Chapter 39 That night, Xiao Fuyan was...

Chapter 39 That night, Xiao Fuyan was...

That night, Xiao Fuyan was so full from the two bowls of soup his two daughters ate that his stomach rumbled for most of the night.

However, they didn't discuss anything serious. After all, no one knew how long the discussion would drag on. Would the two families sit down for a late-night talk by candlelight instead of sleeping? That wouldn't be appropriate.

However, regarding the change of brides, it was already very clear at this point that a change was inevitable.

Neither the Xiao family nor Xiao Fuyan could resist the wonderful prospect of becoming related to the Liang family through marriage. In fact, Xiao Fuyan was even more eager than the second wife and her daughter. Deep down, he was already impatient to clear away any obstacles to Xiao Quexian's marriage into the Liang family, helping his daughter climb the social ladder to Liang Erlang's favor.

However, outwardly, this cunning old fox who has weathered decades of storms in the business world would certainly not reveal his thoughts so obviously.

He has been balancing the two households for so many years, and he won't easily break this balance because of this matter.

In fact, Xiao Fuyan had also considered that if the eldest son's family was really unwilling, then changing the marriage partner could be seen as the Xiao family breaking off the engagement.

The eldest wife still held a slightly different place in his heart, and there was also the eldest son. Compared to causing chaos and division within the family, sacrificing business partners became more acceptable.

Although doing so would indeed damage the Xiao family's reputation in the business world, and the network of connections in the capital would have to be temporarily abandoned, if they could get in touch with the Liang family, then the importance of the Qin family's network would be reduced.

Xiao Fuyan was such a shrewd businessman. On the surface, he seemed amiable, but deep down he could weigh everything on a scale.

However, breaking off the engagement was naturally the worst option. What made Xiao Fuyan feel fortunate was that the first wife's family sent out a signal that "we can talk if you give enough benefits," which was exactly the best option he had expected.

The next day, under Xiao Fuyan's decisive and efficient style, all members of the Xiao family and those involved in the matter, whether it was the mother and daughter of the eldest son or the mother and daughter of the second son, all gathered in the main hall of the eldest son's house, with an old lady sitting at the head of the table as if she were a pillar of stability.

The atmosphere in the hall became heavy. The servants were all dismissed, leaving only a few trusted confidants to guard the door.

Xiao Fuyan sat upright in the main seat, cleared his throat, and got straight to the point: "There's something you two have been arguing about for years, and you still haven't reached a decision..."

Upon hearing this, the First Madam was displeased: "What you said, sir, is unfair. Everyone knows that we are sitting here today for the Qin family's marriage, but in fact, this matter is not without resolution. Several years ago, the two parties who agreed to the marriage were the eldest son of the Qin family and our second daughter. Now it is the second branch of the family that wants to break off the engagement, which is why this matter is so complicated."

The First Madam has taken the initiative, and in this matter, the First Madam's family is indeed on the moral high ground. It was Xiao Quexian who was trying to cause trouble.

"No manners!" The old lady at the head of the table was the first to darken her face and scolded the first wife, "Your husband hadn't even finished speaking, and you, as his daughter-in-law, had already rattled off a whole carload of rebuttals. And with this old woman sitting right here, don't you, as his daughter-in-law, need to even inform me before replying?"

As soon as the old lady finished speaking, the eldest wife's eyes welled up with tears, and her face was full of grievance.

Seeing her mother's behavior, Xiao Yan, who was standing behind the First Madam, quickly pulled out a handkerchief from her sleeve and dabbed at the corner of her eyes. A pungent and burning sensation rushed to her eyes, and they instantly turned red.

At this moment, the mother and daughter looked like a pitiful pair.

"Since the old lady says so, what face do I have to sit here? I will just go back to my own courtyard, listen to my husband's every word, and let him arrange everything." The first wife got up, pulled Xiao Yan back, and was about to leave.

“Mother, I have my own conclusion on this matter. It is indeed the second branch of the family that is at fault.”

Xiao Fuyan naturally knew that this was the First Madam expressing her dissatisfaction. Moreover, since she said she wanted to sit down and talk today, it meant she wanted to have a proper talk. The Old Madam was just stirring up trouble and taking sides. He had to define the situation and put the Old Madam in her place, otherwise how could they talk?

"You sit down first." Xiao Fuyan looked at the First Madam: "I remember you weren't this impatient. Why are you unwilling to listen to a few more words today?"

"Second Madam, I've called you here today for one thing only. If the marriage to the Qin family were to be arranged for the Third Miss instead, it would be because the Second Branch of the family has acted inconsistently and wronged the Third Miss. Since the Third Miss has suffered a loss, the family must compensate her. What do you and your daughter have to say?"

The second wife gently patted her daughter's hand: "It's not that we wanted to break off the engagement, it's just that Xian'er and Qin's eldest son are incompatible according to their birth charts and have no fate together. As their mother, I can't bear to see my daughter and son-in-law become a miserable couple, so I asked the master for help." Whatever the real reason was, the reason given to the outside world was definitely that the two were incompatible.

"Hmm." Xiao Fuyan nodded, signaling the second wife to continue.

"We're all sisters. Just like Master said, it's our second branch that made a slight mistake. We shouldn't let the third young lady suffer any loss. Let's take money from the second branch's treasury to supplement the third young lady's dowry with 10,000 taels. Is that feasible?" The second wife proposed the compensation terms first.

The First Madam neither agreed nor disagreed, but offered her opinion: "Since it was caused by this marriage, let's not take money from the Second Branch's treasury. Let's give 20% of the Second Daughter's dowry to Yan Hui'er, so as to avoid any resentment from the other members of the Second Branch."

Upon hearing this, the mother and daughter from the second wife's side immediately turned pale.

If we're talking about money, the dowry the Xiao family gives when their daughter gets married is around 100,000 taels of silver, of which about 20% is the dowry, which is about 20,000 taels of silver.

In fact, 20,000 taels was an amount that the second wife could accept, but 20,000 taels of silver and 20% of the dowry were completely different.

If, as the Second Madam says, the silver is taken from the Second Household's treasury, then the 20,000 taels of silver comes from the Second Household's public funds. However, if, as the First Madam suggests, the dowry is taken at 20%, then the loss truly belongs to Xiao Quexian personally.

Moreover, a dowry is not simply a matter of money; it also includes land, shops, houses, and other items. Nowadays, many respectable families begin saving for their daughters' dowries from the moment they are born. Many of these items cannot be purchased simply with money.

The first wife's proposed compensation was quite tricky.

"You..." Even with the Second Madam's composure, she was so angry at this condition that her hands trembled: "You did this on purpose, didn't you?"

Xiao Yan secretly lowered her eyes to peek at the First Madam's expression. She happened to see the corners of her mouth slightly curved in a smile.

It's confirmed; the first wife did it on purpose.

“Madam, what I said to you that day still stands,” Xiao Fuyan sighed and said to his wife.

Everyone present heard the cryptic conversation they were having and realized that Xiao Fuyan had given the first wife some additional subsidies at that time, but at this moment, the second wife was unable to say anything.

The slight provocation to the second wife made the still hesitant master relent, and the first wife was now quite satisfied.

"Alright, since Second Madam feels it's inappropriate, then let's convert 20% of the dowry into 20,000 taels of silver to compensate our Yan Hui'er." This time, First Madam genuinely smiled, appearing very generous.

"However, I have something else to say. This marriage cannot be changed by our family alone. The Qin family also needs to handle it properly and we need to discuss it carefully."

"I will also host a banquet for Master Qin and Qin Dalang later, but if either of them is unwilling, then all the words spoken at this time will be meaningless. Also, our Yan Hui'er will not take the blame for others, so I will trouble you, Master, to explain the reasons to the Qin family clearly, lest Qin Dalang get married with resentment." The First Madam added these words.

“Both of my daughters are my precious darlings. How could I possibly favor one over the other? This marriage exchange is also for the sake of my daughters’ future happiness.” Xiao Fuyan smiled lovingly at Xiao Yan Hui: “Yan Hui, Qin Ji was also carefully chosen by your father. I have a keen eye for talent, and he will be your good match.”

"Yes, I understand, Father." The First Madam was at the forefront, both taking damage and contributing to the fight, all to maintain Xiao Yan Hui's image as a dutiful daughter. Now that everything was settled, Xiao Yan Hui naturally wouldn't undermine her family. Whatever her adoptive father said, she would just smile and reply, "Yes, yes, yes."

Just like Xiao Quexian, no matter how much trouble she caused before, it was the Second Madam who spoke here today. She only needed to maintain her dignified demeanor as a young lady.

......

"By the way, how's the shop I had you two practice at doing now?" With the important matter settled, the atmosphere in the hall warmed up considerably.

However, the first and second wives had just clashed again. The two wives' eyes still held a hint of sharpness when they met. As usual, Xiao Fuyan began to ease the tension between the two sides and mentioned the shop that he had previously given to his two daughters to practice on.

"The shop has been in your hands for some time now. Have you managed it well? I will go and check on it when I have some free time."

Xiao Quexian quickly came out with a smile and replied, "Daughter understands and has been taking good care of it. I will certainly live up to Father's expectations."

At this moment, she felt as if a mountain had been lifted from her shoulders, and her joy was almost uncontrollable. Even though the second branch of the family was asked to contribute 20,000 taels to Xiao Yan Hui's dowry, she only felt a pang of heartache when she first heard it, but now she didn't care at all.

Xiao Yan took the money, but who knows if she'll even live to spend it? Meanwhile, I have a bright future ahead of me, so why should I argue with her?

"The drinks at my daughter's shop are quite good. Father, if you have some free time, please come and try them." Xiao Yan smiled and invited Xiao Fuyan to come and check it out.

"Now that things have settled down, I really need to pay more attention to the shop. Last time I was planning to check on the business carefully, but the runaway horse and Qin Ji delayed me. Maybe I should go check on it again tomorrow," Xiao Yan thought to herself.

Moreover, Xiao Yanhui also has a next step in her plan for the shop. If the assessment is suitable, the business categories can be appropriately expanded.

She has plenty of money and had actually considered opening a branch when the shop opened. Now that she has been operating the business for a while, she feels that the branch can wait, because although she has plenty of money, she is short of people.

In ancient times, unmarried daughters had very few resources at their disposal, and even after marriage, they were still easily constrained by their husband's family. With these scattered thoughts swirling in her mind, Xiao Yan was following the First Madam out of the main hall when she saw the steward hurrying over.

"Master, the Liang family has sent over some things." The butler said excitedly.