Rejected Beauty Practices the Villain Play
Chapter 163 Dowry

Chapter 163: Chapter 163 Dowry

After Feng Changqing and his wife returned to the Capital City, the guards in the second courtyard were replaced by the personal soldiers of the National General. Zhang Da and Chen Lin no longer took shifts, causing Fengyu to sleep restlessly at night. Su Yuejiao instructed the soldiers not to approach the Plum Garden, to avoid disturbing Fengyu’s peaceful dreams.

Noticing Fengyu’s strange walking posture, Su Yuejiao asked her about it. Fengyu only said she had twisted herself and needed to rest. The mother felt connected to her daughter and couldn’t sleep well, feeling odd. In the dead of night, she dragged Feng Changqing to the Plum Garden to check on her.

Xie Xun, having transmigrated into Fengyu’s body, had been strengthening her physique for several days, and her stamina was improving. She practiced a set of swordsmanship in the courtyard. Su Yuejiao’s expression was very strange.

Ayu was frail and sickly, prone to nightmares, and usually didn’t wake until late in the morning. How could she have gotten up at night? Feng Changqing saw her wielding the sword with fierce vigor and couldn’t help but praise, "Ayu is worthy of being the daughter of a military family; this swordsmanship is truly exquisite."

Unfortunately, the strength was lacking, and her steps were somewhat unsteady.

Su Yuejiao, "..."

Her husband truly doted on their daughter.

Su Yuejiao and Feng Changqing, having discovered Fengyu training at night, remained silent and spoke privately with Feng Shu. The two sisters’ courtyards were adjoining, and Dongxue and Xia Zhu noticed the commotion in Fengyu’s courtyard on the first day. Feng Shu wasn’t surprised at all; she remembered a time when Fengyu was also very keen on horse riding and sword practice.

She had practiced horse riding with some competence, and when she asked Fengyu about it, Fengyu said she was mocked at the Imperial College and wanted to practice in private. She had even mastered riding, but refrained from showing off during examinations. Feng Shu just considered it a momentary craze, as her sister occasionally exhibited strange behavior and speech, something she was accustomed to.

Feng Changqing, Su Yuejiao, and Feng Shu all stood outside the courtyard watching Xie Xun practice swordsmanship. The young Marquis, having transmigrated into Fengyu, could practice for only the time of one incense stick on his first day, but now could persist for a full hour. Though lacking in strength, the swordsmanship was beautifully executed. Qiuxiang leaned on Chunlu’s shoulder, dozing off.

In a daze, she even clapped and praised before continuing her nap.

They watched for several consecutive days.

Feng Changqing felt it was too peculiar, and anxiously asked, "Is there something unclean in the mansion causing Ayu to act this way? Should we invite a master to conduct a ritual?"

From being proud of a military daughter to fearing entanglement with spirits, in just a few days, the National General’s pride turned into worry, fearing that if this went on, his daughter’s soul would be taken by spirits.

"Don’t go crazy!" Su Yuejiao said disdainfully, "There are no such things as monsters. Ayu strengthening her body is a good thing, but getting up at 3 a.m. and practicing for two hours daily is too much for her body. And... this swordsmanship looks very familiar."

"As the lady mentioned, indeed... this swordsmanship seems familiar to me as well." Feng Changqing pondered, his expression strange. Where had he seen it before?

Feng Shu wanted to speak but held back, her expression subtle. How had Ayu grown so close to the young Marquis? The Xie family’s swordsmanship took at least three years to master to such fluency.

She had seen Xie Zhang perform it, and he had taught her a few moves, taking her months to grasp, yet Ayu wielded it fluidly. Though lacking strength, she had memorized all four sets of the Xie family’s swordsmanship.

This was too peculiar!

"I remember now, the Marquis practiced this swordsmanship." Feng Changqing suddenly realized, "It is the Xie family’s self-created swordsmanship. Xie Zhang and Xie Xun even sparred with it on the training ground."

"How does Ayu know the Xie family swordsmanship?" Su Yuejiao frowned and looked at Feng Shu, "Did you teach her?"

"...Yes." Feng Shu carefully chose her words, remaining composed. She still couldn’t fathom Ayu’s intentions. In such private matters, she would always cover for her sister.

Although they found it odd that Fengyu practiced swordsmanship at 3 a.m., they did not disturb her. Moreover, after practice, Fengyu looked more invigorated, and her appetite improved, bringing them joy.

Rarely sharing a mutual interest with Fengyu, Feng Changqing was very excited. After lunch, he even took Fengyu to the training ground, wanting to teach her a spear technique, but Fengyu couldn’t handle the long spear, losing interest.

Fengyu said, "Father, I have much energy at night, but lack sleep during the day. I don’t want to practice."

Though the National General was disappointed, he did not force Fengyu.

Having wandered outside for two years, suffering many hardships, after returning home, she was pampered by her grandmother and sister. Things she didn’t want to do, she never forced herself to do.

Days passed slowly and calmly, and the Feng Mansion welcomed its first joyous event.

Feng Wan got married and became Princess Duan.

The wedding was a grand affair with a lengthy bridal procession, celebrated by officials and military alike.

Watching the bustling wedding, Fengyu felt a bit melancholic. On the sixth of June, after her sister married, only she and Feng Ling remained at home.

She wished time would pass slower, even slower.

After Feng Wan married, Feng Shu became even busier. Together with Su Yuejiao, they began organizing the family businesses, and lately, they had been managing the accounts. In the afternoon, Fengyu was summoned by Su Yuejiao to the main courtyard’s study.

The second courtyard’s main yard was quiet. Feng Changqing and Marquis An Yuan, along with a group of military officials, had gone for an outing, leaving the courtyard silent. Dongxue and Xia Zhu guarded outside the Moon Gate. When Fengyu arrived, Su Yuejiao and Feng Shu were reconciling accounts on the warm couch in the study, with two thick stacks of account books piled on the couch.

With her soul joined with the young Marquis, practicing at night and feeling sleepy during the day, Fengyu also knew that Su Yuejiao and Feng Shu were organizing businesses. Business accounts from the Capital City had already been handed over.

Mudan Building, Wangjiang Restaurant, and Linlang Pavilion were the three businesses Fengyu managed independently. Su Yuejiao and Feng Shu didn’t interfere, summoning Fengyu over for the integration of the Su Family’s businesses.

Su Yuejiao was Su Ming’s only daughter, taking away most of the Su Family dowry when she married into the Marquis Zhenbei Mansion, which Fengyu had long known.

She was not covetous of the Su Family’s businesses. Once Feng Shu’s wedding date was set, she told her sister that she should take all of Su Family’s businesses and that she only wanted Su Yuejiao’s dowry in the Capital City.

At the time of Su Yuejiao’s marriage, her dowry was substantial, and almost twenty years had passed with the Su Family expanding its business scope, covering Yanyang and opening trade routes between Sannan and Yanyang. Su Yuejiao’s dowry was just a small part of the Su Family’s assets.

Fengyu wasn’t greedy, and besides, the Su Family businesses were supposed to be Feng Shu’s dowry for marrying into the Marquis Mansion. Fengyu thought managing her mother’s businesses well would allow her and her sister to support each other. Her mother’s dowry alone was a wealth beyond most people’s accumulation over three generations.

When Feng Shu handed Fengyu a token, she was utterly shocked, "Sister?"

Su Yuejiao gently caressed Fengyu’s head and spoke softly, "Our businesses in the Capital City, Jiangnan, and the twelve provinces, Shu’er will take the Capital City and Jiangnan. The twelve provinces and mother’s dowry will remain with you."

"No way!" Fengyu shook her head, "How can I keep the twelve provinces?"

The Su Family businesses were widespread; Jiangnan and the Capital City were very prosperous, containing the best tea estates, grain shops, silk stores of Yanyang, amassing wealth from across the world. The twelve provinces stretched from the heart of Yanyang to the northwest, being key areas for grains and mineral resources, with the Su Family holding collaboration and mining rights with the twelve provinces’ government.