Chapter 78

Old Madam Luo, in a panic, followed her son to report the incident to the authorities.

The women around were still gossiping, “They’ve been reporting this for a while. They must have checked the orphan girl’s house and found nothing.”

Another woman said, “If she took the money, there’s no way the Luo family could find her. She wouldn’t stay in the same place. She might not even be from that village. The Luo family is ridiculous. They wanted to marry a new wife without considering if her identity was fake. She said she was an orphan, and they believed her? They didn’t even ask around. Now, all their belongings are gone. The orphan girl stayed with them for two months before taking the money. It was clearly premeditated. The Luo family deserved it!”

“Indeed, they deserved it. They didn’t want such a good daughter-in-law before. Now, Madam Lin and her two daughters are helping at Young Lady Xu’s restaurant. The girls don’t earn much, but they still get one or two hundred coins each, adding up to a tael of silver a month. Madam Lin is hardworking and kind. The Luo family are all fools.”

“But Madam Lin can’t have sons anymore…” another woman whispered.

The other women fell silent.

Xu Qinyu was stunned. No wonder Old Madam Luo didn’t roll her eyes at her today. This explained it.

While deceiving someone for marriage and money was wrong, she couldn’t help but feel satisfied. The Luo family deserved it. They were not good people, and it was hard to feel sorry for them. It seemed the orphan girl wasn’t an ordinary orphan but a con artist.

Whether the authorities would catch her, Xu Qinyu didn’t know.

After hearing the gossip, Xu Qinyu said goodbye to the women and left with Pei Weixuan, heading to Laixi Alley.

On the way, Xu Qinyu told Pei Weixuan about the Luo family and how Madam Lin left them, which was why she allowed her to work at the restaurant.

Pei Weixuan listened quietly. Yuniang was kind-hearted but knew her limits and didn’t help with everything.

Xu Qinyu talked all the way, and Pei Weixuan mostly listened, occasionally responding. Soon, they arrived at Laixi Alley.

Several houses were for sale, with notices posted at the entrances. Xu Qinyu chose a house with a clean entrance and knocked. An old man opened the door and recognized Xu Qinyu, “Are you the owner of Xu’s Food Mansion? Are you looking to buy a house?”

Xu Qinyu smiled, “Yes, Uncle. My family wants to move to a two-entry house. Can I take a look inside?”

The houses here were similar. As long as the house was clean and didn’t need major repairs, it would be fine.

The old man invited them in.

It turned out the old man was the father of the family selling the house. They had bought a new house on West Street and wanted to sell this one. The old man stayed at the house during the day. The house was also listed with a broker, but brokers charged fees, and the old man wanted to save money by staying at the house himself.

Xu Qinyu and Pei Weixuan entered the house.

The house was clean and well-maintained, though empty because the furniture had been moved out. It was a deep two-entry house with front and back sections. The back had a row of storage rooms for miscellaneous items, and even the donkey cart could be stored there, making it spacious. In the front is the residential courtyard, including the main house, side rooms, and kitchen. The main house has three rooms in a row with a large hall. On the east side are three side rooms, with a smaller side room next to them. On the west side are the kitchen and firewood room, with a well next to the firewood room. The main house and side rooms are connected by a covered walkway, with a large courtyard in the middle. Although it’s bare now, it can be planted with flowers and plants in the future. So, this house, including the side room, has a total of seven rooms, enough for a family to live in.

Yuan Jie’er is still young and will definitely sleep with Madam Wen. Ning Jie’er will have her own room, the Fourth Brother will have one, Xu Qinyu will have one, and Feng Ge’er, who is still small, will share a room with the Fourth Brother. Grandmother Zhu will have a room, and there will still be two rooms left. When Yuan Jie’er and Feng Ge’er grow up, they will have their own rooms.

By then, Xu Qinyu will definitely be able to afford a five-entry house and live in a larger house.

This house is very good for a two-entry house. Xu Qinyu liked it at first sight and turned to ask the old man, “Uncle, how much is this house?”

The old man smiled, “If Young Lady Xu wants it, two hundred taels of silver will do.”

The two-entry houses here are indeed priced around this amount, but this house is well-maintained, with smooth and clean windows and no insect damage. It even has a covered walkway, so you can walk to each room and the kitchen without getting wet in the rain. Most two-entry houses here don’t have covered walkways because they are expensive to build.

Xu Qinyu felt a bit embarrassed, “Two hundred taels of silver can’t buy such a good two-entry house.”

The old man smiled, “But I’m willing to sell it to Young Lady Xu.”

He stayed here to save money but had a good impression of Young Lady Xu. His family liked the food she made. The old man had a young daughter, about eleven or twelve years old. She was very thin, but not due to a congenital condition. She was just a picky eater. After eating at Xu’s Food Mansion, she ate more and naturally gained weight. Fortunately, the family did business and could afford to let the girl eat at the restaurant.

Even so, they mostly ate breakfast at Xu’s Food Mansion. Breakfast for the whole family cost about a hundred wen, which was affordable at three taels of silver a month. Dinner at the restaurant was too expensive, at least five hundred wen, costing ten taels of silver a month. So, they bought fish balls, fish heads, and braised fish outside the restaurant for dinner. The girl said the fish wasn’t as good as Young Lady Xu’s, but she was willing to eat it.

When the old man mentioned this, Xu Qinyu remembered. There was indeed a very thin girl who liked to eat breakfast at Xu’s Food Mansion with her mother. After eating, they would pack some breakfast to take home. The girl was initially frighteningly thin, but after eating at Xu’s Food Mansion for a while, she visibly improved.

The girl’s condition was caused by picky eating, unlike Zhizhi, who was overweight. The girl was extremely thin and needed dietary adjustments. After some time, the results were visible. Xu Qinyu had prepared a weight-loss diet for Yang Zhizhi for over a year. Although it was called a weight-loss diet, the taste and ingredients were the same, just with slightly less oil and salt. After eating it for over a year, Yang Zhizhi’s weight was around 120 pounds.

Later, Xu Qinyu told Yang Zhizhi to exercise every other day. She taught Yang Zhizhi a few exercises that could be done after meals, taking about half an hour each time.

Yang Zhizhi persisted, so even at 120 pounds, she didn’t look fat. She had a well-proportioned figure, fair skin, and bright eyes, making her cute and charming. Many suitors came to propose to her.

Yang Zhizhi was satisfied with her current weight and stopped eating the weight-loss diet. Xu Qinyu’s regular meals weren’t much different, just with normal oil and salt. Eating a bit less of the staple food was enough.

Yang Zhizhi was used to Xu Qinyu’s cooking, so she couldn’t eat other snacks even if she got hungry at night. Even with a return to a normal diet, eating a bit less of the staple foods and continuing to exercise every other day, Yang Zhizhi could still gradually lose weight, about one or two pounds a month.

Madam Wei was immensely grateful to Xu Qinyu. However, she wanted her daughter to lose weight not to find a good husband but for her health. Yang Zhizhi was still young, and she hadn’t thought about arranging a marriage so early.

After hearing the old man’s words, Xu Qinyu didn’t insist further and bought the house for two hundred taels of silver.

It was still early, so Xu Qinyu went directly with the old man to the yamen to write the deed. She had already brought five hundred taels of silver notes with her, so there was no need to return to Osmanthus Alley to get the money. They went straight to the yamen.

Soon, the documents and deed were written, and with the handprint and the yamen’s seal, the house was officially Xu Qinyu’s.

This was her second time buying a house, not counting the workshop on North Street. Xu Qinyu wasn’t particularly excited. She took the documents back and told the Pei family that the house was bought. It was a good house, just a bit empty and needed some furniture to move in.

The furniture from Osmanthus Alley would also be moved over, but it wasn’t enough, especially the beds.

There were ready-made furniture pieces available for purchase. This task was left to Fourth Brother and Ning Jie’er. They would have time tomorrow, while Xu Qinyu and Madam Wen would be busy with the restaurant.

Dinner was also eaten in the Zhu family’s courtyard.

Madam Wen sent a letter to Uncle Zhu, the prefect of Raozhou City, saying that Pei Weixuan had returned. The letter didn’t explicitly state this, fearing it might fall into the wrong hands.

Upon receiving the letter, Uncle Zhu brought his wife, Madam Zhu, directly to Osmanthus Alley that evening.

Uncle Zhu looked at Pei Weixuan with some emotion. This was the Fourth Prince. Even though he had been demoted to a commoner and exiled, in his heart, he was still the Fourth Prince.

Uncle Zhu was a bit reserved, but Pei Weixuan poured two cups of wine and toasted him, saying, “Uncle, this is from your grandson.”

After two cups of wine, Uncle Zhu became less reserved and started talking with his grandson. They gradually opened up, finding that many of his grandson’s ideas aligned with his own.

Even Uncle Zhu couldn’t help but feel regret. If the Eldest Prince were still alive, he would inherit the throne, and the Fourth Prince would be made a king, serving the court and ensuring the people’s well-being.

Unfortunately…

Both of them drank quite a bit, and Uncle Zhu got drunk. He stayed the night at Osmanthus Alley, muttering to Madam Zhu as he fell asleep, saying that his niece’s family was miserable and that the Eldest Prince couldn’t have poisoned the late emperor. It must have been a plot by the new emperor and Empress Dowager Fu.

There were no outsiders present, so Madam Zhu let her husband speak. She knew the importance of discretion and wouldn’t spread these words. She also felt that her niece’s family was quite pitiful.

Madam Wen stayed to help clean the kitchen, letting Xu Qinyu and Pei Weixuan go back to wash up and rest.

Xu Qinyu held one child in each hand, with Yuan Jie’er on her left and Feng Ge’er on her right, as they headed home.

Pei Weixuan and Ning Jie’er followed slightly behind.

Xu Qinyu held the two children and smiled mischievously, “Yuan Jie’er, Feng Ge’er, let’s see who can run home first.”

The two children nodded, and Xu Qinyu ran forward with them.

The air was filled with their laughter as they ran.

Pei Weixuan watched them, a smile unconsciously forming on his lips, and even Ning Jie’er couldn’t help but smile.

Just as they reached their door, panting and ready to go inside for some water, Xu Qinyu heard a heart-wrenching scream from the end of the alley.

Recognizing the scream as Old Madam Luo’s, Xu Qinyu knew something was wrong.

The alley wasn’t very long, with about ten households. The Pei and Luo families were only a few houses apart, so even a shout from the courtyard could be heard, let alone Old Madam Luo’s scream.

The scream startled Yuan Jie’er and Feng Ge’er. Xu Qinyu quickly patted their backs, “Don’t be scared, don’t be scared.”

She guessed that in the afternoon, Luo Dagen and Old Madam Luo went to the yamen to report the theft but didn’t find Old Man Luo at home. Now that Old Man Luo was back and knew all the family’s money had been taken by the girl his son wanted to marry, he couldn’t bear it and hit Old Madam Luo.

The situation at the Luo family was indeed as Xu Qinyu had guessed.

Old Man Luo returned home late and didn’t notice someone was missing. The kitchen still had some food, so he served himself a bowl of bean rice. The bean rice was undercooked, and the dishes had no salt, making them hard to swallow.

Old Man Luo frowned as he ate. Since the girl his son wanted to marry came to the house, she had been cooking, and her food was better than Old Madam Luo’s. But today, the food was terrible. Old Man Luo didn’t want to call the girl, so he called for Old Madam Luo, but she didn’t dare to come out. She knew that if Old Man Luo found out the girl had taken all the money and run away, he would beat her to death.

Old Man Luo called for a long time without seeing anyone, got angry, and threw his bowl and chopsticks down, storming into the room.

The room was dim, and he couldn’t see Old Madam Luo’s face clearly. He frowned and asked, “Where’s Danniang? What’s with the food she made today? The bean rice is undercooked, and the dishes have no salt. It’s inedible.”

Old Madam Luo stammered, unable to speak.

Old Man Luo’s frown deepened, “I’m asking you, why did Danniang cook such food today?”

“I-I made the food today.”

“Then why didn’t Danniang cook? Is she sick?” Old Man Luo thought that if she was sick, it would be understandable.

Old Madam Luo didn’t dare to reply, but Luo Dagen, unable to bear it, came over and said, “Dad, Danniang ran off with our money.”

“What? What did you say?” Old Man Luo couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

Luo Dagen repeated, “Danniang took all our money. Both your and my chests were opened, and all the money is gone.”

Old Man Luo felt dizzy and staggered to the chests, finding them open and empty. He felt like the sky was falling. All the money he had saved over his lifetime was gone. Over the years, he had saved twenty taels of silver, excluding household expenses. Now, it was all gone. He thought that if his wife hadn’t convinced their son to bring the orphan girl home, they wouldn’t have lost everything.

“Did you report it to the authorities?” Old Man Luo asked, holding onto a sliver of hope that they might recover the money.

Full of despair, Luo Dagen said, “We reported it and went to Danniang’s village, but she wasn’t there. The villagers said she wasn’t originally from their village. She moved there last year after her family died, living alone in a rundown house at the edge of the village.”

In other words, Danniang wasn’t a local. She had taken the money and run far away, and no one knew where she had gone. The authorities wouldn’t be able to track her down.

Old Man Luo understood. Without a word, he dragged Old Madam Luo outside.

Old Madam Luo, panicking, asked, “What are you doing?”

Old Man Luo dragged her to the courtyard, picked up a wooden stick, and struck her on the head. She screamed, blood streaming down her face. But this wasn’t enough to vent his anger. He cursed, “If it weren’t for your bad advice, we wouldn’t have brought this swindler into our home. That’s over forty taels of silver, and now we have nothing.” He continued to beat her, then kicked her leg, breaking it with a sickening crack. She lay motionless on the ground.

Old Man Luo didn’t stop, still beating her.

Luo Dagen hesitated, “Dad, stop. Mom’s not moving.”

Old Man Luo finally stopped, exhausted, and threw the stick aside, ready to go inside.

Luo Dagen said, “Dad, Mom’s not moving. Her head is bleeding, and her leg seems broken. Should we call a doctor?”

“Call a doctor with what money?” Old Man Luo retorted. “We don’t have a single coin left. It’s all her fault. They say to marry a virtuous wife, and it’s true. Look at what marrying her has done to our family. Your previous wife was so good, gentle and obedient. She couldn’t have sons, but you could have taken a concubine. Instead, you listened to this fool and divorced Madam Lin. Now look at us. Madam Lin was so capable! And she convinced you to bring a swindler home. Our family is ruined.” He wiped his tears and went inside.

Luo Dagen looked at his mother, unsure if she was alive or dead. He didn’t dare take her to his father’s room and instead carried her to the house where Danniang had stayed. He had no money for a doctor and could only leave her there.

..

Xu Qinyu heard the screams of Old Madam Luo and just shook her head before entering the house. She knew that Old Madam Luo would be beaten badly this time, as the family’s savings were all gone.

Fortunately, Madam Lin had left such a family early on.

Xu Qinyu no longer cared about the Luo family. She led Yuan Jie’er and Feng Ge’er back to the house. As soon as they entered the courtyard, they saw Mo Yu lying at the kitchen door. Hearing the footsteps, Mo Yu turned around to look at them and was stunned to see Pei Weixuan behind Xu Qinyu.

Mo Yu had switched shifts with Bai Yu last night but didn’t return to Osmanthus Alley. Instead, it went hunting in the mountains and came back only after filling its stomach. It hadn’t seen Pei Weixuan for more than a year but clearly remembered this male owner. After hesitating for a moment, it walked around Pei Weixuan, smelled the familiar scent, and rubbed against him, meowing.

Pei Weixuan smiled slightly, bent down, patted Mo Yu, and called out, “Mo Yu.”

Mo Yu started rubbing against his palm, meowing continuously.

Xu Qinyu couldn’t help but laugh.

Ning Jie’er couldn’t help but feel emotional. Mo Yu was always close to Fourth Sister-in-law, circling around her all day, and was indifferent to others. But now, seeing Fourth Brother after more than a year, Mo Yu was just as clingy. But it wasn’t surprising; Fourth Brother seemed to be very popular with these pets.

Xu Qinyu went into the kitchen to boil water. After a while, Pei Weixuan also came into the kitchen to help. Ning Jie’er stayed in the main room with the two children, and Mo Yu lay beside them, sometimes looking at Xu Qinyu and sometimes at Pei Weixuan.

After boiling the hot water and washing up, the family went to bed early.

The next day, Xu Qinyu and Madam Wen went to the restaurant.

Pei Weixuan and Ning Jie’er went to see the new house in Laixi Alley. They sent Feng Ge’er and Yuan Jie’er to the Zhu family to be taken care of by Mrs. Zhu, while they went to choose furniture.

They didn’t choose anything too expensive. However, Pei Weixuan and Ning Jie’er chose a canopy bed for Xu Qinyu’s room. Even though it was made of ordinary wood, the canopy bed price was more than thirty taels of silver because the craftsmanship was the most intricate. It was a relatively large bed, almost like a small room, with a corridor around it where small cabinets and chests could be placed. The corridor also had a step where a maid could sleep at night.

The canopy bed, with a large curtain, provided good privacy and sealing. This was just ordinary pear wood, and the price was already very high.

In addition to the canopy bed in Xu Qinyu’s room, Pei Weixuan also equipped Ning Jie’er’s room with a canopy bed. The other rooms had ordinary beds. Xu Qinyu’s room was also furnished with a vertical cabinet, a washstand, a dressing table, and a vanity case. The two girls could use better things, but he didn’t need them.

In just two days, the new house was fully furnished and cleaned again.

While Xu Qinyu was busy with the restaurant, Pei Weixuan moved the remaining things from Osmanthus Alley to the new house, so they could move in directly that night.

The new house needed to be warmed, but Xu Qinyu was busy, so Madam Wen, Madam Lin, and Daniu went to the new house and prepared two tables of food. The guests were the third branch of the Pei family, including Cheng Ge’er and his family, Old Madam Zhu, the waitresses Madam Yuan and Madam Chen, and the four brothers Feng, Tiao, Yu, and Shun.

Xu Qinyu also closed the restaurant half an hour early in the evening and led everyone to Laixi Alley to warm the house.

The housewarming was lively, with everyone eating and drinking together.

After the housewarming, everyone went home. Ning Jie’er pushed Xu Qinyu to her room. The whole family had given Xu Qinyu the largest room in the main house.

Entering the room, there was a four-panel screen at the entrance. Behind the screen was the canopy bed, already hung with a white curtain, hooked up to reveal the inside of the canopy bed. Her small cabinets and money chests were placed inside the canopy bed.