Mo Sang – CH 264

Chapter 264. A Meal

Li Sangrou, holding a thick volume of contracts in one hand, bowed respectfully. “Sister Wu is getting more and more beautiful, and so is Sister Meng.”

“You flatter me, Boss.” Aunt Wu returned the bow. “What happened to your hair, Boss?”

“Hmm?” Li Sangrou paused, then touched her hair and smiled. “I dyed it.”

“What happened? Why did you dye your hair like that?” Madam Meng walked to Li Sangrou’s side, examining her hair closely.

“It’s not quite a big deal. Hair usually grows back in six months to a year,” Li Sangrou said with a smile.

“It will take two years.” Aunt Wu stepped closer, examining it carefully, looking quite regretful.

“She does not care about that,” Madam Meng added with a smile, turning to walk inside alongside Li Sangrou. “Where did you come from? We have not heard from you in over a year.”

“I was in Runzhou this morning, bringing you this,” Li Sangrou said, handing the thick volume of contracts to Madam Meng.

Madam Meng took the item, glanced at it, and raised an eyebrow. “You really… how did you get this back?”

“Broadly robbed it,” Li Sangrou laughed.

Aunt Wu grunted. Madam Meng stepped aside, raising an eyebrow at Li Sangrou.

“It really was a straightforward robbery.

Firstly, I really did not have any good ideas. You could not think of a way, so what good ideas could I have?

Secondly, I thought that since your properties were taken from you by force, you should take them back by force. Otherwise, you cannot get your revenge.

Thinking about it that way, I simply decided to rob it outright.” Li Sangrou gestured for them to walk forward, laughing as she spoke.

“The Yang family is a prominent family in Runzhou. They have a scholar who passed the imperial examinations. That old master is very capable, extremely powerful!” Aunt Wu’s voice betrayed worry and a hint of fear.

“This prominent family, with just a scholar, can only suppress us. In front of them, we are like ants.” Madam Meng sighed and looked at Li Sangrou. “What identity did you use? ‘Boss’ definitely will not do.”

“I am a grand general, the kind with a super rank,” Li Sangrou said, smiling. “The Yang family treats others like fish and meat, which means they accept that they themselves are also fish and meat.

When that old master willingly signed and sealed the document, I made it very clear to him: The word ‘willingly’ is easy to say. When you made Madam Meng willingly sign it back then, you should have known that one day you would also be willing.”

An indescribable emotion surged from the depths of Madam Meng’s heart, bringing tears to her eyes and choking her throat.

“Have you eaten? I have not. After finishing all this work this morning, I rushed all the way from Runzhou. I am exhausted and starving,” Li Sangrou asked with a smile, looking at Aunt Wu.

“We had dinner late and were just about to eat. Please take your time; I will go to the kitchen and get a few more dishes,” Aunt Wu instructed, lifting her skirt and jogging ahead.

“Thank you. You’ve avenged me.” Madam Meng covered her eyes with a handkerchief. “I do not want these. I do not care about this little bit of money; it is all for this grievance, which I’ve held onto for over ten years.”

“These properties are money but also a burden. They require careful management. What can you do if you do not want them?

The first step, taking possession and inventorying them, is a huge hassle. We need to be able to count them clearly and calculate everything before we can take them back.

Whether it is the Yang clan or the Yang family members currently managing these properties, they will definitely find ways to prevent you from taking them back, or if you do, they will be empty shells. If they can add to your debt, that would be even better.

Taking possession and inventorying them is extremely difficult; I do not have time to dismantle this whole mess.

Secondly, the Yang family has established charitable schools and estates in Runzhou; their philanthropic endeavors are extensive, and there are numerous places that require funds. All these funds come from these properties.

We cannot just abandon these; things will have to be the same as before.

These are not just about money; they are all troublesome matters. Even if you do not want the money, you have to take over these things and manage them properly,” Li Sangrou said seriously, then added, “Oh, by the way, among your properties, you have two shipyards. Give them to me.”

“Alright.” Madam Meng was silent for a moment, then readily agreed. “Checking and reclaiming the properties is easy, but getting what’s been taken back will require your help.” Madam Meng looked at Li Sangrou.

“Alright.” Li Sangrou readily agreed.

“Besides the two shipyards, I will manage the rest of the businesses.

I will not take a single penny of the profits from these businesses. What was originally used for the Runzhou charity school and charitable estate will remain the same. The rest…” Madam Meng paused, then continued, “…will be used for charitable purposes in Huating. Whatever amount is used in Runzhou will be used in Huating as well—more, never less.”

Li Sangrou chuckled, nodding repeatedly. “Excellent, absolutely right.

The charity school should include a girls’ school. The girls should learn to read and write, and acquire a trade or something.

Also, the charitable estate does not need too much money. Living people are more important. Setting up a clinic or something similar is worse than a charitable estate.”

“Yes, that’s what I think too. My father often said the same thing when he was alive, saying that life and death are like the withering and flourishing of plants; it is better to nurture seedlings and twigs than to offer withered branches and fallen leaves.” Madam Meng laughed.

“And…” Li Sangrou looked at Madam Meng and said with a smile, “Those charitable schools and estates in Runzhou, all those charitable organizations, are all under the Yang family’s name. Yang Family Schools, Yang Family Estates—they are all Yang family. The name needs to be changed to the Meng Family.”

“Meng Family? Forget it, let’s just call it Dongshan School. My father called himself Dongshan, so the estate will just be designated a charitable estate. Just drop the ‘Yang.'” Madam Meng thought for a moment and smiled.

“Then you should spend a little more money and hire a few great scholars to write a biography of Master Dongshan and put it in all the Dongshan schools and Dongshan clinics. It would be best to also erect a stone statue of Master Dongshan at the entrance of the school and clinic,” Li Sangrou said, then laughed, as if she had thought of something.

“You!”

“This!”

“That’s true. If that’s the case, then those who want to leave their mark should simply spend their money to set up a school or clinic. Not only would they leave their names, but they could also have a stone statue erected for them,” said Madam Meng, laughing incessantly.

The two women talked as they walked around the main courtyard and entered the back garden.

A young maidservant waited with her hands at her sides inside the round gate, leading the two women to a pavilion.

Li Sangrou stopped outside the pavilion, carefully examining it.

“It’s covered with fine gauze on all four sides,” Madam Meng explained clearly. “Although we’ve tried everything in this garden, there’s still no way to get rid of a single mosquito. It is fine when you are walking around, but as soon as you sit down, the mosquitoes bite you.”

“I’ve had gauze stretched over all the places in this garden where people often sit, and I’ve also prepared several fine gauze curtains. We can set them up whenever we want to sit, and you will hardly see anything. Do you want one?”

“No, I am a rough person.” Li Sangrou sighed and shook her head.

Although she also loathed mosquitoes, she could not bear the thought of having to use gauze curtains everywhere.

A covered walkway connected to one side of the pavilion, leading to the main courtyard and the kitchen courtyard behind it.

A group of five or six maids came over carrying boxes of various sizes, placing the delicate dishes inside on the table.

Aunt Wu smiled and gestured for the two of them to sit down.

At the round table for three, it was difficult to determine the best seat. As the three sat down, Li Sangrou carefully examined the exquisite dishes on the table.

In the center was a bowl of nine-silk soup, surrounded by six or seven cold dishes. The soup bowl was small, and the cold dishes were even smaller, each only slightly larger than the palm of her hand. The dishes arranged in the center of the plates were like paintings, pleasing to the eye.

The table was filled with a variety of dishes, but the portions were small.

“I am hungry, so I will not stand on ceremony,” Li Sangrou said, first serving herself a bowl of nine-silk soup.

The bowl was extremely small, and Li Sangrou drank two bowls in a row. She then sampled several cold dishes before a two-foot-long stuffed and roasted white fish was served.

Aunt Wu smiled and said, “My sister and I have small appetites and eat lightly. Luckily, we have a fine white fish. Please, Boss, try some.”

Li Sangrou unceremoniously reached for her chopsticks and picked up a piece.

It tasted excellent.

After the three finished their meal, Madam Meng looked at Li Sangrou. Li Sangrou, somewhat languid, waved her hand and said, “Let’s talk here for a while. I am tired and do not want to move.”

“Alright,” Madam Meng replied with a smile.

Aunt Wu ordered a comfortable chair to be brought over and some light tea to be brewed.

A maid brought over a chair, and Li Sangrou switched to a comfortable bamboo chair. Facing the garden, watching the maple leaves and blooming chrysanthemums under the lamplight, she sipped her tea and sighed contentedly.

When it came to living a refined and meticulous life, Madam Meng was the best.

“Your life, that’s what I call a life, truly refined,” Li Sangrou said, raising her cup to Madam Meng.

“My father and mother were a perfect couple.

My father revered Taoism and was a very easygoing person. My mother was pampered from childhood, and her daily life was extremely particular—what the people in the Meng clan would call extravagant.

I was also prone to extravagance.”

Speaking of extravagance, Madam Meng’s voice turned slightly cold, revealing a hint of resentment and bitterness.

“My mother passed away early, and after my father’s death, I was often lectured, told that my parents had raised me to be so extravagant, which was extremely wrong, and that even with money, I should not have acted this way.

When I was stretching yarn in the garden, he said that the Yang family’s sons did not even have warm cotton-padded clothes in winter, yet I was throwing money around like this.

When I ate a ribbonfish, he said that the Yang family’s sons rarely ate meat throughout the year, yet I spent dozens of taels of silver to buy several small fish, only to eat a few bites.

He said that as the matriarch of the Yang family, I should put my husband and clan above all else; if one member of the Yang family was not full, I should not be full; if one member of the Yang family was not warm, I should not be warmly dressed.”

Li Sangrou slightly turned her head, looking at Madam Meng, who was tightly pursing her lips.

“That’s all in the past,” Aunt Wu said softly.

“It’s all just common sense, is it not? A matriarch should act this way, and a daughter-in-law should act this way, should she not?” Madam Meng looked directly at Li Sangrou.

“If you do not think it is, then it is not.” Li Sangrou met Madam Meng’s gaze, paused, and continued, “How things are in this world, what is considered right and wrong, depends on the person.

For me, worldly affairs are the sword in my hand. For you, before, it was about what you had to rely on; now, you’ve stepped over that ‘what you have to rely on,’ stepping over worldly affairs.”

“It’s her.” Li Sangrou looked at Aunt Wu. “Look, she’s been watching you.”

“Worldly affairs are like water; some drown, some swim freely, and some, like you, fill their own space step by step.

Many more people drift along, crying, ‘What can I do? Such is the way of the world.’

And then there are those who stir up trouble, trying every possible way to drown people.”

Madam Meng remained silent for a long time, then sighed softly.

“Did a blind man surnamed Mi come to see you?” Li Sangrou changed the subject.

“That fake blind man?” Madam Meng raised an eyebrow slightly.

“Yes,” Li Sangrou gave a drawn-out “Mmm.”

“He came in the previous tenth month. That day, Sister Wu and I went to look at houses outside the city. Just as the carriage left the alley, he jumped out from the opposite side, waving his hand and shouting, ‘There’s an air of nobility about you! A noblewoman!’

He rushed towards the carriage, insisting on giving me a divination, saying he would not take money unless it was accurate.

It had just rained that day, and the ground was full of puddles of all sizes. He ran all the way here without stepping into a single puddle. I knew he was a fake blind man.”

Madam Meng snorted as she spoke.

“That’s because he did not want to hide it from you, and he was not very good at pretending to be blind; otherwise, you would not have noticed,” Li Sangrou said with a smile.

“Yes, he’s very cunning. Out of every three sentences he speaks, at least one is a lie, often two lies and one truth. It is so annoying!

But his fellow disciples and nephews are all quite good.” Madam Meng frowned as she spoke of Blind Mi.

“You are doing business with him?” Li Sangrou asked with a smile. “Where’s Blind Mi? Did he go back to Jianle City?”

“He’s in Yangzhou.”

“The things from their sect are all quite good.

Like our current kitchen, we’ve renovated it according to their model. It is clean and functional. I’ve asked him to find Master Zhou for that, too. You can make your kitchens and bathing rooms like theirs in your houses; it is excellent.

But later, Master Zhou came to see me, saying that their kitchen and bathing room unit was excellent, but for a small household like theirs, the sewage flowing out was a serious matter, something I could not handle. Later, I heard Master Zhou went to the Jiangcao Department.

You should ask Master Zhou about this yourself. I’ve been busy since then and have not inquired further.”

Li Sangrou frowned.

This sewage issue concerns the entire Yangzhou city’s drainage system! It was no small matter!

“They have too much stuff, a jumbled mess, stored up for who knows how many years.

Some of it, like this kitchen and bathing room unit, is good, but it cannot be exchanged for money, and if you actually use it, you’d need to pay too much in silver.

There’s a lot more, but I do not really understand it.

Later, Sister Wu and I discussed it. They’ve accumulated so much stuff in the mountains over the years; it is not something one or two families can finish. I also talked to Blind Mi—he’s really annoying!” Madam Meng could not help but spit.

Li Sangrou chuckled.

“Is he not annoying in front of you? Only with me?” Madam Meng glanced at Li Sangrou.

“How could he not be annoying? Very annoying! I often want to beat him up, but if I do, it is a matter of life and death, so I have to hold back.” Li Sangrou nodded and smiled.

“Sigh! When a man gets annoying, he really is!”

“Let’s get down to business. I am thinking it would be best to publicly announce all their stuff and let them bid on it one item at a time. If it looks good at first glance, we can resell it and make a fortune. Set the prices high, and for the less certain items, it will be a matter of courage and guts.

Blind Mi was always afraid of selling at a loss, saying he wanted to calculate the shares. I told him, ‘Calculating shares is easy, but how do you check the accounts? Do you think everyone is a saint, honest and fair to everyone?'”

“You are back just in time! You can talk to him! He’s infuriating!” Madam Meng slammed her hand on the armrest of her chair in anger.

Li Sangrou raised her eyebrows and raised her glass to Madam Meng.

This was an auction, a technical auction.

She admired Madam Meng’s business acumen and insight!

“Even if you had not come today, I was going to write to you anyway. You came so I could hear your opinion, and besides, this is not a small matter; you need to mediate.

I am nameless, and it is inconvenient for me to show up. That blind man; he’s always sleeping at his fortune-telling stall outside the Confucian temple. Besides being a nuisance, he’s completely useless and utterly worthless,” Madam Meng continued.

“Alright!” Li Sangrou agreed readily. “Tomorrow, let’s call Blind Mi and go outside the city. How’s the renovation of the Daxiangguo Temple going?”

“Not much.” Madam Meng glanced outside. “There’s plenty of work and few craftsmen in and around Yangzhou, and even fewer good ones. All the decent ones are working for me, next door, or on estates outside the city.”

“You raised the price?” Li Sangrou asked, glancing at Madam Meng.

“Yes.” Madam Meng raised her chin slightly. “Not by much. I only choose the best craftsmen. Luckily, your Master Zhou is not competitive. The other families in the city have enough ordinary craftsmen.”

Li Sangrou chuckled.