Remarrying Chun Yuan

The mantis stalks the cicada, but our own people are the ones stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole.

Liu Yuechu laughed instead of getting angry when she heard this.

My father was the eldest son in the family, and my aunt was the second eldest. My two uncles were not very capable and made a living by living off my father's famous works.

In her previous life, she married Wei Gongming. Wei Gongming's influence grew, and her third uncle's son benefited from this and got a sinecure in the Ministry of Works, receiving a salary in name only; her fourth uncle's daughter married from the Marquis's mansion and became the second wife of the Earl's son.

Back then, whenever she argued with Wei Gongming, he would bring up all the things he had done to help the Liu family to shut her up. When she was heartbroken and threw a tantrum, her family would advise her to swallow her anger, saying that she was already the legitimate wife of the Marquis, what more could she ask for?

It wasn't that she was dissatisfied, but rather that the beneficiary was far too satisfied.

Everyone criticized her for betraying Wei Gongming's doting affection, but only she knew how chilling Wei Gongming's methods were.

Has anyone truly considered her feelings?

No.

They only hoped that she would secure her position as the Marquis's wife and continue to gain small benefits from Wei Gongming.

These small benefits were the poison Wei Gongming used to erode her; she was plagued by nightmares all day long, as if countless ants were gnawing at her body.

Seeing her two uncles' smugness now, Liu Yuechu shook her embroidered handkerchief.

“You are right. I bought some Suzhou paper to make kites and deceived the heir of the Marquis of Zhenning. I also fooled the magistrate. I deceived Lord Shangguan, which is a serious crime punishable by death.”

"Huh? What did you say? What do you mean?" Liu Shang was taken aback.

Liu Yuechu continued to list her mistakes, "I went back on my word, I was a snob, I brought shame to the Liu family. Don't you think I should turn myself in to the authorities? Maybe I can get some leniency?"

"Alright! Stop talking nonsense out of spite!" Liu Chen sensed something was off.

She admitted to all her mistakes; who in the Liu family could escape now? They thought they could scare the little girl, but they didn't expect her to pull this trick.

Liu Yuechu said calmly, "I'm not making this up. I bought those Suzhou photos from Zhong Ziqi. There were four in total. I paid him eighty taels of silver. I'll take him to the yamen to confess."

After meeting Yuan Cuo that day, she deliberately had Uncle Chun secretly deliver money to Zhong Ziqi. At the time, she didn't know what trouble would arise, but she didn't want to drag Yuan Cuo into the mess; it was better to involve Zhong Ziqi in this good opportunity.

Preparing in advance was definitely the right thing to do.

There were eyes watching from the shadows.

Liu Chen and Liu Shang exchanged a glance, their faces filled with shock, and neither of them spoke.

This little brat not only wants to go all out, but she's also dragging Zhong Ziqi into this mess so they can both perish together? If my older sister knew, she'd tear them both apart alive!

They just wanted to gain a little more advantage; who would want to suffer a lose-lose situation?

Liu Chen looked at his niece with a puzzled expression. How did the obedient and virtuous little girl suddenly become so sharp?

“If you hadn’t taken a fancy to the heir of the Marquis of Zhenning, your third uncle and I wouldn’t have forced you to marry him. Why are you throwing a tantrum here?” Liu Chen softened her tone, “But you’ll have to get married sooner or later. You can’t keep running the Liu family business after you get married. What will the Liu family business become then? The Zhao family, the Sun family, the Li family? You have to think about us too.”

“Your fourth uncle is right. The Liu family is there to support you. You can’t let the Liu family be manipulated along with you. Wouldn’t that be asking for trouble?”

“We genuinely care about you, but you also need to think about the Liu family. Letting a married woman manage the household affairs will shatter the Liu family’s backbone.” The two uncles’ questions were very sharp.

Liu Yuechu was unable to refute this at first and remained silent.

Whether she marries Wei Gongming or not, as long as she gets married, the Liu family business will be handed over to her eldest brother, Liu Musheng.

However, Liu Musheng was unreliable and brainless, and his share was still divided up by his third and fourth uncles, leaving the eldest branch of the family with nothing in the end.

But it's too early to consider this now.

"Ultimately, it's just that my uncles are unwilling to reduce their business in antiques and calligraphy. Why bring up marriage? Anyway, whether you agree or not, I will definitely do the job of opening a rice and general merchandise store."

Wang Fu was anxious but couldn't get a word in edgewise, so he could only look at Liu Shang and Liu Chen.

Liu Shang let out a hiss and fell silent. Who would have thought his niece would be so difficult to deal with? He was at a loss for how to respond.

Liu Chen didn't want to let this opportunity slip by; if a hard approach didn't work, he had to try a softer one.

“If you don’t want us to interfere in your marriage, we will spoil you and let you have your way. But you cannot act recklessly in the Liu family business, as it concerns the livelihood of the entire Liu family and hundreds of people.”

“We won’t stop you from getting rice, grain, cotton, and linen, but a person’s energy is limited; you can’t attend to everything at once…”

Liu Yuechu raised an eyebrow. "Fourth Uncle, please speak freely if you have any ideas."

"How about your third uncle and I manage the antique and calligraphy business, and you take your men to explore new avenues... Even if you don't make a name for yourself, there's still room for maneuver. We'll take you in then." Liu Chen smiled very kindly.

Liu Shang's eyes lit up. "Yes, that's a good idea, but let me tell you beforehand, this isn't about splitting up the family, it's about relieving your worries." They're not splitting up because they would get less if they did.

"Okay." Liu Yuechu gave only one word.

Another round of heated bargaining ensued.

In the end, all three signed the contract. The other two would not interfere in or share the profits from Liu Yuechu's business. In the antique and calligraphy business, Liu Yuechu, representing the eldest son's family, would take half of the profits without interfering.

They also let the managers and employees choose their own sides. Wang Fu led a large group of people to stay at the Liu family business, while only two managers and seven employees followed Liu Yuechu to explore new avenues.

Actually, these nine people weren't loyal to Liu Yuechu; it was just that the two masters didn't want them.

Liu Yuechu happily instructed the steward, Song Liu'er, to go to the yamen to have the contract notarized, "...get it done quickly before they go back on their word."

Song Liu'er rolled her eyes to the heavens. Regret? The young master has probably gone completely mad!

Liu Yuechu is crazy, she's madly busy.

With no one to do the work, she had to personally select the shops and order rice, grain, cotton, and linen. She also didn't forget the people on the estate, sending another manager, Yao Wei, with a group to make the trip.

Yao Wei not only had to bring people back, but those people also had to bring back a large amount of supplies that had been acquired outside to the capital... Seven days passed in this busy manner, but her shop still hadn't officially opened.

The two uncles secretly watched for a while, but then ignored her. She was just a little girl; what could she possibly do? Now that the business was in their hands, they were naturally going to try something different.

On the first day of the tenth lunar month, a thin layer of snow fell from the sky.

Liu Yuechu sat in a rocking chair, sipping warm wine, her expression desolate.

She didn't want this disaster to happen, even if it meant losing money.

But it still arrived as promised...

At this moment, there was another person watching the snow falling from the sky—Wei Gongming.

The snow he had been longing for finally started to fall!