Reborn, the daughter of the Marquisate went crazy

Xie Jingliang was released from the Dali Temple and returned home in disgrace. He had not yet digested the frustration of being demoted and having his salary fined, and he was scolded by Xie Jingyuan so harshly that he could not even raise his head.

He had nowhere to vent his rage, and he wanted nothing more than to vent his anger on the people from the third house. He immediately took a few trusted servants with him and searched every inn in Shengjing. Unfortunately, the people from the third house seemed to have vanished without a trace, not even a trace of them was found.

Xie Jingliang returned to the Marquis's residence with a sullen face. As soon as he entered the courtyard, the housekeeper trembled and approached him. She said the Second Young Lady had sent word that due to a shortage of official funds, all the rooms' monthly allowances would be cut in half. Even his favorite Biluochun was among those being cut.

These words were like adding fuel to the fire. Xie Jingliang rushed to Yaofang Pavilion in anger, kicked open the gate, pointed at Xie Qingyao and cursed, "Who do you think you are? You are just a bastard of unknown origin, and you are not qualified to give orders in the Marquis' Mansion?"

When had Xie Qingyao ever suffered such humiliation since she was a child? Her eyes welled up, and she turned and ran, instinctively heading towards Songhe Hall. Xie Jingliang sneered and chased after her at great speed.

"Grandma!" Xie Qingyao rushed to Old Madam Xie's bedside as soon as she entered the room, and her tears instantly soaked the quilt.

Xie Jingliang chased to the door and suddenly met Madam Xie's cloudy eyes. He stopped abruptly and said with suppressed anger: "Mother, this bitch knew that you were sick, but still came to disturb you. She deserves to be killed!" As he said that, he stepped forward and roughly grabbed Xie Qingyao's arm.

Mrs. Xie was conscious but her body was as stiff as a dead tree and she could not move. The ability to speak that she had finally recovered turned into a vague "ho ho" sound.

Aunt Xu hurried forward to calm Old Madam Xie down, then turned around and advised, "Second Master, please let go! Second Miss, please wipe your tears. Your crying is making Old Madam feel like a knife is stabbing her heart..."

As they were pulling, Xie Jingyuan hurried over. His brows knitted tightly together as he shouted, "Stop it! Are you trying to piss off your mother to death?"

Xie Qingyao turned around upon hearing the voice, staggering to her knees before Xie Jingyuan, her skirt lifted. She lifted her tear-stained face and choked out, "Father, please understand. This household management... Yao'er is simply unable to sustain it. Yao'er checked the accounts and discovered that the income of the public treasury is insufficient to cover the expenses. They had no choice but to reduce the contributions of each department, but Second Uncle..."

"What a silver-tongued slave!" Xie Jingliang suddenly interrupted, "Do you dare to swear to heaven that you are not cutting your share to enrich yourself and secretly save up a dowry?"

Xie Qingyao's sobs paused. She had indeed harbored a selfish motive, wanting to save more money to pave the way for her future career in the Third Prince's mansion. But her hesitation was fleeting. She immediately grabbed Xie Jingyuan's clothes, her sobs suddenly piercing: "Father! Yao'er followed your instructions to take charge of the household affairs, but Second Uncle is slandering my innocence like this. Yao'er..."

Xie Jingyuan felt his temples throbbing. The power of the household finances, once so coveted, had now become a hot potato. The public accounts were already stretched thin, and his private treasury was also running low. He was hesitant about whether to use the money in the secret room, but that would surely arouse Xie Jingliang's suspicion...

At this moment, Nanny Xu suddenly spoke up: "My Lord, Second Master, Second Miss, the old lady said that things are tough at the mansion, and she has some money from her pocket that can help with the immediate situation."

Everyone looked at Madam Xie, only to see her cloudy eyes rolling around as she mumbled incoherently, "Get it... get it..."

Nanny Xu quickly responded, "I'll get it right away, don't worry, old lady." After that, she left the room.

Upon hearing this, Xie Jingyuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Xie Jingliang narrowed his eyes, his gaze fixed on Madam Xie like a hook. He hadn't known his mother had any leverage. If he had known this, why would he have bothered to go to such lengths to get Xie Qingrong? He should have simply gone to his mother to ask for money and used it to bribe Minister Zhou. How could he have ended up with such a fuss?

A moment later, Madam Xu hurried back with a rosewood box in her hands, and carefully placed it beside Madam Xie's bed.

Madam Xie's eyes moved, and Nanny Xu understood. She gently opened the box, took out a stack of banknotes, and presented it to Xie Jingyuan with both hands: "My Lord, this is the money that Madam has saved from her frugal life over the years, a total of thirteen thousand taels."

Xie Jingyuan's fingertips trembled slightly, and the stack of banknotes in his palm seemed to weigh a thousand pounds. His face was full of shame: "Mother, I am unfilial. I should have taken care of you, but now... I have to ask you for money..."

Several people gathered around Old Madam Xie's bed, chatting and chatting with each other. This kind of happy and loving mother and son scene had not been seen for a long time since the old lady became paralyzed.

After leaving Songhe Hall, Xie Jingyuan summoned the two to his study. His face was gloomy, and he warned them coldly, "If you need anything in the future, just come find me. Don't disturb my mother's peace again."

After saying this, he took out a banknote from his sleeve and handed it to Xie Qingyao: "The income from the land and shops in the mansion will be collected soon, so there is no need to reduce the share. Since you are in charge of the household expenses, you should act like a head of the household."

After a brief pause, he continued, "As for Yao'er's dowry, your father will make the arrangements. Yao'er, don't worry."

Xie Jingliang and Xie Qingyao stepped out of the study room one after another. The uncle and nephew looked calm and walked leisurely, but in fact, they had completely fallen out with each other today and wanted to kill each other in their hearts.

Xie Jingyuan stared at their backs and sighed secretly. Without his mother to keep the family in check, the family was becoming increasingly messy. It seemed that the matter of marrying Princess Shuhua should be put on the agenda as soon as possible.

At this moment, Zhao Lu rushed into the study with a brisk pace. He saluted hastily and said impatiently, "My Lord, there's news from Tingyu Tower that a frozen male corpse was found on the outskirts of Anding County. His body shape and age match the man you're looking for. The body is still in the charity cemetery, and the local county government is treating it as a refugee who froze to death..."

Upon hearing this, Xie Jingyuan's lips curled up into a sinister smile, and he tapped his knuckles twice on the table: "Good, a good death."

Ever since he learned that Xie Jingcheng's whereabouts were unknown, he had been tossing and turning every night. Now, this big worry in his heart was eliminated so easily!

"Zhao Lu, take your men immediately..." He stopped mid-sentence and stood up abruptly: "No, I will go there myself. Prepare the carriage and select a few capable people to accompany you."

……

Yingxueju on Jinxiu Street.

Xie Qingli was hunched over his desk, writing, frowning as he worked on the assignments given by Mr. Sichong. Suddenly, Leng Shuang arrived with the news that Xie Jingyuan had impatiently led his men out of the mansion as soon as he received the news from Tingyu Tower.

There was a sharp glint in Xie Qingli's eyes. What kind of huge secret did Xie Jingcheng hold that could make Xie Jingyuan so eager to take action in person?

She pursed her lips slightly and abruptly stood up. In just half a cup of tea, she had disguised herself and, accompanied by Leng Shuang, rode off towards Anding County...