Chapter 425: How Did Ninth Brother Learn of This?

Chapter 425: How Did Ninth Brother Learn of This?

Seeing that nothing out of the ordinary had happened, Mo Jiuye felt relieved.

He then stated the purpose of his visit.

"Brother Meng, I came here today to inquire about something."

"Ninth Brother, feel free to ask anything you want." Meng Huaining had long regarded Mo Jiuye as part of the family.

Especially after he became engaged to Mo Hanyue, he felt even closer to his brothers-in-law.

"I heard that in the Imperial City, the Ninth Prince has been colluding with the poison masters from the Southern Frontier, framing several high-ranking officials."

Meng Huaining was surprised that Mo Jiuye knew about this. According to his understanding, the Mo family had lost faith in the court and no longer cared about its affairs.

"How did you learn of this, Ninth Brother?" Meng Huaining wasn't trying to pry; he was simply asking out of curiosity.

His mother-in-law had come to the Northwest to accompany Ranran during her confinement, which was no secret to Meng Huaining, who was about to marry Mo Hanyue. Therefore, Mo Jiuye didn't intend to hide it.

"It was my mother-in-law who mentioned this when she came from the Imperial City a few days ago."

"I see." Meng Huaining glanced outside to ensure no one was nearby before whispering, "I only received the news the day before yesterday, and indeed, as Ninth Brother said, several high-ranking officials have been poisoned."

"I heard that Emperor Shunwu has already dispatched people to find experts to counteract the poison. Do you know if there has been any progress?" This was what Mo Jiuye was most concerned about.

His mother-in-law's information was at least twenty days old, and the current situation was unclear.

He knew that Meng Huaining and Fei Nanyu communicated via carrier pigeons, which, though not as fast as his little white horse, could still deliver messages within three or four days.

This meant that the message Meng Huaining received was from the past five or six days, indicating that Emperor Shunwu had yet to find an expert to counteract the poison.

Mo Jiuye had told his family that he was helping Mo Hanyue purchase her dowry, and it was still early for him to return.

He decided to take a stroll around the city and didn't return until late afternoon.

After dinner, Mo Jiuye and He Zhiran presented the dowry, which had been placed in an exquisite small wooden box, to Mo Hanyue.

"Hanyue, this is the dowry your family has prepared for you. Do you like it?" He Zhiran pushed the small wooden box toward Mo Hanyue.

Seeing the courtyard and land her family had given her, Mo Hanyue felt a sense of guilt.

The Mo family was not as prosperous as it once was in the Imperial City, and she understood how hard her family worked to earn their living.

For her wedding, everyone in the family had contributed money to build the courtyard as her dowry, and even the furnishings and bedding were of the best quality.

The standard was no less than that of the noble families in the Imperial City, and perhaps even higher.

"Ninth Sister-in-Law, this is too much. You've already given me so much, I can't accept these."

These words came from the bottom of Mo Hanyue's heart; she didn't want her family to spend more on her.

As she spoke, she pushed the small wooden box back to He Zhiran.

"Ninth Sister-in-Law, I really can't accept these. Save them for my nieces' weddings."

He Zhiran laughed, "How do you know they will be nieces and not nephews?"

"Even if they are nieces, we can save these for their dowries." In Mo Hanyue's heart, she would love them regardless of whether they were boys or girls.

At this moment, Lady Mo also spoke up.

"Hanyue already has a large courtyard as her dowry, which is quite respectable. There's no need to give her the jewelry as well."

Speaking of this, Lady Mo felt some guilt.

When she married Mo Qing, she brought a considerable dowry.

Unfortunately, the Mo family men were often away at war, and all the wealth they earned was used to support the injured soldiers and their families, leaving the household far from the wealthy appearance others might expect.

Later, when the Mo family men began to report their deaths in battle, Lady Mo didn't want her widowed daughters-in-law to suffer, so she gradually contributed her dowry to the family finances.

Her sisters-in-law, being sensible, saw that their mother-in-law was doing this for their sake and also contributed their dowries to the family.

At the time, Mo Jiuye was often away at war and unaware of the family's situation, so he distributed all the spoils of war to his comrades who had fought alongside him.

This led to He Zhiran finding very few valuable items when the Mo family was exiled and their property confiscated.

This was another source of guilt for Lady Mo.

It was her duty as a mother to prepare her daughter's dowry, but now, without the dowry, if not for the efforts of her daughter-in-law, the entire family might not even have enough to eat.

Now, her daughter-in-law was preparing a box of jewelry for her daughter, which made her feel even more guilty.

"These should have been prepared by me as her mother, but I lack the means. It pains me to have you, my daughter-in-law, do this for me."

Seeing this, the sisters-in-law gathered around, agreeing with their mother-in-law to some extent.

In the past, when He Zhiran was not yet part of the family, the sisters-in-law always followed the eldest sister-in-law's lead. This time, it was the eldest sister-in-law who spoke first.

"Hanyue is our family's only daughter. Her wedding must be grand, and her dowry should not be neglected.

Since Ninth Sister-in-Law has taken the initiative to prepare the jewelry for Hanyue, why don't we all contribute to the cost?

This way, we, as sisters-in-law, can feel better about it."

Seeing the situation, Second Sister-in-law also stepped forward to support her: "Ninth Sister-in-law, just listen to Eldest Sister-in-law. I’m willing to contribute my share for the jewelry."

"I’m willing to contribute as well."

"Me too..."

Without exception, all eight sisters-in-law spoke up, expressing their willingness to share the burden. Their tone was sincere, without a hint of reluctance.

The nine sisters-in-law, though they didn’t have much money, genuinely wanted to help He Ziran.

The harmony within the Mo family was what He Ziran cherished most. Despite having so many sisters-in-law, everyone always pulled together and no one ever went against the group because of petty thoughts.

She knew that the sisters-in-law were speaking from the heart, but she didn’t want them to share the burden.

All the jewelry was purchased from Taobao Mall, and for the financially well-off He Ziran, it was merely a drop in the bucket.

If the value of the jewelry were converted into silver of this era, it would be worth at least several thousand taels.

She indeed distributed the monthly wages to the sisters-in-law on time, and the amount was not insignificant. However, compared to the income of the common people in Northwest, it was still relatively small. Even if the sisters-in-law pooled all their resources, they wouldn’t be able to cover the cost of the jewelry.

Of course, only He Ziran knew the true value of the jewelry, and she couldn’t possibly let the sisters-in-law share the burden.

"I understand your intentions, sisters-in-law, but you must remember that I am currently the head of the Mo family. All the income, apart from the monthly wages I allocate to each of you, remains with me."