Chapter 17: Outsmarting the Lin Family (Part 2)
Unexpectedly, as soon as Su Ying entered the front hall of the main courtyard, she saw her father and Lin already sitting in the main seats, looking lovingly at Su Ying's twin half-brother and sister, and kowtowing to them obediently.
"Daddy, Mommy, thank you for your hard work. Your son/daughter kowtows to you and greets you!"
Su Jianrong stroked his long beard with a smile on his face. He waved his hand and the follower behind him handed him a small purse embroidered with gold thread.
"These are a pair of golden unicorns that Daddy saw in Jinling. You two get one each."
Su Jianrong opened the purse and hung one around the little boy's neck, saying, "Here, this is for Yuanbao."
Then he took out another one and said to the little girl in a more doting tone: "This is for my good boy Fubao!"
After the death of his first wife Rong Zhilan, Su Jianrong used the excuse of his concubine's pregnancy to resist the pressure from the Rong family and forcefully brought Lin into the family. It was for this reason that the Rong family, in a fit of rage, took Su Ying away, not wanting Su Jianrong's reputation to bring trouble to their granddaughter.
But this Lin was also a ruthless person. On the first day after entering the house, she drank the abortion drug in front of Su Jianrong and said resolutely: "My husband loves me deeply, and I don't want my husband to suffer because of my reputation. Now that I have taken this bowl of soup, those who criticize my husband outside will see clearly that I, Lin Meifen, do not want my husband's money, but only his love. I am willing to have no children. In the future, all my husband's money and property will belong to you. If my husband dies first, I will stay alone. If I break my oath in the future, I will not be allowed to do so."
Before she could finish her words, Su Jianrong hugged her in his arms. In this way, Lin Meifen, the concubine who was fourteen years younger than Su Jianrong, took the position of the mistress of the Su family with the support of Su Jianrong.
Lin Meifen waited a full five years, until her position was secure and Su Jianrong's business was thriving, before she became pregnant again, allowing Su Jianrong to have children in his old age: twins Yuanbao and Fubao. Su Jianrong, who had originally wanted to take Su Ying home, completely put that idea aside and focused solely on doting on these rare treasures.
If Su Ying had not grown up and could not resist Lin's urging, Su Jianrong would not have gone to the Rong family to take Su Ying back. Otherwise, he would have completely forgotten about Su Ying, the eldest daughter.
"The young lady is here!"
Lin had already seen Su Ying, but she deliberately kept silent because Su Jianrong was hanging a golden unicorn on her two precious children.
When the two children stood up and held Su Jianrong to seek favor, Lin pretended to have just seen Su Ying and hurriedly stood up to greet her regardless of her status as the mistress.
Every time Su Jianrong returned home, he would bring back good things for Yuanbao and Fubao. When he found Su Ying, he realized that he had forgotten that Su Ying was also at home and had not brought her anything. Suddenly feeling a little embarrassed, he put down the twins in his arms, coughed lightly and said, "Ying'er, your father doesn't know what you like, so..."
Before he could finish, Lin took over and said, "So, Master and I have the same idea."
As he spoke, he took Su Ying's arm affectionately and said, "Master, look at this. This is a red gold butterfly hairpin I picked out especially for the young lady. Don't you think it would be the most charming thing for her at her age? And this dress is the latest style from the capital. Master, look, isn't it beautiful?"
Su Jianrong was extremely satisfied after hearing this. Lin had resolved his awkwardness over not bringing a gift for Su Ying. He stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "Ying'er, what your mother bought for you is the same as what I bought for you."
Su Jianrong glanced at Su Ying again and said with satisfaction, "She looks a little plumper than before. Now she looks like a girl."
"You're at an age where you need to eat more. I remember when I first brought you home a while ago, you were so skinny that it made me feel distressed."
Su Ying shook off Lin's hand, bowed to Su Jianrong, and said, "Ying'er thanks father for his concern."
Her tone was calm, revealing little emotion. Lin, however, smiled and continued, "I think the eldest young lady looks much better since her return. I'm afraid she's been pampered too much in the Rong family, which is why she looks so thin."
Su Ying raised her eyes and glanced at her, her face showing an expression of uncertainty, neither denying nor admitting.
For a moment, Lin actually got himself into trouble.
Seeing that Lin had stopped talking, Su Ying stood up and walked over to Su Jianrong. She stretched out her arms, which were constricted by her sleeves, and said, "Father, the color and style of this new dress are both quite nice, but it's not the size my daughter should normally wear."
Su Jianrong thought Su Ying was being coquettish, so he smiled and said, "Why, are you complaining that your mother bought you clothes that are too small? It seems that your mother has raised you well these days."
But Su Ying's face remained expressionless. Instead, she spoke in a more respectful and serious tone, "Father, I've been staying at my grandparents' house. Now that I'm back, Mother is worried I won't be able to adapt, so she specially arranged a separate courtyard and even a small kitchen for me. This is my first time, so I have to rely on myself for everything. She's worried I might not be able to cook well or be too restrained, so every time the kitchen staff brings me food, oil, and salt, they record it in a book. Every time I count, I ask the person who brings me something to put their thumbprint on the spot as proof."
"I know that my mother has suffered a lot of injustices in the past. I am doing this so that I can have evidence to prove it in the future, so that my mother won't be slandered again after just a few months back."
Su Jianrong had always worried that Su Ying, who had been raised in the Rong family for so many years, had become estranged from him. Unexpectedly, his daughter's every word was for his and the Lin family's benefit. He put aside some of his worries and nodded, "Ying'er, you've done a good job!"
Seeing that her father had fallen into her trap, Su Ying took out the booklet from her sleeve and showed it to Su Jianrong: "This is my first time keeping accounts. I hope my father can give me some guidance to see if I remember it correctly and whether there is anything I need to improve."
Seeing Su Ying so well-behaved, Su Jianrong couldn't afford to offend her, so he carefully checked the book and found the problem. "You clearly receive 20 kilograms of rice every month, so why do you eat so little? The same goes for the firewood. Your mother has always managed the household expenses well, so how could she give you so much?"
As he said this, he called Lin over. Lin had no idea what Su Ying was up to and was just about to take a good look at the booklet. When she heard Su Jianrong calling her, she hurried forward.
She looked at where Su Jianrong was pointing, and said with a sigh of relief, "I did ask someone to give Miss a little more rice every month. For example, Fubao and Yuanbao only get 20 kilograms of rice a month. Since I don't know Miss's preferences yet, I gave her the same amount. If Miss thinks it's too much, I'll give her less next month."
Su Ying remained calm, only raised her chin slightly and said, "Please turn the page again, father."
Su Jianrong was confused, so he turned the page again and saw the following message: "This month I received 20 kilograms of rice. It's dark gray, mostly mixed with old rice. After washing, less than 10 kilograms is barely usable."
"This month we collected 30 kilograms of firewood, all of which was wet firewood."
The further Su Jianrong turned, the more solemn his expression became.
Seeing this, Su Ying said, "My daughter has indeed been eating less these days than before, so her size has decreased. I just didn't expect the dress you ordered is still too small."
"I think the servants saw that Mother had so many things to do that they took advantage of it."
That look made Su Jianrong suddenly see the young Rong Zhilan standing in front of him.
He suddenly remembered his first wife, who had passed away young. She had also been so docile and measured in everything she did. For a moment, he felt a sense of inadequacy and an indescribable sense of guilt.
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