"What are you laughing at?" Yang Wanqing felt extremely awkward under her laughter.
"Your words are laughable."
"What do you mean?"
"When I managed the household, I supplemented the family expenses. Why do I still need to supplement them now that you're in charge? Don't you have a dowry?"
Yang Wanqing's face turned pale.
Her meager dowry was like a drop in the bucket compared to Shen Qingqing's.
Asking her to use her dowry for household expenses was practically asking for her life.
"I'm just managing the household on your behalf for now. I'll return the authority to you in a few days. Isn't it inappropriate for me to cover expenses?" She felt embarrassed and could only mask it by sipping tea.
"Then I'll supplement the expenses after you return the management authority to me," Shen Qingqing said indifferently.
This made Yang Wanqing anxious. "That won't do. The household has no money to spend right now."
"No money? Impossible. I checked the accounts before I fell into the water. There were about three hundred taels of available silver at that time."
"That was spent on buying tonics for Old Madam recently."
She had indeed bought some for Old Madam, but she had bought even more for herself. After years of repression, suddenly having the freedom to spend at will, she couldn't resist.
"Then you must record every expense clearly. Otherwise, if the accounts don't match later, people might accuse you of lining your own pockets."
Yang Wanqing's expression changed. She indeed hadn't kept records, mainly because it was inconvenient. It was easy to record what she bought for Old Madam, but recording her own purchases would only invite ridicule.
"Mm, don't worry, I understand. I have matters to attend to and must leave now."
She didn't dare stay any longer with Shen Qingqing. Since the drowning incident, Shen Qingqing's words seemed laced with sarcasm, as if every sentence carried hidden meanings, unlike before when she treated her so kindly.
Could it be that she resented her for taking over the household management?
Shen Qingqing called Nanzhi over. "Keep the storeroom keys safe these days, and have someone keep an eye on the storeroom." She was worried that certain people, desperate for money, might try to steal her dowry.
"Madam, I'll add another lock then!Seeing Nanzhi's clenching teeth in determination expression, she didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Now, seeing these people who cared about her still here, she wasn't constantly consumed by resentment. She felt grateful to have been reborn at a time when everything could still be changed.
Although it would have been even better if she could have been reborn before marrying Song Lingxiao, she couldn't be too greedy.
When the time was right, Shen Qingqing took Nanzhi to Qinmian Hall to visit Song Lingxiao.
Only to find…
Yang Wanqing throwing herself into Song Lingxiao's arms, crying.
"Marquis, sister-in-law, you, you…" Shen Qingqing appeared deeply shocked, her body swaying violently as if she couldn't stand. Nanzhi quickly supported her.
Song Lingxiao immediately pushed Yang Wanqing away. "Qingqing, it's not what you think! Don't misunderstand!"
"Just now… sister-in-law was missing elder brother! She suddenly couldn't control her emotions, so I was comforting her." He desperately came up with a plausible excuse. "I miss elder brother too. It's been so many years, and we haven't even found his body. They say we must see the person alive or the body dead. I've even secretly wondered if my elder brother might still be alive."
As he spoke, he moved himself to tears. Song Lingxiao actually began crying.
Shen Qingqing truly found this laughable.
Are you sure you wish for your elder brother to be alive? So you can present him with a giant green hat when he returns?
Sleeping with his wife isn't enough—you even had a child together. Such profound brotherly love indeed!
She remembered that in her previous life, the eldest son of the Song family, Song Lingyi, had indeed returned, but shortly after his return, he suddenly died of an acute illness, and a hasty funeral was held.
She couldn't help but suspect whether Song Lingyi had discovered the illicit affair between his uncle and sister-in-law and was then murdered by this despicable pair.
"Qingqing, I'm not as fortunate as you—you have a husband and children, while I have nothing." Shen Qingqing wept bitterly.
"Please don't misunderstand! If I were to cause a rift between you and your husband, I'd rather dash my head against a wall and die!"
Song Lingxiao quickly grabbed her and shouted at Shen Qingqing, "Qingqing, say something!"
Nanzhi couldn't stand watching any longer—these two were truly skilled actors! She felt like spitting in their faces!
"Sister-in-law, it was my misunderstanding. How could you and the Marquis have an improper relationship? Only shameless, brazen people would do such things. I'm certain you're not such a disgraceful woman—I believe in you!" Shen Qingqing declared righteously.
Yang Wanqing found it increasingly odd as she listened—it felt as though every word was directed at insulting her.
But she could only grasp Shen Qingqing's hand and say, "I'm glad you believe me!"
Song Lingxiao breathed a sigh of relief. He absolutely could not afford to fall out with Shen Qingqing at this moment, or all his previous efforts might be in vain.
"I'll take my leave now." Yang Wanqing wiped her tears and ran out.
"Qingqing, I have no other intentions—in this lifetime, I love only you!" Song Lingxiao immediately professed his love to her, his words filled with deep affection.
Seeing him like this, Shen Qingqing smiled bitterly. She couldn't blame herself for being foolish—Song Lingxiao's gaze was even tender when he looked at a dog!
"Then swear an oath."
"Ah?" Song Lingxiao had assumed that, as before, uttering such words would suffice.
"You don't dare swear? Are you deceiving me?" She stared at him intently, doing her best to make her eyes appear fervent yet tinged with unease. Whether she truly conveyed it, she didn't know—the most important thing was to out-act Song Lingxiao.
"How could I deceive you? I'll swear, I'll swear right now!"
Song Lingxiao could no longer afford to hesitate—he had to placate Shen Qingqing now.
Shen Qingqing waited quietly for him to swear.
"I swear, if I ever stop loving Qingqing, I will…"
"No, no." Shen Qingqing shook her head. "Swear that you have no other intentions toward me and will love only me in this lifetime, or may you be struck by lightning and die a miserable death!"
Song Lingxiao's face instantly paled, his pupils contracting.
This Du Shi—he absolutely dared not swear such an oath. What if it came true?
Frantically, he tried to devise a solution. Despite the cold weather, sweat beaded on his forehead.
"I—I swear that I have no other intentions toward Shen Qingqing and will love only her in this lifetime. If I break this oath, may I…"
At just the right moment, Shen Qingqing covered his mouth with her handkerchief.
"I believe you, Marquis, I believe you!" she said, her eyes reddened with emotion. "Nanzhi, bring the ointment. I want to massage the Marquis properly so he recovers soon and doesn't betray the deep affection he holds for me."
Song Lingxiao: ??? Wait, there's no need to repay me like this!
"Qingqing, no, that's not necessary! I think… Ah! It hurts!" Song Lingxiao's words cut off abruptly, followed by a pig-slaughter-like scream.
The more he screamed in agony, the more vigorously Shen Qingqing massaged.
Nanzhi struggled harder to suppress her laughter.
She nearly said: Madam, such strenuous tasks should be left to your servant!
"The students at the Academy must miss the Marquis dearly. You must recover quickly," she said while panting, clearly having exerted real effort.
Moreover, when the palace holds a banquet for Prince Huai, they might invite the couple. Surely we can't have Song Lingxiao attending with a face swollen like a pig's head?
After the massage, Song Lingxiao collapsed like a dead dog again, completely unwilling to move.
"Madam, it looks much better now. You're truly good to the Marquis," Nanzhi chimed in appropriately.
"Of course. The Marquis is my husband. If I'm not good to him, who should I be good to?"
Though saying these words was genuinely nauseating, she ought to learn from Song Lingxiao – superficially affectionate and tender, yet lethally sharp beneath the surface!
After Shen Qingqing and Nanzhi left and returned to their own courtyard, Shen Qingqing immediately discarded the handkerchief she had used to cover Song Lingxiao's mouth. Disgusting!
"Madam, Yu Ge'er and Lan Jie'er went directly to Song Zhu Study after returning from the Academy," a servant reported.
"Hmm, understood."
At that moment, Song Yu and Song Xinlan were asking Yang Wanqing for money.
"Aunt, give us ten taels of silver," Song Xinlan said.
"It's not that I won't give it to you, but I'm short on funds recently. All my money has been used to cover the household expenses."
"Why do you need to cover expenses?" Song Yu asked.
Yang Wanqing sighed. "Isn't it because your mother won't provide funds? She thinks I stole her position as mistress of the household, but I only wanted to help her."
"She's gone too far! I'm going to confront her!" Song Xinlan fumed, storming directly toward the main courtyard.