Chapter 11: A Welcome Gift

Gu Yunfeng was feeling down, but Ziling was even more frustrated.

She had never heard such disgusting words in her life, and it made her feel sick to her stomach.

However, she secretly felt pleased when she saw the reactions of the others.

Whether they wanted to use her to kill someone or make her a scapegoat, or if they wanted to humiliate Gu Yunfeng by exposing her identity as a female bandit, Ziling was furious.

She despised them and their insistence on the wedding ceremony. It was sickening, and they needed to be taught a lesson.

The more they wanted to see something, the more she would prevent them from seeing it. She would frustrate them to no end.

Ziling was in a good mood, and then... she was scolded.

Third Master's face turned serious as he said, "This is Qihetang, not Chenxiang Pavilion. There is a time and place for playful banter."

Not only was she scolded, but Third Master also looked at Gu Yunfeng with disappointment and sorrow. Despite the teachings of the Duke's Mansion over the years, he seemed to be more affected by the female bandit's influence in one night. Had he never seen a woman before? He treated a female bandit like a precious treasure, causing him to ache in his heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys.

Ziling looked at Gu Yunfeng with clear eyes, filled with confusion. "Father was right, your Duke's Mansion is different from our Dongling Marquis's Mansion."

Gu Yunfeng raised an eyebrow and asked, "How are we different?"

Third Master, who had been ignored, was burning with anger, his eyes filled with the fury of thunder.

Ziling glanced at the maidservant and whispered, "When a servant makes a mistake, shouldn't they be punished first? Why are you scolding both of us? If you were awake, wouldn't the Duke's Mansion be happy to see our good relationship? If it were my parents, they wouldn't be able to contain their joy. My father encourages me to observe and learn, and if I don't understand something, I should ask. Should I not praise you in front of others or should I speak ill of you?"

Her clear voice hung in the air, as if a heavy hammer struck the hearts of the people present, leaving them speechless.

They had underestimated this female bandit!

Previously fierce and ruthless, and now hiding her sharpness beneath her gentleness, she left them defenseless.

Inside the room, silence lingered for a while, and no one spoke.

The maidservant belonged to Qihetang, and only the Dowager had the authority to handle her punishment.

The Dowager looked deeply at Ziling and waved her hand. "Drag the maidservant out and give her thirty strokes of the cane. Then send her to the ancestral shrine for reflection."

The maidservant knelt down with a thud, begging for mercy and kowtowing. Unfortunately, the evidence against her was solid, and no one dared to intercede on her behalf. In the end, she was gagged and dragged away.

Soon, the sound of the cane striking flesh echoed through the room.

The Dowager calmly said, "Let's continue serving the tea."

The maid brought a fresh pot of tea. Perhaps Ziling had been too fierce just now, as the maid's hands trembled while holding the tea. Ziling gazed at the ceiling, wondering if anyone still believed her when she claimed to be gentle.

With great respect, the maid served the tea to the old lady. After taking a sip, the old lady set the teacup down, and Li Mama, who stood beside her, prepared to present the prearranged greeting gift.

The old lady waved her hand, causing Li Mama to pause. Then, the old lady took off the jade bracelet from her wrist and offered it to Ziling as a greeting gift, personally helping her put it on.

As Ziling rose, she caught a glimpse of the book that Li Mama hadn't managed to hide in time. Two large characters were written on it: "Family Rules."

Ziling was a bit confused.

Hadn't she angered the old lady? Why did the old lady reward her with family rules instead of the bracelet? Could it be that the old lady preferred a fierce daughter-in-law?

Tang Shi had told her that because of the dispute between the old lady and Uncle Gu when he got married, there was discord between mother and son. The old lady didn't hold Gu Yunfeng in high regard, so she had advised Ziling not to provoke the old lady.

After paying respects to the old lady, it was time to show courtesy to the Princess of Nanting.

After the previous commotion, serving the tea went smoothly, but receiving the greeting gifts was another story.

The Princess of Nanting's gift was a set of ugly golden headpieces—there was no better way to describe them.

Second Madam's gift was a pair of jade hairpins—difficult to look at.

But Third Madam's gift was even more impressive. She had given Ziling a piece of paper.

While the gifts from the Princess of Nanting and Second Madam were at least comprehensible, what could this piece of paper be?

Though she knew it definitely wasn't something good, Ziling's curiosity was piqued.

Second Madam shared her curiosity and smiled, saying, "I was curious about what the third sister-in-law prepared as a greeting gift on the way here. You kept it a secret, but now that I see it, why is it just a piece of paper?"

Second Madam's smile held a deeper meaning. "But this is no ordinary paper—it's worth a thousand taels."

"A property deed? Or land ownership papers?" Second Madam asked eagerly.

Third Madam sneered and uttered two words, "IOU note."

Ziling took out the paper and looked at it. Her mouth twitched. It was indeed an IOU note, and the debtor was none other than the Marquis of Dongling's Mansion.

The IOU note was prepared by the Marquis of Dongling and Tang Shi as part of her dowry. She still remembered the day when Qianqian had happily skipped into the room and exclaimed, "The capital city is truly magnificent and grand! The shopkeepers there are so easy to talk to. They agreed to extend credit without batting an eye, even for items worth several thousand taels of silver. The lady wants me to ask you if there's anything you want."

Well, those shopkeepers didn't bat an eye, but they were just waiting to slap her in the face.

This IOU note was a hot potato.

Mrs. Er asked, "What is this IOU?"

Mrs. San, who had previously kept silent, now spoke without reservation, "This IOU was sent to me by Lady Wu, the Minister of Rites' wife. The Dongling Marquis Mansion owes her shop a thousand taels of silver for goods they purchased on credit, but they haven't paid yet. They only gave this IOU."

The Dongling Marquis is arrogant and domineering. His daughter even dared to snatch our Young Master of the Zhenguogong Mansion. Who in the entire capital would dare to provoke him? If we anger him, he might even smash our shop. So, I hastily took the IOU and let them take away the goods.

But now, the thousand taels of silver have vanished into thin air. Lady Wu is unwilling to accept this loss, but she dares not go to the Dongling Marquis Mansion to collect the debt. Since we have some acquaintance, she came to me for help. I happened to be worried about preparing a gift for our Young Madam, so I bought this IOU."

Ziling's face burned with embarrassment, but what made her even more uncomfortable was yet to come. A maid hurriedly entered from outside and said, "Madam, something's not right. Many people have gathered at the entrance of the Duke Mansion, each holding an IOU. They claim that the money owed was borrowed by the Dongling Marquis Mansion for the dowry of the Young Madam, and they hope the Duke Mansion can intervene and help collect the debt..."

Madam's face turned slightly pale.

Princess Nanting said angrily, "Do they want to completely humiliate our Zhenguogong Mansion?"

A dark light flashed in Ziling's eyes. They all claimed to be afraid of the Dongling Marquis Mansion, yet on her very first day at the Duke Mansion, they dared to come and collect debts. If it weren't for someone behind the scenes, she wouldn't have believed it.

However, repaying debts is only natural. Ziling asked the maid to relay a message, "Do you know the total amount owed?"

The maid replied, "It's around thirty thousand taels of silver."

Thirty thousand taels of silver?

How much is that?

Ziling looked at Gu Yunfeng and said, "Husband, please help me repay the money."