Four Seasons Brocade – CH 015

Chapter 15 ☆、 Acting Out Of Chivalry Only Leads To Bitter Consequences

They were of the same generation; how could one kowtow to another, especially since it was just a fight between two children? Besides, Fourth Young Lady Rong was merely a concubine’s daughter from the second branch, while Ah Wu was the legitimate daughter of the third branch. If she kowtowed today, even if Third Master Rong became a high-ranking official in the future, Ah Wu would still be inferior to Fourth Young Lady Rong.

Third Master Rong was so angry that his eyes turned bloodshot, his hands clenched into fists, and his whole body trembled. Lady Cui was so angry that she collapsed, but neither dared to speak up for her. The Old Madam was extremely cruel; the more one pleaded, the more vicious she became.

But Third Master Rong could not bear to see Ah Wu suffer such humiliation. Tears streamed down his face as he cried out, “Mother…”

“What? You still have something to say? Do you think she did nothing wrong? Let me tell you, even a cat or dog from my main house would not be allowed to be trampled on like this. If her sister hit her, then she must be wrong, and if she’s wrong, she deserves to be hit.” These words revealed that the Old Madam clearly knew that Fourth Young Lady Rong had provoked and struck first.

Third Master Rong’s last shred of hope for his stepmother vanished.

The Old Madam’s meaning was clear: no matter how capable or successful the third branch of the family would become, whatever his two older brothers wanted to do to him, he must endure it and never retaliate.

Third Master Rong’s shoulders slumped, remembering his humble concubine mother who had served the Old Madam in his childhood.

Ah Wu, the person directly involved, remained expressionless. This humiliation, though unexpected, was something she was prepared to bear herself. Ah Wu’s body trembled, but if this had only happened to her, she would have refused to bow her head, even if it meant death.

However, because of her impulsiveness, she had implicated Third Master Rong, and Ah Wu felt immense guilt. Since arriving here, both Lady Cui and Third Master Rong had doted on her.

Moreover, Ah Wu had misjudged the situation, and she could only swallow her bitterness alone.

But today, the Old Madam had gone too far, completely corrupting Ah Wu and reducing any remaining affection she had for the Duke’s Mansion to ashes.

Ah Wu, her hands clenched tightly at her sides, watched as Third Master Rong kowtowed on the ground, blood seeping from his wounds. Her heart ached as if being torn apart. Suddenly, she rose, interrupting Third Master Rong’s pleas, and went to Fourth Sister Rong. She knelt on both knees and kowtowed perfectly, saying, “It was all Ah Wu’s fault. Please forgive me, Fourth Sister.”

Ah Wu’s momentary impatience had caused such a disaster, making Third Master Rong suffer greatly and even handing his official hat to the Old Madam for her to control. Now, the situation was against her, and she had no choice but to bow her head.

As the saying goes, a small act of impatience could ruin a great plan. If she acted impulsively today, it would only shatter the third branch of the family; it would not harm the Old Madam or the first and second branches, who were adding fuel to the fire.

Everyone said Ah Wu was a vengeful person. If she wanted any chance to avenge this humiliation in the future, she would have to swallow this insult. Even Han Xin had suffered humiliation in the past; compared to that, today’s disgrace was nothing.

Therefore, Ah Wu had no choice but to lower her head to reality.

But the matter did not end there.

Just as the Rong family got up, the eldest son’s wife said, “Old Madam, I have something else to report.”

The Old Madam squinted her fish-like eyes and nodded.

“Ever since Third Son became the top scholar in the imperial examination, the number of social obligations in this household has increased significantly. Mother knows this. The interest payments from the estates and shops are fixed each year, but this sudden surge in expenses raises concerns. Please advise where the funds should be allocated.”

The First Madam firmly believed that her husband was the heir of the Duke of Anguo, and the entire Anguo mansion would belong to her in the future. The Duke was far more powerful than a mere top scholar, and she could not possibly rely on the Third Branch of the family. Yet, the Third Branch was now living off her resources, and she was even expected to pay for gifts for their success. She simply could not understand it.

The glory belonged to others, but the money came from their own pockets. The First Madam was unwilling to engage in such a losing proposition.

The Old Madam nodded. “Third son, what do you say?”

After the First Madam began, the Old Madam launched into a long explanation of the mansion’s difficulties. Despite the Duke’s prestigious title, maintaining such splendor was incredibly expensive. Now that the Old Master had retired, the eldest and second sons were living off the family fortune.

Third Master Rong gritted his teeth. “Whatever the Old Madam says, I will obey.”

“Then from now on, your favors will be accounted for by your third branch of the family.” The Old Madam felt a pang of heartache at the thought of the expenses her third son would incur in bribing officials in the future. Getting rid of it now made her incredibly happy.

Third Master Rong, though not a rigid, old-fashioned scholar, still possessed the pride of a scholar. Ignoring the third branch’s financial difficulties, he nodded in agreement.

Afterwards, Third Master Rong led Lady Cui and Ah Wu out of the main room. All three were silent and gloomy.

Throughout the journey, Third Master Rong assumed Ah Wu’s silence was because she did not want to cry in front of outsiders. However, once inside the room, he did not see his youngest daughter shed a tear. He was quite surprised. Lady Cui was also puzzled; Ah Wu had been crying her eyes out on the way there, but now, after suffering such great humiliation, she had no tears.

In truth, Ah Wu was the kind of person who could shed a river of tears for those who were kind to her but would never shed tears for malicious humiliation. She would only fight back against malicious humiliation.

“Ah Wu, I am sorry you had to go through this today,” Third Master Rong said, stroking Ah Wu’s little face.

“Ah Wu was wrong today,” Ah Wu said in a low voice, head bowed.

“Where did Ah Wu go wrong?”

Ah Wu blinked, determined to test Third Master Rong and see if this father was trustworthy in her future plans.

“Ah Wu should not have gotten angry so easily when she was still young and inexperienced, causing pain to her loved ones and joy to her enemies.” Ah Wu raised her head, staring intently at Third Master Rong, not wanting to miss a single expression from him.

Third Master Rong was stunned. He had not expected Ah Wu to say this was her mistake. He thought Ah Wu would say she should not have hit Fourth Young Lady Rong, but instead, he heard these words. He sighed inwardly, “My daughter has grown up.”

“Not yet fully grown?” Ah Wu was telling him that if he were to one day soar like a roc ^{(a legendary bird of prey)}, everything would be repaid with gratitude, and those people would be his enemies. Third Master Rong wanted to laugh; he wondered if the hatred for his mother’s murder counted as hatred!

The death of Third Master Rong’s mother, Concubine Qing, was actually quite common in aristocratic families. The main wife, unable to bear seeing her concubine favored, would sabotage her, either torturing her to death or causing her to die prematurely from illness. The deceased were often filled with resentment, yet had nowhere to seek justice.

Therefore, Third Master Rong looked at Ah Wu earnestly and said, “Yes, you should not have lost your temper today.”

Ah Wu pursed her lips; she had not misjudged Third Master Rong.

Third Master Rong was not a pedantic person, nor was he blindly filial; in fact, he was quite ambitious. Fortunately, he was extremely good to his family.

After escorting Lady Cui and his daughter back to their courtyard, Third Master Rong went to the ancestral hall to kneel as punishment. The Old Master naturally knew about this serious matter. He was well aware of his wife’s scheming nature, but given the Old Madam’s powerful family, he could only secretly comfort Third Master Rong, trying to appease both sides.

As for Ah Wu’s instigation of Lady Cui to ask the Old Master for money, Third Master Rong naturally took over, and the Old Master secretly gave her five hundred taels of silver.

Coincidentally, Lady Cui’s father, Cui Zhixing, also sent a sum of silver—one thousand taels.

It was said that many add flowers to brocade, but few offer charcoal in the snow; this was certainly true.

After receiving the silver, Lady Cui’s face showed less sorrow, and she even asked Ah Wu if she wanted to have a new dress made.

“No need, I grow tall quickly. If we make it today, I will not be able to wear it next year.” Ah Wu’s mind was not on food or clothing. She blamed herself for being narrow-minded and complacent, thinking she was the Princess Kangning who could treat money like dirt. Now she understood the meaning of “a penny can stump a hero.” For a mere dress, she’d resorted to fighting. Ah Wu wanted to disappear into a hole.

Third Master Rong would need money for official business; she needed a dowry for her wedding, her two brothers needed money for their weddings, and if they entered officialdom, they would still need money. Money, money, money—everywhere was asking for money, so Ah Wu had to think about this problem.

Besides, Ah Wu also planned to find a nanny for Lady Cui, someone to guide her behavior. As Third Master Rong rose in rank, Lady Cui’s manners were becoming somewhat inadequate. How could she be respected by the noblewomen if she continued to act in such a cowardly manner? If she did not socialize, when would Ah Wu ever see the Imperial Princess she longed to meet?

Ah Wu was not one to stubbornly persist in dead ends; after hitting a wall, she quickly turned back.

“What does Madam intend to do with this money?” Ah Wu asked shyly, for she truly had not expected to be so meticulous about 1,500 taels of silver.

Lady Cui exclaimed, “Ah! What to do with it? Is it not just to store it in a chest and take it out when needed?”

Ah Wu lowered her eyelids; she knew this would happen. This was truly breaking the heart of a “seven-year-old.”

“Since you have spare money and will not need it for a while, why not consider it, perhaps by buying a shop or making some long-term plans?” Lady Cui’s dowry consisted of cloth and cash; she had no property in the capital. Third Master Rong also had no private property; the third branch of the family could be described as having no permanent assets. Ah Wu’s idea came from Nanny Li’s advice last time.

These days, people generally use money in two ways: buying land or property. Ah Wu thought that buying land was out of the question because she did not have enough money to buy large tracts of land and build a farm, and the interest would be slow. As for shops, hiring a manager would be quick, but there were not many trustworthy people.

Lady Cui laughed and tapped Ah Wu’s forehead. “You are such a young child, yet you are already worrying about this money. Are you worried about your dowry when you get married?”

Ah Wu blushed, thinking to herself, “How could this lady be joking with me like this? It was not proper.”

“Madam, please do not say such things in the future. People will laugh at you. I am still young, and this is not something I should be worrying about,” Ah Wu retorted, scolding Lady Cui instead.

Lady Cui noticed that her daughter, Ah Wu, was becoming increasingly independent and opinionated as she grew older. Sometimes, she felt that Ah Wu was the adult, while she herself was still a child. However, subconsciously, Lady Cui had developed a greater trust and reliance on Ah Wu. With both sons now studying at the outer academy and only her youngest daughter remaining, Lady Cui listened to Ah Wu more and more.

“Yes, you are right, little adult.” Lady Cui tapped Ah Wu’s nose.

Ah Wu turned her head, avoiding Lady Cui’s touch.

“Madam, about this shop purchase…” Ah Wu continued to press.