Chapter 50: Auditing the Accounts
Good deeds don’t leave the house, bad deeds travel a thousand miles.
That day, the farce of this grand wedding spread throughout Shangjing.
In tea houses, taverns, marketplaces, and residential areas, it became the topic of conversation.
“The Marquis Jingyuan’s family is marrying a new bride, her dowry was robbed, and at the wedding hall, the bride vomited, ruining the tea she was serving her mother-in-law, spraying filth on her in-laws’ faces, have you heard?”
“This matter has spread like wildfire in Shangjing City, everyone is treating it as a joke.”
“This Fourth Miss Xue is too immodest, getting pregnant before even marrying, what face will the Marquis’s Mansion have if this gets out?”
“I heard there are hidden circumstances. It’s said this marriage was originally meant for the Sixth Sister, and this Fourth Sister used some shameless tactics, climbed into Young Master Gu’s bed, and stole her sister’s marriage.”
“And Princess Ping Le so eagerly subsidized so much of her dowry, I wonder what evil spirit possessed her.”
“In my opinion, this is a case of birds of a feather flocking together. That Princess Ping Le isn’t much better. In the Women’s Society of Ping Le Square, who knows what unspeakable dealings they get up to.”
In the Marquis Jingyuan’s Mansion, Xue Yueying’s eyes were swollen from crying.
On their wedding night, the wedding chamber did not have a “first handkerchief” prepared, implying she was impure.
The next day, before dawn, she forced herself to get up, meticulously dressed, and focused on serving tea to her in-laws, fulfilling her duties as a new bride and salvaging her reputation.
Unexpectedly, outside the door, she was stopped by a nanny from Madam Chun’s chambers, who said her mother-in-law had excused her from the customary greetings.
The nanny adopted a condescending tone and said slowly, “Madam has instructed that the Young Madam is currently pregnant and must rest well to ensure a smooth pregnancy. She should not be overexerted. These customary greetings are all waived until her condition stabilizes.”
Xue Yueying’s heartfelt enthusiasm was doused by a basin of cold water, chilling her to the bone. She returned and threw herself onto the bright red wedding quilt, weeping bitterly.
“I’ve never heard of a new bride being treated like this upon entering a household. Your mother is giving me a show of strength on my first day here. You treat me like this, and you say nothing…”
Gu Jie also felt helpless.
He wanted to say that he also hadn’t heard of any new bride vomiting on her in-laws at the wedding hall.
Given how embarrassing the situation was, it was normal for his parents to be displeased.
But he had to placate her verbally. He quickly stepped forward, held Xue Yueying’s shoulders, and comforted her tenderly.
“Mother excusing you from paying respects and serving tea is out of concern for you, for your own good. Please try to be more understanding. You’ve just married into the household and are not yet familiar with things. Once you’ve been here longer, Mother will naturally see your good qualities.”
This comfort only made Xue Yueying more willful.
“Your mother is deliberately making things difficult for me. No matter how long it takes, things won’t get better… She only cares about Sixth Sister; Sixth Sister is the daughter-in-law she favors. This is clearly her intentionally disrespecting me…”
“That’s not true, Mother did not blame you yesterday.”
“She was faking it; she hates me in her heart.”
“Mother is not that kind of person…”
“You’re always defending her and never thinking about me!”
One acted out, one placated.
Gu Jie, caught between them, grew increasingly impatient.
Seeing his displeased expression, Xue Yueying suddenly threw herself into his arms, weeping profusely.
“Everyone outside is gossiping about me; I have no face to see anyone anymore.”
Gu Jie frowned. “It will be better in a few days. Others won’t be staring at our family’s affairs all the time. Strange and unusual things happen in Shangjing City every day. Before long, people will forget, and we can just let them talk…”
Gu Jie’s initial thought was correct. Rumors and gossip were like the wind; they would blow over and dissipate. Things would slowly pass, and people would find new topics of interest, naturally ceasing to mention it.
But who knew that that afternoon, he would be summoned by someone from the Treasury Department.
As he nervously arrived at the Gold Department, the moment he stepped through the entrance, he felt his colleagues’ gazes were off. Their expressions were all grim.
Full of doubt, he privately pulled aside a friendly Clerk to ask in a low voice, “Brother Su, what has happened?”
The Clerk glanced around and whispered:
“Director Qiu made an announcement this morning, saying the Gold Department’s finances and accounts are in disarray and that they need to inventory the treasury silver and audit the account books… We’ll be busy again for a while. What do you expect our expressions to be like?”
Gu Jie’s heart skipped a beat.
“Isn’t it usually at the end of the year that accounts are tallied? We just did it last December, and now again…”
The Clerk sighed. “What can we do? One word from a superior, and we have to run ourselves ragged.”
After speaking, he glanced at Gu Jie’s stunned appearance and leaned in to caution him.
“Ziyu, don’t say I didn’t warn you. If the Treasury Director gives you trouble later, be sharp and try to avoid attracting bad luck…”
Hearing this, Gu Jie felt his blood rush backward. He was like a rat trapped in a dead end, his heart pounding, yet he had to maintain his composure.
“What does this have to do with me?”
The Clerk seemed hesitant to speak, then finally opened his mouth.
“Don’t blame others for talking about you. On your wedding day, that ten-mile procession of red dowry truly dazzled everyone’s eyes. It’s understandable for the Marquis’s Mansion to have such grandeur given its foundation. But your wife’s actions were indeed a bit too ostentatious. I heard she booked an entire counter of jewelry at Baohua Tower… Also, your dowry list, once the Jingzhao Prefecture investigated the case, it spread throughout Shangjing City, truly making people envious…”
Gu Jie felt his vision darken, and his heart pounded.
The Clerk’s voice seemed distant to his ears.
“The Censorate, upon hearing the news, impeached Minister Luo of the Ministry of Revenue. For some reason, the Crown Prince also intervened, accusing the Ministry of Revenue of falsifying accounts, embezzling public funds, and engaging in extravagant spending. Minister Luo was reprimanded and caused trouble for the Director. The Director then caused trouble for the Treasury Director, and this pressure cascaded down. The Treasury Director has to find someone to take the fall, doesn’t he?”
After speaking, the Clerk saw him standing there dumbfounded, sighed, and patted his shoulder.
“I have to go fetch the account books. The Treasury Director will be here soon, so you’d best be honest.”
Gu Jie nodded, his mind feeling as if it were filled with sand, hazy and dull.
As expected, he received a severe scolding from the Treasury Director, and his colleagues all looked at him coldly.
As he left work, feeling heavy-headed, his mind was still calculating how much treasury silver was missing and how to make it up.
Xue Yueying was concerned with appearances. He had originally planned to temporarily use some treasury silver to add to her dowry, marry her off grandly, and then figure out the rest. After all, those gold and silver treasures were valuable; he could sell them later and wouldn’t lose too much, then supplement the rest to make up the deficit.
Who knew that on the wedding day, her dowry would be completely looted?
And who knew when the Jingzhao Prefecture would solve the case…
Looking dejected, he stepped past the second gate when Qing Zhu rushed over.
“Fifth Master, please go see your wife quickly…”
Hearing that Xue Yueying was unwell, Gu Jie’s heart tightened, and he panicked slightly. He rushed to Qi Wu Courtyard, only to see her crying uncontrollably, her first words accusing his mother.
“Young Master Gu, my mother-in-law has wronged me too much!”
Gu Jie was restless, his mind filled with worries, but he could only force himself to comfort her.
“What’s wrong? Speak calmly, don’t rush.”
Xue Yueying sobbed, “After you left this morning, my mother-in-law immediately sent a nanny from Qi Wu Courtyard to bring me food…”
Gu Jie frowned. “Mother cares about you; isn’t that a good thing?”
Xue Yueying, being pregnant and sensitive, and having been repeatedly provoked, started crying as she spoke. “It’s not good. I’m suffering terribly from morning sickness. I see those greasy stewed pig trotters and want to vomit; I can’t eat a single bite. But that nanny insisted, saying it was mother-in-law’s kind gesture, and a daughter-in-law must eat it, whether she wants to or not…”
Her shoulders shook with sobs.
“I detest greasy food the most. That hateful nanny insisted that stewed pig trotters are very nourishing and good for the baby in my womb. To report back to my mother-in-law, she stayed with me, watched me, and forced me to endure the nausea and eat it all, not even allowing me to leave any soup. Later, I vomited uncontrollably, but she showed no pity and said I had wasted mother-in-law’s good intentions…”
Xue Yueying raised her tear-filled eyes. “Young Master Gu, your mother is clearly trying to make things difficult for me, finding ways to torment me…”
Gu Jie’s mind was filled with the words of the Treasury Director.
Where did the money come from? How to fill such a large deficit…
Hearing Xue Yueying’s tearful complaints, he felt inexplicably annoyed.
“These small matters, please be more patient. Mother has no ill intentions; it’s all for the sake of the child in your womb…”
“Young Master Gu!” Xue Yueying raised her tear-filled eyes and looked at him incredulously. “Clearly, your mother is deliberately tormenting me, and you think I’m in the wrong?”
Gu Jie moved his lips, then sighed.
“It’s not your fault, alas… I’ll speak to Mother later and ask her not to send things to your room… How about that?”
Xue Yueying clutched her restless stomach, tears welling up in her eyes.
“She’s doing it on purpose, she’s doing it on purpose… Why don’t you understand? She hates me because of Sixth Sister, she hates me…”
Gu Jie’s suppressed anger flared up instantly, and he irritably retorted:
“Then what do you want me to do? She’s my mother; do you want me to scold her and disregard filial piety? Ying’er, since you like me, why can’t you endure a little for my sake…”
“Young Master Gu? You’re scolding me?”
Had the man who used to dote on her so much changed his tune after only two days of marriage?
Xue Yueying’s face turned pale, her lips trembling with anger.
“It’s only the second day of our marriage, and you’re already tired of me and lecturing me like this?”
Gu Jie looked at her unreasonable demeanor, his brows furrowing tighter, and the hand he held on her shoulder slowly loosened.
“I’m sorry, Ying’er, it’s my fault. You rest for a while; I’ll go talk to Mother.”
Before Xue Yueying could react, she saw him turn and leave, his footsteps receding further and further.
He actually left?
He just abandoned her like this?
“You little slut!” Xue Yueying suddenly grabbed a pillow and slammed it forcefully on the bed, cursing as she hit it.
“It must be that little slut Xue Liu who instigated Madam Chun to get revenge on me. Why did I vomit, why did I vomit?”
Qing Zhu and Qing Hong, the two maids, were so scared they didn’t dare to breathe.
If it were about other matters being caused by the Sixth Sister, it would be understandable.
But whether she vomited or not, it truly couldn’t be blamed on the Sixth Sister…
“My lady is right; it must be Sixth Sister causing trouble.” Qiao’er nimbly fetched hot water and rubbed a warm towel, wiping Xue Yueying’s face and gently coaxing her.
“Sixth Sister is jealous of you, receiving so many rewards from Princess Ping Le and marrying the man she desired, that’s why she’s playing dirty. If you ask me, my lady doesn’t need to be too sad. Madam Chun is the young master’s mother; what mother doesn’t dote on her son? If she doesn’t want you to serve tea and pay respects, then don’t go.”
“Qiao’er.” Xue Yueying hugged her, tears flowing as she vented her emotions.
“Tell me, what should I do? What should I do?”
Qiao’er patted her shoulder, coaxing her like a child.
“My lady, don’t be afraid. You are Princess Ping Le’s confidante. As long as you maintain a good relationship with Princess Ping Le, why bother with others? My lady, you should visit Princess Ping Le more often. With the Princess’s backing, everyone will have to respect you…”
Xue Yueying heard this and felt it made some sense.
“Go prepare some gifts for me; I’m going to see the Princess now.”
Qing Zhu and Qing Hong exchanged glances, their expressions not looking good.
Ever since their lady took Qiao’er into her chambers, their own status had been declining.
