Chapter 35

“Since you knew all this, why didn’t you tell me and the Marquis earlier?”

Doctor Pan broke out in a cold sweat at Luo Xin’s question.

He was in a hurry earlier and wanted to explain everything, hoping Luo Xin would understand that Miss Shen’s illness was just a misunderstanding and not due to his father’s incorrect treatment.

Now it seemed that Ruojin was pretending to be sick without informing the Marquis’s wife. His words suggested his father helped Ruojin fake her illness in exchange for bribes, which is unethical and could backfire.

Doctor Pan feared that the Marquis’s wife would blame his father, thinking that his plea would not save his father but rather lead to a harsher punishment. Realizing this, he quickly left the Marquis’s mansion.

Not long after Doctor Pan left, Mama Zhao from De Shou Hall came to the main courtyard, saying that the old lady wanted to invite Madam Hou for a chat.

Luo Xin was upset and said, “I feel dizzy today. If there’s nothing important, I won’t go. I can visit my mother another day.”

Mama Zhao insisted that the old lady had something important to discuss regarding the preparation of the dowry for the second young lady, who was getting married soon.

The Duke Lingguo’s Mansion has come to the Shen family to propose marriage, so they are discussing gift-giving and preparing a dowry.

Luo Xin is angry and shocked to learn that Shen Ruojin pretended to be sick to keep Tao Sheng from returning home. Luo Xin sees Shen Ruojin as an adopted daughter trying to prevent her biological daughter from coming home. She no longer sees Ruojin as innocent and harmless.

The idea of preparing a dowry for such an adopted daughter makes Luo Xin even more upset.

“Okay, just tell the old lady. I’ll change my clothes and go.”

_

To help with today’s discussions, Old Madam Shen pretended not to know about the argument between Luo Xin and Shen Yu a few days ago. When she met her daughter-in-law, she acted normally: “I heard that the master took Jin’er to the Grand Tutor’s residence this time and didn’t meet your father. Is your father-in-law really sick? Do you want me to go to the residence with you another day?”

Luo Xin realized Old Madam Shen was trying to test the Luo family’s attitude about whether they were claiming the father was sick to avoid seeing the Shen family.

Luo Xin calmly replied while taking a teacup from Mother Zhao, “Father just has an old illness. I don’t think it’s serious. Don’t worry about it, mother.”

“Then I’m relieved,” Old Madam Shen said. “It’s okay if your father is not in good health; after all, he is just Jin’er’s grandfather. When it comes time for the wedding, even if he doesn’t attend, it won’t matter as long as his heart is there. But since Jin’er’s wedding is coming soon, and she is marrying the prince of the Duke of Lingguo’s mansion, you must take care of yourself and not get sick again. Jin’er’s wedding will need you, her mother, to handle the preparations.”

“My health has always been poor, and you know it, mother,” Luo Xin replied. “I remember that when Ruolin got married, my second sister helped with the arrangements. If I ask my second sister to help when Ruojin gets married this time, I think it will be fine.”

When Shen Ruolin married, Old Madam Shen had asked Shen Yu’s sister to help because her daughter-in-law was ill. Her sister-in-law also benefited from this.

Luo Xin didn’t want to plan Ruojin’s wedding anymore. Since the old lady was watching them closely, she thought it would be better for the Shen family to handle it themselves as before. This way, she wouldn’t be blamed if things went wrong.

But the old lady firmly refused.

“Ruolin is just a concubine’s daughter; how can she be compared to Jin’er? Jin’er’s marriage is important for our family’s reputation and the Duke’s family, so naturally, the mistress of the house must be involved.”

“But I’m not well now. If I push myself to arrange Ruojin’s wedding, things might go wrong,” Luo Xin said, coughing a few times into her handkerchief. “These are lessons my mother taught me. Taking care of your health is the most important. Don’t be stubborn when facing problems. There are people at home to help, so don’t worry if you’re sick.”

Years ago, the old lady wanted to control the family and make all the decisions. She would always use her poor health as an excuse to keep Luo Xin from doing housework.

There are pros and cons to everything.

Previously, these words were the old lady’s excuse for not wanting Luo Xin to be in charge, but now they became her excuse to avoid worrying about it.

Luo Xin wouldn’t agree, and Old Madam Shen could not force her daughter-in-law to arrange her granddaughter’s marriage. She could only say coldly, “Since you are not well, forget it. Have you thought about how to prepare Jin’er’s dowry?”

“Just prepare it as usual according to your family’s customs for marrying off a daughter.”

“That won’t do!” Old Madam Shen raised her voice. “Jin’er is the only legitimate daughter of our mansion now, and she is marrying into a high position. Her wedding must be grand. We can’t let anyone laugh at us. The master agrees with me that the dowry cannot be given away easily.”

This is not only about the dignity of the Marquis’s Mansion but also about showing goodwill to the Duke Lingguo’s Mansion, hoping they will support the Shen family in the future.

Luo Xin couldn’t help but wonder about the old lady’s complaints about Ruojin’s small dowry: “Ruojin was raised by you, and now she is marrying into the Duke’s Mansion, which is also the result of your careful nurturing. How much dowry will you give Ruojin when she gets married?”

Madam Shen’s face darkened, and she didn’t answer.

Luo Xin frowned.

In past dynasties, when daughters of the marquis’s family married, their dowries were usually fixed. However, the marquis’s family had been declining for years. Now that Ruojin is getting married, people fear they might not even afford what Shen Ruolin had when she married.

But since Ruojin is a legitimate daughter and marrying into a wealthy family, her dowry can’t compare to a concubine’s daughter.

In wealthy families in the capital, when a legitimate daughter like Ruojin marries, her mother or grandmother usually contributes some of their own dowry.

Old Madam Shen normally acted kindly, but when she realized she would have to use her own savings for Ruojin’s dowry, she fell silent.

Luo Xin’s dowry was generous, and over the years, the Luo family managed it well, separate from the Shen family. When Shen Ruolin married, the old lady didn’t ask her to add to the dowry since Ruolin was a concubine’s daughter. Now she tried to hint that Luo Xin should give more dowry.

Luo Xin finally understood the plan of the Shen family mother and son. The Marquis’s Mansion was low on money, and the old lady was worried about the future. She wanted to keep the money she saved for her retirement and had no intention of adding to Ruojin’s dowry.

This meant the old lady had raised Shen Ruojin as her own daughter with all her plans in mind. When Ruojin marries in the future, she, as her mother, would be expected to pay for the dowry, allowing the old lady to be a respected elder without any worry.

What a clever plan!

Originally, Luo Xin thought that since Ruojin had called her mother for over ten years and she had enough private funds, it was reasonable to spend a little on her dowry. But now, with Ruojin’s deception and the old lady’s scheming, she felt disgusted and didn’t want to spend any money on this family.

“What are you talking about, mother?” Luo Xin said. “Ruojin has everything: your love, the Lord’s care, and support from her brothers. She has been raised by you, and everyone knows her well. I can’t compare with you as her mother. I will give only half of the dowry you give.”

Old Madam Shen’s face changed.

She thought that Luo Xin’s family was rich and could easily prepare a great dowry for Ruojin. Old Madam Shen only planned to add 1,000 taels of silver to make things festive.

But based on what Luo Xin said, if she gave Ruojin 1,000 taels, wouldn’t Old Madam Shen herself only give 500 taels?

Old Madam Shen always reminded Luo Xin to behave and not use her family’s power to disrespect elders. She didn’t expect Luo Xin to challenge her now.

Luo Xin’s wealth was managed by her family’s professionals. Even Old Madam Shen and Shen Yu’s mother couldn’t touch it without Luo Xin’s approval. After all, Luo Xin’s father, Old Grand Tutor Luo, would protect his family’s property.

For the first time in years, Old Madam Shen realized she had made a big mistake.