Chapter 277: Hundred Silver Taels from Neighbors
Chapter 277: Hundred Silver Taels from Neighbors
As the evening became darker, the Chen Manor got illuminated by the warm glow of the lanterns and candles. A light breeze rustled the curtains as all the family members gathered in the dining hall for dinner.
"How come I don’t see three of the Young Masters? Where are they?" Zuan Hu asked when she noticed the three empty seats that belonged to Xin Cheng, Dao Ming, and Zhe Yuan.
Xiang Ling opened her mouth to answer, but at that very moment, Xin Cheng and Dao Ming stepped into the dining hall.
"Our apologies for being late for dinner, first sister-in-law. We will make sure to not become repeat offenders." Dao Ming offered the apology as he and Xin Cheng took off their cloaks and handed them to the maids waiting by.
"It’s alright. Come quickly and take your seats." Zuan Hu didn’t appear the least bit offended. Instead, she was beaming to see the men finally addressing her as their sister-in-law. In the past, there was barely any exchange of words between Xiang Ling’s husbands and the other members of the Chen family. However, things were changing now for the better.
"Wait! Young Master Wen is still not here. Should we send a servant to look for him?" Chao Xing asked Xiang Ling.
"There’s no need. He will not be joining us tonight for dinner. I have asked Fu Xiao to deliver his dinner to his room. Let’s start eating now." Xiang Ling answered with a smile before she turned her attention to the food and picked up her chopsticks.
Though she didn’t provide any reason for why Zhe Yuan was not joining them for the dinner, no one dared to ask any further questions about the matter. They all followed her lead and shifted their attention on the food.
On the other hand, Xin Cheng and Dao Ming did look at the other three husbands for some sort of information when they heard Xiang Ling informing everyone about Zhe Yuan not joining them for dinner. All they got in response was a whispered line from Zhang Xuan - "You will find out later."
Soon enough, everyone was focused on enjoying the delicious dishes that the kitchen had prepared for the dinner. It was a few minutes into the dinner when Aunt Yan entered the dining hall and came to whisper something in Xiang Ling’s ears.
"How much did they pay you?" Xiang Ling asked.
"A hundred taels, My Lady." Aunt Yan answered as she took out the box of silvers and handed it to Fu Xiao.
"Hundred? But you only worked for seven hours." Xiang Ling was surprised to find put that the Crown Prince paid extra thirty taels. Though the man wasn’t poor in any case, she wasn’t expecting him to spend money when it was related to her.
"Young Master Wu said that the extra taels are an appreciation gift from him and Young Madam Su for all the help. They also enjoyed the food that our servants prepared for them." Aunt Yan informed Xiang Ling, to which, the latter nodded her head in approval.
"You did a great job today, Aunt Yan. Please arrive at the Main Hall tomorrow morning with the group of servants who followed you to Wu Residence today. First Young Master will properly distribute these hundred silver taels among them."
"Yes, My Lady. I thank you on behalf of all the servants." Aunt Yan bowed before she took her leave.
"Xiang’er, what is going on?" Hao Ran asked as he was completely clueless about what his sister was talking about with Aunt Yan, and he wasn’t the only one.
Xiang Ling immediately revealed everything that transpired during noon when she went to meet their new neighbors and ended up making a deal with them that helped their servants earn those hundred silver taels.
"Are you saying that our neighbors are none other than the-"
Though Hao Ran didn’t finish his question, everyone knew exactly what he was going to ask. And when Xiang Ling nodded her head in a positive response, it left everyone shocked.
"Why are they staying right next to our house?" Zuan Hu asked as a worried look descended over her face.
"Don’t worry too much, first sister-in-law. I will handle them. Leave them to me." Xiang Ling tried to dismiss her sister-in-law’s worry.
"I know that you are more than capable of handling them, Xiang’er. But don’t forget their identities. They are people we can’t afford to offend. So, make sure that whatever you do, it will not create trouble for you." Zuan Hu advised seriously, to which, Xiang Ling nodded her head in understanding. "I will make sure that no harm comes to the Chen family." She promised and finally saw her brothers and sister-in-laws relaxing.
"By the way, Xiang’er, I heard about the offer you gave to Offcial Zhu. Are you finally thinking about working for earning father’s forgiveness?" Hao Ran asked while changing the topic.
"Did you hear it from father?" Xiang Ling asked, curious to know what was County Magistrate’s opinion about her being the one solving the problem of the beggars.
"That’s right. I took the kids to meet him and mother this afternoon when he mentioned about the recent news he received from Official Zhu. He’s actually looking forward to it because he believes that you are just boasting." Hao Ran told her with a little chuckle.
Xiang Ling scoffed after finding out about County Magistrate’s reaction. "I will prove to him that I’m not someone who goes around boasting without being able to follow my words. Just wait until the day after tomorrow."
"Of course, you will. We all know very well exactly what you are capable of. It’s time that father also finds out for himself just how much he has been underestimating his daughter." Hao Ran was quick to motivate her. "But putting everything aside, he surely believes in you. He’s just reluctant to show it. These past months, he and mother had been aware of everything that you have been doing. They are just waiting for you to go and find him."
A soft sigh left Xiang Ling’s lips. "Let me handle this matter of beggars’ shelter first. Then I will go to ask for mother and father’s forgiveness."