The beauty of the Hou family and the king's plan

Xue Sheng sat down on the rocking chair with his left foot resting on his right, looking nonchalant.

"The contract has not yet been approved by the royal family, so of course the deal has not been completed yet."

"I don't want to argue with you. I'll give you two choices. Pay the money now, or the Princess's Mansion will sue the Ning'an Marquis' Mansion for fraud."

"Minister Shen, you can choose for yourself."

Mr. Shen didn't know that the Princess's Mansion knew about Zhuangzi's secret yesterday, and didn't arrange for anyone to report it.

This time, they were really panicking. But the Marquisate could not afford thirty thousand taels today.

The Marquis' Mansion could not bear the charge of fraud. They could only play it safe with Xue Sheng, hoping that he would give them some time.

Although Xue Sheng is a scoundrel, he is also very smart.

Then he said, "How about this, I'll give Madam Shufei some face and pay her back the day after tomorrow?"

Without waiting for Master Shen to answer, Xue Sheng stretched out his tone again: "However, the day after tomorrow it will not be thirty thousand taels, but forty thousand taels. How about it?"

Master Shen heaved a sigh of relief after hearing the previous sentence, and murmured, "Good day after tomorrow, good day after tomorrow."

Then he realized that it was 40,000 taels and screamed, "What! Why don't you just go and rob it!"

Xue Sheng did not get angry, he raised his eyebrows and asked: "What about today?"

Master Shen was like a deflated ball again: "Forty thousand taels is forty thousand taels. The banknote will be sent to the Princess's residence the day after tomorrow."

He didn't care whether he could come up with the money the next day, he just wanted to get rid of this plague god.

Xue Sheng stood up without saying anything more and lifted his robe: "Okay, wait for good news."

Then he hummed a little tune and left.

Shen Baozhao didn't want to hide it, so he just told the old lady, "Grandma, I'm already 15 years old.

I think it would be better for us to manage our second wife’s property ourselves.”

"My uncle and aunt have worked hard for the past ten years. One of them worked diligently to cook the books, while the other kept all the money for herself."

The old lady knew that she had already disappointed her second son today, but the mansion was really empty. Although the eldest house had only some dead things left in Nanhua's dowry.

But those valuable calligraphy and paintings, gold and silver jewelry can still be sold for a lot of silver.

Add to that the 40,000 taels of debt that had just been owed, and if the finances were returned to the second house, the Marquis’ Mansion would really have to start pawning ancestral property.

Before the old lady could say anything, the eldest master immediately changed his previous timid attitude in front of Xue Sheng.

He began to teach Bao Zhao a lesson: "Fourth niece, you also know that the Marquis's Mansion is now heavily in debt. How can you have the nerve to ask for money from the Marquis's Mansion?"

Shen Baozhao sneered: "The debt of the Marquis' Mansion is not owed by our Second Branch. Why should we pay it back?"

"Why? Because the Marquis's Mansion has not been divided yet, and the Second Branch is also a part of the Marquis' Mansion. Your lives all belong to the Marquis' Mansion, and it's just some money, what can't you use?"

The master doesn't mind expressing his true thoughts.

"Okay, that's enough," the old lady scolded.

He looked at the Second Master and Bao Zhao with a kind face and said, "Second Master, we are a family, and as a family we must overcome difficulties together.

Just think of it as helping your elder brother and pawning the remaining dowry of the county lady to pay off the debt."

"Madam, you..." Master Shen Er didn't expect that this family was full of jackals and tigers.

Seeing that the other party was determined not to give in, Shen Baozhao knew that there would be no agreement today, so he asked meaningfully, "Madam, are you sure you really want to do this?"

The old lady said nothing, and it was obvious that there was no room for negotiation on the matter.

The eldest master was obviously determined to blatantly seize the property of the second wife. He expected that the second wife would have no power to fight back.

"Fourth niece, if you have nothing to do, just embroider and do some housework at home. The Marquis's Mansion will not treat you badly when you get married."

The second master wanted to say something, but Shen Baozhao tugged at his robe. She smiled indifferently: "That's good. Father, let's go."

She has already given the Marquis's Mansion one last chance. In that case, don't blame her for being ruthless.

Shen Baozhao thought about what he was about to do and was determined to succeed!

At the residence of Hanlin Mei, not far from the Ning'an Marquis Mansion on Chang'an Street, an old man and a young man were playing chess.

The young man was Mei Qianhe, the junior official of the Ministry of Revenue who had just received the account books from the Ning'an Marquis' Mansion.

The courtyard is quiet and peaceful, with lush vegetation. Under the camphor tree, Mei Hanlin has white hair and eyebrows, and looks like an immortal.

There was silence nearby, waiting for Mei Qianhe's move to land.

Mei Hanlin casually threw the white piece into the chess pot and said, "No more, no more."

"You are not Qianhe, you must be Yuanhuai." Mei Hanlin said in a firm tone.

Xiao Yuanhuai took off the disguise on his face, revealing his true appearance. If Mei Qianhe was handsome, then Xiao Yuanhuai looked like a demon.

Since he was a child, whenever it was inconvenient for him to appear as a prince, he would disguise himself as Mei Qianhe.

The real Mei Qianhe also stepped out: "Grandfather, how did you find Yuan Huai?"

"He has become so good at disguise lately that he can almost look real. I can't even tell the difference myself."

Mei Hanlin sneered: "Of course I can tell the difference. How can a lousy chess player like you beat me?"

Mei Qianhe was not convinced: "Grandfather, how can you say that to me? I have been unbeatable in the Ministry of Revenue. It's not that I'm too bad, it's that your chess skills are really superb."

Mei Hanlin ignored Mei Qianhe and continued to talk to Xiao Yuanhuai: "Have you set your sights on Ning'an Marquis Mansion recently?"

Xiao Yuanhuai nodded: "The Ning'an Marquis's Mansion will soon have another noble person."

"Shufei is the only imperial concubine in the palace who has two sons, and the Fourth Prince has been very popular in the court in the past two years. The Crown Prince is almost outshined."

"Too much limelight is not good for us. Ning'an Marquis' Mansion is the most powerful supporter behind Concubine Shu. I am just causing them some minor troubles."

Mei Hanlin was just asking casually and didn't care. Xiao Yuanhuai always handled these things very well.

"Yuan Huai, your mother died young, and there is no one in the palace to help you find a wife. Grandfather wants to ask, what kind of girl do you like?"

"Royal children of your age all have wives and children. You are a thorn in the side of His Majesty.

He would like you to have no children or grandchildren, and he will never grant you a marriage."

"If you have a girl you like, tell grandpa and he will write a letter for you."

Mei Hanlin himself may not be very important, but he has thousands and thousands of scholars behind him.

If His Majesty does not want to be ridiculed by scholars all over the world, he will definitely approve it. So Mei Hanlin is not worried about this.

Mei Hanlin kept talking about Xiao Yuanhuai getting married at home, and Mei Qianhe's ears were covered with calluses. So when it was brought up again today, Mei Qianhe just took it as a good show.

Who would have thought that today Xiao Yuanhuai's face would actually blush: "It's not the right time yet, let's wait a little longer."

"Hey, cousin, brother Huai, what do you mean? Do you have a girl you like?" Mei Qianhe was extremely gossipy.

Xiao Yuanhuai stood up and left. He followed behind him and kept chattering: "Who is that? Who is the girl? Take my cousin with me to see her."

Xiao Yuanhuai turned around and Mei Qianhe bumped into him: "Cousin, I advise you not to be too curious. Curiosity kills the cat."

Mei Qianhe looked at Xiao Yuanhuai's evil expression and her heart almost stopped beating.

He has not forgotten how he was tricked into climbing a tree when he was three, into going down to a pond when he was four, and into stealing his grandfather's inkstone when he was five...

Xiao Yuanhuai's deeds in his limited life are simply too numerous to mention!