Shen Zhao spoke in a hoarse voice and his eyes were red.
He had only been away from Beijing for a month when his eldest sister and brother-in-law both died, and his mother's life or death was unknown at the farm. Within a few hours of returning home, he lost his voice in a fit of anger.
Su Qingyu glanced at Chen Zhao. He looked much thinner than before leaving Beijing. It seemed that he had suffered a lot on the way.
"Exit the Shen family's gate and cross two streets to the Ministry of Justice. If the eldest young master feels that the eldest young lady's death is related to me, go and beat the drum."
"If you don't go, I will go. I can't stand such injustice."
Shen Zhao looked at Su Qingyu steadily, always feeling that everything that happened in the Shen family's eldest house was related to her.
But he couldn't understand why she was so resentful of him for just a small mistake. Who in Beijing didn't have concubines? Who didn't have several maids?
Uncle Sanshu didn't have a concubine now because they were newlyweds. What about three, five, or ten years from now? Would she do something so drastic just because Uncle Sanshu took a concubine?
Chen Zhao couldn't even wait to see how she would react on the day when his third uncle took a concubine.
"Su Qingyu, what do you want? I've let you down by default with Cheng Rujin. But you've called off the marriage, and Rujin is dead. Don't you think it's enough?"
Facing Su Qingyu, Shen Zhao felt a deep sense of powerlessness. Therefore, his tone couldn't help but carry a hint of pleading.
Su Qingyu sneered in her heart. Of course it wasn't enough. He owed her a life.
"I don't understand what the young master is saying. Do we need to go to the Ministry of Justice to confront the young lady about her death? If so, we can go now."
Shen Zhao gritted his teeth, shaking with anger. What was he confronting? Was he going to the Ministry of Justice to get a beating for false accusation when there was no evidence at all?
"Let's not talk about my eldest sister first, but why are you locking up my mother?"
Chen Wu was gone, and he could put the matter of the dead aside for now. But his mother was still alive, and he couldn't ignore her.
Su Qingyu said impatiently, "Young Master, you want to go to the manor to show your filial piety? Of course I won't stop you. I'll have someone take you there right away."
"There's just one thing. Once you go, you won't be able to return home for a while."
Shen Zhao frowned at her, "What do you mean?"
Wasn't it because she had done something to her mother that she didn't dare let him go?
Su Qingyu said indifferently, "We don't allow anyone to enter the manor because my sister-in-law contracted tuberculosis a while ago. The doctor said it's highly contagious."
"Young Master, you can go if you want, but you have to stay at the farm until your sister-in-law is fully recovered. Otherwise, what if you come back and infect the rest of the family? Your grandmother is old and can't stand any illness."
Seeing Shen Zhao's suspicious expression, Su Qingyu turned around and instructed Feicui, "You accompany the eldest young master and tell the gatekeeper that the eldest young master is filial and is going to serve the eldest lady."
He also warned, "Don't get too close. Send the person off and come back."
Feicui understood and replied yes, then walked to Shen Zhao's side, "Master, please come in, I will take you there."
Chen Zhao's expression changed again and again, and finally he said awkwardly: "Since my mother has someone to take care of her, I won't go there for the next few days."
After Shen Zhao left, Feicui let out a sigh, "Madam, aren't you afraid that the young master will really go there?"
Su Qingyu snorted, "How could someone as selfish and afraid of death as him dare to take such a risk?"
That night, because Shen Zhao came back, everyone gathered at the old lady's Qingyuan Residence for dinner.
After all, he was the eldest grandson, and the old lady loved and cared about him tightly. So she kept holding Shen Zhao and asking about his well-being.
After everyone finished dinner, they moved to the flower hall next door to drink tea.
Su Qingyu asked, "How much silver did the young master bring back from the Chen family? Will it be credited to the account tomorrow?"
As soon as she said this, everyone present looked at Shen Zhao, especially Second Madam Yang, whose eyes were filled with gloating.
Shen Zhao's face froze, and he couldn't hide his embarrassment.
After a while, Shen Zhao knew that he couldn't get away with this matter, so he said, "The Chen family needs time to deal with it. After all, they are close relatives, so I can't push them too hard."
Su Qingyu nodded and said, "That's as it should be. However, I heard that the Chen family is planning to renovate their ancestral hall in the second half of the year and they have prepared 200,000 taels of silver. Logically, they should at least pay back the 200,000 taels we have first."
"What did the uncles of the Chen family say? Master, tell us in detail so we can have a better idea."
Chen Zhao felt a pang of pain in his heart. His two uncles had beaten him and called him an ungrateful person. He knew the Chen family's character all too well. Several generations earlier, they were bandits, and they were completely unreasonable. It was extremely difficult to get money from the Chen family.
But he couldn't say this. His grandparents were not behaving like human beings, and it would be embarrassing for him.
He could only perfunctorily say, "My uncles said that the matter of repairing the ancestral hall was decided a long time ago. They asked for more time to pay the money. It's not that the Chen family doesn't want to give it, but they just can't come up with so much at once."
Su Qingyu uttered an "oh," and just when Shen Zhao thought the matter was over, she spoke again, "There has to be a date, right? Three months? Four months?"
Shen Zhao thought for a moment, "Half a year."
Su Qingyu looked at Yang, "What did the second sister-in-law say?"
The money returned to the Shen family was actually the common money of the three branches, and naturally, it was closely related to the interests of the Yang family.
Yang thought for a moment and said, "We can give you three months or the end of the year. But what if the Chen family doesn't pay you back by the end of the year?"
"Is this account just going to be settled like this?"
Su Qingyu lowered her head and drank tea without saying anything. It was the eldest wife's turn to speak.
Shen Zhao was speechless and unable to speak after being asked by Yang.
The old lady sat in the main seat, groping at the beads in her hand without saying a word, and no one knew what she was thinking.
After a while, Shen Zhiheng glanced at the old lady and said, "If the Chen family doesn't return the money before the end of the year, our eldest wife will pay it back."
Shen Zhao frowned and looked at Shen Zhiheng, "Father, we have already paid back a sum of money to the public treasury, and the remaining money is not enough to pay off the debts of our uncles."
Chen Zhao thought that if he could drag it out, it would be best if the money was put on the account and no one mentioned it. More than 200,000 taels is not a small amount. Why should the Chen family enjoy it while they fill the hole?
Shen Zhiheng looked unhappy and said in a deep voice: "If the first wife's money is not enough, then take out the same amount from the public treasury and divide it between the second and third wives. We don't want it."
If the eldest wife cannot come up with the money, what Shen Zhiheng said is also a good idea.
Yang lowered her head and pondered for a moment, then exchanged glances with Su Qingyu. The two sisters-in-law reached a consensus and said nothing more.
Seeing this, the old lady spoke and made the final decision, "Then do as the boss says."
Everyone responded "yes" in unison.
Hanshuiyuan was shrouded in moonlight at night, and the hazy moonlight was reflected on the curtains inside the house.
Two figures were hugging and entangled on the bed, the man's dirty talk and the woman's panting mixed together.
After half an hour, Li Chaoyun leaned on Shen Zhao's chest, the lustful look between his eyebrows had not yet dissipated.
Shen Zhao exhaled two long breaths of relief, and put one hand around Li Chaoyun's shoulders, rubbing them gently.
Li Chaoyun placed his hand on Shen Zhao's waist and said lazily, "Tomorrow, the Crown Prince will order you to go to the Zhanshi Mansion."
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