Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 184 Even the most eloquent tongue can't drive you away.
Just as they were getting to the point, Li was interrupted, which displeased her greatly, but she could only take a sip of tea to soothe her throat while the announcement was being made.

Looking up, he noticed that Wei was sitting as still as a stone pillar, and couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong with you?"

Wei forced a smile: "I didn't expect her to come. When I heard this girl's name... I felt a little scared."

Madam Li frowned: "Look at you, you can't even control a little girl who has to call you 'grandmother'?"

Wei glanced at her and said, "How could I be as capable as you?"

Madam Li scoffed and waved her hand, saying, "Go and invite Miss Lu in."

……

When Lu Jia arrived at the West Garden where Madam Jiang lived, she first looked around the courtyard. The courtyard was not large, but it was tidy. There were quite a few servants coming and going, and each of them was dressed in a fine manner, matching Madam Wei's usual jeweled attire.

Following the maid who led the way, they had just reached the door when they heard a voice from inside the house say, "This young lady has been back in the manor for many days. She should have come to pay her respects to her maternal grandmother, her sister-in-law, long ago. Why is she only coming today? She was raised outside, and she has no manners."

Lu Jia's left foot, which had been extended, stopped in mid-air. Mu whispered in her ear, "It sounds like it's the second wife of the Jiang family."

The Li family, the second branch of the Jiang family, also ran a business, belonging to the group of merchants who lacked discernment.

Lu Jia paused for a moment, then stepped out again. Upon entering the room and seeing the two people sitting there, she smiled and said, "So my in-laws have guests. I guess I've come at an inopportune time."

Madam Wei stood up involuntarily: "It's such a cold day, why did you come all by yourself, Jia'er? Please sit down!—Quickly bring up some hot tea!"

Lu Jia took off her cloak and sat down without even glancing at Li Shi beside her. Instead, she smiled at Mu Shi and said, "Grandma, this room is quite warm."

Li was already annoyed by being interrupted, and she was eager to get rid of Lu Jia as soon as possible. So she said those words before Lu Jia entered the room, knowing that the young girl would not be able to take it and would definitely turn around and leave.

Unexpectedly, Lu Jia not only entered with a normal expression, but also brazenly left her hanging. Even with her thick skin, she couldn't hold back anymore, so she forced a smile and started chatting: "It's been so many years since I've seen you, young lady, you've grown into such a beautiful young woman."

Lu Jia's face darkened: "My dear in-law, who is this?"

Madam Wei glanced at the room next door: "This is my second sister-in-law."

"Oh," Lu Jia sneered, "So you're also a woman from the Jiang family. You have a pretty mouth, why don't you use it to speak?"

Her words were so sharp that Li was stunned for a moment before she came to her senses. What did she mean by "having a mouth but not speaking"? What was she doing just now? Was she spewing nonsense?

She blushed instantly: "Young Miss, you certainly have a sharp tongue."

Lu Jia laughed and said, "No matter how powerful you are, you can't be driven away by mere scolding, can you?"

Li could no longer sit still. She stood up abruptly like a lit firecracker, but Lu Jia gave her a cool glance, and Li's imposing manner subsided.

Her father is Lu Jie!
Although he already knew that Madam Jiang and this girl didn't get along, Madam Jiang could still defend her if she said a few sarcastic things to her, but if they started cursing at each other to her face, Lu Jie couldn't possibly ignore it!
She's someone you can't afford to mess with!
So he could only grit his teeth and say to Madam Wei, "You entertain the guests, I'll come back later!"

Wei watched her leave, a subtle sneer playing on her lips. Even Jiang couldn't handle this girl, so who did Li think she was?

When she turned her gaze back to Lu Jia, she paused again.

Lu Jia smiled slightly: "It seems that the old lady didn't feel very comfortable after drinking that tea just now."

Madam Wei blushed, and that lingering fear returned to her: "Jia'er is joking. Since you and Madam Yang have come today, please stay for a meal before you leave—"

“Alright,” Lu Jia replied loudly before she could finish speaking, “That’s exactly what I was planning. It’s freezing cold, and I haven’t visited any of the many households, but I’ve come all this way to visit you, Old Madam. I can’t leave without bothering you for a meal!” Madam Wei swore she was just being polite, but who would have thought she would be so impolite!
For the time being, he could only send someone down to prepare food, and then reluctantly stayed to entertain the guests.

Lu Jia presented the gifts she had brought one by one: "The gift list was all personally drafted by my mother. I was just running errands. I hope the old lady will accept them with a smile."

Madam Wei also brought out a return gift, and even specially brought out a pair of jade bracelets for her: "Last time we held a welcome party for you, but that wicked servant Du caused some unpleasantness. It was our fault for not disciplining her properly, and you suffered a grievance."

Lu Jia readily accepted the reply: "What the old lady said is her own fault for being dishonest; it has nothing to do with you."

She put the bracelet in her pocket and looked around the room: "The old lady really knows how to organize things. The calligraphy and paintings on the wall and the antiques on the table are placed just right. It's clear that she is a person of refined taste."

The Wei family was a scholarly family, but not of particularly high social standing, so it's hard to say how much time and energy they devoted to music, chess, calligraphy, and painting.

But aside from the fact that everything in her room was extremely valuable, most of the items on the walls and tables were things that scholars liked, such as coral and jade carvings that ordinary wealthy families liked. There were only one or two of these items in total, which was quite unusual.

"I just write a few words every day, just to appear cultured. How can I be considered a truly cultured person? -- Oh, you all sit down first, I'll go to the kitchen to give you some instructions."

Wei made a perfunctory remark, then got up and left.

After Mu left, she smiled at Lu Jia.

It seems that after witnessing Lu Jia deal with Granny Du at the welcoming banquet, this old lady from the family already knows how formidable Lu Jia is.

Lu Jia responded with a smile, but as she watched Wei Shi's hurried departure, her thoughts went beyond that.

Wei did seem somewhat intimidated by her, but this intimidation had already been present when they first met at the welcoming banquet.

At the time, we thought she was just naive and petty. But now, the "fear" in Mu's eyes is exactly the same as last time, which shows that she was also "fearful" last time.

Why is this?

At that time, shouldn't Lu Jia be seen by everyone as a spoiled brat?
What's there to be afraid of?

Lu Jia looked at the room again, her gaze lingering on the calligraphy and paintings.

Even though Madam Wei enjoyed literature and art, she wasn't truly wealthy. The vast majority of her assets likely came from Madam Jiang.

She usually puts a lot of thought into her appearance, so it's impossible that she would forgo buying jewelry and clothes to purchase these calligraphy and paintings.

It's impossible for the Chiang family to give her these things.

Even if they were to send it, it would be impossible to send this much.

In short, the room full of books and calligraphy didn't really suit her at all!

She looked away, stared at the curtain leading to the inner room for a while, then subtly loosened one side of her hair, and exclaimed, "Oh dear!" Her hair was all messed up; she needed to borrow the old lady's mirror first. Auntie, please sit down; I'll be right back.

After saying that, she stood up and walked inside.

The maidservants hurriedly followed to serve them.

Mu hadn't expected this move. She opened her mouth to call out to her, but then realized that if she yelled, it would be worse, so she had to sit down and calm herself down.