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

Song Chen'an also asked, "Isn't the cloth shop always doing very well?"

The second wife was feeling very frustrated. She had originally been questioning Meng Ruohua about selling goods without permission, but now she was talking about the shop's business.

She dared not let Song Chang and Song Chen'an know about the shop, and glanced at Granny Li, saying, "It's normal for business to be good or bad. It's not the season for business to change now, so it's normal for there to be no business."

Meng Ruohua casually remarked, "I haven't earned a single coin this month. Last year I earned 103 taels, the year before that I earned 192 taels, in the ninth year of Xuanhe I earned 376 taels, and in the eighth year of Xuanhe I earned 354 taels."

The ninth year of Xuanhe was seven years ago, which was the time when the eldest son was in charge.

The second wife was startled and asked, "Meng, who gave you permission to check the shop's account books?"

"Madam, you misunderstand. I don't manage the shops, so how could I have seen the shop's account books? I just happened to see them while looking at the old rules of the manor."

Song Chang asked, full of doubt, "Why is the shop's business so much worse?"

Why?

"What can you do when business is bad? You didn't care, and now you're asking me?"

The second wife glanced at her with annoyance, saying, "Isn't it because you spend too much money that I have to be careful with money every day?"

"If you can't manage it, then don't. There are plenty of people in the manor who can."

"Who cares? Are you from the eldest son's family? Why don't you just give all your money to the eldest son's family?"

Song Chen'an quickly interrupted their argument, "Mother, let's talk about how to revitalize the shop!"

Isn't the point that Meng Ruohua overstepped her authority?

The second wife glared at her angrily and asked, "Meng, you get the goods back for me right now! Or you can make up the money."

Meng Ruohua nodded, "The goods have already been sold, so there's definitely no way to get them back."

When no one was looking, Granny Li tugged at the Second Madam's sleeve and whispered something.

A glint flashed in the second wife's eyes. "Master, Manager Li is in the manor. Why don't we ask him what Meng Shi has done?"

Song Chang looked confused. What had he done? He had only sold the old goods.

Before anyone could react, the second madam had already sent someone to summon Manager Li.

Soon, Manager Li rushed over and apologized as soon as he entered, "This old servant is incompetent; he made the second young mistress sell all the goods in the shop!"

Meng Ruohua tapped the table lightly with her fingers, producing a crisp "thump, thump, thump" sound. The sound, though not loud, resonated like a great bell in Manager Li's heart, causing him to involuntarily shift his body slightly.

“Manager Li, you’re being too careless. I only sold a hundred or so pieces of secondhand goods, while you still have a warehouse full of merchandise.” She casually lifted her eyelids. “Besides, I’ve left half of the money for you, planning to have you check which items are selling well in other stores and get some new stock.”

Manager Li was taken aback. He had been so focused on running back to deliver the message that he hadn't even noticed she had left behind the silver notes.

Even if we keep them, those goods are worth at least two thousand taels; selling them for one thousand taels would be a bargain.

"Second Young Madam, those goods should fetch at least two thousand taels!"

Meng Ruohua replied in the same tone, "Old goods are worthless!"

Manager Li raised his voice slightly, "Those are all top-quality brocades, and there are also a few bolts of rain silk brocade."

"They've all faded, and the raindrops have turned into broken beads."

Manager Li's voice rose a notch, "It hasn't faded, it's perfectly fine."

Without giving him a chance to catch his breath, Meng Ruohua asked repeatedly, "If it hasn't faded, why can't it be sold?"

"They'll sell!"

"They can't sell them!"

"We just sold one a few days ago, why can't we sell any more?"

"Oh, you sold it? I didn't write that in your books!"

"It's written!"

Meng Ruohua smiled gently: "Where is it written?"

Granny Li was the first to react and quickly spoke up to stop him: "Li Liang!"

That was close! I almost let it slip by following the Second Madam's words!

Manager Li suddenly shut his mouth tightly, swallowed hard, and stared at Meng Ruohua in disbelief.

This second young mistress is amazing!

A moment of silence fell over the room. The air was thick with tension, except for the shifting gazes of a few people, which made the atmosphere even more strange, like the calm before a storm.

Although Song Chang did not concern himself with official duties, he was not stupid! He considered himself an upright and honest person who despised deception and crooked ways. Seeing the stiff expressions on everyone's faces, he knew that there must be something hidden.

He asked, "Li Liang, where did you say we got to?"

Every single income transaction of the shop should be recorded in the ledger. If it's not, then there's a problem. But can that ledger withstand scrutiny?

Manager Li felt somewhat relieved. The shop's ledgers were kept by an experienced accountant, and most people wouldn't be able to spot anything amiss. Moreover, the shop hadn't been without income for the past two weeks; there were one hundred taels in the books.

He took a deep breath to calm himself down, but was interrupted by the second madam just as he was about to say something.

"Meng, do you even know proper etiquette? It's one thing to not avoid a man from outside the family, but to confront him in public!" the second wife demanded repeatedly. "You have absolutely no shame!"

Meng Ruohua wasn't going to tolerate her. "Second Madam, you're mistaken. No matter how much of a man Li is an outsider, he's still a servant in the mansion. Should I, as a mistress, have to avoid seeing a servant? Besides, shouldn't we first investigate how an outsider like him was able to enter the inner quarters of the mansion so easily?"

Not only did they enter the inner quarters, but they also brazenly entered the courtyard of the matriarch!

The second wife grew even angrier and slammed her hand on the table, roaring, "Meng Shi, how dare you talk back!"

"What kind of backtalk am I talking back? I'm just explaining myself! Even in court, a criminal should be allowed to explain himself!" Meng Ruohua said calmly. "You can't just let the magistrate set fires while forbidding the common people from lighting lamps, can you? The Second Madam said that outsiders don't know how to avoid being seen when they come in. I think we should be more careful about the people in the mansion. He's just a manager who entered the mistress's courtyard without being announced!"

Her gaze drifted toward the east room where the second mistress usually rested, the meaning of which was self-evident.

In front of so many people, her ambiguous gaze made it seem as if she were hiding some unspeakable secret.

The second wife once again experienced Meng Ruohua's sharp tongue. She was full of anger but couldn't find a single word to refute her!

Seeing this, Granny Li quickly spoke up, "Second Young Madam, I informed you of my arrival, and I had him waiting at the courtyard gate long ago."

"Oh, a man from outside the household is waiting in the inner courtyard? There are still two unmarried girls in the manor!"

Yes, the two young ladies in the manor are twelve or thirteen years old, and they will soon be of marriageable age.

Granny Li's eyes darted around, and she immediately realized that she had been led astray again. She lowered her eyelids and pretended to be very respectful. "Second Young Madam, you don't need to change the subject. We're talking about your casual sale of cloth from the cloth shop!"

"Oh, right, we're talking about clearing out the backlog of goods." Meng Ruohua raised an eyebrow at Manager Li and asked, "Manager Li, do you remember where that account was written?"

Ugh! We've come full circle!

Manager Li genuinely felt that this second young mistress was more manageable than the second mistress or even the first mistress. They had been talking for quite some time, and she still remembered every single word he had said!

In the early winter weather, fine beads of sweat appeared on Manager Li's forehead, which reflected a faint light in the setting sun.