Ye Jiayao felt like laughing at the look on Qiao’s face.
Qiao purposely said that it was an exorbitant price just so that Xia You would fork out the money, but it backfired on her.
“Madame, Madame, the Third Old Master’s family is here,” Lin Kun reported.
Xia You asked nonchalantly, “Have you reported it to the Old Lord?”
“I already sent someone to get the Old Lod and the Heir-son Lord,” Lin Kun answered.
Only then did Xia You got up. “You girls follow me to welcome them.”
Ye Jiayao and Qiao dutifully trailed behind Xia You to meet Third Uncle’s family.
Third Uncle looked refined, and if Ye Jiayao didn’t already know that he and the Old Lord were brothers, she wouldn’t have known. There was little to no resemblance between the two brothers.
Third Aunt is plump and round with a pretty smile, making the indifferent Xia You look even more unapproachable in comparison.
Xia Chunwen is the oldest son followed by Xia Chunzheng and Xia Chunsi. There were also three young ladies with them, Xia Jinlian, Xia Yulian, and Xia Yinlian.
Ye Jiayao’s brows rose when she heard the ladies’ name. Tell me they didn’t name their daughters Gold, Jade, and Silver on purpose. They couldn’t come up with better names than that?
Qiao whispered softly to Ye Jinxuan, “Chunwen, Yinlian, and Chunsi are born by Third Aunt, and the rest are by concubines.”
Ye Jiayao suddenly realized why Third Aunt was so plump.
“Third Brother and Third sister-in-law, I’m sure you’ve had a rough journey,” Xia You greeted politely, a forced welcoming smile on her face. She wasn’t particularly fond of this family, but a lady must always honor her duties.
Third Aunt, Zhou, smiled and said, “Aiya, as soon as we received the wedding invitation, we rushed over here. We were afraid of missing Chunfeng’s big day. It was a little tiring but at least we managed to make it in time. Older Sister-in-law, you still look as dignified and as elegant as before! The years have been kind to you. Clearly, though, it has been mean to me!”
“Now, tell me, which of these two is Chunyu’s wife?” Xia Zhou barreled on, completely taking over the conversation.
Ye Jiayao stepped forward and curtsied. “Jinxuan greets Third Uncle and Third Aunt.”
“My, my, what good looks! Chunyu is very fortunate! If our Chunwen can also bring back such a good looking daughter-in-law for us, we’d be overjoyed,” Xia Zhou flattered as she held onto Ye Jiayao’s hand.
Ye Jiayao had to restrain herself from shifting. She was feeling uncomfortable.
Qiao was displeased. Why does Jinxuan keep stealing all the limelight?
“Who is your father? It was not written on the wedding invitation so I didn’t know which family’s daughter you are. I’ll make up for your wedding gift later,” Zhou asked.
Although Ye Jiayao didn’t want to acknowledge that she was part of the Ye family, she couldn’t very well avoid this question. “My father is the Yang Zhou government sub-prefect, Ye Binghuai.”
Zhou’s smile froze and she immediately let go of Ye Jiayao’s hand. “Oh, so you’re a sub-prefect’s daughter!”
It was obvious that she was greatly disappointed by Ye Jiayao’s status.
Qiao, seeing her chance, stepped forward and greeted, “Xia Qiao greets Third Uncle and Third Aunt.”
“You are Chunli’s wife?” Zhou asked hesitantly.
“Yes.”
“She is from Jiang Nan’s Qiao family,” Xia You added.
Zhou suddenly found her exuberance again, “The one that’s famous for embroidery? The family that’s in charge of Jiang Nan Weaving?”
Qiao curtsied and answered, “Yes.”
“Aiya, that is wonderful! Chunli is so fortunate to be able to marry the Qiao family’s daughter.” Zhou took Qiao’s hands, patting it affectionately.
Although her family doesn’t have a high official high rank, the Qiao family’s embroidery is the best in the dynasty. Even one single handkerchief from them is very expensive. Zhou was a cheapskate so she wanted to befriend Qiao for favors in the future.
Ye Jiayao was relieved that Third Aunt lost interest in her. She doesn’t care if she looks down on her, she just wanted that woman away from her.
Following that, Third Uncle’s children came up one by one to introduce themselves.
A few moments later, the Old Lord, Xia Chunyu, and Xia Chunli arrived.
Xia You brought the ladies to the inner room to rest while the men continued talking.
“The house has been settled. Do you want to stay in the Marquis residence first before moving into the new house after Chunfeng’s wedding?” Xia You started after everyone settled down in their seats.
“New house?” Zhou asked in surprise.
Ye Jiayao smiled. “Third Aunt’s house has been renovated. Mother and Chunyu have put in great efforts to make it look good it can be considered a new house!”
“That’s right, that’s right! I thought the renovation would take a while!” Zhou said, chuckling.
“I told the workers to rush the job. I had them working day and night because I know that you guys will be coming soon,” Xia You told her.
“Ah? If they were rushed, then wouldn’t their work be sub-par?” Zhou asked.
Xia You resisted the urge to snarl at this shameless woman. “We repaired it according to Chunwen’s requirements. It cost around 70 to 80 thousand taels, but Chunwen asked us to pay for the cost in advance, saying that you’ll return the money once you get here. The walls, doors, and windows have a fresh coat of paint, and all the furniture was newly made. We hired the best artisans and the work couldn’t be greater. Third Sister-in-law, you should go over and take a look.”
“Arranging all this work must’ve been tough on you Older Sister-in-law!” Zhou complained, “Chuwen is too picky! I never said I wanted such a huge renovation! I am so sorry he has troubled you. I would definitely give him a piece of my mind later.”
Ye Jiayao was dumbstruck. It was no wonder Xia You disliked this family so much. They are definitely leeches! After all the work was done according to the demands she made, she’s denying involvement? She was blaming Chunwen for all of the work, what, was she expecting Xia You to get the money from Chunwen?
Xia You had to work hard to keep from throwing Zhou out of her house. She knew that this woman would do and say anything to get out of paying them back. How could someone develop such thick skin?
She was just thankful that Jinxuan came up with a trick that allowed them to spend only 18000 taels, otherwise, she would’ve definitely strangled Zhou.
“Aiya, let’s take a look at the house, then! Chunsi has yet to see the old house,” Zhou urged excitedly.
Xia You offered, “I need to welcome some people coming from the palace, so why don’t I get Chunyu and Jinxuan to go with you?”
Xia-You was well aware of the type of person Zhou is. No matter how well-done the place is, she would definitely pick out some flaws and make use of the opportunity to add something extravagant. If she was to reject her, the Old Marquis would just get mad. She has been observing Jinxuan and she knew that this child was clever. It would be best to let her handle this.
“Third Aunt, I will come with you too. I haven’t seen the renovated house either!” Qiao volunteered.
Xia You frowned. What was Qiao’s game?
She ordered Granny Sun, “Send someone to tell the Old Marquis to change his clothes. Someone from the palace is coming here later and we cannot afford to be poor hosts.”
She has to find a way to make the Old Marquis stay because if he insists on following, he would just agree to anything they want.
Therefore, Chunyu, Ye Jiayao, and others followed the Third Uncle’s family to the house next door.
Chunyu was in charge of the renovation and even Ye Jiayao hasn’t seen the house yet.
Although it wasn’t as grand as the Marquis’ residence, it was still pretty impressive. It has five rooms with five compounds, a side courtyard, and a garden.
With painted walls and new tiles, richly ornamented pillars with carvings, it exudes a noble vibe. Even the furniture that Uncle Jiang has remodeled all look brand new.
Chunyu told them, “These are made of top quality mahogany, red sandalwood, and rosewood. The design is also the most fashionable in Jin Ling at the moment.”
Third Uncle and Third Aunt nodded satisfactorily. “Good craftsmanship.”
“I wanted to have a pond in the garden but the geomancer said that this original layout brings in wealth and is also the best spot for literary advancement. If we dig a pond, we can bring in more wealth but we would gain no literary advancement,” Chunwen said.
Third Uncle, Xia Zhuoqin, is a successful candidate in the imperial civil service examination. As a scholar, he would naturally place more importance on literary advancement. “Then we should definitely not change it.”
As they walked around, Zhou casually remarked, “This area is quite empty. We have to fill it with some good decoration. I remember that you have some great stuff in your storage, why don’t you lend us some for our yard?”
Ye Jiayao finally realized why Xia You did not want to come along. Third Aunt has no shame!
She said tactfully, “Since Chunfeng is marrying Princess Liu Li, the Empress Dowager is personally overseeing the affair. Mother has moved all the good stuff in the family storage into Chunfeng’s new place to impress both Princess Liu Li and the Empress Dowager. Why don’t we ask Big Brother to help you out with this? He likes to collect antiques and he knows all the good shops in the city, he can come with you to take a look.”
Xia Chunyu gave his wife a knowing smile. That was a fantastic idea! Big Brother is also stingy and Third Aunt and Third Uncle will definitely not be able to get a single cent from him.
Zhou held her smile in place but she couldn’t help but grumble, “What’s the big deal about the princess?”
Xia Chunli smiled apologetically. “Jin Ling has everything. As long as you are willing to pay the price, you can buy anything.”
Third Uncle and Third Aunt look at each other, disappointed that their plan failed.
In the Jing An Marquis’ residence, Xia You complained to the Old Marquis, “What did I tell you? We put in so much money and effort for that renovation and I didn’t even hear one compliment or ‘thank you’! We spent 80,000 taels for that house and we’re not going to see one single cent of it back!
Xia Zhuofeng did not know that You didn’t actually spend all that money so when he thought about the expense they paid, he couldn’t help but wince. However, he couldn’t say or do anything because it was for his brother.”
“Forget it. We are all a family, what is the point of being so calculative?”
Xia You was enraged “I’m calculative? Do the math for once! After Mother-in-law passed, how much silvers have gotten from us? If not for my housekeeping, the budget I created, and how I handled the family business, we wouldn’t be anywhere as comfortable as we are right now. Did you think your meager salary and the money that Mother-in-law left for us was enough?
“I am warning you, this is the last time that we’re going to give in to them. If you dare to make any more promises to them, you will fulfill it yourself. You are not getting a single copper from me.”
