Dongmai and Mama Lin brought the account books to Shangguan Jin for reconciliation.
As soon as Dongmai entered the room, she cheerfully pulled a ruby hairpin and a pearl flower from her sleeve.
“Did you snatch these?” Shangguan Jin asked with a smile.
Dongmai shook her head.
“How could I? They fell off by themselves, but I kicked them into a corner with my foot. Hehe, Miss, look at how vibrant the color of these rubies is! I’ve decided—I’ll pry these two gems out and make a new pair of shoes for the Eldest Miss, then set these stones on the shoes. As for the remaining gold and pearls, I’ll exchange them for silver and send the money to the Charity Hall.”
Shangguan Jin’s eyes twitched at the thought.
The gems worn on the head of the Marchioness of Wuding would end up on Shen Qingyao’s feet…
As Dongmai played with the hairpin and pearl flower, she explained her plan to Shangguan Jin.
When Shangguan Jin heard the words “Charity Hall,” it took her a moment to recall what it was.
Ah, that was an estate on the outskirts of the capital, housing the orphaned children of soldiers who had fallen in battle. There were both boys and girls, and they had always been cared for by the Dingguo Gongfu and the Changsheng Houfu. Every year, the Dingguo Gongfu allocated a sum of silver to them.
Dongmai was particularly devoted to this Charity Hall. Out of her monthly allowance of four taels of silver, she would send at least three taels to the Charity Hall. She had once told Shangguan Jin that seeing those children reminded her of herself, and she always felt she had to do something. So, Shangguan Jin would occasionally slip Dongmai a small pouch, fearing the girl might not even have money to buy snacks from Taoyuan Xuan.
“Gems set on shoes can easily fall off if you’re not careful. What a pity it would be if they were lost!” Shangguan Jin advised.
“It’s not a pity. After all, they were acquired by chance,” Dongmai replied without a hint of embarrassment.
Shangguan Jin sighed and gently tapped Dongmai.
“I just told those ladies that we should practice frugality, and now you want to set expensive gems on Sister Yao’s shoes. What will people think of me?”
Only then did Dongmai realize her mistake.
Yes, if she did that, wouldn’t it be a slap in the face to her own mistress?
“Miss, I’m sorry. I didn’t think that far ahead!” Dongmai said with a look of remorse.
Shangguan Jin smiled and waved her hand.
“It’s fine. Just remember for the future. Sell those two gems along with the rest. They weren’t originally from the Dingguo Gongfu anyway—you found them on the roadside. Since that’s the case, exchange them all for silver and send the money to the Charity Hall.”
Mama Lin, standing nearby, smiled and nodded.
“That’s right. Those two pieces of jewelry can fetch quite a bit of silver, enough to cover half a year’s expenses for the Charity Hall. But, Dongmai, you still need to be more careful in the future. The mistress has been married into the Dingguo Gongfu for so many years now, and she’s long asked you to address her as ‘Madam,’ but you still refuse to change. Look, you slipped up again today!” Mama Lin reminded her with a smile.
Dongmai shook her head stubbornly.
“I won’t change it. I just won’t. ‘Madam’ is for everyone else, but ‘Miss’ is mine alone. I won’t change it.”
Seeing Dongmai’s stubbornness, Shangguan Jin and Mama Lin both smiled and shook their heads.
“Alright, if you won’t change it, then don’t. It’s just a form of address. Dongmai has been with me for so many years—she can call me whatever she likes.”
Dongmai shot a triumphant glance at Mama Lin, her face beaming with pride.
See, Miss still cares for me the most!
Shangguan Jin remained silent, casually flipping through the account books the two had brought.
Dongmai, meanwhile, diligently poured a cup of tea for Shangguan Jin.
“Miss, don’t you think that Marchioness of Wuding is a fool? She can’t even swap gifts properly. If it were me, I’d definitely swap them with ones that look similar! That way, it’d be easier to get away with it,” Dongmai continued to chatter.
Shangguan Jin kept her eyes on the account book and casually remarked, “Exactly! A complete and utter dumbass!”
Mama Lin, Dongmai…
“Miss, what does ‘dumbass’ mean? Is it the same as ‘fool’?” Dongmai asked cautiously.
Shangguan Jin…
Damn, I got a little carried away. My mouth moved faster than my brain, blurting out whatever came to mind!
“More or less, but it’s even worse than a fool. It’s… the kind of stupidity that drives people mad. Oh, and they don’t even realize they’re stupid, constantly flaunting themselves in front of others as if afraid people won’t notice how foolish they are,” Shangguan Jin explained with effort.
Mama Lin nodded thoughtfully.
That’s quite fitting. Isn’t that exactly how the Marchioness of Wuding behaves?
Dongmai looked at Shangguan Jin with even more admiration.
Oh, so it means being utterly clueless about one’s own stupidity!
Her young miss truly lived up to being the Eldest Miss of the Shangguan Family, having studied extensively since childhood. These words must have come from books.
Ah, she herself was no good at such refined insults. All she knew was rolling up her sleeves and shouting louder than others…
“Miss, you’re truly amazing!” Dongmai couldn’t help but add.
Shangguan Jin smiled awkwardly and quickly picked up the gift ledger beside her, asking Dongmai, “The categorization of gifts this time is quite good. Who taught you?”
Dongmai leaned over to look and chuckled. “Miss, this is the Eldest Miss’s handwriting. How did you not recognize it? The Eldest Miss reviewed all the gifts and recorded them in the ledger. She even made a separate booklet detailing which family’s gift was what and where it was placed. It’s much better than the account books we used to keep. How could I possibly write such beautiful characters? All of this was written by the Eldest Miss. Miss, her handwriting is getting more and more beautiful—almost as good as yours!”
Shangguan Jin let out an “oh” and continued examining the gift ledger.
Not bad. As the Eldest Miss of the Guogongfu, her handwriting was indeed exquisite.
What surprised Shangguan Jin even more was that Shen Qingyao had clearly categorized all these gifts. If anyone needed to check later, it would be clear at a glance.
Shangguan Jin nodded repeatedly.
This eldest daughter seemed to be the quietly talented type.
No, wait—she was also quite lovely in appearance.
“And this one, this is the account book organized by the Eldest Young Master. All the expenses for the Old Madam’s birthday banquet are recorded here. The Eldest Young Master checked these accounts several times, and later, the estate’s accountants also verified them, saying his calculations were correct.”
As she spoke, Dongmai handed another account book to Shangguan Jin.
Looking at the account book written in a different style of handwriting, Shangguan Jin fell silent for a moment.
“How is Sister Yao’s mood today?” Shangguan Jin asked.
“Hard to tell. The Eldest Miss was still reading and practicing calligraphy with the little miss, and she even painted a picture for her,” Mama Lin quickly replied.
Shangguan Jin nodded and handed the account books beside her to Dongmai.
“The account books can be reviewed anytime.”
“Mama Lin, go and call Yao Jie’er here, just her alone,” Shangguan Jin said.
Watching Mama Lin leave, Dongmai glanced at Shangguan Jin once more.
“Miss, is it still because of the matter with Wudinghoufu?”
Shangguan Jin took a sip of tea and nodded.
Old Madam’s birthday banquet had turned into such a spectacle that likely the entire Jingcheng now knew that Dingguo Gongfu and Wudinghoufu had torn off all pretense of cordiality.
And Shen Qingyao, who was betrothed to Wudinghoufu, was probably the most distressed one in this whole affair.
As for what to do next, Shangguan Jin first needed to understand Shen Qingyao’s thoughts.