Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!

Chapter 713: Chapter 713 Marquis Ning’s Family Fortune is Too Abundant_1

At the capital, Zhou Changlian and Zhang Rongchuan returned to their residence, where Lady Dong was already waiting for them at the entrance, smiling warmly, ”You’re back.”

Zhou Changlian paused in his steps, ”My dear, what joyous occasion has happened at home?”

His wife seemed just as delighted as he had been when he passed the imperial exams; it must be a significant happy event.

While walking, Lady Dong said, ”This morning, just after you left, Marquis Ning and the Princely Heir brought over their thanks in the form of gifts.”

Zhou Changlian understood—so the third branch of the family had struck it rich. ”Where are father and mother?”

Lady Dong replied, ”They received a letter this afternoon and have already arrived home.”

Upon hearing this, Zhou Changlian thought that his parents had promptly returned, meaning they wouldn’t need to invest too much energy worrying about the Ning Duke Residence. ”Did father and mother say anything else?”

Lady Dong answered, ”Father-in-law didn’t say anything, but mother mentioned a few things...”

Zhou Changlian knew that his mother’s words were as good as his father’s: maintain a good mindset and don’t get outsmarted. Now, he was even more eager to see the thank-you gifts, ”What all was included in the thank-you gifts?”

As they kept walking, Lady Dong said, and then turned to Zhang Rongchuan, ”The list of gifts and the thank-you gifts have already been sent to your courtyard.”

Zhang Rongchuan was surprised, ”Mine too?”

He thought that only Zhou Changlian would receive them; after all, it was Zhou’s carriage they had used.

Lady Dong wasn’t sure how to respond and looked to her husband for guidance.

Zhou Changlian patted Zhang Rongchuan’s shoulder, ”At that time, we were together.”

Moreover, according to what he knew, even if the thank-you gifts didn’t include him, Zhang Rongchuan should have received them. Why was it that gifts were given but Zhang Rongchuan wasn’t officially recognized?

Zhang Rongchuan felt silly for asking, ”I’ll return to my courtyard first.”

Back in his courtyard, Zhang Rongchuan picked up the list of gifts and fell into silence. Then he opened the chest—inside was a chest full of gold, dazzling and truly heart-stirring—another contained books and paintings.

Zhang Rongchuan closed the chest. The Ning Duke Residence really knew him well, knowing that he liked silver. Being so well-understood by them, they seemed to show no bias against him, even appearing to value him greatly. If so, why then was there no movement at all? He just couldn’t figure it out.

However, Zhang Rongchuan quickly set aside his troubles. Rather than dwell on them, he decided to focus on how to add to his own family wealth, starting with purchasing a residence. A house was definitely in order.

Inside the Palace, the Emperor sat facing Ning Xu, ”Did you really send a chest full of gold?”

Ning Xu, ”...Yes.”

The wealth of the Duke Residence, including silver coins, antiques, calligraphy, and gold, had always been substantial. After all, back then, cough, cough, his father was not exactly the most straightforward man. If he had been, he would not have been the first to support the Emperor’s rebellion. It was true—the Ning Duke Residence was indeed very rich.

The Emperor knew about the Duke Residence’s wealth and was quite pleased that they sent silver coins to his son. It appeared that the Emperor, looking at Ning Xu, appreciated that his own son, despite the many years spent as a spy, had also managed to amass a considerable amount of silver coins for himself, ”Your own fortune is quite substantial as well.”

Ning Xu gave a dry laugh; his fortune indeed was substantial. When he came back from the dead and reclaimed his identity, his father had divided the inheritance, with two-thirds of the Duke Residence’s wealth going to his brother, and one-third to himself, which pertained mostly to monetary assets.

Not only that, but he also had his mother’s dowry and a lifetime of collected treasures. The majority was given to the Empress, with the remainder split in half between him and his brother. Adding to that, his years abroad where encountering bandits was a common affair, especially outside the borders, and underhanded dealings, known as ’outlaws robbing outlaws,’ led him to acquire quite a lot of silver coins. The Emperor had never inquired about these funds, implying they were his to keep, meaning his fortune was more than just substantial.

The Emperor didn’t seem to expect Ning Xu to reply, as if he was making an offhand comment, and quickly changed the subject, ”The information you’ve gathered—was the carriage sabotaged from the outside?”

Ning Xu’s expression grew serious, ”Yes, after leaving the Duke Residence, the carriage was fine, but it was damaged outside after father concluded his meeting.”

The Emperor scoffed, ”The Duke’s itinerary is hardly a secret.”

Out of respect and trust for the Duke Residence, the spies he had placed there were the fewest.

Ning Xu could not refute that his mother was old and no longer meddled with the affairs of the Duke Residence. Now the second sister-in-law managed the household. Although she was a capable steward, the Duke Residence was vast, and she did not dare to meddle in the parents’ court, giving others an opportunity to take advantage.

The Emperor, ”I trust in your abilities. Root out these people for me.”

Regardless of how lush and branching the growth, he did not believe that, after cutting off all the branches and leaving only the main trunk, they could still hide for long!

With a grin, Ning Xu thought, very good, daring to move against his father, ”Your servant acknowledges the decree.”

He had returned to the capital to retire, but that did not mean his methods had softened.

Jinzhou Province, a big family gathering for dinner, and even before the meal had started, Chang Zhong had already started giving out gifts.

Zhulan looked at Chang Zhi with a meaningful gaze; it must have been Chang Zhi’s idea. Otherwise, according to her son’s character, Chang Zhong would have run to give gifts as soon as he heard that Mingyun and the others had left school.

Chang Zhong brought out the gifts, handing them to his nephews one by one. After distributing the gifts, Chang Zhong stood with his little chest puffed out, ”I went out and brought back gifts for you all. Do you like them?”

Mingyun looked at the bamboo dragonfly in his hand. He was beyond the age of curiosity, but fortunately, to keep his younger brothers in check, he had to keep a cold face all year. While his heart was in turmoil, his expression did not change, ”Thank you, Uncle, I like it very much.”

Ming Teng thought to himself that his elder brother really knew how to keep the same tone, but he was conflicted as he looked at the spinning top in his hand. He hadn’t played with it for many years. If he took it out, his friends would laugh him to death, ”Thank you, Uncle.”

Chang Zhong pursed his lips, ”You don’t like it.”

Ming Teng felt the gaze from his grandfather, with a particularly strong will to survive, ”No, Uncle, you’ve misunderstood. I like it very much. I’ll perform for you right now.”

Chang Zhong’s eyes curved into a smile, ”Ah, go ahead and play, I’ll watch.”

Ming Rui, seeing Ming Teng stiffen, had to play with a top in front of the whole family. Ah, even if he pretended, he wouldn’t know how, ”Uncle, I really like the gift you brought.”

Chang Zhong happily said, ”If you all like it, I’ll bring you more when I go out next time.”

Ming Rui smiled, ”Okay.”

Ming Hui was young and liked any gift; he thought his uncle was the best.

Zhulan watched Chang Zhong acting like the best uncle and could not help but laugh.

Ming Teng felt like crying; his uncle was watching him intently, and he had no choice but to perform!

Chang Zhi was pleased; it was not in vain that he sent gifts during the dinner of his little brother’s family.

The next day, in the Hanlin Academy of the capital, the news that the Duke of Ning had been rescued had already spread. Who could blame Mr. Hou and the Princely Heir for not being discreet in their visit to the Zhou family to give their thanks?

When Zhou Changlian entered the room, he felt a wave of envy, jealousy, and, hmm, even hatred. Well, there was no need to think about it; it must have been Shen Yang.

He was exasperated; why was Shen Yang so insistent on rivalling him!

Shen Yang recalled that on the evening of the day before yesterday, when Zhou Changlian and Zhang Rongchuan were walking back to their residence, he had gloated, thinking their carriage had problems.

Today, after receiving the news, all he had was endless regret. If he had arrived at the Zhou family’s carriage sooner, it would have been he who rescued the Duke of Ning, and today he would be the one basking in glory.

In Jinzhou Province, at the Zhou family residence, Zhou Shuren had just gone to the government office when Steward Ding brought in a letter to the main courtyard, ”Madam, an urgent letter.”

Zhulan took it and saw that it was a letter from Zhao Bo. Speaking of which, Zhao Bo had borrowed quite a lot of Silver from the Zhou family!