Jiang Shu has been recuperating in the Marquis' Mansion for many days. Now she looks radiant, the worry about the ghost fetus has disappeared, and her mental state is better than before the miscarriage.
She has always had extreme emotions, with a clear distinction between love and hate. Now that Jiang Songyi saved her life, she was filled with gratitude, and her view of Jiang Songyi became particularly close. She enthusiastically pulled Jiang Songyi over.
"Song Yi, you've arrived just in time. Come over here and take a look at these exquisite headpieces and flower crowns. Do you like them? Pick out a few and take them back. Consider them as your advance dowry."
Jiang Songyi wanted to refuse on the grounds that she had done nothing but refused, but her eyes fell on the dazzling and priceless jewelry boxes. Her hands involuntarily selected two pieces that she liked, and she said in accordance with her heart, "Thank you, Auntie."
If the Marquis's mansion were ever to be raided, these properties would eventually fall into the hands of others. It would be better for me to enjoy the fruits of their labor first.
Jiang Dinglian, Jiang Shu, and Xu had all grown accustomed to the thought of confiscating the family's property and wiping it out, which often surfaced in Jiang Songyi's mind. It seemed as if they would become uncomfortable if she stopped mentioning it one day.
"Of your gorgeous wedding gown back then, only these precious items are left. Yet you still generously gave them to me. I will take care of Songyi's dowry in the future." Xu glanced at Jiang Shu, intending to return the jewelry.
Jiang Songyi naturally obeyed her mother's wishes.
If her mother didn't want her to accept it, then she wouldn't take it. Although she loved money like her life, she cherished her mother's kindness more.
"Here! The dowry I prepared for you is a token of my love. As your aunt, I am willing to give it to Songyi."
As Jiang Shu spoke, she picked out a few more pieces of dazzling jewelry and stuffed them into Jiang Songyi's hands. Her generous gesture seemed as if what she held in her hands were not priceless jewelry, but vegetables that were readily available in the market.
At one point, I suddenly felt that this aunt was actually quite good. She might have been a bit naive in her past life, but compared to me, her fate was even more tragic. To be fair, her faults weren't enough to deserve her death. If the Marquis's mansion were to be wiped out, she would have parted ways with Hao Ren and returned to her family. As a woman of the Jiang family, she would probably be caught in the crossfire. And all this accumulated wealth would eventually fall into the hands of others.
Jiang Shu felt extremely comforted after hearing Jiang Songyi's true inner thoughts. It was obvious that Songyi still had some tenderness for her!
She made up her mind that she must continue to increase her efforts to show her care for Song Yi and touch her heart with warmth!
Jiang Songyi asked with concern, "Has all of Aunt's dowry been recovered?"
When this matter was mentioned, Xu became slightly angry.
"Your aunt is truly naive. For so many years, she has been using her dowry to fill the financial gap of the Protectorate Mansion. Now, when she reconciles the dowry list, she only gets back a tiny portion."
Jiang Songyi blinked slightly, his face full of confusion. "I heard that aristocratic families have certain rules. No matter how difficult the family situation is, they will not use their wife's dowry. How dare the Duke of Huguo's Mansion..."
Xu sneered, "They are so shameless! Even if your father was living on coarse food in the army, he wouldn't dare to covet my dowry. This Hao Ren is absolutely spineless."
Jiang Dinglian coughed dryly and agreed, "Madam, you are absolutely right. I am penniless in the army. Even if the emperor allowed me to confiscate your property, I would not dare to have any improper thoughts about your dowry."
Xu glanced at Jiang Shu mockingly, "Jiang Shu, your vision really needs to be improved."
Jiang Shu responded helplessly. She looked up at Jiang Dinglian and thought, you can't say that Xu's taste is not that good either, right?
Such a huge amount of gold and silver treasures is only half of the dowry. We must not let Hao Ren get it so easily. We can't let him use the money he got from the Marquis' Mansion to plot against the Marquis' Mansion again.
Jiang Shu was conflicted. She sighed and said, "Most of my dowry was invested in the maintenance of the mansion. It will be extremely difficult to recover the expenses that have already been spent."
Compared to Jiang Shu, Jiang Songyi's disgust towards Hao Ren is even greater, and she will never allow him to live in comfort.
"Aunt, even if we take this matter to the authorities, the Duke of the Protectorate will hardly be in the right. How about this: either the Duke's Mansion repays us in silver, or we take all the valuables we can carry. I think the peach blossom forest in the mansion is quite beautiful. My mentor's hot spring villa is lacking flowers and trees. Why not transplant some to decorate his garden?"
Hearing this, a gleam of light flashed in Jiang Dinglian's eyes: "Ling Ji!"
Why didn't he think of this!
If Hao Ren refused to pay back the money, he would simply demolish the Duke of Huguo's Mansion! Even if he couldn't pay it back, the title deed to the Duke of Huguo's Mansion could at least serve as collateral, right?
Jiang Dinglian acted quickly and made arrangements immediately. He immediately sent Ling Ji to lead people to the Duke of Huguo's Mansion to move the property.
At this time, in the Duke of Huguo's Mansion.
Hao Ren has been dismissed from his job and confined to his home for several days since he was sued by Jiang Dinglian.
Jiang Shu insisted on divorcing him, but he firmly disagreed. Even when Jiang Dinglian put a knife to his neck and moved Jiang Shu's dowry out of the mansion, he still refused to sign the divorce documents.
At this moment, what he was thinking about was not how to win Jiang Shu back, but the unbearable anger.
He planned to wait until the Yongding Marquis's Mansion was ransacked, Jiang Dinglian lost the emperor's favor, and Jiang Shu's family fell into decline with no one to support them, and then divorce her cruelly!
The banana trees outside the pavilion swayed gracefully in the spring rain, the sound of the raindrops accompanying Hao Ren's solitary drinking. He drank several cups in a row before temporarily calming his anger.
At this time, Xia Zhiyu was running towards this side hurriedly with the account book in her arms, and the maid behind her could not keep up with her pace.
She looked panicked. "Cousin, Madam is being too harsh. The treasury in the mansion is almost empty. Even if she wanted to take the dowry away, she shouldn't have emptied the entire mansion."
Xia Zhiyu has been managing the household chores for Jiang Shu recently. He witnessed with his own eyes the mountains of gold, silver and treasures in the warehouse, and once thought that the Duke's Mansion was an endless gold mountain.
Now, she married her cousin and thought that she would live a life of luxury for the rest of her life. However, the scene before her made her worried.
However, today, the canteen did not deliver the precious bird's nest to her. Instead, they told her that the storehouse in the mansion was empty. Not only could they not continue to produce bird's nests, they could not even pay the monthly salaries of the servants and maids.
Now, as the head of the family, the housekeepers and the maids all asked her for money, but Xia Zhiyu was an orphan, so where did she get her personal savings?
So, her thoughts turned to the gorgeous jewelry and precious calligraphy and paintings in the storeroom, thinking that she might be able to sell some of them to meet her emergency needs. However, when she opened the storeroom door, she found it was completely empty, a desolate scene!
"Everything in that warehouse is her dowry. She can move it wherever she wants." Although Hao Ren was extremely reluctant to admit it, it was an indisputable fact. Chinese law clearly stipulated that a woman's dowry belonged to her alone and her husband's family was not allowed to use it without permission, so he could not stop him.
Xia Zhiyu was shocked: "So much wealth, is it all her dowry? What about the property of the Duke's Mansion?"
Hao Ren remained silent.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
