Time Travel: The Noble Family-Chapter 533 - 203 Ma Yue Gets Married (Part 2)

Yueyao shook her head and said to Nanny Hao beside her, "These matters are truly complicated. My cousin-in-law has it tough."

Seeing Zhuang Ruolan handle these affairs so methodically, Yueyao couldn’t help but admire her; she knew she didn’t possess such ability.

Nanny Hao chuckled, "If Miss could always be like this, in the future, she will certainly be as capable as Eldest Young Madam," she believed that her young lady could do well in anything as long as she put her heart into it.

After the steward Granny and other servants had left, with some worry, she said, "Miss, are you sure it’s appropriate to let Eldest Miss receive the guests? What if she makes an error?"

Zhuang Ruolan spoke indifferently, "If she makes a mistake, then she makes a mistake." Some minor errors didn’t matter much as long as nothing major went wrong. Anyway, her husband was already fed up with this half-sibling, and Lady Cheng wasn’t kind to her either, so why should she do such a good job?

Cai Yun said no more.

On the day of sending the dowry, Yueyao did not join in on the excitement, but when Xi Juan returned from the bustle, she reported, "Miss, the Tang Family really is wealthy. It was a total of one hundred and twenty dowry palanquins, each filled to the brim. Everything inside is of the highest quality. I heard those old nannies say that this dowry must be worth seventy to eighty thousand gold pieces."

Yueyao was not at all surprised; she understood why Ma Chengteng had made such a choice. His son was neither scholarly nor martial; marrying a wife who came from a more modest background but was capable and wealthy was a more practical choice. That way, at least they could live a life free of financial worries and become a wealthy family; and the Tang Family was willing to marry their daughter obviously because they valued the Ma Family’s status. It’s difficult for a merchant’s daughter to marry into an official’s family. A truly scholarly family is very particular about this. Just like the Lian family, let alone a Legitimate Child, even a Concubine-born child under normal circumstances wouldn’t marry a girl from a merchant family. Therefore, Yueyao was not at all surprised by the generous dowry of the Tang Family; it was something she had expected. freeweɓnøvel~com

Nanny Hao had previously regarded Ma Chengteng as foolish, but now, upon seeing whom he picked for his son’s marriage, she realized he was clear-sighted and said, "Eldest Young Madam had one hundred and twenty-eight dowry palanquins, which are also worth seventy to eighty thousand gold. Now, Second Young Madam only has eight fewer than Eldest Young Madam. Uncle Master really knows how to choose a daughter-in-law!" Though the dowry is the private property of the woman, as long as there are no mishaps, these dowry items will still remain in the Husband’s Family.

Yueyao laughed lightly, "Uncle is looking out for my second cousin’s best interest, but aunt won’t understand Uncle’s painstaking efforts. I think she has her heart set on finding a noble woman from a prominent family for my second cousin."

Nanny Hao shook her head, "If Second Young Master could be like Eldest Young Master, then naturally, marrying someone of equal social status would be good. But Second Young Master has not achieved any scholarly rank yet, and it would be more practical for him to marry someone like this than a daughter from a prominent clan who is a daughter born of a concubine."

Ma Peng had that day received this advantageous marriage match that fell from the sky largely because he had the title of Juren and was also the legitimate eldest son inheriting the family business. However, Ma Yue had yet to even become a Scholar, and the daughters of prominent clans wouldn’t lower themselves to marry a Legitimate Daughter to a man like that. The more eminent the family, the more valuable the Legitimate Daughter, because they use Legitimate Daughters for making marriage alliances. If they can’t marry off a Legitimate Daughter, it is not worthwhile to marry off a daughter born of a concubine. A daughter born of a concubine usually doesn’t have broad knowledge or social connections, and they’re generally raised to be meek and weak, unable to support a family, let alone provide a substantial dowry.

Yueyao laughed lightly, "If she could think like that, she wouldn’t have caused such a mess in the Ma Family. For now, I can only hope that Uncle truly has good discernment." There was a thought Yueyao kept to herself: if Lady Cheng had such clear understanding, she wouldn’t have raised such a pair of children.

Of course, ultimately, it was also Uncle Master’s fault as a father. The daughter could be overlooked, since after all, daughters are under their mother’s tutelage. But neither of his sons turned out well. Had she not intervened in her eldest cousin’s affair, Eldest Young Master would have been ruined by Lady Cheng. Having Eldest Young Master marry Cheng Lizi would have certainly led to the Ma Family’s downfall, just as it happened in their previous lives.

As Yueyao surmised, Lady Cheng had looked down upon Madam Tang, one hundred times over. Although Lady Cheng’s family was not as prominent as the Ma Family, her father had been an official, and there were still members of her family holding office. How could she think highly of Madam Tang, a merchant’s daughter? Even after hearing of Madam Tang’s generous dowry, she still looked down on her. What use was a rich dowry if it couldn’t give her son any advantage? But Lady Cheng was aware of her current predicament; if she dared to make a scene, she would definitely be sent back to Luzhou, and she didn’t want to relive that kind of worse than death existence.

That evening, Yueyao received news from Lian Mansion. After reading the message from Nanny Deng, she handed it to Xiang Wei. The news Nanny Deng delivered mentioned that Lian Dongfang had recently been summoning former servants frequently, particularly seeing Li San twice.

After Xiang Wei finished reading, her brows were tightly knit. It took a long while before she said, "Miss, I’m afraid that Lian Dongfang already knows about the Poetry Collection." The message didn’t reveal much, but the unusual actions of Lian Dongfang lately meant that he must have become suspicious.

Yueyao was taken aback, but soon understood. Rather than suspecting her, it was more likely they were doubting Xiang Wei. Xiang Wei’s sudden emergence must have led them to guess her identity. In that case, they would certainly suspect her involvement last time.

Xiang Wei, however, was somewhat worried and said, "Miss, if I’m not mistaken, it could be more dangerous for you to return this time." She could see that Yueyao was determined not to hand over the item, and since it was very important to Lian Dongfang, he would certainly try everything possible to get it. In the end, he might even harm her.

Yueyao laughed lightly, "Don’t worry." She wasn’t afraid; Ma’s Mansion would send an old nanny the next day to check on her. If she died of an unnatural cause, the main branch would certainly be ruined. Yueyao wasn’t worried about herself, but she feared that Lian Dongfang would harm Tingzheng, so she wrote a letter to Li Mansion, instructing Tingzheng not to return to Lian Mansion before the new year.

After discussing this matter, Yueyao asked Xiang Wei to leave: "I’d like some quiet."

Once Xiang Wei was gone, Yueyao held the Poetry Collection and fell into deep thought. This item absolutely could not be taken back to Lian Mansion; she would not allow her uncle to have it. Moreover, she believed that before getting this item, her uncle wouldn’t harm her.

After thinking for quite some time, Yueyao finally had an idea.

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