0147 The Golden Winged Envoy (Twelve)
Having officially received her household registration documents, Shu Fu began preparing for her relocation.
As for Luo, because the Ministry of Revenue came to her door suddenly that day, she was caught off guard and in the chaos, Shu Fu insisted on moving out to live alone.
Fortunately, she calmed down and, after some pointers from Granny Li, she came up with another plan.
So when Shu Fu packed her things and prepared to leave the mansion, Luo Shi led several attendants to block her way.
"That day, Afu spoke so grandly in front of the Ministry of Revenue officials, spouting words about independence and resilience as if they were free. How come today, when she leaves the mansion, she is still reluctant to part with the wealth and status of the mansion, and is making such a big fuss about taking so many things with her?"
Luo's fair face held a faint smile, but this smile was like the cold white sun in the dead of winter; it seemed magnificent and radiant at first glance, but when it shone on you, you felt a chill.
Luo Shi coldly observed the graceful young woman before her, her thoughts actually quite simple—
Just as those officials in the court who avoided the important issues thought, the reason they agreed to the regulations for female households first was simply because they believed that as long as people were not wise, their temporary resolve would eventually be broken by the pressure of making a living.
She waited patiently for this day, hoping that her rebellious daughter would one day submit to her and beg for peace.
Shu Fu felt a pang of sadness when Luo blocked her way.
But upon closer reflection, this wasn't the first time she had doubted herself because of her mother's sadness. She should have understood some things long ago and shouldn't have wasted her time on this.
Therefore, this time, Shu Fu lowered her eyes to compose herself, and then raised her eyes and smiled, "Mother, I only took the utensils I use every day. I did not take any of the luxurious items with me for the time being."
Luo's lips curled into a smile: "Aren't the utensils you use every day part of the Shu family? Since you're determined to leave, you shouldn't take a single thing."
A-Jian, who was attending to her, immediately reddened upon hearing this and retorted, "How could you do this, Madam! The girl is your own daughter, with whom you share blood ties. How can you bear to let her walk out alone like this!"
These words were sincere, but when they reached Luo's ears, they made her furrow her brows and burn with rage.
She turned her head and shouted sternly, "What an unruly maid! Who gave you permission to interrupt when the master is speaking? Li Mama, drag this ignorant little maid away and give her a few slaps to teach her a lesson!"
Shu Fu frowned slightly. Before Li Mama could make a move, she reached down and grabbed A-Jian's sleeve, stepping forward to shield her behind her.
“Ah Jian wants to come with me, so Mother has no say in what she does.”
As the mother and daughter glared at each other, a affected female voice suddenly rang out from outside the hanging flower gate.
"Weren't you supposed to be moving in? Why is it making a racket like firecrackers inside? Ugh, when they make a fuss like that, my heart starts to ache. Did you bring any medicine? Could you get me one?"
Shu Fu naturally recognized whose voice it was, and a look of surprise appeared on her face. She couldn't help but crane her neck to look outside.
Luo frowned, her long, dark eyebrows furrowing. "Who's making such a racket outside my door? How rude!"
She was so upset that she didn't bother to compose herself. Unexpectedly, the frail and affected young girl floated in, supported by her maid.
The person had a fair and clean face, pale lips, and delicate features, as if drawn on plain silk with a brush dipped in water. Only her black hair was styled high.
Today, there were no lush weeping crabapple blossoms, but the gold and silver hairpins adorning the trees, swaying with every step, made it seem as if the golden trees, meant to bring wealth and prosperity, had come to life.
Qin Youan was helped to the back of the hanging flower gate. His dark eyes swept over Luo Shi, whose face was ashen. He pretended to be in pain and clutched his chest. He looked up and asked the maid beside him, "Madam Luo just said that I have no manners. Is that true?"
“Yes, miss.” The maid nodded affirmatively.
Qin Youan's eyes immediately filled with tears: "Oh dear, it's all my parents' fault for spoiling me so much, making me lose face like this when I'm out in public! What's the point of me dragging this sickly body around? I might as well just die and let my parents have some peace... Oh dear, my heart hurts, and I can't even stand up straight..."
After saying that, she stumbled several times, as if she were about to fall.
"girl--"
"Young Lady Qin—"
Shu Fu and Qin Youan's maids knelt down together, supporting her on either side to prevent her from falling to the ground.
"medicine……"
"Oh, oh, Miss, take your medicine." The maid suddenly came to her senses and hurriedly pulled out a celadon medicine bottle from her inner sleeve, poured out a brownish-black pill, and fed it to Qin Youan.
After observing for a while, A-Jian quickly brought warm water, and after some fuss, the situation was finally stabilized.
Madam Luo was quite startled by Qin Youan's reaction. Seeing that she had calmed down, she asked, "Whose household does this young lady belong to? If she is unwell, she should stay at home and rest. Why is she running around outside?"
After taking her medicine, Qin Youan raised her pale face and smiled gently: "I am the daughter of the Duke of Yongxing County. Besides holding a title, my father also serves as the Secretary-General. He is usually quite busy and doesn't have much time to supervise me..."
As she spoke, tears welled up in her eyes again.
After hearing her introduce herself, Madam Luo completely abandoned the idea of scolding her, but still didn't show a kind expression.
"So it's Miss Qin. Everyone in Chang'an knows that you're frail and weak. If that's the case, why not stay home and recuperate instead of showing your face in public?"
Qin Youan smiled and said, "I consider Miss Shu a close friend. How could I not congratulate her on moving to her new home? I also thought that she must have a lot of things, so I specially asked my father for help to move them."
Startled, Luo looked outside and saw a group of strong and capable attendants waiting there.
Her anger was raging, but Li Mama held her hand tightly to prevent it from erupting.
Duke of Yongxing County, a founding hero.
The Secretary-General was a close advisor to the emperor.
Fine, fine. It's just some furniture and utensils. Since Shu Fu wants them, let her take them. As long as she doesn't have much money left, why worry that she won't come back and beg for forgiveness in the future?
Luo took a few deep breaths and forced a smile, saying, "In that case, I'll have to trouble you, Miss Qin."
Qin Youan nodded in satisfaction, then tilted his head and added, "By the way, there's something I'd like to ask, though it might be offensive: aside from these everyday items, how are the remaining family assets divided?"
"What do you mean?" Luo's beautiful eyes widened, and she almost blurted it out.
"Madam Luo, please don't joke. This is written in the law. Apart from the eldest son inheriting the title and ancestral home and land, the rest of the family property is divided equally among the children."
"Nonsense! Afu is my daughter. It's already very generous of her to provide a dowry. You're still thinking about the rest of her family property. This is going too far!" Madam Luo's face was as white as a sheet of silk, devoid of any color. She could no longer suppress her anger and shouted loudly.
"Madam Luo, please don't speak so loudly, oh dear, it's hurting my heart." Qin Youan's face turned even paler, and she looked as if she were about to collapse. "Besides, what you said about only providing a dowry and that's it, that's the way things were done in the previous dynasty. Now it's a new dynasty with new policies, so naturally there are differences. If you insist on only providing a dowry and not giving any family property, are you still thinking about the old policies of the previous dynasty?"
Upon hearing this, Madam Luo was so angry that she was speechless for a long time. Granny Li quickly sent a maid to warm the stove and brew some tea to calm her down.
Shu Fu stood beside Qin Youan and gently squeezed her palm.
Unexpectedly, Qin Youan thought she was trying to persuade her to give up, so she immediately frowned and said urgently to Shu Fu in a low voice, "Don't be soft-hearted! You must not give up what is rightfully yours! Second Sister Shu, you are so intelligent and perceptive, I like you very much, and I want to like you forever. Don't turn into a despicable wretch!"
Shu Fu was taken aback, then chuckled and replied in a low voice, "I handed you something, aren't you going to take a look?"
Qin Youan looked down and realized that it was an extremely detailed breakdown of the Shu family's assets, including the salary that Shu Rongguang had gained through his promotions. It included one-quarter of the total, no more and no less, and every detail was clear and without any errors.
“You’an, I didn’t mean to run away. What’s rightfully mine, I’ll fight for. I won’t let myself suffer because of a moment of anger.”
"Shufu, you really dare to listen to her instigation and force your mother!"
Luo Shi had clearly noticed Shu Fu's actions and immediately smashed her teacup. The fine porcelain splashed at Shu Fu's feet, startling the young girl who looked up at her.
Shu Fu turned her eyes, stared at Luo Shi for a long time, then suddenly bowed down and solemnly performed a deep bow.
"According to custom, if I were to get married, you would prepare a dowry. Consider all of this as my dowry. From now on, just consider me as someone you've married into a family where I won't be bullied by my husband or in-laws. I will still recognize you and Father as my parents, and I will continue to be filial to you as always for many years to come..."
"You, you..." Luo was so angry she couldn't speak, her body trembling uncontrollably.
But for Shufu, once these words were made clear, she felt as if a huge weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
Without dodging or avoiding the question, she said earnestly and with a sense of relief, "I have no way to repay the great kindness of being born and raised. The only way for me to not have let you down is to treat myself well."
"May my parents be healthy and my grandmother live a long and healthy life. I will be leaving now."
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