My wife wants a divorce; if she ruins my life, I'll leave.

After finishing her business, Meng Ruohua returned to Qingfeng Courtyard.

As she sipped the freshly stewed water chestnut, lily bulb, and snow pear soup, she instructed, "Linglong, go to the small kitchen and fetch a bowl for Madam."

Since Aunt Li arrived, the soup at Qingfeng Courtyard has never been interrupted. Naturally, the ingredients need to be purchased separately, so Aunt Li's husband buys them and delivers them every few days.

Everyone assumed it was sent by someone from the Meng family, and even the Second Madam didn't say anything after she found out.

Because they always make soup here, they send a portion to the Second Madam, and even to Song Tian. Of course, Song Chen'an gets just as much.

The second wife did grumble a couple of times about how she could eat her maiden family's food every day, but these soups were fresh and delicious, even better than the ones stewed in the mansion. After drinking them, she felt embarrassed to mention them again, and even thought that Meng was sensible, giving her a share of the good stuff first.

Around noon, Shanhu returned and told Meng Ruohua that Aunt Lü was very pleased with herself, often laughing at the two young masters, and even saying that as a concubine, she would have a chance to be promoted to the position of principal wife if the mistress were no longer around.

Meng Ruohua smiled and nodded, "Yes, she's right."

Legally, anyone who is not of low social status can be promoted to a higher social status.

"Second Young Madam, why aren't you worried? She is..."

I want to replace you!

"She won't be made the official wife!"

Song Chen'an is determined to marry the woman he loves, so how could he possibly help Lü Ningshuang?

Coral's voice rose in urgency, "Isn't the Second Young Mistress going to do anything about this, letting her run rampant like this?"

"No rush, she's still in her postpartum period, so she can't use any of her skills."

In her past life, Aunt Lü would often instigate the Second Madam to cause her trouble. The antics she stirred up weren't big, but they were incredibly bothersome. Like a buzzing mosquito, they didn't cause much harm, but a bite could make you itch for half a day, which was really annoying.

Coral was anxious, but there was no use in doing so. She could only secretly resolve to keep a close eye on Aunt Lü. This mistress was kind to her servants, and she didn't want to have to serve a different mistress.

Meng Ruohua smiled and grabbed a handful of coins. "Here, treat your girlfriends to some snacks."

These messages are all useful, and of course, we can't let Coral down.

Coral happily put the money into her purse. "Thank you, Second Young Madam!"

With only ten days left until Yu Ge's full moon celebration, the managers from various departments were waiting to collect their purchase orders and receive payment.

Meng Ruohua glanced at the items and saw that they were all necessary purchases, so she approved them all without making things difficult for anyone.

After the last person left, Linglong held the account book with a worried look on her face and said, "Second Young Madam, there are only eight taels and three qian left in the account."

Wow! It really is.

Although the Song family was not of high social standing, their daily expenses were quite substantial.

"What should we do?" Yu Ye asked. "Should we ask the Second Young Mistress to pay the difference?"

Meng Ruohua tapped her on the head, and she quickly covered her head and moved away in pain. "What are you putting on? Come on, let's go find Madam!"

Rongxiyuan

The second wife was eating snacks and chatting with Song Tian.

After bowing and greeting her, Meng Ruohua found a chair and sat down.

The second wife used to torment her by making her stand while serving, sometimes for a whole day, leaving her legs and feet swollen when she got home.

She didn't care what the second madam meant at the moment; after greeting her, she sat down on her own.

At first, the second wife glared at her and accused, "I haven't finished speaking yet. Who told you to sit down?"

Meng Ruohua asked innocently, "Didn't you finish? I thought you were dozing off because you hadn't said anything for so long!"

Who's dozing off? Is she at the age where she falls asleep while talking?

Before the second wife could make a move, Meng Ruohua said again, "Madam has always been considerate of her daughter-in-law, how could you bear to let her feet hurt from standing!"

Who's been kind to you?!

The second wife really wanted to curse, but if she refuted these words, it would mean she didn't care about her daughter-in-law, and if word got out, she would become a wicked mother-in-law. Although most families require new brides to learn the rules, no one wants to be known as a wicked mother-in-law.

If you keep scolding her, she'll say she can't do it well and it's better to get a divorce and go her own way.

Listen to this! What kind of wife talks about divorce all the time?!

For the sake of her son's future, the second wife had no choice but to endure it.

Therefore, the second wife stopped arguing with her and, at most, glared at her as she sat down on her own.

Ever since Song Tian was beaten and failed to get revenge, she had been feeling resentful but didn't dare to provoke her. So she just said something sarcastic, "What are you doing here?"

Meng Ruohua smiled brightly at her until Song Tian turned her head away angrily before she stopped. "Madam, Yu Ge will be one month old soon. The banquet in the manor has been arranged and the invitations have been sent out."

"Okay, just make the arrangements."

Meng Ruohua opened the account book and handed it over, "But there's not much money left in the manor..."

The second wife knew what was going on and had long anticipated that it wouldn't last until the end of the month, so she glanced at it briefly and pushed it away.

Song Tian couldn't hold back any longer, "How can you be broke? How do you manage the household?"

"Sister, do you want to check and see why you don't have money?"

Meng Ruohua didn't embezzle a single penny, so she wasn't afraid of any questions. In fact, she was hoping someone would investigate to see where the money had gone.

Song Tian got up to get the account book. She would investigate it thoroughly and surely find something to use against her!

The second wife coughed lightly and stopped Song Tian, ​​"Don't be silly, you can't understand the account books anyway."

The falsified ledgers were useless to her, and besides, she didn't want her daughter to know about her schemes. Her daughter was innocent and pure; she just wanted her to be happy every day and didn't need to bother with such things!

Meng Ruohua watched coldly. This thirteen-year-old legitimate daughter had no skill in teaching housekeeping, yet she still dreamed of marrying into a high-ranking family. Didn't she even consider whether she could handle the situation after marriage?

“Meng, if the household is short of money, think of a way to get by. Take some money from anywhere to cover the shortfall for now and we’ll talk about it later.”

The Song family's own expenses have already been reduced to an extreme degree, so where will the money come from? Moreover, the money in the accounts is not enough every month, so what if we move it from this month to next month?

"But there's no extra money available in the mansion, so we really can't spare any more," Meng Ruohua said with a troubled expression.

"You think of a way. If anyone disagrees, you can relay the message to me," the second madam promised. The expenses in the mansion were all fixed; it wasn't a matter of whether they could be moved, but rather that they simply couldn't be moved at all!

If Meng insists on doing it, the consequences will be beyond her ability to bear!

Thinking about how Meng had recently been disrespectful to her elders and had no manners, and how there was no way to punish her for it!

The second madam wasn't afraid of the servants causing trouble, since she held the indenture in her hands. She was actually hoping that Madam Meng would make a big scene, so that rumors of her being bad at managing the household would spread, and then she'd see how arrogant she could be.

The more she thought about it, the happier she felt. The second wife suppressed her smirk and hurriedly urged Meng to think of a solution.

"Alright, since Madam has said so, I'll think of another way." Meng Ruohua smiled gently, then turned and left.

Watching her departing figure, the second wife smiled smugly.

No matter how arrogant Meng is, she still obeys obediently. Once she spends all her dowry, she'll only become more obedient!

Back in her room, Meng Ruohua held the letter that Uncle Yang had sent a few days ago and murmured, "I must move the money over!"

She then wrote another letter and had Coral deliver it.