"What? Do you want me to go?" Wei Tingyu didn't answer Dou Zhao's question directly. Instead, he smiled and inquired, looking at the four busy beauties around him.
"Of course not!" Zhao Zhangru was the most straightforward, shaking her head immediately. She stood holding Wei Tingyu's clothes, acting as a clothes rack, and spoke without reservation, "Princess Jian is too fierce! If she were to join the household… our Marquis's residence might become a chaotic mess! Anyway, I don't really like her!" Good heavens! She's already talking about Princess Jian joining the household?! Not only Wei Tingyu but the other three women were also stunned for a moment, but remembering it was Zhao Zhangru speaking, they all felt relieved. After all, this woman was naturally guileless; although she often made jokes, getting along with such a person was very, very easy!
"But last night, the Princess's personal maid came in person and spoke these words to Suxin and Sulan, clearly wanting the Marquis to know, so he would accompany her this morning!" Miao Ansu, frowning slightly, continued while standing behind Wei Tingyu, adjusting his collar, "Wouldn't the Marquis pretending not to know make the Princess embarrassed?"
"Yes!" Dou Zhao nodded. "I know the Marquis disdains to flatter the Princess, but the Princess's father, Prince Ning, now wields immense power in the court. Offending him would likely be of no benefit to the Marquis!"
These words, heard by He Weifang, completely bewildered her! For at this moment, she realized that she had now entered a new world~! It was no longer just about the petty squabbles within the household. As a Marquis, the Duke's every word and action were connected to many powerful figures in the capital. And the way the three women, like Dou Zhao, constantly planned for the Marquis, that was the true stature and attitude a mistress of the Marquis's residence should possess. At this moment, He Weifang had also matured considerably. Remembering how much the three women, Dou Zhao, sacrificed for the Marquis, she felt she couldn't lag behind. She immediately spoke, "Lady and my two younger sisters are right! The Marquis should indeed consider it carefully…" Although she didn't understand the political landscape of the capital at the moment, it was never a bad thing to advise the Marquis to think twice before acting!
Upon her words, the three women, Dou Zhao, secretly nodded in approval. Indeed, this new sister was not misjudged! She has stature! Only such a sister could unite with them to build the future glory of the Marquis's residence!
"Alright! I know what I'm doing; you don't need to say more on this matter!" Wei Tingyu, hearing the four women advise him to accompany the Princess, immediately pouted helplessly. His three wives and one soon-to-be wife were indeed the most ideal marriage partners for any man! They always thought entirely for him! But sometimes, it did make him feel a bit coddled. Fortunately, the four women were not tactless; after advising their lord and realizing he had made up his mind, they no longer spoke. Whatever the outcome, they would bear it with their lord!
"Oh, right! Sister He!" Zhao Zhangru's eyes darted around, having finished the previous topic, and she thought of another crucial question. She turned to He Weifang, who was still kneeling on the ground, adjusting Wei Tingyu's belt, and asked, "You stayed overnight in our courtyard last night. Will your husband's family know about this?"
At this, the other two women simultaneously looked at He Weifang, their eyes also showing inquisitive expressions. After all, they had never had such an experience, so what was He Weifang, the person involved, feeling at this moment? This made them very curious.
"Pfft!" However, He Weifang's face flushed slightly, and she glanced up at Wei Tingyu. Seeing no sign of displeasure on his face, she breathed a sigh of relief and then rolled her eyes at Zhao Zhangru, saying, "What kind of husband's family is this Liu family? From now on, the Marquis's residence is my husband's family!"
"Sister He speaks well!" Dou Zhao immediately nodded in agreement. "Such a fiery pit as the Liu residence is better left! After Sister He enters the Marquis's residence, she will be our blood sister!"
"Exactly!" Miao Ansu also nodded repeatedly, while giving Zhao Zhangru a glare. "Sister Ru just doesn't know how to speak, almost hurting our sister's feelings!"
"Oh, fine!" Zhao Zhangru also knew she had been a bit too talkative and almost embarrassed He Weifang. She quickly pouted, lightly slapped herself on the face, and said, "You two know me! I meant no harm; I was just curious! Sister He, I'm sorry!"
"No worries, no worries!" He Weifang stood up at this moment, turned to Zhao Zhangru, and smiled. "Some things are better said openly! For this, I still have to thank Sister Zhao!" Last night, Wei Tingyu had already announced his intention to take her into the residence as an equal wife in the future. Miao Ansu and Zhao Zhangru had no objections whatsoever and instead sincerely congratulated her. This alone had deeply moved He Weifang. So at this moment, she had changed her address, directly calling Dou Zhao "Lady," and Miao Ansu and Zhao Zhangru "younger sisters!" Of course, being the eldest, she also deserved to be called "sister" by the three women! Her relationship with Dou Zhao was a little more complicated, but both women were quite open about it. Dou Zhao called her "sister," and she called Dou Zhao "Lady!" The two women completely addressed each other according to their respective positions!
Just as the room was filled with warmth and harmony, there was a sudden banging on the door of Wei Tingyu's small courtyard from outside. Suxin and Sulan went to open the door, and then Yulu, the maid who had stayed in He Weifang's small courtyard last night, rushed directly into Wei Tingyu's main room without even bothering to greet them, pushing open the door with a bang.
"Mistress! It's bad!" Upon seeing the scene in the room, Yulu didn't even bother to greet everyone, simply shouting loudly.
"What's bad?" He Weifang was a little embarrassed now. After all, her maid's current unceremonious behavior, would it cause her to be looked down upon by Wei Tingyu and Dou Zhao, making them think she lacked the ability to manage a household?
"Marquis! All Ladies!" Yulu saw He Weifang winking at her and finally reacted, quickly bowing to Wei Tingyu and the others, but the anxious expression on her face remained unchanged.
"What is bad?" Wei Tingyu merely nodded faintly, then looked at Yulu and asked.
"Mistress! It's really bad!" Yulu, hearing Wei Tingyu's words, quickly turned to He Weifang. "I just heard news outside! The steward of the Liu residence is taking the accountants to sell those shops from our dowry!"
"What?" He Weifang was stunned. She had indeed heard Liu Shen and his wife discuss this before. But she hadn't expected them to act so quickly. But thinking about it, since the Liu family already knew about her relationship with Wei Tingyu, they must be eager to divorce her so they could wholeheartedly cling to the Princess's coattails! So their haste to liquidate her dowry was precisely to embezzle it when she left the family in the future!
"How despicable and shameless!" However, before He Weifang could curse, Zhao Zhangru couldn't hold back and immediately waved her fist, saying, "Where are they? I'll go and beat them black and blue!"
"A woman's dowry is not something her husband's family can arbitrarily touch. How can they be so shameless?" Dou Zhao was also startled; it seemed her understanding of the Liu family's "fiery pit" was not deep enough!
"Poor Sister He! To have lived with such beasts in the same courtyard for a whole year…" Miao Ansu also shook her head. "No! We absolutely cannot let them succeed!" It was important to remember that the dowries of their three women were still safely stored in the Marquis Jining's residence, and Wei Tingyu had never tried to spend a single tael of silver from it. Comparing this to the Liu family's current actions, the three women truly felt that Wei Tingyu was simply the epitome of a gentleman! The entire Liu family combined wasn't worthy of licking the mud off his boots!
"It seems they're convinced they have me cornered!" If it were the old He Weifang, she would surely be frantic, but now, she actually smiled. However, at this moment, she had made a decision: not a single tael of her dowry could be taken by the Liu family! After all, this money was meant to enter the Marquis Jining's residence with her in the future! If even one wen was missing, she would feel she was letting Wei Tingyu down!
"This is perfect! We'll use this opportunity to gain control over the Liu family and make them write a divorce decree! A clean break would be better!" He Weifang's eyes darted, and she immediately had an idea.
"Stop! Quickly, stop!" The carriage carrying Liu Shen, his wife, and Liu Chang had only just started moving a few steps when a young attendant from the Liu residence came running and shouting from behind, stopping the carriage.
"What is it?" Liu Shen frowned, looking at the Princess's retinue in the distance, who showed no intention of stopping and waiting for them. He grew anxious and turned to the attendant, asking.
"Young Mistress… the young mistress has left the residence!" The attendant wiped the sweat from his forehead. He had run the entire way, falling and scrambling, not daring to stop for a moment.
What? He Weifang has come out of Marquis Wei's small courtyard? This was the shared thought of the three Liu family members upon hearing the news. Liu Shen's wife, especially, exchanged a look of surprise with her husband. They had indeed been angry when they learned that He Weifang had stayed overnight in Wei Tingyu's small courtyard, but upon second thought, they determined it was a golden opportunity! After all, to serve the Marquis, there was no telling when she would emerge! This was the perfect time to sell off the shops under He Weifang's name; surely she wouldn't have time to react!
Liu Chang's face, however, was ashen. But he didn't have the courage to go to Wei Tingyu's courtyard to catch them in the act; he could only pretend nothing had happened. But now, hearing the attendant's words, he felt his head growing heavier and heavier? Perhaps it was because that invisible cuckold's hat was growing larger and larger!
"Yulu said the young mistress wants to go and see the two shops that came with her dowry!" The attendant then reported the news Yulu had released beforehand. This made Liu Shen and his wife's faces change immediately. Indeed, their daughter-in-law had also received the news!
"Mudanya has always been obedient… even if she knows we're selling her shops, she won't say anything!" Liu's mother thought for a moment, then said. Of course, the meaning in her words was simple: after all, an unfaithful woman could by no means be described as "obedient"! Even if she was obedient, she was obedient to Marquis Wei! What need was there for her to be obedient to her estranged in-laws? Instead, everyone present understood that Liu's mother meant He Weifang had committed a disgraceful act, so they had leverage over her and didn't need to worry about her causing a fuss.
"Woman's folly!" However, Liu Shen pondered for a moment, then frowned and cursed his wife. "If Mudanya were to remain in the Liu family, then she would naturally be in the wrong and dare not speak out! But now she sees clearly!"
"We are certainly going to marry into the Princess's family; there is no place for her in the Liu family anymore!"
"She just wants to divorce us now, take back all her dowry, and then use that dowry as capital to cling to Marquis Wei's coattails!"
"She doesn't even think, what kind of person is Marquis Wei? His wives and concubines are all noble ladies from the capital! How could a mere merchant's daughter from Dongdu even dream of entering a Marquis's residence?"
"It's ridiculous! I think Marquis Wei will abandon her as soon as he leaves after a while!"
"Does she really think she can enter the Marquis's residence with just some dowry in her hands? Indeed, she's a merchant's daughter, shallow and vulgar!"… Liu Shen chuckled self-righteously and analyzed. However, as soon as his words fell, his wife and son both nodded simultaneously, because they both felt that what Liu Shen said made a lot of sense. He Weifang, this unfaithful woman, would definitely be abandoned by the Liu family! The most important thing now was how they could divorce He Weifang and embezzle her dowry!
And even Liu Chang remained silent at this moment. Although he was arrogant, his thoughts at this moment were almost identical to his father's! One could only say that the petty man in his bones finally couldn't maintain his pretense!
"Has Mudanya caused you any trouble these past two days?" Liu Shen looked at his son, who was bowing his head in silence, then asked again.
"Never," Liu Chang replied honestly, though he was annoyed.
"That's good!" Liu Shen nodded, then said, "You two go ahead! I'll take people to check; we absolutely cannot spoil today's business!"
"Lady, I'm afraid you'll be busy later! Have a pastry to line your stomach!" On the bustling street, He Weifang and Yulu walked side-by-side towards her shops. Yulu took out a pastry from the small lunchbox she carried and handed it to He Weifang.
"After the divorce, these two shops will still be responsible for the sales of perfume in Dongdu! This is a major matter for the Marquis!" He Weifang shook her head, continuing to walk forward as she spoke. "Without settling this matter, how could I have the appetite to eat?"
"After Lady divorces, the Marquis will protect you. Why do you still need to manage shops?" Yulu tilted her head, looking puzzled. In her opinion, there was absolutely no need for it now! After all, she knew how much Wei Tingyu doted on her mistress!
"After we enter the Marquis's residence, we can't truly become idle women of the inner chambers, relying solely on the Marquis for everything, can we?" He Weifang then looked at Yulu beside her, smiling and shaking her head. "Lady Dou and my two younger sisters are either skilled in business or martial arts; they are all capable assistants to the Marquis! I can't fall behind!" When He Weifang said this, besides her longing to become a capable assistant to Wei Tingyu in the future, she felt more satisfied that her self-worth could be realized. Last night, when she was drinking and having fun with everyone, she learned from the three women, Dou Zhao, that Dou Zhao and Miao Ansu were still managing their respective shops, and Zhao Zhangru could continue practicing her beloved martial arts. She was overjoyed! She never imagined there was a gentleman like the Marquis in the world?! He not only didn't want to confine his wives and concubines to the inner chambers for his own amusement but was willing to help them achieve their careers and hobbies! This was truly a good gentleman, hard to find even with a lantern!
"There's also a Fragrant Garden left by my mother in the capital. When we return to the capital with the Marquis, I can also restart the business of this Fragrant Garden!" As she spoke, He Weifang's eyes lit up, for such a beautiful life and aspiration seemed to be within reach!
"No matter what Mistress does, Yulu will be with you!" Yulu's face was also filled with excitement after hearing He Weifang's words. She was now also happy for the huge transformation her mistress had undergone in just a few days. The mistress, who had previously been living like a walking corpse in the Liu residence, now finally had hope for a new life, and all of this was brought by Wei Tingyu! Yulu, this little maid, was now no less grateful to Wei Tingyu than He Weifang was!
"You've loved these rose steamed cakes since you were little. Quickly, eat two pieces!" He Weifang smiled and stepped onto a wooden bridge with Yulu, saying, "You'll need the strength later to help ruin the Liu family's business!"
"We'll eat together after we're done with business!" Yulu smiled, then asked again, "Oh, right, Mistress, why didn't the Marquis send anyone to protect you today?"
"The Marquis didn't send anyone along…" He Weifang was startled, then smiled. Her eyes shifted to a distant figure behind them—a young nobleman wearing a jade fox mask, slowly following behind her, fanning himself with a fan.