The dowry was very rich, with all kinds of food, clothing and utensils. The dowry list was also written in great detail, from fields, shops, boxes of silver, furniture to earrings, toilets and mouthwash bowls, everything was clearly listed.
These dowries were not only good-looking, but also very practical. Four hundred acres of land in the suburbs of the capital plus a farm, a small shop in the capital, and a set of rosewood furniture, all of which should add up to more than 5,000 taels of silver. Add to that cloth, clothes, leather, medicinal materials, books, gold and jade ornaments, etc., which cost more than 3,000 taels of silver, plus 1,000 taels of silver as a dowry, and the total amount should be about 10,000 taels of silver.
She was just a fake legitimate daughter, and it was not easy for Jiang to take out so much money from the public treasury to buy her a dowry, and she prepared it very carefully. She could conclude that the dowries of Xie Yuhui and Xie Yuxia, the two concubines, would not even be half of hers.
This is not only because Chen Shiying values her very much, but also because she married into the Chu family and Jiang was willing to befriend her.
In addition, four maids and two wives were sent to accompany her.
One branch of the Ding family had already gone to the capital, taking charge of 400 acres of land and a farm there, and the whole family would live there from now on.
Another family is surnamed Li. The man, Li Bo, is in his forties and used to work in the account office of Chen's residence. The daughter-in-law is called Li Ma Ma. She used to be the manager of the sewing room of Chen's residence. She was the manager mama for Qian Afu. The son, Li Mu, is from the daughter-in-law Li Mu's family, and there are two grandsons, aged six and two.
There were four maids, including Qingfeng, who had come to serve her when she first arrived at the Chen Mansion.
Nanny Jiang, the steward of the main courtyard, led the people to the Rose Courtyard to kowtow to Chen Afu.
Chen Ahfu paid special attention to Nanny Li, who was in her forties, of moderate weight and spoke clearly. Chen Ahfu had a good impression of her and thought that if she used her well, she would be a good assistant. She still trusted Jiang Shi more. Since she had done so much to save face, she would not send a fool or a spy to be her housekeeper.
Nanny Jiang also specifically pointed out that Nanny Li and her husband were not born in the family, and since this family followed Chen Afu, they would have no relationship with the Chen family.
Among the four girls, except Qingfeng, who was a family-born girl, the other three were bought a few months ago and had just been trained. They were all thirteen years old, and their names were Xiaohong, Xiaolu, and Xiaozi.
Nanny Jiang said that the reason they chose such simple names was because they thought Chen Afu would give them new names.
After these people got up, Xia Yue gave each of them a purse containing six silver ingots.
Then, Nanny Jiang took out the key from her waist and took Chen Afu to see the dowry.
Except for the furniture that had been shipped to the capital, the rest of the dowry was placed in the side room of the Rose Courtyard.
The door opened, and the room was filled with boxes. Nanny Jiang opened the boxes again, and there were a dazzling array of things inside, with fabrics and accessories of good quality. In one of the small boxes, there were neatly stacked silver ingots, which was the 1,000 taels of silver in the box.
Chen Afu expressed her gratitude to Nanny Jiang, and Xia Yue handed her a purse containing two silver ingots.
Nanny Jiang took the purse with a smile and handed the key to Chen Afu, who then gave it to Xia Yue for safekeeping. From now on, Xia Yue would be her first maid.
Except for the three little girls, Chen Afu asked everyone else to go home and prepare, as they would take a boat to the capital the next morning. Only Li Ma's son, daughter-in-law and two grandsons were not allowed to go to the capital, as they still had to go back to Dingzhou Prefecture, so there was no need to let the two children go back and forth. Instead, Li Mu's family was asked to go to the General's Mansion to find Yang, who would arrange their accommodation and errands.
Nanny Li and her family kowtowed to Chen Afu again.
Chen Afu had just rested for two quarters of an hour when he heard laughter coming from the yard. It was the sisters Chen Yuqing and Chen Yuxia who came.
The two girls were so happy that their faces flushed, especially Chen Yuxia, who had never been to the capital. They came to add makeup to Chen Ahfu. Chen Yuqing gave her a red gold hairpin inlaid with pearls, and Ah Yuxia gave her two silk handkerchiefs that she "embroidered herself".
As soon as they left, another guest arrived, Chen Yuhui. Because he was too thin, his cheekbones looked higher, his nose was narrower, and the hostility in his eyes could not be concealed.
Chen Ahfu didn't even bother to be polite to her, and said, "You're not here to add to my makeup, are you? Don't say anything unpleasant, it won't affect my good mood."
Chen Yuhui sneered and said sternly, "Of course I won't add any dowry to you, because you don't deserve it at all. You snatched the husband that my grandmother had arranged for me, and instigated my father to find me a rich country bumpkin. Bitch, you are so bad!"
As soon as she finished speaking, her hand suddenly grabbed Chen Afu's face.
Chen Ahfu had been on guard against her, ducking his head back and reaching out to grab her wrist. Her nails were long and pointed, and it was obvious that she was here to disfigure herself.
Chen Ahfu was furious, stretched out his other hand and slapped her twice, then pushed her to the ground with all his strength. He cursed, "I am a country boy, so I have a lot of strength, and you dare to destroy my appearance! I tell you again, you are so ugly, my fiancé will never marry a wife in his life, and he will never marry you, don't dream in vain." Xiaohong said, "Look at how sharp Miss Chen's nails are, go report to the lady, let her know how sinister Miss Chen's intentions are."
Chen Yuhui's face was swollen, and she felt pain, shame, and anger, so she got up and ran away crying. Xiaohong also went to the main courtyard to report to Jiang what the second lady had done.
In the evening, Chen Ahfu and her two sisters went to the main courtyard to eat again. Chen Shiying and Chen Yulan did not come. Because Chu Lingxuan came, they accompanied Chu Lingxuan to eat in the outer courtyard.
Chu Lingxuan will return to the capital in a few days.
When Chen Shiying returned to the main courtyard, the Chen sisters had already left. When she learned about what Chen Yuhui had done, she was so angry that she shook her head. She said to Jiang, "After Fu'er's marriage is done, let's arrange Hui'er's marriage. It would be best if she is married off by the end of this year."
Jiang sneered, "She said we found her a rich country bumpkin."
Chen Shiying said, "Madam, don't be angry. She has been spoiled by her mother. When she gets older, she will understand that we are doing this for her own good."
Afterwards, Chen Shiying went to the Rose Courtyard and talked to Chen Afu for a while, asking her not to bother with her sister and to cheer herself up and be a happy bride.
Nothing happened that night. At dawn the next day, the main gate of the Chen Mansion opened wide, and more than a dozen carriages ran out. Under the protection of more than twenty guards, they headed straight for the canal dock outside the city.
The boat arrived at Tong County at 5 p.m. in the evening. They went to the post station again. Someone had already booked a yard and prepared a sumptuous dinner.
Jiang led the children to eat, and then they went back to their rooms to rest.
After breakfast the next day, the family took a carriage again and entered the capital city at noon.
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