The western wind cuts off the works of a humble daughter who should be married off. A first-class noble's consort, a humble daughter who should be married off. A first-class noble's consort, a humble daughter who should be married off. Volume 1 Chapter 075 Cold and Despised (Second Update)

  After finishing their meal, a group of maids quickly and efficiently cleared away the leftover food. They also served tea and snacks.

  The King of Jing lifted the tea lid and drank a mouthful of tea before saying to Queen Jing, "Since Jin'er is now married, let's assign some tasks in the mansion to Jin'er's wife."

  Everyone's face changed upon hearing this.

  The queen consort was overjoyed and agreed with a smile, meaning that she wanted her daughter-in-law to practice and get ready to take power in the future.

  Ruan Shi heard this and almost shrieked, raising her voice to say "Your Majesty, how can this be?"

  As soon as she spoke out, everyone looked over at her, and only then did she realize that she had been impolite.

  "Daughter-in-law says that Eldest Sister has no experience in managing the household. After all, Eldest Sister is a concubine's daughter and didn't learn this before."

  In the end, she became even more arrogant, but as a concubine's daughter, how could she possibly take charge of such important household matters? The affairs of the Duke's estate should be handled by a wife from a legitimate background like hers, what could a concubine's daughter possibly manage?

  The Queen of Jing immediately said displeased, "Ji'er is your elder sister-in-law, she is the princess consort of our Jing Wang Fu, if things in the mansion are not assigned to her, who should they be assigned to?"

  She's still angry about what happened earlier, and now she gets angry as soon as she sees this Ruan Shi. Besides, Jin'er is the heir, and in the future, he will inherit the Wang Fu. The big and small matters of this mansion can't be handed over to his wife, who else should they be handed over to? Does she really not know that since Ruan Shi entered the door, she has been wanting to take control of the mansion's power, who knows what her intentions are.

  Fortunately, the king never loosened his grip on power to the other party and didn't get along with this daughter-in-law. She finally put her mind at ease and stopped paying attention to it. This will be handed over to the daughter-in-law after marriage, which is only right.

  Ruan Shi was left speechless by Jing Wangfei, in her heart, this Jing Wangfu would eventually belong to her husband, and she would be the Crown Prince's consort. The power within the mansion should naturally be handed over to her. But Jing Wangfei brought up such words to shut her down, what could she say? No wonder they said that even the eldest brother wouldn't live for many more years, and the position of Crown Prince would eventually fall into their second house's hands.

  Baili Liuyao's expression tensed up upon hearing this, but she still spoke softly, "However, eldest sister really doesn't understand household management. If something goes wrong, what can be done? Won't that become a laughingstock for others?"

  It's been a year since the second wife entered the household, but Father Wang has never mentioned letting her take over some of the household affairs. But the eldest sister had just entered the house and received such treatment from Father Wang. Is this telling them that the second branch has no chance of inheriting the Wang estate?

  The Empress Dowager suddenly became annoyed, well, one by one, they finally showed their fox tails. Since Jin'er's health has been getting worse over the years, these people have gradually revealed some other thoughts. They are just born out of wedlock and dare to covet the position of heir.

  He coldly snorted and said "If you don't understand, you can learn slowly, it's not like she has to take charge of the household now, just learning first is fine."

  She had thought this concubine was a gentle soul, but it turned out she was hiding her true nature extremely well.

  At this time, Xia Ting Cong calmly opened her mouth and said, "Big girl, I don't know how you knew that I didn't understand household chores?"

  These people immediately seized on the fact that she was a concubine's daughter and must not know how to manage the household, making a big deal out of it. Without even asking her, they directly defined her position. It really is too presumptuous.

  Baili Ruyu was taken aback, what does this mean? After a while, she lightly bit her lip and said "Isn't that so? When Eldest Sister-in-law was at home, did Mother teach Eldest Sister-in-law how to manage the household?"

  She's a concubine-born daughter, and it's only natural that she'd be well aware of this. Which legitimate mother would teach household matters to a concubine-born daughter?

  Xia Ting smiled faintly and said, "Madam, you are right that I haven't been taught by you. However, since I was young, I didn't grow up in the Xia household, but rather lived in Yixing City. Due to my mother's poor health, I took over the family matters when I was eleven years old. On the other hand, eldest miss, are you implying that you look down on a concubine-born daughter like me?"

  She is not one of those girls from this dynasty who were raised in the inner chambers, only knowing how to embroider flowers and play the zither. Once she reaches a certain age, it's just a matter of arranging her marriage, managing the household is not that difficult for her.

  The Queen of Jing heard this and was overjoyed, looking at Xia Ting's direction and asking "Ting, is what you said true?"

  She really didn't expect that her daughter-in-law would have experience in this aspect. Originally, she thought that the child looked like a clever one, as long as she learned well from her, she wouldn't be inferior to anyone in the future.

  Xia Ting smiled elegantly and replied, "Of course I wouldn't dare to deceive my mother-in-law. When I was at the Xia residence, I also managed the affairs of the courtyard where I lived. As for this matter of managing the household, I do have some experience."

  Although she wasn't particularly interested in the steward's power, it seemed that the situation in the palace was not peaceful. If the power fell into the wrong hands, there would likely be many troubles in the future. Moreover, Rong Jin was the eldest son and would eventually inherit the palace, so the matter of the steward would ultimately fall to her anyway; she might as well get familiar with it first.

  The queen smiled satisfactorily and looked even more radiant. After glancing around at the others at the table, she said, "Did you all hear that? Is there anything else to say now?"

  This sentence can be said to have stifled the people present, and Bai Liruoyao's face turned pale. Xia Tingcong's previous words undoubtedly pushed her to the forefront of the storm. Earlier, she and Erniang had been implicitly accusing each other of looking down on her as a concubine-born daughter. Now, however, she was being counterattacked by the other side using this matter, and she could even feel the disappointed gaze of her father, the king.

  The always silent Mrs. Xu finally spoke up and said "Everything will be done according to your wishes, Your Highness."

  Last time because of Xuan Er marrying a wife, the king was already annoyed with her. This time she can't do anything else, otherwise she's afraid of being disliked by the king.

  The King looked at Ruan Shi with a glance, and in his heart, he became more and more displeased with this second daughter-in-law. He then turned to look at Baili Luyao, this daughter, whom he had always spoiled. But unexpectedly, she had grown up with such a temperament, not only was her heart big and without boundaries, but also looked down on the concubine's daughter, thinking that Jin'er's wife was just like anyone else, and couldn't hold a candle to her.

  The more he thought about it, the more disappointed he became. The decision he made earlier was indeed correct. This daughter absolutely cannot be spoiled anymore, and his second son also needs to be disciplined.

  With a clear 'ding', King Jing covered the teapot and said in a deep voice, "It's settled then."

  Jing Er is his eldest son, and even if he's not in good health, he still plans to let him inherit the Wang Fu. Even if his son really doesn't have many years left to live, he will leave the position of heir to Jing Er's son. Now that his daughter-in-law has also entered the household, it seems that next year he'll be able to hold a grandson in his arms.

  This matter in the mansion was left to Jin'er's wife, which he had decided long ago. After all, in the future when his grandson inherits the Wang Mansion, this great power will still fall into his biological mother's hands. For now, let his daughter-in-law practice her hand, and after a few years, she'll be familiar with it when she takes over.

  After a while, he turned his head and said to Jing Wangfei, "From now on, everyone in the mansion will follow the rules for food, clothing, and expenses."

  This means that Xu's and her two children's daily treatment will be reduced.

  The queen dowager was taken aback, but after regaining her composure, she responded with a simple "good". She wasn't some weakling, and the only reason she had tolerated these people before was that they were good at fawning and flattering, and she was the legitimate wife. If she were to express her discontent to the king, there was a chance she would be misunderstood as being narrow-minded and unable to tolerate concubines and children born out of wedlock.

  This was said by the prince himself, so she wouldn't be foolish enough to push it further.

  After hearing this, everyone did not dare to speak again. The quiet king had always been one who said what he meant and would not be swayed, so it was clear that he was already angry, and who would still dare to raise their voice in opposition?

  The two elders and the second lady were all calm, in their view, it was right to hand over the affairs of the house to the eldest daughter-in-law. Which royal family doesn't have the crown prince's wife helping with household management? The second daughter-in-law couldn't even understand this point, but instead insisted on competing for control of the household. The result of being uncontent and not minding her own business was naturally being put back in her place.

  Xu sat in his seat without saying a word, but a dark color appeared in his downcast eyes.

  Baili Chuan was quietly drinking tea, his face didn't show any unusual expression, but the fist clenched in his sleeve revealed the turmoil in his heart.

  Ruan Shi was extremely annoyed, and actually wanted to cut down on their food, clothing and expenses. To think that because of Jing Wang Ye's previous equal treatment, regardless of her husband being a concubine-born son, the treatment she received was the same as that of a legitimate son. But now Father King said that from now on, everything would have to follow the rules, which meant that she wouldn't be able to enjoy the best food and clothing anymore.

  Since she entered the mansion, there wasn't a single matter, big or small, that she could get involved in. Even when her elder brother was not yet married, the king still wouldn't let her touch the affairs of the mansion. It's clear that even if her husband married her, the king would still try his best to keep a distance from her mother's family, the Chen family, and therefore wouldn't let her take over the affairs of the mansion. It was obvious that they were telling others that even if the eldest daughter of the Chen family married into their household, she couldn't win over the favor of the Duke of Jing.

  Even if she was angry, she didn't dare to retort. After all, this is a normal thing for outsiders to see, it's just that the previous style of Jing Wangye made the Jing Wangfu different from other families. If Jing Wangye wants to take back the various benefits given to his illegitimate children, it's just a matter of one sentence, who dares to say he's wrong.

  Xia Ting smiled faintly and sat down in her seat, sipping tea with a natural expression.

  Baili Yongjin reached under the table and grasped her hand, a gentle smile appearing on his face.

  Ba Li Rong Qi and Ba Li Rong Chen were two little kids, not understanding the matters between adults, just enjoying themselves eating the delicious pastries on the table. Their lips still had some pastry crumbs stuck to them, looking exceptionally cute.

  Xia Ting looked back at Bai Li Rong Jin with a smile, and the slanted hairpin on her head, made of bright jade, reflected a dazzling light that suddenly shone into Ruan Shi's eyes.

  Ruan Shi was feeling suffocated at this moment, but suddenly a bright light shone on her, and she couldn't help but look towards the source of the light.

  Only to see Xia Ting's hairpin on her head shining brightly, the fine silver thread pendant flowing down also swayed back and forth, setting off the other's turning movements, becoming even more charming and captivating.

  Ruan Shi's eyes turned red with anger, and she thought of what her maid Autumn Man had said to her earlier. Looking at Xia Ting's eyes, they were suddenly filled with jealousy, saying that the other was just a fourth-rank official's concubine-born daughter, how could she wear such good clothes, and even gave them those valuable gifts on their first meeting.

  If it weren't for Qiu Man telling her that the dowry brought by the other party was only a meager fifty sedan chairs, with the rest being the betrothal gifts originally sent by the Jing Wang Fu, she would have been deceived and kept in the dark.

  Now that I think about it, the things she gave me today were definitely prepared by my brother, otherwise, as a small concubine-born daughter, where would she get the money to buy such good things?

  Ruan Shi got angrier the more she thought about it, and looking at Xia Ting's smiling face made her even more displeased. Hmph, what's there to smile about? Soon I'll make you cry until you can't cry anymore.

  Ruan suppressed the anger in her heart and smiled, saying "Elder sister-in-law, you may not know since you just got married, but all the dowry brought by a new bride must be checked and recorded before being taken to their own living quarters. This is to avoid any loss or damage that cannot be verified later on. The dowry you brought should have been placed in Elder Brother's Qinglan Garden, why don't we move it over here and check it now?"

  When the time comes, things will generally come over, and she doesn't believe that a mere 50 taels of dowry can make Xia Lian lose face in front of everyone.

  The queen heard this and frowned, knowing that her daughter-in-law had only brought a dowry of 50 sedan chairs. She had previously heard from Li's mother that the relationship between her daughter-in-law and her own mother was not good, so when she heard the number of sedan chairs yesterday, although she was angry, she didn't blame the child. After all, it was Madame Xia who was narrow-minded, and this daughter-in-law had also returned all the betrothal gifts as part of the dowry. She thought about it and didn't mind these things, after all, the royal family wasn't short of such things.

  It's just that this dusty wife suddenly brought up this matter, what does it mean. If the dowry is to be carried over, won't the daughter-in-law have to hang her head in shame in front of everyone from now on? After all, she only prepared a meager 50 sets of dowry for herself.

  Thinking of this, Jing Wangfei spoke up and said, "No need for that, it's just a small matter. Later, I'll let Li Mama bring people over to clear out and make an inventory. There's no need to move everything here."

  She is now her daughter-in-law, and she can't bear to see her lose face in front of everyone.

  Ruan's family heard this and was unwilling to comply, continuing to say "The daughter-in-law is looking at the elder sister's dress and thinking that the dowry prepared must also be good things. I want to see it and broaden my horizons. Elder sister, you won't refuse your younger brother's small request, will you?"

  Once this is said, others can't refuse anymore.

  Xia Ting put down the teacup in her hand and smiled slightly at Ruan Shi, "Since my second brother and sister are so insistent, I naturally cannot refuse."

  Look at the other's smug face, thinking of seeing her dowry, well, then she'll let the other see it properly, hoping not to be jealous to madness later.

  Xia Ting turned her head and ordered Qing Yu and Wan Yu, "Qing Yu, take a few guards to Qinglan Garden to bring the dowry. Wan Yu, you go with him too, don't get it wrong."

  Wan Yu nodded in understanding, her eyes looking at Ruan Shi with a hint of "looking at a fool", this second young master's wife was not good at bringing up anything else, and insisted on seeing the dowry of their miss. Wait for her to widen her eyes later.

  Qing Yu silently followed Wan Yu out of the hall.

  Ruan Shi laughed brightly and said with ill intentions, "Yes, elder sister-in-law, don't get the dowry mixed up."

  If they dared to bring over the betrothal gifts given by the former King of Jing and try to pass them off as their own, she would be able to humiliate them even more.

  It's clear that Ruan misunderstood Xia Tingying's meaning, the latter wanted Wan Yu to bring over her own prepared dowry, but the former thought she was asking for the betrothal gifts sent by the Jing Wangfu to be brought over.

  Xia Ting Cong had already understood the meaning behind Ruan Shi's words, knowing that she was clearly misunderstanding, but he didn't plan on speaking up to explain. There would be a time for her to shut up later.

  The queen's face showed a hint of anxiety, what was this Ji Niang doing, why did she agree to the other party? Isn't this going to be a loss of face in front of everyone?

  Baili Rongjin held onto Xia Tingcong's soft wrist, he didn't know how much dowry Tingcong had prepared and didn't particularly pay attention to it. In his opinion, as long as Tingcong married him, that was enough. He didn't care about the rest of the things. But looking at his second brother and sister-in-law's provocative appearance, they must be planning to make a big deal out of this.

  Xia Ting gently grasped his hand and turned her head to give him a gentle smile.

  Looking at Xia Ting's cunning smile, Baili Rongjin immediately put his mind at ease. His Cong'er had never been one to suffer losses, and this expression must mean she was fully confident in dealing with her opponent.

  Others did not know the mystery inside, although they felt a bit strange, but just quietly waiting.

  After a while, Qingyu and Wanyu returned to the hall with dozens of guards carrying dowry behind them. Everyone looked a bit out of breath, wondering what was in the box that made it so heavy. They had never carried such a heavy box before.

  The dowry was moved in, neatly stacked on the ground. Exactly fifty loads.

  Ruan's wife burst out laughing as soon as she saw it, and said with a very surprised expression, "Sister-in-law, are these really your dowry? Only fifty sedan chairs?"

  Although she was somewhat surprised that he didn't bring those gifts to make up the number, it did not detract from her goal of making him lose face.

  The others in the hall also changed their faces, and they did not expect it to be such a situation.

  Fifty sedan chairs for dowry? This is just too shabby!

  The Xia family actually only prepared these fifty sedan chairs as dowry, if this gets out, wouldn't it be ridiculed by others? Even the new bride would also find it difficult to hold her head up in her husband's household because of such a meager dowry.

  The queen had known the outcome since early morning, but she opened her mouth and didn't know what to say. What's going on with this daughter-in-law? When other families encounter such things, they all hide them secretly. Why did this daughter-in-law bring out the goods so openly?

  Xia Ting smiled faintly, "That's right, these are the dowry I prepared. The remaining 248 sedan chairs were the betrothal gifts sent by the mansion earlier, and I had them all brought back as part of the dowry."

  Ruan Shi burst out laughing and said mockingly, "Elder sister, how is life at the Xia Manor so difficult? They only prepared such a meager dowry of fifty sedan chairs for you."

  Xia Ting's smile remained unchanged, as if she hadn't seen the other person's sneer. "Second sister-in-law, you're wrong about this. These fifty sedan chairs of dowry weren't prepared by my mother's family for me; I bought them all myself."

  As soon as these words came out, the faces of the people in the hall changed again.

  Digression

  Everyone, this is another 5,000 words, and today just happens to be the 10,000-word update.