Although the male lead was still in his chuunibyou phase, fortunately he was still a responsible man. He spoke directly: “From childhood to adulthood, in every imperial assessment, I always ranked below Seventh Brother. If he and I had taken the imperial examination together three years ago, Seventh Brother would certainly have been personally appointed by the Emperor as the top scholar.”
After hearing this, Mrs. Chen cried out in deep dissatisfaction.
The heavy stone of guilt that had weighed on Mrs. Feng’s heart for two years finally fell to the ground at this moment; it felt truly gratifying!
Yin Weiyue nodded with satisfaction: “Did Third Aunt hear clearly? It was not that we ruined Fifth Brother’s top scholar talent, but that you stole my Seventh Young Master’s title of top scholar. If you ever dare to bring up the matter of Fifth Brother’s official career being ruined again in the future, don’t blame my mother-in-law for slapping your mouth.”
Mrs. Chen was unconvinced and still wanted to shout abuses, but was stopped by Huo Kai.
Yin Weiyue said again: “Now that we’ve finished with the matter of the top scholar, next let’s talk about Third Aunt’s constant complaints about how our First Branch caused you to have your house searched and be put under house arrest.”
Huo Kai revealed a trace of embarrassment on his face: “Grandmother, I have never felt that the First Branch implicated us. A family should naturally share blessings together and endure hardships together.”
The Old Lady nodded, her tone calm: “I have always known your mind. Don’t be in a rush; let Seventh’s wife finish speaking.”
“Yes, Grandmother.” Yin Weiyue continued: “Regarding the affairs of the Huo family decades ago, some I specifically asked my maiden home to inquire about, and some I learned through indirect hints after marrying in. Before my father-in-law inherited the peerage back then, the Marquis of Xingwu Manor did not have its current power and wealth. On the contrary, because of the large family size left by our ancestors, expenses exceeded income, leaving behind a foreign debt of thirty thousand taels of silver.
At that time, the Marquis of Xingwu Manor was merely an empty shell with superficial wealth. When the former Old Master was on his deathbed, no one except my father-in-law could hold up the Marquis Manor, and no one was willing to take over this messy situation. At that time, the former Old Master spoke of dividing the family estate, but passed away before it could be implemented. After my father-in-law inherited the peerage, he spent eleven whole years fighting on the battlefield. The rewards earned from his military exploits were not used to pay off foreign debts first, but rather followed the former Old Master’s last wishes to divide the family estate first.
He gave each branch one thousand taels of silver, and all other clan members moved out. Yet only you—the Second, Third, and Fourth Branches—were unwilling to divide. You made it sound nice by saying you wanted to hold up the family together with my father-in-law, but in reality, you just thought one thousand taels was too little to even buy a decent house, nowhere near enough to squander! You several branches just wanted to latch onto my father-in-law’s shoulders and suck his blood—did I say anything wrong?”
The other clan members of the Huo family had long moved out. The ones who had not divided the family estate totaled four branches, all born of the deceased former Marquis of Xingwu.
The First and Third Branches were of legitimate descent, while the Second and Fourth Branches were of concubine descent.
As soon as Yin Weiyue finished speaking, Mrs. Feng began to sob softly in a low voice. She thought back to those past days—everyone said the Marquis Manor was glamorous, yet no one knew she had endured it all while swallowing bitter waters.
She had married into the family two years before the former Old Master passed away; back then, life in the Marquis Manor was extremely difficult. All clan members within five generations of the former Old Master had not divided the estate, totaling over six hundred family members alone, not counting the servants of each branch. So many mouths all depended on the former Old Master’s title and a few fields and shops to be fed; every time monthly allowance silver was distributed, she was so anxious her mouth broke out in blisters.
The former Old Master finally made up his mind to divide the family estate, but there was no silver in the manor, and he couldn’t bear to let the clan members be divided out to starve and freeze, so he could only struggle to hold on. At that time, among the former Old Master’s four sons, only Huo Anjiang was married, and he was the eldest legitimate son, so this heavy burden ultimately fell on his shoulders.
After Huo Anjiang inherited the peerage, in order to hold up the Marquis Manor, he fought on the battlefield for years, fighting desperately. Mrs. Feng felt distressed watching him and wanted to bring out her dowry to supplement her husband’s family, but Huo Anjiang refused to accept it no matter what. He used his own life to exchange for the entire family’s prosperity and wealth, yet who could have known that now they would be framed and thrown into the imperial prison?
The Old Lady patted her eldest daughter-in-law’s hand: “All these years, you’ve suffered.”
Yin Weiyue sighed and continued: “Third Aunt, if you had been willing to agree to divide the family estate back then, you wouldn’t have to be put under house arrest together with the First Branch today. This was all your own choice, so in the future, stop saying that our First Branch caused you to lose your fortune! Stop acting like a hypocrite, making a laughingstock of yourselves in front of the younger generation.”
It could be said that Yin Weiyue’s words showed no mercy at all. Of course, she wasn’t finished yet—next was the main point.
“When the house was searched back then, Eunuch Wang, a close attendant of the Emperor, secretly maneuvered to leave a large amount of property for the Third Branch, and instructed you to share half with the First Branch. We already know about this matter. After Third Aunt goes back, send over the half of the property that belongs to the First Branch. I’m done speaking—you may go back and apply your medicine now.”
At this point, Mrs. Chen finally couldn’t hold it in any longer.
“Fine, the fox tail has finally been revealed! After making such a grand scene, it turns out your First Branch did all this just to snatch money! Let me tell you, Eunuch Wang left no property for our Third Branch at all! Wanting to snatch our life-saving money—no way!”
Yin Weiyue naturally knew Mrs. Chen wouldn’t spit it out so easily. “Whether Eunuch Wang left it or not, we’ll know once we take a turn around Third Aunt’s quarters. If there really is none, consider it my nonsense, and this matter ends here.”
“On what grounds should you be allowed to look? Even if there is, that’s the property of our Third Branch! Inside is my dowry—on what grounds should it be given to your First Branch?”
Yin Weiyue laughed.
“Third Aunt, it’s fine if you use these words to deceive your children and those two concubines, but don’t play the wolf in sheep’s clothing in front of the Old Lady and my mother-in-law! How do you still have the nerve to mention your dowry? Do you have no idea how you married in?
You stole the marriage of your host family’s legitimate cousin, making the Chen family hate you to the bone from top to bottom! When you married out, only that wedding dress and a set of gold-plated silver head ornaments were prepared by your concubine mother. You didn’t even have a single dowry trunk—it was our Old Lady who thought it looked bad and sent sixteen loads of betrothal gifts extra to supplement your dowry. How do you have the nerve to open your mouth about this now?
When the former Old Master passed away, Second Uncle, Third Uncle, and Fourth Uncle were not married yet. Whose marriage wasn’t arranged with my father-in-law’s money? My father-in-law went to the battlefield to kill enemies before reaching the age of twenty, while Third Uncle hasn’t worked a single proper job his whole life! A man almost fifty years old—he probably hasn’t earned a single copper coin!
Look at your Third Branch, top to bottom, inside and out—which part wasn’t furnished with the First Branch’s money? You harbor resentment toward the First Branch for making you live under house arrest, but without the First Branch, could you have lived such a rich and secure life for over twenty years?
Let’s not even mention the other two concubine branches of leeches—even if they’re full of wicked ideas, there is ultimately a difference between legitimate and concubine descent. But your Third Branch is different; relying on Third Uncle being the Old Lady’s legitimate son, not only do you harbor dark thoughts in private, but you also act arrogant every day, pushing taking free rides to the absolute extreme!
Ever since Third Aunt married into the Huo family, she would run to the Old Lady and my mother-in-law from time to time to complain, blaming that Third Uncle broke his arm while playing with my father-in-law in his childhood, which prevented him from practicing martial arts to achieve military merit.
I just find it baffling: why did Third Uncle’s arm not hurt when doing other things, but only hurt when practicing martial arts? Besides, even if he truly couldn’t become a military officer, a real man should harbor grand ambitions—if he couldn’t succeed in martial arts, he could study literature. Could it be that Third Uncle’s arm couldn’t even hold a writing brush?
Third Aunt blamed all of Third Uncle’s frustration on my father-in-law. Out of brotherly affection, and not wanting to make things difficult for the Old Lady, father-in-law showed exceptional indulgence toward the Third Branch.”
Yin Weiyue took a breath and continued without pausing:
“For so many years, there’s no need to mention that Third Uncle could freely draw from the public accounts. Every master in your Third Branch receives fifty taels of monthly allowance silver, but what about the other branches?
Although Second Uncle and Fourth Uncle are of the same generation as Third Uncle, they still have to rely on fifty taels of monthly silver to get by every month, without the right to privately draw from the public accounts. Including the First Branch, legitimate male offspring below receive thirty taels, concubine male offspring twenty taels, legitimate female members ten taels, and concubine female members five taels.
Being of the same generation of legitimate grandchildren, Huo Kai and her three elder sisters can each receive fifty taels of monthly allowance silver every month, but my Seventh Young Master can only receive thirty taels every month, and Fourth Sister receives even less! When monthly allowances were distributed, why didn’t Third Aunt run to the Old Lady to complain about unfairness?”
“Then again, without my father-in-law, the Marquis of Xingwu, how could Huo Kai have entered the Imperial Academy relying on a useless coward like Third Uncle and a white-eyed wolf father of Third Aunt who is the Minister of Justice? Which place did you ever spend your own silver to arrange things for?
Third Aunt married into the Marquis Manor and enjoyed over twenty years of prosperity and wealth. Now, after spending less than two years of hard life, you can’t endure it anymore! Furthermore, where are you suffering? Everyone is fed plump and sturdy, living more comfortably than pigs in a pigpen, and yet you still have the nerve to throw a tantrum?”
Yin Weiyue scolded the Third Branch fiercely with saliva flying everywhere, causing several women of the First Branch to have emotional tears in their eyes. Especially Mrs. Feng—today, someone finally broke down, smashed apart, and explained all her grievances from over the years clearly!
Mrs. Chen naturally looked unconvinced again, but Huo Kai was left full of shame, while Zhang Yulin continued to lower her eyes and keep her composure.
Yin Weiyue continued: “Prominent families naturally share honor and disgrace as one body! When silver was given to you to divide the family estate back then, you didn’t want to divide, insisting on sticking close. After enjoying twenty-some years of good life, now that the Marquis Manor has encountered a slight mishap, you make such a scene.
Don’t think I don’t know what calculations your Third Branch is making! You want to use blood relation and familial affection to bind the Old Lady and bind the First Branch, so that the Old Lady and my mother-in-law will feel overwhelmed with guilt, so that they will beg the guards outside to submit a memorial to the Emperor for you to divide the family estate, so that you can cast aside the First Branch and move out entirely!”
Hearing this, Huo Kai was shocked.
“Grandmother, we would never dare to harbor such outrageous thoughts!” He hastily knelt down again. Zhang Yulin was speechless—why was he kneeling again?—and had no choice but to reluctantly follow and kneel down once more.