“I want to meet Lord Tu to confirm something.” At this point, Concubine Dong could no longer wait. She could not let Wei Luowen marry Ninth Miss Tu.
“Tu Jiulin?” Wei Luowen thought for a moment and realized that the Lord Tu Concubine Dong mentioned was his best friend, Tu Jiulin.
“Yes. I-I have a few questions for Lord Tu. It’s about his family!” Concubine Dong blurted.
“His family… Have you found his sister?” Wei Luowen frowned and suddenly understood the situation. Although he was dissatisfied with Concubine Dong’s untimely words, he still asked concernedly.
After all, this was something his close friend cared about. If there was any news, Wei Luowen should notify him early.
“I don’t know for sure, but I would like to ask you, Lord Marquis, to invite Lord Tu to meet with me.” Concubine Dong did not dare to speak of the details in front of Wei Yuewu and only asked Wei Luowen carefully.
“Do you… really have news about this matter?” Wei Luowen was very suspicious of Concubine Dong.
“Yes. I do have some news, but I don’t know if it is true, so I want to ask Lord Tu to be the judge of it.” Concubine Dong nodded with a solemn face.
“In that case, I will invite Tu Jiulin over in a few days. You can tell him directly if you have something to say, but you should solve the shops’ issue immediately for Yuewu. I don’t want to hear any excuse. These are Rui’er’s dowry, and they are for Yuewu. Do you want me to repeat myself again?”
Wei Luowen’s face was cold as he roared harshly.
“Yes. I understand. I was wrong!” Although Wei Luowen scolded her, she had successfully distracted them from discussing Wei Luowen’s remarriage. Concubine Dong breathed a sigh of relief.
Wei Yuewu glanced at Concubine Dong subtly, but she did not stop her from speaking.
“I shall take my leave!” Concubine Dong had survived a great disaster, so she was naturally well-behaved at this moment.
“Leave!” Wei Luowen rubbed his forehead, feeling annoyed in his heart.
Therefore, Concubine Dong left respectfully. She wiped away her cold sweat when she stepped out of the door. Then, she turned her head to look at the door. Her eyes revealed a cold trace of hatred. She almost got destroyed by that little bitch.
Madam Dowager also asked Nanny Hong to send her a message to settle the matter by today, but she did not know why this bitch had returned. At this time, no one came to tell her that Madam Dowager had returned to the mansion either.
This little bitch seemed to have Madam Dowager wrapped around her fingers too.
Not only did her plan with the shops get ruined, but that little bitch almost tricked Lord Marquis into marrying Ninth Miss Tu. She had waited so many years for Marquise Hua Yang’s position. How could she allow others to pick the fruits of her labor?
“Madam… Are you really going to talk to Lord Tu about this?” Jinzhu followed Concubine Dong closely and said worriedly.
“What else can I do? That little bitch has forced me into a corner,” Concubine Dong spat hatefully.
If it hadn’t been for this topic just now, how could she have distracted Lord Marquis?
“But… Madam, you are not fully prepared.” Jinzhu was Concubine Dong’s most trusted servant. It was only natural for her to know some things about Concubine Dong.
“Nurse Li should be arriving soon, right?” Concubine Dong frowned and asked. She had asked Nurse Li to bring some things over.
At first, she wanted to let Tu Jiulin find out about this matter on his own. In that way, things would be more credible. But now, she had to go to him instead. Relatively speaking, it might raise his suspicions, but there was no other way.
“Concubine Dong, don’t worry. Nurse Li should be here in a few days!” Jinzhu nodded gently.
“That’s good. Although Lord Marquis said that he would inform Lord Tu immediately, hasn’t Lord Tu been very busy recently? He may not be able to get away for a while. If it doesn’t work out, ask Qian Ying to buy more time. We must wait for Nurse Li to arrive at the capital.”
Qian Ying was Tu Jiulin’s concubine. Initially, she was Concubine Dong’s maid. Later, she was given to Tu Jiulin as a concubine. Because of Qian Ying, Concubine Dong knew about Tu Jiulin’s personal matters.
“Yes. I understand. I will send a message to Qian Ying tomorrow,” Jinzhu said cautiously.
Jinzu’s attitude satisfied Concubine Dong. She continued to take a few steps forward, and her eyes fell on the faces of the two kneeling shopkeepers. Wei Luowen’s two lad servants were also standing there.
Her eyelids twitched and she strode over. How could she give the fruits of her own labor away…
Seeing that Concubine Dong had come out safe and sound, the shopkeepers’ eyes lit up, and they immediately heaved a sigh of relief. Since Concubine Dong, the main culprit, was unscathed, the two of them might only be punished for being accomplices.
“You two, bring over the original account books. We will send them to Sixth Young Lady when the time comes.” Concubine Dong walked over and instructed solemnly.
“The original account books?” One of the shopkeeper’s eyes twinkled. He looked at the lad servants on both sides and enunciated his words.
“Yes. Of course. The original account books. They were supposed to be a temporary measure initially. After the mansion gets through the crisis, the original account books still need to be returned to the Sixth Young Lady. They are Madam’s dowry, after all. Some of the things written in the book belong to Madam. Moreover, it is only appropriate to return the shops’ profit we have used!”
Concubine Dong sighed and looked regretful. “It was all because of my slip-up. It caused you two to suffer with me. In the future, you should listen to Sixth Young Lady. Sixth Young Lady has always been your real master.”
After Concubine Dong said this, she sighed again. Then, she took advantage of the time when the two lad servants lowered their heads and shot a fierce look at the two shopkeepers. At once, they understood her intentions.
“Madam, don’t worry. We will definitely listen to Sixth Young Lady’s instructions in the future.”
“Yes. We will obey Sixth Young Lady. Sixth Young Lady will decide the affairs of the shops!” The shopkeepers hurriedly said. The two lad servants glanced at Concubine Dong who was walking away and then looked at the shopkeepers who were still kneeling respectfully. They did not say anything.
Inside the study.
“Father, what’s wrong with Lord Tu?” Wei Yuewu asked curiously.
“The Tu Mansion had gone through hardships. Although they were also a part of the Tu Family, they had their lowest points. At that time, even his sister disappeared. He had been looking for his missing sister for so many years.” Wei Luowen sighed at the fate of his old friend.
“Is Lord Tu related to Grand Preceptor Tu?” Wei Yuewu blinked her lively eyes and asked in surprise. Grand Preceptor Tu was too famous, so she couldn’t help but overthink.
“Yes. Somewhat!” Wei Luowen smiled bitterly. It was a coincidence that he and Tu Jiulin came to know each other. At that time, Tu Jiulin’s family had recovered, and his sister had been missing for a long time.
There were some things Wei Luowen was unsure about. He only knew that Tu Jiulin and Grand Preceptor Tu did not have a good relationship.
“When did Lord Tu’s sister get lost?” Wei Yuewu asked curiously.
“When she was still little. Apparently, a few maids disappeared with her on the way to her maternal grandfather’s house. They went missing together with the carriage.” Wei Luowen’s eyes fell on Wei Yuewu’s pale face, and his face turned cold. “What happened in Prince Nan’an Mansion? How did Prefectural Princess Jia’nan get involved?”
He had wanted to ask Wei Yuewu when he saw Wei Yuewu just now.
“Father, Prefectural Princess Jia’nan wanted to push me into the pit.” Wei Yuewu looked up blankly. “Fortunately, I pulled Prefectural Princess Jia’nan into the pit. Otherwise, a poisonous snake would have bitten me to death. I don’t know how I offended Prefectural Princess Jia’nan, whom I had just met for the first time. She can’t tolerate me.”
“What? How dare she harm you like this!” Wei Luowen was furious.
“Prince Nan’an Mansion has already driven her away!” Wei Yuewu elaborated.
After hearing that Princess Nan’an had driven Prefectural Princess Jia’nan away, Wei Luowen calmed down a little and thought for a while before asking, “Why did she want to harm you?”
“I don’t know either. It was my first time meeting Prefectural Princess Jia’nan. After that, she tried to harm me.” Wei Yuewu shook her head blankly.
“Where was your Third Elder Sister? Why wasn’t she with you?” Wei Luowen looked at Wei Yuewu and frowned.
“Third Elder Sister was not with us. When we entered the door, Eldest Sister called her over. I went to greet Princess Nan’an with Grandmother. Later, when Prefectural Princess Jia’nan pushed me down, Third Elder Sister suddenly appeared with the Heir-apparent of Prince Nan’an and the Fourth Prince. Prefectural Princess Jia’nan even took the opportunity to say that I pushed her into the pit.”
There was a grievance in Wei Yuewu’s expression. Although she didn’t scold Wei Yuejiao, Wei Luowen understood the entire situation. His face immediately became glum. It is evident that his eldest daughter was also involved in this matter.
Yuejiao used to be quite obedient. Now, the older she was, the more rebellious she became. It seemed that there was really a problem with Concubine Dong’s upbringing. Perhaps an assertive marquise was necessary for his backyard. Otherwise, there would really be a mess.
His mother could no longer interfere with his internal affairs once there was a marquise. She couldn’t interfere with Rui’er’s shops either. A trace of anger flashed in Wei Luowen’s eyes as he remembered how Madam Dowager had stolen Rui’er’s dowry.
Rui’er’s dowry was not much, except for a few shops. It was understandable if the others did not know about this, but how could Madam Dowager not know? Yet, she still tried to steal the shops’ profit. It truly disappointed him.
Madam Dowager went too far. She had these evil thoughts that shouldn’t be there in the first place. In that case, she shouldn’t resent him for doing things the extreme way…
“Yuewu, go back and have a good rest. I will ask the housekeeper to tidy up the shops and send you the account books.” Wei Luowen made a decision internally and said to Wei Yuewu.
“Alright, Father.” Wei Yuewu replied softly and then slowly retreated. When she reached the corridor, she glanced at the shopkeepers who were still kneeling.
The shopkeepers smiled obsequiously, but their expressions were calm. Then, Wei Yuewu’s eyes suddenly turned cold, and she slowly turned around and walked out. It seemed that Concubine Dong still had some tricks up her sleeve…
Outside the courtyard, Concubine Dong suddenly appeared from a bend of the long path. Her face was gloomy as she called out for Wei Yuewu, “Sixth Young Lady, please wait for me!”