Transmigrated as a Cannon Fodder Wife A in Ancient Times - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Lu Zijin slightly furrowed her brow. She had chosen Wei Lan, who had neither power nor influence, solely because Wei Lan’s background was clean and her family was dirt poor. If Wei Lan married into the Lu family, the family’s wealth would not fall into outsiders’ hands.

Originally, Lu Zijin and her distant cousin Chen Zhou had known each other since childhood, and their families had considered a marriage. But half a year ago, Lu Zijin’s brother died of illness, and her parents had passed away long before. She was the only one left in the main Lu family line. If she married out, the Lu family’s wealth would no longer bear the Lu name.

To preserve the family’s legacy, Lu Zijin had to find a Qian Yuan in Panyang City with a clean background and easy to control to marry into the family. This way, the Lu family wouldn’t end with her, nor would it be taken over by side branches.

But finding a Qian Yuan willing to marry into a Kunze’s household was no easy task. Even smaller families were reluctant to let their Qian Yuan marry in. By chance, she heard that the Wei family had fallen on hard times and that Wei Wenyuan owed a lot of debts. So, she decided to have Wei Wenyuan’s daughter marry into her family.

However, this Wei Lan didn’t seem as honest as Lu Zijin had imagined. She had sent people to watch her, and a few days ago, they reported that Wei Lan had gone drinking at Mingyue Tower with a group of wastrels, got terribly drunk, and fell seriously ill.

Was she out again now that she was better? Lu Zijin had considered finding other candidates, but recently, several side branches of the Lu family were getting restless, and there were outsiders looking to marry her and seize the Lu family’s wealth. Lu Zijin felt she could wait no longer, or something bad would happen.

“I’ll go talk to her. Just the three of you come with me,” Lu Zijin instructed the servants beside her.

Yun Xiang glared at Wei Lan across the street and said sarcastically, “She’s just a Qian Yuan marrying in. What right does she have to make you, Miss, go talk to her in person?”

Lu Zijin glanced at Yun Xiang and said calmly, “Yun Xiang, watch your words. After tomorrow, Wei Lan will be the lord of the household.”

“Yes, Miss,” Yun Xiang replied, but her tone was full of reluctance.

Lu Zijin didn’t say more and led the three servants across the street. “Qian Lord, please wait.”

Wei Lan froze for a moment before realizing the person was addressing her. Did she just call her Qian Lord?

Wei Lan looked at the person for a moment. Her eyes were clear and cold, her skin snow-white. Though her face was veiled with thin gauze, it was easy to tell she was beautiful.

Wei Lan almost instantly guessed who she was. About the same age as her current body, good-looking, appearing wealthy, and knowing her—this had to be Lu Zijin.

Wei Lan replied calmly, “Is something the matter?”

“Nothing major. I just heard you were drunk a few days ago and fell ill. Is your health fully recovered now?” Lu Zijin asked, her tone cold and distant, as if speaking to a stranger.

Wei Lan let out a sigh of relief. It seemed Lu Zijin only wanted a Qian Yuan to fill the role and wasn’t close to the original owner, so the risk of Wei Lan being exposed was low.

“Yes, I’m fine now. I’m just out for a walk and will head back soon. I won’t delay tomorrow’s wedding,” Wei Lan explained, meeting Lu Zijin’s gaze.

“That’s good. We’ll head back to the mansion then,” Lu Zijin said, nodding to Wei Lan before turning to leave. Yun Xiang, however, shot Wei Lan a glare.

Wei Lan found it baffling but ignored it and continued strolling down the street.

After Lu Zijin got into the carriage, she felt that the Wei Lan she saw today was slightly different from the one she’d met before. Last time, Wei Lan’s gaze had an unsettling aggression, and she avoided eye contact, unlike the open and honest demeanor just now.

Lu Zijin didn’t dwell on it. The marriage was already set. If Wei Lan behaved and listened, Lu Zijin would ensure she was well-fed and cared for. But if she coveted the Lu family’s wealth, Lu Zijin could have her watched or even confined. Once Wei Lan entered the Lu mansion, everything would be under her control.

Wei Lan had no idea Lu Zijin was thinking so much. She visited five or six street stalls, getting a basic sense of the low-grade jade carvings here. Honestly, they were worse than the pieces she’d ruined in her past life, by several levels.

Wei Lan decided it was better to check out a higher-end jade carving shop.

She entered a shop called Yuya Pavilion, filled with jade carvings. The jade quality here was much better than the street stalls, and the craftsmanship was slightly better too.

The shop assistant noticed Wei Lan’s faded clothes, clearly showing she had no money, and didn’t bother to approach her. He just called out from a distance, “Look all you want, but don’t touch. You can’t afford the jade here.”

Wei Lan wasn’t upset by his words and asked, “How much for that jade qilin?”

The assistant glanced at her. “You couldn’t afford it if I told you. Three hundred taels of silver.”

Wei Lan looked at the jade qilin. In the Great Zhou Dynasty, one tael of silver equaled about 1,000 yuan in her modern world, so three hundred taels was around 300,000 yuan.

She examined the qilin’s craftsmanship closely. By her standards, it was worth maybe 30,000 yuan at most, nowhere near 300,000.

A smile curled Wei Lan’s lips. If this kind of work could sell for that price, her carvings could fetch even more.

The shopkeeper noticed Wei Lan and, unlike the assistant, approached with a smile. “Miss, are you interested in this qilin piece?”

“Just looking,” Wei Lan said. “Do you buy jade carvings here?”

“Of course we do. Yuya Pavilion is the biggest jade shop in Panyang City, with branches in nearby towns. Our boss values skilled carvers the most. Does someone in your family do this work?” the shopkeeper asked.

Wei Lan nodded. “Good to know. If I have something to sell later, I’ll come back.”

“Alright,” the shopkeeper said, not minding that she didn’t buy anything.

After Wei Lan left, the assistant muttered, “Shopkeeper, why be so polite to her? Just a broke Qian Yuan. If her family really had a carver, would she be dressed so poorly?”

“Don’t judge by appearances. Don’t be rude to customers, or I’ll dock your pay,” the shopkeeper said, glaring at the assistant.

“Got it,” the assistant replied quietly.

Wei Lan wandered a bit more before heading back, since she didn’t have a single coin and was flat broke.

When she got home, she saw a young girl sweeping the courtyard. The girl saw Wei Lan and said, “Sister, you’re back?”

Wei Lan nodded. “Yeah.”

Wei Qing’s relationship with Wei Lan was lukewarm. Qian Yuan generally had higher status than Kunze here, so the original Wei Lan never paid much attention to her sister, never taking Wei Qing seriously.

“Dinner’s almost ready,” Wei Qing called after her.

Wei Lan nodded. “Okay, thanks.”

Back in her room, Wei Lan washed her hands simply and went to a side room for dinner.

She looked at Wei Wenyuan, Zhao Xinlan, and Wei Qing. All three looked downcast, with little appetite for food.

“It’s my fault,” Wei Wenyuan said, his eyes red. “A fine Qian Yuan like you, reduced to marrying into another family. I’m useless.”

Wei Lan felt nothing inside. She wasn’t the original owner and had only been here two days, so she had no real attachment to these family members. Still, hearing Wei Wenyuan’s words, she couldn’t help but say, “If you know you’re not cut out for business, don’t do it anymore. The family doesn’t have enough people to keep covering your debts.”

Wei Lan started eating, ignoring Wei Wenyuan’s tear-streaked face. To her, a mature person should know when to cut losses. Losing money in business over and over again? A rational person would have stopped long ago, not stubbornly pushed on.

In her past life, Wei Lan was an orphan, so she had no concept of family bonds. Most people saw her as a jade-carving machine, caring about nothing but jade.

The only people who stirred any emotion in her were her master and a few senior colleagues. Beyond that, she had no interest in others’ affairs.

In this strange new place, she felt even more detached. Looking at Wei Wenyuan crying across from her, Wei Lan only felt annoyed. “I’m done. Enjoy your meal.”

With that, she got up and left.

Wei Wenyuan looked at Zhao Xinlan and Wei Qing, crying, “It’s my fault. I’ve made Little Lan hate me. I’m useless.”

Wei Lan stepped outside but still heard Wei Wenyuan’s sobs. Her heart remained unmoved. People pay all sorts of prices for their mistakes. Crying doesn’t fix anything.

Crying is just a way to vent emotions. It’s useless.