Chapter 89 Betrothal (Part 2) The Rongguo Mansion must cut its expenses…
Mu Chuan refused without much hesitation: "I appreciate Your Majesty's kindness, but this thing is fine as a trinket, especially this mirror. If it were made of pure gold, I'm afraid my wife wouldn't be able to lift it."
The emperor was secretly pleased. What did this mean? Qiao Yue was implying that the gift from the retired emperor was impractical!
He glanced at it again deliberately before sighing, "That's how Father is. He's a bit ambitious, but he always makes sure to put on a good show."
The emperor then spoke a few more words about who the matchmaker was, and about having the Imperial Observatory calculate an auspicious time, etc. He also comforted Mu Chuan, saying, "Qiao Yue, just rest assured, everything will go smoothly without any setbacks."
Of course, Mu Chuan believed him.
After Mu Chuan left, the emperor instructed the eunuchs to send the things sent by the retired emperor to the empress's palace, and then have the empress arrange for them to be sent back to her family home for use on the seventh day of the third month.
"Qiao Yue is indeed different from ordinary people," the emperor sighed. Today, it wasn't Quan Furen serving in the study. The emperor boldly made an evaluation of his courtier.
"Only Qiao Yue is willing to speak properly. Other ministers take their time, almost pausing for the time it takes to burn an incense stick, all trying to guess what I mean. It's not like they haven't argued with me in front of me before; each one is quick-witted and leaves their opponents breathless. But when it comes to me, they become fools. Sigh..."
The eunuch first flattered the emperor for his overwhelming power, then mentioned that the other ministers also respected the emperor, and finally praised the Marquis of Zhongyong for his unwavering loyalty, saying that he treated His Majesty as more than just an emperor.
The emperor chuckled twice: "You seem to avoid offending anyone."
On the seventh day of the third month, Lady Wang wanted to wait until the last day to send the gifts to Grandmother Jia's room, but she didn't dare. So she chose the evening of the fifth day of the third month to send the gifts over.
Dinner had already been eaten, and the girls had all gone home. Apart from the maids, there was no one else in Grandmother Jia's room. Without any formalities, she said directly, "You delivered the things quite early."
Madam Wang was truly not guilty; she had people planted in every room, and she was indeed the first one to be sent.
Madam Wang smiled insincerely, "The old lady instructed that we should get good things, and since she is marrying into the Marquis of Zhongyong's family, we should naturally be careful."
She handed over the gift list, which Yuanyang accepted. Grandmother Jia then took a mirror, put it on, and pretended to look at herself for a long time.
"Don't blame me," Grandmother Jia said earnestly. "Since it was ordered by Her Majesty the Empress, we naturally have to do it well. Besides, Yuan Chun is involved. If we are obedient and sensible, and do our job well, Yuan Chun will also benefit."
These words brought no comfort; instead, they made Madam Wang feel even more aggrieved.
She remained silent, so Grandmother Jia continued, "These are nothing compared to the dowry. The real prize is the dowry. If we do a good job in the beginning, the Empress will be at ease and won't check everything one by one."
Madam Wang understood what he meant; he was implying that the dowry would be manipulated. She retorted, "How could the old lady genuinely want to give all the good things to the Lin family?"
Those were all meant for the second wife, for her, and for Baoyu.
“The old lady is right,” Madam Wang said with a smile. “Her Majesty the Empress is so busy with so many things, how could she have time to care about this? If we perform well, Her Majesty will naturally be at ease.”
Grandmother Jia nodded: "Alright, as long as you understand this."
Madam Wang had nothing to say to her mother-in-law, and besides, she wasn't a talkative person to begin with. Madam Wang got up to take her leave.
After she left, Grandmother Jia called out to Yuanyang, pointing to the items on Lady Wang's gift list: "Keep this, and this, and this—"
After selecting nearly half of the items, Grandmother Jia sneered, "Does she really think I'm senile and can't remember? These all belong to the Rongguo Mansion. Even if they're meant to be left to them in the future, she dares to take them herself even though I won't give them to her? Besides, I don't only have one son."
Yuanyang didn't dare say that, after all, whether it was the first wife or the second wife, it was just a matter of choosing the one that wasn't so bad.
"Grandma, I'll go make another copy," Yuanyang asked.
Grandmother Jia hummed in agreement and handed over the list.
Yuanyang had already copied half of it when Madam Xing arrived with her things.
Unlike Madam Wang, Madam Xing didn't have many spies; she relied on remaining unchanged to cope with any situation.
That means giving it to them at the last minute.
Madam Xing bowed and handed over the gift list. Grandmother Jia had just received some things from the Rongguo Mansion from Madam Wang and was in a good mood, but when she saw Madam Xing's gift list, she became angry again.
"Are you trying to fool me?" Grandmother Jia scolded. "Do you all think I'm senile? Let me tell you, I've been using these tricks for ages."
Madam Xing stood with her head bowed, saying nothing. What could she do even if she saw through it? The eldest son's family had no money, and that was that.
Moreover, the old lady's threat to tell the master might have some effect on the second wife's family, but the first wife's family had long since given up. Apart from a cold and indifferent title, she couldn't even live in Rongxi Hall, yet she still said, "I'll tell your master."
The master doesn't have any money, and besides, this idea came from him. She comes from a humble family; how would she know about such methods?
Grandmother Jia pointed to the gift list and said sternly, "Go and find this pair of white jade double-eared flower vases so I can take a look."
When Madam Xing arrived, she received instructions from Jia She that she was bound to be scolded, but she should just listen to it. The old lady was too old to be scolded for long.
Madam Xing looked around and opened a paper box: "Old lady, perhaps this is it."
Grandmother Jia sneered, "White jade? You're quite the writer. White marble is white jade, and mutton fat jade is also white jade. What is this you've given me? Do you think it's presentable?"
The two bottles she sent weren't even big enough to be used as chamber pots.
Following Jia She's instructions, Madam Xing remained silent. In short, the question remained: how much benefit did the second branch of the family gain? Why couldn't the first branch?
Although Grandmother Jia said that the eldest and second sons should provide dowry for Lin Daiyu, with the eldest son's share being 20,000 items and 10,000 taels of silver, this was the return gift for the betrothal. Neither Madam Xing nor Jia She would give it all at once.
There were only seven or eight items, enough to make a good impression. Grandmother Jia looked at them all, and only one was barely usable.
Grandmother Jia started scolding again, but Madam Xing was not afraid at all. She wanted to tell Grandmother Jia that the only valuable thing in the eldest son's house was the master's concubine. They couldn't just give that away, could they?
Before the bride even enters the house, are two concubines given to her? Or are they already used concubines?
Madam Xing kept her head down, listening to Grandmother Jia scolding, but as she listened, she also became a little impatient.
"Grandma, don't be so biased. Our eldest son's family also has daughters to marry off. How old is Yingchun? She has to get married this year no matter what. How much are you planning to give her, Grandma? How much are you planning to give her, second son's family? Thirty or fifty thousand taels is not much. I want ninety or one hundred thousand taels too. Grandma, don't just say you love your granddaughters."
Grandmother Jia choked on her breath and coughed violently. Yuanyang quickly stepped forward to help her catch her breath.
"You dare to ask for that!" Grandmother Jia roared. "Do you even know why I gave Yu'er such a large dowry!"
"What's there not to know?" Madam Xing said with a hint of smugness. "They took the Lin family's money, and now they want it back. But the eldest son's family didn't even have that money in the first place, so why should we pay for it?"
She just blurted it out! Grandmother Jia was so angry her eyes practically popped out: "What nonsense are you spouting! That was her dowry, kept in trust by the Rongguo Mansion! Besides, have you spent less money over the years? With each expenditure from the accounts, who has spent less than whom?"
"If that's how the old lady calculates it, then the second branch of the family still spends more. The money spent in Yuan Chun's palace also comes from the public account. Maybe Ying Chun should also get a share. That adds up to twenty or thirty thousand taels a year. In the past few years, it's probably close to two hundred thousand. And her visits home cost a million taels, right? The eldest branch of the family should also pay for that?"
Seeing that things were getting increasingly absurd, Yuanyang dared not watch any longer. She stepped forward and took Madam Xing's arm, saying, "It's getting dark, Madam, you should hurry back. You won't be able to see the road soon."
Madam Xing didn't want to stay any longer, and besides, she had indeed acted impulsively with those words just now, so she didn't resist and left without resistance.
Having finally gained the upper hand, Madam Xing was eager to press her advantage. She took Yuanyang's hand and said, "Will you take me back? Your husband wants to talk to you too."
Yuanyang quickly shook off her hand, terrified, her eyes even a little red.
She took a couple of breaths outside, and only went back after Madam Xing left and she had calmed down.
Grandmother Jia was already lying on the couch. Yuanyang hurried over to check on her and, seeing that Grandmother Jia was alright, knelt down to pick up the torn gift list.
"Yuanyang," Grandmother Jia said through gritted teeth, "Go to the accounting office. Since she says she didn't spend any money, if the eldest branch wants to withdraw money in the future, it will need both my seal and the second branch's seal. Also, count how many people from the eldest branch are in the Rongguo Mansion. From now on, the eldest branch will have to pay their own monthly allowance!"
"Old lady..." Although there are not many people in the main house, most of them are still serving in the next room, if this is really done, it will definitely cause chaos.
"Aren't you going yet!"
Yuanyang hurriedly went out to give instructions.
Grandmother Jia took two deep breaths. Although she had her own purpose, she was still so angry at Madam Xing that she had a headache.
The Rongguo Mansion has no choice but to cut spending.
With so much money and gifts spent on Yu'er's wedding, the Rongguo Mansion will be in ruins in less than two years.
But laying off staff and cutting costs is not an easy task.
If we don't find a reason that won't be obvious, once people's hearts are scattered, the Rongguo Mansion will collapse in less than a year.
Today is a good day to take advantage of the argument and teach the eldest son a lesson.
With no income, the eldest son's family will inevitably have to reduce staff, and they will certainly be dissatisfied. When they cause a scene, she can then take the opportunity to reduce the staff of the second son's family.
Grandmother Jia sighed again; she had probably sighed more times in the past six months than in all her previous years combined.
And when Yu'er gets married, she will also take the opportunity to bring more people as part of her dowry.
There's no need to worry too much about that. The fact that she brought a large dowry proves that Yu'er is a good person. It's just that the choice of a suitable partner needs to be carefully considered.
For example, male servants earn twice as much as female servants, so she would find two families with more men to accompany her.
For example, those wet nurses who nursed their masters, who didn't work but still received the highest monthly salary, had to come up with a good reason to at least accompany one of the families.
And this time, she is determined to take over Wang Xifeng's management of the household.
It wasn't because she'd been disobedient lately, nor was it because she was outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant; it was simply because if she were still called the housekeeper, she could hold off the Rongguo Mansion.
But if it were Xue Baochai instead, she wouldn't be able to manage anything, especially the old women's drinking and gambling. If things got out of hand, she could use that as an excuse to drive away a lot of people.
Grandmother Jia sighed softly, her satisfaction tinged with disappointment. She had no one to share these top-notch skills with; perhaps she could only teach them on her deathbed.
Just as Grandmother Jia was worrying about the future of the Rongguo Mansion, Wang Xifeng, along with Ping'er and several other old women carrying things, came to Lin Daiyu's place.
It was almost dark by then. Lin Daiyu put down her needlework and sighed, "I'm finally done embroidering."
She took a step back and looked at the results of her months of work.
Under the candlelight, the half-finished poem "Man Jiang Hong" seemed to come alive, the characters sparkling with light, their luster, smoothness, and brushstrokes all perfectly rendered.
Lin Daiyu nodded in satisfaction, then asked Xueyan, "Is the main hall in front ready?" It will be needed for the betrothal ceremony the day after tomorrow.
Xueyan smiled and said, "Don't worry, Miss, I personally led people to clean it up. You'll see when you go tomorrow."
"Second Madam Lian is here!" a maidservant announced loudly from outside. Lin Daiyu put down what she was holding and went to the main room to greet the guest.
Now she lives in a large house with five rooms, where the bedroom, study and dining room can be separated, and there is even a room that can be set aside specifically for the maids on night duty.
Wang Xifeng was led by her maid to the east side room. This room was indeed different, but judging from the furnishings, many of them were not from the Jia family.
Wang Xifeng couldn't help but recall the last time she visited the Grand View Garden, when the old lady instructed her to change the window screens for Lin Daiyu.
On the surface, it seems that the old lady doted on her granddaughter and gave her the best things.
But what is the reality?
The most crucial point is that Lin Daiyu's window screens are all old.
The old lady's affection was just a facade. If she truly cared for someone, why would Lin Daiyu use old things?
It must have been just like it is now, with everything in the house being exquisite and brand new.
"Sister Feng." Lin Daiyu's voice rang out, and Wang Xifeng turned around and smiled, "You've grown into a young lady."
Lin Daiyu lowered her head at the opportune moment, pretending to be shy.
Wang Xifeng pulled her down to sit and said with a smile, "I brought you some things. You've called me Sister Feng for over ten years. Now that you're getting married, I can't leave without giving you something. But I'm short on time, so I only found two things to send to you first. You can use them as a return gift for the betrothal, or you can keep them for yourself."
Lin Daiyu called for a maid to bring tea and snacks, and then said, "Sister Feng's things are all good things, I want to take a good look at them."
Wang Xifeng gave a wink, and Ping'er started unpacking. Wang Xifeng continued, "There are also rules for the betrothal gifts. There should be a few valuable items. First, it tells the groom that the bride lives very well in her parents' home and that this standard should be followed in the future. Second, it also means that the bride is well-off and has a large dowry, so she doesn't want the groom's money."
Lin Daiyu chuckled: "Aren't these two things contradictory?"
Wang Xifeng's smile was somewhat distorted, after all, she felt the same way: "In the end, a good husband's family cannot spend a woman's dowry."
Ping'er had already unpacked one piece. Wang Xifeng said, "This is a jewelry box, made of the finest sandalwood. You'll see when you take a look."
When Lin Daiyu looked at it, she noticed that it was different from the gold-inlaid and silver-inlaid or even mother-of-pearl-inlaid jewelry boxes she had seen before. This jewelry box had no decorations at all; it was made entirely of wood, inside and out.
But it was also excellent wood. She tapped it gently and found it to be extremely hard, producing a metallic sound when struck.
"Thank you, Sister Feng."
Wang Xifeng smiled and said, "If you like it, that's good. After all, it's a first-class earl. And this—"
From the moment they entered, Lin Daiyu was a little curious, because the second item looked like a piece of wood, a thin layer, but quite large. Who would give a piece of wood as a gift?
This one is quite difficult to remove; it's wrapped in five layers, inside and out.
When the last layer of cloth was lifted, Wang Xifeng said with a smug smile, "This is a mirror. It came from the foreigners. This layer is glass, and the back is silver-plated."
After Lin Daiyu stood in front of the mirror and looked at herself twice, Wang Xifeng said, "Ordinary bronze mirrors make people look yellow, especially when candles are lit, they look even more yellow. This one won't. Whatever color you see is what will be reflected in the mirror. I'll find you a smaller one later to put on your dressing table, so your makeup will look more natural."
"Thank you, Sister Feng." Lin Daiyu curtsied.
He looked very satisfied, which put Wang Xifeng at ease. She stood up and said, "I deliberately chose to come when it was almost dark so that you could see the magic of this mirror."
"I'll see you out." Lin Daiyu got up and saw Wang Xifeng out. When she returned, she saw several maids gathered in front of the mirror, looking at themselves and laughing and joking.
"Girl, this mirror reflects things very clearly."
Lin Daiyu smiled and said, "If you like it, just put it here. Once you've combed your hair and changed your clothes, you can all come and take a look."
Chunxian said, "Miss, wasn't this supposed to be a return gift for the betrothal?"
Lin Daiyu chuckled twice: "It's alright, just keep it for later use."
Besides, it's not like her third brother's family doesn't have one. She went to the Marquis of Zhongyong's mansion to teach her third brother to write. After eating, she went to wash up. There were several mirrors of all sizes in that room.
As Lin Daiyu pondered, she glanced at Xueyan standing to the side. When Xueyan saw the young lady looking at her, she giggled twice.
"You're so tight-lipped," Lin Daiyu said, turning and going back into the inner room.
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