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Half a month passed quietly, during which Hong Ling and Lu Ying made efforts to gather information.
Of course, gathering information required money, and Lu Man’s money and dowry keys were all under Hong Ling’s control.
Previously, the original Lu Man hadn’t been concerned about the dowry due to her unwillingness regarding the marriage. Lu Man didn’t know how much dowry the Lu family had provided. When Lu Man asked Hong Ling to bring out the dowry list, she was startled to find that there was so much.
In addition to the gold and jade jewelry, ornaments, over twenty sets of clothing, more than ten sets of bedding, over fifty pieces of fabric, some medicinal herbs, there were also 2,500 taels of silver in the chests, along with a hundred well-made silver ingots. Because the marriage was hasty, there were no furnishings or daily necessities prepared by the bride’s family. The furniture and items in her room had all been provided by the Princess’s residence.
Five hundred taels of silver and a few pieces of jewelry, all the clothes, bedding, were newly purchased by the Lu family, while the rest were part of the betrothal gifts from the Princess’s residence. Because the Old Lady and her eldest Uncle were pleased to have such a prestigious marriage, the betrothal gifts from the Princess’s residence were regarded as her dowry, and they even added an extra five hundred taels of silver.
According to Lu Ying’s discreet remarks, “The Second Madam intended to embezzle a large portion of the betrothal gifts, and the First Madam wanted to embezzle a thousand taels of silver, but they were scolded by the Old Madam and the Master, and hence couldn’t speak up. The dozen or so sets of bedding had even been moved from the eldest Miss, Lu Yu’s dowry. There were intentions to transfer some land as well, but the First Madam cried and made a fuss, so it wasn’t done.”
The dowry was kept in the east compartments of the backyard. Lu Man had Hong Ling open the storeroom for a look. Over twenty chests were filled, ten of them containing bedding. There were also four 500-tael silver bills and a small box of silver ingots. Lu Man smiled contentedly. With so much wealth, even if she were divorced, she wouldn’t have to worry about making ends meet.
Of course, first she had to survive.
Lu Man had Hong Ling manage the accounts and Lu Ying manage the storeroom keys, while the key to the locked silver bills and the silver were kept in the wardrobe in her room, under her personal care. She also brought out some fabric and had the two maids help her make some small gifts to show filial piety to the elders. Due to the hasty marriage, these items had not been prepared initially. In her previous life, Lu Man had been clumsy with her hands, but the original Lu Man had learned needlework under the guidance of her Nursemaid. Although she wasn’t very skilled, she could manage.
She noticed that Hong Ling was reluctant to hand over the keys, but she pretended not to see it.
Hong Ling was furious and couldn’t help but say, “Third Young Madam, the Second Madam originally decided that I would be the head maid, and Lu Ying would be the second maid. She shouldn’t meddle in these important matters.”
Lu Man sternly responded, “The Lu family is not of high status. There is only one head maid. Now, as the Third Young Madam of the Princess’s residence, there is more than one head maid position available, so I have already promoted Lu Ying to be a head maid.”
The original Lu Man’s death was related to Hong Ling. In inheriting the original Lu Man’s body, Lu Man felt she should help her avenge her grievances. However, she needed to wait a bit longer. Hong Ling was a crucial witness to Mrs. Xiao Chen’s framing of the original Lu Man. Once she exposed Mrs. Xiao Chen’s deeds, then she would proceed. Moreover, she currently lacked someone reliable and couldn’t afford to antagonize Hong Ling immediately.
Lu Man also remembered her wet nurse, Mama Wang, who had served the original Lu Man for twelve years. Her eyes were always filled with compassion. If she could survive, she needed to find Mama Wang. She was the original Lu Man’s only warmth for twelve years. Not only was she kind to the original Lu Man, but she could also provide Lu Man with valuable information. Knowing oneself and the enemy leads to a hundred victories. Although Lu Man didn’t want to be involved with the Lu family, she needed to find out why Mrs. Xiao Chen had harmed the original Lu Man, and Mama Wang should know. Mrs. Xiao Chen’s actions needed to be exposed.
Lu Ying was also loyal, but she had been influenced by the original Lu Man’s delusions and considered her to be unintelligent and weak. She had always been suppressed by Hong Ling.
Upon hearing that she had been promoted to head maid, Lu Ying was overjoyed and immediately knelt down to kowtow to Lu Man.
Lu Man then addressed Hong Ling, “Both you and Lu Ying were brought from my natal family, and you are my confidants. You must unite and work for me. My days will be better, and so will yours.”
Unable to argue further, Hong Ling obediently handed over the keys.
Lu Man instructed them to take most of the silver ingots to gather information about the residence. With the information obtained from the two maids and through the investigations within the Lu residence, Lu Man gained an understanding of the general situation in the Princess’s residence.
Lu Man’s father-in-law, Second Master Jiang Yuanzhao, was a fifth-rank civil official holding the position of a Ministry of Rites junior officer at the age of thirty-nine. His legitimate wife, Madam Lin, was a renowned talented woman of the time, well known for her poetry and beauty, and was admired by many literati and scholars. Second Master Jiang had pursued her ardently, and it was only through the Princess Changting’s request to the Empress Dowager that he was able to marry Madam Lin. Consequently, Second Master Jiang was highly cautious around her.
How could someone so fearful produce three illegitimate children? Moreover, there were only illegitimate children from the second Madam in three households.
Lu Man couldn’t comprehend it. She decided to slowly delve into more secretive matters.
Princess Changting was the Emperor Chu Hezong’s older sister, seven years his senior. They lost their birth mother when they were young, and providing each other with mutual support in the palace was no easy feat. Chu Hezong eventually ascended to the throne and greatly respected his elder sister.
The old Marquis was fifty-nine years old, just a year younger than Princess Changting. In his youth, he was the only legitimate son of the Hengchang Marquis’s estate. His father favored his concubine and their three illegitimate children, allowing them to torment the old Marquis and his mother, tarnishing their reputation to the point where they nearly lost the heir’s title. Later, the old Marquis encountered a landslide while traveling and saved Princess Changting, who had gone to a temple to pray. Upon seeing the old Marquis, a refined and handsome man back then who had saved her life, Princess Changting fell in love at first sight and sought the Empress Dowager’s approval for their marriage.
Grateful and enamored by the old Marquis, Princess Changting declined the palace that the Emperor had offered her and moved into the Hengchang Marquis’s estate. She not only honored the old Marquis’s parents but also expelled the favored concubine and her illegitimate children from the Marquis’s estate.
In this dynasty which valued filial piety, the late Emperor greatly admired the Princess Changting’s actions and believed that he had educated his daughter well. While commending her, he ordered an expansion and renovation of the Hengchang Marquis’s estate. Out of respect for the Princess Changting, the estate was temporarily named the Princess Changting’s residence. After the Princess Changting’s passing, the estate would revert to its original name, Hengchang Marquis’s estate.
Due to the old Marquis’s intense dislike for concubines and illegitimate children and his gratitude toward Princess Changting for her virtue and propriety, he decreed that his descendants were not to take concubines or have illegitimate children…
Therefore, as illegitimate children, Jiang Zhanwei and his two siblings were not favored by the old Marquis, and naturally, they were not favored by other members of the household.
Lu Man also disliked concubines and illegitimate children, but her relationship with Jiang Zhanwei made things complicated.
The current Marquis, at forty-one years old, had inherited the title of Hengchang Marquis and held the position of an Imperial Censor of the Right in the Censorate, a role that the Emperor highly appreciated. The Marquis’s wife, Madam Hong, managed the household’s provisions alongside the Prefect of the Princess Changting’s residence.