled with disappointment.
The second wife held her breath, not daring to interrupt.
Jiang Chengyuan was still comforting his mother when he suddenly turned around and saw the fifty-tael silver ingot. He almost jumped up, "Land deed, where did the land deed go?"
Jiang Liao paused in her act of wiping her eyes.
"Mother, why is it fifty taels of silver ingot?" Jiang Chengyuan's lips began to tremble. "Why, why?"
Jiang Chengfeng felt a little sympathetic and was about to speak when the second wife pulled him back.
"What do you mean, why?" Jiang Liao said calmly. "You asked me to keep the land deed, and I'm going to give it to your new wife after you get married. You know that I'm short of money, and this fifty taels was saved by Cheng Huan stopping her tonics."
Is that really the case?
Jiang Chengyuan was speechless. He saw the gold bracelet on Jiang Sheng's hand, the gold hairpin she was holding, the necklace she was wearing, and the silver notes in her arms.
Even his cousins contributed gold, while he, as the eldest brother, and his stepmother together only contributed fifty taels of silver.
Guilt overwhelmed him; the joy he had felt at the beginning was now replaced by an overwhelming sense of shame.
His desire to make amends was finally shattered. Jiang Chengyuan didn't even dare to look at Xiao Jiangkuai anymore. He muttered "why" in a daze as he left Deren Courtyard step by step without looking back.
There aren't that many whys.
One was scheming, the other was naive to the point of being innocent.
Jiang Sheng stared blankly at the fifty-tael silver ingot. In fact, it was quite a lot. Whether it was during the time of wandering and begging or during the years of hard work, receiving fifty taels would have made her secretly happy and unable to fall asleep all night.
But now, she doesn't want the money at all.
Just like that, she didn't expect even a tiny bit of that so-called maternal love.
The little girl, who was bullied as a child and always cried and wanted her father and mother to save her, understood that she was not really valued when she learned about her background but no one came looking for her.
The accidental eavesdropping behind the door of Derentang proved that everything was true.
Fortunately, Jiang Sheng was never greedy.
Meeting her brothers had already used up all her luck.
For the others, even one coming would be a blessing, and she would be grateful for even one more.
No, and it doesn't matter.
Jiang Sheng smiled, her round face full of sincerity and contentment. She took two steps forward and, under everyone's watchful eyes, stuffed the fifty taels back into her hands, saying softly, "Thank you, Madam Jiang, but the tonic is more important. Please drink it first."
Aside from being addressed as "Madam Jiang," she was truly proper and well-behaved.
Madam Jiang gripped her cane tightly, and Tan Yue's eyes reddened.
Even the Second Madam sighed and gripped Jiang Chengyu's hand tightly.
"Are you complaining that it's not enough?" Jiang Liao sneered again. "If you think that the second branch of the family is family just because they give more, then go and acknowledge the second branch of the family."
Having said that, he strode away.
Silence returned to Tokunin-in Temple. Everyone was silent, their expressions solemn as if they were attending a funeral.
Jiang Sheng found it amusing and snuggled up to Old Madam Jiang, saying in a coquettish tone, "Grandmother, I'm hungry."
Madam Jiang snapped out of her daze and forced a smile. "It's good that you're hungry. The main kitchen has prepared the food long ago, and we can eat anytime."
Jiang Chengyu broke free from his mother and went over to join in the fun, saying, "Grandmother, you can't be biased, I want to eat too."
"Alright, alright, everyone eat, everyone stay and eat." Madam Jiang smiled sincerely. "The second son and his wife should also stay and have a meal. Today, the chefs in the main kitchen have prepared some good meat and vegetables for little Jiang Sheng."
As the old saying goes, a chef's favorite food is a glutton.
When the chefs in the main kitchen heard that their cooking had been devoured by the eldest daughter, they were overjoyed and spent an entire afternoon roasting a whole lamb. They also reportedly cooked boneless fish and three-layered duck, which took several master chefs a lot of time to prepare.
Such craftsmanship is a rare treat.
The second wife covered her mouth and laughed, "Today we're all thanks to little Jiang Sheng, shouldn't the second master have some wine?"
"Have a drink." Jiang Jizong smiled as well. "Welcome home, little Jiang Sheng."
The meal was a lively affair, with toasts and laughter filling the air. The father and son from the second branch of the family both got drunk, and the two girls were so full they were practically bursting with food.
The second wife summoned six strong women who managed to get the father and son away.
Derentang has finally returned to complete tranquility.
Jiang Sheng stuck out her little tongue and lay on the soft couch, refusing to get up no matter what.
"Miss, let's go back to Yunxi Pavilion to sleep." The talkative little maid continued to chatter, "It's not good to sleep here, you'll easily catch a cold, and what if you throw up in the middle of the night?"
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