Chapter 374 Worrying
Whether out of resentment or jealousy, Luo Yuying's hatred for Gu Shuyan rose unconsciously.
"Be more careful in the future, and don't give others an opportunity. I noticed your expression was off as soon as I arrived today. If you can't keep your composure, how can you assist the Fifth Prince?"
Sun Ruoyun's words clearly carried a warning. She also agreed to make Luo Yuying the Fifth Prince's consort, but someone who was used to being high above others and pampered was bound to be unable to withstand setbacks.
That's why she deliberately called her into the car, intending to give her a warning so that a good move wouldn't turn into a waste.
"Yes, I will be very careful from now on and will not hold Your Highness back."
Luo Yuying outwardly agreed respectfully, but inwardly she was very dissatisfied with Sun Ruoyun's bossy manner.
She's just His Highness's cousin. Once I marry His Highness, I'll see how she manages to distance herself from him.
Meanwhile, in the front courtyard of the Marquis of Yi'an's residence, although the servants had already counted a considerable amount of betrothal gifts, the courtyard was still filled with large red boxes until dark.
Gu Shuyan didn't know how long the servants in the Marquis's mansion had been busy that night, but when she got up the next day, the servants who had helped in the courtyard were still asleep.
"Miss, do you know how terrifying the betrothal gifts Lord Yun sent are?"
While helping Gu Shuyan wash up, Pearl exaggeratedly recounted yesterday's events to her.
How terrifying is it?
Although ninety-nine units is indeed a lot, in Gu Shuyan's opinion, even ninety-nine units wouldn't be considered terrifying.
In her previous life, Gu Shuyan had a terrible reputation when she got married. However, in order to win the hearts of everyone in the Marquis's mansion, Lu Youming still gave her a dowry of sixty-six loads.
Although there were thirty-three more units, it wasn't an absurdly large number.
Seeing her young mistress's calm demeanor, Pearl admired her greatly. As expected of her mistress, she didn't flaunt her wealth at all.
"This servant never expected that the Grand Secretary was so rich. Apart from the ninety-nine betrothal gifts, he owns as many as twenty or thirty shops. Yesterday, I heard many ladies and young misses guessing whether the Grand Secretary's family was the richest. Now it seems that it is probably true."
Pearl's face was beaming with smiles; anyone who didn't know better would think she was the one who received the betrothal gifts yesterday!
How many shops did you say?
Gu Shuyan assumed that the ninety-nine gift boxes contained all of Yun Yichen's betrothal gifts. After all, any item on the betrothal gift list was quite valuable.
But judging from what Pearl said, could it be that he lost money on another shop?
Seeing Gu Shuyan's questioning gaze, Pearl quickly nodded, "Isn't that right? When I heard that there were twenty or thirty shops, I was stunned. Besides that, it seems there are also estates and fields, but I don't know the specifics."
Although Pearl's manner of speaking was somewhat exaggerated, twenty or thirty shops was indeed too many.
In her previous life, Gu Shuyan's dowry included about ten shops, which was already so abundant that others envied her. But Yun Yichen only gave her twenty or thirty shops as part of the betrothal gifts.
Gu Shuyan stared blankly at herself in the mirror, surprised at the same time, and couldn't help but wonder how much dowry she would have to give when she got married, given Yun Yichen's dowry, in order not to be impolite.
"Miss, what are you thinking about?"
Seeing Gu Shuyan staring at herself in the mirror, Pearl couldn't help but call out to her.
"Oh, it's nothing. Hurry up and get ready so I can go see my mother."
Gu Shuyan answered, and the two of them tidied her up. Without even having breakfast, she hurriedly went to the main courtyard.
As soon as Gu Shuyan stepped into the room, she saw Madam Ji sitting in front of the round table in a daze, and the food on the table was obviously untouched.
What is Mother thinking?
Gu Shuyan took the gift list from Madam Ji's hand and flipped through it while asking questions.
However, he only glanced at Gu Shuyan before quickly closing the book.
She simply didn't have the courage to look any further, because the more you looked, the more terrifying the contents of that list became.
"Is Mother worried about her daughter's dowry?"
Gu Shuyan immediately noticed the worry in her mother's heart.
Although the Gu family is a well-established and influential family, it would be quite difficult for them to produce a dowry that is even more valuable than what Yun Yichen sent.
Seeing that Gu Shuyan had guessed her predicament, Madam Ji did not hide anything from her and went straight to the point: "Although Yichen's large dowry shows that he values you, it is really too expensive."
Gu Shuyan naturally knew that these betrothal gifts were excessive, but Yun Yichen hadn't discussed it with her beforehand, and now that the gifts had entered the Marquis's residence in front of so many people, Gu Shuyan couldn't very well let Yun Yichen carry them back.
"I'll go find him."
As Gu Shuyan was about to stand up, Madam Ji quickly grabbed her arm.
"What are you going to say if you just barge in like that? That the Gu family can't reciprocate with a gift?"
My daughter is usually quite smart, but she can be so impulsive when she gets anxious.
"Then what should we do!" Gu Shuyan was also filled with melancholy.
For a family with a century-old heritage like the Marquis's Mansion, face is of utmost importance. Yun Yichen offered a betrothal gift of ninety-nine taels of silver, so the Marquis's Mansion would naturally not give Gu Shuyan a dowry of less than ninety-nine taels. However, the more than twenty shops and thousands of acres of fertile land were a real headache.
Gu Shuyan rubbed her forehead, feeling a little annoyed with Yun Yichen's presumptuousness. He brought so many things without any problem, but if the dowry was prepared in this amount, how would the entire Hou family survive?
"Your mother has been preparing your dowry, and it can't be less than the betrothal gifts. But as for the shops and fields, the Marquis's family isn't really a business family. Your father and I can only discuss tonight whether we can give you some of the estates."
The Gu family owns no more than thirty shops in the capital, but fortunately, they have quite a few estates. If all else fails, they can only provide Gu Shuyan with more estates; they can't let her suffer.
As the mother and daughter were making plans, a figure suddenly walked in from outside.
“Mother, I’m sorry. The betrothal gifts that our family sent to the Ouyang family were ultimately swallowed up by my stepmother.”
Ouyang Jing overheard the conversation between the mother and daughter at the door. She felt extremely ashamed, thinking that the Marquis's mansion had also sent sixty-six loads of betrothal gifts to the Ouyang family, all of which had been moved to the storeroom by that heartless stepmother.
"How can this be your fault? Don't overthink it, or you'll hurt the baby."
When Ji Shi was engaged to the Ouyang family, she never expected that the Ouyang family would provide a good dowry.
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