Yu Pinyan didn't say anything. He only played with his sister's white and tender hand while glancing indifferently at the Lin Clan. He saw that she lowered her head and didn't say anything for a long time. He was afraid that she was very unwilling. His originally cold heart had already lost all feeling. How could he be interested in such a small dowry? He only wanted to measure his worth in the Lin Clan's heart. The Lin Clan didn't disappoint him. They chose to abandon him every time.
Mama Kim stood at the door. When she saw the frost gradually gathering in Master Hou's eyes, she was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. She wanted nothing more than to run over and press the Lin Clan down to agree. What was a small dowry? Could it be more important than Master Hou's heart? With Master Hou's protection, what couldn't they want in the future? Madam really didn't know how to think!
The Lin Clan wasn't reluctant to give Yu Pinyan, but they were reluctant to give Yu Siyu and Yu Xiang. They couldn't help but look at the matriarch with pleading eyes.
Before the matriarch could speak, Yu Pinyan chuckled softly, "Old Ancestor, there's no need. I don't dare to take her things. Otherwise, I'll be blamed in the future. "
Yu Xiang immediately objected, "How can that be? Older Brother deserves it. How can I let Yu Miaoqi take advantage of it …"
Yu Pinyan pinched her cheek and smiled, "Alright, Xiang'er, there's no need to bicker with them. What do you want that Older Brother can't get for you? The pearls and corals of the Eastern Sea, the gems and spices of the Western Regions, Older Brother can give it to you with both hands. It's better for her to keep those things for herself. It'll be easier for her to live in the future, right? "
Such arrogant words might have been laughed at by others, but they were very convincing when they came from Yu Pinyan's mouth. He was the most powerful person in the Great Han Kingdom aside from the emperor and crown prince. Obtaining a promise from him was more valuable than any treasure.
Yu Miaoqi and Yu Siyu were so jealous that their eyes turned red. Yu Xiang curled her lips and complained, "That's not the same. That was originally yours. I just feel sorry for you. You're obviously my biological daughter, so why are you treating her so differently? If it had not been for you, the Marquis Household would have fallen, and her dowry would have been plundered. She enjoys the good life you give her. What right does she have to stand here and shout at you? We didn't misappropriate her dowry on purpose. She is also a member of the Marquis Household. Shouldn't she do something for the Marquis Household? "
The members of the Lin Clan were so embarrassed that they couldn't raise their heads, but they couldn't refute her. Just as they were feeling conflicted, they saw their son standing up with Yu Xiang in his arms. His smile was like a spring breeze, and his tone was extremely gentle. "Good Xiang'er, I know you love your brother dearly. Her brother was an eight-foot-tall man. How could he covet her little things? It's good that he didn't take them. It'll save us the trouble in the future. "He glanced meaningfully at Yu Miaoqi.
Yu Xiang immediately stopped talking. She leaned on his shoulder and waved goodbye to the matriarch.
Knowing that the siblings were impatient, the matriarch didn't urge them to stay. She sent them out, then turned to look at the stupefied members of the Lin Clan. "Since Yan'er and Xiang'er aren't willing to take your things, you should share some with Siyu. When your children get married, whether it's the betrothal gift or dowry, it's your duty as the matriarch of the household to prepare everything. Don't you think so? Do you only want to hold power and not fulfill your duties? Then you should return the spoils to Xiang'er as soon as possible. You can't even compare to a child who hasn't reached marriageable age. All the salt and rice you've eaten all these years has gone into a dog's stomach. "
The Lin Clan was so embarrassed that she wanted to die. She didn't dare to raise her head, but she still bit her lip and refused to let go. Yu Siyu's mother had destroyed her dream-like beautiful married life. It was already merciful that she didn't throw Yu Siyu to the countryside to fend for herself. How could she give her a dowry?
Yu Miaoqi understood the situation. She struggled to get up from the ground and gently tugged at the Lin Clan's sleeve.
The matriarch didn't care whether the Lin Clan was willing or not. Since she dared to cause trouble at the door today, she had to dig out a few pieces of her flesh before she could let her go. She opened the account book and pointed with her fingertips. "West of the city, Wuli Tile, Yuqing Street, Ning Wang Street, and the four shops in Flower Bird Lane are all given to Siyu. In addition, there are three fields in Shanghe Village, Xiahe Village, Yangjiaping Village, and two hundred hectares of fertile land. All of them are Siyu's dowry. In another year or so, Siyu will be leaving the house. "
The Lin Clan was furious. Even if she hadn't been at home for a long time, she still remembered that these shops and fields were the most profitable. The other shops and fields added together couldn't compare to these few. If she really gave them to Yu Siyu, it would be equivalent to digging out a piece of her flesh. Her blood wouldn't stop flowing.
She was about to refute when Yu Siyu quickly got up and bowed. She smiled and said, "Thank you, Old Ancestor. Thank you, Mother! Siyu wouldn't dare to forget such a deep love. "This was really a case of the fisherman benefiting from the fight between the snipe and the clam. She was about to go to heaven.
It was rare for the matriarch to find her pleasing to the eye. She waved her hand and said, "Alright, you can go back. When you get married, I will ask your mother to take out the title deed."
Yu Siyu repeatedly agreed. She didn't even look at the Lin Clan and hurriedly left, afraid that something would happen if she was too slow.
Yu Miaoqi had just sat down when she knelt down again. She sincerely asked for forgiveness on behalf of her mother. She didn't expect that Yu Xiang would dig such a big hole to lure her into jumping in. No wonder she didn't fix Cheng Kang's deficit from twenty one years ago. Instead, she casually left it there for others to investigate.
It was also because she and the Lin Clan were too anxious to deal with her. Otherwise, things wouldn't have ended up like this. It turned out that before she returned home, the Marquis Household was in such a precarious situation, while the Lin Clan was like an invisible person. They didn't care at all and didn't ask about it. Her personality was truly cowardly to the extreme. Even Chen shi was a hundred times stronger than her.
Yu Miaoqi kowtowed as she reflected on herself. She felt that she still had many things to understand. She couldn't act rashly like she did today.
The Lin Clan saw her kowtow loudly, and their hearts ached. They quickly pulled her up and knelt down themselves.
What the matriarch hated the most was the way the two of them displayed their deep affection for their daughter. If you still had motherly love for your child, what have you been doing these past fourteen years? When Yan 'er was poisoned to death, you only nodded and said' I understand. ' Who are you acting for right now?
Not only did the matriarch's expression not soften, it became even more gloomy. She sneered, "Stop kowtowing. I can't accept your great courtesy. Yan 'er wasn't willing to accept your things, which means he wasn't willing to acknowledge you. Are you happy now? In the future, you'll just guard your dowry and Yu Miaoqi. You'll only have a pile of dead things and her left. Oh, that's not right. You still have Junjie's memorial tablet, but you threw Yan 'er to the side for fourteen years. Do you dare to kneel in front of Junjie's grave and personally ask him what he thought of you? Assisting your husband, teaching your children, working hard to run the household, what have you done? Just wait until Junjie comes to settle this debt with you in the Yellow Springs! "
The Lin Clan repeatedly kowtowed and admitted their wrongs. When they heard these words, their bodies couldn't help but stiffen. Their hearts felt like they were being twisted by a knife.
Yu Miaoqi felt both embarrassed and resentful. There was another hidden meaning in the matriarch's words, which was to completely separate her and the Lin Clan from Yu Pinyan. She would live with the Lin Clan and have nothing to do with Yu Pinyan in the future. How could this be? Didn't her status in her husband's family still depend on Yu Pinyan? Without her maternal family's support, how could she establish herself in her husband's family?
Yu Miaoqi was about to open her mouth to defend herself when Mama Ma and a few other old women carried two red wooden boxes in. The matriarch gave them a look, and they threw the boxes in front of them with a 'bang'. Then, they silently retreated.
"In case there are any more problems with the account book and you have no one to argue with, just look at it in my room. You're not allowed to go back until you've finished reading it. Wan Qiu, bring a barrel of lamp oil over in case we need it. "
Wan Qiu acknowledged and quietly left the room.
The matriarch knocked on the box with her cane and said sternly, "Look at it now. If there are any problems, I'll take responsibility!"
The Lin Clan's expression was sluggish. They hadn't yet recovered from their mother-in-law's knife-like sharp words. All they could think about was their late husband's opinion of them. Yu Miaoqi calmed down. She opened the box and took out the account book, stacking it next to the Lin Clan's feet.
The matriarch gave her a deep look and walked out with her cane.
Yu Miaoqi only collapsed on the ground when the heavy and slow footsteps faded away. She panted a few times and quickly got up. She moved the abacus closer and flipped through it while converting. When she saw the account book from Cheng Kang's twenty-first year, her eyes widened.
She originally thought that she was very smart and capable since she followed Father Shen everywhere when she was seven or eight years old. However, Yu Xiang's ability was far above hers. Not to mention other things, just this improved account book was very extraordinary. Every item was made into a table, and she listed all the details that other people could think of or not. She listed them all in the table, and one only needed to glance at it to understand it clearly.
These account books were simply clean to the extreme. Because of her good management, the Marquis Yongle, which was originally unable to make ends meet, gradually walked out of the haze and had a surplus year after year.
No wonder the matriarch praised her so much. No wonder Yu Pinyan doted on her so much. It wasn't without reason. When she admitted this, Yu Miaoqi's heart, which had already been corroded by jealousy, felt like it was soaked in magma. It burned fiercely, and a thought of never admitting defeat took root in her mind.
Take charge of the family. She also wanted to take charge of the family. She wanted to let the matriarch and Yu Pinyan see who was better. Who was the true legitimate daughter of the Marquis Yongle!
-----
Yu Pinyan held his little sister as they walked in the warm and brilliant spring sunshine. His little sister reached out to touch the flowers. He picked one and stuck it in her hair with a very focused gaze.
Yu Xiang also picked one and stuck it in her brother's hair. She even tightened her grip around her brother's neck and refused to let him take it down. Seeing that he had no choice but to compromise, she pursed her lips and smiled evilly.
The two of them looked at each other with their foreheads pressed against each other. They could see the complete joy in each other's eyes.
"Brother, do you really like it? Don't you feel sad that the Lin Clan treated you like that? "After hesitating for a long time, Yu Xiang slowly opened her mouth.
"I don't feel anything." Yu Pinyan's tone was indifferent. He then asked, "What about you? Are you sad? "
"I don't feel anything either. The only person in this world who can make me sad is Brother. If one day Brother doesn't want me anymore, I'll die of sadness! "When she said the word 'die', she deliberately emphasized it. This wasn't an exaggerated figure of speech. It was death in the truest sense. She was originally a soul from another world. Her roots were not in the soil of the Han Dynasty, but in Yu Pinyan's soul. If Yu Pinyan abandoned her, she would naturally wither away slowly.
Yu Pinyan's eyes darkened. He said hoarsely, "How can that be? Even if I don't want my own life, I won't abandon Xiang'er. I've said it before, Xiang'er is my lifeblood. "
Yu Xiang whispered into his ear, "Brother, you're also my lifeblood. You're the person I like the most in this world." After saying this, she quickly kissed him lightly on the cheek. Then she pursed her lips and smiled.
Yu Pinyan's heart was greatly shaken, but his expression was very calm. He ordered in a low voice, "Kiss me again. Otherwise, Brother will throw you away."
Yu Xiang smiled brightly as she leaned in for another kiss. However, she didn't expect him to suddenly turn his head. The kiss that was supposed to land on his cheek slid past the corner of his lips. Yu Xiang didn't care, but Yu Pinyan deeply remembered the soft touch and scalding temperature on his lips. His eyes instantly became as deep as the sea.
Liu Lu, who was following behind the two, felt perilous waves rise in her heart. Although she was a young girl who didn't know much about human affairs, she gradually felt that something was off. This was because Master Hou's gaze towards her master became more and more passionate every day. It was practically enough to make people burn.