Money Came from Every Direction

Jian Zhang looked around. Well, well-Min was hiding behind a rockery, while Jian Xilu and Jian Ruonan stood beside the Plum Grove. Everyone was here.

They had all come to watch the show.

"..."

Jian Zhang wanted to drive them away, but even if he did, Min and Xilu could still follow the scene through the inner voice. Forget it. Let them watch. Perhaps that voice could even help him tell whether this adulterous pair was lying.

Jian Zhang raised his foot to kick again.

Jian Lang rolled across the ground to dodge, stole a wary glance at his elder brother, and hurriedly said, "I heard two epiphyllums were blooming in the Plum Grove. I came specifically to admire the flowers!!"

"I never expected to run into Concubine Wei here. She recently acquired a luminous pearl and said she wanted to give it to Inspector Wei, so she asked me to appraise it. Mother had me buy a luminous pearl last time, so I happen to know a little about them..."

After finishing, Jian Lang darted a shifty look at him.

His words carried two messages. First, Wei's father had just been promoted to Governor of the Southwest. Inspector Wei had been cleared of the injustice against him, and the current emperor intended to compensate him. He might be transferred back to the Capital City in a few years; even joining the cabinet and becoming chancellor was possible. Wei was not someone Jian Zhang could touch lightly.

Second, he had brought up Mother. With her protecting him, Jian Zhang could not touch him lightly either.

Ideally, his elder brother would turn a major issue into a minor one, then make that minor issue disappear altogether.

Wasn't she just a concubine?

Though Jian Zhang was burning with rage, he lowered his foot.

He glared at the two kneeling figures, his face as terrifyingly dark as a man-eating rakshasa.

[Was my dad really this spineless? He caught the adulterer and his woman, and all he did was question them feebly? Wasn't he going to hit them?]

[With such an enormous green cuckold's hat on his head, he ought to give them at least two good slaps each!]

[What a useless man.]

Jian Xilu nodded to herself.

Her father really was rather useless sometimes, especially when the Old Madam made things difficult for Mother. He did not dare let out so much as a fart.

Min felt relieved too.

Well said, Nan Nan. Jian Zhang needed to hear it, lest he keep imagining how much humiliation he endured for this family.

Jian Zhang: "..."

Being called a coward left him feeling wronged.

This poor father had troubles he could not voice.

[Let me see why my dad was so spineless. Oh, oh, so Wei's father had just been reinstated and promoted to Governor of the Southwest. Dad was wary of Inspector Wei and didn't dare hit her.]

Jian Zhang sighed, helplessness filling his eyes.

Nothing in this world was simply black or white. Relationships were tangled and complex, and sometimes one had no choice but to compromise.

[He had only just been reinstated? Then that was all the more reason to hit her!]

Jian Zhang: ??

[Inspector Wei had just taken office. He would definitely be watching his words and actions. Finding out that a daughter of the Wei family had become a concubine would already be a stain on his name, let alone a concubine who slept around. He would probably beat her himself. Did the other Wei daughters still want to get married? If I were Inspector Wei, I'd beat her to death!]

Jian Zhang: !!

Nan Nan made an excellent point.

Jian Zhang glanced at Wei, who was trembling like chaff in a sieve, and kicked her.

Already weakened by her miscarriage, Wei fell to the ground after the kick and kept coughing up blood.

Jian Zhang: That felt good!

[Let me see why Dad didn't dare hit Second Uncle... So Second Uncle and Dad shared a father but had different mothers. The Old Madam of the Marquis's Estate favored the Younger Branch and the Third Branch. If Dad hit Second Uncle, she would make life difficult not just for him, but for Mom, my sister, my older brother, and my little brother too.]

Jian Zhang felt somewhat comforted. His youngest daughter finally understood his predicament. Let Min hear it too, so she would know how much he had sacrificed for this family.

He might hold the rank of Vice Minister of Justice, but he had plenty of troubles of his own.

[That was easy enough to handle too. Just cover Second Uncle's head and beat him first. If the Old Madam asked, say the Plum Grove was too dark and you were so eager to catch the adulterer that you couldn't see clearly.]

[When the Old Madam blamed you, just say you didn't recognize him. Could she force your head down and make you admit you did?]

[If you didn't mind the embarrassment, you could even throw Second Uncle straight into the magistrate's office.]

Jian Zhang: !!

So that was an option!

He had long been sick of his second brother. Ever since childhood, Jian Lang had stolen his things. Whenever Jian Lang took a fancy to something, Jian Zhang never got a share. Even Min had nearly been snatched away. Now Jian Lang was not only stealing his concubine, but fighting him for the marquisate as well.

Jian Zhang had wanted to give his second brother a vicious beating for a long time.

He made a gesture, and the servants behind him abruptly extinguished the lamps.

The Plum Grove instantly sank into darkness.

Jian Lang's vision went black as a piece of dark cloth covered his head. A storm of fists immediately rained down on him.

"Ow! Ow! Brother! Brother, what are you doing? Brother-"

Jian Zhang turned to his personal servants and demanded harshly, "Did any of you see what the adulterer looked like?"

The servants behind him froze. The adulterer was the Second Master, and they had all seen him, but judging by the Eldest Master's expression, he did not seem to want them to know that.

Chang Fu immediately shook his head. "No, Eldest Master. I didn't see."

The servants behind him all shook their heads as well.

Jian Zhang pointed at the "adulterer" whose head was covered by a sack. "Tie him up and beat him. Gag him, then take my calling card and deliver him to the magistrate's office."

Chang Fu turned to leave with the others, but Jian Zhang called him back. "Inform the Old Madam. Tell her a thief entered the estate, and Concubine Wei was carrying on with him. The Eldest Master intends to send the thief to the magistrate's office. Ask the Old Madam what should be done."

Chang Fu nodded in acknowledgment.

"Wait." Jian Zhang thought for a moment. "I'd better go myself."

He would go in person, so the Old Madam could not deny it afterward.

Inside the Joy and Longevity Court, Shi-shi had finished her meal and was resting on the Arhat Bed with her eyes closed. A young maid beside her tapped her legs with a massage mallet.

After entering, Jian Zhang recounted how Concubine Wei had been caught committing adultery, his face full of grief and anger. As he reached the most emotional part, he could barely conceal his sorrow.

He and Wei had grown up together as childhood sweethearts, yet she had committed such a disgraceful act behind his back. Grief welled up within him.

"Mother, you have always handled matters in the inner household. Your son wishes to ask what should be done about this."

Shi-shi was the Marquis of Jinyang's second wife. Jian Zhang was born to his first wife; only the Second Master and Third Master were Shi-shi's biological sons. Although Jian Zhang was the estate's eldest legitimate son, no petition had ever been made to appoint him Heir, because Shi-shi had been holding it back.

With Concubine Wei's father reinstated, Jian Zhang had gained another source of support. The Old Madam had been worrying that she could no longer keep him from becoming Heir. Who would have thought Concubine Wei would be caught committing adultery? This was wonderful news.

The Old Madam immediately perked up. "Send the adulterer to the authorities. Our Marquis's Estate cannot administer private punishments either. Take your father's calling card and make certain the thief is punished severely."

The Old Madam was in excellent spirits. By punishing Wei, Jian Zhang would offend Inspector Wei, losing a friend and gaining an enemy.

How satisfying.

Jian Zhang said, "Very well. Your son understands."

Having finished discussing Concubine Wei, Jian Zhang struck while the iron was hot and explained that Jian Ruonan had been switched away from her birth family and had now returned to the estate.

Trouble in her eldest son's household should ordinarily have pleased the Old Madam, but that girl was Jian Ruonan, whose ill-fated presence had nearly killed her ten years ago. How could someone like that be brought back?

The Old Madam immediately showed her displeasure, her face darkening as she remained silent.

Jian Zhang said, "Your son consulted Master Chengyuan beforehand. Master Chengyuan has already performed rites for Ruonan and personally guaranteed that her fate has changed."

The Old Madam had always been superstitious. Since this was Master Chengyuan's verdict, she could hardly say anything more. "Have her kneel in the Ancestral Hall for a night, so she may obtain the ancestors' approval."

After enjoying the spectacle, Jian Ruonan returned to Westglow Garden to continue eating. She had only eaten until she was about eighty percent full when she heard the terrible news that she had to kneel in the Ancestral Hall all night.

Jian Ruonan: "..."

The ancestral tablets of past generations stood in the Marquis's Estate's Ancestral Hall, with four candles burning before the altar. Their warm flames illuminated the entire hall, yet only made the solitary Jian Ruonan look even more forlorn.

Jian Ruonan knelt on a meditation cushion, pressed her palms together, and prayed devoutly.

Thin and small, she looked tiny on the cushion, like duckweed scattered across a river, carrying a desolate sense of drifting without a home.

Shi-shi had specially sent an older female servant to supervise Jian Ruonan and make her kneel for the entire night.

Seeing how obedient their daughter was, Jian Zhang and Min felt their hearts ache.

She had only just returned from the Farm Estate. Before she had even enjoyed two peaceful days, she had to suffer again.

Min's heart twisted painfully. "No. Even if the Old Madam scolds me for being unfilial, I'm taking her back."

"You mustn't. If you do that, the Old Madam will dislike her even more. Ask her what she likes tomorrow, and make it up to her." Jian Zhang clasped Min's hand in return. They were adults; they could not act too impulsively. "Nan Nan is ten. She'll come of age in another three years. We can start looking for a marriage match for her."

Tears filled Min's eyes. "I will find her a good family to marry into."

Jian Ruonan knelt and bowed with utmost sincerity.

She had heard that prayers in the Ancestral Hall were especially effective!

Whenever great aristocratic families had an important matter, they would come to the Ancestral Hall to worship their ancestors.

Kneeling on the meditation cushion with a solemn, reverent expression, Jian Ruonan pressed her palms together and offered a deep bow.

Then Jian Zhang and Min heard her inner voice-

[Money, come! Money, come from the sky! Money, come from every direction! Money, come into my arms!]

[Metal, wood, water, water, earth-ancestors, bless me with gold to count every day!]

[Gold, come! Gold, come from the sky! Gold, come from every direction! Come blanketing heaven and earth! Gold, come into my arms!]

[Come quickly! Come quickly! Hurry, hurry, come!]

Jian Zhang: "..."

Min: "..."