Chapter 179 Denial of Accounts

Seeing how heartbroken Qiao was but dared not say a word, Ye Jiayao wanted to laugh.

Mrs. Qiao deliberately said that the item was worth a lot of money, just wanting Mrs. Xia You to pay for it. But Mrs. Xia You did this, and Mrs. Qiao had to pay for it.

"Madam, madam, the third master and his family are here." Lin Kun's family came in to report.

Xia Youshi wanted to stand up but sat back down again and asked calmly, "Have you reported this to the master?"

"We have sent people to call the master and the prince." Lin Kunjia replied.

Xia Youshi then slowly stood up and said, "All of you follow me to greet him."

Ye Jiayao and Qiao followed Xia You out of the second gate to greet them.

Finally met my third uncle and his family.

Third Uncle looks gentle and refined. If someone hadn't introduced him, it would be really hard to imagine that Third Uncle and the old marquis are brothers, or even relatives. I guess one looks like the father and the other looks like the mother.

Third Aunt was plump and round, and could be described as smooth and plump. She had a very nice smile, which made Xia Youshi, who had a dull expression, look more like someone who was difficult to deal with.

Chunwen is the eldest son, and he has two brothers, one big and one small. The older one is called Chunzheng and the younger one is called Chunsi. He also has three young ladies, Xia Jinlian, Xia Yulian, and Xia Yinlian.

Damn, three lotus flowers! Gold, jade and silver, are they less valuable than one another?
I heard that my third uncle was also a Jinshi, so why didn’t he choose a name with more connotations?

Mrs. Qiao whispered in Ye Jiayao's ear: "Chunwen, Yulian and Chunsi are the third aunt's children, and the rest are illegitimate children."

Ye Jiayao suddenly realized that she had thought that her third aunt became so plump because she had given birth to many children!

"Third brother and sister-in-law, thank you for your hard work on the journey." Xia Youshi really didn't like this family, but she still had to be polite. She forced a faint smile and greeted them.

Third aunt Xia Zhou smiled and her eyes narrowed into slits.

"Oh, we received the wedding invitation and rushed to get here, fearing we would miss Chunfeng's wedding. It was a bit hard, but at least we made it in time, hahahaha..."

"Sister-in-law, I haven't seen you for many years. You are still as dignified and elegant as before, unlike me, who has changed."

"Hey, which one of these two is Chunyu's wife?" Xia Zhou was eloquent and had complete control over the discourse.

Ye Jiayao took a step forward and knelt down to salute: "Jinxuan greets Third Uncle and Third Aunt."

"Oh, he's so handsome, Chunyu is so lucky! If our Chunwen can find me a pretty wife like this one someday, I will wake up laughing in my dreams." Xia Zhou was very outgoing and patted Ye Jiayao's hand.

Ye Jiayao was very embarrassed and felt very awkward.

Mrs. Qiao was unhappy. After all, she was the eldest daughter-in-law in the marquis's mansion, but her third aunt completely ignored her.

"Who is your father? It's not written on the wedding invitation, so you don't even know whose daughter she is. I'll give you a gift later." Zhou said.

Although Ye Jiayao didn't want to admit that she was the daughter of the Ye family, it was a fact, so she forced a smile and said, "My father is Ye Binghuai, the co-governor of Yangzhou."

Zhou's smile froze, the enthusiasm in her eyes obviously cooled, and she let go of her hand, laughing: "So you are Ye Tongzhi's daughter!"

It's obvious that he doesn't like it.

Mrs. Qiao also stepped forward and bowed: "Mingxiu greets Third Uncle and Third Aunt."

Zhou hesitated and asked, "Are you Chunli's daughter-in-law?"

"That's right." Qiao smiled gently.

Xia Youshi said, "Her family is from the Qiao family in Jiangnan."

Zhou's enthusiasm that had cooled down immediately rose again, and she was pleasantly surprised: "But the Qiao family that is famous for embroidery? The Qiao family that is in charge of weaving in Jiangnan?"

Qiao knelt again and saluted: "That's right."

"Oh, this is incredible. I didn't expect Chunli to be so lucky to marry the daughter of the Qiao family." Zhou took Qiao's hand again and patted it.

Although the Jiangnan Weaving Master was not of high rank, he was indeed a very good official. Moreover, the embroidery of the Qiao family was the best in the dynasty, and a piece of silk handkerchief was worth a lot of money. Zhou, who loved to take advantage of small opportunities, naturally became warm to the Qiao family.

Ye Jiayao felt relieved. No matter whether you look down on her or not, she didn't have any good feelings towards her third uncle's family.

Then the children from Uncle San's family came forward one by one to pay their respects.

Soon, the old marquis, Xia Chunyu and Chunli all came back. Xia Youshi took the women to the inner courtyard to rest while the men continued to chat.

"The house has been arranged. You can live in the marquis's mansion first and move into the new house after Chunfeng's wedding?" Xia Youshi said after everyone was seated.

Zhou was stunned: "New house?"

Ye Jiayao smiled and said, "Aunt San's house has been renovated. Mother and Chunyu put a lot of thought into it. Isn't it a new house?"

Zhou chuckled and said, "That's right, I didn't expect it to be fixed so quickly, I thought it would take a while!"

"Knowing that you were coming back, I asked the craftsmen to work day and night." Xia Youshi said.

"Ah? Working day and night, how can the work be done exquisitely?" Zhou said.

Xia Youshi was almost vomiting blood in anger. She forced herself to maintain a smile and said, "It was all renovated according to your Chunwen's request. It cost 70,000 to 80,000 taels. Chunwen said that we should pay for it first and you can pay it back later. The walls have been repainted, the doors, windows and pillars have been repainted, and the furniture has been made brand new. We hired the best craftsmen. Whether the work is exquisite or not, you will know it when you go to see it."

Zhou smiled and said, "Thank you for your hard work, sister-in-law." Then she gritted her teeth and said, "Chunwen is too picky. Did I ever say that you should go to such great lengths to renovate it? Really, I have caused you so much trouble. I will definitely teach him a lesson later."

Ye Jiayao was dumbfounded. No wonder Xia Youshi disliked this family so much. It was really weird. The money was spent and the work was done, but they refused to acknowledge it and put all the responsibility on their own son. Did Xia Youshi want Chunwen to collect the debt?
Xia Youshi resisted the urge to spit in her face. She had known for a long time that Zhou would not give her the money. She did not expect that Zhou's face had become so thick after all these years.

Fortunately, the second son's wife came up with that trick, and it only cost more than 18,000 taels of silver in total, otherwise she would have vomited blood on the spot.

"Oh, now that you mention it, I can't wait to see the house. Sister-in-law, why don't we go and see the house first! Chunsi hasn't seen the ancestral home yet!" Zhou said with a smile.

Xia Youshi said, "Someone will come from the palace soon, why not let Chunyu and Jinxuan go with you to take a look."

Xia Youshi knew Zhou's personality very well. No matter how well the house was built, Zhou would find faults and take the opportunity to buy something. If she refused in person, the Marquis would be unhappy with her again. She had been observing Jinxuan recently. This child was a person with her own ideas and was smart. It would be best to let Jinxuan handle it.

"Aunt San, I'll go with you too. I heard that the house is very beautiful. I haven't seen it yet!" Qiao volunteered.

Xia Youshi is unhappy. Why are you joining in the fun?
He ordered Madam Sun: "Send someone to tell the Marquis to change his clothes. Someone will come from the palace later, so don't be negligent."

Xia Youshi had to find a way to keep the Marquis here. If the Marquis followed them, he would agree to whatever they asked for.

So Chunyu, Ye Jiayao and others accompanied their uncle's family to the house next door.

Chunyu was mainly in charge of the renovation of the house, and this was Ye Jiayao's first visit.

Although the house is not as grand as a marquis's mansion, it is not small either. It also has a five-bay, five-entry courtyard with a side courtyard and a garden.

The pink walls, green tiles, carved beams and painted buildings looked very luxurious. Ye Jiayao focused on the furniture. This was her suggestion to use old materials in new ways. Uncle Jiang's craftsmanship was amazing. The furniture he modified looked brand new.

Chunyu Dao: "These are made of the finest mahogany, red sandalwood and huanghuali, and the styles are also the latest in Jinling right now."

Uncle San and Aunt San nodded repeatedly with satisfaction: "This craftsmanship is really good."

Chun Wen said: "I originally wanted to build a pond in the garden, but the Feng Shui master said that this original layout is for gathering wealth, and it is also a place where Wenchang is at its peak. If a pond is built, it will be able to gather more wealth, but Wenchang will be gone."

Third uncle Xia Zhuoqin was a Jinshi, a scholar, so naturally Wenchang took it more seriously and said immediately, "That cannot be changed."

Zhou said as she walked and looked around: "Everything else is good, but it's just so empty. We need to put some decent decorations in it. I remember you have a lot of good stuff at home. Why don't we borrow them and put them in there?"

Ye Jiayao knew why Xia Youshi didn't come to accompany her. This Third Aunt really had the nerve to ask for it! She said she was borrowing, but could she still pay it back?
Ye Jiayao was afraid that Chunyu would be confused, so she said tactfully, "Chunfeng is going to marry Princess Liuli. The Queen Mother is personally watching over this marriage. Mother has put all the good things in the storehouse at home in Chunfeng's new house. Now the storehouse is empty. How about this! My eldest brother likes antiques. He knows which antique shops in Jinling have good things. Let him accompany you to have a look."

Xia Chunyu looked at Ye Jiayao and smiled knowingly. This was a really good idea. His elder brother was a stingy person. If he was asked to accompany him, he would definitely not spend a penny. Third Aunt wanted to take advantage of her elder brother, but she had made a wrong idea.

Zhou stopped smiling, feeling unhappy, but she couldn't find any fault with Ye Jiayao's words. She whispered, "Isn't she just a princess? What's so great about that?"

Xia Chunli smiled and said, "There is everything in Jinling City. As long as you can afford the price, you can buy any good thing."

Xia Chunli said it at the right time. It's okay for me to accompany you, but you have to pay for it yourself.

Uncle and Aunt looked at each other in bewilderment; their plan had failed.

In the Marquis's Mansion, Xia Youshi complained to the Marquis: "What did I say? It's true. You didn't hear what Zhou said. I was so angry that I almost vomited blood. It turns out that we spent so much effort and spent 700,000 or 80,000 taels of silver, but we can't get a good word."

Xia Zhuofeng didn't know how Youshi did it specifically. In fact, it only cost less than 20,000 taels. He felt sorry for the 70 or 80 taels of silver. Whose silver is not silver? But this is his brother, what can he say?
"Forget it, we are all brothers, why bother about so much?"

Xia Youshi was angry: "I care? You can calculate it yourself. How much money did they take from us after the old lady left? If I hadn't worked hard to run the household and build this family business, the money left by the old lady, plus your salary, would not be enough for them to fill their teeth. You calculated it, but you still said such harsh words. It's thankless. Anyway, I warn you, this is the last time. If you dare to agree to go out again, you have to find a way yourself. Don't think of taking a copper coin from me again."

(End of this chapter)