Yunchu’s Vengeance - Chapter 7

Chapter 7: From Now On, Call It Sheng Residence

Yun Chu smiled with self-deprecating mockery.

In her previous life, she had assumed the Xie family was destitute, so she had willingly subsidized them with her own dowry. Fearing she might bruise the Xie family's pride, she had never once brought the matter up.

Yet for the Old Madam to cough up twenty thousand taels of silver in one breath was proof enough that the Xie family possessed a substantial foundation of wealth.

Looking back now in hindsight, her father-in-law was the sole provincial licentiate within a radius of a hundred li, and Xie Jingyu was the youngest top scholar. While the Xie family indeed amounted to little in the capital, they held immense prestige back in their hometown, where countless landlords and gentry registered their landholdings under the Xie name—meaning the annual revenue must surely be a staggering sum.

Mammy Zhou respectfully presented the stack of silver notes.

Yun Chu took a step back, curtsied, and said, "If this silver is given to me, it will only be used for the household's daily expenses. The Old Madam should take it back."

The Old Madam had a lingering feeling that her granddaughter-in-law had changed somehow.

Ever since the child in her womb had died prematurely, she had grown exceptionally meek, remaining utterly obedient and respectful toward her as an elder.

This was the first time she had ever employed the tactic of advancing by retreating in order to manipulate her.

Manipulate?

The moment that word surfaced in her mind, the Old Madam instantly shook her head.

Yun Chu was childless and could never have children of her own in this lifetime; therefore, it was only ever the Xie family's place to manipulate her!

"Chu'er, your words are merely mocking me," the Old Madam began. "I simply didn't know before. Had I known earlier, how could today's mess have ever happened? Take this sum of money and add it back to your dowry inventory. Afterward, I will have Mammy Zhou place all the revenue from your father-in-law's manors directly into the public coffers. From now on, if you ever run short of silver, come find me. You are no longer permitted to draw upon your personal private funds, do you understand?"

Yun Chu reached out to take the Old Madam's hand, her face filled with deep emotion. "As expected, it is still the Old Madam who cherishes me. Earlier, when my mother inquired about a hundred-li peony folding screen from my dowry, I was still racking my brain for an excuse to brush past it. Now that we have the silver, we can buy another one just like it..."

Hearing this, the Old Madam broke out in a cold sweat.

Fortunately, she had magnanimously returned the silver; if Madam Yun had grown suspicious and personally paid a visit to the Xie residence, the deception could never have been covered up.

"What a good child..." The Old Madam patted Yun Chu's hand. "With the Xie household entrusted to your hands, I am completely at ease. You've worked hard."

Yun Chu paused briefly before speaking, "In the past, I managed the household affairs entirely on my own, so it is only natural that the Old Madam harbored some doubts. How about this—Ping'er is growing older and will soon be looking into marriage prospects. Let her stay by my side and assist me in managing the household."

Old Madam Xie offered no immediate stance; had she nodded instantly, it would have seemed as though she utterly distrusted Yun Chu.

Mammy Zhou, who was serving nearby, spoke up on her behalf, "The Eldest Young Miss is bound to be the primary mistress of some noble estate in the future; she certainly needs to learn these things."

The Old Madam took a sip of tea before asking, "Ping'er, what are your own thoughts on the matter?"

A wide smile broke across Xie Ping's face. "I am willing to learn!"

Her mother managed the Xie estate with absolute order; once she mastered her mother's skills, it would be far easier to marry into a prominent family.

Yun Chu smiled and said, "Tomorrow morning, after paying your morning respects, remain in Yusheng Residence to follow my instruction."

Once the matter was settled, she stood up and took her leave.

Tingshuang followed closely behind, carrying the box of managerial tally tokens along with a thick stack of silver notes.

The Old Madam let out a soft sigh. Summoning Yun Chu here had clearly been intended as a call to account, yet in the end, she had suffered a massive bleeding of funds, losing over twenty thousand taels of silver.

Xie Shi'an's gaze grew dark and inscrutable. He truly sensed that his mother had changed...

Yun Chu walked slowly back toward Yusheng Residence.

As she approached the courtyard entrance, she noticed several maidservants gathered around outside.

As it turned out, one of the three characters on the plaque at the courtyard gate—specifically the character for "Jade" (Yu)—was missing a dot, and the maids and pageboys were currently brainstorming ways to fix it.

"Mistress, such a fine Jade Sheng Residence (Yusheng Ju) turning into a flawed Sheng Residence is truly bizarre," Tingxue remarked. "Shall we have my lord rewrite a new plaque?"

Yun Chu raised her eyes to look at those three characters.

This courtyard had belonged to the estate long before she married in, originally serving as Xie Jingyu's personal quarters. After she moved in, Xie Jingyu had relocated to the adjacent courtyard.

She commanded, "Drop the 'Jade' character. From now on, call it Sheng Residence."

The maids and pageboys exchanged glances, each seeing stark disbelief in the other's eyes.

The "Yu" in Yusheng Residence was taken from the master's own given name; was it really appropriate to simply discard it just like that?

Tingshuang cast a cold glance at them. "Did you not hear the Mistress's words? What are you still standing around in a daze for?"

The group hurried to fetch ladders and tools to get to work.

No sooner had Yun Chu seated herself in a chair than a servant from her mother-in-law Madam Yuan's courtyard arrived bearing two thousand taels of silver. "The Mistress manages the Xie household both inside and out, and the Madam is well aware of it in her heart. She specifically instructed this old servant to bring this silver so that the Mistress may commission a set of headdresses to her liking or purchase some fine fabrics."

She pressed her lips into a thin line.

Ever since she married in, her mother-in-law, who had been bedridden for over a decade, had suddenly recovered from her illness.

Therefore, her mother-in-law had always believed she possessed a blessed destiny.

This mother-in-law of hers still harbored a shred of genuine affection toward her.

It was just that this shred of affection would be utterly obliterated once disaster struck the Yun family...

Yun Chu gathered all the silver together and handed it directly to Tingshuang. "Take this to Uncle Chen, and tell him to buy up every last block of ice he can lay his hands on. If the silver isn't enough, he may borrow from the money shops."

Tingshuang slipped away under the cover of the evening shadows.

That night, Yun Chu slept reasonably well.

When she opened her eyes the next morning, the sky had not yet fully brightened. After dressing and stepping outside, she found Xie Shi'an already seated in the side hall awaiting his morning greeting.

Seeing her emerge, he stood up in a hurry. "Mother."

Yun Chu asked him warmly, "Have you eaten yet?"

Xie Shi'an shook his head. "Upon coming out of the ancestral hall, I came straight to Mother's place. Over these past two days, I have thought many things through. Thank you, Mother, for your teachings and punishments."

"As long as you've thought it through, that's what matters." Yun Chu smiled gently. "Sit down and keep me company for breakfast."

Xie Shi'an let out a virtually imperceptible sigh of relief.

His mother treated him with the exact same amicable warmth as before; it seemed he had simply been overthinking things.

Halfway through the meal, Yun Chu set down her chopsticks and spoke up, "I was reading a story yesterday, and I wondered if you would like to hear it?"

Xie Shi'an set his chopsticks down in tandem, assuming a posture of rapt attention.

In the past, Yun Chu would occasionally chat with him about interesting anecdotes from the imperial court and battlefields; her suddenly wanting to tell a story now did not strike him as unusual.

Yun Chu spoke in a slow, even tone, "The story goes that there was a woman who raised three children. Yet when the children grew up, over a minor conflict, they ended up killing her. Do you think those children were in the right?"

"Of course not!" Xie Shi'an's face was filled with indignation. "Those three are utterly devoid of conscience and utterly unworthy of being sons!"

Yun Chu asked, "What if those three children were not the woman's biological offspring?"

Xie Shi'an replied, "The grace of raising someone outweighs the grace of giving birth to them. The woman raised them, making her their mother. No matter what, they had no right to kill their own mother!"

Yun Chu nodded. "Then suppose further that this woman might have been involved in treason, and the three children killed her simply to protect themselves and the entire clan. In that case, do you still believe what they did was wrong?"

Xie Shi'an did not provide an answer quite as quickly this time.

Pondering for a moment, he finally raised his head and spoke slowly, "Compared to the life of a single woman, the survival of the entire clan is naturally far more important. If the woman knew the children killed her for the prosperity of the clan, I imagine she would willingly go to her death as well."

Yun Chu smiled. "Thank you."

Xie Shi'an suddenly realized something was amiss. "What is Mother thanking me for?"

Yun Chu curved her lips.

Naturally, she was thanking him for making the exact same choice as in her past life.

Thanking him for remaining just like he was in her previous life—so that when she finally struck, she would no longer harbor the slightest shred of hesitation.