CHAPTER 300: CHAPTER 300: DOWRY (PART 2)

Last night, Nanny Fang went several times to the outer courtyard to invite the First Master, but in the end, he did not go to see the Lady. The First Master is set to return soon, and it seems that the Lady really couldn’t wait to confirm something, so she instructed Nanny Fang to call for a sedan chair to carry her to the outer courtyard.

"The doctor’s orders clearly stated that the Lady should not be moved carelessly," Chunliu was particularly worried about the Lady’s health. Given the national mourning period, if another family mourning occurs, will the Sixth Miss be able to get married?

Chunyan put down the cloth she was holding and walked out, saying, "I’ll go take a look!" Xiqiu stopped her: "Forget it, what secrets can there be in the mansion? Surely, even if you don’t go, you’ll know later." After considering, Chunyan did not move again.

Lady was carried by Nanny Fang to the study room, where the First Master was reviewing Tong Minzhi’s studies. Without hesitation, the Lady’s sedan chair was brought directly into the study. The young servant guarding the door looked at the Lady with difficulty, and the First Master, with a stern gaze, waved off the servant and the women carrying the sedan chair. Tong Minzhi also stood up from his chair and saluted the Lady. Nanny Fang, standing aside, spoke on behalf of the Lady: "Seventh Young Master, the Lady said she has words to speak with the First Master, please excuse yourself!" Her tone was quite impolite.

The First Master frowned deeply.

"Yes!" Tong Minzhi replied with a calm expression, saluted, and then said to the First Master, "I will ponder over the matters Father spoke of and come back later to seek Father’s guidance." After speaking, he saluted and withdrew, closing the door as he left.

The First Master, with a displeased look, eyed the Lady, who was dressed in a bright red overcoat embroidered with blessing patterns, adorned with a gold hairpin with ruby and a red gold with green jade hairpin. She wore seven or eight jade bracelets and gold strings. The Lady always favored grand adornments; when she was young, he found it pleasing, thinking that’s how a woman ought to be, dignified and proper. But now, even when gravely ill, she still dresses like this, which makes it seem too deliberate.

Especially since, after her stroke, the Lady’s mouth is twisted to one side, and even with a cushion under her neck, her clothes were stained by drool, making the First Master frown.

"You are ill, why don’t you rest properly, what is the reason for coming here?!" The First Master, sitting on his chair, put down the book he was holding and coldly looked at the Lady.

The Lady muttered a few words, and Nanny Fang, standing by her, bowed and said to the First Master, "Master, the Lady cannot easily speak, so I will relay her words... forgive my boldness!" She continued without waiting for the First Master to respond, "The Lady asks you, what is going on with the Jiang family’s marriage arrangement?!"

The First Master’s gaze darkened slightly, and he said displeasedly, "The marriage has been settled, there’s no need for you to inquire more. If you feel well, help the Fourth Miss prepare the dowry, if not, combine it with the Sixth Miss’s and let Peirong handle it!"

Hearing this, the Lady widened her eyes in surprise, and Nanny Fang, leaning close to her mouth for a moment, then stood up to the First Master and said, "The Lady says that Young Master Jiang is of bad character, and back then, because of him, the Fourth Miss almost lost her life. How can the Master betroth the Fourth Miss to him!"

The First Master furrowed his brows tighter and coldly said, "Those matters are in the past, don’t you feel ashamed to bring them up again!" Nanny Fang responded, "How could we get past this? The Master wasn’t present at the time to see the situation then... Young Master Jiang cannot be married by any means!"

"Nonsense!" The First Master scolded, "At this point of time, how can you still speak such words? Do you think Xiyan’s marriage is easy to find nowadays? Besides, I know Jiang Shilin’s character better than you, whether he can marry or not, I will decide!" He concluded, pointing to the Lady, "Don’t interfere in the marriages of the children, after next year when the children are married, I’ll invite your younger sister-in-law back to host, and you just rest assured and nurture your health!"

The Lady was left terribly upset, her chest heaving erratically. Nanny Fang squatted beside her to help her calm down, and said, "Master, it’s not my place to speak such words, but I’ve been with the Lady for decades, understanding her temperament well. Young Master Jiang indeed has improper conduct, once appointed by the late Emperor as third place, yet acted so unruly. If the Fourth Miss marries him, who knows how many more reckless affairs might occur, leaving the Fourth Miss with much grievance and nowhere to vent."

"Stop talking already." The First Master said in a stern voice, "I’m saying for the last time, the matter is settled, there will be no altering, think about how convoluted the marriages of the children in the mansion have been, now finally stabilized. If you make any moves again." He pointed at the Lady, "Don’t blame me for doing as Lord Xu did, and sending you back to Yingtian!"

The Lady shuddered upon hearing this; she had always thought the concubine was sent back to Shandong, and it was the first time she heard she’d been sent back to Yingtian. The Lady stared at the First Master in disbelief, muttering for a while, and the First Master spoke, "You sisters are the same, always engaging in malicious tactics, creating unrest in the household for peace of mind. The endless disturbances in our mansion, whether Xiyan or Xiqiu, all suffered setbacks in marriages. The Xu Mansion too, with Tianqing’s whereabouts unknown to date; yet you don’t introspect and instead blame others. Lord Xu did this as a warning: everyone has a limit to their patience!"

Listening to this, the Lady was dumbstruck, was it true that Feilu was really sent back to Yingtian? Instantly, shame flushed her face red, thinking of a daughter married off so many years, suddenly sent back by the husband’s family. With the First Brother’s temper, Feilu might not even enter Zhang’s family gate!

It must be, it must be the Xu Mansion’s concubine causing trouble. She had advised Feilu long before, to remove the root of the weed lest it becomes a later disaster. Seeing her usually smart, how did she make such a foolish mistake at the critical moment?

Looking at the Lady’s horrid expression, the First Master showed nothing but disgust. He stood up and started to walk out, Nanny Fang supporting the Lady shouted, "Master, the Fourth Miss truly cannot marry that Jiang Shilin." The Lady had once said, no matter what, the Fourth Miss could not be married to Jiang Shilin; the conditions listed initially were just to deter him, after which the Fourth Miss would be betrothed to the Zhou Residence. If indeed the Fourth Miss were betrothed to Young Master Jiang, how would the Lady manage future relations with this son-in-law, it wouldn’t be like slapping her own face in front of the future son-in-law.

The face of a mother-in-law, would it still matter!

The First Master abruptly stopped, and with a cold gaze, stared at the Lady, "I’ll say it once more, if you dare to do anything again, the concubine... she will be your mirror!" With that, he turned and walked out without looking back.

The Lady was so infuriated that she fainted on the spot. Upon hearing, Xiqiu quickly had a doctor invited in. Various precious medicines were coming into the mansion, to support the Lady’s health.

Xiqiu weariedly turned over, hearing the second watch strike outside. The First Master had left half a month ago, and the officials returning from making homages in the capital had gradually left too. It was heard that the Emperor had summoned civil and military officials this time, gathering them in the Taihe Palace, allowing them to freely express their thoughts on the new regime’s future. If any good proposals were made, the Emperor had someone jot them down on the spot, promoting many people because of it, yet also demoting many others. When Dong Kunda, who had previously gone to Fujian to investigate the Xiao Yanji case, just returned to the capital from Yingtian, he was detained at the city gate. The Emperor has set seven major crimes and directly thrown him into the Capital City Government. As for the Third Prince, it was the centerpiece event of the day, with Chief Duan holding the bright yellow Imperial Decree, just reciting the Third Prince’s crimes took half an hour!