novelhk Is Chapter 170 a mistake?
Is Chapter 170 a mistake?
Upon hearing this, Qiao Qingshu's eyebrows twitched. She touched the thick stack of individual lists in her sleeve, a look of surprise on her face.
At this moment, Old Madam Xiao revealed a sly smile.
"There are a total of 580,000 taels in here. The gifts from Consort Xiande haven't been put in yet. When you get married, they will be carried to the Xiao family and put directly into your private treasury."
As everyone watched the endless stream of boxes being carried inside, they all realized something was wrong.
It should have been over after just a few boxes, but they keep sending more in. This huge yard is now almost completely full.
The servant had no choice but to move the boxes to the inner courtyard.
Qiao Qingle stared wide-eyed as she watched the boxes being carried into the inner courtyard, and couldn't help but shout.
"How could this be? How come there are so many more?"
Xiao Chengyan also shared the same doubts. He frowned and said unhappily,
"Mother, what's going on? Why are there so many extra things? Is there a mistake?"
Madam Xing was also flustered at this moment. She was worried that the accountant might have miscalculated and sent dozens of extra betrothal gifts.
She rushed forward to remind Madam Xiao, just as the words "580,000 taels" reached her ears.
She froze in shock, covering her mouth, unable to believe it was real!
In addition to the five thousand taels, the Xiao family also contributed five hundred and eighty thousand taels!
What kind of spell did Madam Xiao take to make Qiao Qingshu so respectful?
You should know that decades ago, when she entered the Xiao family, the betrothal gifts were only 50,000 taels!
It's only been one generation since then, and Qiao Qingshu married Xiao's illegitimate son. Her mind was buzzing.
She couldn't understand it, she just couldn't understand it!
She was about to say something when she was stopped by Old Madam Xiao's furrowed brows.
Old Madam Xiao seemed to know what her eldest daughter-in-law wanted to say to her, so she simply waved her hand and said...
"We can talk about this back home! Now you may leave!"
Madam Xing opened and closed her mouth, as if a huge stone was blocking her heart, and her face no longer showed the carefree joy she had just displayed.
When she walked back to Uncle Qiao's side, Qiao Zhiheng asked curiously,
"Did you find out what happened? Did they move the wrong thing?"
Xiao Chengyan, standing to the side, also looked at his mother with curiosity, hoping to get a positive answer from her.
But Madam Xing's eyes were fixed, and she kept muttering to herself.
"Five hundred and eighty thousand! Five hundred and eighty thousand! I don't even have a fraction of that!"
Xiao Chengyan was still frowning, unable to understand what his mother was saying, but Xiao Zhiheng already understood.
His usually calm face suddenly darkened, and he looked at Xiao Zhinuo with a very complicated expression.
Why does Xiao Zhinuo, the second son of a concubine, always receive honors and wealth that are not rightfully his?
A fierce glint flashed in his eyes, but it disappeared immediately.
At this moment, Xiao Zhinuo and Su Yunzhen from the second wife's family walked hand in hand toward Qiao Qingshu.
Although Xiao Zhinuo is over forty years old, he looks handsome and refined, with an elegant and scholarly air.
He rubbed his hands together apologetically and said...
"Qingshu! The situation is quite tense right now, which is why we have to resort to this measure. We hope you don't mind. We know that this will make you lose face, but we have no choice but to do this for the safety of both families. We will make it up to you properly after you marry into our family."
Su Yunzhen also said shyly,
"Qingshu, I'm sorry. I know that young ladies value appearances and grandeur in their weddings. We will definitely make it up to you in the future."
Qiao Qingshu gave a cheerful smile.
"It's alright, I don't mind at all. Five thousand taels is enough. I'm not a vain person."
Looking at Qiao Qingshu's expression, Madam Xiao nodded.
Having lived for decades, she was always very good at judging people. The moment she read out the meager dowry list, the expressions on everyone's faces betrayed them.
The matriarch of the Xiao family coldly observed everyone's expressions, not at all surprised by their reactions.
Snobbery, vanity, jealousy, envy, mockery, ridicule, contempt...
All of this, Madam Xiao saw and heard.
When her gaze fell upon Qiao Qingshu, Old Madam Xiao paused in surprise.
Qiao Qingshu's expression was calm as still water, her eyes revealing no ripples or emotions, as if it were someone else who was presenting the betrothal gifts today, and had nothing to do with her.
The old lady of the Xiao family couldn't help but calm down and observe for a moment before she noticed a hint of indifference in Qiao Qingshu's eyes.
She really doesn't seem to care about these things...
This made Old Madam Xiao look at her with new respect.
Xiao Zhijie was also watching Qiao Qingshu. He had been staring at her from the beginning, trying to discern her thoughts from her eyes.
He seemed to have developed a fondness for guessing Qiao Qingshu's thoughts, though he didn't know when it started.
Is she happy or sad? Is she indifferent or disdainful?
Although the expressions of those around her changed several times, Qiao Qingshu remained calm and composed.
Seeing that the inner courtyard was also full, the informants in the inner courtyard immediately reported to Old Madam Qiao.
Just moments ago, Madam Qiao was watching Qiao Qingshu's discomfiture with delight, and now she was happily sitting by the bed eating her white fungus soup.
Just then, Li's mother came in shouting that many of the betrothal gifts seemed to be missing from the list and were being secretly piled up in the yard.
Madam Qiao frowned, eager to see what was going on, so she ordered Li Mama to carry her to the window to take a look.
You won't believe it until you see it; it's quite a shock.
She was so frightened that she almost fell off Li's mother's back. The inner courtyard was completely filled with golden nanmu wood and fine nanmu wood boxes.
Even without looking at the contents of the boxes, these boxes themselves are worth a fortune, and what's piled up in the inner courtyard is only a portion of it; there are a whole bunch more in the outer courtyard.
Old Madam Qiao's mind was buzzing. She remembered when she got married, she had to kneel before her father to beg for a fine nanmu wood chest.
Now, seeing that Qiao Qingshu was able to obtain a large quantity of the things she had painstakingly sought back then, without breaking a sweat, Qiao Qingshu was able to do so effortlessly.
Even though she was already in her sixties, the flames of jealousy in Old Madam Qiao's heart still burned fiercely.
She gritted her teeth and thought to herself,
Why would the Xiao family hold Qiao Qingshu in such high regard?
Did Qiao Qingshu actually save the life of the Xiao family's old lady?!
She couldn't help but mutter to herself.
"How lucky she is!"
Gritting his teeth, he was filled with resentment.
Mrs. Li, who was standing to the side, was stunned. It was the first time she had ever seen her mother-in-law show such an undignified expression. She lowered her head and dared not respond.
The expressions of the people in the front yard were also quite varied.
Qiao Qingle grabbed the servant carrying the sedan chair and asked him all sorts of questions.
"Are these also my older sister's?"
"Are these also?"
"Impossible! You must have made a mistake!"