Quick Transmigration: The Green Tea Mistress's Guide to Seduction - A Master's Handbook

On the way back to the Marquis's residence, Tingling was still lamenting to Xie Qingyu that going out was too dangerous. If it weren't for the fact that she happened to run into the Second Young Master, her young lady would have been in trouble today.

After talking about the second young master, she started talking about the eldest young master.

“The son-in-law is unreliable too. He just got money from the madam this morning. I thought he went out to socialize, but who knew he was just spending money on another woman. That woman was so seductive. Even though she wasn’t wearing any flowers in her hair, she looked like she came from a brothel,” Tingling said indignantly.

After she finished speaking, she looked at Xie Qingyu's reaction. Xie Qingyu gestured with her eyes towards the outside of the carriage curtain.

Tingling glanced at him and immediately fell silent, a hint of self-reproach on her face.

She completely forgot that the coachman in front of her was from the Marquis's mansion, and she started complaining so openly.

Tingling lowered her head, realizing she had caused trouble for Xie Qingyu.

Xie Qingyu patted her head but didn't say anything to comfort her.

In fact, even if you hear the spirits speaking, what they say is the truth.

The fact that Lady Hou dotes on Qin Lingrong excessively suggests that she is unwilling to listen to anyone who speaks ill of him.

As an elder in the household, the coachman would naturally know these things.

So there's no need to worry about this conversation getting out from the driver.

Even knowing this, Xie Qingyu still gave Tingling this hint, but she wouldn't say these words to Tingling.

She should be more mindful of herself.

Tingling came from the Xie family and married into the family with the original owner.

The original owner's wet nurse and all the other personal maids had long since died or been injured due to the stepmother's deliberate actions. The only one left was Tingling, because she was stupid.

Back when she stayed by Xie Qingyu's side in the Xie family, she caused a lot of trouble by speaking without any restraint.

However, since they were already in a difficult situation at the time, they couldn't sense it.

Things are different in the Marquis's mansion now. Xie Qingyu hasn't gained a foothold in the mansion yet, so Tingling needs to be more careful.

After returning to the manor, they first went to see the Lady of the Marquis.

Lady Hou looked at the rouge Xie Qingyu had brought, her face showing little concern, but she still said, "You're very thoughtful."

"It was my fault, I didn't even know I owned a cosmetics shop. This morning, when I saw my husband taking money from my mother, I thought I'd check my dowry to see if my husband could use some of it. I did find the land deed and house deed for the shop, but..." Xie Qingyu's expression was hesitant.

Lady Hou was pleased by Xie Qingyu's words, proving that her daughter-in-law still cared about her husband. So when she heard Xie Qingyu stop talking, she asked, "But what?"

Xie Qingyu blushed slightly, as if she was a little embarrassed, "It's just that I've never managed a shop before, so I don't really understand the account books."

Upon hearing this, Lady Hou showed no sign of disgust.

Working under a stepmother, one is unlikely to learn any skills in managing a household.

Lady Hou has no intention of relinquishing her power to manage the household, so Xie Qingyu is not the best choice. She can slowly train her in the future.

"So you went out to check the accounts at the shop today?" Lady Hou asked.

Xie Qingyu shook her head. "When I was a girl at home, I never went out. The people in the shop don't know me. I'm going today to see how the shop is doing and whether I can make money for my husband."

The expression on Lady Hou's face relaxed a bit, and her gaze towards Xie Qingyu softened a little more than usual. "It's enough that you have the intention, but let's not say that the Hou family is so wealthy that it's enough for him to spend. Even if the Hou family's money isn't enough for him, there's still my dowry to give him. There's absolutely no reason for him to use his wife's dowry. If people gossip about that, they'll talk behind his back."

"This... I won't tell anyone." Xie Qingyu's face showed a hint of panic.

"It's enough that you're so kind. I didn't know this rouge shop belonged to you. Ah Rong brought some back for me before." Madam Hou's gaze fell on the several boxes of rouge that Xie Qingyu had brought.

"So you came here today to ask me to take a look at your account books?" Madam Hou had already noticed the booklet that the maid behind Xie Qingyu was holding.

"I wanted my mother to help me manage the shop," Xie Qingyu said somewhat embarrassedly, quickly adding, "If Mother has time..."

“The Marquis’s mansion does not have the custom of taking a daughter-in-law’s dowry. You don’t have many account books, so you can manage them yourself. Let Granny Lai teach you for a few days.” After the Marquis’s wife finished speaking, Granny Lai stepped forward and took the account books from Tingling’s hands.

Lady Hou watched as Granny Lai examined the account books and spoke to Xie Qingyu, "You are now the eldest daughter-in-law of the Marquis's mansion, and in the future, you will be the heir's wife. The power to manage the household will eventually fall into your hands. You can't be so incompetent as to not even know how to manage a few shops. You should learn from Granny Lai..."

Before Lady Hou could say anything more, she noticed Granny Lai's eyes twitching.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem with the account books?" Lady Hou asked, putting down her teacup.

Granny Lai looked up at Xie Qingyu, then at the Lady Hou, and said, "Madam, you should take a look for yourself."

Granny Lai brought the account book to Madam Hou's side and pointed to a prominent spot for her to see.

Xie Qingyu shrank to the side without saying a word, only watching the expression on the Lady of the Marquis's face.

"A loss?"

“I’ve just checked the other shops. They’re not all losing money, but at most they’ll only make a dozen or so taels of silver a year,” said Granny Lai.

A dozen or so taels of silver, if kept frugally by an ordinary family, could last for several years.

But for a family like theirs, it wouldn't even cover their daily food expenses.

The boxes of rouge Xie Qingyu brought were worth more than a dozen taels of silver.

This ledger is entirely based on the fact that Xie Qingyu can't understand it, and even the forgery is full of loopholes.

"Was this account book part of your dowry?" Lady Hou asked.

Xie Qingyu lowered her head, seemingly a little sad. "Yes, it was given to me by my father in a box before I got married. I only found out about it now."

Lady Hou scrutinized Xie Qingyu's expression, her disdain almost overflowing.

The daughter-in-law's dowry is decent on the surface; at least it's presentable.

She had previously said that the Minister of Revenue was generous in his dealings, but who knew that all he did was put on a good show; all his valuables were actually from such a small shop.

Madam Hou was about to say something when Xie Qingyu spoke first, "My daughter-in-law can't read the account books and doesn't know that we've been losing money year after year. I went to the shop today and thought business was good and that we were making money."

Xie Qingyu's words stopped Lady Hou from saying what she was about to say.

Her gaze shifted to the rouge on the table, as if she had remembered something. "Sometimes things in the account book aren't necessarily accurate. Since you don't know how to read account books, just leave these here for now and let Granny Lai take a closer look. If there are any problems, she can tell you about them later."

"Thank you, mother."

Xie Qingyu left the Hou Madam's courtyard feeling relaxed.

The purpose of this trip has been achieved.