Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 737 Suspected of Seeking Sympathy_1

Chapter 737: Chapter 737 Suspected of Seeking Sympathy_1

Ming Rui whispered, "I just saw Big Brother smile."

Ming Teng sat up straight in an instant, his eyes fixed on Big Brother, who still had an icy face, "You must have seen it wrong."

Ming Rui wouldn’t have seen it wrong; Big Brother genuinely smiled. He tugged at Ming Hui for confirmation, "You saw it too, didn’t you?"

Ming Hui nodded, "I saw it, Big Brother really smiled."

It might have been better not to smile at all; everyone was used to seeing him with a stern face, so suddenly seeing Big Brother smile was actually frightening!

Ming Teng felt as though he had lost a hundred taels of silver, having missed it. It was such a pity. Then he remembered that of all his brothers, Ming Rui’s drawing skills were the best, "Draw it for me to see."

After speaking, Ming Teng felt a chill on his back.

Ming Rui glanced at Big Brother, not daring, just not daring. He didn’t want to be stared at by Big Brother while reading; it was too painful!

Ming Yun, "Second Brother, what did you say?"

"Nothing, I didn’t say anything!"

Ming Hui pursed his lips—Second Brother was too timid!

Zhulan and Zhou Shuren both had smiles in their eyes. Zhulan, looking at the lively and chatty family, "It’s really nice."

Zhou Shuren gently pulled his wife’s hand under the table, "Mmm."

Chang Zhong, the elder son, sitting beside his parents, caught sight of them holding hands. Chang Zhong stretched out his chubby paw, "Mother, don’t just hold Father’s hand; your son wants it too."

Suddenly, there was silence. The eldest Zhou siblings exchanged glances and, seeing their father had already started eating with his chopsticks, all lowered their heads and began to eat.

Zhulan thought she was thick-skinned enough to face just about anything without blushing, but now her face turned red. This really was—!

Chang Zhong felt his mother’s gaze and rapidly lowered his head to eat the food in his bowl, silently praying, Mother, stop staring at me, stop staring.

Zhou Shuren’s cheeks also reddened; he let go of the hand, "Eat."

Fortunately, Zhulan was relatively composed and soon returned to normal, after all, the children didn’t dare say anything!

The next day, Zhou Shuren did not go to visit anyone. Elder Master Wang hadn’t taken a day off, and there was no need for Zhou Shuren to visit the friends of Ran Zheng either, as the Ministry of Revenue’s officials were practically living in the Ministry and not going home these days.

Early in the morning, a letter had already been delivered to Zhou Shuren!

Zhulan, seeing Zhou Shuren wilt like overcooked vegetables after reading the letter, quickly read through it. She wanted to offer some comfort but didn’t know what to say. Anything would hurt, so she could only pat Zhou Shuren’s somewhat damp hair.

So much sweat for just one morning!

Zhou Shuren heaved a deep sigh, "I walked right into the trap, showing off too much, a perfect example of digging my own grave!"

"Mmm."

"Just look at the words in the letter. They’re ’particularly regretful’ that I still have six days before taking office and noted that the Ministry of Revenue ’welcomes’ me!"

"Mmm."

"It also mentioned the former Vice Minister of Revenue, now the Minister of Personnel Zhong Ji, saying he ’cried with joy’ upon leaving the Ministry of Revenue!"

Zhulan, "...."

Indeed, he must have been very happy. Although it was a lateral move, the Ministry of Personnel is the most prestigious of The Six Ministries, and jumping out of the pit just when the national treasury was lacking silver, crying was not an exaggeration!

Zhou Shuren, "Zhong Ji saved his hair!"

Zhulan, "...be serious."

Zhou Shuren sat up straight, but his whole body still emanated a feeling of resistance, "Six more days, and I’ll probably have to move into the Ministry of Revenue!"

Zhulan took the fan to fan Zhou Shuren, hoping to cool him down a bit, and casually moved the ice basin in front of him!

Zhou Shuren, "...."

He really wasn’t that hot, my wife, you don’t have to be so... oh well, it is quite comfortable!

Zhulan dared not interject about the affairs of the Ministry of Revenue; there were many of the Emperor’s people in the house. Look, the old lady Song had just gone out for a bit and came back already, "Madame, Lady Sun has come to visit."

Zhulan wished to see her, "You bring her over, I will come shortly."

Lady Song, "Yes."

Zhulan handed the fan to Zhou Shuren, "Fan yourself."

Zhou Shuren let out a sound of realization, took the fan, and began to fan himself. Although he felt like he had jumped into a pit, he still needed to think of a solution. The simplest solution would be to turn things into gold, but he wasn’t a god of wealth. Furrowing his brows, he racked his brains for ideas. It wasn’t easy to think of a solution, considering the Ministry of Revenue was involved in too many things!

Zhou Shuren decided not to think about it any longer. He would wait until he took office to see how much silver the Ministry of Revenue really had and to understand the specific situation. Moreover, there was still the Minister of Revenue above him!

Zhulan met with Lady Sun, who was even more respectful, "I have seen the lady."

This time Lady Sun arrived alone. Zhulan smiled, "Please sit. I was just mentioning you this morning!"

Lady Sun was delighted to hear that because it meant the Zhou family still highly regarded her husband, "Thank you for your consideration, my lady."

Zhulan inquired, "Why didn’t you bring Lili with you today?"

Lady Sun was very attentive towards her stepdaughter. Having gone through divorce herself, she had a deeper understanding of women’s struggles. She wanted the best for her stepdaughter, which would also be good for the Deng family, "I have hired a proper old lady and an embroiderer to teach her manners and needlework at home."

Zhulan understood that Lady Sun wanted to use these disciplines to temper Lili, "You are very thoughtful."

Lady Sun humbly said, "It’s my duty as a mother."

The stepdaughter’s own mother had not raised her well, so she had to step in slowly. Fortunately, Lili understood it was for her own good and was very diligent in learning without throwing any tantrums.

Lady Sun continued, "After some time, I would also like to find a teacher for Lili."

Zhulan thought to herself, Lady Sun truly was a clever woman. Her husband would be pleased, which was also good for the stepdaughter’s future, and it would earn her a good reputation. And thinking long-term, educating Lili well would be an asset for the Deng family; neglecting her would be foolish and would only lead to endless trouble in the future.

Lady Sun’s visit was just a courtesy call, and she left after a while.

Zhulan sent some gifts with her, not very expensive, but also quite rare.

After Lady Sun left, Lady Dong came to find Zhulan.

Zhulan looked at her, "You came to chat with me?"

Lady Dong nodded, "It has been a long time since I saw my mother-in-law. I have many things to tell you, and here’s the account book for the expenditures of the capital that I need to hand over to you."

The capital’s expenses, the servants’ monthly wages, food, etc., were all managed through the family accounts. Before the mother-in-law left, she had left some silver, and there was still some remaining.

Zhulan indicated for old lady Song to take the account book to Xue Han, then said, "I won’t look at it."

This steward, Zhulan thought, should also start to be managed by a few daughters-in-law.

Lady Dong’s performance this time was very good, Su Xuan even better, and Lady Zhao managed her own courtyard well. Although Lady Li was lacking somewhat, the overall direction was fine.

Lady Dong saw her mother-in-law deep in thought, "Mother?"

Zhulan came back to her senses, "I remember you wrote in a letter a while back that a Scholar from the Hanlin Academy named Shen is selling his house?"

Lady Dong had often heard her husband speak of Scholar Shen with a hint of dislike in his tone, "He has provoked my husband in the Hanlin Academy until his distant relative got into trouble, and only then did he lay low. I don’t know if he encountered bad luck or something, but it seems that the Shen family has had issues too. They have to sell their house in the capital, and he even asked my husband if he wanted to buy it!"

They indeed wanted to buy a house to invest in real estate, but they wouldn’t buy a rival’s house or bring trouble upon themselves!

Zhulan mulled it over, why did this sound like he was trying to elicit pity?