Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 161 is truly a mix of joy and sorrow.

Jiang suddenly settled down to assist in managing the household affairs.
Lu Jia, who was closely watching Lu Jie's reaction, was stunned when he heard this.

Did she hear it correctly?
Before they could speak, Lu Jie continued:
"Su Zhixiao stayed behind to deal with the Du brothers, while the rest of the people continued to search for Granny Du's whereabouts."

"If they are found alive, they should be sent out. If they are dead, the matter should be reported to the authorities."

"No matter what the government decides, what's rightfully theirs will be theirs, and we won't tolerate it!"

Jiang gritted her teeth, her eyes turning bloodshot.

……

After a whole night of commotion, the farce finally came to an end after Lu Jie intervened.

The stewards quickly went about their duties, and in no time, the place returned to its usual tranquility. For a time, not a single word was uttered, either inside or outside the courtyard.

After a cold night, yellow leaves covered the ground. On her way back to her room, Lu Jia noticed a difference in how the servants looked at her.

Dawn sighed from behind, "There are many opportunists in this world. Seeing that the girl is not someone to be trifled with, he dared not act rashly."

Qinghe and the others had already heard the news and were waiting at the threshold to greet them.

Upon entering, Zhi Mu handed Lu Jia tea, her eyes and brows brimming with joy: "The main wife's people thought that the young lady was utterly powerless to retaliate, but they didn't expect to shoot themselves in the foot; it was they who fell into the trap."

"I'm afraid the Jiang family has never suffered such a setback before. This time, she'll be brooding for a long time."

"The key is that the girl has brought what she did into the open. If similar misdeeds happen again in the future, everyone will have to think twice about who is right and who is wrong."

Qinghe brought in breakfast and smiled at Yinliu: "This girl deserves the most credit. Without you, this wouldn't have been possible."

Yinliu said, "It's a pity that the time was too short. We've only been in the manor for three days and we're not familiar with the situation. Otherwise, I wouldn't have had to actually use the jade that was left by the well, Miss."

"Alright." Lu Jia gulped down half a bowl of tea. "You can't rush things. She's been entrenched in the Lu family for over ten years and is deeply rooted. How can we expect to bring her down all at once?"

“We’ve just returned and haven’t fully grasped the situation in the manor yet. If we do something that’s completely flawless but we still can’t kill him in one fell swoop, then we’ll be in trouble.”

Qinghe nodded: "What you say is true, Miss. Since the master has granted you the power to assist in managing the household affairs, this is already an unexpected gain."

"Putting everything else aside, the young lady will have the right to intervene in matters of this household in the future. She will also have the right to say no."

The maids nodded in agreement, serving the Lu family members as they washed and dressed, and then arranging their meal.

While they were filled with joy and everything was in order, Lu Jia's mind was still on the words Lu Jie had left behind.

The maids said that Longxiang had gone to the study to serve him. Upon hearing this, Lu Jia guessed that this was Jiang Shi's way of trying to provoke Lu Jie, so she tried every means to anger Jiang Shi in order to get her to call Lu Jie over.

Lu Jie's conciliatory attitude after arriving was within her expectations. After all, it would be strange if he took a clear stance if he could tolerate someone like Jiang Shi as his wife.

Unexpectedly, after winning all the battles, she prepared to turn her firepower on him, but he not only stated his position without saying a word, but also asked her to assist in managing the household affairs...

This was something Lu Jia never expected.

This is definitely a good thing!

Although she didn't care much for managing the household, she figured it was better to put in the effort herself than let bad people hold power and do bad things. At least she could stay safe.

But she couldn't understand what Lu Jie meant.
Which side is he on?

How come they ended up giving her more power after punishing her?

Logically, he had no reason to do this. Hadn't he always been reluctant to offend the Jiang family? Didn't he still want to join the cabinet? If he wanted to join the cabinet, he couldn't afford to offend the Yan family, because the Yan family certainly wouldn't allow someone from a different path to join the cabinet and oppose them. The Jiang family still held considerable influence within the Yan family.

Yan Shu directly called her "sister," and she considered herself half an aunt in the Yan family.

Lu Jia never thought she had a chance of getting the position of head of the household, but after just a few words from Lu Jie, she was about to go and help out for the Jiang family.

Could this father, who forgot about his eldest daughter after getting a second wife, be setting a trap for her?

Just as he was feeling a mix of joy and worry, Zhi Mu lifted the curtain and came in.

“Miss, Changfu has something to report.”

Lu Jia paused for a moment, then immediately put down her chopsticks and went outside.

I almost forgot about that! How is things going with Granny Du? I haven't even had a chance to check on her yet!

We've already dealt a blow to Chiang Kai-shek's side; now it's time to go see this old woman.

Changfu waited outside the courtyard gate, looking rather uneasy.

Lu Jia strode up to him: "How is it? Is everything settled? She didn't cause any trouble, did she?"

"Young lady! I am utterly incompetent!"

Changfu walked into the courtyard, closed the gate, and knelt down with a thud.

Seeing this, Lu Jia was speechless.

Qinghe, who had followed her out, asked, "What do you mean?"

Changfu hesitated to speak, so Lu Jia beckoned him into the empty, unused side room.

As Changfu entered, he said with a sob in his voice, "Please forgive me, young lady, I have messed things up."

"You messed it up? How could you mess this up?" Yin Liu rushed out upon hearing the commotion. "Didn't I give you the person before? Aren't the people waiting for you already outside the mansion wall? All you had to do was carry the person to the side gate. How could you mess it up?"

Changfu gritted his teeth: "I carried the person to the West Corner Gate, and we were about to leave when, unexpectedly, two people appeared out of nowhere and snatched the person from my hands without saying a word."

Upon hearing this, Lu Jia felt a surge of anger rush to her head: "You mean, Granny Du was kidnapped?!"

Changfu nodded.

Lu Jia is about to faint.

Qinghe immediately scolded Changfu: "What kind of work are you doing? I entrusted you with such an important matter, and you still messed it up. What if the person falls back into the hands of the main wife?"
"What are you going to do about the girl?!"

Everyone in the room held their breath.

The reason we were able to win this battle earlier was because we couldn't find Du Mama's whereabouts, which didn't prove that Lu Jia was related to her.

If the wife finds the person, everything done today will be for nothing. Not to mention that Lu Jie was angry earlier and really stood up for Lu Jia. If it turns out to be a misunderstanding and Lu Jia was the one who carried the person away, you can imagine how angry he would be!

"It won't end up in the hands of the legal wife!"

Changfu panicked when he saw this and quickly said, "Butler Qin said that the two people were highly skilled martial artists, and they fled in the southeast direction. If they were from the main courtyard, they shouldn't have gone that way."

"Besides, if she really is one of Jiang's people, then she should have already dragged Granny Du out to deal with the young lady!"

"Southeast corner?" Lu Jia paused, looking towards the southeast corner. "Isn't that my father's study?"