Rebirth: I Became The Villain's Dark Moon Chapter 15: Retrieving the Dowry - Novel Cool

Chapter 15: Retrieving the Dowry

Chapter 15: Retrieving the Dowry

"Exactly!" The Second Madam had long disapproved of the Elder Madam's habit of supporting her maternal family.

Frowning, the Elder Madam turned to Meng Qianqian, "Saving your aunt is the priority. Give us the money you have left."

Meng Qianqian sighed, "It's not that this granddaughter-in-law is unwilling to spend this sum. It's just that I truly only have one hundred thousand taels left."

Old Madam Zhao was astonished. "You... with all the dowry you brought, you only have one hundred thousand taels left? How did the Lu family spend it all?"

Meng Qianqian sighed again, "I don't know either. In the past few years, I just paid the bills. Grandmother made the decisions on how the money was spent."

Fortunately, the Elder Madam didn't trust her, and all the managers in the mansion were her own confidants. Otherwise, she would have had a hard time explaining herself.

The Elder Madam's face turned awkward, and she cleared her throat, "Let's not talk about this now. Take out the hundred thousand taels first to help your aunt out of her urgent situation."

Meng Qianqian smiled, "I can lend the money, but let's make it clear that this money is a loan to the Zhao family, with interest, and there will be a written agreement."

Hearing this, the Elder Madam became unhappy, "Why would we need a written agreement between family members? Are you suggesting that we would default on your loan?"

Old Madam Zhao chimed in, "Yes, Qianqian, you're being too distant!"

Meng Qianqian ignored their harmonious agreement and turned to the Second Madam, "What do you think, Second Aunt?"

The Second Madam was very clear about the Zhao family's character, "Write an IOU! Have a proper agreement! Otherwise, don't lend them the money! Big Sister-in-law, you agree, right?"

Lu Mu nodded, "Clear accounts between close relatives. Let's write an IOU."

Meng Qianqian looked at the Elder Madam, "Grandmother, you hold on to the IOU, and I won't rush for the repayment."

Although the Elder Madam supported her maternal family, she was still worried that they might not be able to repay the money, which would affect the Lu family's livelihood in the future.

Moreover, if the Zhao family really couldn't repay the loan, or if they repaid less than the amount owed, it would be up to her to decide what to do.

Old Madam Zhao was well aware that this elder sister-in-law was very biased towards her maternal family, and if she held the IOU, it would be as if there was no agreement at all.

So, Old Madam Zhao readily agreed.

The Elder Madam looked at Meng Qianqian suspiciously, "Are you really left with only one hundred thousand taels?"

Meng Qianqian took out a key from her purse, "Grandmother, this is the key to the warehouse. If you don't believe me, you can go and check it yourself."

The Elder Madam took the key, "Let's go to the warehouse!"

The Second Madam's eyes lit up, and she held onto Lu Mu's arm, "Big Sister-in-law, let's go together!"

She wanted to watch the process personally to ensure that the Elder Madam and the Zhao family didn't take more than they should.

The group headed to the warehouse in full force.

Although Meng Qianqian held the key, there were always skilled guards outside the warehouse, guards arranged by Lu Xingzhou. These guards were well aware if Meng Qianqian had ever secretly moved anything from the warehouse.

Therefore, when they checked and double-checked, confirming that there was indeed only one hundred thousand taels left in the boxes, everyone was stunned.

"How could it be spent so much..."

The Second Madam clenched her teeth in anger.

The Elder Madam's heart was equally shocked.

Meng Qianqian saw their shocked expressions and thought to herself that they were fools for letting the silver be spent so quickly.

Even in the capital, one hundred thousand taels was still a considerable sum. However, compared to the huge dowry Meng Qianqian had brought with her, this remaining amount was not much.

Meng Qianqian and Lu Mu had always been frugal, and so had the Elder Madam. It was clear who had squandered the silver.

Unfortunately, the person responsible did not think so.

The Elder Madam felt that the Second Family must have secretly taken a large portion, while the Second Madam believed that the Elder Madam had given too much to her maternal family.

Meng Qianqian put on a confused look, "Grandmother, Second Aunt, your expressions are very ugly. Is something wrong? Should we call the managers and check the accounts together?"

"No need!"

"No need!"

The Elder Madam and the Second Madam spoke in unison.

Meng Qianqian understood but didn't say anything. Instead, she continued, "Actually, I've also looked at some of the accounts recently, and I feel that there are indeed some problems with the accounts."

The Elder Madam quickly put on a stern face, "What accounts can you understand? Do you think the Lu family of the capital is like your small household in Youzhou?

Within the luxurious estate, the head of the household, Madam Lu, spoke with a tone of authority, "Putting aside the expenses of the various courtyards, your father-in-law holds an official position, and social obligations are inevitable. You, coming from a merchant family, naturally don't understand the intricacies of officialdom!"

Madame Zhao, with a longing gaze, turned to Old Madam Lu, "Elder Sister, we're still short by ten thousand taels... what should we do?"

Old Madam Lu's eyes swept the room.

The Second Madam quickly took a step back and said, "I don't have that much!"

Lu Mu, the matriarch, added, "Nor do I."

Lu Mu truly didn't have any extra funds, as her dowry had been used up long ago to support the family.

Old Madam Lu addressed her younger sisters, "I recall that the Zhao family owns two shops on East Street, which should be worth around ten thousand taels combined."

Madame Zhao's expression changed as she pleaded, "Elder Sister..."

Old Madam Lu waved her hand dismissively, "It's settled then."

Madame Zhao had originally intended to obtain the entire sum from the Lu family, never expecting that Meng Qianqian's dowry had been squandered down to the last ten thousand taels.

In truth, she held some resentment towards her elder sister. Over the years, her sister had not hesitated to accept gifts from Meng Qianqian, and she must have saved a substantial amount for herself. Yet, she insisted that the Zhao family put forth their two most valuable shops.

However, Madame Zhao couldn't voice these thoughts, as those two shops were secretly purchased by her elder sister using Meng Qianqian's dowry without the Zhao family's knowledge.

In front of everyone, Meng Qianqian wrote an IOU, asking Madame Zhao and her grandson to sign and affix their seals. She then handed the IOU to Old Madam Lu.

The Second Madam complained, "Now that we've given everything to the Zhao family, what are we supposed to eat? Are we to face the bitter north wind?"

Meng Qianqian, feeling helpless, said, "There's still some gold and silver jewelry in the warehouse. If the household is truly in need, you can pawn those. There's no need to return the key to me."

With that, she had completely relinquished control of the household finances.

But what could Old Madam Lu say? It was true that Meng Qianqian had been "squeezed dry."

Back at the Hall of Crab Apples, Li Mama felt distressed.

"Miss, you just lent the last ten thousand taels to the Zhao family, and you don't even have the IOU in your hands. What if they default on the loan in the future?"

Meng Qianqian replied, "The Zhao family will definitely not repay the loan."

Those with power and influence would never dare to default, even without an IOU, while those without power would be fearless and default regardless of how much evidence there was against them.

Unfortunately, Meng Qianqian fell into the latter category.

Thus, from the beginning, she never expected the Zhao family to repay her.

In the middle of the night, Meng Qianqian woke up from her sleep.

It wasn't due to a nightmare, but rather out of habit, as she naturally woke up at that hour.

Lu Yuan sat in his exclusive zitan wood official's hat chair, leisurely flipping through her new storybook while warming himself by the smokeless red charcoal brazier.

"This book is not as good as the previous one; it's terrible!"

If you think it's terrible, why are you reading it? Meng Qianqian glanced at the bedside table, which held a thick stack of silver tickets and the deeds to the two shops.

Dealing with the Grand Marshal had its benefits; not only had she successfully transferred out ten thousand taels of her dowry, but she had also forced the Zhao family to give up their two most valuable shops.

In front of Lu Yuan, Meng Qianqian checked the authenticity of the deeds and counted the silver tickets on the table.

"There's an extra two thousand taels."

The Zhao family had only taken ten thousand taels from her.

Without looking up from the storybook, Lu Yuan casually flipped a page and said, "It's from Bao Zhu."

Has the little fellow started paying me back for his milk money? Meng Qianqian counted out two thousand taels' worth of silver tickets and said, "Please ask the Grand Marshal to transfer this money to the Commander."

She understood the intricacies of reciprocity in such situations.

She had initially worried that the Commander might refuse, thinking that she was trying to curry favor with him and his subordinate. She had even prepared an explanation, but Lu Yuan merely responded with a nonchalant 'hmph.'

Meng Qianqian secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

While this man might be unruly, he was surprisingly easy to get along with.

Meng Qianqian asked, "Where's Zhao Zhao?"

Lu Yuan replied, "In the basket."

Meng Qianqian checked the basket but found it empty. "He's not here."

Lu Yuan turned his head, only to see an empty swaddling basket.

"..."

Uh-oh, where's the little treasure pig?

Little Zhao Zhao furiously waved his tiny fists: Ahhh! You unreliable deadbeat dad! You took the swaddling basket and left me behind!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end

Report