Chapter 14

Chapter 14: Do I Look Like a Man Who Can't Afford It? The shopkeeper, seeing that he had no money to pay, looked at him with contempt. He pointed to the hourglass nearby. "Young Master Pei, our shop closes at the hour of You. You'd better hurry!" "What's the rush? Do you think I would renege on my debt? The jewelry is still in your hands, so what are you afraid of?" "Of course, of course. I just wanted to remind Young Master Pei not to waste time. The sooner you buy, the sooner this young lady can enjoy it, wouldn't you say?" "Brother Wuliang, let's just forget it. That's so much silver. What if Sister won't pay? Then we'd be..." "She won't dare. Jia Qingcheng must send someone with the silver, or else I won't forgive her so easily this time!" Song Jiaojiao: "..." ... Back at the Jia residence, Jia Qingcheng had already returned with many purchases. These were things she had never bothered with in her past life, but now she suddenly felt that beautiful jewelry and fine clothes were a joy to behold. "Miss, are you buying all this jewelry to spite Pei Wuliang and steal Song Jiaojiao's thunder?" Chunyan knew that her mistress had left midway. By now, that shop must be in complete chaos. Pei Wuliang and Song Jiaojiao had bought so many things but couldn't pay for them. Just thinking about it felt satisfying. Serves them right! That's exactly how those two dogs should be dealt with. They had been sneaking around behind her mistress's back for who knows how long. People like that weren't worth her mistress's sadness or worry. "Why would I do that? Can't I please myself?" Though she was still ugly now, that didn't mean she would always look this way. She had already decided that once she married into Chu Wangfu and the Prince's health gradually improved, she would find an opportunity to tell him the truth. But not now. Chunyan: "..." "Miss, I still don't understand. You never cared for jewelry before, so why now..." "What about now? Chunyan, do you like this pair of earrings?" Chunyan: "..." What did she mean? Was her mistress giving them to her? A servant girl like her could never afford such expensive jewelry. She had seen the price of these earrings—a full ten taels of silver, equivalent to a whole year of her wages. No, no, that wouldn't do! "Miss, they're pretty, but..." "If you like them, they're yours. Take a look at everything here and pick what you want. Oh, and go fetch Dongmei and the others—they can pick some too. I can't wear them all myself, and besides, this isn't all I bought!" In her past life, she had never allowed herself to dress up nicely for the sake of Pei Wuliang's future, let alone buy things for herself. All her silver had gone to the Pei family, and what had she gotten in return? She hadn't even seen the Pei family's heirloom bracelet before she died, yet it appeared on the wrist of her cousin Song Jiaojiao, who hadn't even married into the family yet. At that moment, she admitted she had been truly foolish. Love yourself before loving others—she finally understood. If you don't love yourself, how can you expect others to love you? "Miss, are you serious?" "Of course I am. Oh, and when you call them, make sure to fetch Manager Li as well." Soon, Chunyan brought all the maidservants. These were her loyal girls—in her past life, they had accompanied her as dowry to the Pei household and suffered through every hardship by her side. Now, having returned to this life, she would spoil her own maidservants without having to answer to anyone. The girls quickly came to pick out jewelry, and after they left with their selections, Manager Li arrived. Manager Li was her personal steward, overseeing all the properties under her name. "Miss, what are your instructions?" "Manager Li, I recall that last year I gifted a property to the Pei family, and you handled the transaction, correct?" At the mention of this, Manager Li quickly bowed. "Yes, Miss. You instructed it, and I carried it out. However, the house wasn't finished being built at the time, so there was no deed or title. You said you would gift it to the Pei family once the deed was ready." "No need. I want that property taken back immediately." What? Take it back? This left the steward utterly shocked. He stared at her in disbelief. "Miss, but you promised Young Master Pei that the house would be given to his mother for her stays!" "So what if I promised? Now, I've changed my mind." Manager Li: "..." "Miss, are you angry that Young Master Pei is going to marry the young miss from the Song family?" Manager Li had heard about this matter as well. Indeed, anyone would find it unacceptable. Miss and Young Master Pei were clearly a couple—how had this cousin suddenly appeared out of nowhere? Even if his young mistress was plain-looking, at least her family background was solid. She was also the heir of a pharmaceutical dynasty. In what way was she unworthy of that destitute Pei family? "Why would I be? Just go and handle it." "But, I've heard that some members of the Pei family have already moved in. What should we do about that?" "They've already moved in?" In her previous life, before Jia Qingcheng had even married Pei Wuliang, she had already considered herself a daughter-in-law of the Pei family. Whatever the Pei family lacked, she would send over, terrified that they might be dissatisfied with her. And because she had disguised herself as ugly, Pei Wuliang still treated her well—honestly, she truly believed Pei Wuliang was her one true love. So, she granted every request the Pei family made, and eventually, this estate naturally became the property of the Pei family. Now that she had returned to a new life, she would never let the Pei family spend a single coin of hers again! "Yes, miss, I heard they've already moved in. Madam Pei loves the quiet and secluded atmosphere there, and she often invites a few noble ladies over to play mahjong." "Is that so?" Upon learning that Mother Pei had already moved in, she only found it laughable—how impatient they were. "Since they've moved in, then we'll just chase them out." Chase them out? "Miss, that might not be quite appropriate. After all, in the future, you'll still have to marry..." "Who said I'm going to marry into the Pei family? Steward, go handle this matter for me. Also, I almost forgot—notify all the merchants about the furniture I ordered in the first half of the year. Don't deliver it yet, and don't put the Pei family's name on it. Change everything to Chu Wangfu. When I marry, it will all be sent to Chu Wangfu together. You don't need the address of Chu Wangfu, do you?" Everyone in the capital knew where Chu Wangfu was located. The steward nodded. "Miss, you jest. Who doesn't know of Prince Chu's reputation? Of course, I know where his residence is." "Excellent!" Jia Qingcheng paused. "Notify the other merchants as well—change all the dowry I prepared for the Pei family to Chu Wangfu. And make it double. Double portions bring good fortune." Double portions? Was the miss furious out of her mind? Prince Chu was a dying man—why would she send so much wealth to Chu Wangfu? Unfortunately, he was only a steward and didn't dare ask further. He quickly bowed and hurried off to handle the matter. But no sooner had the steward left than the anxious voice of Steward Jia came from outside... "Eldest miss, Hu Ba requests an audience." "Let him in." Outside, Hu Ba strode in. Seeing Jia Qingcheng, he was quite blunt—she had really just walked off halfway, wasn't that deliberately trying to embarrass his master? So, Huba intended to challenge Jia Qingcheng. "Miss Jia, that's not very considerate of you. My master and the young lady are still there—how could you return without a word? Aren't you afraid my master will be waiting for you and get angry?"