Chapter 311

Chapter 316: Selection (Part 2)

In the evening, Lady Eleven met with Lord Xu.

Lord Xu was somewhat disappointed. "Lao Zhuo and I go way back. If this could have worked out, it would have been a good match. But that young man, though handsome in appearance, lacks sharpness in his dealings. He isn’t good enough for our Zhenjie."

"What should we do then?" Lady Eleven asked.

"I didn’t turn him down flat," Lord Xu replied. "During the banquet, I mentioned Zhenjie was brought up by elder madam, and her marriage would largely depend on elder madam’s approval."

Lady Eleven pondered. "That’s the best way to put it. It gives us some wiggle room." She then passed along what elder madam said to Lord Xu. "We should carefully investigate the Wang family’s son."

"That’s what I thought as well," Lord Xu said. "I already sent someone to inquire this afternoon. We’ll know by tomorrow." He added, "In a couple of days, Minister Chen’s youngest son is getting married, and Prince Shun’s family is throwing a first-month party for their newborn son. Pay attention when you attend."

Lady Eleven agreed and curiously asked about Minister Chen’s youngest son’s marriage. "...Which family’s daughter is he marrying?"

Lord Xu looked at her with a playful smirk. "He’s marrying the eldest daughter of Wan Chun, Governor of Gansu Province."

Lady Eleven paused, taken aback, then recalled the first time she had heard the name Wan Chun... Her cheeks colored slightly.

Noticing this, Lord Xu leaned closer and whispered with a chuckle, "I wonder who Jinhua’s Prefect Wan Chun’s eldest daughter is engaged to?"

Lady Eleven glared at him. "Why meddle in others’ affairs?"

Lord Xu laughed heartily, swept her up in his arms, and murmured in her ear, "Since we have nothing better to do, let’s discuss it!"

Suddenly, a young maid’s voice came from outside the door. "My Lord, My Lady, Lin Bo is here!"

"Tell him to come back tomorrow!" Lord Xu made for the bed.

Lady Eleven gently pushed him. "It’s so late. Lin Bo must have something urgent to discuss. You ought to hear him out."

Lord Xu hesitated.

Lady Eleven wriggled to be let down. "My Lord, you should go and see."

Lord Xu set her on the bed and whispered, "Wait for me a moment."

Lady Eleven nodded slightly, watching as Lord Xu left the inner chamber. She thought of his teasing earlier.

Last night had been wonderful—that much was certain—had Lord Xu felt the same?

Life had taught her that only through effort could one grab chances when they come... And so she had seized them, reaping the rewards. In this strange new world, she had followed her past successes—striving to recover, to become a useful pawn for the grand madam, to marry into the Yongping Marquis’s household, to earn elder madam’s affection, to gain Lord Xu’s approval, to become a virtuous wife and mother in line with societal expectations.

But she had forgotten one thing: the heart has its own will.

In this environment where she had to strive to fit in, when the daytime bustle faded and she had to open up to accept a man entirely unfamiliar to her, effort became so unbearably awkward. Instinctively, she had begun to resist... only asking for respect from the one holding her.

Lady Eleven gazed at the gauzy bed curtains.

Yesterday, she had been able to accept it because she had felt respected.

But what about Lord Xu?

Just days ago, he had been teasing her like a child.

As she pondered, Lord Xu returned.

He looked troubled.

"What happened?" Miss Eleven composed herself and asked him.

Lord Xu took a seat at the bedside, silent for a moment, then said, "Miss Eleven, I need to go to Zhangqiu first thing tomorrow morning."

"Zhangqiu?" Miss Eleven looked at Lord Xu in surprise.

Zhangqiu was a county in Shandong, which she had read about in *The Nine Domains of Da Zhou.*

Why was he going to Zhangqiu?

Lord Xu seemed hesitant to speak.

Miss Eleven didn’t press further and said, "How many days will you be gone? I’ll prepare some clean clothes for you."

"About seven or eight days," Lord Xu replied, then added after a pause, "I’ll be back before your hair-pinning ceremony."

Miss Eleven had always felt that birthday celebrations and gifts were merely embellishments—what she truly valued was the kindness shown in times of need.

"My lord, don’t worry about my hair-pinning ceremony. It’s more important for you to handle your affairs properly," she said, then called Lv Yun in to help pack Lord Xu’s clothes. She also opened the medicine chest. "The weather is getting hotter. Take some anti-miasma pills and mulberry and chrysanthemum infusion with you." She earnestly reminded him to be careful on the road, as the mornings and evenings were chilly, and not to neglect adding or removing clothes according to the weather.

Lord Xu nodded but suddenly said, "Zhangqiu is Second Madam’s mother's family." His voice carried a trace of melancholy.

Second Madam’s mother's family? What was Lord Xu going there for? Even if something had happened to Second Madam’s maternal family, it should be Lord Xiang who stepped in. If Lord Xu was being dragged into it, it must be something serious!

Miss Eleven thought quickly and dismissed the servants before asking Lord Xu in a low voice, "What exactly happened? My lord, please tell me so I can at least be prepared. I don’t want to be caught off guard when the time comes."

Seeing Miss Eleven so tense, Lord Xu quickly reassured her, "It’s not exactly an emergency..." He hesitated for a long moment before speaking somewhat awkwardly, "When Second Madam married into our family, she had a landed dowry—the family matriarch's personal dowry, meant to be kept by Second Madam’s side. At one point, the family faced financial difficulties, so Second Madam secretly sold the land to help cover expenses..." His expression grew troubled. "Later, I repaid her the money from the sale, but considering the land was originally the Xiang family's matriarch's personal dowry, and Second Madam had sold it hastily—not only at barely 60% of its worth—I was troubled. I wanted to buy back some of the land to make up for her loss. I’ve had local contacts monitoring the situation. This trip to Zhangqiu is because I heard some of the original buyers are now willing to sell..."

Miss Eleven was astonished.

Hadn’t Madam Tao said Second Madam’s dowry was meager? How had a piece of land suddenly appeared? And from Lord Xu’s tone, he had local contacts monitoring the situation but still feared it wouldn’t work out unless he went personally. Were the sellers unafraid of Lord Xu’s influence, deliberately raising the price because they knew he was eager to buy it back? Or had another powerful family also taken an interest in the land, making it uncertain whether sending stewards would secure the purchase?

Her mind raced, and she asked casually, "Who is selling the land? Can we find a connection to negotiate with them? We could offer more money. Since they’re willing to sell anyway, it shouldn’t be a problem."

Lord Xu gave a bitter smile. "It’s not that simple."

Miss Eleven was puzzled.

Lord Xu explained, "That estate spans six thousand *mu* (about 1,000 acres), all prime agricultural land, and entirely contiguous. Second Madam’s mother's family put great effort into acquiring it back then. At the time, no one in Zhangqiu could afford to buy it all at once, so it was divided into dozens of smaller plots and sold piece by piece. Selling was easy, but buying it back now..." He sighed. "So many years have passed. Some of the original buyers have prospered, while others have fallen on hard times. Those in hardship are easy to deal with—just offer more money. But those doing well would never part with such prime land. It’s not something money alone can solve."

Miss Eleven’s mind echoed only one phrase: *Six thousand mu, all prime agricultural land.*

"How could there be so much?" Her voice sounded almost stammering to her own ears.

Lord Xu replied tactfully, "This is Second Madam’s family matter. It’s not our place to pry."

Miss Eleven thought of the tense relationship between Second Madam and Lady Xiang... There must be more to the story, but she refrained from asking further. "Have you managed to reclaim any of the land so far?"

"Over eight hundred *mu*," Lord Xu said. "Second Madam adamantly refused to take it back. She said the Xiang family's matriarch had given her the land precisely so she could use it in times of crisis. By using it to relieve the Xu family’s urgent needs, it had served its purpose. Besides, I’ve already repaid her the money from the sale. She absolutely refused to accept it, so the land deeds stayed with Mother."

He continued, "This time, about four hundred *mu* are up for sale. Most people in Zhangqiu know I’m trying to buy back the land, and some shady brokers have been swindling landowners into selling. That’s why I’m leaving for Zhangqiu first thing tomorrow—to avoid failing to buy the land while still earning a reputation for coercion."

Wasn’t this walking right into the lion's mouth?

"In that case, my lord should think carefully," Miss Eleven advised. "Otherwise, if the imperial censors accuse you, it’ll only add to the trouble. And if word spreads that the Xus profited from their daughter-in-law's assets, it’ll sound even worse!"

"Believe me, I know," Lord Xu said helplessly. "That’s why I’ve only managed to reclaim over eight hundred *mu* over the years. This trip is just to evaluate the opportunity. If I can buy it, I will. If not, I’ll have to wait for another opportunity." He added regretfully, "But the more time passes, the more times the land gets resold, and the harder it becomes to buy back."

Miss Eleven understood Lord Xu’s feelings, but what puzzled her more was the connection between thirty-six trunks of dowry and six thousand *mu* of prime agricultural land.

The next day, after seeing Lord Xu off, she immediately summoned Song Mama to inquire.

"I heard from Madam Tao that when the Second Madam married into the family, the Elder Madam helped add to her dowry. Is this true?"

"Yes!" Song Mama smiled, then leaned close to Eleven Miss's ear and whispered, "Lord Xiang is an adopted son." Straightening up, she continued with a smile, "When the Second Madam married in, she brought several carts of books. The elder madam of the Xiang family said that to avoid future disputes, these items wouldn't be listed on the dowry registry. Feeling uneasy, our Elder Madam gifted the Second Madam a pair of mutton-fat jade ruyi ornaments, each about a foot long, along with some other valuable jewelry. The elder madam of the Xiang family was very pleased, praising our Elder Madam for her straightforward and open nature. So when the Second Madam married in, the pair of jade ruyi ornaments given by our Elder Madam was used as the first dowry display. When the Third Madam first married in, she even argued with the Third Young Master about it!"

Not listing them on the dowry registry meant all those books were given to the Xu family!

"Did my sister know about this?"

Eleven Miss pondered.

"She likely knew," Song Mama said uncertainly. "The books the Second Madam brought were kept in *Shaohua Courtyard*. When the Fourth Madam first married in, she even borrowed books directly from the Second Madam!"