Shen Lixue turned around and saw several large wooden boxes in a corner of the living room. She had been so focused on observing Shen Minghui's family of three that she hadn't noticed them.
Shen Lixue stepped forward gracefully, opened the box, and saw dazzling gold jewelry. There were four large wooden boxes, each containing different pieces of jewelry, but each one was extremely valuable...
Seeing Shen Lixue intently examining the jewelry in the box, Shen Minghui said proudly, "Take a close look. This jewelry is worth over a million taels of silver, no less!"
Shen Lixue looked at the jewelry in the four wooden boxes one by one, and echoed Shen Minghui's words: "I also believe that these pieces of jewelry are worth more than a million taels..." Unfortunately, none of these hairpins and earrings have the unique mark of Lin Qingzhu's jewelry!
A smug and cold glint flashed in Shen Minghui's shrewd eyes: "I have retrieved jewelry of sufficient value as you requested. You can return the Shen family heirloom now!"
"Father, Mother's jewelry was scattered throughout Qingyan fifteen years ago. How did you find so much jewelry in such a short time and buy it all back?"
Shen Lixue was wondering why things from fifteen years ago would be so difficult to trace now, requiring a huge amount of manpower and resources. Even if Shen Minghui was incredibly capable, it would be impossible for him to find so many items in just over half a month. But upon closer inspection, she realized that he had just made a bunch of counterfeit jewelry to fool her.
Shen Minghui frowned, a hint of displeasure and impatience flashing in his eyes: "I have my own methods, so don't ask. The jewelry has been delivered, so hand over the family heirloom jade pendant!"
"Father, Qingyan is so big, there are plenty of similar jewelry pieces. How can you prove that all of these pieces belong to Mother?" Shen Lixue looked at Shen Minghui with a half-smile. Trying to exchange these counterfeit pieces for the Shen family's heirloom jade? Dream on.
Shen Minghui's face instantly darkened: "Li Xue, stop making a scene. I am your father. Do you think I would try to fool you with fake jewelry?"
Shen Lixue sneered. He really did bring a bunch of fake jewelry to deceive her. If she hadn't seen the special mark on Lin Qingzhu's jewelry beforehand, she would have been fooled. Although the jewelry in the box was very valuable and the style was suitable for young women, it didn't belong to Lin Qingzhu after all, so it was useless to her.
“Shen Lixue, that Shen family heirloom jade belongs to me, the eldest son. We can forcibly take it from you. Your father is giving you these jewelry pieces in exchange because he thinks highly of you. Don’t push your luck!” Shen Yelei sat in his chair, looking down at Shen Lixue with his nose in the air and his eyes full of mockery and disgust.
"I never said I wouldn't exchange them. I just wanted to find out if these pieces of jewelry really belonged to my mother. Why are you reacting so strongly?"
Shen Lixue stared coldly at Shen Yelei, leaving him speechless. His face flushed red as he stammered for a long time without being able to come up with a coherent argument. His angry, pleading gaze frequently turned to Shen Minghui, as if to say, "Father, please teach Shen Lixue a lesson for me!"
Shen Lixue also shifted her gaze to Shen Minghui: "Father, fifteen years ago, when Mother sold her dowry, there must have been a list, right? Show me the list so I can check it against..."
Shen Minghui's expression instantly turned even more gloomy, and his eyes flickered unnaturally: "Fifteen years ago, when the old house in Qingzhou caught fire, that list and half of your mother's dowry disappeared in the flames!"
"I see!" Shen Lixue drawled. Shen Minghui sold his wife's dowry to save himself, and that list was a disgrace to him, so of course he wouldn't keep it. She already knew he didn't have it, which is why she asked on purpose.
Shen Minghui tried to brush it off vaguely, but Shen Lixue wouldn't let him have his way. Pretending not to know, she frowned and pondered, "When Mother got married, the Duke of Wu's mansion should have had a complete dowry list, right..."
"The Duke of Wu's mansion has long since fallen into ruin. Where would we find anything from sixteen years ago?" Shen Minghui's face grew even more gloomy as he spoke, feigning composure, a layer of cold sweat glistening on his forehead.
“That’s not necessarily true. I’ll write to my uncle at the border and see if he can find that list. If he does, I’ll have someone bring it over. If he doesn’t, then forget it…” Shen Lixue glanced at Shen Minghui casually, her eyes full of sarcasm.
"You don't trust your father?" The hairpin and earrings were bought by Shen Minghui. Shen Lixue wanted the receipt to verify them, which clearly showed that she didn't trust him. Questioning an elder is unfilial, and he could use this to pressure Shen Lixue.
Shen Lixue hurriedly shook her head: "It's not that I don't trust Father, it's that I don't trust the people who sell those jewelry. Mother's dowry was so much, and fifteen years have passed. Father doesn't have an inventory list, so how could he remember all those pieces clearly? What if someone tries to take advantage of the situation and pass off inferior jewelry as Mother's? Father will be fooled!"
Shen Lixue refused to return the family heirloom jade pendant, causing Shen Yelei great anxiety. He kept glancing at Shen Minghui, as if to say, "Father, ask Shen Lixue for the jade pendant! It's mine! What right does a lowly woman like her have to wear it?"
Shen Minghui was lost in his own thoughts and did not see Shen Yelei's plea for help. His face was terribly gloomy, but he did not speak.
Shen Yingxue gritted her teeth in anger: "Shen Lixue, the jewelry has already been bought. Even if it turns out it doesn't belong to Lin Qingzhu, Father has already been fooled. If you don't take the jewelry, won't Father suffer in silence?"
Shen Minghui was startled, and his cold gaze suddenly turned to Shen Yingxue. Wasn't she blatantly reminding Shen Lixue that the jewelry didn't belong to Lin Qingzhu? How foolish.
"Sister Yingxue, are you saying that these pieces of jewelry don't belong to my mother?" Shen Lixue pretended to know the answer and frowned deeply, her cold gaze fixed on Shen Yingxue without blinking.
As soon as she finished speaking, Shen Yingxue realized she had misspoke. In a panic, she waved her hands repeatedly, explaining helplessly, "No... I was just giving an example..."
“This matter cannot be explained by analogy. Father said these are Mother’s jewelry, so they belong to Mother. I want to confirm which jewelry Mother hasn’t bought yet before I need a list…” Shen Lixue’s words were firm and clear, every sentence leaning towards Shen Minghui.
But Shen Minghui heard the sarcasm in her words and coughed lightly, feeling awkward: "Li Xue, how long does it take to get from the border to the Prime Minister's residence?"
“I heard from Cousin Yan that a round trip would take at least a month, and at most a month and a half, so it’s not a long time!” Shen Lixue smiled slightly at Shen Yelei. For a nine-year-old child, a month and a half was more than enough time for him. Shen Minghui had no reason to demand that she hand over the Shen family jade pendant immediately.
"Very well, I will send men to the border immediately!" Shen Minghui nodded, a strange light flashing in his eyes.
"Father has never been to the border, how would he know where Uncle lives? I'll go to the Minister's residence later and ask Cousin Yan for help. He has soldiers at the border, maybe he can send it over by express courier, instead of waiting a month and a half!" Shen Lixue looked coldly at Shen Minghui, a half-smile on her face. He thought the guards he sent would tamper with the documents and make a fake one to deceive her. Dream on.
Shen Minghui's face darkened again. He looked up at Shen Lixue and said coldly, "It's all up to you!"
"Thank you, Father!" Shen Lixue bowed gracefully, a hint of mockery flashing in her cold eyes.
"Shen Lixue, if you don't give me the jade pendant, you can forget about taking these jewelry pieces!" Shen Yelei stood up, his mouth twisted, and he stomped his feet, sharply threatening Shen Lixue. Girls love beauty, and he didn't believe that she wouldn't be tempted by so many beautiful pieces of jewelry and would insist on guarding that not-so-pretty jade pendant.
Shen Lixue smiled slightly: "Thank you for the reminder, Ye Lei. I never intended to take these jewelry pieces. Someone, go and invite Aunt Zhao to register them, make an inventory, and put them in the main warehouse!"
The small warehouse was Lei's private warehouse, so these jewelry pieces didn't need to be stored there. Speaking of the small warehouse, Shen Lixue suddenly remembered that the jewelry in Lei's box seemed to be of better quality than these, and Lin Qingzhu's jewelry was even better than Lei's.
It turns out that Shen Minghui brought several boxes of counterfeit goods, which were a grade lower than Lin Qingzhu's jewelry, to fob her off. Without comparison, these pieces of jewelry were all top-quality. Compared to the exquisite jewelry, the counterfeit goods looked inferior.
Why was Shen Minghui in such a hurry to take the jade pendant home? Was it because Shen Yelei was childish and wanted to wear the jade pendant, or was there another reason?
---Aside---
(*^__^*) Hehe... It's mid-month, everyone! If you have any votes, please send me a few! *kissing emoji*
Chapter 096: Li Xue's Clever Plan to Anger the Scumbag Girl
"Father!" Shen Lixue didn't want the jewelry. Shen Yelei watched helplessly as the crystal-clear Shen family heirloom jade pendant swayed back and forth in front of him, but he couldn't get it in his hand or possess it. He felt angry, aggrieved, and looked at Shen Minghui for help again.
He was her father, and if he said a word, Shen Lixue would have no choice but to obediently hand over the jade pendant, no matter how unwilling she was.
Shen Minghui's face darkened as he looked at Shen Lixue with displeasure: "Lixue, the jewelry worth millions is already here. Can't you make an exception and hand the jade pendant over to Ye Lei first?"
Shen Lixue looked coldly at Shen Minghui: "Father, you clearly promised just now that I could handle the matter as I saw fit, so why are you going back on your word now?"
Shen Minghui frowned, his eyes filled with anger: "Ye Lei is your own brother. He's young and doesn't know any better. Can't you just give in to him?"
“If it were anything else, I wouldn’t care, but since it concerns my mother’s belongings, I have to be careful. I hope Father will understand!” Shen Lixue’s expression was cold and unyielding.
Upon hearing this, Shen Minghui's expression changed drastically, and his lips trembled slightly, as if he were deeply saddened.