The Eldest Daughter Is Beautiful and Saucy
Chapter 101: Hai Han
Chapter 101 Haihan
“Of course!” Bai Qiyun’s face brightened.
Bai Qingyan nodded and looked at Mrs. Dong: “Grandmother told me a few days ago that she wanted us to return to our ancestral home in Shuoyang after the funeral of the Duke’s Mansion. Originally, grandma planned to talk to you these days about renovating our idle ancestral home in Shuoyang. I asked Butler Hao about this privately. Butler Hao said that grandfather had this idea a long time ago and ordered the old butler who looked after the ancestral home to send the renovation drawings half a year ago. Our ancestral home is already large. If we want to renovate it properly, it will cost about 180,000 to 190,000 taels of silver, not to mention the purchase of some things. Because the amount is so huge that our Duke’s Mansion can’t afford it at the moment, so this matter has been put on hold.”
Bai Qiyun’s heart skipped a beat, thinking that Bai Qingyan was going to use the matter of renovating the ancestral home as an excuse to avoid paying the money!
Bai Qiyun’s face turned ashen.
He had just said that the women of the Duke’s Mansion were going back to their ancestral home in Shuoyang. If they wanted to go back, they would definitely want to renovate their ancestral home first. He felt like he was shooting himself in the foot.
Bai Qiyun was just sneering: “The Duke’s Mansion is a century-old military general family. They can’t even afford 180,000 or 190,000 taels of silver to repair their ancestral home. Who is the niece’s daughter trying to fool?! The Duke’s Mansion can just take some military rations and military pay… The amount revealed between their fingers is more than this amount!”
Her eyes darkened. “Uncle, be careful with your words! You are over forty years old, but you are so careless with your words. Embezzling military rations and military pay is a serious crime punishable by the death of nine generations of your clan. If you dare to say it… our government dare not accept it.”
Bai Qiyun pursed his lips. He had indeed spoken out of turn in anger.
After taking a deep look at Bai Qiyun, she continued to talk to Dong: “Since Grandfather promised to buy land for the clan, repair the ancestral temple, the ancestral hall, the ancestral tomb, and the school, we have to do it even if Grandfather is gone now. The clan wants 450,000 taels, and repairing the ancestral house is 200,000 taels, which makes 650,000 taels!”
Bai Qiyun’s eyebrows twitched. This was indeed not a small amount.
“Mother, you and your aunts’ dowries must not be touched. Even if it is to raise money to repair the Bai family’s ancestral temple, ancestral hall, ancestral tomb, school, and to buy land for the clan, no matter what, there is no reason to touch the dowry of your daughter-in-law! Your daughter is thinking of selling all the shops and houses in the Duke’s Mansion! And the farms and fertile land in the suburbs of the capital city will also be sold to raise money. Anyway, the widow of the Duke’s Mansion will eventually have to return to Shuoyang to rely on the clan, so it is better to leave cleanly and not leave any ties in the capital city…”
Bai Qiyun and Shuoyang’s two concubines were stunned. They didn’t expect that Bai Qingyan said so much and ended up not refusing, but just saying this.
Mrs. Dong looked at her daughter suspiciously, only to see her daughter smile and nod at her. Mrs. Dong frowned and felt relieved. She picked up the teacup and said, “These family businesses can’t be sold just like that.”
Bai Qiyun was very excited. The industries of the Duke’s Mansion were very profitable in the capital city. If the Duke’s Mansion sold the shops on Chang Street to raise money, he could secretly let Steward Wu buy one or two, and then he wouldn’t have to worry about it in the future.
“I know my uncle needs it urgently. He said it must be prepared tomorrow!” She sneered and turned her head to Dong, “Mother, the richest businessman Xiao Rongyan is still in the capital. It happens that Chen Qingsheng in our house is very familiar with the housekeeper of the Xiao Mansion. We can ask Housekeeper Hao to go and ask with Chen Qingsheng. Looking around the world, I’m afraid that only Xiao Rongyan can come up with such a large sum of money in a short time.”
“Actually…” Bai Qiyun started to speak, but swallowed his words back and said, “Actually, Qingyan is right!”
He originally wanted to say that there was no rush, and even wanted to persuade Dong and Bai Qingyan to sell it slowly at a good price to give him time to make a profit.
But as soon as he said this, it contradicted what he was anxious to say tomorrow, so he could only swallow his words back.
“Now that we have come to an agreement, please ask the three uncles to burn some incense for my grandfather and father and tell them that our Duke’s Mansion has agreed to the clan’s affairs. Let my grandfather and father know that the clan has accepted our Duke’s Mansion’s favor and that the clan will take good care of the Duke’s Mansion’s widow in the future, so that… let my grandfather and father rest assured!”
What Bai Qingyan said made sense. If you took the money that someone had gathered together at the cost of everything they had, but couldn’t even give them a promise, that would be too shameless!
Seeing that Bai Qiyun didn’t say anything, the two concubines of Shuoyang gently tugged at Bai Qiyun’s sleeves and said in a voice that they could hear: “Cousin, this makes sense… The Duke’s Mansion has taken good care of the clan over the years, and you were too anxious just now. You told the Crown Prince’s wife about this matter as soon as you entered the door without burning incense. Many people saw it. Just to save some things, you really should burn some incense.”
“That’s right! The Duke’s Mansion paid the money, and the clan got the benefits. All they want is face. Even if they burn some incense and say a few words in front of the guests that the widow of the Bai family keeps her promise, it will be worth it! Besides… if they say this in front of the guests, the Duke’s Mansion can no longer use the fact that they are orphans and widows to cheat and not give the money!”
Bai Qiyun was too anxious just now. He wanted to tell this matter before his two younger brothers left. He didn’t mean to not burn incense.
Now that his goal had been achieved, he no longer had to act superior. After all, a funeral was being held in the Duke’s Mansion.
“I didn’t mean to not burn incense, I was just a little anxious!” Bai Qiyun cleared his throat and said, “Now that this matter has been finalized, I will burn incense and report to the Duke and the Prince so that they will know! Madam Prince… please forgive me if I have offended you!”
Dong turned her head to Madam Qin and said, “Madam Qin, take the three masters to burn incense.”
“Yes!” Nanny Qin folded her hands in front of her belly, respectfully bowed to the three masters of the Shuoyang Bai family, and then made a gesture of invitation.
As soon as the three men left the hall, Dong asked impatiently, “A Bao, what are you up to?”
The Duke of Zhenguo’s Mansion could indeed afford the hundreds of thousands of taels of silver, but the clan’s actions were so irritating that even if they wanted to give it, how could they give it so readily? !
“Mother…” Bai Qingyan held onto Dong’s arm and walked towards the mourning hall. “Since we are going back to our ancestral home in Shuoyang, instead of being exploited by the clan, we might as well sell all the properties we have on hand cleanly and neatly this time! While our grandfather’s mourning hall is set up outside the gate, let Jin Zhi and Jin Tong make a big fuss about it, let the clan and the world know that we are forced to help the clan this time… even sell all the properties we have. After the clan members take the money this time, they will not be able to ask us, an orphan and a widow, to help the clan in the future because of what people say. This is one reason.”
“Secondly…are we going to pretend to withdraw from Dadu to reassure the emperor?” Dong asked.
Xiao Rongyan: Well, my wife is asking me for help, so my chance has come again…