freenovelworld Chapter 824 Elevating Mu Xinyi!
Chapter 824 Elevating Mu Xinyi!
Mu Xinyi blushed. This younger brother, though young, always said things that left her speechless.
Mu Xinyi went to prepare her dowry. In fact, as a concubine's daughter, the dowry that Madam Jin prepared for her was already quite good.
She knew that Madam Jin had no daughters. Of course, Miao'er couldn't be counted, since she and Miao'er were born of the same mother, both born to Concubine Yang.
Jin knew that although the sisters' relationship was currently lukewarm, they might grow closer in the future. Therefore, Jin was quite considerate of Mu Xinyi in her marriage arrangements.
On the contrary, her biological father was quite satisfied with her marriage, but he was rather stingy when it came to the dowry.
That day, she overheard the couple arguing in the side room over her dowry.
Jin's intention was to gather thirty-six loads of dowry for herself, which was considered quite good among the concubine's daughters in the capital.
However, Mu Changping intended to give her only twenty-six loads.
The reason is simple: their second wife's income is not high. In previous years, they had a lot of wealth, but after the incident, they gave it all away.
Although the old master is still alive and the family hasn't divided yet, everyone knows that even if it's divided equally, Mu Changping won't get much of the family fortune.
The Mu family is known for its refined and noble character, which refers not only to their demeanor but also to their long-standing pride in their aloofness and reluctance to engage in business. Consequently, they have few secondary businesses.
At most, the second branch of the family could be given a few estates and three or four shops. Where would they get more?
As for the eldest son's family living well, it's naturally because when Li Shi married into the family, she brought a lot of dowry. Those things were left by Li Shi to her own children, so it's impossible for Mu Changping to take any of them.
That's why Mu Changping only thought about giving twenty-six loads.
Mu Xinyi still remembers Jin's attitude at the time; she was very insistent.
She said that Mu Xinyi was, after all, the Crown Princess's cousin. If her dowry was too meager, her future in-laws would look down on her, and it would be a disgrace to the Mu family.
At that moment, Mu Xinyi still felt some gratitude and respect for her stepmother.
Back in her own courtyard, the nanny from Mu Xinyi's courtyard came over. She was specially chosen for her by Madam Li. Before Madam Yang left, Madam Li felt that Mu Xinyi's manners were not good enough, so she invited another nanny to come over, and thus, she stayed by Mu Xinyi's side.
"Reporting to Miss, Master and Madam have quarreled again about your dowry. However, this time, it seems that Master could not prevail over Madam, so your dowry has been settled at thirty-six loads."
Mu Xinyi nodded. "My mother has treated me extremely well. Even other women born out of wedlock might not receive the same treatment."
"It's good that Miss understands. I heard that the Second Madam went to discuss this matter with the First Madam before. The First Madam also supported the Second Madam's approach. This time, the Second Madam directly brought up the Old Master, saying that the public funds would provide Miss with twenty-six loads of dowry, and the remaining ten loads would be prepared by our Second Branch."
No wonder the father suddenly gave in.
It turns out that it was Grandfather who spoke up. I suppose it was also Aunt who spoke up for her.
The fact that the government could provide twenty-six loads of dowry was already quite generous.
When my eldest sister got married, how much did the public funds contribute? Most of her dowry came from my aunt.
"I will definitely find an opportunity to thank my grandfather properly later. After I get married, I will also come back to take care of them often." Mu Xinyi's words were sincere and heartfelt.
She understood all too well what a woman's dowry meant to her.
If you're going to be in charge in the future, and you don't have money or these dowry to support you, who will respect you?
Let alone concubines or maids, even ordinary servants would probably dare to give you the cold shoulder.
"Miss, your happy day is coming soon. Just listen to Madam and stay in your own courtyard these next few days. Don't go out. Besides, Madam is much better now. I believe that on the day you get married, Madam will definitely come to comb your hair."
Listening to the old woman's words of comfort, Mu Xinyi smiled and nodded, "Okay, I'll remember."
As the days went by, things became increasingly tense for Mu Xinyi, and her staff became busier and busier. Jin Shi also took charge of the arrangements.
"Miss, the Madam has sent someone over."
Mu Xinyi quickly put down her needlework and got up to go to the main room.
"Greetings to the Third Miss."
"Granny, please don't stand on ceremony. Does Aunt have any instructions?"
The old woman smiled, and in a flash, several maids came out from behind her, each carrying a box. "This is what Madam instructed us to deliver to the Third Miss."
Mu Xinyi was slightly taken aback. After the nanny explained, she learned that there was a set of red gold jewelry with rubies, a pair of mandarin duck jade pendants of excellent quality, and another small box containing a small box of top-quality pearls.
"What? What does Aunt mean by this? How can I possibly accept something so valuable?"
"Third Miss, please don't say that. Madam said this is for your dowry."
After delivering the gifts, the people from the main branch of the family left. Mu Xinyi looked at them, and it would be a lie to say she wasn't excited.
“I really felt bad for my aunt before, that she treated me this way. I always thought she looked down on me, my aunt, and our whole second branch of the family because of her noble birth. So I was always wary and disliked her. Now I understand what it means to judge a gentleman by one's own petty standards.”
Although the Jin family prepared a considerable dowry for her, most of it was something the second wife could afford, which was quite good.
But she didn't own a single piece of such expensive jewelry.
It wasn't that the Jin family was stingy, but rather that the second branch of the family simply couldn't afford such a thing. If they were to order another one, it would cost several thousand taels of silver.
As evening fell, Jin came over again with her entourage.
"Put it down, you all go out first."
Mu Xinyi glanced at the box, which was about a foot square. "Mother, what is this?"
"There's a lot of loose silver in here." Jin opened the box, and sure enough, it was full of loose silver.
“When you get married in the future, you will inevitably have to reward your servants. You can’t just give them a big silver ingot every time you do that, otherwise people will laugh at you for being a country bumpkin. Didn’t you have your maid embroider quite a few purses? The servants embroidered them all exactly the same, and they were all for rewarding people. This is also to maintain your dignity.”
"Yes, Mother. Thank you for being so considerate of your daughter."