Liu Yulian returned from the Jingning Marquis' Mansion after Lady Chengguo had left. She had been to Hainan before, and now she was going to the research institute a few times to see what was going on there.
Only after Liu Yulian came back did she learn that the wife of Duke Chengguo had been there.
"I've discussed it with your father, and I'll let you get married next year." Liu's mother said, she couldn't let her daughter stay at home forever.
No matter how capable a daughter is, she still has to get married. If she stays, she will only end up making enemies. Liu's mother knew that her daughter was good, and it was unlikely that she would resent them, but they themselves had to know their limits.
Mother Liu wouldn't delay her daughter's marriage just to make the Jingning Marquisate more valued. That wouldn't be right. When her daughter reached that age, she should have let her marry, not let her stay at home.
If she let her daughter stay at home all the time, others would laugh at the Jingning Marquis's Mansion.
Liu's mother hoped that her daughter would live a happy and harmonious life after her marriage. She also thought that Madam He and the others would keep their promises, so she let He Xiyuan stay with Liu Yulian for the rest of her life.
"Next year?" Liu Yulian had a premonition, but when she heard what her mother said, she still felt quite young. However, this was ancient times, and men her age were already married. It was indeed impossible for her family to prevent her from marrying forever.
"Yes, let's wait for the Duke's Mansion to choose a date, and then we can take a look too." Mother Liu took Liu Yulian's hand and said, "Where do you want to get married? The Duke's Mansion or the Princess' Mansion? And where will it be that evening?"
"Can it be done in the princess's mansion?" Liu Yulian had never thought of this.
"Sure." Mother Liu nodded. "It's fine to stay at the Princess's Mansion. We don't have to go too early to offer tea. Both families have already agreed. It's fine for you to stay at the Princess's Mansion earlier."
"Then let's go to the Princess's Mansion." Liu Yulian thought that if she had to move out after living in Duke Cheng's Mansion for a few days, it would be better to live directly in the Princess's Mansion.
"Okay." Mother Liu chuckled. "Don't worry about those trivial matters. We'll take care of everything for you. All you have to do is wait for the wedding. As for the betrothal gifts and dowry, they will be presented by the Duke of Cheng's Mansion in the spring. We've also prepared some for your dowry."
Mother Liu thought that the Marquis of Jingning's mansion didn't have that many things, and Liu Yulian's dowry would definitely not be comparable to that of Madam Qin. When Madam Qin married, the Marquis of Jingning's mansion had a lot of things, and Madam Qin brought a lot of dowry with her. Even concubines like Liu Yuqin had a lot of dowry, and Mother Liu didn't treat them too badly.
By the time Liu Yulian got married, the Liu family had been ransacked and there were not so many good things in the house.
The things that the royal family rewarded to Liu Yulian belonged to Liu Yulian herself, not to anyone else, so they didn't count.
Liu's mother felt that her family had treated Liu Yulian unfairly. Liu Yulian brought so many benefits to the family, but they couldn't even prepare a decent dowry.
"Mother, what's wrong?" Liu Yulian saw her mother's eyes were red, and hurriedly asked, "Are you reluctant to leave your daughter? If so, then wait another year or two."
"I can't bear to give it away," said Liu's mother. "Also, your dowry... I don't have that much for you."
"If you don't have that much, then don't have it." Liu Yulian said, "My daughter doesn't rely on the dowry to live. She has other things on hand."
"That's your own, not something we, your parents, prepared for you." Mother Liu sighed, "When your eldest sister got married, that dowry..."
"It was different back then." Liu Yulian knew that Madam Qin had a large dowry, but things were different now. They couldn't dwell on the past. "As long as the family is healthy, that's all that matters. There's no need to dwell on it."
Liu Yulian really didn't want such a large dowry. She also knew the situation at home. If she insisted on asking for such a large dowry, wouldn't that be embarrassing for them?
"That's about enough." Liu Yulian said, "By then, with the betrothal gifts, it will be quite a bit. Besides, there are still many things in the princess's mansion."
"You're the only one who doesn't mind it being too little." Mother Liu said, "If it were anyone else, they'd all be thinking about how much their dowry can be."
"That's because they are all women from the inner house. If they don't have money and enough dowry, their lives in their husband's family won't be so easy." Although Liu Yulian doesn't understand much about the disputes in the inner house, she also knows that women need to take care of many things after marrying into their husband's family.
Liu Yulian had read "Dream of the Red Chamber" and had also heard some analyses from others. They all said that servants needed to be managed in the inner house. Don't underestimate those servants. Servants' status was low, but they could also make things difficult for their masters.
"You." Mother Liu couldn't help but shake her head. Her daughter never wanted that much.
"Don't worry, you don't have to worry about the dowry." Liu Yulian said, "If the family really needs some things, we should save them. When Jia Jie'er gets married in the future, we must prepare more for her."
"She is still so young, why do you worry so much about her?" Liu's mother said with a smile.
My granddaughter is still young, and it will take several years for her to get married.
However, it is unlikely that the Jingning Marquisate has accumulated a lot of things in the past few years. If the Jingning Marquisate has not made any great achievements and the royal family has not rewarded them much, then their family may still be relatively poor.
Even if the shops at Marquis Jingning's Mansion are doing good business, it depends on how many shops they have.
Sometimes, there are things that money cannot buy.
For example, wealthy families with rich cultural heritage have many things that have been passed down through generations. Those things are truly good, and some are priceless, such as calligraphy and paintings.
The Marquis of Jingning's Mansion originally had these things, but unfortunately the mansion was ransacked and those things were gone.
If the Marquis of Jingning's Mansion had those things, then Mother Liu wouldn't have to say these words in front of Liu Yulian.
"Have you eaten yet?" asked Liu's mother. "Are you hungry? Eat something first."
"I've eaten outside." Liu Yulian said.
At the Mansion of Duke Chengguo, after the wife of Duke Chengguo came back, she met Old Madam He. Old Madam He had given her many instructions, so how could the wife of Duke Chengguo dare not come to the old lady?
"It's all said." Lady Chengguo said, "I think they mean that the wedding should be held in the Princess's residence."
"It's great to be in the Princess's Mansion." How could Old Madam He say anything bad about the Princess's Mansion? "That Princess's Mansion is no worse than Princess Zhaoyang's and the others'. The furnishings inside are all very nice. It was personally arranged by the royal family, so it can't be any worse. It's great for them to live there too. It's so big, I wonder if it's big enough for Rongning to keep her books."
“…” Lady Chengguo knew that Old Lady He would definitely agree.
In recent years, the wife of the Duke of Chengguo has finally understood that Madam He can bow her head more than anyone else. In any case, the wife of the Duke of Chengguo cannot do this, even if Liu Yulian rescues He Xichen and heals his legs, He Xichen can become the crown prince again.
But if the wife of the Duke of Chengguo was asked to say those nice things and praise Princess Rongning from time to time, she really couldn't do it. Only someone like Madam He could do this, and the wife of the Duke of Chengguo was also convinced by the old lady.
"Don't think Rongning is bad. If she stayed in the Duke's Mansion, it would be a different matter." Madam He said, "A big tree has many branches. When children grow up, they should be allowed to live on their own. Don't meddle in other people's affairs. You can't manage them well."
"Yes." Lady Chengguo said, "If you act like this, others will think Rongning is the mother-in-law."
"I'm your mother-in-law," said Madam He. "Why should I care what those people say? They're just jealous. If Rongning and Yuan'er are fine, won't our family benefit?"
This is what Old Lady He thought. After Princess Rongning and He Xiyuan got married, the princess's mansion would belong to He Xiyuan's child.
The royal family had long ago stated that they would not reclaim the princess's mansion. When Princess Rongning's descendants no longer held such high titles, the royal family would not disrupt the layout of the princess's mansion, nor would they be accused of usurping power.
That was the royal family's grace to Princess Rongning, which meant that if the Liang Dynasty survived, Princess Rongning's descendants would all have a good life. Of course, those descendants would not be able to commit treason or anything like that.
"Look at the long term, and don't think of yourself as a mother-in-law and set rules for your daughter-in-law," said Mrs. He.
"How dare I?" Lady Chengguo said with amusement. She might have thought about it before. Princess Rongning was so powerful, Lady Chengguo said she didn't dare let Princess Rongning set the rules.
They also couldn't let Princess Rongning stay in the inner house, they should let Princess Rongning go out and do things.
So whether they let Princess Rongning set the rules is very important. Setting the rules will take a lot of time.
Many new brides are given rules to serve their mother-in-law when they first marry into their husband's family. When the mother-in-law eats, they stand and serve her food.
Lady Chengguo had no intention of letting Liu Yulian do that. It would be a waste of her time. She did ask Madam Mo to set the rules, but she didn't make it too difficult for her.
Since Mrs. Mo's family background was not that good, Lady Chengguo naturally had to teach her well. She had to let her know the rules of the Chengguo Mansion and how to treat others when she went out.
"You have to really be afraid, not just say it." Old Madam He often said this to Lady Chengguo. "Old family, you have to say it too. After this division, you won't be giving anything to Yuan-ge'er anymore. Don't be so stingy."
Mrs. Mo was the daughter of a general, and Mrs. He didn't dislike her grandson's wife much. But she still had to be more careful about some things, so that Mrs. Mo wouldn't think that He Xiyuan had taken too much.
That amount of stuff might be considered a lot for the Mo family, but not so much for the Chengguo Mansion.
"I've already said it," said Lady Chengguo. "This time, 30% will be distributed. Later, your eldest grandson will inherit 60%, and the remaining 10% will be distributed among the illegitimate children."
This was also what Duke Chengguo had said, that the eldest son would inherit the most. Originally, they had planned to let the eldest son inherit 80%, with the remaining 10% going to He Xiyuan, and the remaining 10% being divided among the illegitimate sons.
In ancient times, many families adopted an 80:20 split, in order to ensure the longevity of the main branch. If the wealth was simply divided equally, or if others took a larger share, the branch that inherited the main family business might not be able to continue to prosper.
No one would say that the eldest son gets more things, as long as there are elderly people at home. When parents and others are still alive, the others will still live at home, and the expenses will also be paid by the public.
After the older generation passed away, those people moved out. During this period, they received a share of the family property, but did not have to spend extra money on food and clothing. This was the case for many families in the Daliang Dynasty.
The reason why Duke Chengguo wanted to give more things to the second legitimate son was, firstly, because the eldest legitimate son's legs were crippled, and they had instilled in the second legitimate son the idea of making him the crown prince. Now that the eldest legitimate son is well again, they inevitably feel that they have treated He Xiyuan unfairly; secondly, He Xiyuan is marrying Princess Rongning, and Princess Rongning's future achievements are bound to be great, so they cannot be stingy at this time.
"That's fine." Madam He nodded. "Just make sure you have a plan in mind and don't give too little."
"I wouldn't dare give too little," Lady Chengguo joked, "I can't let others think that Yuan Ge'er is dependent on the princess for support."
He Xiyuan's reputation is not as great as Princess Rongning's, but there is no need for the Chengguo Mansion to prepare less things just because of this.
The wife of Duke Chengguo knew that the Marquis of Jingning's Mansion would not prepare too much dowry for Princess Rongning, but Princess Rongning had a lot of things on her own. So Princess Rongning's dowry was not small, and of course the people of the Duke Chengguo Mansion could not think about their daughter-in-law's dowry.
Lady Chengguo wanted to wait until Princess Rongning and He Xiyuan had children, and those things would belong to her grandchildren.
Oh, why did she think about this?
Lady Chengguo found that she had been in contact with Old Lady He for so long that she sometimes thought about these things. She would subconsciously move closer to Old Lady He and think about these issues in the same way as Old Lady He.
"Just make the arrangements," said Madam He. "I'm old now, and I can't keep an eye on you all day."
On the other side, He Xichen came back and Mrs. Mo stepped forward to help him take off his cloak.
"Mother went to the Marquis of Jingning's mansion today, probably to discuss the wedding date," Madam Mo said. "A few days ago, Mother even asked me to go and told them that she would give them 30% of the family property."
"Of course." He Xichen didn't think these things were too much. When his leg was still healed, his family had planned to make He Xiyuan the crown prince. If He Xiyuan became the crown prince, then He Xiyuan would get more things. "If they get married, they should live in the princess's mansion."
"Was it the same when we just got married?" Mrs. Mo didn't dare to ask more questions about Lady Chengguo or Old Madam He, and at most she would ask He Xichen.
"It should be. The wedding should be held at the princess's mansion on the day." He Xichen said.
Old Madam He had always said that Princess Rongning and He Xiyuan would live in the princess's mansion after they got married. When He Xichen met Liu Yanjing, he also inquired about the attitude of the Liu family.
He Xichen knew that the Liu family would prefer that Princess Rongning get married at the Princess's Mansion. On the day of the wedding, He Xiyuan set out from the Duke Cheng's Mansion to pick up Princess Rongning at the Marquis Jingning's Mansion, and then went to Princess Rongning's Mansion.
This is also a good choice, and it does not count as He Xiyuan marrying into the family.
He Xichen thought that even if He Xiyuan was allowed to marry into the family, Old Madam He would be very happy, and she would find various reasons to persuade others to accept this.
"Princess Rongning and Brother Yuan occasionally come to stay at home." He Xichen said, "You just take care of these things at home, and they won't argue."
"Yes." Mrs. Mo knew that He Xiyuan would not fight, and she also knew that Princess Rongning was not that narrow-minded.
Mrs. Mo felt that her relatives were too narrow-minded. Previously, a relative had come to ask the Chengguo Mansion how much betrothal gift they should give to Princess Rongning, saying that Princess Rongning could not be surpassed by her, because she was, after all, the Crown Prince's wife and the daughter-in-law of the eldest son and grandson.
This made Mrs. Mo speechless. Liu Yulian was a princess, so how could the betrothal gift to a princess be small? Although Mrs. Mo was the wife of the Crown Prince, her status was not as good as Liu Yulian's.
Mrs. Mo thought it was no wonder that Lady Chengguo always taught her something from time to time. Her mother-in-law was afraid that she would be too stingy. Mrs. Mo didn't think there was anything wrong with her mother-in-law doing that. Her mother-in-law was doing it for her own good.
The mother-in-law did not give her husband a concubine, nor did she scold her all the time. She also let her take charge of the household chores. If she did something wrong, the mother-in-law would point it out, but she would not say anything else.
"Some people probably think that Rongning and I have a bad relationship as sisters-in-law," Mrs. Mo said. "They're talking nonsense."
"I'm glad you're not confused." He Xichen said.
"How dare I be confused." Mrs. Mo didn't dare to be confused. Her status was low, and sometimes she couldn't handle things well, so she studied.
"It's okay to be confused occasionally, as long as you don't make big mistakes." He Xichen did not ask the Mo family to do well in all aspects. As a human being, everyone will slack off sometimes.
"Yeah." Mrs. Mo responded.
Mrs. Mo and He Xichen had a pretty good relationship. Because He Xichen felt that the women disliked him when his legs were crippled, he no longer thought about taking a concubine.
If He Xichen thought about those women too much, his mind would be filled with their disgusted expressions towards him, and he would not be able to be with them. Although Mrs. Mo was unable to help He Xichen, she did not despise He Xichen for her crippled legs. She even studied medicine.
That's enough!
He Xichen just thought that they would have children in the future, so he wouldn't have to worry about anything else.
"Those are external things." He Xichen said.
"That's right." Mrs. Mo said.
In fact, Mo was also afraid that he would think too much. Why do people always like to whisper those things in other people's ears? Those people are not doing it for the good of others, they just want to make others fight.
Mrs. Mo didn't want to see those relatives, but even if they didn't say anything, others did. When she attended a banquet, someone deliberately said that Old Lady He was more kind to Princess Rongning than to any of her other grandsons' wives.
Those were all calculations, and Madam Mo understood them all. Since she had become He Xichen's wife, and the Crown Prince's wife, she had to be able to distinguish right from wrong. If she disliked Princess Rongning because of those people's words and took action against her, that would be the biggest mistake.
"And... I'm pregnant." Mrs. Mo said, "I have a child."
Mrs. Mo had been feeling unwell recently, so she went to see a doctor today, who told her she was pregnant. This made Mrs. Mo very happy, as she hadn't had a child since she got married, and she was worried about her health and that He Xichen would take a concubine too soon.
Fortunately, she got pregnant.
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