The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

"That's right, I was the matchmaker."

Nie Mingyuan's eyes lit up.

Tong Huaqiong took another sip of tea and slowly said, "The marriage between the Huang and Lu families cannot be entirely attributed to me as the matchmaker; in the end, it was all fate."

Seeing that Tong Huaqiong was not averse to discussing this matter, Nie Mingyuan said, "Although both the Huang and Lu families are merchants, there are still differences between merchants. The Lu family is, after all, an imperial merchant family. It is truly beyond my expectations that they are willing to form a marriage alliance with the Huang family. Mother-in-law, how did you come to know the Lu family? I heard that the Lu family patriarch is difficult to deal with."

Tong Huaqiong said, "I opened a shop in the prefectural city. The Lu family came to my shop to buy pastries. The old man of the Lu family said that my pastries were delicious, and that's how we got to know each other."

Nie Mingyuan found it unbelievable.

If it were as easy to befriend the Lu family, wouldn't it be possible to befriend every merchant in Manning City?

But what my mother-in-law said didn't seem like a lie.

Nie Mingyuan was a little envious of his mother-in-law's luck.

Tong Huaqiong countered, "My dear son-in-law keeps mentioning the Lu family. Is there something you want to ask of them?"

Nie Mingyuan was secretly delighted; he had been waiting for these words.

“Mother-in-law, I won’t lie to you. Old Master Lu is very capable. He owns a large merchant ship and has opened up shipping routes to Southeast Asia. I’ve heard that porcelain is very popular there, and making a thousand taels of silver on a single voyage is no problem. I happen to be in the porcelain business and have always wanted to get to know Old Master Lu, but unfortunately, he looks down on small merchants like us. Since Old Master Lu thinks so highly of you, could you help me make the connection?” Nie Mingyuan said.

Just as Tong Huaqiong had guessed, Nie Mingyuan's purpose in coming to wish her a Happy New Year was precisely to curry favor with the Lu family.

Tong Huaqiong hesitated, wanting to refuse directly, but she was also mindful of Gu Baishuang's feelings.

After all, Gu Baishuang was incredibly devoted to the Gu family.

Seeing that Tong Huaqiong didn't speak, Nie Mingyuan frequently winked at Gu Baishuang.

Gu Baishuang also wanted Tong Huaqiong to act as a matchmaker. Now that her stepmother had changed for the better and her own husband was willing to interact with the Gu family, Gu Baishuang was happy. She hoped that everyone could put aside their differences and visit each other as relatives in a harmonious and peaceful way.

Gu Baishuang, who hadn't spoken until now, said, "You're so eager to ask your mother to help you find a match, which is using up my favors. Aren't you putting your mother in a difficult position?"

Upon hearing this, Tong Huaqiong realized that Gu Baishuang and Nie Mingyuan were putting on a show together.

Hearing Gu Baishuang's words, Nie Mingyuan smiled and said, "If my mother-in-law can act as a go-between, and my porcelain can be sold in Southeast Asia on Old Master Lu's cargo ship, I am willing to give my mother-in-law 20% of the silver each time. Of course, this is just my idea, and it depends on whether my mother-in-law is willing. If the go-between doesn't work out, then it's just not meant to be, and I won't blame anyone."

Nie Mingyuan assumed that Tong Huaqiong's silence earlier was because she hadn't explained the profit-sharing arrangement to her.

His mother-in-law, as expected, still loves to take advantage.

Gu Baishuang said, "Mother, what do you think?"

Tong Huaqiong looked at Gu Baishuang, suddenly smiled, and said, "Baishuang, what percentage of your family's business do you own?"

Gu Baishuang was stunned for a moment; she hadn't thought about this question before.

In fact, since she married into the Nie family, she has never had to worry about food or clothing, and she has never dabbled in Nie Mingyuan's business.

Even though Nie Xiaofeng is so old, she still doesn't know the details of the family business or how much money the family has.

When a woman marries, she follows her husband wherever he goes. What belongs to Nie Mingyuan is hers. Why should husband and wife distinguish between "yours" and "mine"?
Tong Huaqiong noticed that Nie Mingyuan's expression was obviously unnatural when Gu Baishuang was in a daze.

In her previous life, Gu Baishuang only realized that Nie Mingyuan had been on guard against her from the very beginning when she arrived at Nie Mingyuan's funeral hall.

They not only guarded against her, but also against the son she bore.

He must have taken advantage of her in his past life.

She married into the Nie family, took care of the whole family, arranged her stepson's marriage, and did her best to protect her two daughters-in-law. She deserves credit for her hard work, and Nie Mingyuan shouldn't have schemed against her.

Tong Huaqiong, who had only met her a few times, could guess how her daughter-in-law treated her, how her stepson treated her, and how she lived in the Nie family. She didn't believe that Nie Mingyuan was unaware of this.

He knows perfectly well what's going on, but he's just choosing to be blind and pretend he can't see it.

Or to put it another way, Nie Mingyuan was deliberately indulging her. Nie Mingyuan said with a smile, "Mother-in-law, look at what you're saying. Mine is Xiaofeng's mother's. How could I possibly shortchange her?"

Tong Huaqiong nodded and said, "When you mentioned the Lu family, I suddenly remembered something I heard when I visited them last time. The Lu family was from the same hometown as Old Master Lu, and he was also a big merchant. This merchant's mother was his second wife, and she and my father lived a harmonious life together. But one day, my father suddenly passed away. Before he died, he gave all his property to his son from his first wife. The merchant and his mother got nothing and were driven out of their home in front of the mourning hall by his stepbrother and the clan."

Nie Mingyuan and Gu Baishuang's expressions changed drastically upon hearing this.

Nie Mingyuan clearly had something to hide.

Gu Baishuang's two stepsons' wives, Sun and Zhang, exchanged glances.

If only fathers-in-law were like the father in this story, their husbands would follow their fathers in business and still be scolded by their fathers as good-for-nothings. Why should Xiaofeng do nothing but study and not even do well in school?

Since her father-in-law was so much older than her stepmother-in-law, the two women were always afraid that Gu Baishuang would whisper in Nie Mingyuan's ear and that most of the family property would end up in Nie Xiaofeng's hands.

They were also afraid that after their father-in-law died, Gu Baishuang would hold onto the family property, and they would have to rely on currying favor with their stepmother-in-law to make a living.

Just thinking about it warms my heart.

Tong Huaqiong said with a smile, "After hearing this story, I couldn't help but think too much, so I asked a few more questions. My dear son-in-law, there's no need to worry."

Tong Huaqiong glanced at Gu Baishuang; this story was the ending of Gu Baishuang's previous life.

Nie Mingyuan wiped his sweat and said, "How could such a thing happen? This is...this is utterly inhumane."

Tong Huaqiong said, "Who can say otherwise?"

Even if these words only serve to intimidate Nie Mingyuan, it would be good.

Now that things had come to this point, Nie Mingyuan could no longer ask Tong Huaqiong to act as a go-between for the Lu family.

The group sat and drank a lot of tea. Soon, with the help of Hong Shi and Gu Taohua, Tong Pandi prepared a table full of dishes.

Except for Nie Xiaofeng, no one enjoyed the meal.

Nie Xiaofeng was so impressed by Su Chengmin's kung fu that he insisted on becoming sworn brothers with Su Chengmin. He even said that he would give up going to the private school in town and come to Qinghewan to study and learn kung fu from Su Chengmin.

Gu Baishuang said he was being ridiculous. The private school in Qinghewan was full of children, what kind of behavior was he doing there?

Nie Mingyuan remained silent at the dinner table, still pondering how to persuade Tong Huaqiong to help him make the connection.

I've thought about it a lot, but I still have no clue.

He didn't understand why Tong Huaqiong was suddenly talking about that big businessman's experiences.

Was he sent to give him a warning?
impossible.

Tong Huaqiong has never treated Gu Baishuang, her stepdaughter, well. Even if he schemes against Gu Baishuang to death, she will not allow the Gu family to stand up for Gu Baishuang.

After the meal, apart from Nie Xiaofeng who didn't want to go back, the rest of the Nie family wanted to return to town as soon as possible.

"Sister."

As the Nie family took their leave and were about to board their carriage, Chen Sufeng murmured something to Gu Baishuang.

Gu Baishuang asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"

Chen Sufeng said in a low voice, "Eldest sister, come to my room for a moment, I have something to tell you."

Gu Baishuang followed Chen Sufen into the house.

Nie Mingyuan and his two daughters-in-law thought that Chen Sufeng had some grievances to confide in Gu Baishuang.

After all, Gu Dahan had an illegitimate child, which must have been very frustrating for her, so it was normal for her to confide in her sister-in-law.

No one suspected that it was Tong Huaqiong who had Chen Sufeng call Gu Baishuang into the house. (End of Chapter)