Chapter 62: All the money and face are gone
"There's no way you can give back a dowry after taking it. If you dare to take it, I'll kill myself right here!"
Old Madam Song glared at the Su family. This group of cruel and short-lived people bullied them, an orphan and a widow, and they were not afraid of retribution!
"Song Tingchen, you are blind to help outsiders bully your mother. Su Tan must have accumulated eight lifetimes of blessings to marry you. It is her duty to serve her parents-in-law. She has no talent or virtue, so what qualifications do she have to ask for a dowry?"
Old Madam Song's eyes were red, she covered her chest and spat fiercely on the ground.
Song Tingchen frowned, his face full of confusion, "Mother, this is just a set of screens."
Old Madam Song gritted her teeth, not afraid of being laughed at, and said bitterly, "Even if it was a piece of wood, I wouldn't let them take it away!"
Gu Mingzhu chuckled. Song Tingchen didn't know why his mother was like this, but she knew.
The old lady of the Song family is shallow and cares about face. Even if Old Lady Chen does not offend her, she always likes to compete with Old Lady Chen in everything.
"It's just a set of screens, not a rare item. If you like it, just buy it with cash."
"I'm Tan'er's sister-in-law, so I can make the decision for her. It just so happens that she went to the Jian'an Marquis's Mansion today, so I'll just send someone to let her know."
Gu Mingzhu was smiling and her attitude was humble and reasonable.
Old Madam Gu was like a mouse whose tail was stepped on.
"Little bitch!" She suddenly stared at Gu Mingzhu intently, hatred gleaming in her eyes as she cursed him profusely, "That old woman Chen from the Jian'an Marquis's mansion is a short-lived creature to begin with, and yet she's hanging out with that unlucky Su Tan. Isn't she afraid she'll go to hell tomorrow?"
Song Tingchen's expression suddenly turned cold, "Mother!"
"Be careful with your words!"
Even if my mother was dissatisfied with Su Tan, she shouldn't curse Old Lady Chen like this.
Old Lady Chen is highly respected and respected by everyone, and Song Tingchen also respects her very much.
But for some reason, only Old Madam Song hated Old Madam Chen to the core.
Gu Mingzhu just curled her lips expressionlessly, "Logically speaking, you are my elder, I won't mind if you say a few words to me."
"But Old Lady Chen is a noble person. The Emperor and Empress would show some concern if they saw her. Old Lady Song curses all the time. Even if she doesn't care about her own reputation, she should at least consider General Song. If your words get out, the officials in the Censorate will be very busy tomorrow."
"Then there is——"
Gu Mingzhu's eyes turned cold, and her expression was indifferent. "I only know that Princess Zhaoyang's illness was cured thanks to Tan'er. It was also because of her presence on the day the Crown Princess gave birth that she was able to get through the ordeal without any danger."
"As soon as Madam Song opened her mouth, she said Tan'er was a jinx, and added that anyone who came into contact with her would die young."
"It turns out that Old Madam Song is not dissatisfied with Tan'er, but with Prince Chen and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, as well as the Crown Princess and the little grandson!"
It just so happened that the people in the Censorate were all bored.
There is no need to worry about finding something for the old lady of the Song family to do.
"You fart!"
Old Madam Song panicked. She was not a fool and could tell that Gu Mingzhu wanted to target Tingchen again.
In recent years, Tingchen has been subjected to a lot of abuse, and she doesn't believe that Gu Mingzhu and her group were not responsible for it!
Old Madam Song was so angry that she almost vomited blood, "Gu, what do you want?"
Gu Mingzhu smiled and said gently and politely, "I'm just trying to get back what belongs to my sister."
"I still say the same thing. If you like this screen, you can keep it, but you have to convert it into cash. Sixty-seven thousand taels, I think it's just a drop in the bucket for the entire general's mansion."
Old Madam Song bit her lip tightly. She knew that Gu Mingzhu was not asking for an exorbitant price. In the past, when she invited those noble ladies to her home as guests, they all praised the screen for its priceless value.
She suddenly exerted force and grabbed Song Tingchen's arm.
"Isn't it just 67,000 taels? Tingchen, give it to her!"
If the dowry is not returned to these beggars, they will cause trouble and bring disaster to the Song family.
She had no choice.
But this screen is equivalent to her life, she will never give it to him!
Once she returns it, that little bitch Su Tan might give it to Old Lady Chen just to disgust her.
Even if she died, she would not let Old Lady Chen be proud!
"mother!"
Song Tingchen looked at his mother in confusion. His mother always hated the extravagance of wealthy families, so why would she spend 67,000 taels on a set of screens?
"Give it to her!"
Madam Song's eyes were red, and her voice was trembling. "Otherwise, I will die here!"
"Song Tingchen, you already have no father. If you want to lose your mother too, just return the screen!"
Song Tingchen suddenly felt a suffocating feeling in his heart.
That oppressive atmosphere almost enveloped him completely.
He closed his eyes and said, "Mom, I promise you."
"But there's no money in my account right now. Wait for me to go out and borrow some from my colleagues."
"What?" Old Madam Song froze and stared at Song Tingchen in disbelief. "How could the money in the account be gone so quickly?"
The Song family has been thriving in recent years, and Song Tingchen has been commended by Emperor Qinglong every now and then, and the rewards have been sent to the General Zhenbei's Mansion like water.
The shop's business is getting better and better.
Even Old Madam Song could make a lot of money by playing mahjong with that group of ladies.
She never imagined that just by returning Su Tan's dowry, she could empty the entire general's mansion.
“Obviously—”
Old Madam Song's voice trembled as she spoke, "I clearly heard Su Tan say that her jewelry, calligraphy and paintings were worthless!"
Gu Mingzhu chuckled, "Old Madam, my sister is just worried that you might feel burdened, so she picked up these words to comfort you."
"Even if you didn't see those things at the time, you've seen a lot of good things since then. You wouldn't think that when our Su family marries off our daughter, we would give her worthless things to fool her, right?"
Old Madam Song was speechless.
She bit her lower lip tightly, turned her head and asked Song Tingchen, "How much silver is still missing?"
Song Tingchen sighed. Although he didn't understand why his mother was so obsessed with a screen, he still answered, "If you insist on keeping this screen, you still need 58,000 taels."
Old Madam Song's heart was bleeding from the pain.
But he still gritted his teeth and said, "I'll pawn some of the things in my warehouse and I can get you 54,000 taels!"
“Qingyin——”
Old Madam Song stamped her feet vigorously and said, "You can pawn the jade bracelet that Qingyin bought. Use it to deal with the emergency first. I will compensate her with ten of the same kind later!"
Song Tingchen's brows darkened, and he subconsciously refused, "Mother, no!"
Qingyin always liked to use her own money to buy things for her mother, and he tried to stop her several times but to no avail.
But he absolutely could not use Qingyin's money to buy a screen for his mother.
Madam Song pulled out the hairpin on her head and said to Song Tingchen, "If you stop me again, I will die in front of you!"
Song Tingchen was exhausted both physically and mentally. For a moment, he even felt that getting along with his mother was more tiring than going to the battlefield.
Gu Mingzhu watched this wonderful show quietly.
Although the other servants of the Su family remained calm on the surface, they secretly despised her in their hearts. This old lady Song was really something, she was too obsessed with face and suffered in return.
But now, she has already lost all her dignity and face.
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