Cultivation Begins with Caring for Sister-in-law-Chapter 374: I Have Decided to Offer Two Hundred Thousand Taels as the Commandery Princess’s Betrothal Gift
Upon hearing this, Chen Mo was taken aback; he never expected Diwu Fusheng to ask him for a dowry.
Diwu Fusheng, seeing Chen Mo’s embarrassed expression, felt much better and continued, "Since Madam Hui has betrothed the Princess to the Marquis, then it is a formal marriage. Even though she is to be a concubine, the proper rituals cannot be neglected. Surely, the Marquis wouldn’t scrimp on the dowry, would he?"
Chen Mo: "..."
"Sir, what are you saying? The dowry will certainly be provided, but you also know that I’m in charge of the Four States, with millions of people depending on me. Livelihoods are difficult, with money needed everywhere, and the pressure is immense..." Chen Mo started by lamenting his poverty and then said, "But the Princess is genuine and sincere towards me, so even if times are tough, the dowry cannot be spared."
"Are you just stalling with me here..." Diwu Fusheng listened for a long time, getting more and more confused, saying, "After all this talk, how much are you planning to give as the dowry?"
Don’t speak abstractly, provide a number.
However, he was not the parent of Princess Chu Juan and couldn’t properly ask Chen Mo for specifics regarding the dowry, inwardly lamenting that he had underestimated Chen Mo’s shamelessness.
"Sir, please rest here for the night. I will inform Madam Hui about this matter shortly so she can prepare. Tomorrow morning, she can leave with you." Chen Mo said.
"I hope the Marquis will keep his promise." Diwu Fusheng said.
"Rest assured, sir."
...
After Diwu Fusheng left, Chen Mo went again to the residence where Prince Huai’s family was held. Coincidentally, he met Princess Consort Huai once more, recalling the scene he had witnessed a few mornings ago when the cooling period of certain intentions had passed, and he couldn’t help but feel somewhat improper.
Chen Mo smiled at Xiao Yunxi, then proceeded directly to Madam Hui’s courtyard.
Watching Chen Mo’s departing figure, Xiao Yunxi frowned, thinking: This lustful man has just left only to return again before dusk, doesn’t he need rest...
...
Inside Madam Hui’s room, Madam Hui was having dinner with her second daughter, Chu Juan. The dishes were plentiful: seven dishes and one soup, half of which were meat dishes.
Madam Hui loved red, wearing a striking palace outfit in bright red adorned with gold-threaded floral embroidery—truly resplendent and unparalleled in elegance. She held the bowl with three slender jade fingers; her hands, smooth as polished white jade, were round and slender. With chopsticks, she picked up a pea-sized rice ball and elegantly placed it in her mouth. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖
Chu Juan knelt opposite Madam Hui, separated by a long table, wearing a blue long skirt. Her face was pale and exquisite, as if porcelain, smooth and flawless. She resembled Madam Hui to a certain extent, more delicate but lacking some maturity.
At that moment, she lowered her head, eating only white rice without a word.
Madam Hui noticed this and placed a piece of meat into Chu Juan’s bowl, saying, "Juan’Er, what’s wrong? Why are you only eating rice and not taking any dishes?"
"Nothing..." Chu Juan bit into the piece of meat that Madam Hui had given her, but it tasted like sawdust to her. After chewing for a while, she couldn’t help but say, "Mother, has he... visited you?"
Madam Hui was startled, "Who?"
"That person."
"Chen Mo?" Madam Hui asked.
"Yes."
"No, why are you asking?"
"That’s good then."
"Hmm?" Madam Hui was puzzled.
"It’s nothing." Chu Juan raised her eyes to meet Madam Hui’s gaze. Seeing a hint of confusion but no signs of panic, she breathed a sigh of relief, reassured.
Chu Juan spent her days in this mansion, aware of the happenings here. Rumors circulated among the servants that Princess Consort Huai and the three madams were involved with the Marquis, which made Chu Juan very worried; fearing it might be true, she was already convinced that Madam Xiao and Madam Gan had affairs with Chen Mo.
Madam Hui put down her chopsticks, "Juan’Er, are you hiding something from your mother?"
"No, mother, please don’t ask." How could Chu Juan discuss such matters openly, especially with Madam Hui being her mother?
Madam Hui felt something was off. At that moment, Chen Mo’s voice rang from outside.
Both Madam Hui and Chu Juan’s expressions changed slightly.
Chen Mo didn’t knock, directly pushing the door open and entering, "Having dinner, are you? Smells delicious. I haven’t eaten yet. Just in time to join you."
Chen Mo closed the door and approached.
The two ladies stood up, tense and flustered.
Chen Mo sat on the floor by the long table and summoned the two women over, saying, "Sit down. We’re all family. Why so formal?"
The two women exchanged glances. Chu Juan held Madam Hui’s hand, and the latter lightly patted Chu Juan’s hand, soothing her. She then forced a smile and said, "We’ve all eaten enough."
She then said to Chu Juan, "Juan’Er, you should go back first."
"Mother..." Chu Juan didn’t want Madam Hui to face Chen Mo alone.
"Go back first."
"Yes, Mother."
Just as Chu Juan was reluctantly about to leave, her small hand was suddenly grabbed by Chen Mo, making her gasp as if electrocuted, startling Madam Hui as well.
"Don’t rush off. I have more to say. Join me for dinner." With that, he pulled her closer to him, sitting her by his side, their bodies closely touching.
Chu Juan, who had never been in such close contact with a man, felt extremely uncomfortable, uneasy.
"Marquis, you..."
Madam Hui wanted to say something but was directly interrupted by Chen Mo, "Since Madam has betrothed the Princess to me, she is now my woman. There’s no harm in having her stay and accompany me for dinner, is there?"
Though it was a marriage to a concubine rather than a wife, Madam Hui’s act of betrothing her effectively meant she had entered the family. Later, they only needed to share a drink with Chen Mo and Wu Mi, and the ceremony would be complete.
Madam Hui had nothing to say. The two were already considered a couple. Seeing her daughter’s pleading eyes, Madam Hui pretended not to notice, sitting across from them.
"I see the food and rice haven’t been much touched, did you truly eat enough?" Chen Mo scanned the table, particularly noticing the bowls of rice hardly eaten at all.
"The Princess and I have no appetite." Madam Hui said, lowering her gaze.
"Who knows the toil behind each grain of rice. We can’t waste it." Chen Mo combined the contents of the two bowls into one and began eating.
Madam Hui and Chu Juan were taken aback, their faces reddening slightly.
To cover the awkwardness, Madam Hui hurriedly asked, "What does the Marquis wish to discuss?"
After eating a few mouthfuls to fill his stomach, Chen Mo put down the bowl and chopsticks and leaned his mouth toward Chu Juan.
"Ah..." Chu Juan was startled.
"Wipe your husband’s mouth." Chen Mo said impatiently.
In contrast to how he treated Liang Xue and others, Chen Mo did not plan to continue with Chu Juan as he did with them. He needed to set her straight.
Chu Juan was startled; since childhood, she had always been cared for by others, never having to serve anyone herself. She felt a wave of grievance but dared not defy him, taking a handkerchief from her sleeve to help Chen Mo wipe his mouth, her face reddening further.
Chen Mo then said, "I wrote to Prince Huai these days, asking him to send someone to fetch you. The person has arrived today. To demonstrate my attitude toward the Princess, I decided to offer two hundred thousand taels as the Princess’s betrothal gift."
