Dressed as a middle-aged mistress, I want to lie down every day

Seeing that Madam Jiang was gasping for breath due to her son's scolding, Mo Chenxi sneered in her heart.

This was because she sold the shop to help He Wenyan pay back the usury, which was why He Wenyan was so angry with his own mother. Otherwise, he would have said that he had to respect the elderly first and that since the family was in financial difficulty, he would have paid for the medicine himself.

What do you mean by "we"? It's still the Mo family who pays with their own money or the Mo family's money.

This is why she wanted to pay back the usury for He Wenyan, to make He Wenyan look down on her, and to make He Wenyan help her deal with his mother.

Some people would say that the He family also relied on the Mo family in the past, so why wasn’t He Wenyan inferior to her?

That was also because Mo was stupid. She was willing to give so that others would think that her efforts were deserved.

He Wenyan was aloof and concerned about his reputation, so he subconsciously ignored the fact that he had spent Mo's money and that his family had spent Mo's money. If Mo had reconciled accounts with him, he would have been so angry that he would have used cold violence against Mo.

But this time was different. His mother's extravagant spending caused him to borrow money from high-interest lenders, and he was actually being chased for debts. He actually bowed his head in front of Mrs. Mo and asked for money. She also used tricks and took advantage of her eldest daughter. He felt guilty and embarrassed in front of Mo Chenxi.

His father was like this in his previous life, and Mo Chenxi had long understood the mentality of this kind of person.

Mo Chenxi pretended to have a headache and pinched his brows. "Originally, my parents wanted me to live in the countryside until the New Year, but I couldn't bear to make Jingyi's father feel embarrassed, so I dragged my sick body back. My father said that the He family can still eat and drink well without me, and that if I dragged my sick body back, Jingyi's father would have time to take care of me. He also said that there would be a lot of things to do in the government office before the New Year, so I shouldn't go back to cause trouble. I had to come back."

She pushed the account book forward and said, "I'm afraid I can't manage it well. Mother is experienced and has her at home. Once I recover, I can learn from her and pass on messages. I should be able to do it."

Old Madam Jiang pursed her lips and said nothing. Her daughter-in-law said that she should not take care of the accounts but only work. Should she be in charge of the accounts and always tell her daughter-in-law: Bring me the silver?

If this news gets out, how can she hold her head up in front of her neighbors?

He Wenyan was also very angry. In the past, the Madam's housekeeper added money every month because she was the eldest daughter-in-law in the eldest house. But the Madam had been ill for several months, and she didn't even pay for her medicine. How could she still expect her to do the same as before?

In the past, the money earned from the Madam’s dowry shop was used to supplement the family expenses. Now that the dowry shop has been sold, what will Madam use to supplement the household expenses?

Isn't it right to cut spending?

He knew why his mother was reluctant because she spent the most money.

He Wenyan's face darkened. "Whoever of you is unwilling will take over the account book and manage this family."

Only then did Mrs. Jiang say, "You are the eldest son of the family, so isn't it your responsibility to be the housekeeper?"

He Wenyan said, "Yes, but it depends on the actual situation. If the monthly income is only ten taels, but I have to bear the expenses of thirty taels, where will I get the twenty taels from, mother? Should I steal or rob? Or ask my uncle to borrow?"

Old Madam Jiang murmured in her heart, isn't there a dowry shop for Mrs. Mo?

But she couldn't say it outright in front of her daughter-in-law.

He Wenyan stood up and said, "Let's do this. Starting this year, don't be so extravagant. Anyone who has extra social engagements will bear the cost themselves."

In fact, I really want to say to my mother, if you want to subsidize my uncle's family, just use your own private money.

He waited for his wife to stand up and helped her back to her room. It wasn't that he loved his wife so much, but money was a problem. The New Year was coming soon, and there were all kinds of festival gifts. He and his second and third brothers would go back to their parents-in-law's house on the second day of the New Year to give them gifts, and buy new clothes for the children. What could he do with the ten taels of silver on the books? He still had to rely on his wife.

Back in the house, he expressed his strong support for his wife. Mo Chenxi took the opportunity to say, "I think there are too many idle people in the house. The master can hardly eat. What's the point of keeping so many servants? The carriage and the driver should stay. This is the master's facade. Keep enough people. Other ideas can be arranged separately."

When He Wenyan heard that the carriage was left behind, he didn't care about anything else.

Then he went to his mother and told her that the Mo family's dowry shop had been sold.

When Mrs. Jiang heard that Mo's shop was sold, she was shocked. She had inquired about the shop's business and found that the profit was ten times more than her son's salary.

Madam Jiang lamented, "How could she possibly sell that shop? You should have borrowed some money and asked the second and third sons to chip in. You can't borrow money at high interest rates."

He Wenyan said angrily, "I wanted to embezzle some from the public funds and ask my second and third brothers to help borrow some, but my mother was the housekeeper at the time. She said that after spending money on my uncle's family and entertaining the neighbors for their birthdays, I had no money left. I couldn't rely on my second and third brothers for everything, so I had to borrow money from usurers. The interest on usury is compounded, and the debt is getting bigger and bigger."

Old Madam Jiang was so angry that her teeth were itching. How come she didn’t know that the interest on loan would compound?

No wonder Mrs. Mo wanted to sell the shop. She blamed her daughter-in-law, "The shop is doing so well, why sell it? Why didn't she ask her father for a loan first and then pay it back when she has money? You are the son-in-law of the Mo family. If you are well, won't the Mo family also benefit? Mrs. Mo is still selfish and doesn't care about my He family."

He Wenyan now realized that his mother was so unreasonable. In the past, when his third brother said something wrong about his mother, he scolded him. It was not easy for our mother to raise us, so what if we just agreed with him?

He patiently explained, "I told Jingyi's mother not to tell anyone about my usury. The imperial court has a rule that any official who borrows money at usury will be immediately dismissed."

Madam Jiang was still making excuses: "You are the son-in-law of the Mo family. How could he tell anyone about it? Or maybe he doesn't take you seriously. He only wants to take advantage of you and hides away when there is something wrong."

He Wenyan suppressed his anger and said, "Even if my father-in-law won't tell anyone, will I be able to look after him by borrowing money at interest? Mrs. Mo went back to her parents' home to recuperate after being sick. She's my daughter-in-law of the He family, but why didn't the housekeeper tell her to send some gifts to the Mo family? Didn't you consider my reputation in Yue's family? When my uncle's kid had a birthday, mother urged Mrs. Mo to send a gift, saying that we brothers couldn't lose face in front of my uncle's family. In a mother's heart, if a son loses face in Yue's family, it's not face anymore."

Old Madam Jiang turned her face away and said nothing. Her son was right. If the Mo family knew about it, she would be too embarrassed and would be inferior to the Mo family's in-laws. After all, it was her daughter-in-law who secretly sold the dowry shop, so she was still the noble lady in front of the Mo family.

He instantly understood why his son secretly asked his granddaughter to go back and tell her mother instead of asking the Mo family to borrow money.

My son thinks long-term.

Mrs. Jiang, who had figured it out, agreed when she heard her son say that the family was going to lay off employees. She just said, "The people in my courtyard can't be moved. Mom is old, and having more people to take care of her is also a filial act for you as sons."

He Wenyan looked at the fried soybeans on the table. His mother was only in her fifties, but the soybeans were so crunchy when she ate them, their teeth were better than his.

He said, "It's enough for mother to keep four maids and two old women with her. If the other mothers want to keep the monthly allowance for themselves, do you think I should borrow money from a loan shark?"

Madam Jiang said, "What will others think if I sell someone during the New Year?"

"Jingyi's mother said she won't sell it. Those who are willing to stay can go to the farm first."

"Don't you have to pay monthly wages when you go to the village?"

"Jingyi's mother has already made arrangements. This is how it will be this year. After the New Year next year, we will raise pigs and chickens on the farm. Besides feeding our family, we can also sell them. We can't just keep them on the farm doing nothing."

Old Madam Jiang figured that she wouldn't be able to give her brothers much money in the future, so giving them a few pigs and chickens every year would be fine.

Agreed with what my son said.