Time Travel: The Noble Family
Chapter 434 - 156: Losing Money_2

Chapter 434: Chapter 156: Losing Money_2

Lady Mo said coldly, "You pressuring me won’t help; all my money has been invested as well. Go back first, I must find a way to settle the debt." She still owed fifty thousand taels of silver!

Mo Jun left reluctantly.

Lady Mo couldn’t stay calm and asked Granny Lau beside her, "Nanny, what should I do now?" Not to mention that the Money Shop on her parental side was constantly pressing for debt repayment, her own side was suffering huge losses too. If Old Master found out, she wouldn’t be able to save herself...

Nanny Lau had no solution either, "Madam, don’t panic, there will always be a way."

Lady Mo was extremely anxious, sitting on the chair, unable to stop thinking about Yueyao, who was enjoying an easy life at Ma’s Mansion. If that girl hadn’t been so astute, the dowry from Madam Ma and the money left to her by the second son would all be in her own hands. Even with the high-interest loan, she wouldn’t have been unable to pay it off. And now, if she paid off the debt at the Money Shop, her dowry wouldn’t be saved either.

Lady Mo planned to personally go to Ma’s Mansion to fetch someone, but Granny Lau held a negative attitude, "Madam, you must not startle the snake by hitting the grass. The Eldest Young Madam of Ma Family is a very shrewd person; letting her know will definitely cause an uproar, and we will be the ones to suffer. Madam, having lost so much money and rushing to Ma’s Mansion to fetch someone, will definitely confirm the reputation of plotting for money."

Lady Mo knew Granny Liu’s concern and shared the same worries, so for the time being, she could only think of other methods. Out of desperation to gather funds, Lady Mo had no choice but to sell Yuehuan’s lipstick formula to Yu’s shop.

After repeated trials, Yuehuan had finally perfected a new lipstick formula. The improved lipstick was much better than the initial version. But with Lady Mo now in dire need of money, she couldn’t be concerned about earning potential anymore.

Yuehuan’s formula could make money, but compared to the debt they owed, it was more pressing to solve the debt issue first.

Out of options, Lady Mo could only use the dowry to fill the gaps, but such an action naturally didn’t escape the watchful eyes of people with intentions, especially Nanny Deng, who was paying close attention to her.

Upon learning this information, Nanny Deng went to Ma’s Mansion and met with Yueyao, who also shared with Nanny Deng the resources controlled by Nanny Hao.

When Nanny Deng first noticed Lady Mo’s abnormal behavior, she thought it was the mansion’s affairs, but after discovering Lady Mo pawned her jewelry, she sensed that there was something extraordinary about the situation. Nanny Deng immediately had someone inform Yueyao of this news.

Yueyao had suspected this before, and the message relayed by Nanny Deng only confirmed her guess. Just what kind of business was Lady Mo engaging in that she was losing so much money?

After much thought, Yueyao sought out Ma Chengteng and discussed the matter with him before saying, "Uncle, if I find out what Mo Jun has been up to recently, will I know what kind of business Eldest Aunt is engaging in?" With such a large amount of money, Lady Mo certainly wouldn’t hand it to just anyone. It must have been given to the person she trusted the most, and that person was likely none other than Mo Jun.

Upon seeing such a significant financial crisis occur in Lian Mansion, and they wanted to bring Yueyao back immediately, along with considering previous events, Ma Chengteng was convinced that Lady Mo harbored ill intentions and was plotting for Yueyao’s wealth. Ma Chengteng quickly sent people to investigate Mo Jun.

Ma Chengteng found out that very night that Mo Jun had invested a large sum of money in shipping. Such matters could be easily investigated by those who were determined.

"So that’s how it is," Yueyao muttered to herself. Shipping was a business that could bring in huge profits, but the risks were equally high.

Ma Chengteng sneered, "Mo Jun put in 160,000 taels of silver this time, what a pity that her ship encountered a storm on the way back and sank." How could heaven grant good days to such a vicious family? Ma Chengteng had never believed in ghosts and the supernatural, but now he also believed in karmic retribution.

Yueyao’s eyes sparkled as she smiled and said, "Uncle, the Mo family has been in decline for a long time. That amount of money must have been mostly my Eldest Aunt’s investment. Even if she gave up all her dowry, it would not cover this deficit. She sent someone the day before yesterday to say she wanted me to go back, she must be eyeing my assets. Uncle, my eldest uncle must be informed about this." Yueyao wanted Lian Dongfang to know about this not because of the money, but to shake the Mo family’s prestige in the Inner Courtyard. She wanted everyone in the mansion to know that Lian Mansion was not out of money, but it was Lady Mo who had been harsh on everyone and used the withheld funds for business.

Yueyao’s suggestion was a good one. If they didn’t let Lian Dongfang know about it, Lady Mo might target Yueyao again, and that would not do.

Ma Chengteng felt this idea was not bad: "Don’t worry, your uncle will handle this matter well."

With some maneuvering by Ma Chengteng, Lian Dongfang heard the news while having a meal with a friend. As soon as Lian Dongfang heard that Mo Jun had lost a large amount of money in shipping, he felt something was off. The Mo family had been in decline and could not possibly have had so much money to invest in a business; after returning to the mansion, Lian Dongfang summoned the Chief Steward to inquire, and indeed he discovered anomalies.

Although Lian Dongfang did not manage the Inner Courtyard, if he wanted to know about something in the mansion, it was only a matter of time. That very night he found out that Lady Mo had taken out a high-interest loan for business investments, all of which she had lost.

Lian Dongfang stared at Lady Mo, asking, "How much did you borrow?"

Looking at Lian Dongfang, Lady Mo had already guessed that he would investigate when he started asking questions, so she answered very calmly this time, "I invested a total of fifty thousand and borrowed thirty thousand. But now it has all been paid back. Old Master, which business doesn’t have losses?" Lady Mo appeared calm and collected, but inside she was extremely anxious. After being married for nearly two decades, she was very aware of Lian Dongfang’s temper. Had it not been for the fact that she had given birth to two sons who were both promising, and thus had some confidence at the bottom of her heart, her husband might have been furious with her long ago.

Lady Mo had actually invested eighty thousand taels of silver. She had thirty thousand taels of ready silver on hand at the time and had taken a 50,000 taels high-interest loan from the Money Shop. Such high-interest loans were extremely daunting.

Lian Dongfang glanced at Lady Mo and said coldly, "I checked the accounts yesterday, and although the number of people in the mansion has decreased, with cuts from top to bottom, there is no surplus money on the books. Did you take all this money to do business?" Since the Old Madam passed away, Lian Mansion still followed the old rules, with the front court allocating a sum of money to the Inner Courtyard at the beginning of each month for daily expenses. Lady Mo had reduced the mansion’s expenses because her daily needs had not decreased, and it was normal to save some during the mourning period too. But now, with the expenses cut down by half, not even a fraction of the savings was left, as Lady Mo had embezzled it all and subsequently lost it in business.

Lady Mo’s mind raced: "Old Master..." She had not expected Lian Dongfang to trace it back to her so quickly.

Lian Dongfang swept Lady Mo with a glance: "Let’s let this matter go for now, but if there is a next time, you’ll go to the temple to pray for your mother." After saying this, Lian Dongfang left the main room.