Chapter 37

Chapter 37: If You Don't Give Jiaojiao Half the Dowry, You'll Have a Hard Life Ahead! Watching the gold in Manager Li's hand, Jia Qingcheng's thoughts drifted far away. The gold plate wasn't made particularly neatly, but its weight was what mattered. This plate wasn't an ordinary gold piece—it was stained with Jia Qingcheng's genuine sincerity. Why genuine sincerity? Because she had forged this gold Wushi Plate with her own hands for Pei Wuliang, braving extremely high temperatures. Years ago, Pei Wuliang had been injured for her sake. When he was burning with fever and unconscious, she knelt before the Bodhisattva, desperately pleading for help to see him through the crisis. Later, the abbot told her that if her heart was sincere enough, she could personally craft a Wushi Plate to give to her beloved, which would protect him from harm and ensure a smooth, peaceful life. She had run down the mountain like a madwoman straight to the goldsmith's shop, melting down three of her gold bars to form this single plate. Because it was her first time casting gold and she couldn't withstand the high heat, her hands were burned, and her blood had mingled into the plate itself. Pei Wuliang had once said, "As long as the plate remains, so shall I." But now, for the sake of a mere wedding dress, he had casually pawned this Wushi Plate. She couldn't describe what she felt—not pain, not sadness. After all, she had long since given up on Pei Wuliang. What little broken emotion remained was mostly resentment and bitterness! "Miss, do you see now? Pei Wuliang is nothing but a heartless man. He pawned the fruit of your labor just to exchange it for a wedding dress for Song Jiaojiao." Chunyan had accompanied her young mistress back then and naturally knew how important this gold plate was to her. But now, Pei Wuliang had discarded it without a second thought. Fortunately, this shop was their own family's establishment, so the plate could still be recovered. But the sincerity her young mistress had lost could never be reclaimed. "It's fine. This was always my possession. There's nothing wrong with it returning to its rightful owner." With that, Jia Qingcheng composed herself and tucked the gold plate away. She had believed the abbot's words, and naturally, she had a new purpose for this Wushi Plate. "Miss, that Pei Wuliang had the audacity to tell you to go to the shop and settle the bill. He even said..." "Said what?" Jia Qingcheng listened as if hearing someone else's story. Pei Wuliang's affairs could no longer stir even a ripple of emotion in her. All that remained was the anticipation of watching a good show unfold. "He said to put it on his account, that you would eventually come to pay it off." "Is that so?" Jia Qingcheng was nearly amused to the point of laughter. The Pei family hadn't even held the wedding yet, and they were already drowning in debt. The fact that it hadn't all come crashing down yet was simply because the time wasn't right. Did Pei Wuliang truly believe she couldn't live without him? "Miss, what do you plan to do next?" "I'll keep this plate for now. As for the remaining silver, make out a bill for the plate and send it to the Pei residence when the wedding takes place." What? The Pei residence's wedding? "Miss, wouldn't that be inappropriate? Sending a bill to the Pei family's wedding—isn't that..." "Do as I say!" Manager Li had no choice but to leave. But no sooner had he stepped out the door than a respectful voice came from outside, "Eldest Miss, the Madam has come to see you." Her stepmother had arrived. She knew well that nothing good would come of this visit, so she quickly hid the gold plate away. Just as she tucked it out of sight, Madam Jia's hypocritical voice drifted in from outside, "Qingcheng, I heard you weren't feeling well, so I came specially to see you. Are you feeling any better?" When Madam Jia entered and saw only the mistress and her maid, she dropped the pretense. "Qingcheng, what's wrong with you? Why are you still wearing that gray outfit? You look like a Daoist nun. You can't keep going on like this. If you continue this way, even I won't speak up for you anymore. Say what you will about being ugly, but you won't even take care of yourself. Never mind that Prince Chu is at death's door and has no interest in looking at you—even if he were perfectly fine, with that appearance of yours, you'd be beaten right out of Chu Wangfu the moment you stepped inside." "Madam, what are you saying? My young mistress isn't nearly as terrible as you make her sound. She—" "Shut up! When I'm disciplining the young miss, what right do you have to speak?" When Madam Jia saw that Jia Qingcheng remained unmoved, she naturally assumed the girl didn't dare challenge her. After all, her situation was dire now. If she made trouble with her stepmother, her father would surely punish her severely. "Does Mother have business with me?" Jia Qingcheng wouldn't pick a fight with Madam Jia. If she did, she would lose. In her previous life, in order to be with Pei Wuliang, she had been trampled on by her stepmother countless times. Her stepmother had said that with her ugliness, Pei Wuliang would never treat her sincerely. Back then, she couldn't bear to hear anyone speak ill of Pei Wuliang. Now that she thought about it, although her stepmother was no good, what she had said was true. But in those days, she had been young and hot-headed, unable to see through the disguises. So she wouldn't argue with her stepmother. If she did, the woman would surely go back and embellish the story to her father. And when her father got angry, he would reduce her dowry. She wasn't foolish enough to fall for her stepmother's trap. "There's nothing serious, it's just that I heard from your father that you're unwilling to give half of your dowry to Jiaojiao. When I learned of this, I felt there must be some misunderstanding. Qingcheng, your aunt is truly thinking of your best interests. Think about it—if you appease Jiaojiao now, then when you marry into the Pei family in the future, she won't make things difficult for you, isn't that right?" "Auntie is joking. I'm going to marry Prince Chu, Xiao Zhiheng, so why would you speak of marrying into the Pei family?" "You stubborn girl, how can you be so obstinate? I know you're to marry into Chu Wangfu, but isn't that just a formality? In the end, your dowry will still have to be sent to the Pei family. Surely you don't intend to keep it at Chu Wangfu?" "My dowry was all prepared by Father and Grandfather. Auntie, did you prepare anything for me?" Madam Jia was at a loss for words. Why would she prepare anything? Jia Qingcheng wasn't her own daughter, so why should she prepare a dowry for her? "Your father prepared it, so doesn't that count as me preparing it as well?" "Since Auntie didn't prepare my dowry, why should you concern yourself with it?" "You—" Seeing that Qingcheng wouldn't take the olive branch, Madam Jia grew even more furious. "Ugly girl, I'm doing this for your own good! Don't bite the hand that feeds you. If you don't share your dowry with Jiaojiao, you'll have a hard time once you're married." Faced with such a threat, Jia Qingcheng merely let out a mocking laugh. "Thank you for your concern, Auntie. Is there anything else? If not, I'll be on my way out of the residence." What? Without waiting for Madam Jia to respond, Jia Qingcheng immediately prepared to leave with Chunyan. Seeing that Qingcheng was ignoring her entirely, Madam Jia became even more frantic. "Stop right there! What's wrong with you, girl? Being ugly is one thing, but how can you have no manners at all? If you don't give your dowry to Jiaojiao, I won't let you marry into Chu Wangfu!" Not let her marry? Jia Qingcheng was almost amused to the point of laughter. She stopped in her tracks but didn't turn around. "If Auntie dares to stop me from marrying, can you bear the wrath of Chu Wangfu?" Madam Jia was speechless. "Ugly girl, don't refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit. I'm laying my cards on the table today—if you don't give half your dowry to Jiaojiao, you'll have nothing but misery ahead of you!"