Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 160 was a huge disappointment!

Lu Jia saw through her plan at a glance: "Searching the East Courtyard is fine, but Madam, don't forget to partition off my Yixia Courtyard."

“I made a promise to my parents beforehand that I would decide where I live. If any unrelated person dares to lift a toe into my yard, I will not stand for it.”

"Is finding the person more important right now, or keeping your promise?" Jiang glanced over. "Do you really think no one in this family can control you?"

Lu Jia laughed: "If Mother wants to punish me, just say the word. You are the one who calls the shots in the entire Lu family. What am I? Just a pitiful wretch who is unloved by his father and mother. If you punish me, I won't be able to bear it for half a month."

"But I am, after all, a young lady of the manor, and I still have to maintain the Lu family's reputation in public. For the sake of a servant, they first harassed me and framed me, and now they want to search my residence. How can I tolerate this?"
"So you're not going to let this go until you've pinned this crime on my head?"

"If Mother insists on searching, then search every courtyard in the entire mansion, whether it's your residence, Father's residence, or Sister's residence!"

"If we're going to lose face, let the whole family lose face together!"

Chiang Kai-shek was furious.

But she was no longer so certain. The girl was definitely hiding, but who knew if she was really hiding in the main courtyard or Lu Ying's room?

Although she was certain that the woman didn't have that much power, she had already been humiliated once the night before, and had been severely humiliated in front of so many people in the mansion. If the woman were to be found in her own residence, wouldn't she be even more unable to explain herself?
The death of a servant is a minor matter; the key issue is that their previous insistence on pinning the blame for the harm on the dead girl has already made many people doubt her motives as a stepmother.

If she turns around and shoots herself in the foot again, giving herself another handle to use against her, wouldn't it become an undeniable fact in the hearts of everyone in the household, especially in Lu Jie's heart, that she cannot tolerate this stepdaughter?
If that's the case, then the past events will no longer be able to be concealed.

If a mother is not kind, even the law can apply to her.

Lu Jie might not dare to be serious with himself, but he also couldn't openly condone treating his own daughter this way in the face of obvious facts, so he would still suffer the consequences.

How could she take such a risk?

She said, "Since you know that you are a young lady of the Lu family and bear the reputation of the Lu family, you should also know that if you cause any trouble because you can't find someone, you will not gain anything either."

"If you know where Granny Du is, just tell me, and it will save me a lot of trouble."

"Mother overestimates me. She's one of yours. You saw her before she disappeared. How would I know where she is?"

Lu Jia sneered. "Instead of going to great lengths to get me to release him, Mother should explain herself. You're clearly the prime suspect, so why are you forcing me to confess?"

Jiang's fingernails were sore from clenching her fists. Seeing that there were still layers of onlookers standing around, she scolded again, "What are you still doing here? Don't you have your duties anymore?"

Lu Jia said, "If you were going to do something, you should have done it long ago. Why didn't Mother send them away when they attacked me earlier?"

"Or maybe before, I didn't have to work most nights, and everyone inside and outside would gather around to watch me make a fool of myself. But when my wife couldn't explain herself, everyone had to work."
"Since it's already this late, we should let them finish watching. Everyone stay here!"
"Otherwise, I'll settle accounts with you one by one later!"

Jiang Shi was in charge of everything in the manor, so originally no one needed to take Lu Jia's orders to heart. But the weight of her last sentence was just too heavy!
This young lady's behavior from last night until now has repeatedly overturned their understanding. They have never seen such a shrewish master in the Lu family. She actually dared to go against the Jiang family and even won!

Who wouldn't be afraid of her now? Who wouldn't believe that she meant what she said about settling scores later?
Moreover, since Lu Jie, as the head of the family, did not stop her, how could they not listen?
So everyone put their feet down again.

Jiang's face darkened as she stepped forward: "Do you call the shots in this family, or do I?" "You are Madam Lu, so of course you have the final say. But if Madam Lu doesn't explain this matter clearly today and give me an explanation, then it's uncertain whether you'll still have the final say in the future."

Lu Jia was not as tall as her, so she had to tilt her chin up slightly, but her upright posture and imposing presence seemed to surpass Jiang's by a few points.

"The Lu family is not a small or insignificant family. My grandmother taught me from a young age that the Lu family values ​​winning people over with virtue."

"Does Madam Lu think she deserves these four words?"

“I had barely shown my face before you were all so quick to accuse me of murder!”

"But my jade was stolen by your maid, and the accusations against me were also made by you. Even the maids belong to you. If you say that you, Madam Lu, were not the one who started this, do you think anyone would believe you?"

At this point, she turned her head and looked intently at the crowd: "Second Aunt, Third Aunt, do you believe me?"

Zhou and Wu frowned as they looked at Jiang. Although they did not respond, their attitude was clear.

Lu Jia then asked, "Father, do you believe me?"

No one else had the confidence to say such shameful things. The onlookers looked at each other, and finally all turned their gaze to Lu Jie.

Lu Jie's gaze lingered on Madam Jiang: "We have been husband and wife for more than ten years. I have always treated you with respect and regarded you as a virtuous and helpful wife."

"You have really disappointed me today."

"Jia Jie'er is also my daughter, and she is my eldest legitimate daughter!"
“Back then, I left her with you because I was away on business. As a result, my daughter and I haven’t seen each other for more than ten years. I don’t blame you.”

But today—

"I'm a father too!"
"I never thought that after so many years, I would be able to get my daughter back. This is a blessing!"

"But only two days have passed, and I haven't even had a chance to sit down and have a proper talk with her. The people around you are either picking on her or framing her!"

"Put yourself in my shoes, let me ask you this: do you truly consider me your husband? Have you ever really cared about my feelings?"

Jiang stared at him, holding her breath, as if he were a stranger. "And how can you be so sure I was the one who started this?"

“Whether it was you or not, it was your maid who framed her!” Lu Jie said. “Even if it has nothing to do with you, as the mistress and their master, shouldn’t you bear the responsibility for failing to discipline them properly?”

"Guards, please escort the lady back inside!"

Jiang angrily said, "Master!"

Lu Jie then turned to Lu Jia and said, "You were also impolite in your speech today. How could you treat your mother like that?"
"From now on, you will be punished by learning how to manage the household from your mother!"

"Therefore, you are granted the authority to assist in the management of the central administration."