Song Kaishan barely managed to maintain a smile as he welcomed Wen Shaoqing and the delegation from the Directorate of Supervision into the mansion.
Once the gates of Zhongyong Hou Mansion closed, the onlookers outside immediately erupted into lively discussion.
"So Eldest Miss Song donated her dowry! And it was specifically for the soldiers in Beidi!"
"It's worth a hundred thousand taels of silver! A hundred thousand! How much is that? Enough for families like ours to live comfortably for several lifetimes!
And Eldest Miss Song just donated it like that?"
"This… judging by Zhongyong Hou's expression earlier, it seemed he wasn't aware of this matter!"
"Whether he knew or not doesn't matter.
That female Shaoqing from the Directorate of Supervision just said that Eldest Miss Song donated the dowry her mother left her, not the Song family's own property.
As long as Eldest Miss Song herself is willing, that's all that matters."
"Ah, I think there must be a reason behind this. Otherwise, why would Eldest Miss Song donate her dowry for no reason?
What will she do when she gets married without a dowry? Expect the current Madame Zhongyong Hou to prepare one for her?"
"Maybe Eldest Miss Song isn't even thinking about marriage!
What if she's so heartbroken that she plans to shave her head and become a nun in the future!"
Everyone sighed in unison.
Indeed, who didn't know about Eldest Miss Song's situation? Even if she married, how much dowry could she actually take with her?
Better to donate it than let others benefit from it.
Now that she has the imperial plaque bestowed by the royal family, her life might be slightly easier…
…
Song Kaishan led Wen Shaoqing and the others into the mansion. After maids served tea, he cautiously began to speak.
"Shaoqing Wen, there must be some misunderstanding here!
We had no idea she donated her dowry!"
Wen Shaoqing chuckled softly.
"Our superior asked, and Eldest Miss Song said that the military situation in Beidi is far more important than personal matters.
If foreign tribes invade Dayu, it would be a catastrophe for the people.
Compared to that, what does a little dowry matter? If the soldiers in Beidi win battles with provisions bought using the silver from Eldest Miss Song's dowry,
then she would truly be a person of great righteousness!"
"But… we were unaware of this!" Madame Ding interjected anxiously.
The smile on Wen Shaoqing's face faded slightly.
"But Eldest Miss Song said this dowry was specifically left to her by her birth mother!
According to Dayu's laws, whatever a deceased mother leaves to her child—whether property or dowry—belongs solely to the child. Others have no right to dispose of it.
Even you, Houye, have no authority to handle the dowry left to Eldest Miss Song by the original Madame Zhongyong Hou," Wen Shaoqing stated calmly.
Song Kaishan and Madame Ding fell silent.
"What? Does Zhongyong Hou have any objections to Eldest Miss Song's righteous act?
If so, that would be troublesome.
After all, His Majesty has already bestowed the plaque. Surely you don't expect our superior to submit another memorial saying it was all a misunderstanding
and that Zhongyong Hou disapproves of Eldest Miss Song donating her dowry!
If that's the case… then we'll have no choice but to take the plaque back!" Wen Shaoqing continued, looking calmly at Song Kaishan and Madame Ding.
Song Kaishan's face paled, and he quickly waved his hands in protest.
"Nothing of the sort, nothing of the sort! Since it was my daughter's charitable act, and she donated her own dowry, we certainly have nothing more to say about it."
Madame Ding's face also changed drastically; she now felt as disgusted as if she had swallowed a fly.
To have the Directorate of Supervision carry the plaque back…
Hah, if they really let the Directorate of Supervision take the plaque back, Zhongyong Hou Mansion would become the biggest joke in the capital tonight.
Moreover, was the Emperor's plaque something to be bestowed or rejected at will?
If they refused to acknowledge it now, it would be a slap in the Emperor's face—like an old man drinking arsenic, courting death.
By now, Song Kaishan's mind had already raced through countless thoughts.
He was now backed into a corner; no matter how unwilling he was, that dowry had to be donated!
Song Kaishan also realized that the people from the Directorate of Supervision were indeed a bunch of cunning foxes.
They had come beating gongs and drums to deliver the plaque, putting Zhongyong Hou Mansion on the spot. As for what would happen next…
"Wen Shaoqing, since the dowry was donated by my daughter Song Zhimian, shouldn't we call her over to ask about it?
After all, that girl donated her own dowry," Song Kaishan suddenly said.
Wen Shaoqing nodded.
"That makes sense. After all, Eldest Miss Song donated her own dowry, and the Emperor's plaque was bestowed upon Eldest Miss Song.
The plaque should rightfully be received by Eldest Miss Song."
…
Soon, Song Zhimian was invited over.
Wen Shaoqing looked at Song Zhimian, who was dressed plainly and wore almost no valuable jewelry in her hair, and couldn't help but marvel inwardly.
Even so, Eldest Miss Song remained stunningly beautiful, with an exceptional grace.
Song Zhimian meticulously first bowed to Song Kaishan and Madame Ding, then respectfully curtsied to Wen Shaoqing.
Song Kaishan looked at Song Zhimian, doing his best to conceal the disgust in his eyes.
"Mian'er, His Majesty has bestowed a plaque upon you to commend you for donating your dowry.
This matter… why didn't you mention it to your father when you returned?" Song Kaishan's tone carried a hint of reproach.
Song Zhimian quickly put on a look of fear and trepidation.
"But… that day when I went to pay my respects to Mother, she said herself that my things were my own to decide.
If I wanted to donate, I could donate! Did I do something wrong?" Song Zhimian hurriedly asked.
Beside them, Madame Ding, who was barely suppressing her anger, nearly spat out blood.
How could she have known that going out meant donating her dowry!
If she had known… she would have found a way to keep that wretched girl from even leaving the courtyard…
After a long moment, Madame Ding forced a smile and said,
"Mian'er has grown up and has her own ideas; it's only natural that we elders wouldn't know."
Upon hearing this, Song Zhimian immediately looked at Madame Ding.
"Does Mother mean that what I did was wrong?
But didn't Father always teach us to prioritize Dayu and consider the bigger picture?
From a public perspective, the safety of Beidi is tied to the safety of Dayu. As citizens of Dayu, isn't it our duty to contribute what little we can?
The soldiers in Beidi fight bravely to protect us, don't they?
For this reason alone, what does a mere dowry matter? Isn't it worth donating to the soldiers in Beidi?
Father has also been to Beidi and once served there. Surely, Father would hope that more people would think of the soldiers in Beidi!"
From a personal standpoint, my third uncle's family also lost their lives in Beidi.
Third Uncle is my own paternal uncle, and Third Aunt is my own maternal aunt—both share close blood ties with me. Isn't it only right that I donate some of my dowry to express my grief?" Song Zhimian's voice trembled slightly.
Madame Ding opened her mouth but could not utter a word.
Song Kaishan also lowered his gaze, avoiding Song Zhimian's eyes.
Wen Shaoqing observed Song Kaishan's shifting expressions and inwardly sneered.
In the entire marquis household, only Eldest Miss Song seemed to have a clear head…
"In that case! Then please, Marquis, arrange for your people to hand over the dowry donated by Eldest Miss Song to our personnel!" Wen Shaoqing suddenly declared.
Only then did Song Kaishan nod.
He had already made up his mind—things had reached this point, and he could only swallow this bitter pill.
Trading a dowry worth a hundred thousand taels for an imperially bestowed plaque was somewhat of a loss, but there were still some benefits.
At least in front of the prince… he could still manage to give an account.
"Very well! Since this is Mian'er's heartfelt intention, donating it to the soldiers of Beidi also represents our marquis household's goodwill.
Attendants, bring out all of Mian'er's dowry from the storeroom!
Madame, please oversee this personally to ensure nothing is damaged or mishandled." Song Kaishan shot a meaningful glance at Madame Ding beside him.
Madame Ding immediately understood what Song Kaishan meant.
Replace some of the valuable items with worthless ones to make up the numbers.
She had seen the items left behind by Madame Gu before—they were worth far more than a hundred thousand taels.
Just the jade ornaments and decorative pieces alone were worth seventy to eighty thousand taels…
But just as Madame Ding rose to her feet, Wen Shaoqing produced a ledger from his sleeve.
"Hold on! Since Madame Song is going to inventory Eldest Miss Song's dowry, let my people accompany her!
Here is the dowry list left by Eldest Miss Song's mother, which our office obtained from the Shuntian Prefecture Government Office.
At the time, the Shuntian Prefecture specially dispatched personnel to verify each item one by one.
This document bears the official seal of the Shuntian Prefecture, Madame Gu's personal seal, and was witnessed by an elderly censor from the Censorate.
Please, Madame Song, conduct the inventory according to this list.
Do not, out of concern for the soldiers of Beidi, mistakenly include other treasures from the household.
Of course, if the marquis household wishes to make additional donations, our Directorate of Supervision would not mind more."
As he spoke, Wen Shaoqing handed the ledger to a Shaoshi beside him.
"Fan Shaoshi, you have served in the Xingshangsi and are far more knowledgeable about such artifacts than the rest of us.
Please accompany Madame Song on this task!"
Fan Shaoshi, also a woman, promptly took the ledger.
"Madame Song, please!" Fan Shaoshi smiled amiably at Madame Ding.
Even in the heat of June, Madame Ding broke into a cold sweat.
The government office actually had a publicly registered dowry list…
How was she supposed to assemble such a substantial dowry now…