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

Meng Ruohua returned safely to the Song residence, handed the silver notes to the accountant, and then went to Rongxi Courtyard.

Seeing the maids' leisurely demeanor along the way, one knew that the messenger had not yet arrived.

She didn't ask her third uncle to help stop people today; she just stopped all the carriages near the shop so that even if they went back to the mansion to report, they wouldn't arrive before her.

Before she could speak, Jixiang, who was massaging the second mistress's shoulders, twitched her eyelids. She sensed that the second young mistress had come with ill intentions.

"Second Madam, we need to check the accounts of Jinxiu Cloth Shop. Half a month has passed and there's no money in their accounts!" Meng Ruohua preemptively said as soon as she entered the door.

The Second Madam, who was trying to calm herself down, was startled by her shout. She looked at Meng Ruohua warily and said impatiently, "What is it now? What did Jinxiu Cloth Shop do to you this time?"

She only realized where she was talking after she finished speaking, and was startled, so she quickly asked, "You went to Jinxiu Cloth Shop again?"

“Yes! Of course we have to go get money when there’s no money in the account!” Meng Ruohua replied matter-of-factly.

The second wife roared, "Who told you to go? Did you take the money again?"

"Didn't Madam tell me to find a way to raise money? If I don't go to the shop to get the money, am I supposed to sell everything in the mansion?"

The capital city wasn't very big, but the various powerful families were all exceptionally well-informed. If the Song family sold something at a pawnshop today, someone would know about it tomorrow. Although the Song family was gradually declining, no one really paid attention to it.

"Is this all you have to do? What kind of wife manages the household like this? The housekeeper has run out of money!" The second wife had already thought of many countermeasures. If Meng Ruohua stirred up trouble again, she would have plenty of questions to ask her.

"Could it be that you embezzled funds?"

Meng Ruohua didn't care what she said. She wasn't afraid of rumors. Her reputation for being kind, righteous, virtuous, and capable was just other people's opinions. It all depended on who had the last laugh.

When the Song family falls from grace, people will praise her for how brilliant her decision was!

"Second Madam, if you have any good ideas, please teach me. You don't have any either, do you?" Meng Ruohua saw the Second Madam pause for a moment, as expected, and continued, "It's not that I spent the money when the family was poor. Go and look at the account books. Who spent the most money each month!"

Of course, Song Changhua had the most!

The guests' clothing, food, lodging, writing brushes, ink, paper and inkstones all cost money. Poetry gatherings and banquets every three to five days also cost money. Occasionally, when they come across ancient books and famous paintings, they spend even more!

Secondly, there's Song Tian's jewelry. This month, I bought Song Tian a set of jewelry for a banquet, which cost a total of 130 taels.

Meng Ruohua spread the account book out on the table and asked persistently, "Second Madam, take a look, who has spent all the money!"

"What, does the Second Master have to report to you about spending money?" The Second Madam slammed her hand on the account book and demanded, "Instead of admitting your own incompetence, you're making trouble for others first. Is this how the Meng family raises its daughters?"

"Our Meng family's shops don't embezzle money, and we're not short of cash. Of course, we wouldn't teach me to spend money recklessly when we're broke." Meng Ruohua said with a sneer, "Second Madam, you should check the shop's accounts. Otherwise, someone might sell the shop without you even knowing!"

Before the Second Madam could react, Granny Li hurried in. She glanced warily at Meng Ruohua beside her, then quickly walked to the Second Madam's side and whispered something in her ear.

The second wife's face turned from pale to ashen. She glared at Meng Ruohua through gritted teeth, then suddenly roared, "Meng, how dare you sell the goods in the shop?"

"Manager Li's business wasn't doing well, so I helped him find sales channels and clear out some of his stockpiled inventory. Does he want to thank me?" Meng Ruohua waved her hand with a smile. "No need, no need. It's all for the good of our Song family!"

"What do you mean, 'thank you'?" The second madam was furious. How dare this Meng Shi interfere in the shop's affairs?

Back then, she was so humble in front of the old master and madam, never daring to say or do anything extra. Even important family matters required her consultation with the old lady before she dared to give orders. Now, Meng Ruohua not only secretly takes money from the shop, but also dares to buy and sell goods at will!

And it was sold at a low price!

This is outrageous! This wife is completely uncontrollable!

The second wife's chest heaved as she repeatedly demanded, "Meng, who did you sell the goods to? Get them back to me immediately!"

Meng Ruohua looked surprised, as if she had heard a joke. "How can you ask for the goods back after they've been sold? Besides, that Manager Wang runs to the west. He might have already left the city by now."

"Then you should pay the difference!"

As soon as the second madam finished speaking, Song Chang and Song Chen'an strode in.

Song Chang surveyed the scene in the room, then sat solemnly at the head of the table and asked, "What is going on here?"

The second wife, as if she had found an ally, was about to accuse Meng Ruohua of her crimes, but before she could speak, Meng Ruohua preempted her, saying, "Today I helped Jinxiu Cloth Shop find a buyer and clear out a batch of old stock."

As soon as Song Chang and Song Chen'an entered the mansion, they overheard the servants whispering that the large Jinxiu Cloth Shop had no business and hadn't made a single penny in half a month. Another servant said that the second young mistress had already contacted buyers, cleared out the inventory to get some money, and that getting some new stock might improve things.

The father and son had never paid much attention to the family business, but they knew that Jinxiu Cloth Shop had always been an important supplier of money to the household. Today, upon suddenly hearing that there had been no money coming in for half a month, they were immediately filled with doubts.

Jinxiu Cloth Shop has a prime location at the most bustling intersection in the West Market. It is also larger than the average shop and has been open for more than ten years with a good reputation. How could it not have business?

The two of them went into the inner courtyard at the same time, wanting to find out what was going on.

Upon entering the room and seeing the Second Madam's ashen face, and then looking at Meng Ruohua's matter-of-fact expression, one knew that things were not simple.

The second wife glared angrily at Meng Ruohua, "Do you even have the right to speak? You have no manners!"

Meng Ruohua's anger flared up instantly. She kept saying that she was ill-mannered, as if the Song family was so well-mannered!

"Second Madam, there's no need for your barbed words. I've been married into the Song family for three years, and I've been dutiful to my parents and cared for my younger siblings. I've managed the household affairs perfectly and never caused any trouble. How can you say I lack manners?" She glanced at everyone present and said arrogantly, "If you don't like listening to me, I won't say anything more! But I want to finish what I have to say today, so that no one can arbitrarily pin charges on me later!"

So what if she makes up baseless accusations and openly shifts the topic to distort the Second Madam's meaning? She's always right!

“I went to the shop to get money, but Manager Li said there wasn’t a single penny in the account. He also said that there was too much unsold inventory. I thought to myself, how can this be? If the inventory keeps piling up and there’s no money to keep it going, the shop will only have less and less business. So I kindly contacted a secondhand dealer for him, and he took everything without any scruples.”

“Those old goods had been sitting for a year or two, and their colors had faded considerably. The fact that they sold for a thousand taels of silver was only because people valued the reputation of our Song family.” She paused and said, “I split the silver in two. I took five hundred taels back to the mansion and gave them to the accountant; I left five hundred taels for the shop, and asked Manager Li to find some fabrics that the ladies and young ladies would like. We have to try to revitalize the shop!”

"The most important thing in business is integrity. How can you ask for goods back after they've already been sold?" She paused and said slowly, "What if I need to sell them again next time!"

The second wife roared, "What are you selling? We can sell them ourselves at our own cloth shop!"

Song Chang stroked his goatee. A few days ago, the account said there was no money, and he had to ask the second madam for the fifty taels he needed. Now that there was money in the account, he dared to go to the poetry gatherings a few more times.

After a moment's thought, he finally remembered the most important thing: "The Jinxiu Cloth Shop has always had good business, why is there no business lately?"