Monthly Allowance

"I carried Qing for ten months and gave birth to him. I went hungry myself to nurse him and bring him up, and paid for him to learn to read and write."

"After my adoptive father died, Qing and I depended on each other. He's my very life."

"I'd rather die myself than let Qing suffer the slightest grievance. He's my own flesh and blood. More than anyone, I want him to make something of himself and place high in the imperial examinations."

Lu Zhengliu listened to Ge Bao'er ramble on for a long while before he finally recovered from what Lin Yunwan had said.

"I know all that."

Ge Bao'er's eyes were swollen like walnuts. Choking back sobs, she said, "He's my own son, and yet... yet I'm like an outsider."

Lu Zhengliu's cold brows drew together. "Who says you're an outsider?"

Ge Bao'er recalled the scene of their family reunion and was deeply saddened.

When Lu Zhengliu thought of how she had followed him here alone, his voice softened. "You're not an outsider. I'll make you a part of the Lu family."

With that, he immediately went to find the old madam.

Old Madam Lu knew the matter had come to nothing and had not yet gone to bed.

Her face was cold as she said, "She couldn't even tolerate Yun Wan giving the child a gift for the Enlightenment Ceremony. I'd like to hear how you intend to make excuses for her now!"

"There's no excuse for this. Bao'er was wrong."

"But please be understanding, Grandmother."

"Bao'er comes from the countryside, and she can be short-sighted, but she isn't bad by nature and has never meant to harm anyone. What happened today came only from the grievance she felt as a mother. She didn't deliberately try to sow discord before you."

"Grandmother, Bao'er could have chosen not to bring Qing back. I searched for her for seven long years and pressed her to return to the Lu family. If it weren't for Qing's future, and if she weren't uneasy at having no recognized place in the residence, none of this would have happened today."

"He is my woman. If anyone is at fault, it is all my fault. If you must blame someone, blame me."

"I promised to let her attend you and show you filial devotion, and I don't want to break my word. Please grant me this, Grandmother."

Old Madam Lu looked at Lu Zhengliu in silence.

What he had said was not entirely unreasonable.

From their time together these past days, she could also see that Ge Bao'er was not deeply scheming. She merely had a few petty designs, which, though hardly fit to be brought into the open, were understandable enough.

Though she looked down on her, she would not go so far as to condemn her outright with a single stroke of the pole.

After all, she was Qing's birth mother and the woman Lu Zhengliu loved.

Old Madam Lu's expression eased considerably. "I remember what I promised her before. But she brought these troubles on herself and can't blame anyone else. Stop making excuses for her! Take care not to let her ambitions grow through your indulgence. I won't show mercy."

Lu Zhengliu said, "Grandmother, I know my limits."

"If you know what matters, then that's for the best."

"Grandmother, there's something I..."

"What else is it?" Old Madam Lu thought it concerned Ge Bao'er and looked displeased.

Lu Zhengliu abruptly changed his mind. "Nothing." Grandmother might not know what had happened before Lin Yunwan married into the family, either.

"Please rest early. I'll take my leave."

The next day.

Lin Yunwan was reviewing the accounts in Drooping Silk Hall, her bright eyes dark and cold, without saying a word.

Several servant women stood in the courtyard waiting for tally tokens, muttering among themselves.

"It's getting harder and harder to claim this silver. These are expenses the old madam can't do without. If Madam won't approve them, I can only tell the old madam the truth."

"Exactly. Even the marquis has been short of silver..."

Ping Ye glared at them, gave a cold snort, and lifted the curtain to enter the room. "Madam, those women have come again," she reported.

Lin Yunwan lifted her brush, made a few marks, and issued two tally tokens.

When Ping Ye saw them, she nearly choked. "Madam..."

"Go on," Lin Yunwan said mildly. "I have a way to balance the accounts."

Ping Ye went reluctantly and, as usual, gave them the tokens so they could collect the silver. As for whether the money was truly spent on the masters, that was hard to say.

Only after the women received the tokens did they leave in high spirits.

Ping Ye spat after them.

Tao Ye came over and said, "They're all longtime servants of the residence, born into families that have served here for generations. Many are also related to people close to the old madam. She values her reputation and doesn't want to offend them. Besides, they're among the best at making a scene."

Ping Ye sighed. "How could I not know? It's all because..."

The two exchanged a glance and said no more. In their hearts, everything was as clear as a mirror.

Wasn't it all the old madam's fault?

She had put Lin Yunwan in charge of the household, only to issue orders without taking responsibility when trouble arose. Whenever anyone on her side did something wrong or exceeded their allowance, she always glossed it over.

When trouble broke out or the accounts could not be balanced, wasn't Madam always left to find a solution herself?

Lin Yunwan was caught between both sides.

"Madam, Nanny Yan is here."

Ping Ye came over to announce her arrival.

Lin Yunwan more or less guessed what it was about. She went to the Hall of Longevity and, sure enough, heard the old madam say, "Bao'er has been at my side for some time now, and she's attended me very well. I really can't bear to send her back, so I'd like to keep her with me. What do you think, Yun Wan?"

"Cousin Ge seems to be getting on in years. Rather than keep her here, Old Madam, wouldn't it be better to find her a good match?"

Old Madam Lu sighed. "You don't know. This child... has had a hard life."

Lin Yunwan raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"Her parents died when she was very young, and she grew up in her relatives' care. Don't be fooled by how sensible she is. She's so well-behaved because she had to watch others' expressions from childhood."

"She finally found a good match with a man who ran a medicine shop. If they had married without trouble, they could have made a decent life together. Who would have thought that later..."

Lin Yunwan frowned. "What happened later?"

Old Madam Lu said, "The young man went out to buy medicinal herbs and disappeared without a trace. A young maiden in her prime was kept waiting for years. But the marriage had already been arranged, and the man's family refused to release her to marry someone else. Wouldn't she be a widow in all but name for the rest of her life? Isn't that pitiful?"

Lin Yunwan went along with her. "She really is pitiful..."

The plight they had invented for Ge Bao'er did not even begin to match the misery of her own fate in her previous life!

Old Madam Lu looked deeply moved. "You think the girl is pitiful too, don't you? I was thinking we might as well keep her in my courtyard and give her a monthly allowance. It needn't be much; the usual amount for a young lady of the residence will do."

That will do?

Lin Yunwan sneered inwardly.

Keeping a young lady in the residence meant a monthly allowance of five taels, a year's supply of rouge and powder, clothes for all four seasons, gold and silver jewelry, at least four maids to attend her, furnishings for her rooms, and so on. All that silver would be enough for an ordinary person to buy a small two-courtyard house on the outskirts of the capital.

How easily she said it!

Lin Yunwan looked troubled. "Old Madam, I took over the residence's accounts from you, so you know..."

Old Madam Lu's expression soured as well.

Of course she knew that the Wuding Marquis Residence was certainly wealthy compared with an ordinary household.

But the residence had always tried to maintain its former splendor, and its expenses had long exceeded its income.

If Lin Yunwan had not managed things so well these past few years, they could not even have opened the ancestral hall and adopted an heir with proper dignity.

"Yun Wan, I entrusted the Lu family to you because I believed in you."

Lin Yunwan considered for a moment, then said, "There are a few unimportant places where we could cut costs to cover Cousin's expenses. But I'll have to put them in a booklet for you to decide, Old Madam."

As long as the silver could be found, that was enough.

Old Madam Lu smiled. "Just bring it to me."

Lin Yunwan drew up a booklet.

"Really, if the old madam wants to support Cousin Ge, why doesn't she take the silver from her own stores? Instead, she's giving our madam more trouble."

After reading the booklet in her hands, Ping Ye's eyes widened and she changed her tune. "M-Madam, why did you include Qiao Da's post as well?"

Tao Ye came in and said gently, "If the old madam cuts Qiao Da's post to cover Cousin Ge's expenses, I'm afraid he'll raise the roof."

"Send it over," Lin Yunwan said indifferently.

Qiao Da was a notoriously difficult servant in the residence, and ordinary people could not afford to provoke him.

Ping Ye could only wish for Qiao Da to make a bigger fuss.

She volunteered. "I'll go."