Chapter 44 Black and White on Paper

Despite the flashes of lightning and rumbles of thunder, the expected rain and snow did not fall.

Half an hour later, the Marquis of Changle and his wife arrived at the estate with seven or eight large chests.

At that time, Zhou Shen had not yet left. Knowing it was nearly lunchtime, upon hearing a maid report their arrival, Zhou Shen made no further mention of excusing himself.

The Marquis of Changle entered with a face as dark as iron. Catching sight of Zhou Shen seated composedly in the main hall, he was reminded of the two beatings he had suffered at his hands, making his expression even more sullen. He sneered and took a veiled jab at him first: "Lord Zhou truly does not consider himself an outsider."

Zhou Shen couldn't be bothered to entertain him. Madam Liang lightly tapped the armrest and corrected him: "Lord Zhou holds the entrustment letter left by my elder brother, and he is a guest whom I invited. In the General's Manor, who is an outsider and who is one of our own is entirely up to Chuchu and me to decide, not you."

The Marquis of Changle let out a cold snort and seated himself. Madame Zhou tried to smooth things over from the side: "We've brought the account books over, thinking we could sort out the ones that are easy to check today, and you can look through the rest at your leisure. Baoqi happened to be here when Lord Zhou was present, and after she went home, she came back to persuade us. Come to think of it, she even wept, likely feeling it was a laughingstock to let an outsider like Lord Zhou see this."

"If you don't make a laughingstock of yourselves, how could others laugh at you?" Madame Liang did not spare even a shred of face for her sister-in-law, Madame Zhou. Hearing mention of the account books, she glanced at the two chests carried inside, then cast her gaze further out where the remaining chests were placed in the courtyard. "Are these all the account books?"

Madame Zhou nodded and said, "My younger brother... well, the shops and farmland belonging to the late Lady Liu were managed by me over the years. These two chests contain the accounts for those properties. The assets left behind by the late General Liang fill a total of six chests, and one more chest contains the living and clothing expenses for their family of three in the Marquis's estate. You can verify them slowly. I've calculated over the past three days: after handing over the shops and farmland to Shanzhu, factoring in the silver earned over all these years along with what the General left behind, and deducting what their family spent, we will still provide an additional one hundred and thirty thousand taels to make it up to Shanzhu. Once you've verified everything and found no issues, we can settle the accounts. But I must make it clear beforehand: the Marquis's estate cannot produce that much right now. Not to mention the public funds, even if I were to liquidate all of my private property, at the absolute maximum, I could scrape together ninety thousand taels and not a penny more."

She sighed and looked at Liang Shanzhu: "As for the remaining forty thousand taels, how about I write you an IOU and pay it back gradually? Is that acceptable?"

Liang Shanzhu stood with her hands tucked inside her sleeves beside Madame Liang, remaining completely silent. Upon hearing this, Madame Liang stated directly, "Are you implying that even if the Marquis's estate smashes pots and sells iron, and liquidates all its assets, this is all it can muster?"

The Marquis of Changle was boiling with rage and almost slammed his fist on the table, only restrained by a warning look from Madame Zhou.

He endured it with gritted teeth: "According to you, we won't need to live our lives anymore! You expect us to sell off all the properties brought by your sister-in-law as her dowry, and have our whole family live on my meager salary from now on, while giving everything else to her, is that it?"

Madame Liang raised an eyebrow and gave Pei Jingxing a look. He immediately took over: "Uncle, paying one's debts is a matter of natural justice. This is not about anyone's personal whim; it is simply how things ought to be."

Before the Marquis of Changle could fly into a rage, Madame Liang added, "However, I am merely taking back what rightfully belongs to Chuchu; I have no wish to drive anyone into a dead end. Once I have examined the account books, we can sit down and discuss leisurely how much silver should be given and in what manner."

Yet, changing her tone abruptly, she asked Madame Zhou, "Are you certain these are all the account books?"

Madame Zhou's expression stiffened slightly: "Of course I am certain."

Knowing what Madame Liang was implying, she added, "You needn't worry about me fabricating false accounts. Even if I had manipulated the ledgers in the past, the ones I've brought to the General's Manor today are genuine. Otherwise, I'd only be inviting trouble for myself, and I'm not that foolish."

"Very well." Madame Liang pressed no further. "Those are your own words, and Lord Zhou is a witness. If I check the accounts and find discrepancies, we will settle it in a court of law. When that time comes, don't try to use your status as sister-in-law to excuse yourselves."

Madame Zhou tightly pressed her lips together, and the Marquis of Changle slammed his hand heavily onto the armrest: "What kind of people do you take us for?"

"Do I need to spell out what kind of character you possess?" Madame Liang refused to fall for his act, coldly rebuffed him, and immediately issued an order to dismiss them. "Since the things have been delivered, I won't keep you for lunch. Once the accounts are tallied, I will send someone to notify the Marquis's estate, and you can come back then with whatever is required."

"Wait..." Seeing Madame Liang make a move as if to stand, assuming she intended to leave right then and there, Madame Zhou hurriedly called out to stop her.

As it turned out, Madame Liang merely shifted her posture and settled into a different position.

Madame Zhou's expression shifted once more. Wearing an "I knew it" look, Madame Liang raised an eyebrow and asked, "Is there something else?"

"It's about Baoqi." Realizing she had fallen into a trap, Madame Zhou felt she had appeared far too eager.

The moment anyone shows eagerness, they come across as opportunistic and overly calculated, which only invites ridicule.

Yet, having already gone this far, she had no choice but to bite the bullet and push through; otherwise, all her efforts would be completely wasted.

Madame Zhou bitterly regretted not having raised her daughter to be sharper. Had it been Liang Shanzhu, there was no way she would have packed up and left on the strength of a vague, breezy promise from Madame Liang.

With the precedent of Liang Shanzhu outwitting the old patriarch and the others right there, Baoqi had still been foolish enough to believe it.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have had to bring this up herself.

Hesitating for a fleeting moment, Madame Zhou hardened her heart and said, "Baoqi came home and said a great deal to us, and she offered much persuasion. Since you still hold regard for family ties, we are willing to take this step back.

"However, verbal promises concerning what you agreed to with Baoqi amount to nothing in writing.

"It's not that your sister-in-law doesn't trust you, but having reached this point, too many things have turned out beyond our imagination.

"Since you made promises to Baoqi, it would be best to put them down in black and white so there is proof for the future."

She lowered her gaze, not daring to look at Madame Liang anymore, and even less willing to meet the mockery glinting in Liang Shanzhu's eyes. "I am a mother. Regardless of what I might have done in the past, I still want the children to fare well.

"Leaving aside Zhao-ge, even for Baoqi's sake—if you hand over this massive sum to Shanzhu all at once, I will find it extremely difficult to prepare a decent dowry for Baoqi within the next two years. To put it bluntly, even I am counting on your share so that Baoqi won't marry in a way that looks destitute, lest her future husband's family fault her for it."

When all was said and done, those four words—"black and white"—formed the crux of her purpose.

Liang Shanzhu's brow twitched. "The Marchioness has said so much, doesn't it all boil down to simply not trusting my aunt?"

Pei Jingxing chimed in, "Besides, we've never heard of an aunt being expected to prepare a niece's dowry. When cousin Baoqi came and begged, Mother took pity on her and agreed. Why bring all this up again now?

"Furthermore, according to cousin Baoqi's own words, it was Uncle and Aunt who drove her to such lengths, forcing her to cast aside her pride and beg Mother. It's hard to say whether Aunt isn't just eyeing this sum of money again, which is why she's demanding some sort of written proof in black and white."

"Very well, I'll write it for you." Watching the two youngsters trade remarks while the Marquis and his wife sat wishing the ground would swallow them up, Madame Liang suddenly smiled. "We will discuss everything after the accounts are checked. As long as the ledgers are clear, I will write you this proof to give your entire family peace of mind. Can you leave now?"