Chapter 72
Each household had to prepare a list of people leaving the city, after all, if they went out, it would be under the guise of visiting relatives, and it was impossible to bring too many servants. The servants who knew about this matter couldn't go out and talk nonsense, but they were eager for their masters to take them along.
The other two households were secretly vying with each other, but Xian Yi didn't know about it. What she cared about most was being able to leave this place and breathe the fresh air outside again. The second household wasn't bad, but she always felt that it wasn't her home, even though there were no elders pressuring her, and they lived in a separate garden on the mountain. Deep down, she actually preferred the small mansion in Linqing that had been transferred to her name, which was the house where she had lived after getting married. It wasn't big, but it made her nostalgic.
Jin Fenghua was determined to follow Xian Yi this time. The third elder had finally found a young man to inherit the second household, and he definitely wouldn't let Jin Fenghua encounter any danger. Moreover, with so many people going out, they needed someone who could take charge. The eldest son of the first household was definitely not suitable, and the one from the third household was too young. The rest were all women, and Jin Fenghua's age and personality made him the best candidate to protect the family.
This time, almost all the women had to leave, except for a few unpopular aunts who were not favored and did not have children. They stayed behind to take care of the old masters' lives. However, some of them were sensible and knew how to behave, while others were foolish and feared death. According to rumors, they ran to the front of the big master's house and cried, but were stopped by Zhang Lao Furen and tied up in the woodshed. That night, they were beaten half to death and barely survived with a doctor's help. It is unknown whether they will survive or not.
This incident was like killing a chicken to scare the monkeys, and no one dared to make a sound in either house. Even the slaves who had been begging everywhere were scared and did not dare to ask for anything again. However, each house still had its own people to take care of, including the old lady's attendants, the wet nurses, and the servants who took care of the young masters.
Even Xian Yi was worried about who to bring along, as she was not familiar with the people in the Jin Fu. She knew that if she only brought her own people, others would say that she was biased and favored some over others. In the end, it was decided by Jin Fenghua that 60% of the people they would bring were their own, while 40% were from the Jin Fu. The ones left behind were all skilled fighters who could take care of themselves if anything happened.
The 40% of people from the Jin Fu were chosen by Yan Zongguan and the younger generation of slaves from the second house. Yan Shou was among them, as well as Yan Zongguan's small grandson, who was selected to accompany Yu Ge on the road. These people were the descendants of the slaves in the second house, and Jin Fenghua's decision was a way of buying their loyalty.
Just before leaving, Xian Yi learned that Zhang Lao Fu Ren had buried some valuable items in the back mountain of the Jin family and had disposed of some large items that could not be taken away. Actually, Xian Yi had been a bit suspicious since she knew Zhang Lao Fu Ren was going to leave together with them. Zhang Lao Fu Ren clearly loved her son and grandson so much, but at this time, she didn't mention staying behind herself, letting the old master leave, as if it were natural. Between her son and herself, she chose to escape danger first. Xian Yi didn't think Zhang Lao Fu Ren was selfish, but overall felt a bit melancholic. The future of the main house was really hard to predict with such a self-willed old lady. It was said that previously, the old lady had been busy arranging the marriage of the second young master, but he refused to come back and take a look, so she temporarily put her mind at ease. She was also afraid that if the second young master became arrogant, even if the old lady had arranged the marriage, he would not come back to get married, and her old face would be completely lost. So, it's not necessarily true that the old lady loved the eldest grandson just because the eldest young master's body was not good. It's hard to say whether this was due to the second young master having his own ideas, making it impossible for the old lady to control him, which would make her unhappy.
Xian Yi actually had a lot of things, but she always knew that when going out, it's best to bring fewer items. Except for the essentials, money was the most important thing. As for delicate utensils and other non-essential items, they weren't necessary to bring along. It was like incense, incense burners, or luxurious bedding - according to her way of thinking, these things could be bought anywhere, even if not the best quality, as long as they were made of cotton, they could still be used. She wasn't a delicate young lady who would lose sleep over not having fragrant scents in her bed or couldn't speak or bathe without incense and dried flowers. In Xian Yi's bones, she was a thrifty commoner who wouldn't naturally put on airs like the old madam and the two ladies-in-waiting.
Jin Fenghua had similar thoughts - he wasn't someone who pursued material wealth either. Even when he sat in that position in his past life, surrounded by servants who arranged for him to have a standard of living that exceeded that of imperial princes, he didn't feel particularly comfortable or honored. To him, the purpose of a luxurious lifestyle was only to win over officials, intimidate political enemies, and declare his status. In reality, he could sleep comfortably even in prison cells and survive on coarse grains and vegetables. If not for his excessive concern for Xian Yi, he would have set out alone with nothing.
After much deliberation, Xian Yi only brought the things Jin Fenghua had prepared for her, while leaving behind bedding and other items except for a few changes of clothes that were comfortable to wear but didn't draw attention. She didn't bring any luxurious bedding or incense burners, except for small ones, which she locked away in boxes. As for antiques and paintings, Xian Yi also left them behind, but Jin Fenghua had prepared to pack everything up and find an opportunity to secretly transport them to Lin Qing with the help of Heng Cheng's informants.
As for the things belonging to the Jin family, both Xian Yi and Jin Fenghua were in complete agreement - they helped Yan Zongguan bury everything in the backyard. Whether or not these items would be dug up by others before their return was no longer a concern for this couple.
The whole family walked out in a grand manner, and outsiders only knew that the ladies were returning to their hometown to visit relatives. After all, the men of the Jin family were all present, and no trouble was caused, but some families had sensed something unusual and gradually arranged for their own family members to leave Heng City. Xian Yi and Jin Fenghua together had five cars, which was the least among the three houses. The others, like the first house, needed more than ten horse-drawn carriages, which showed how many things they brought with them. Although the third house had fewer people than the first house, they still managed to fill up a total of ten vehicles. However, since the third house had more children, they naturally couldn't bring fewer things. The Duke's mansion had a title, so the first house had guards. The third house, due to its relationship with the three old masters, had also cultivated many capable house slaves over the years. As a result, apart from leaving most of them behind to guard the Jin family, this time the third house brought more than 100 people who could serve as guards. Although this was not as many as the usual 300 guards that a marquis could bring, it was still an intimidating number. Fortunately, there were elderly ladies in the group, and no one dared to say anything about their status.
Xian Yi and Jin Feng Hua's convoy set off, and he opened the things that General Yan had handed over to him before his departure. Although he was mentally prepared, Xian Yi was still shocked. There were thousands of taels of silver bills worth of gold, a list of dowry for Er Lao Tai Ye's mother stored in a money house in Beijing, documents for copper and iron mines, deeds for various shops in Heng City and Beijing, even a small horse farm, and a mountain head in the suburbs of Beijing. There were many things, no wonder the big house was eager to explore the bottom. Not to mention other things, the gold from Pei Guo was real gold. Most large households had never used enough gold, but this box alone contained thousands of taels of gold. It's not that they were richer than a king, but at least they were no worse off than a duke. With so much money, even if there were ten or more mouths to feed in the family, and they didn't do anything, buying hundreds of slaves would still leave them with plenty to spare for three generations. People are all fond of wealth, and even Xian Yi's heart, as a small citizen, couldn't help but jump with excitement.
"Where did Old Man Er get so much money?" Xian Yi carefully put everything away, afraid of being seen by others.
"I heard that the father of Old Master Er had been a high-ranking official in charge of a region, with military power in his hands. His mother was the daughter of a princess from the capital city, and their family was extremely wealthy and noble. Neither of Old Master Er's parents lived in Heng City; it was because they passed away early that he was sent back to be raised by his grandmother." All these were investigated by Jin Fenghua before the adoption.
"What about the mother of that Second Master's wife? Was her dowry in the capital?" Xian Yi asked curiously.
Jin Fenghua pinched his wife's soft hand, leaning against the car wall and said lazily: "The first old master, second old master, and third old master are not from the same mother. The first old master's mother was the original wife of the ancestor, she gave birth to the first old master but died soon after. The later substitute wife was the daughter of a princess, she gave birth to the second and third old masters. She herself knew the feelings of being a stepmother, so when she was about to die, she entrusted someone to transport most of her dowry back to Beijing, found her natal family and sent it to the money house. I suppose the third old master's share has been taken, the second old master's share is in our hands."
"Did Grandfather Zǔ also agree?" Xiānyī asked in surprise, "So much money!"
"The old master originally had money, and the old lady led all of his mother's property. The county princess's daughter naturally wanted to divide it equally between her two sons. Although he wasn't trusted, he probably thought this way was less troublesome. How could a man's gaze always be fixed on the inner courtyard? It's likely that the old master also agreed with this, after all, if he remarried and had more children, who knows who would die first? If he died first, his young wife might take over the property of his two sons, and he wouldn't even have a chance to explain himself in the afterlife. Moreover, facts proved that this was the right decision, as the old master soon passed away, and the one in charge was the old lady. Let's not talk about how the deceased Duke An was, just look at Zhang Lao's behavior - if the dowry wasn't in the capital, it's likely that nothing would be left now. Furthermore, if Duke An hadn't died back then, who knows what kind of tricks Zhang Lao would have played on her two younger brothers-in-law? Whether or not the second and third old masters had the wealth they have today is debatable. After all, when Duke An passed away, his two younger brothers were still unmarried."
