Instructions

Now that Lady Wei had important matters to attend to and was too lazy to argue with him, she simply recounted how she had been rejected at the Rongxi Hall.

She said, "There's a reason I want to take Miss Xi back to the Wei Residence. Miss Xi grew up in the countryside and the city. Although she passed the entrance exam for a Women's Academy, it was only in the county. In the eyes of the nobles in the capital, that's nothing. Given her situation, marriage is destined to be difficult; she'll be stuck in a limbo. So I want to take her back to the Wei Family so my parents, brothers, and sisters-in-law can meet her. The Wei Family family has quite a few sons, both legitimate and illegitimate, and several are about the same age and appearance as Miss Xi. I think it would be better to marry her off to the Wei Family. With my influence, she won't have to suffer from her mother-in-law's temper, and her husband won't dare to bully her."

Hearing that Lady Wei was wholeheartedly considering Xu Xi's well-being, Zhao Yuanliang's expression softened somewhat.

He said, "At least you're starting to look like a mother."

Upon hearing this, Lady Wei instinctively raised her eyebrows, but quickly suppressed her emotions and continued, "I'm thinking of Miss Xi's best interests, but she doesn't appreciate it at all. She only treats the Old Madam and the First Madam as close elders, as if I'm trying to harm her. She won't listen to anything I say. Although she's disobedient, she's still my own flesh and blood. Would I really harm her? What good would that do me? I have to think about things for her."

Zhao Yuanliang nodded.

Lady Wei had a bad temper, but what she said made sense.

He felt that Xu Xi was, after all, his and Lady Wei's daughter. Now she lived in Tea Tasting Residence, didn't even go back to the second house for meals, and didn't even call him and Lady Wei" and "mother" when she saw them. What was going on? If this continued, he and Lady Wei would become a laughing stock.

Now that Lady Wei is taking Xu Xi back to the Wei Residence and even planning her marriage, it can be seen as her taking the initiative to make amends to her daughter and ease the tension between them. As her mother, she has already taken a step back, Xu Xi doesn't take the opportunity to back down, she would truly be unfilial.

There should be a limit to being temperamental, shouldn't there?

"Not only that, my parents also want to meet her. They've already sent someone to tell me to take Miss Xi back to the Wei Residence. I was thinking that Miss Xi goes to school early and comes home late every day, and the Wei Residence is going to hold a banquet, which will invite my parents, so they'll meet then. After the banquet, I'll take Miss Xi to the Wei Residence again to discuss the marriage. But Miss Xi always feels like I'm trying to harm her, and she keeps making excuses not to go. Can you think of a solution?"

"Didn't Miss Xi say that the County Princess of Qingyang wanted her help? Who would dare offend the Prince of Zhennan's Residence? Since the old lady said to give you a few days' notice, then give it a few days' notice. It won't make a difference if you give her a few more days," Zhao Yuanliang said.

Lady Wei gave her husband a disdainful look and said, "Forget about the weekend. In a couple of days, when my father is home, you'd better step in and bring Miss Xi back to the Wei Family. We can't let her make excuses again."

Although the old lady agreed, she still felt uneasy and wanted Zhao Yuanliang to persuade Xu Xi again.

Lady Wei could see by now that Xu Xi was not only tough on her, but also seemed to be just as assertive with the Old Madam and the First Madam. If she refused to go no matter what, the Old Madam and the First Madam wouldn't force her.

Zhao Yuanliang nodded. "I'll find an opportunity to persuade Miss Xi."

"Tomorrow, after she gets out of school, you stand guard in front of the second gate and talk to her about this."

Lady Wei knew Zhao Yuanliang's nature well. If he wasn't given specific instructions, he would just agree without considering when to carry them out. Sometimes, when he was lazy, he could drag things out for ten days or half a month without doing anything.

"Okay," Zhao Yuanliang nodded in agreement.

After Zhao Yuanliang left, Lady Wei sat there pondering for a while, then instructed her maid, "Go and call Matron Wang in."

A short while later, a middle-aged woman followed a young maid into the room and bowed to Lady Wei.

"Go back later and tell Wang Gui to take two reliable people to Beining tomorrow to inquire about the County Princess of Qingyang's silver shop," Lady Wei said. "I heard that Fifth Miss is on good terms with the County Princess of Qingyang and even helped her design jewelry for her shop, but I don't know if it's true. Tell him to find out more. Also, Wang Gui should try to find out as much as possible about Fifth Miss's situation at the academy. I don't know if she is favored by the teachers or how well she is doing."

When Lady Wei married into the Marquis's mansion, she received only some clothes and daily necessities in her trunks; she did not receive any land, shops, or other dowry.

Later, as Wei's father rose through the ranks, it became unclear whether the Wei Family genuinely cared for their daughter or whether Lady Wei had secretly accumulated wealth and wanted her family to help her bring it into the open. In the form of supplementing her dowry, Old Madam Wei gave Lady Wei two shops, along with the business they were running, as well as the shopkeeper and employees, all of which became her private property.

The two shops weren't in a great location, and business was so-so. But Lady Wei felt that she now had her own property, so she stood up a bit more confidently. She became much more generous in hiring people and buying clothes and jewelry for herself and her son.

Matron Wang's husband, Wang Gui, was the second manager of the shop; Matron Wang herself went to the Marquis's mansion and became the head steward of the second branch of the household.

If Lady Wei needed anything done, she only needed to instruct Matron Wang. Matron Wang's home was in a small courtyard outside the Marquis's residence, separated from the residence by an alley. It was only about ten feet away from the side gate.

Matron Wang agreed, and seeing that Lady Wei had no further instructions, she bowed and left.

After Matron Wang left, Lady Wei said to Matron Li, "I'll go back to the Wei Residence tomorrow to sound out my mother and sisters-in-law. If it's a good match, I'll bring up Miss Xi's marriage proposal."

Matron Li chuckled, "If we really betroth Fifth Miss to the young master of the Wei Residence, I doubt she'd dare to give you the cold shoulder anymore. She might even come to fawn over you every day."

Lady Wei sighed, "I just wish I could marry her off as soon as possible to stop her from being so naughty. But she still has a year until she comes of age, so there's no use in rushing her. Before that, I still have to marry off Miss Xin and Miss Rui."

"Miss Xin is from the first wife's family, so we can't get involved; but Miss Rui is more capable of making arrangements."

Matron Li hesitated, as if she wanted to say something more.

Seeing this, Lady Wei grew impatient. "Is there anything we can't say to each other?"

Matron Li smiled and said, "There are always some things I'm unsure about, and I'm afraid I might mislead Madam."

"How do you know you're unsure if you don't tell me?" Lady Wei glared at her.

Then Matron Li said, "I heard it from the servants. This spring, when it was Old Wei Residence's birthday, didn't you take the Second Young Master, the Fourth Young Miss, and the Sixth Young Miss back to celebrate with her? I heard that the Fourth Young Miss and the Seventh Young Master Wei talked for quite a while in a secluded place. I also heard that the Fourth Young Miss gave the Lady Wei Young Master Wei a handkerchief."

Lady Wei frowned and angrily retorted, "Why didn't you tell me about this?"