Zi Qiao gradually understood and asked with wide eyes, "Does that girl suspect that someone bribed the broker?"
Wei Shuwan sighed: "Go ask the gatekeeper if anyone in the manor left in a carriage an hour or two ago."
The broker arrived half an hour late today, precisely because he was hit by someone else's carriage. If it was truly the work of an "insider," then the timing should be accurate.
Zi Qiao accepted the order and went to inquire with the gatekeeper in charge of guarding the carriages. Sure enough, she learned that a servant named Zhao Cheng, whom the eldest son had brought from Wu County, had driven his own carriage away from the manor an hour earlier. He had returned earlier, but the carriage wheels were deformed. When the gatekeeper asked, Zhao Cheng only said that he had gone to buy a few things for his mistress, Meng Shi, and had been driving in a hurry, which was why he had accidentally bumped into the hitching post outside the inn.
Zi Qiao repeated these words to Wei Shuwan, thus confirming Wei Shuwan's previous guess.
"It seems that my aunt was not satisfied with the houses I inquired about for her, so she resorted to this trick. She had Zhao Cheng bump into the broker on the way, and then pulled him aside under the pretext of discussing compensation. She then offered him money and tricked the broker into lying that all the houses, whether remote or cramped, had already been sold, and recommended better and more expensive ones to me."
Hearing her daughter's analysis, Zi Qiao was furious: "The Wu County Wei family has fallen into ruin, and the two branches have already torn each other apart in the main hall of the Censorate, yet the eldest branch is still picking and choosing to devour the fattest!"
"What are you planning, young lady? Do you intend to expose this to the old lady?" Zi Qiao sighed in despair after offering her suggestion: "But the old lady is used to these actions of the eldest branch of the family. She's always been biased towards them."
"Since that's the case, why not just grant my aunt and uncle's wish?" Wei Shuwan said calmly.
Zi Qiao was taken aback and said incredulously, "How can you compromise like this, Miss? If this happens once, it will happen again. If they have designs on one courtyard today, they will have designs on you elsewhere tomorrow."
Wei Shuwan agreed with this in her heart, and smiled mysteriously: "This is not a compromise, but a strategy of feigning indifference to lure you in."
After saying that, Wei Shuwan lightly hooked her finger.
Zi Qiao realized that her young lady had already made up her mind, so she nodded and leaned closer to listen to her detailed explanation.
...
With the sudden increase in the number of people in the household, but the limited number of cooks, the Wei family members still gathered in the dining hall for dinner. This showed their unity and saved the kitchen staff some trouble.
The first half went well; everyone ate their own food, adhering to the family rule of not speaking while eating or sleeping, and there wasn't much idle chatter. In the second half, Lady Wei Wen finished eating first and put down her chopsticks, then began to ask:
"Lü Rong, have you made any progress on the matter of finding a place for your elder brother and sister-in-law to stay?"
Sun Lurong responded by putting down her chopsticks and replied with a smile, "Mother, Xingjian has arrived. I've been busy lately, so I've entrusted this matter to Shuwan."
After saying that, he turned his gaze to Wei Shuwan, "Wanwan, have you asked the broker?"
Wei Shuwan originally thought that Wei Hai and Meng Shi were the ones most anxious about this matter, since the two families were not on good terms and they must not feel comfortable living here. But she did not expect that her grandmother was more concerned about this matter.
However, after a little thought, it became clear. Although Wei Ping and her daughter said they were only staying for a few days when they came yesterday, the belongings they brought didn't seem like they were just staying for a short time. Grandmother wanted them to stay permanently, but didn't want to be at the mercy of the second branch of the family, so she was now even more eager to have a place that truly belonged to the Wei family.
Wei Shuwan wiped her mouth with a handkerchief and replied, "Grandmother, I had my eye on two houses yesterday, but when I wanted to make the payment today, I was told that both had been sold."
"Both places were sold overnight?" Madam Wei frowned, a hint of displeasure in her expression. Clearly, she didn't believe such a coincidence could happen and thought that San Yatou hadn't done her job properly and was just making excuses to fob her off.
Wei Shuwan understood her grandmother's thoughts, but she didn't take it to heart. She replied in a well-behaved tone, "Yes, but fortunately the broker recommended a new courtyard, which is bigger and in a better location than the previous two."
Lady Wei's brows finally relaxed, and she hurriedly asked, "Have you made a deal with him yet? Don't let it drag on and be bought by someone else in a few days."
"Grandmother, don't worry. I've already made a deposit today, and I plan to go there in person tomorrow. If there are no problems, I can buy it directly."
Lady Wei was satisfied with what she heard, but Lady Meng frowned.
That's not right. She clearly asked Zhao Cheng to secretly ask the broker at the real estate agency before dinner. The broker said that the deal for the mansion hadn't gone through, and Wei Shuwan insisted that it couldn't exceed five hundred taels.
"Wanwan, have you really made a deposit?" Meng asked doubtfully.
Wei Shuwan smiled sincerely: "Of course we've paid. The courtyard costs 1,800 taels, and the deposit alone is 500 taels. Aunt, please rest assured, they won't sell the courtyard again this time."
Wei Shuwan answered with certainty, and Meng felt that she was not lying to her. So, it was the broker who was lying to her.
It must be!
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