Chapter 13 No Longer Searched
Lady Wuding felt as if she had been punched hard in the chest.
She did indeed feel a little disdain for the Duke's congratulatory gift.
However, she didn't dare to just casually give away those coarse cloths.
She simply replaced the tribute brocades bestowed upon her by the palace with Suzhou and Hangzhou brocades.
Of course, she didn't change it herself; she instructed the housekeeper to do so.
The housekeeper must have sensed her attitude at the time.
Who would have thought that the housekeeper would replace the Suzhou and Hangzhou brocade with that coarse cloth again!
Lady Wuding felt that nothing she said would be appropriate.
You won't admit it?
Heh, since they dared to say it out loud, they're definitely not afraid of you. What if they bring all the congratulatory gifts from the Marquis of Wuding's residence over to check them one by one...?
The one who loses face is the Marquis of Wuding's mansion.
admit?
That would be telling everyone, "I did it on purpose, I just wanted to disgust the Duke of Dingguo's mansion."
Lady Wuding thought for a while, and finally could only show an embarrassed and somewhat annoyed expression on her face.
"Damn wicked servant, who knows how many bad things he has done behind my back!"
Sister Jin, don't worry, I will definitely kick that wicked servant out when I get back.
"I'll have someone personally select some new congratulatory gifts and have Yu-ge'er deliver them," Lady Wuding said quickly.
The ladies all covered their faces with round fans and remained silent.
Heh, you wicked servant?
Which lady wouldn't personally inspect the congratulatory gift sent to the Duke of Dingguo?
How come the steward of your Marquis Wuding's mansion has such great authority and audacity?
They even dared to steal the congratulatory gifts from the Duke of Dingguo's mansion?
Perhaps this was secretly orchestrated by the Empress Dowager in the palace!
It seems that the imperial family and the Empress Dowager are on the verge of a complete breakdown in relations.
Shangguan Jin just smiled when she heard what the Lady of Wuding said.
Mom approved it!
I didn't want to embarrass you like this in public, but the Duke of Dingguo's mansion sent congratulatory gifts to the Marquis of Wuding's mansion five times last year.
Every single one of them was a genuine, top-quality gift.
Oh, so you've put on a big feast for your guests, and this is all you've given me in return?
"Look at what you're saying. According to you, it's as if our Jin'er is only here to celebrate the old lady's birthday because she's after your small gift," Madam Shangguan said abruptly.
Shangguan Jin...
My dear mother, she really only cares about the small gifts everyone gave as congratulations.
She didn't give any expensive gifts; she must have been bored to host this banquet.
However, it still needs to maintain a certain level of sophistication. Besides, at least the other families' congratulatory gifts weren't cheap or superficial.
"That's right, Mrs. Song. According to what you're saying, it seems like I'm just after your family to get some congratulatory gifts."
Since they've already sent them, regardless of the value of the gifts, it's all a token of the Marquis of Wuding's goodwill!
Don't worry, although my servants don't wear those kinds of fabrics, there are still quite a few people who don't stay warm.
Although life has improved in recent years, there are still beggars.
Once I've finished preparing for the old lady's birthday banquet, I'll arrange for someone to go out and make offerings.
"Giving away these coarse cloths and such is at least a good deed, and it should earn us a good reputation!" Shangguan Jin continued to laugh, holding her fan.
Lady Wuding Marquis...
The other ladies also looked at each other and exchanged glances.
Look, the Duchess of Dingguo will definitely take the opportunity of giving alms to promote the affairs of the Marquis of Wuding's mansion.
Well, thankfully they personally inspected all the gifts they brought, so hopefully there won't be any problems like this...
Thinking about this, these ladies also became a little unsettled.
They did inspect it themselves, that's true. But what if the servants in the household secretly switched it out?
Such things do happen; servants have done plenty of things that are outwardly compliant but inwardly defiant.
"I think the Duchess of Dingguo did the right thing. These things may seem like small matters, but if they are left unattended, they will inevitably lead to disaster."
Madam, please also have your household check the congratulatory gifts carefully.
If there is even the slightest discrepancy, you must send someone to inform me.
"We cannot tolerate such a deceitful servant in our household," said the Duchess of Qi immediately.
The other ladies also expressed their opinions.
Make sure Shangguan Jin carefully checks the congratulatory gifts sent from their residence.
They also held the same attitude: they would never tolerate any evil servants committing wrongdoing.
As they expressed their opinions, they spoke with righteous indignation about the misdeeds of those wicked servants.
For a time, the courtyard was filled with the voices of the ladies discussing how to punish the wicked servants.
Everyone spoke very sincerely; their attitude was that they would not allow the existence of wicked servants, and likewise, they were not wicked servants themselves.
It would be best if the Duchess of Dingguo could convey their statement to the person standing behind her.
Shangguan Jin was very satisfied with the current atmosphere and immediately joined in the conversation.
“Every household has wicked servants, so we must always keep our eyes open.”
Look at these wicked servants in Madam Song's mansion this time.
Fortunately, our two families will be in-laws in the future, so we can say whatever we want.
If other families received such a gift, they would definitely have some reservations.
Either the Marquis of Wuding's mansion is so poor they can't even afford to eat, or the Marquis of Wuding's mansion looks down on our Duke's mansion and is deliberately trying to annoy us.
You know, if it were just the first point, it would be fine, maybe everyone could even contribute some money.
If you only think about the second point...
"Isn't this deliberately provoking dissatisfaction between the two families and sowing discord between the various prefectures?" Shangguan Jin concluded.
Apart from the wife of the Marquis of Wuding, the other wives all expressed their agreement.
Of course, they took all these words to heart.
The Duchess of Dingguo said so much, there must be a deeper meaning to it.
It's okay if they can't figure it out. They can go home and tell their husbands. Those men are out and about every day, they'll definitely figure it out.
After saying so much, Shangguan Jin was also thirsty.
After taking a couple of sips of the tea made with winter wheat, she was about to continue with a more in-depth summary when Lady Changsheng, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up.
"Madam, the people from our household who are delivering supplies to the Marquis will be setting off in ten days. Are all the people in your household ready?"
If you're ready, let's go with our family!
Shangguan Jin was taken aback.
Depart? Why are we leaving?
However, Shangguan Jin soon found out what Lady Changsheng was talking about.
Marquis Changsheng was formerly a subordinate of Duke Dingguo. After Duke Dingguo disappeared, he took over the border military affairs.
For the past three years, the Changsheng Marquis's Mansion and the Dingguo Duke's Mansion have been searching for the Dingguo Duke's whereabouts.
Of course, it also costs a lot.
After a moment's thought, Shangguan Jin shook her head.
"Thank you for your kindness, but we won't send anyone to search this time," Shangguan Jin said with a faint smile.
Upon hearing this, everyone was shocked.
Several ladies were so startled by these words that they dropped their fans to the ground.
Even Shangguan Jin's wife looked at Shangguan Jin with surprise.
Giving up the search?
Why did they suddenly stop looking for me?
Does this mean there's already news?
This is highly likely. Otherwise, why would the Duke of Dingguo's mansion suddenly hold a grand banquet for guests and say so many ambiguous things, contrary to its usual practice?
Thinking of this, everyone's gaze towards Shangguan Jin became a little strange.
If there is any news about the Duke of Dingguo, that would be the biggest news.
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