Southern Song Dynasty Life Consultant

Chapter 24

"Is that really what Father said?" Cheng Mutian's expression became somewhat unnatural.

Xiao Yuan noticed his expression and frowned slightly: "Could it be that Father was right? I forgot to ask you earlier, that Green Maiden isn't a free person, how could she come to our house on her own? Who instructed her? Also, if you were talking about legitimate business, how did you end up in a place like the Flower Moon Pavilion?"

Cheng Mutian sat down again, took her hand and said, "Didn't you just say you would trust me? If you really trust me, then don't ask anymore. Just remember to take care of your pregnancy. I'll take care of things outside."

Xiao Yuan nodded and let him out, but she was filled with doubt and curiosity. If the doctor hadn't told her to rest in bed, she would have gotten up and eavesdropped long ago. She spent a few days with a belly full of questions, and finally, when the doctor announced that her rest period was over, she immediately took the opportunity of missing a few days of greetings to go to the front to see Master Cheng.

When Master Cheng saw her, he hurriedly waved his hands, "Daughter-in-law, you should go back and rest. Why are you wandering around?" Xiao Yuan smiled and bowed, saying, "I was angered by that courtesan and missed paying my respects to Father these past few days, which was already a sin. Now that I'm much better, how could I dare to be negligent?" Master Cheng sighed, "You're a good person, it's just a pity..." Xiao Yuan was delighted to see Master Cheng bring up the subject himself and pressed him for details. Master Cheng shook his head, saying, "Daughter-in-law, if you knew about this, it would upset the baby again. You should rest and take good care of yourself."

Several thoughts flashed through Xiao Yuan's mind in an instant. She deliberately asked urgently, "Is something wrong with my third brother?" Master Cheng stroked his beard and smiled, "speaking frankly," "If something were wrong with He Sanlang, would I still be sitting here peacefully?" Xiao Yuan chuckled inwardly. Her father-in-law claimed not to say anything, but in fact, he had said everything.

She emerged from Master Cheng's room with a relaxed expression, humming a little tune as she strolled into the garden with Cailian's hand, admiring the flowers and chatting with the maids about how much money these most precious flowers in Lin'an City could fetch. Even the quick-witted Cailian couldn't understand why a few casual words with Master Cheng had resolved all her doubts.

When Cheng Mutian returned at noon, he saw the food laid out in the garden and laughed, "You've been cooped up in your room for days, and you're only just getting permission to come out for a stroll?" Xiao Yuan was busy picking out flowers and didn't even look up. "Is that Green Maiden still in Lin'an Prefecture?" Cheng Mutian paused, his chopsticks barely touching the ground, and frowned as he asked, "Why are you asking that?" Xiao Yuan tucked a flower into her hair, looking at him with a half-smile. "Nothing much. I think that male prostitute is quite good-looking, and I wanted to send him to my eldest and second brothers. Unfortunately, my brothers have two, but I only have one male prostitute. Who do you think I should send him to?"

Cheng Mutian slammed a pair of chopsticks to the ground and angrily asked the maids, "Who told anyone?" Xiao Yuan, seeing that he was taking his anger out on her, deliberately said, "Who else knows about this besides Father? I didn't know." Upon hearing the mention of Master Cheng, Cheng Mutian's arrogance dimmed, and he asked hesitantly, "Did Father really tell?" Xiao Yuan rolled her eyes at him, "It doesn't stop you from being a filial son. I guessed it myself from Father's words. You're overthinking it. Do you think I don't know what kind of people my two brothers are? If I were angry with them, I would have died of anger long ago."

Seeing that she wasn't angry, Cailian quickly voiced her doubts: "Madam, the master didn't say anything just now, so how did you know that Lüniang's affair was with either the eldest or second young master?"

Xiao Yuan laughed and said, "What's so hard to guess? Apart from my good-for-nothing brother, I can't think of anyone else who could upset me." As she spoke, she stuffed a piece of lotus root into Cheng Mutian's mouth and pouted, "It's a pity that this young master doesn't understand his wife at all. He doesn't know that apart from him, no one else in this world is worth getting angry with."

Cheng Mutian chewed on the lotus root, feeling sweet in his mouth. Hearing his wife's words, he felt sweet in his heart as well. He picked up his chopsticks and tossed them to the maid beside him, then secretly glanced at her, saying, "That's not why I kept it from you."

Chapter Sixty-Eight: An Eye for an Eye (Part 1)

Xiao Yuan, biting her chopsticks, tilted her head and said, "Then why did you hide it from me? Let me guess, is it because my second brother is pestering you to do business again, and you don't want to agree, but feel like you're offending me?" Cheng Mutian buried his head in his rice bowl and nodded hesitantly. Seeing his reaction, Xiao Yuan guessed that one of her brothers was doing something dirty that she couldn't let anyone hear, so she held back her question until they finished eating and returned to their room. After dismissing the servants, she quietly tugged at his sleeve and said, "Second Brother, if you don't tell me, I won't be able to sleep."

Cheng Mutian first held her tightly in his arms, repeatedly telling her not to get angry, before speaking, "These days, your elder brother has been inviting me to Huayue Tower every few days, wanting to get another three-thirds of our maritime business." Xiaoyuan twisted violently in his arms, "Three-thirds? When you went to propose marriage, your stepmother already took the opportunity to get three-thirds. If they take another three-thirds, do they want to take the lion's share?" Cheng Mutian quickly pressed her down with a little force, regretting, "I told you I shouldn't have told you. It would have been better if you had misunderstood me and Lüniang."

Xiao Yuan said angrily, "I can't even hold my head up in the Cheng family because of these three-tenths of a share. If they shamelessly ask for another three-tenths, how can I face anyone?" Cheng Mutian quickly comforted her, "What do you mean you can't hold your head up? Whoever looks down on you, I'll go and scold them."

Xiao Yuan thought about it slowly for a while, then suddenly laughed: "Let me guess again. Big Brother must not have gotten the shares, so he sent Green Lady to cause trouble for us? But Green Lady said that it cost a thousand guan to buy her. What a big sum of money."

Cheng Mutian gently patted her plump waist: "What mischief are you up to now?" Xiaoyuan smiled and patted back: "Nothing special, just giving them a taste of their own medicine." As she spoke, she tried to push him away to call for someone to make arrangements, but Cheng Mutian still wouldn't let go, saying: "Since you've come to terms with it, I'll tell you everything, so you won't suffer if you don't know the truth—your elder brother sent Lüniang over, not just to cause trouble, but he's already found you another family, thinking he can successfully sow discord between us and marry you off... I heard he's even prepared the medicine to abort you."

"He's going to marry me off to someone else? And even make me have an abortion?" Xiao Yuan unconsciously covered her stomach with her hands, her whole body trembling uncontrollably. Cheng Mutian saw that something was wrong with her, touched her hands, and found them ice-cold. He regretted it so much that he slapped himself and called out loudly to Cai Lian. Xiao Yuan quickly stopped him, saying, "I'm fine. Don't let them worry about me again. As the saying goes, a married woman follows her husband. Whether I remarry or not has nothing to do with this young master He. I'm just a little disheartened when I first heard this news." After saying that, she mocked herself, "I thought I knew his character, but I didn't know he was even better. He always manages to do the unexpected."

Cheng Mutian gently rubbed her hands until they were warm, then asked, "You just said you wanted to 'fight fire with fire,' do you mean you're going to return Lü Niang to your elder brother?"

Xiao Yuan patted him on the shoulder and said, "Do you really think I've become stupid just because I'm pregnant? Sending male prostitutes to my elder brother is a good thing. Not everyone is as shameless as him."

Cheng Mutian deeply resented He Laoda for trying to separate him from his beloved wife. He said, "If you have any brilliant ideas, just use them. I'll fix anything that goes wrong." Xiao Yuan smiled at him, "The officials in the yamen are all upright and just. How could anything go wrong?" Cheng Mutian remembered. Officials were punished for visiting prostitutes. Although this rule was long gone, if they really wanted to make a fuss, the officials wouldn't mind taking a little extra money to settle their score. He smiled, but hesitated, "Won't that bother your third brother? After all, he's someone who has orders now."

Xiao Yuan nodded: "We should hear what they have to say." Saying that, she walked to the window and called to Cai Lian: "Send someone to invite Third Sister-in-law. Tell her that the flowers in our garden are in full bloom. Invite her to come and admire them."

Li Wuniang had benefited from her sister-in-law's advice last time and was thinking of finding another opportunity to get closer to her. Suddenly, she saw her sister-in-law take the initiative to invite her. She was so happy that she forgot to eat. She carried the gifts she had prepared beforehand and hurried to the Cheng family.

Xiao Yuan heard that she had come hungry, so she quickly ordered a table of wine to be set up in the garden under the flowers. She only had a few of her dowry maids serve her. Li Wu Niang walked to the table and looked at it. She saw that several flowers were already in full bloom. She said regretfully, "What a pity. The flowers must be picked when they are still buds. Otherwise, they will rot by the time they reach the flower market, and they won't fetch a good price."

There were only three jasmine plants in total. She was already thinking of selling them for money. She was truly a person who always wanted to acquire land wherever she went. Seeing the maids struggling to hold back their laughter, afraid they would laugh and embarrass Li Wuniang, Xiao Yuan quickly said, "They're not anything special. Just a few blossoms to wear in the morning for fragrance." Li Wuniang still shook her head: "Jasmine flowers are more expensive than jasmine. What a pity."

Xiao Yuan couldn't help but laugh, and could only say, "Third Sister-in-law is in charge of the household, how can she care about such a small amount of money?" Li Wu Niang sighed and said, "Our eldest brother has taken out a thousand strings of cash from the account. If I don't think of some ways to make money, the family will be in debt again by the end of the year."

Xiao Yuan poured her a glass of watermelon juice and asked in surprise, "So you knew? Then why did you let him buy male concubines?" Li Wu Niang was hearing this for the first time and jumped up, "No wonder he wouldn't tell us where the money went. So he used it to buy male concubines." Xiao Yuan quickly comforted her and said, "The money is a small matter. I just don't know if it will affect Third Brother's official career. After all, the court does not allow officials to patronize prostitutes, let alone male prostitutes, which are explicitly prohibited."

Li Wuniang laughed heartily: "How could I forget this rule? I'll go to the yamen to sue him right now. As for your third brother, he got that job by paying money anyway, so what's the harm?" Xiaoyuan was relieved to hear that He Yaohong wouldn't be implicated, and smiled as she offered her advice: "I was originally going to sue him myself, but after all, we're not family anymore, and I don't want people to say I'm meddling. Third sister-in-law, you shouldn't go in a big way either, as that would be disgraceful to the family. Just have someone give the official a red envelope, and have the yamen drag him away and quietly give him a few lashes, and that'll be it."

Li Wuniang laughed, "You don't need to do such a thing. Just giving me some advice is enough. If these few lashes can make that troublemaker behave, I'll come back to thank you." She was impatient and couldn't wait to finish the wine before taking her leave. Instead of going home, she went to her parents' house and borrowed a stranger's servant, ordering him to bribe the yamen (government office). The yamen officials were used to this kind of thing and didn't even ask the reason. They selected several burly yamen officers, had them change into plain clothes, and sent them to the brothel to find He Laoda, who was embracing a brothel owner. They dragged him back to the yamen and gave him a good beating.

Old Master He, used to being domineering at home, was in so much pain that he clenched his teeth and cursed, "Young Master, I am an official! How dare you blind men hit me?" The officials, who only cared about collecting money, didn't even bother to show their faces. One of the clerks stepped forward and laughed, "If you weren't an official, we wouldn't be able to afford to hit you." Several bailiffs wielding the canes chimed in, "Yes, yes, the court only punishes officials who frequent brothels, not commoners. Why don't you give us your official position and we'll save you this beating?"

After the beating was finished, Boss He was so angry that he was about to explode. He wanted to curse back, but his body was burning with pain, so he had to swallow his anger and gave the yamen runners a string of cash, asking them to carry a door plank back for him.

He dared not let Madam Jiang know about such a shameful affair, so he only allowed the yamen runners to enter through the back door and go straight to the room of one of his most favored concubines. This concubine was named Qiao Jie, and she had lived in a brothel for a few days. Although she was bought back by Boss He before she had been deflowered, she still retained the skills she had learned. When she saw the yamen runners, she was not flustered at all, and even managed to steal a few flirtatious glances while busy settling Boss He in.

Those constables, who usually couldn't afford to visit brothels, weren't in a hurry to ask for money when they saw this woman offering free services. They just stood at the door watching with great interest. While they weren't in a hurry, Boss He was. He punched the pretty girl hard in the waist and told her to go get some money to pay off the constables.

Qiao Jie winced in pain at her waist. Seeing him humiliate her in front of the smug men, she retorted angrily, "I have no money. Go take it from your wife." Old He cursed, "That money isn't your private stash. It's the money I got from selling Lü Niang. I spoiled you and hid it all in your room. If I'd known courtesans were all this heartless, I would have given it to my wife." Qiao Jie hated it most when people revealed her means of livelihood. She gritted her teeth and said, "You bought Lü Niang for a thousand strings of cash, and you should have sold her for a thousand more. Why did you only bring me eight hundred? The other two hundred are probably with your wife." After saying this, she walked up to the constables and pointed to Liu Qiniang's wife: "What can you do with just one string of cash? The wife over there has two hundred strings."

The constables all laughed. The leader, a big bearded man, pinched her cheek and, mimicking her flirtatious wink, said, "Miss's idea is good, let's go and ask for half." Only prostitutes were called "Miss," while daughters of respectable families were called "little ladies." Hearing them address her like that, Qiao Jie was so angry she almost vomited blood. She left the ravaged He Laoda on the bed, ignored him, took the money, and went out to have some fun.

The constables swaggered to the main house, but out of respect for Liu Qiniang as a respectable woman, they didn't go in. Instead, they sent a maid to announce that He Laoda owed them one hundred strings of cash. Liu Qiniang was a distant relative of Madam Jiang's family, and she was always only concerned with two things: keeping her mother-in-law happy and causing trouble for Li Wuniang. Hearing that He Laoda owed one hundred strings, she didn't think it was too much, but rather too little. She had the constables invited in and, through the curtain, discussed with them: "Gentlemen, what can one hundred strings do? Why don't you just say it's three hundred strings, and when I get the money, we'll split it fifty-fifty?"

The constables were overjoyed; this family was quite amusing, and they all complained that they hadn't asked for enough money. In this day and age, everyone was as shrewd as a monkey, and it was a rare opportunity for a fool to come along and give them money—why not take advantage of it? The bearded man immediately represented the constables in bargaining with her, and they finally agreed that they would take two hundred strings of cash, while Liu Qiniang would only take one hundred.

Chapter Sixty-Nine: An Eye for an Eye (Part 2)

Knowing it wouldn't look good to have several grown men standing in the room, Liu Qiniang told them to wait at the back door. The constables, fearing she would renege on her debt, refused to move. After some arguing, the bearded man suggested, "Why don't we write an IOU?" Liu Qiniang refused, claiming she couldn't write. He argued that people in the Song Dynasty were literate, even the maids of wealthy families could write their names. The bearded man didn't believe her and thought for a moment, saying, "It's definitely not your money you owe. It's unfair to have you sign it. Let's go find your husband." He then called the constables back to Qiaojie's room, but they couldn't find the tools to write an IOU. They had to go back and borrow a pen and ink from Liu Qiniang, writing an IOU with four or five misspelled characters. They then forced He Laoda to put his fingerprint on it before triumphantly going to wait at the back door.

Seeing this as a golden opportunity to ask Li Wuniang for money, Liu Qiniang didn't want to waste a moment. She lifted her skirt and shuffled towards the third house's courtyard, but unfortunately, she found nothing. The servants said that the third mistress had gone to visit relatives and hadn't returned yet, and told her to come back in a few hours.

The constables were still waiting at the back gate, but she didn't have time to wait, so she stayed in the room and refused to leave. One of Li Wuniang's maids, seeing that things weren't going well, said, "If Madam needs it urgently, I have some money that Madam has kept in her treasury. I'll lend it to you first. But since it's not a public account, you'll need to write an IOU." Liu Qiniang didn't care about the family's IOU. Anyway, there was an IOU from He Laoda outside, so she could just push it onto him and clear herself of any wrongdoing. So she happily signed her name, and the two hundred strings of cash were taken to the back gate. She hid one hundred strings of cash in her own room.

Although she received the money, she couldn't find fault with Li Wuniang, so she was a little dissatisfied. She pouted and walked up to Madam Jiang to complain, "Third sister-in-law is too outrageous. All she knows how to do is shirk her responsibilities all day long."

She was wronging Li Wuniang; she wasn't slacking off at all and was busy looking for someone. Speaking of Li Wuniang, although she wasn't very tactful, when it came to scheming against people, no one could beat her.

After leaving the Cheng family, she sent someone to bribe the officials and ordered others to inquire about the whereabouts of the male concubine that He Laoda had bought. There weren't many well-known male entertainers in Lin'an Prefecture, so finding him was very easy. Before long, someone returned and said, "Madam, the male concubine's name is Lüniang. He's currently entertaining customers at a teahouse." Li Wuniang asked suspiciously, "Didn't the eldest young master buy him? Why is he still out there?" The person continued, "It was the eldest young master who bought him and then resold him. But I heard he didn't make any money; he sold him for the original price of one thousand strings of cash." Upon hearing this, Li Wuniang's hatred for He Laoda intensified: "Since the money has been returned, he hasn't even reported it. He must be hiding his secret stash."

She had only intended to bring Green Maiden to Madam Jiang to embarrass Old Man He, but now she changed her mind. She sent someone to find Wan San'er, who often eked out a living on the street, and gave him a lecture. Before leaving, she gave him a handful of money and promised him another hundred coins if the matter was settled.

Wan San'er, who was always on the go, heard that he could earn a hundred or so coins out of thin air just by finding someone to guide him. Overjoyed, he ran all the way to the teahouse and asked Green Maiden, "Want to make a bet?" Green Maiden had been kicked by Cheng Mutian a few days ago and was still in pain. She waved her hand listlessly and said, "I can't even take any customers. I'm not going anywhere." Wan San'er said that if he couldn't go, he wouldn't get paid, so he was unwilling to give up. However, after several attempts to persuade her, he couldn't get her to agree. He could only sigh that he had no affinity with the He family and couldn't earn their money.

Unexpectedly, when Green Maiden heard it was the He family, she suddenly perked up. She stopped him and asked which He family it was. Seeing that he was interested, Wan San'er hurriedly said, "The eldest son of the He family, He Yaoqi. Are you willing to go?" Green Maiden sneered, "If it were any other family, that would be fine. But He Yaoqi promised me that indenture, but then he went back on his word. Even if I had no money, I'd still go and have some fun with him."

Wan San'er was overjoyed. He quickly explained his brilliant plan. Green Maiden listened without a word, then got up and went to the mirror to apply makeup. She laughed, "If we get the money, I'll share some with you."

Having frequented brothels for a long time, he knew that wealthy families were known for their ruthlessness. If he went alone, he feared he would be beaten and thrown out. So, he carefully dressed himself and went to the madam's room, pleading, "Yesterday a customer slept with me but didn't pay. Madam, could you lend me a few good thugs to go and collect the debt?" Unscrupulous customers often ate and drank for free, so the madam didn't ask many questions and immediately pointed to several fierce-looking thugs for her.

Wan San'er led them to the gate of the He residence. Pointing to the gatekeeper, he said, "You can go ahead. The old lady is in the main room." Green Maiden smiled. It seemed that Old Master He had offended more than just one person.

They marched unimpeded into the hall, startling Madam Jiang and Liu Qiniang. Madam Jiang saw that the leader was a woman dressed as a courtesan, followed by several men. She quickly told Liu Qiniang to hide and then loudly demanded which foolish servant had let them in.

Green Maiden found a chair and sat down, smiling, "Madam, don't be in such a hurry. It's not too late to scold the servants after you've paid back the money they owe me." It was common for He Yaoqi to be chased for debts by the brothel's servants.

She resented her son for being so useless, but he was her only biological son, so she had no choice but to ask, "How much money do I owe you?" Green Lady was really surprised that Madam Jiang was so straightforward, and she hesitated for a moment before answering, "One thousand strings of cash."

"What?!" Madam Jiang felt her blood rush to her head and almost fainted. "Don't make such a huge demand. The He family is an official household."

Green Lady pulled down the front of her dress, revealing her white, flat chest, and laughed, "I didn't try to rip you off. It's just that the prices of clothes in the city have gone up."

When Madam Jiang saw that he was a man, she felt dizzy again and repeatedly ordered someone to find He Laoda. He Laoda was lying on Qiao Jie's bed at the moment, without even a sip of water. When he saw several servants from Madam Jiang's room coming to find him, his soul almost flew out of his body. When he was carried to the hall and saw Lü Niang, he was so frightened that he closed his eyes and pretended to be dead.

When Madam Jiang saw that he was covered in injuries, she felt both distressed and angry. She thought that the thugs in front of her had done it, so she believed half of what Green Maiden said and said angrily, "What is your relationship with this gangster? Why did he come to our door asking for a thousand strings of cash?"

When Boss He heard that Green Maiden had come to ask for money, he also got angry and glared at her, saying, "That thousand strings of cash was what I sold you for, and the madam gave me the land. What does it have to do with you?"

Liu Qiniang had always thought he had only sold Lüniang for two hundred strings of cash, but now, hiding behind the screen, she heard that it was a full thousand strings. Her anger flared up, and she no longer cared about her mother-in-law and outsiders being present. She rushed out, grabbed He Laoda, and started hitting him: "I told you not to lie to me! I told you not to lie to me! Did you give that money to that damned little harlot?"

Even though Madam Jiang hated this son, she couldn't bear to see others hitting him. She rushed forward and grabbed Liu Qiniang's hair, pulling her outside. Liu Qiniang didn't dare to fight back, but instead swung her fists even wider at He Laoda. In an instant, He Laoda's screams and Madam Jiang's angry curses mingled together, making Li Wuniang, who had been watching the show from the doorway for half a day, grin from ear to ear.

She stood outside the door for quite some time, until the two women were exhausted, before going in and pointing at Green Maiden: "Mother, my elder brother holds an official position; it wouldn't sound good if word got out that he frequents brothels. Let's give this brothel owner some money and tell them to keep their mouths shut." Madam Jiang frowned: "A thousand strings of cash? You're going to pay?" Li Wuniang walked up to Green Maiden and scolded: "The most famous brothel owner in Lin'an doesn't even cost that much for a night. You're raising your own price here; you're shameless." As she spoke, she secretly pulled three fingers out of her sleeve.

Green Maiden, a seasoned actress, immediately understood the situation. She covered her clothes and cried pitifully, "It's not that I want to extort money, it's just that Young Master He owes me a lot of money, and I get scolded by my mother every day."

Li Wuniang had dealt with Xiaoyuan several times and had learned some skills from her. After asking about the price, she pretended to be generous and said, "Mother, I'll pay for my brother's money. I don't want to ruin his reputation over a few coins." As she spoke, she ordered someone to fetch the money from her room.

This was the first time Madam Jiang had seen Li Wu Niang so generous, so she quickly summoned a few of her personal servants to go with her. Unexpectedly, they returned empty-handed, saying, "The maid in the Third Madam's room said that the First Madam borrowed all the money."

Li Wuniang had just returned and already knew from the maid that Liu Qiniang had borrowed money, but she didn't know what she had done with it. So she pretended to be very surprised: "This month's wages have just been paid. What does sister-in-law need the money for?"

Madam Jiang felt a throbbing pain in her temples again, but she forced herself to ask, "Why did you borrow money? How much did you borrow?" Liu Qiniang quickly handed over the IOU from the yamen runners: "Mother, it's not my fault. My husband owes someone money, and I'm just trying to cover it for him." Madam Jiang took it and saw that it was a full three hundred strings of cash. Her vision blurred, and she almost collapsed. Liu Qiniang, being her daughter-in-law, quickly stepped forward to support her and offered advice: "Mother, don't worry. Isn't there still eight hundred strings with Qiaojie? We can take it to pay back Third Sister-in-law's money, and there will still be some left."

Seeing that she wouldn't lose face in front of her illegitimate son's wife, Madam Jiang felt relieved and calmed down a bit. She then ordered someone to search for money in Qiao Jie's room.

Li Wuniang stood there smiling, waiting to receive the three hundred strings of cash. Then, in front of everyone, she generously counted out two strings of cash to help her uncle with his travel expenses.

Since she had spent money, He Laoda had no choice but to pretend to thank her a couple of times. Li Wuniang laughed and said, "There's no need for thanks among family. But now that you've retrieved your thousand strings of cash, brother, you should make up for the deficit in the public account as soon as possible." He Laoda had wanted to ask Liu Qiniang earlier why one string of cash had turned into three hundred strings of cash. Now, seeing Li Wuniang demanding payment, he couldn't help but curse at Liu Qiniang, "You vile woman, I clearly only allowed the officials one string of cash. Why did it turn into three hundred strings of cash after passing through your hands?"

Liu Qiniang wasn't afraid of him at all. She took the IOU from Madam Jiang and handed it to him, saying, "Take a look for yourself. There's even your fingerprint on it."

Upon hearing the words "government officials," Madam Jiang felt her mind go blank. She rubbed her temples for a while with a young maid, then scolded Old Master He, "It's one thing for you to frequent prostitutes, but how come you owe money to government officials?"

Chapter Seventy: An Eye for an Eye (Part 2)

Old He thought that everyone already knew about Green Maiden's affair, so he was like a dead pig that wasn't afraid of boiling water. He said, "I don't know how the government found out about my affair with prostitutes. They dragged me away and beat me with a board. I was in so much pain that I couldn't walk, so I paid a few yamen runners to carry me back. But I only gave them one string of cash. You can ask that slut for the rest."

Liu Qiniang was, after all, a distant relative of Madam Jiang, and the daughter-in-law she had personally chosen. Yet, in front of Li Wuniang, an "outsider," he kept calling her a lowly woman, which made Madam Jiang lose face. She remained silent with a sullen face.

Knowing that they wouldn't speak freely as long as she was present, Li Wuniang wisely took her leave first: "Since you've already lost three hundred strings of cash, I won't be the bad guy. I'll take the remaining seven hundred strings of cash back first."

Liu Qiniang naturally refused to hand over her two hundred strings of cash and was about to argue further, but Madam Jiang glared at her and forced her to fetch the money, making a total of seven hundred strings, which she then handed over to Li Wuniang to carry away. Liu Qiniang was still complaining that she shouldn't have handed over the money when Madam Jiang threw a cup of tea at her and scolded, "Fool! This money will all be yours in the future. Wouldn't it be better to have Li Wuniang guard it for you? Why did you have to be so eager to take it out and squander it?"

When Liu Qiniang heard that the money belonged to them, she suddenly remembered the two hundred strings of cash that the yamen runners had taken away, and said with a pained expression, "If I had known that Mother was going to leave all the family property to us, I would have given the yamen runners an extra hundred strings of cash."

He Laoda heard clearly and immediately asked her why she gave an extra hundred guan. Liu Qiniang felt sorry for her and told her about the yamen runners coming to ask for money: "They originally only wanted a hundred guan, but I wanted to get more money from Li Wuniang, so I promised them a hundred guan and asked them to write this note for three hundred guan."

Madam Jiang listened to the details and felt a tightness in her chest, unable to exhale. She grabbed a broom and chased after her, beating her. A chaotic scene ensued, but Old Man He pondered how a single string of cash had become a hundred strings of cash in Liu Qiniang's hands. It must be that harlot, Qiao Jie, who was behind it all. He wanted to get up and go find her, but he couldn't move. Seeing that Madam Jiang had already beaten Liu Qiniang several times to vent his anger, he turned to her and coaxed, "Today's events aren't your fault. It was all that little harlot, Qiao Jie, who started it all. Why don't you go find her and beat her a few times to vent my anger?"

He Laoda usually protected his concubines very well, and Liu Qiniang had long hated him but couldn't bring herself to do it. Now that he was going to hit her, how could she not lend a hand? She was even afraid that her strength was not enough to hurt her, so she specially picked a few strong and burly wives. A group of them rushed to the west wing and caught Qiao Jie, who had just returned from outside, red-handed. Without saying a word, they beat her until her head was swollen like a pig's.

Qiao Jie cared most about her face. Now, her eyes and face were swollen. She wished she could smash Liu Qiniang's head against the ground and kill her. She cursed, "You can't even appease a man yourself. All you know how to do is beat me!"

Liu Qiniang said smugly, "That's not true. I gave the yamen runner an extra hundred strings of cash, and kept an extra hundred for myself. Yet the master praised me. You also promised them a hundred strings of cash, but the master told me to beat you. So who can't control their man?"

Qiao Jie naturally didn't believe it. She sneered, "You look like a pumpkin. Do you think the master would favor you?" Liu Qiniang rushed forward and slapped her herself. She cursed, "The old lady has spoken. This family business will all be mine in the future. You'd better open your eyes wide, or we'll sell it off."

She was still not satisfied after beating and scolding her. So she led several of her wives to ransack all the chests, drawers, and cabinets in Qiao Jie's room. They took everything of value, even the few glass hairpins in the photo box.

Qiao Jie was not one to tolerate such behavior. She rushed to the third house to find Li Wu Niang: "Third Madam, you've been so diligent and thrifty all day long, only thinking about how to make up for the First Madam's deficit. Little did you know that you're just doing the work for someone else. The Old Madam has already said that this family property will only be left to the First House. You won't even get a sip of soup."

He Yaohong was, after all, an official. Would the old lady really refuse to divide the family property equally? Li Wuniang didn't believe it. She sent someone to inquire, and it turned out to be true. She was immediately furious, grinding her teeth. Returning to her room, she ordered her personal maid, Xiao Taohong, to retrieve the dowry list from back then. Xiao Taohong asked curiously, "Madam, your dowry was long ago taken by the old lady to buy an official position for the eldest young master. What use is an empty list?"

Li Wuniang sneered, "It's precisely because it's all gone that we want to get it back." Xiao Taohong had followed her for many years and understood immediately: "Madam wants to use public funds to make up for the dowry? We should have gotten this debt back long ago, but it's just that the accounts are in deficit, which is not right." Li Wuniang glanced at her with a smile: "You underestimate my methods. The shop is full of our people. Go and invite the manager over."

The He family owned seven shops of various sizes. Xiao Taohong invited all seven managers as instructed. These were all her own people. Li Wuniang asked directly, "Can you make false accounts?" As business managers, how could they not know how to do this? They all nodded immediately. Li Wuniang then instructed them to each make a book, and together they raised 100,000 strings of cash. She then used these dowry lists to supplement the dowry from that year.

She was feeling quite pleased with herself for making such a "big deal," but then she heard the pregnant concubine next door giving birth, which annoyed her. So she packed up the silver basin and duck eggs and went out to deliver a gift to Xiao Yuan to encourage her to give birth.

Although the gift to urge the birth of the baby was sent a bit too early, Xiao Yuan was still proud that her sister-in-law from her maternal family had come in person. She happily led her to the main hall to serve tea. Seeing how solemn she was, Li Wu Niang sighed, "Only you treat me like a human being." Xiao Yuan retorted, "What are you saying, Third Sister-in-law? You are the principal wife, not a concubine. Who would dare not respect you?" Hearing this, Li Wu Niang felt even more touched and told her about the time she had falsified accounts to supplement her dowry.

Xiao Yuan was initially startled, but after thinking for a moment, she felt a bit of admiration: "Third sister-in-law, you really have good methods. I am not as good as you. 100,000 strings of cash is not a small amount. The matter of the false accounts will be exposed sooner or later. But you used that money to make up for your dowry. Even if they know there is a deficit, they will not dare to make a fuss. Otherwise, if you bring up the matter of the stepmother seizing her daughter-in-law's dowry back then, it will be enough to make them suffer."

Li Wuniang gave a bitter smile and sighed, "Everyone says I, Li Wuniang, am domineering and tyrannical, but what good have I gotten out of it? My dowry was taken the moment I entered the house; I manage the household diligently, yet my mother-in-law shows no gratitude whatsoever and refuses to share the family property."

Seeing that she was upset, Xiao Yuan quickly brought up the story of He Laoda being beaten and humiliated, which made her laugh a few times. After chatting for a while, Li Wuniang became somewhat unsettled. Xiao Yuan noticed this, dismissed the servants, and asked her what was wrong. It turned out that the concubine in the house was giving birth, and they didn't know whether it was a boy or a girl.

Xiao Yuan sighed deeply for her third sister-in-law, saying, "She may seem glamorous on the outside, but she's suffering inside." She advised, "Third sister-in-law, although I'm your brother's own sister, I feel sorry for you. But life goes on. No matter how much that concubine is an eyesore, she's carrying your brother's own flesh and blood. If you, as the first wife, don't go back to take care of her, your brother will probably give you a hard time when he comes back from Quanzhou."

These words struck a chord with Li Wuniang. She always tried to be strong in public and in private, but this time she couldn't hold back any longer and buried her face in her sister-in-law's arms, weeping uncontrollably. Poor Li Wuniang was heartbroken and distressed, but after crying, she still had to carefully conceal her emotions and pretend to be cheerful as she went back to help that concubine.

After seeing Li Wuniang off, Xiaoyuan sighed, "Third Sister-in-law was probably driven to desperation by my stepmother when she tried to seize my shop. She's such a pitiful person." Cailian, now that she's older, is very concerned about such matters and asked, "Third Madam has her family backing her up and isn't even afraid of the Old Madam, so why would she have to lower herself to arrange things for a concubine? What if she ignores her?"

Xiao Yuan sighed, "She only has one brother in her heart, every smile and frown is for him." Cheng Mutian came back early today and happened to hear this when he got to the door. He laughed and said, "Your third brother is her husband. Who else would she be doing this for if not him?" Xiao Yuan had just seen Li Wuniang and cried her heart out. Now she was angry when she saw a man, "You men are all the same. You're all greedy and always want more. Your wives work hard to support the family and spend money to buy official positions. Not only do you not get a good son, but you also have to deliver babies for your concubines and raise their sons."

Cheng Mutian didn't know she was talking about He Yaohong, and thought that another Green Maid had come. He was startled and said, "Don't talk nonsense, or that girl Ayun will throw cold water on me again." Xiaoyuan was amused by this and quickly pulled Ayun over, telling her to apologize to the young master.

As evening fell, someone from the He family came with good news: He Yaohong's concubine had given birth to a son. Upon receiving the news, Xiaoyuan didn't eat and just sat there in a daze. Cheng Mutian teased her, saying, "If others see you like this, they'll think my concubine gave birth to a son. Your third sister-in-law's position as the principal wife is secure. So what if the concubine gives birth to many sons? When she has her own son, the legitimate son will still be the most important." Xiaoyuan said worriedly, "That's exactly what I'm worried about. Third brother has only been back in the capital for a few days, and he's already gone to Quanzhou. The couple is so far apart. When will they have a son? I'm afraid that when third brother returns to the capital, he'll bring another pregnant concubine home."