"What's the matter that's so urgent?" Wuyou asked.
The maid shook her head: "I was ordered to deliver a message, but I don't know the specific reason."
Wuyou then stopped asking.
"Third sister, why don't you go back first? I'll send someone to invite you over after Grandmother has finished her business."
Wushuang thought for a moment and said, "I'd better go with you."
Wuyou did not refuse, and the two sisters walked out of the garden hand in hand.
Upon entering the main hall of Fuyou Residence, Wushuang immediately realized that something was amiss.
The old lady, He Caiqiong, and her mother, Madam Yang, were all present, which was not surprising. What was surprising was that all three of them had extremely serious expressions.
Even Qi Mama, the old lady's confidante, had a stern face, which was usually smiling, and her complexion was not good.
The atmosphere in the entire hall was tense, and the maids standing at the door waiting for instructions to serve tea and water didn't dare to breathe loudly.
"You've arrived." The old lady said calmly as Wuyou entered. "Today, your aunt and mother went to the storeroom to select some jewelry for your dowry. Come and see if you like it."
When a girl gets married, her elders select her dowry to show her. This should be a joyous and happy occasion.
Wushuang herself has never been married, but she has married her sister twice, in both her past and present lives.
Leaving aside the past life, let's talk about seven years ago when there was no time to prepare for the wedding. The whole family, from top to bottom, couldn't stop smiling all day long. That kind of happiness couldn't be faked or hidden.
Today, my grandmother and the others don't have that kind of air about them at all.
What exactly happened?
Before Wushuang could think it through, she saw Wuyou release her hand, take a few steps forward, and when she reached the Luohan couch, her gaze swept over the jewelry box on the couch table. Her face immediately turned pale, and she knelt down on the footstool with a thud.
Chapter 75 | Table of Contents
Chapter 75:
It turned out that when He Caiqiong came to pay her respects to the old lady that morning, she offered to hand over the management of the household to Madam Yang. [Qiushu.cc has almost all the books you want to read; it's much more stable than other novel websites, updates faster, and it's all text with no ads.]
As a woman of noble birth and the eldest daughter-in-law, it was only natural for Madam Yang to manage the household affairs. However, Madam Yang knew that He Caiqiong had managed the affairs of the household perfectly for the past seven years, showing her dedication and hard work. Now that she had returned, taking back the power of household management seemed like a sign of distrust towards her sister-in-law.
One was eager to repay the debt, while the other was not in a hurry to accept it. They kept pushing and refusing each other, and neither could reach a conclusion for a long time.
The old lady could tell that both of her daughters-in-law genuinely disliked taking power, and she was pleased to see them being so modest, so she came up with an idea.
The most important thing in the Hou family right now is Wuyou's marriage. The old lady ordered her two daughters-in-law to work together to manage the household and prepare for the wedding. While working together, they also handed over various details one by one. After Wuyou gets married, Yang will be able to take over all the affairs of the Hou family.
The first task they jointly undertook in managing the household was to go to the storeroom of Fuyouju to select dowry items for Wuyou.
Back then, Fang Rulan left the manor penniless, taking nothing with her except the clothes and accessories she wore. The Jun family was a wealthy family, so of course they wouldn't fight over the few valuable items in a concubine's room. Jun Nian decided to give everything to Wuyou.
At that time, Wuyou was still young, so the old lady opened a small storeroom for her in Fuyou Residence and registered everything that was not needed at the time. On the surface, it was managed by Qi Mama, the old lady's confidante, but in fact, it meant that Wuyou was the one in charge. She could take it out whenever she felt she needed it.
Furthermore, everything in the small storeroom, whether it be cash, jewelry, or exquisite decorations, will be given to Wuyou as her dowry in the future.
However, when it came time to prepare a dowry for Wuyou, things inevitably changed.
Wuyou's marriage was better than anyone expected.
She accidentally saved Pang Yuan, the eldest grandson of the Marquis of Pingyang, who is now the heir apparent.
Pang Yuan had witnessed Wu Wan'er's scheme firsthand, and naturally understood that Xiao Wuyou had done him a great favor. He was kind-hearted and grateful, and believed that the little girl had saved his life, so he could only repay her with his whole life.
So, the following year, he took the initiative to propose to her.
The old lady had always thought highly of Pang Yuan, and seeing that he couldn't be her eldest granddaughter's husband, she was quite satisfied that he could be her second granddaughter's husband. Besides, Wuyou's background was different from Wuxia's; she was a concubine's daughter from the second wife's family, and neither her father nor her brothers held any titles. Generally speaking, even if she could marry the legitimate son of a marquis's family as his principal wife, she would hardly be the eldest legitimate son, and her birth order would definitely be lower.
Since Wuyou is blessed with good fortune and can marry into the Pingyang Marquis's household as a concubine's wife, her dowry must be much more abundant than that of an ordinary concubine's daughter. Otherwise, if Pang Yuan's brothers and cousins marry in the future and their dowries surpass Wuyou's, her position as a concubine's wife will not be shaken, but her sisters-in-law will inevitably look down on her.
Wuyou grew up by the old lady's side. The old lady loved her no less than her other three legitimate granddaughters and absolutely could not let her suffer such grievances in her husband's family.
In this way, the things Fang Rulan left behind will inevitably be inadequate.
The old lady had already made a plan: she would use whatever cash she had, and as for jewelry, ornaments, and the like, she would have her two daughters-in-law personally select the most impressive, presentable, and valuable pieces, and make a list first. Anything else that wasn't enough would be made up by the father, Jun Nian, and her grandmother.
Yang and He Caiqiong went to the small storeroom hand in hand, where Qi Mama carried the account books and selected items one by one.
Madam Qi was a maid who had served the old lady since she was a young girl. She was always very organized and managed even a small storeroom very well.
The two sisters-in-law, surnamed Yang, looked at the account book and selected several sets of jewelry. Qi Mama turned around and found them in the trunk without any mishap.
When the brocade box containing jewelry was opened, all three of them were dumbfounded.
According to the markings on the brocade box, this is a set of red gold and ruby jewelry inlaid with South Sea pearls, which is also the most valuable set of jewelry in Fang Rulan's possessions.
At first glance, it still looks like "pure gold, rubies, and South Sea pearls," but two of the three are from prominent families, and the other is a close confidante of a noblewoman, someone she considers a sister. They've all been accustomed to seeing gold and silver jewelry for years. As the saying goes, the layman sees the spectacle, the expert sees the details. The three of them could tell at a glance that the pure gold had been replaced with copper, the rubies were simply dyed glass beads from the West, and while the South Sea pearls were still South Sea pearls, their luster was dull, far inferior to the originals, and their value would probably be a fraction of what it was worth.
Yang asked, "Mother, this jewelry has been in the storeroom the whole time. Has it never been taken out and used?"
Qi Mama was her mother-in-law's confidante. Logically speaking, Yang Shi and He Caiqiong should respect her as they would the old lady. Even if they had doubts about this matter, they could not directly question her like an ordinary servant. They still had to speak politely.
With a pale face, Madam Qi pointed to the appendix at the back of the account book and said, "It is recorded here that last year on the old lady's birthday, the second young lady took it out to wear for a day, and returned it on the same day after the banquet."
"Then, who did Wuyou send to collect it, and who did she send to return it?" He Caiqiong pressed. "Did Mother open and check it both when it was taken out of the warehouse and when it was put back in?"
These words truly struck a chord with Madam Qi: "It was the second young lady who came to collect it herself, and she returned it herself. I didn't check when she returned it..."
Everything in this room belonged to the second young lady. Who would have thought she would play tricks? And who would have thought that such a well-behaved and quiet girl would have the audacity to steal and replace things?