With Multiple Babies, Who Still Wants to Be the Marquess’s Wife? - Chapter 25

Chapter 25: Defeating Magic with Magic

The Marquis looked curious and asked, “What is it?”
His impression of Lan Qingxi, his daughter-in-law, was that she was not only beautiful but also always supportive of Yu Junshu. When she came to find him, he felt it likely wasn’t anything serious.
Lan Qingxi spoke slowly, “It’s like this,”the Young Master wants to take Zhao Yan’er as a concubine.”
“Zhao Yan’er has requested two sets of formal attire, ten bolts of brocade, ten hairpins, and one thousand two hundred taels of silver. In total, it amounts to about four thousand taels of silver when everything is combined.”
“My mother said that our family doesn’t have much silver and asked me to find a way.”
“As the head of the family, the Young Master taking a concubine is not a trivial matter, I wanted to consult with the Marquis about it.”
“I also want to ask the Marquis if there is a rule in our household about using silver from the main wife’s dowry to support a concubine?”
After saying this, she handed the list provided by Nanny Zhang to the Marquis.
The Marquis took it, glanced at it, and coldly sneered, “Our household doesn’t have such a shameless rule.”
“Tsk, tsk, anyone who knows about this would say it’s about taking a concubine, while those who don’t would probably think the Marquis is preparing to divorce his wife to marry another.”
“To make such a big fuss over taking a concubine, is it because the Marquis’s household has too much silver or are they just foolish?”
“Besides, that Zhao Yan’er is just a farmer’s daughter. Does she think she’s made of gold?”
The Marquis had a poor impression of Zhao Yan’er, especially after the incident at Qiu Lan Courtyard when two groups clashed over it.
Concubine Qin looked at Lan Qingxi after hearing this. At that moment, Lan Qingxi was standing there gently.
Seeing Concubine Qin look over, Lan Qingxi smiled gracefully, “I don’t know much about marriage and concubines in the capital. I’d like to ask, when the Marquis took Concubine Qin, how much was given as a bride price?”
“I want to know one figure, which can serve as a reference.”
Before the Marquis could answer, Concubine Qin smiled and replied, “The Marquis and I were mutually affectionate, and as long as I could be by the Marquis’s side, that was enough.”
“When the Marquis brought me into the household, he gave me one hundred taels of silver, along with some clothing and jewelry; all together it shouldn’t exceed one hundred and fifty taels.”
The Marquis’s expression darkened, and he said coldly, “They’re always shouting about rules, yet want the concubine to overshadow the main wife. Isn’t that just nonsense?”
“I understand now, you don’t need to worry about it. I’ll handle it.”
Lan Qingxi lightly curtsied to the Marquis, “With the Marquis handling this matter, it will surely be resolved effectively.”
“But if my mother asks about it…”
The Marquis laughed, “Didn’t you say she claimed that after a woman marries, she should treat her husband as heaven? As the ‘heaven,’ I certainly can’t let her down.”
Lan Qingxi knew how unreliable the Marquis could be, if he handled it, it would surely yield unexpected results.
She thanked him and prepared to leave, but Concubine Qin stood up and said, “Let me see you off, Young Master’s wife.”
Lan Qingxi nodded slightly.
The two walked out together, and once in the courtyard, Concubine Qin softly said, “Thank you for the reminder, or I might have suffered greatly these past few days.”
After entering the household, she had faced difficulties from Madam Zheng. Although the Marquis protected her, he couldn’t always be by her side.
Being new to the Marquis household, she was unfamiliar with its people and affairs, making her prone to pitfalls.
Just yesterday, Madam Zheng had sent someone to set her up, and if it hadn’t been for the list Lan Qingxi had provided her, she might have fallen into the trap.
Remembering this made her feel a bit scared, so she was deeply grateful to Lan Qingxi.
Lan Qingxi smiled slightly, “Concubine, you’re too polite. We’re all in the same boat, and it’s natural for us to look out for each other.”
Hearing her words, Concubine Qin immediately understood her meaning and smiled, “That’s only natural.”
“Madam, you’ve helped me a great deal, I will certainly find a way to repay you.”
Lan Qingxi knew from her past life that Concubine Qin was a very perceptive person. Today, she made her intentions quite clear, and Concubine Qin understood what she meant.
When they reached the courtyard gate, Concubine Qin softly warned, “The Marquis’s wife is not someone to take lightly, she’s an elder, so you must be very careful.”
Lan Qingxi nodded, “You are also aware of the household matters, Concubine. Please take good care of my second brother.”
Upon hearing this, Concubine Qin’s expression changed slightly. Lan Qingxi gently bowed and left with Li Qiu.
Concubine Qin had heard from the Marquis that Madam Zheng was very jealous, and the young masters and mistresses of the household were all under her control. Although her son was grown, it was still wise to be cautious.
Concubine Qin said behind her, “Thank you for the reminder, Madam.”
Once Lan Qingxi and Li Qiu arrived at her residence, Li Qiu asked, “Miss, do you think the Marquis can handle this?”
Lan Qingxi replied, “Don’t worry. He may not take care of proper business, but he’s certainly skilled at handling irregular matters.”
Having witnessed the Marquis’s capability to stir up trouble in her previous life, she knew he would handle Madam Zheng well.
As she had expected, the Marquis went to confront Madam Zheng that afternoon, and the two argued loudly in the room.
Madam Zheng, furious, ordered Nanny Zhang to bring Lan Qingxi over.
As soon as Lan Qingxi entered, Madam Zheng angrily shouted, “I asked you to prepare a bride price for Yan’er, why did you go to the Marquis instead?”
Lan Qingxi calmly replied, “Mother said that after a woman marries, she should treat her husband as heaven.”
“My heaven is the Young Master, and your heaven is the Marquis.”
“The Marquis is also the head of the household. Such a large expense naturally needs his approval.”
As she spoke, she looked at Madam Zheng with wide, innocent eyes and asked, “What’s wrong with that?”
Madam Zheng was momentarily speechless.
Under normal circumstances, a man indeed should be the head of the household, and such matters naturally require the approval of the male head. However, the Marquis was not reliable, and Madam Zheng was very domineering. Over the years, the couple had lived separate lives.
When Madam Zheng wanted the Marquis to spend money, she would go to him, otherwise, she treated him like a piece of dung and kept her distance.
Coldly, she said, “You’ve been married to the Marquis for only a short time and don’t know his temperament.”
“Every time he meddles in household affairs, it’ll definitely lead to disaster!”
Lan Qingxi stood there and let Madam Zheng criticize the Marquis.
Madam Zheng and the Marquis were undoubtedly a couple at odds; if she let Madam Zheng go on, she could complain about the Marquis for seven days and nights without repeating herself.
Madam Zheng didn’t bother to hide her disdain for the Marquis in front of Lan Qingxi. After her tirade, she said, “Let’s not worry about him.”
“You also don’t need to bother about the Young Master taking Yan’er as a concubine, just take out the silver, and I will handle the details.”
Lan Qingxi looked at Madam Zheng, “But the Marquis also said that he had never heard of a main wife using her dowry to help her husband take a concubine. He asked me not to interfere with this matter.”
“If I may ask, Mother, did you take silver from your dowry when the Marquis took a concubine?”
Madam Zheng was speechless.
Of course, she could not possibly have taken out silver!
She wanted to say that she had, but this matter could easily be clarified with just one question to the Marquis. In the end, she would only embarrass herself.