676. Auntie Ling At Door
Qiao Xuan's mother never left anything for her, and Auntie Ling prepared the dowry for the girl. There was nothing valuable there.
Qiao Xuan coaxed 300-400 liang from the family but that was just enough for dozens of mu fields, nothing beyond.
A big house with glazed windows? That was just fantasy.
Oh right! Madame Qiao suddenly realized that Qiao Xuan must have been pretending to be weak. She never cribbed about the poor dowry prepared for her either.
Unless... she had been pretending to be weak before!
The more she thought about this, the more angry Madame Qiao became. She felt so furious.
That bitch had been lying to her all this while. Good, good!
Then what she and Shao Yunduan said might not be true. Maybe their relationship with Young Master Yuezheng was not the same as they had claimed.
But what could it be?
Madame Qiao was feeling really uncomfortable at this moment.
These were just her tools!
At the first section of the Shao Family.
Due to what Zhao Guanghua did to them, the brothers of the Shao Family did not leave home, fearing that something might happen again.
Yang Xiaoni and Taotao were still making lipsticks in the flower field, which was located next to the village, so that was alright.
Auntie Ling and her team came to the house of the first section of the Shao Family and ordered the maid Zhang Sier and Yang San to knock at the door.
Sizing up the appearance of the house, Auntie Ling and Concubine Du as well as Qiao Kou were all very annoyed inwardly. It was indeed a huge house.
Concubine Du felt sour inwardly. "Second Miss is really capable of buying so many properties."
Shao Sanlang opened the door and looked alarmed, seeing the two women at the door. "Who are you?"
"Who are we? That is a good question. We are from the Qiao Family, Madame Qiao sent us here. Are Qiao Xuan's in-laws home?"
Fifth Sister-in-law's family?
That could not be good.
677. Jealous
Shao Sanlang chuckled. "My parents are both at home. If you are from Officer Qiao's mansion, please come in!"
Shao Sanlang did not think that they were impostors. Honestly, no one in the county would dare pretend to be from the County Magistrate's family!
Auntie Ling went in with the others.
Shao Sanlang turned around and shouted, so everyone who was at home came out.
Auntie Ling, Concubine Du and her daughter as well as the two woman maids were shocked to see the house!
The yard was paved with flat and clean square bricks. The house was tall and spacious, and the materials used were very good. There were actually several small yards, each with a closed door.
There were a lot of flowers and trees planted, which were lush, and blooming, including roses, hydrangea. Pomegranates were hanging from the trees, and they were full of vitality.
This was not a countryside home. In fact, it was better than a town family's home!
The worst part in their eyes was that the windows were all installed with light-colored glazed windows, with a lot of light shining through. It must be so good to live in such a place.
Concubine Du and her daughter exchanged a look, and both felt really jealous.
Yang San introduced them arrogantly. "That is Concubine Du, Third Miss, and Auntie Ling who works for Madame Qiao."
Ms. Fang said, "Oh!"
So concubine and servants... and one mistress who was her daughter-in-law's sister.
So, if she was her daughter-in-law's sister, then she should be above her in generation.
Ms. Fang soon understood that they had no positions in front of her.
Thanks to Qiao Xuan, Ms. Fang had learned the inner workings of the mansions.
Qiao Xuan had used her common sense, and some things she mentioned were even wrong. After all, she was not professional in this aspect either.
Those were just what she had learned from fiction and TV-series in the past.
But what she had taught Ms. Fang would be useful now.
Those people were here with ill-intention. Moreover, they seemed to be looking down at her. Ms. Fang almost rolled eyes at them, not intending to suck up to Concubine Du and the others.
It was already kind enough for Ms. Fang to let them enter the house.
678. No Rules
"Ms. Xu, you are pregnant, you can go back to your room to rest."
Concubine Du still glanced about as she sat down, hearing what Ms. Fang said to Ms. Xu.
Ms. Xu also noticed that the visitors were not up to any good. But these were the in-laws of the family and her mother-in-law should be able to handle it.
She was going to be in labor soon and she really could not help her being here. What if some accident happened... that would be horrible!
So, she smiled and left the threshold.
Qiao Kou could not stand it but forced out a false smile. "Aunt Fang, you are lucky. My Second Sister's dowry must have paid for everything in this house, didn't it? My Second Sister has got so much money!"
Ms. Fang glanced at her. "What do you know, little girl? Don't go around spreading rumors. Ms. Qiao's dowry is her own property. No in-laws would use daughter-in-laws' dowry. You are just a little girl. Where did you hear such rumors?"
"You!" Qiao Kou flushed, angry.
Concubine Du got angry and her face sank. "You..."
"If I remember correctly, you are a concubine right?"
Concubine Du.
Qiao Kou shouted immediately. "So what? A concubine is superior to you countryside people!"
Ms. Fang struck the table hard, sneering despite whether they had got frightened. "If that is the case... what is the point of coming to our home? You are too noble for us to serve, aren't you? So, you can leave now."
Ms. Fang stood up and shouted at them. "Just leave now. Or I will use a broomstick. We countryside people are always very rough."
"You are driving us away?" Qiao Kou sneered. "Mother sent us here, and you are driving us away?"
"l am a generation older than you, and you dare shout at me and lecture me? You are also saying that a concubine is superior to me? Does this mean your mother wanted you to say all of this? Then, I will ask everyone around if it is reasonable. Best that there is a conclusion drawn out of it!"
"You..."
"Third Miss!" Auntie Ling could not stand it any more. All this while, she had been watching the show. If this countryside woman truly drove them out with a broomstick, that would be so humiliating!
Also, this countryside woman was very reasonable in this matter.
Auntie Ling could tell that this countryside woman was not someone to be bullied easily. No wonder they always said that poor places tended to breed poor people.
"In-law, please, Madame Qiao sent us here to ask a few questions. The concubine doesn't know how to behave and Third Miss doesn't know manners. Please excuse us. Madame Qiao would never tell them to do so, you have misunderstood us!"
Ms. Fang sat down and snorted. "Oh, is that so? I neve expected my daughter-in-law's mother to have such an idea. So, will they apologize to me since they made a mistake like this?"
Auntie Ling stiffened.
Concubine Du's face changed and Qiao Kou almost shouted out something loudly again. But Auntie Ling glared at them so they stopped.
"Yeah, yeah..."
Auntie Ling replied with gritted teeth. "Concubine Du, Third Miss, apologize to Lady Fang."
Auntie Ling was speaking for Madame Qiao.
So, no matter how unwilling Concubine Du and Qiao Kou were, they still obeyed her.
Otherwise, she would report it to Madame Qiao when they returned and they would suffer.
"Sorry for the rude words, please forgive us!"
"Sorry..."
679. Wrong Answers
Ms. Fang rolled her eyes openly. It was boring to hear these untruthful words.
"Forget it." She waved her hands. "I don't care!"
Qiao Kou got so annoyed. 'Then tell us earlier if you don't care. Why wait until now!'
Auntie Ling did not dare to ask what they were about to ask, after this incident. "Madame Qiao heard that the Second Miss and her husband are in the province for the examination. So, she sent us here to offer some help." Ms. Fang did not believe her. "Everything is fine here, no need for any help."
"Yeah, I can tell. Look at this magnificent house and glazed windows. One such window would cost 30 to 40 liang. Lady Fang, you are living a luxurious life now!"
Ms. Fang was startled when she heard that.
What? One glazed window cost 30 to 40 liang? How could that glass be so expensive?
She was sighing emotionally inside her heart. Shao Yunduan and Qiao Xuan used their money to make this happen. How much did Ms. Qiao pay for the house?
She would not have agreed to use the glazed windows, if she had known how expensive they were. The couple told her nothing.
The room was very bright because of these, and the glazed windows were so beautiful. Everyone liked them but it was so costly!
Ms. Fang couldn't help but shiver. She was throwing scared glances at the windows.
That was money! She needed to be very careful about the glasses. They were all money!
"Madame Qiao even said that if the Second Miss' husband clears the examination, are the fees for the next examination available? If not, Madame Qiao will offer some help. But you are very rich, so I believe that you must be doing some business, right? Are you hanging out with Young Master Yuezheng from the province? What is the business deal between the two families?"
"Madame Qiao is curious, so she needs to know the answers. I will tell Madame Qiao about this so that she can be assured in her heart as well."
Ms. Fang had no idea what Auntie Ling was thinking. She was still stuck on the glazed windows.
Auntie Ling raised her voice and called her. Ms. Fang came back to her senses and asked. "What did you just say?"
Auntie Ling was speechless. She had no choice but to repeat everything patiently.
Ms. Fang waved her hands. "I have no idea about any of this. Yunduan has always been capable since childhood, and he can read well. He is smart, steady and assiduous too. He respects us and I never need to take care of him that much."
Auntie Ling. "..."
What was she saying?
Later, no matter what Auntie Ling and Concubine Du asked, Ms. Fang only answered with one statement. "l don't know."
Yang Xiaoni came back at this time. Taotao and Chunyu were still busy in the flower field.
There was no need to have too many of them present here.
Shao Sanlang and Shao Xiaoqi were both in this house. They were not around, but closeby. They would rush in to help in case something happened.
But this was better. Ms. Fang pretended to be foolish and Yang Xiaoni really had no idea what Auntie Ling asked.
Auntie Ling got very tired and expressed that they would like to have a tour of their yard.
That was not going to happen.
Their house was not a tourist site, and Ms. Fang said that it was not very convenient for her to show the yards of her children to outsiders.
680. Lunch Here
Qiao Kou suddenly said, "I am a little tired. Can I have a rest in my sister's yard?"
Concubine Du's eyes sparkled, as she smiled. "Yeah, they have always been good sisters and never lived separately. Sisters can share a room, can they? You will approve of that, won't you, Ms. Fang?"
Ms. Fang chuckled. "That won't be possible. We have a small house with only a few rooms. Ms. Qiao has no separate room for herself. The couple are living together. You can't just rest on the couple's bed, can you? We don't have many manners, but we do have a few rules."
Qiao Kou's chest heaved. She was so angry that she almost exploded.
This old woman was bullying her!
Even Concubine Du was angered by this speech.
Ms. Fang felt very proud in heart. Did they think she was stupid? They were up to no good if they wanted to visit her son and daughter-in-law's room. She was not going to let that happen.
Auntie Ling stiffened, but she said with a smile, "It was our fault. Please don't mind. We would like to have lunch here, will that be okay with you?"
Ms. Fang was not very happy. But she did not turn them down.
She said indifferently, "Oh, it is just a matter of another portion of rice and some more chopsticks. That is totally okay. But we don't have much to eat at home, so you should not mind."
"Of course not." Auntie Ling replied with a smile. "Vegetables here are fresh and we will surely like them!"
Ms. Fang smiled too. "Yeah, we have many fresh vegetables!"
Ms. Fang kept them company and asked Yang Xiaoni to make some food.
Yang San and Zhang Sier offered to help Yang Xiaoni. Ms. Fang did not stop them but let them do that.
Concubine Du said that she wanted to go to the bathroom, so Ms. Fang had to show her the way.
Concubine Du, Auntie Ling and Qiao Kou exchanged a look between themselves but Ms. Fang summoned Qi.
Qi came in when he was called.
Ms. Fang said, "Keep the guests company and I will be back soon. Concubine Du, come with me.'
Qi chuckled and nodded. "Mom, I will definitely take care of the guests!"
The three guests were shocked. Concubine Du had just left when Qiao Kou shouted at Qi. "Who are you?"
Qi replied. "Your brother-in-law is my brother!"
Qiao Kou frowned and showed a disdainful look, snapping inwardly.
'Brother-in-law... that Cultivated Talent didn't deserve this title from her. He was always looked down upon by her parents, and he didn't dare to utter a sound!"
"Your family really has no rules. We have not been served any tea ever since we came here. I am thirsty, serve me some tea."
Qi looked at her. "Wait."
"What?"
"l said wait." Qi said naturally, "If I leave the room, you will be alone here. Our rule is that we should never leave the guests alone!"
Qiao Kou. "You..."
Auntie Ling could not help but feel nervous. Was this family stupid for real or pretending? She did not understand.
She glared at Qiao Kou who was about to counter. But it seemed that there was no way that they could realize the plan of walking around in the house without the Shao Family being involved.