Chapter 14
The mother-in-law, daughter-in-law, and sister-in-law were all tangled up in endless bickering. Listening to them made Jiang Zhixiu frown deeply. Then he suddenly heard Jiang Linxiu sigh.
“Big Brother, at a time like this, are you still unwilling to take out some of your private savings?”
“…What private savings? I don’t have any.”
Jiang Zhixiu froze.
Jiang Linxiu smiled knowingly. “Come now, Big Brother, don’t hide it from us. A county magistrate can amass a hundred thousand taels in three years. Jiangnan is prosperous—you must have earned even more there. You don’t need to take out much, just twenty or thirty thousand taels to help the family through this difficult period.”
What did he mean by that? That he had embezzled money?!
Fury surged through Jiang Zhixiu. He slammed down his teacup heavily and said in a deep voice,
“Second Brother, I’ve said this before: I have always been cautious and incorruptible. I have never accepted bribes!”
It was precisely because he was not corrupt that His Majesty valued him and promoted him to Vice Minister of Revenue.
Jiang Linxiu replied indifferently, “We’re family here, Big Brother. No need to use those official lines on us! Twenty or thirty thousand taels won’t even hurt your finances.”
To him, that amount was just a drop in the bucket for his elder brother.
And if their second branch of the family could skim even ten thousand taels out of it, it would sustain them for quite a while.
Jiang Zhixiu was so angry he nearly choked. Even the Emperor believed he was honest, yet his own brother did not!
“I said I never took any bribes!”
Jiang Linxiu smiled faintly. “Don’t get upset, Big Brother. No one said you were corrupt. We’re only asking you to think of the family.”
Jiang Zhixiu was too furious to speak for a moment.
At that instant, he suddenly recalled what He Fangting had once said—that his second brother was crafty and dishonest.
Back then, he had even argued with He Fangting over it, believing she looked down on his family.
Now it seemed she had not been wrong at all.
Then he heard his father, Jiang Chengzong, also say,
“Zhixiu, your brother’s words may be crude, but they make sense. Strictly speaking, while one’s parents are alive, a son should not keep private wealth. But now that you’ve become a high-ranking official, it’s understandable for you to have some savings. Still, you can’t ignore this family. Everyone here depends on you.”
The implication was still the same: he believed Jiang Zhixiu had taken money—and a great deal of it.
Jiang Zhixiu stared at his father in disbelief, pain creeping into his voice.
“Father, when I first entered officialdom, you sternly warned me never to be corrupt! I upheld your teachings. So why won’t you believe me?”
Jiang Chengzong paused before replying,
“Of course I believe you. But even if you didn’t take bribes, there should still have been certain… offerings during your tenure. Other officials all accept them. If you alone refused, wouldn’t that make you stand out too much and harm your career?”
So in his father’s eyes, the eldest son had still accepted money.
Not corruption—merely “taking.”
Jiang Zhixiu felt as though his chest were clogged and suffocating. Unable to vent his anger at his elderly father, he turned toward Jiang Linxiu instead.
“If you hadn’t squandered the Jiangnan shops, the family wouldn’t be reduced to having so little money!”
Jiang Linxiu argued back,
“In business, profits and losses are normal. Who can predict such things? If we’re talking about wastefulness, then the real spendthrift is Sister-in-law! She spends sixteen thousand taels a year!”
Jiang Zhixiu shot him a cold glance. “And what exactly was all that money spent on?”
Working in the Ministry of Revenue, reviewing accounts was second nature to him. After casually flipping through the ledgers, he immediately saw that the silver had all been spent on family members.
He Fangting’s own food, clothing, and daily expenses had all stayed within her allotted allowance.
But even a single outfit of hers often exceeded her monthly allowance. The excess had clearly been covered using her own dowry.
The person who spent the most money in the household was actually his second brother—marriage, children, full-month celebrations, birthdays—every occasion cost thousands, even tens of thousands of taels.
Not to mention the losses from the Jiangnan businesses.
Jiang Linxiu pressed a hand dramatically to his chest, looking deeply wounded.
“Big Brother, are you blaming me?”
Jiang Chengzong immediately sided with him.
“You brothers shouldn’t quarrel. If anyone is at fault, it’s the He woman. She fostered this extravagant lifestyle in the family. Plain tea and simple meals are enough to fill our stomachs, yet she insists on things like ginseng and bird’s nest soup. Can those things really be more practical than turnips?”
Pan Shi quietly muttered,
“To me, they taste about the same.”
Jiang Zhixiu took a deep breath, remembering the year He Fangting first married into the Jiang family. She had invited a famous physician from the capital to examine his parents.
The doctor had said the two elders had lived too frugally for too long, leaving their bodies weakened and their lifespans potentially shortened. They needed proper nourishment and tonics.
At the time, Jiang Zhixiu had been deeply touched by his parents’ years of hardship and wanted to repay them.
But he had never expected ginseng, bird’s nest soup, and various supplements to cost so much.
Truthfully, he had long suspected whether those expensive items were really as effective as people claimed.
But at this point, discussing the past was meaningless. The important matter now was that someone had to take charge of the household finances.
Looking around at the women in the hall, only his younger brother’s wife, Li Xixiang, seemed suitable.
Yet Li Xixiang firmly refused. Waving her handkerchief, she said,
“Big Brother must be joking. What can anyone do with only one hundred and three taels? I refuse to manage this household.”
Jiang Linxiu also stood beside her, speaking in a mocking, sarcastic tone. His meaning was clear: unless Jiang Zhixiu produced twenty or thirty thousand taels, no one would take over management of the household accounts.
The argument dragged on until dawn.
The couple maintained the same stance the entire time, pressuring Jiang Zhixiu to hand over money.
Jiang Chengzong and Pan Shi also sided with them. Although it was the eldest son who had brought honor to the family, it was the second son who stayed by their side daily and cared for them in their old age. Naturally, they favored him more.
As for Jiang Furong, she knew the family depended on her eldest brother and wanted to speak up for him. But the moment she opened her mouth, her father pointed at her nose and scolded her harshly, forcing her into silence again.
Jiang Zhixiu was so overwhelmed by the noise that his head throbbed.
“If none of you want to take charge, then fine! If you won’t manage the household, there are others who can!”
With that, he flung his sleeve and stormed off.
Where did he go?
Spring Bright Courtyard.
In his heart, he blamed He Fangting. If she hadn’t caused this scene, the household would never have descended into such chaos.
Not only had his parents been forced to stay awake for two straight nights, but he—a dignified Vice Minister of Revenue—had also been driven to personally meddle in petty household affairs.
All of this, in his eyes, was the failure of the household matriarch, He Fangting.
