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

Sincerity is very important, but sincerity can't put food on the table.

Gu Honglian took a deep breath.

She never expected Lu Zhaozhao's idea to be so naive.

There are also those who only covet sincerity and not money, like Wu Na, who initially coveted Gu Ruinian. After marrying into the Gu family's old house, she could barely eat meat a few times, and her sincerity was quickly worn away.

Poor and humble couples are sad.

Wu Na's life is in disarray, and she argues with Gu Ruinian every day.

With the examples of Wu Na and Gu Ruinian before her, Gu Honglian no longer believed that sincerity was more important than material things.

Wu Na hinted that she should follow Wu Na's example and have sex with Fan Tong so that she could marry him without a dowry.

Gu Honglian wouldn't agree to that.

She knew perfectly well that Fan Tong's mother and sister originally disliked Gu Honglian's appearance, but for the sake of Gu Jingzhe's future, and because they mistakenly believed that Tong Huaqiong, their sister-in-law, would give her a dowry, they were reluctant to discuss marriage.

If she really marries into the Fan family empty-handed, she'll suffer a lot of indignities.

Wu Na is just like that.

Her mother and second sister-in-law always talked about how Wu Na was pregnant before marriage and didn't have a dowry.

She not only wanted to marry Fan Tong smoothly, but also wanted to live a life valued by her husband's family after marriage.

Therefore, a dowry is essential.

“When a girl marries into a man’s family, if she doesn’t have a dowry, she will feel insecure and hesitant. But with a dowry, it’s different. She will have confidence in her husband’s family, and even if her husband changes his mind in the future, she won’t have to worry about making a living.”

Gu Honglian simply brought up the matter of the dowry.

Now that things have been said to this extent, Lu Zhaozhao should understand what she means.

However, Lu Zhaozhao disappointed Gu Honglian once again.

Lu Zhaozhao pondered for a moment and said, "Auntie, you're right. As girls, we have confidence when we have a dowry. But I think it's not enough to just have a dowry; we also need to have the ability to protect it. If we don't have the ability to protect the dowry, and the groom is greedy for it, even if we have a large dowry, life won't be easy."

"Auntie, am I right?"

Gu Honglian nodded haphazardly. She had been led astray by Lu Zhaozhao and no longer knew how to steer the conversation to the point where Lu Zhaozhao would offer her a dowry.

"So, Aunt, you should take advantage of the time before your wedding to learn from Grandma and Second Aunt how to protect your dowry." Lu Zhaozhao seemed genuinely offering advice to Gu Honglian.

Gu Honglian was so angry she almost couldn't catch her breath.

What's the point of her studying? She doesn't even have a dowry.

Seeing that Lu Zhaozhao was veerging further and further off-topic, Gu Honglian gritted her teeth and said, "Zhaozhao, my parents didn't give me any dowry, and my sister-in-law won't either. Could you give me some dowry? You have so much; it wouldn't be difficult for you to give me a little."

"I don't need much. Just give me a shop, a dozen acres of fertile land, or a box of jewelry, and that will be enough."

Gu Honglian looked at Lu Zhaozhao with anticipation.

She really didn't ask for much; to Lu Zhaozhao, these were like plucking a single hair.

Lu Zhaozhao thought to herself, "Finally, it's here."

Gu Honglian finally asked her for her dowry.

Gu Taohua had reminded her that Gu Honglian would ask her for a dowry, so she was already mentally prepared.

Gu Honglian is right; her dowry is so large that she could never spend it all in her lifetime.

She was willing to help some girls in the Gu family who had no powerful connections get married by providing them with dowry and giving them a hand, such as Gu Xiaoxue.

However, Gu Honglian was not within her consideration.

It wasn't just that Gu Honglian was an ingrate to her mother-in-law, Tong Huaqiong; more importantly, it was Gu Honglian's self-righteous attitude that disgusted her.

She's rich, but not a saint; she's not someone who'll throw money around just because you offer a simple prayer.

Lu Zhaozhao's smile vanished, and she said in an extremely cold tone, "It seems my aunt has come to the wrong person. Your dowry should be prepared by your grandparents, not me. What family's daughter gets her dowry prepared by her niece-in-law?"

Gu Honglian stared wide-eyed in astonishment.

Lu Zhaozhao rejected her. She didn't understand why Lu Zhaozhao was so heartless towards her.

She really didn't ask for more.

Lu Zhaozhao wouldn't give away a shop, a dozen acres of fertile land, or a box of jewelry.

"Auntie, I'm going to the weaving workshop, I can't chat with you for now."

Lu Zhaozhao stood up and walked towards the weaving workshop.

Gu Honglian was both ashamed and angry, tears welling up in her eyes.

The last hope was gone.

Without a dowry, it's questionable whether her marriage to Fan Tong can still go through.

She dreamed of marrying the scholar.

She didn't want to marry an ordinary farmer and live a life where they couldn't even afford to eat meat a few times a day while planting rice.

Gu Honglian returned home with a long face.

Grandma Gu thought someone had bullied her when she saw her appearance. After pressing her for details, she learned that Lu Zhaozhao was unwilling to give her a dowry. Grandma Gu was incredulous.

"She said she donated two hundred taels of silver to our village school a couple of days ago. I thought if you asked her for your dowry, she would at least give you five hundred taels of silver. But she just refused?" said Old Mrs. Gu.

How did this naive and innocent girl become so stingy?
Jia said, "She's afraid of her sister-in-law. After all, the younger sister is the sister-in-law, so when she asks her for a dowry, she naturally has to consider her mother-in-law's feelings."

"It was wrong to let my sister handle this from the beginning; it should have been Mom and Dad who handled it."

Grandma Gu felt that what Jia said made sense.

It must be that Tong Huaqiong didn't want her to have any contact with the old house. She had just married into the Gu family and hadn't yet established herself, so naturally she had to listen to her mother-in-law in everything.

She is the great-grandmother, and theoretically she can suppress Tong Huaqiong. Since she has spoken up, Lu Zhaozhao will probably not refuse.

The reason why Old Mrs. Gu and Old Mr. Gu let Gu Honglian ask for her own dowry was because they still cared about their reputation.

The two elders forced their granddaughter-in-law to give her aunt's dowry, saying they couldn't bear the shame if word got out.

"Mother, please help me! If we wait any longer, Fan Tong will be snatched away by someone else." Gu Honglian cried out in despair.

Grandma Gu gritted her teeth and said, "Fine, your father and I will step in together. Does she dare to refuse?"

Grandma Gu was determined to get Lu Zhaozhao's dowry.

A new daughter-in-law dares to disobey her great-grandmother-in-law and bears the reputation of being unfilial. Does she still want Gu Jingzhe to earn her an imperial title in the future?
Grandma Gu thought this way, her confidence practically bursting out of her head.
Gu family.

Gu Jingzhe was reading a book, while Lu Zhaozhao was writing beside him.

The years are peaceful and peaceful.

"Master, please invite the Third Young Master and Third Young Mistress to dinner at the old house," Granny Lei said to Tong Huaqiong.

This was the third time the old family had invited Gu Jingzhe and Lu Zhaozhao to dinner, but Gu Jingzhe had declined each time.

Tong Huaqiong had already heard from Lu Zhaozhao that Gu Honglian had asked Lu Zhaozhao for a dowry.

To her relief, Lu Zhaozhao did not show any signs of being a saint, but instead decisively rejected Gu Honglian.

The old family is inviting Gu Jingzhe and Lu Zhaozhao to dinner for the fourth time now, which means the two elders are definitely working together to ask for a dowry for Gu Honglian.

Tong Huaqiong still has no intention of interfering in this matter.

Anyway, since Gu Jingzhe is at home, it's all their family's business, and he should handle it.

With that in mind, Tong Huaqiong asked Granny Lei to ask Gu Jingzhe for advice.

Gu Jingzhe put down his book and said to Lu Zhaozhao, "Since the old family has invited us to dinner several times, let's go and have dinner there."

Lu Zhaozhao smiled and agreed.

She also wanted to see how the Gu family elders would react after she refused to give Gu Honglian a dowry. (End of Chapter)