Chapter 402 - : 402
Chapter 402: 402
The Wei Family only received a very small portion of the land, amounting to just over two hundred acres in total, and its location is remote.
In contrast, a large area of five hundred acres in a more central location was marked under the name of Wei Qingruo.
It was hard for Madam Yun to keep a smile on her face.
In front of the other wives, Madam Yun felt it wasn’t suitable to make a scene.
She looked at Wei Ruo, her eyes filled with immense dissatisfaction.
Wei Ruo noticed this, but she didn’t say a word either, even pretending not to see the unusual look Madam Yun was giving her.
What Madam Yun failed to notice is that next to Wei Ruo’s land, where her name was marked, there was one thousand acres marked under the name of Xu Heyou.
The other wives didn’t seem to mind, the results were matching their expectations. The Xiu Family, which made large contributions in terms of money and effort, was allocated over three thousand acres. The other average families got over one thousand acres.
They traded with their own hard-earned silver, those who received less had also contributed less, so there were no complaints.
Moreover, the account auditing and resource distribution were done by the lady teachers who were delegated by each family alongside Wei Ruo and Madam Qin, there would have been complaints about any unreasonable allocations.
“Does anyone have any objections?” Madam Yuan asked after everyone had a look.
“No objections at all. Madam and Master Yuan have always been fair and just, this land distribution is very reasonable.”
“I also think so, we just need to follow Madam’s arrangement.”
“We wholeheartedly believe in you, Madam. Your arrangements will certainly not have any problems.”
“…”
Everyone replied in turn.
Madam Yuan continued to say, “Since everyone agrees, we will proceed with these arrangements. For now, the Government Office will continue to manage these lands. After the winter wheat is harvested next year, you can arrange for your people to handle the harvesting.”
Everyone responded in agreement.
After the land distribution discussion ended, the wives took a walk along the newly cultivated vibrant fields with Madam Yuan.
During this time, several wives chatted with Wei Ruo about fabrics.
The wives who had asked Wei Ruo for assistance in purchasing fabric earlier had already started wearing clothes made from it. They couldn’t help but praise Wei Ruo for the various advantages of the fabric.
They even suggested willingness to pay a premium if they could buy more of it.
Wei Ruo confided that a new batch of fabric would be produced during the New Year. Not only would it include the previous two colors, but there would also be new ones.
All the wives showed immediate interest and wanted Wei Ruo to reserve some for them in advance.
The ones who hadn’t reserved them from Wei Ruo last time also seemed very eager this time.
Seeing the large number of interested parties, Wei Ruo stated that she would let everyone know when the fabric arrives and then they could discuss sales.
The wives agreed to this, given the scarcity of the fabric and high demand, they had no choice but to patiently wait.
Madam Yun, who had been listening on the side, couldn’t help but look gloomier.
By the time they returned from the reclaimed land, it was already late afternoon. As soon as the carriage arrived at the gate of the General’s Residence, Wei Ruo hopped off and quickly walked towards the backyard.
Madam Yun watched from behind, remaining silent, but her face looked considerably upset.
Not too long after Madam Yun returned to Cangyun Garden, Wei Qingwan arrived.
Seeing Madam Yun in a bad mood, Wei Qingwan softly asked, “Mother, what’s wrong? Did something unpleasant happen while you were out with my sister today?”
Madam Yun told her about the land distribution. After explaining, she sighed and said,
“At that time, we didn’t have any extra silver so we couldn’t contribute. I have no issue with the Government Office giving the Wei Family less land, but she is the Wei Family’s daughter, not yet married, and she’s already planning to accumulate her private property. She explicitly arranged for her contribution to be written under her own name.”
The person in charge of the land distribution was the think tank group led by Madam Yuan, which included Wei Ruo. So, the act of allocating Wei Ruo’s contribution under her own name must have been Wei Ruo’s idea.
Wei Qingwan gave a sigh, “My sister really shouldn’t have done this. Even if it were written under the Wei Family’s name, when she gets married in the future, mother would have given her that share. This way she is directly splitting with the family, outsiders will not know what to think when they see this.”
“It’s just as you said, that’s where I feel wronged from. Such a pity, those who should understand this don’t.” Madam Yun sighed.
“Mother, don’t be angry. I’ve heard the scholar my sister is about to marry is not only from a poor family, but also rather sickly. It seems my sister is planning for her future life out of concern.” Wei Qingwan comforted.
Wei Qingwan’s words only made Madam Yun’s face look even worse: “I don’t know what she’s thinking, giving up a good marriage with the Xiu Family for a man like this. What’s even more frustrating is your father said he respects her decision, making me absolutely powerless.”
“Father probably wants to compensate my sister for the many years she wasn’t at home, he wants to satisfy every wish of hers as much as possible.”
“When she has had her fill of hardships and comes running back home crying, she will come to realize how much of a mistake she made in her choice. But by then, it will be too late, no one can bear the hardships that she will have to endure.”
“Mother, try to persuade my sister again when you get the chance, ask her not to make rash decisions out of anger.”
Madam Yun waved her hand, “No matter how much I tell her, she only thinks I’m trying to harm her. It’s not worth the effort nor the displeasure, I won’t waste my breath.”
Soon after, Madam Yun turned to Wei Qingwan and said, “Regarding the ointment, your mother will give you two hundred taels for now, you’ll have to wait for the remaining hundred taels while I figure out a way to get it.”
“Thank you, mother.” Wei Qingwan responded, touched.
“There’s no need for thanks, if it weren’t for the poor returns from the shop these past two years, I would have given you all three hundred taels in one go. At least your father has been promoted recently and his salary has increased, and we’ve received some land and property as rewards, our household will gradually become more prosperous.”
“Ah, I understand mother’s difficulties.” said Wei Qingwan.
###
After Wei Qingwan left Cangyun Garden, she hurried back to her residence. Cuihe had just informed her that Mamasan Li had returned and successfully brought back the scar healing ointment.
As soon as she entered the room, Wei Qingwan couldn’t wait to let Cuihe apply the ointment on her.
“Quick, Cuihe, apply it on me.”
Mamasan Li hesitated on the side, debating whether or not to tell Wei Qingwan what she had learned at Tongde Hall.
After Cuihe finished applying the medication for Wei Qingwan, while Wei Qingwan was putting her clothes on, she asked Mamasan Li, “Do you have something to tell me, Mamasan?”
Wei Qingwan had detected Mamasan Li’s hesitation.
“Young Miss, about this medicine…the people at Tongde Hall told me that for large wounds, it requires a larger dosage. This ointment will only last for half a month. However, for you to fully recover, you need to apply it continuously for at least two months.”
“Oh my! What did you just say? Two months? That means I would need at least another nine boxes, right?” Cuihe cried out in surprise.
Mamasan Li nodded, “That’s correct.”
That was another nine-hundred taels of silver! Where to get so much money?
Wei Qingwan’s face turned extremely pale.
She had just managed to get three hundred taels from Wei Mingyong, where could she get another nine hundred from?
Even if she still had the two hundred taels given by Madam Yun, there was still a shortfall of seven hundred taels!