Chapter 480: The Pay-to-Win Palace Intrigue System (15)

Third Master Xie had won a complete victory once again.

He returned to the Xi Kuayuan in high spirits, describing the sour look on his second sister-in-law's face to his wife.

"Hmph! With those little schemes of hers, she thinks no one can see through them. If she had come to us in all sincerity to discuss things, the Master and Mistress wouldn't be the type to be stingy. But she fancies herself clever, choosing crooked paths instead of the straight one, and even delusionally hoped to have the Old Matriarch step in to pressure the Master. Pfft! The Master will certainly not do as she wishes!"

"And the eldest sister-in-law, actually having the gall to ask for a whole set of pewterware. The Master himself can't bear to use a full set, so where does she get such nerve? And she even dragged in the excuse of adding to Yan'er's dowry. How laughable! The Master has more than one niece; if every niece came to ask for a full set of pewterware, how could I possibly divide them up? Better to treat everyone equally and give it to no one!"

After Third Master Xie finished his rant, he rubbed his nose at the end:

"It's just that the eldest sister-in-law originally wanted Jing to go to the front courtyard to help with the purchasing, but with things as they are, I'm afraid that won't work out."

Third Mistress Xie cast him a sidelong glance: "What is there to regret about running errands and doing chores? Not to mention it's exhausting, Jing's marriage is imminent, and he has enough of his own affairs to handle! Master, didn't the Holy Aunt say in her letter that she would send Yang Er back to reunite with us on the day of Jing's wedding? I miss Yang Er. Let us settle Jing's marriage as soon as possible so that we can see Yang Er sooner."

Third Master Xie nodded: "What the Mistress says is reasonable. Next time the eldest sister-in-law asks about Jing, just decline. I've been thinking that since our private treasury has quite a few good things, why not donate for an official rank for him? Even if it can't be finalized before the engagement, if the matchmaker reveals a hint of it, surely it will be easier to arrange a marriage."

The couple talked back and forth about donating for an official rank and actually felt it was a good idea.

In fact, back when the Old Matriarch donated for an official rank for the second son, Third Master Xie had also felt quite itchy to donate for a civil official position himself.

But what did the Old Matriarch say?

"Although your second brother didn't pass the imperial examinations, he has at least studied for many years. Moreover, Qi and Huan are the most diligent students among the younger generation and will surely pursue an official career in the future. Let your second brother take the lead in the officialdom to pave the way for your two nephews in the future."

Whenever he was mentioned, she would say forget it, claiming the household income was limited—donating for one was fine, but two would be too much to bear.

And as for the third branch paying for it themselves, where would he scrape together that much Silver?

So among the three brothers, the eldest inherited the title, the second donated for an official rank, and he was the most useless of them all.

Now that it was the turn of the children's generation, Third Master Xie gritted his teeth and secretly swore that he must get his son an official position.

In any case, the third branch's private treasury had saved up quite a few good things. Even if the money was still not enough, it wasn't impossible to take a few treasures sent by Yang Er's master to secure a small, idle official post for his son.

If all else failed, the Third Mistress planned to sell the rouge shop she brought as a dowry.

Of course, she definitely couldn't say she used her dowry to outsiders, otherwise the face-conscious Master would surely grow distant from her; she would have to borrow the name of Yang Er's master again later.

But there was no rush for this; he would first try the treasures in the treasury. He had previously acquired several antiques and curios, and it was time for them to be put to use.

Thus, Third Master Xie went to the private treasury to pick out a few exquisite gifts, tucked them into his robes, and left the estate.

……

Xie Yang, who was preparing to leave Jiaozhou Fu and travel around the borders of the Great Ye Dynasty, heard the live broadcast of her cheap father's tongue-lashing victory over his sister-in-law and the third branch's subsequent plans through the Main System, and couldn't help but laugh.

She wanted to see, with the fourth brother no longer there to take the blame, who else the eldest mistress would try to target?

The eldest mistress waited calmly for the third branch's response.

By bringing up the topic of letting Xie Jing be responsible for the household's future purchasing, she intended to make the third branch yield and voluntarily send over a set of pewterware.

Her Yan'er was fourteen this year and was already betrothed and preparing for marriage.

She thought that if there were a set of exquisite pewterware in the dowry—a set that even the ladies of the inner palace might not possess—it would allow her to be held in higher regard by her in-laws and establish her footing before them after she married.

Furthermore, even without Yan'er, with Ping'er's current status, surely that was enough for the third branch to send the first branch a complete set of pewterware?

Ping'er was, after all, a noble lady who had given birth to a dragon son for the royal family!

She could continue to rise in the future, and it was not impossible for her to reach the pinnacle of the inner palace one day.

In her opinion, the third branch should send their first branch two complete sets of pewterware: one to be sent into the palace for Ping'er to use, and one for Yan'er's dowry.

She hoped the third branch wasn't foolish and knew how to curry favor with the first branch.

Who would have thought that after waiting and waiting, what came instead was the news that the third branch intended to donate for an official rank for Xie Jing.

"Clatter—"

The eldest mistress was so angry she could no longer maintain her usual graceful demeanor, smashing porcelain all over the floor.

What a nerve the third branch had!

To actually show her such disrespect!

Were they determined to go against the first branch?

When Ping'er achieved great success in the future, the third branch shouldn't expect to share in the blessings.

After venting, the eldest mistress calmed down.

If the third branch donated for an official rank for Xie Jing, then who would handle the money lending?

The plan had been so well laid out: let Xie Jing run errands and assist her, and hand over the money lending—a matter that couldn't be brought into the light—to him.

Even if it were exposed later, she could push the blame, claiming she was unaware and that it was the nephew Xie Jing who was greedy.

But now that Xie Jing had to be busy with his marriage and would soon have a good position, he certainly wouldn't come to her. What was to be done about the money lending?

On one side, the eldest mistress was filled with hatred and anxiety; on the other, the third branch's threshold was being worn down by matchmakers.

The social customs of the Great Ye Dynasty were relatively open. Moreover, as the old saying goes, "A good daughter is sought by a hundred families, a wealthy young man is vied for by ten thousand." When encountering a promising young man, the woman's side could also send a matchmaker to sound out the situation.

If the man's side was interested in the marriage, they would ask the matchmaker to communicate with the woman's side to set a date for the children to meet. If they weren't opposed to the match, they would then formally ask the matchmaker to choose an auspicious day to propose at the woman's home.

If they were uninterested, they would give the matchmaker a fee for her trouble, and the matter would be dropped.

And before the man's side formally proposed, the matchmaker could not reveal the information of the woman's family who had asked her to sound out the situation, otherwise, it would violate the professional ethics of the matchmaker trade. A matchmaker wouldn't dare to shoot herself in the foot.

Therefore, despite the many matchmakers visiting, others didn't know which families had issued the invitations for a viewing.

They only knew that Xie Jing, who had been like a transparent, insignificant person in the eyes of the noble ladies of Jingcheng, had suddenly become a hot commodity.

The couple of the third branch looked at each other: "..."

What was this called?

Sitting at home, and blessings falling from the sky?

Pfft! Where did this "free" blessing come from? It was clearly earned by their daughter!

Regardless, Jing's marriage was finally settled!

With matchmakers coming every few days, was there any fear of not being able to pick a satisfactory match?

Xie Jing, who was playing polo with friends at a Farm in the suburbs, received the news sent by the household servant and was so embarrassed he nearly fell off his horse.

"Hahahaha..."

His group of ball-playing friends, who loved nothing more than a good spectacle, laughed until they were doubled over, nearly falling off their horses as well.

Xie Jing: "..."

He was only fifteen! Fifteen!

Was there really such a rush to find a wife for him?