The Return of the Seventh Young Lady-Chapter 101 - 100

Chapter 100

Amid the tension that filled the hall after everyone in the Mu family learned the shocking truth, no one dared to utter a single word. They exchanged glances, lips tightly pressed together, and their faces clearly showed signs of distress.

The Mu family, which had been flourishing, had suddenly found itself on the brink of ruin with a debt of over two hundred thousand taels overnight!

Elder Mu Furen, the most senior member of the family, closed her eyes for a moment, trying to regulate her breathing to maintain her composure. When she opened her eyes, she spoke in a weary voice.

"Rest assured, Fengkong Repository. The debt will be repaid in full. Now that the Mu family is aware of this loan agreement, please give us some time to discuss and find the best solution. We will send someone to inform you once we have decided. Is that acceptable?"

"This..."

One of the representatives from Fengkong Repository hesitated for a long while, his eyes reflecting uncertainty. He glanced at his three companions, seeking their input. When they nodded in agreement, he turned back to respond.

"In that case, we shall trouble Elder Mu Furen. We hope to hear good news from you in three days."

Elder Mu Furen merely smiled, not saying anything, and instructed Su Ming to escort the guests to the front gate. Even though the people from Fengkong Repository had left, the hall remained cloaked in silence. No one dared to speak, making the atmosphere even more stifling.

"Tell me...what exactly happened?"

Finally, Elder Mu Furen was the first to break the silence in the room, her voice filled with fatigue and exasperation. Her gaze, directed at her son, was full of disappointment.

She had already been greatly disappointed by Mu Cui Ming’s failure as a father and husband. Now, he had caused trouble and plunged the family into massive debt, nearly dragging their future into ruin. Her hopes were being shattered bit by bit.

Inwardly, Elder Mu Furen could only blame herself. Had she not spoiled her only son excessively from a young age, how could he have become so irresponsible as an adult?

Karma, indeed...

Mu Cui Ming, seeing his mother’s disappointed and exasperated expression, was momentarily taken aback. A deep sense of guilt surfaced within him.

"Mother...it was my carelessness that caused this."

“About half a month ago, several officials and wealthy merchants collaborated to discuss a new business venture, and I was one of them. Initially, this business venture was planned with the potential to generate enormous profits. When the Fengyi Restaurant first opened, it thrived in a way that no one could have anticipated, Mother.”

“However, not long after, a new competitor emerged. They had more capital than we did, causing our business to lag behind. As a result, we decided to borrow more money from Fengkong Repository in addition to what we had already borrowed for constructing Fengyi Restaurant. Before I knew it, we were in debt to the tune of four hundred thousand taels of gold.”

“In the end, Fengyi Restaurant became a failing business because most of our customers were drawn away by the competitor. We could no longer sustain the business. Even after selling Fengyi Restaurant to Fengkong Repository to repay the debt, we still owe another two hundred thousand taels...”

Mu Cui Ming recounted all the details without holding back. Since the situation had escalated to this extent, there was no point in hiding anything. As he thought about the competitor that opened at the same time as him and stole all his customers, causing him to suffer such a loss, he couldn’t help but grind his teeth in frustration.

Having competitors was normal in business. However, a competitor who opened at the same time and operated in a similar manner, seemingly to steal customers, greatly annoyed Mu Cui Ming.

“If it was a joint investment, then why are you the only one responsible for repaying the debt?” Elder Furen asked, puzzled. From what she had heard, something seemed off.

“Well...when we signed the joint business contract, I, as the largest investor, had the right to be the head of the business. When the trouble arose, I signed the loan agreement as the head. Additionally, the others have already pooled their money to repay their portions of the debt. However, as the head of the business, who received a larger share of the profits, I have to repay a larger share of the debt as well...”

Upon hearing this, Elder Mu Furen immediately felt a headache coming on. From what she had gathered, it seemed that this debt arose because her son overestimated himself and took on responsibilities he couldn’t handle, leading to this situation!

While many in the room were distressed over this problem, Mu Yingying, who had been listening quietly, let a smile tug at the corner of her mouth, a smile full of scorn. Judging by her father’s words, it seemed he wasn’t entirely unaware that something strange was afoot. However, the urgency of the financial issue clouded his judgment, preventing him from thinking clearly.

Business naturally carried risks, but if her father had thought for a moment, he would have realized that this whole situation seemed too ’coincidental.’ The competitor emerged at the same time, always staying one step ahead of Fengyi Restaurant and eventually taking all their customers, causing Fengyi Restaurant to fail in the end.

Additionally, there was a loan agreement with Fengkong Repository. While it was common to need significant capital at the start of a business, even borrowing money to expand it, generally, if the initial business shows signs of struggling, no ’sensible’ person would risk borrowing more money to invest in a business that’s clearly heading for a huge loss.

Every step in the business of the Fengyi Restaurant was clearly being forced to follow the path laid out on someone else’s chessboard!

However, someone like Mu Cui Ming, who had no idea that he had become a pawn in someone else’s hands, would never be able to see the truth. By the time he realized it, everything was already too late to fix...

Mu Yingying lowered her eyes slightly to conceal the amusement within them. The mastermind behind this plot might have thought that the Mu family would be thrown into disarray, but that wouldn’t be the case with Mu Yingying!

She could guess what the mastermind wanted, which was not something she had to worry about at all. Since someone was orchestrating this game and forcing Mu Cui Ming to follow their plan, they wouldn’t leave him with no way out.

When the time came...that person would extend a hand to provide Mu Cui Ming with a way out!

Along with revealing the true goal they sought from the Mu family...

"Alright, the most important thing now is to find money to repay Fengkong Repository. How much do we have left in the treasury?"

Elder Mu Furen let out a long sigh and asked in a steady voice. At this point, lamenting was a waste of time. The best course of action was to quickly find a way to settle the debt.

Mu Cui Ming remained silent for a moment before replying in a low voice, "...I have invested all the money in the treasury."

Upon hearing Mu Cui Ming’s words, Elder Mu Furen closed her eyes and took a deep breath to suppress the turmoil within her. The other members in the room were similarly shocked, their faces frozen momentarily.

"In that case, gather all the dowries that were allocated to the grandchildren and use that to repay the debt, including my own dowry. That should amount to around thirty thousand taels of gold. For the remaining amount, mortgage the land and shops," Elder Mu Furen said with a heavy heart.

When everyone heard the Elder Furen’s decision, they immediately looked up in alarm. For women, dowries were crucial. If a dowry was insufficient and not suitable for the status, they would be disadvantaged when marrying into their husband’s family. This was especially true for daughters of concubines. Being born to a concubine already put them at a disadvantage compared to the daughters of the principal wife. If their dowries were also lacking, it would be even harder for them to live comfortably in their future husband’s household.

Elder Mu Furen was well aware of this, and suggested this caused her great distress...

"M...Mother, if we take away the children’s dowries, what will they do...when they get married?" Lan Yi, unable to accept this, asked in a trembling voice.

The well-being of her daughters was important, and no mother would willingly see her daughters face such injustice.

Xie Yang, although silent, shared Lan Yi’s concerns. Even though their daughters were born to concubines, they still bore the Mu family name and were daughters of the Left Side Deputy Chancellor. They were not just any concubine’s daughters!

Therefore, it couldn’t be denied that the matter of dowry was crucial and must not be mishandled even slightly!

"The wedding is still many years away, at least two or three. By then, the Mu family will have recovered, and there will be no need to worry about the dowry. However, the most important issue right now is repaying the debt. If we don’t have the money to pay and end up in court, then not just the dowry but the future of the Mu family itself will be tarnished..."

Elder Mu Furen explained her reasoning calmly, making Lan Yi and Xie Yang reluctantly accept it. They couldn’t argue or object any further. It was true that the dowry was important, but if the future of the Mu family were to collapse, how could the dowry still matter?

Seeing no one opposing further, Elder Mu Furen turned to her son. "Then let’s proceed with this plan."

"Uh..."

Mu Cui Ming pressed his lips tightly together, dared not to respond. He avoided the gazes directed at him, deep in thought.

He had already secretly gathered and invested all the mentioned funds, leaving nothing remaining. Now, the only remaining asset was this manor!

"Cui Ming, why aren’t you saying anything?"

Elder Mu Furen narrowed her eyes, observing his nervous demeanor, a strong sense of foreboding rising within her.

"Those items,"

Mu Cui Ming paused briefly before mustering the courage to speak the truth. Even if he didn’t say anything, his mother would eventually find out when she sent someone to investigate.

"I sold them all to invest earlier..."

Thud!

As soon as Mu Cui Ming’s words fell, Elder Mu Furen’s vision went black momentarily. Her body slumped weakly against the back of the chair, the blood within her body was in turmoil as if a storm was raging inside her.

"Mother!"

"Grandmother!"

The people in the room called out to Elder Mu Furen in alarm. Mu Yingying, who had been watching the events unfold, quickly stood up and rushed to her grandmother’s side. Mu Qingxuan also stepped forward, discreetly checking Elder Mu Furen’s pulse.

"How is Grandmother?" Mu Yingying whispered to her sister, her big, round eyes filled with unhidden concern.

"It’s not serious. She just fainted from the shock."

Mu Qingxuan replied with a slight smile to reassure her sister not to be overly worried, then subtly pressed a pulse point on their grandmother’s wrist to help her blood circulate more easily.

Soon, Elder Mu Furen’s condition improved. Her vision became clear as normal, and her strength began to return fully, though her spirit remained weary.

"Grandmother is fine, don’t look so worried."

Elder Mu Furen raised her hand to gently stroke her youngest granddaughter’s head, showing affection. She could clearly sense all the genuine concern evident on Mu Yingying’s face.

Mu Yingying bit her lip, thinking quietly to herself, then moved to stand beside her grandmother instead of returning to her original seat. Elder Furen didn’t say anything, only giving a comforting squeeze to her granddaughter’s small hand.

Seeing that their grandmother’s condition had improved, Mu Qingxuan turned and walked back to her seat. The others in the room also breathed a collective sigh of relief upon realizing that the Elder Furen was alright, but their expressions quickly turned serious again due to the significant problem at hand.

"So...what should we do about this?"

Mu Cui Ming asked in a low voice. He had been quite shocked when his mother fainted earlier, but now that she seemed to be back to normal, he couldn’t help but inquire about a solution.

"We’ll discuss this matter later,"

Elder Mu Furen sighed heavily. In just a few short hours, she felt as if she had aged ten years.

"I need some time to think about possible solutions..."

Everyone in the room fell silent. No one objected or said anything further. Today’s issue was too big to find the solution in such a short time, and it was also a delicate matter that deeply affected everyone’s emotions. A bit of rest might help them come up with a good solution.

As everyone was about to disperse to rest, Mu Gongzhen, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly spoke in a calm voice, reminding everyone of the original reason for their gathering today.

"Wait a moment. I know now might not be the best time to bring this up, but the reason I called everyone together was to announce something before the opportunity is lost."

"Go ahead,"

Elder Mu Furen nodded, giving her permission. Despite her fatigue, she could endure a little longer.

"Today, what I wanted to tell you, Grandmother, and everyone else is that from now on, my sisters and I will be moving to live at Zhuiping Residence," Mu Gongzhen said, his face expressionless.

But as soon as he finished speaking, everyone in the room was once again shocked, including Elder Mu Furen. If the eldest young master of the Mu family moved to Zhuiping Residence, wouldn’t that mean they were separating the household?

"Are you separating the household?" Mu Cui Ming, understanding the implication first, asked with a frown.

"Father, you could say it that way. However, Zhuiping Residence is a royal grant from His Majesty, given to me for my past merits. Actually, it was customary to move there long ago, but the renovation took quite a long time. Now that I have been promoted to the Left Side Chancellor, I should have my own manor. Moving to Zhuiping Residence is only appropriate,"

Mu Gongzhen responded without haste, but his cold demeanor made his father, Mu Cui Ming, feel irritated, prompting him to speak with a sarcastic tone.

"Hah! Now that there’s trouble at the manor, you’re planning to run away from the problem? How filial of you!"

"Father, your words are not quite right. I informed Grandmother long ago that I had an announcement to make before this problem even arose. Besides, it seems you’ve misunderstood something. How can you accuse me of running away from a problem..."

Mu Gongzhen raised his eyebrows slightly, his sharp eyes flashing with scorn for a moment. "...when it was a problem you caused yourself?"

"You!"

Mu Cui Ming was taken aback by the stinging words, his face flushed with shame from being openly rebuked. His hands trembled with the anger that welled up inside him.

"That’s enough!"

Elder Mu Furen turned to admonish her son in a stern voice and continued, "I permit this. It is as Zhen child said, a reasonable thing to do. So, pack your belongings. Having your two younger sisters with you is good. It will keep the manor from being too quiet."

"Thank you, Grandmother." Mu Gongzhen turned and bowed slightly in gratitude, the look in his eyes softening as he gazed at his grandmother, a stark contrast to his usual demeanor.

Mu Cui Ming looked at his mother in disbelief. Despite the manor facing a major crisis, she allowed this ungrateful son to escape the problem. Moreover, considering it, the assets his son had received upon being appointed as the Left Side Chancellor must be substantial.

Since Mu Gongzhen was the only one with considerable assets in his possession now, how could he let him escape the problem?

"Fine! If you want to separate, you may!"

Having made up his mind, Mu Cui Ming spoke with a serious expression, his eyes briefly flashing with cunning. A mysterious smile appeared slightly at the corner of his mouth.

"You can go, but you are not to take any of the assets with you!"

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