Marquis Jianing asked Su Hong to count the eldest princess's dowry. Su Hong stared at him with wide eyes in disbelief, and said sharply, "What? Master, are you saying you want to give all the dowry to the princess? This is the wealth our family has accumulated over the years!"
Marquis Jianing frowned and waved his hand impatiently, signaling her to stop talking nonsense. "Alright, go and count them now, and don't waste your time here. These dowries are the remains of the princess's mother and should rightfully belong to her. Furthermore, in addition to the existing dowry, my salary over the years must be added to it, so that it can barely match the princess's status and position."
Su Hong felt bitter after hearing this, but she didn't dare to directly refute it, so she could only bite the bullet and agree. However, when she heard that the Marquis of Jianing wanted to add more dowry to the princess, she couldn't help but exclaimed, "What? More for her? Master, your salary has been almost used up over the years, and the family simply doesn't have any extra money to add to the princess's dowry!"
Marquis Jianing was immediately furious. He glared at Su Hong fiercely and shouted, "Spend it all? Then tell me clearly, where did you spend the money? Give me a detailed list right away. I want to take a closer look and see exactly where such a huge expenditure was made!"
Su Hong was so frightened that her whole body trembled, her face as pale as paper, and she stammered to explain: "Master, don't be angry first, actually...actually, I am also thinking about Shanshan! You see, if all the dowry is given to the princess, what will happen to Shanshan in the future? Shanshan is not young anymore, she also needs a generous dowry!" As she spoke, she carefully observed the expression of Marquis Jianing, trying to make him understand her difficulties.
"It would be fine if you didn't mention her! As soon as you mention her, I get so angry! Look at your well-educated daughter, what has she become? She actually did that kind of thing, which really brings shame to our mansion! Now everyone in the capital knows about this, which young man would dare to marry her?" Marquis Jianing became more and more angry as he spoke, his face becoming extremely gloomy. He slammed the table so hard that a lot of tea in the cup splashed out.
Seeing that the Marquis of Jianing wouldn't listen to her, Su Hong immediately resorted to crying, making a scene, and even threatening to commit suicide. However, the Marquis of Jianing wasn't having any of this. He said coldly, "Su Hong, if you continue to act like this, I'll immediately remove your stewardship!" Hearing this, Su Hong immediately quieted down. A flicker of panic and resentment flashed in her eyes, but she gritted her teeth and said, "Yes, Master, I'll do it immediately." With that, she hurriedly left the room.
Meanwhile, Jiang Meiyu was leisurely sipping tea in her courtyard, listening to her maid Ziyan vividly recount how the Marquis of Jianing had scolded Su Hong. She secretly rejoiced, as if she had seen Su Hong's utterly miserable state, and her mood was particularly relaxed. She gently sipped her tea, feeling the fragrance spread in her mouth, and couldn't help but sigh, "This tea is even more fragrant than before!"
Su Hong went to great lengths, even turning the Jianing Marquis's mansion upside down, to finally gather enough money for Jiang Meiyu's dowry. When she handed the property to Jiang Meiyu, she smiled with great satisfaction and expressed her gratitude: "Thank you, mother, for your hard work."
Su Hong responded with a forced smile, "No, this is what a mother should do. Yu'er, you are about to become the noble Crown Princess, so you must remember to find a good marriage for your sister. It would be best if it is a marriage between relatives, so that you two sisters can take care of each other. Do you think what mother said makes sense?"
Jiang Meiyu chuckled inwardly, realizing Su Hong had ulterior motives. She feigned seriousness and replied, "Mother, you're right. I'll keep an eye out for the princes' preferences and let you know when the time comes so she can prepare. Don't worry, mother. I'll do my best to help you find a suitable husband."
Hearing Jiang Meiyu's understanding, Su Hong was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly. She said to Jiang Meiyu with tears in her eyes, "Yu'er, thank you so much. Now, mother will take her leave."
After saying that, Su Hong turned and left. Watching her retreating figure, Jiang Meiyu couldn't help but burst into laughter, her body tilted, and she fell on the recliner. Zi Yan, who was beside her, saw this and hurried over to cover her mouth, whispering, "Princess, the Madam hasn't gone far yet!"
Jiang Meiyu gently took Ziyan's hand away, clutching her stomach as she laughed so hard she fell backwards. She panted heavily as she laughed, "Haha, Ziyan, you see, I was right, didn't you? Now she's desperately running to me to beg for mercy. There will be plenty of opportunities to deal with her in the future!"
Zi Yan couldn't help laughing as well. While helping her princess smooth her back, she agreed, "Yes, princess, you are absolutely right. These people will have to beg us for mercy in the future!" Zi Yan thought secretly in her heart that this time she could finally hold her head high and get rid of all the humiliation she had suffered before.
Three days before the wedding, the emperor rewarded Jiang Meiyu with a dowry of one hundred sets, which made her overjoyed. Looking at the mountains of wealth, Jiang Meiyu couldn't help but sigh: "It's really hard not to get rich!"
However, at the same time, Jiang Shanshan found her mother Su Hong and complained angrily, "Mom, why did Jiang Meiyu get so much dowry? What should I do in the future?"
Su Hong felt a surge of irritation at her daughter's questioning. She had originally thought Jiang Meiyu's dowry was just average, but now it seemed the emperor had been so generous, granting her a full hundred sets of dowry—a truly enormous fortune! She secretly regretted that if she had known the emperor would reward her like this, she would never have given all her family's wealth to Jiang Meiyu as a dowry, even if she had tried her best. Unfortunately, it was too late now; the water spilled could never be taken back.
"Okay, Shanshan, stop making such a fuss. Things have come to this point, and there's nothing that can be done to change them. Besides, Mother is counting on Jiang Meiyu to help you choose a suitable husband," Su Hong said to Jiang Shanshan, comforting her. Although she felt somewhat helpless, she knew she had no choice but to accept reality and try to find some benefits from the situation.
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