Chapter 114
Chapter 114: Driving Out the Guest
The summer heat was heavy. Every day, Luo Ning practiced with the whip and trained her archery technique and wrist strength until she was covered in sweat.
She had grown much thinner.
Every night, Nanny Kong made a late-night snack for her, changing the dishes each time to coax her to eat more. She was too thin. It was bad for her health, and she still had an old injury.
Luo Ning cherished her life. She ate diligently at night and also told Nanny Kong to prepare more so that everyone in Wenqi Courtyard could have a share of the late-night snack.
In the blink of an eye, it was the beginning of the seventh month. Luo Ning’s younger brother, Luo You, was about to set off for Chunshan Academy.
At the same time, the gatehouse of the Marquis of Zhen Nan’s manor received a letter saying that Luo Ning’s uncle, Bai Yu Lin, would soon be visiting. The servant boy at the gate was quick-witted and told this news to Qiu Lan.
So, before the Marquis of Zhen Nan even had time to read the letter he had just received, Luo Ning already knew that her uncle was staying at an inn and would visit the next day.
She said: “Give that servant boy a string of coins as a reward. Tell him this from me: he did very well and should continue.”
Qiu Lan agreed.
Wan Xi, Second Madam, specially came over to Wenqi Courtyard.
“Lord Marquis told me to prepare dinner for tomorrow evening and to set the tables in the flower hall. At that time, Sister-in-law also has to come out to eat. The master of the Bai family will be visiting as a guest,” Second Madam said.
Luo Ning asked: “Did he invite anyone else to keep them company?”
“Lord Marquis did not say. But he ordered twenty-eight dishes. That is the setup for a grand banquet,” Second Madam said.
Luo Ning fell silent.
[Very good. They are treating Uncle like the God of Wealth.]
All he ever thought about was getting money out of the Bai family. For decades, Luo Chong Ye had never changed that original intention.
Luo Ning did not say anything.
The next day, Luo Ning’s uncle, Bai Yu Lin, really did come to the house.
The Marquis of Zhen Nan sent someone to call Luo Ning, asking her to go to the East Main Courtyard to meet her uncle.
Luo Ning changed her clothes and only arrived half an hour later.
Over the years, Bai Yu Lin had gotten very fat. His tall body was swollen with flesh, and he looked very wealthy.
“A’Ning, you have grown so much?” Bai Yu Lin looked at Luo Ning with a smile. “We have not seen each other for many years. You are already the eldest girl. Your uncle almost did not recognize you.”
Madam Bai sat beside him. Today she looked calm and steady. Her hair was combed without a single stray strand. Her clothes were rich yet proper, and her makeup was exquisite.
They had set blocks of ice in the East Main Courtyard. After nightfall, most of the heat faded, and it was cool and comfortable.
Luo Ning looked at Madam Bai and felt as if she was seeing her past mother again.
Her uncle and Qiu Shi Dong had come to the capital. They must have given her some good medicine. She seemed to have eased a little from the sorrow of losing her eldest son.
[How can this be?
How can she shake off her madness and be healthy? In Luo Ning’s short life, she had always been the mad one, all the way until she died.]
“Uncle is such an important man, always busy, of course you would not bother to keep your niece in mind. I look so much like my mother, and I also resemble Cousin. How could you not recognize me?” Luo Ning said with a smile.
The smile on Bai Yu Lin’s face grew even stronger. There was not the slightest change in his expression. Even when she mentioned Bai Ci Rong, he did not show a trace of discomfort.
The people who hurt you do it on purpose. They never feel guilty or regretful. They are only pleased that you are hurt badly.
It was just like Bai Yu Lin.
He saw the Marquis of Zhen Nan now high and honored. He should be feeling very pleased. After all, a military general brother-in-law he used to look down on had actually become a Lord Marquis.
Luo Ning faintly felt that Bai Yu Lin was secretly delighted. That was why, when she mentioned Bai Ci Rong’s looks, he laughed so happily.
“Just now I said A’Ning is already the eldest girl, and now you are acting spoiled again. You still have the temper of a little child,” Bai Yu Lin said with a laugh.
Luo Ning also smiled.
She had been a ghost for too long. Her heart had been tempered. No matter how disgusting the words she heard, she would not feel like throwing up anymore.
“Your uncle brought you a gift,” Bai Yu Lin said. He picked up a red-lacquered box with gold-wrapped corners from the kang and handed it to Luo Ning. “Congratulations on your great joy, being granted in marriage to Prince Yong. With such an in-law, the Bai family can also celebrate.”
Luo Ning took it and said: “Uncle, you have gone to great expense.”
“It is only right.”
“Uncle, what is this?” Luo Ning asked again with a smile.
Bai Yu Lin had not expected her to ask about the gift in front of everyone instead of going back to look at it by herself. He was slightly surprised. His smile flickered, then returned to normal: “It is a set of jadeite jewelry.”
“How much is it worth?” Luo Ning asked.
Madam Bai was already frowning.
Bai Ci Rong looked at Luo Ning, disbelief in her eyes.
Luo Chong Ye was somewhat annoyed and gave a heavy cough: “A’Ning, you are being rude.”
Bai Yu Lin tried to smooth things over: “A child is just curious. Do not blame her. It is not expensive. The jade from Yuhang is very good. This set cost five thousand taels.”
Luo Chong Ye secretly gasped.
Five thousand taels, and he called that not expensive?
The anger in Madam Bai’s heart climbed bit by bit. Her smile became a little forced. She said: “A’Ning, your uncle really dotes on you. Keep it well. This is the dowry he is adding to your chest.”
“Thank you, Uncle,” Luo Ning said with a smile.
Bai Yu Lin also smiled: “We are family. No need to be so polite.”
Luo Ning smiled at him and said: “I heard that the Second Miss of the Marquis of Jian Ning’s manor will be married out at the end of the eighth month. Uncle, you entered the capital the day before yesterday and went to visit them yesterday.”
Bai Yu Lin was a little surprised.
How did she know?
But he was not afraid of her knowing.
“A’Ning is well-informed,” Bai Yu Lin said. “The inn is close to their place, so I went there first.”
He looked toward Luo Chong Ye.
He was showing off a little: see, even though you are my brother-in-law, I know people more powerful than you. You have no right to press me down.
“The Third Miss of the Wang family is going to be a secondary consort to Prince Yong. Uncle, the Marquis of Jian Ning’s manor will have two happy events in one household. You are giving the Second Miss and Third Miss of the Wang family twenty thousand taels each as dowry gifts. Forty thousand taels of silver. But when it comes to your own niece, you only bring one set of jewelry.”
When Luo Ning spoke, she was smiling the whole time.
Her voice was calm and even.
The faces of everyone in the side room turned very ugly.
Madam Bai’s composure shattered again. She almost went crazy. Her face turned greenish. Bai Ci Rong’s expression shifted again and again. She looked at Luo Ning with both surprise and resentment. The delight on her uncle Bai Yu Lin’s face disappeared without a trace, leaving only shock and seriousness.
Luo Chong Ye’s face turned a mix of blue and white. His anger almost seemed ready to spray out of his nose.
“What is the meaning of this?” Luo Chong Ye spoke.
He looked at Luo Ning, but his question was aimed at Bai Yu Lin.
Bai Ci Rong hurriedly cut in: “Sister A’Ning, do not believe rumors and let outsiders sow discord between us.”
Luo Ning still smiled: “That is what I heard, so I just asked Uncle in passing. After all, he is my real uncle. His own niece is being made Princess Consort Yong. Could that be less important than the Wang family’s secondary consort?”
She looked at Bai Yu Lin again: “Uncle, is this the etiquette in Yuhang? This rule is a bit strange. No wonder the New Year gifts you send my father every year are far less than what you send the Marquis of Jian Ning’s manor.”
Luo Chong Ye could no longer hide his anger.
Madam Bai could not help but scold Luo Ning: “Dowry gifts are given out of kindness. They are not something owed to you.”
“I never said Uncle owes me. I just have to make clear these debts of favor. In the future, when I marry, should we still keep in touch with Uncle’s household? For the gift Uncle gave today, how am I supposed to return it later? When Cousin gets married, if the Wang family only sends back one thousand taels of silver, how much should I return then?” Luo Ning’s smile faded.
She said each word clearly, and they seemed to fall heavily to the ground.
The atmosphere in the side room became unbearably heavy.
Luo Chong Ye gave a cold laugh: “You really are a businessman. You judge people and set the dish by the person. Your skill is truly impressive. Bai Yu Lin, you have gone too far.”
On Bai Yu Lin’s plump face, all the color had drained away, leaving only his black, rolling eyes. His lips had no trace of blood. “Lord Marquis, listen to my explanation…”
“You did not deny it, so every word A’Ning said is true, is it not?” Luo Chong Ye said.
Bai Yu Lin could not answer.
To divide people into such grades was not giving gifts. It was slapping the face of the Marquis of Zhen Nan’s manor and of Luo Ning. People feared comparison the most.
Luo Chong Ye picked up Luo Ning’s black lacquered box and threw it hard onto the floor. Then he shoved the kang table to the ground. Broken porcelain, tea, and tea leaves splashed everywhere.
After venting his anger, Luo Chong Ye flung his sleeves and left. Madam Bai’s hair looked a bit disordered, and her cheeks were flushed red. She was angry to the extreme.
“A’Ning, you unfilial girl, how long are you going to keep making trouble?” she shouted at Luo Ning.