Jiang Yuwei glanced down at the leftover food on the table, and smiled.
"I've already eaten, so I'm not hungry right now. You can eat as much as you want."
Granny Yao produced a twig from somewhere and, while picking her teeth, muttered:
"The food in the capital is so delicious, son. I'll stay a while longer this time. Or I might as well stay in the capital and retire, so I can see you every day."
Upon hearing this, Yao Guang quickly glanced at Liu Shi, then spoke:
“Mother, didn’t you say that our family couldn’t even afford a single tael of silver? How come we have silver to stay at an inn now? I think I’ll send you back this afternoon, so we can save that money from being wasted.”
Granny Yao glared fiercely at Yao Guang.
"You really have no conscience. Why would I stay in an inn when I'm in the capital? Aren't you working at the General's Mansion? There must be plenty of empty rooms there. Just find me one to stay in."
As she spoke, Granny Yao looked at Jiang Yuwei and said with a forced smile:
"Madam Jiang seems to be a reasonable person. You wouldn't even be willing to give an old woman like me a room to live in, would you?"
Jiang Yuwei smiled.
“It’s alright. If Aunt Yao wants to stay and discuss the marriage between Yao Guang and Liu Shi, I will arrange a room for you to stay for a few days. But you can’t even afford the betrothal gifts, so I’m afraid the marriage can’t go through.”
Upon hearing this, Granny Yao's eyes darted around twice before she looked at Madam Liu and asked:
"I'm telling you, you're already doing well enough that someone would marry you after you've been married before. Why do you insist on forcing my Yao Guang to give you this one or two taels of silver? I think you're trying to drive this old woman to her death!"
As she spoke, Granny Yao began to wail again. Having just eaten and drunk her fill, even her wailing was louder and stronger than before.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuwei said coldly:
"Aunt Yao, I think your voice is even louder than a newborn baby's. Don't worry, no one can force you to your death. You're still alive!"
As she spoke, Jiang Yuwei looked at Yao Guang.
“Yao Guang, since the agreed-upon dowry of one tael of silver is no longer available, then naturally I cannot give you the dowry I prepared for Liu Shi either…”
Before Jiang Yuwei could finish speaking, Granny Yao caught the word "dowry" precisely. She quickly wiped away her tears with her sleeve and looked at Jiang Yuwei anxiously, saying:
"Madam Jiang, you even prepared a dowry for Liu Shi. You are truly a kind person. What kind of dowry did you prepare for her?"
Jiang Yuwei raised an eyebrow, glanced at Granny Yao, and said coldly:
"The dowry is no longer relevant to your family. It seems that Liu and Yao Guang are destined to be apart. I can only keep the dowry for Liu for now. It won't be too late to give it to her when she meets a respectable family."
Upon hearing Jiang Yuwei's words, Liu looked at her with a tense expression. Jiang Yuwei noticed Liu's gaze and quickly squeezed her hand under the table, signaling her not to worry.
Seeing that Jiang Yuwei's words meant she disagreed with his marriage to Liu, Yao Guang hurriedly turned to look anxiously at Granny Yao.
"Mother, I know you have money. I only want one tael of silver. I'll pay you back when I earn more, okay?"
Granny Yao glared at Yao Guang, signaling him to be quiet.
"Liu, what are you thinking? Don't you want to marry my Yao Guang anymore?"
Liu glanced at Yao Guang, then at Jiang Yuwei, and said through gritted teeth:
"I...I will follow Madam's arrangements in everything..."
Upon hearing this, Yao Guang hurriedly said:
"Mother, look!"
Granny Yao turned around, glared at Yao Guang, and cursed:
"Shut up, you useless thing! You can't even keep a woman in your heart. I'll have to worry about you until I'm old!"
As she spoke, Granny Yao put on a smiling face again and looked at Jiang Yuwei.
“Madam Jiang, you said there’s still room for maneuver in this matter. How about this, allow me to go home and raise some money. Once I’ve raised enough, I’ll come back to arrange the engagement with Madam Liu. That way, you won’t have to give your dowry to anyone else.”
Jiang Yuwei glanced at Granny Yao with a half-smile.
"I'll give you three days. If you can't prepare the money, then we'll drop the matter."
Granny Yao glanced at Jiang Yuwei, then at Liu Shi, whom she had already manipulated, and gritted her teeth before speaking:
"Alright, I'll go back and prepare the money right away. You should also hurry up and prepare the dowry for Liu Shi. I'm getting old now, so I can put my mind at ease as soon as their marriage is settled."
Hearing what Granny Yao said, Yao Guang and Liu Shi exchanged a smile.
Jiang Yuwei nodded and said:
"Don't worry."
Jiang Yuwei got up to see Granny Yao out, while Yao Guang asked Jiang Yuwei for half a day off to personally take his mother home, otherwise he wouldn't feel at ease.
Just as they reached the door, they saw the man who had fought with Yao Guang that day arrive with several constables.
The constables came up and arrested Yao Guang without saying a word.
Seeing this, Jiang Yuwei quickly stepped forward and asked:
"Hey, constable, wait a minute, why are you arresting him?"
The constable gestured with his lip towards the man standing next to him.
"Look, it's General Zhang who filed a complaint with the yamen, and today I've come to arrest him and take him to the yamen for questioning."
Jiang Yuwei turned her head and glanced at Zhang Da's gloating expression before coldly saying:
“Since he has complained, then we should complain too.”
As she spoke, Jiang Yuwei called out to Yun Qing, who was busy inside:
"Yunqing, prepare the carriage, we're going to the yamen."
Seeing this, Liu, who was standing to the side, nervously grabbed Yao Guang's arm and anxiously said to the constables:
"Officer, arrest me if you want. This whole thing started because of me."
Seeing this, Yao Guang quickly shook his head at her and said:
“Mrs. Liu, don’t be afraid. You are the victim. It was Zhang Da who started it. We can go to the yamen and make things clear. Let go of me and go with your wife.”
Upon hearing this, Liu nervously released her grip on Yao Guang's hand.
Having already been terrified by her son's arrest, Granny Yao understood what was happening when she heard Liu's words. She immediately swung her cane and began striking Liu.
“You wretched woman, it’s all your fault that my son got arrested. You killed your ex-husband, and now you’re trying to harm my son. I’m so unlucky, how did I end up with a wife like you?”
Hearing this, Liu dared not retaliate and could only silently endure it, because deep down she also felt that she was the one who had harmed Yao Guang.
Jiang Yuwei was giving instructions in the shop when she saw Granny Yao hitting Liu Shi with her cane outside. Liu Shi didn't even try to dodge. Jiang Yuwei quickly ran out of the house, pulled Liu Shi behind her, and then grabbed Granny Yao's cane tightly, throwing it to the ground.
“This cane is for walking, not for hitting people. You look so energetic that you don’t need it anymore, so I’ll throw it away for you!”
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