Chapter 474: Chapter 474: Handling

A love for a good spectacle was practically bred into the people’s bones since ancient times. Some naturally enjoyed stirring the pot, and just like that, they were already calling for servants to dress and groom the new concubine. At the very least, her bright red outfit was quite the eyesore.

"These two maids of yours don’t seem to know their place," Mrs. Jiang said, sizing up the two servants who had tried to stop them earlier. "Look at them cowering like that. They probably can’t get anything done right. It just so happens that we brought plenty of maids and older servant women with us. They can properly prepare this new concubine."

The other ladies chimed in with their agreement, dispatching their own "capable" aides to go and offer their assistance.

Bai Suihe glanced at Zisu beside her and simply handed the baby, Gu Xingyang, over to her. She wanted to keep Zisu’s deft hands occupied so the maid wouldn’t end up styling a true beauty for Mr. Lin.

"Master?" Ma Mingli was surrounded by a throng of aggressive maids and older women. Whatever ambitious schemes she had entertained earlier, she was now completely out of her depth. These women looked fierce and vicious—who knew if they were going to play dirty behind his back?

"Since it is the good intentions of these ladies, just go with them and prepare. I will notify your maiden family," Lin Dali said. He no longer dared to meet Ma Mingli’s pleading gaze.

He had finally figured out today’s situation: their previous actions had utterly infuriated his wife. If he didn’t play along today, he feared even he would suffer the consequences.

Hu Waner then ordered her maids to inventory her dowry. "I’ve been away for a few days, and to my surprise, my dowry has been freely squandered by a lowly concubine. Who knows what else is missing? Since my brothers’ wives are here, take the dowry list and verify everything one by one."

At those words, Lin Dali’s expression turned exceptionally sour. She was throwing his dignity on the ground and trampling all over it.

"Madam, do not be unreasonable," he said. "Isn’t your dowry sitting perfectly fine in your courtyard? No one would touch it."

The surrounding ladies looked at Lin Dali with sheer novelty. How thick-skinned did a man have to be to say such a thing? Did he really think they were blind, or did they just have the memory of a goldfish?

"It’s best to check," one of the women from the Hu family immediately said, walking toward the courtyard. "Since we are all here today, we can’t let Lin Dali suffer any unjust accusations in the future.

"If everything is intact, it proves he manages his household well. But if there are sticky fingers and things have been lost, we can quickly catch the culprit, root out the rat, and restore the Lin family’s clean reputation."

Lin Dali was praying silently, hoping Ma Mingli hadn’t gone too far. Otherwise, he would lose face completely this time. He wanted to find an excuse to leave, but with several ladies surrounding the area, he couldn’t exactly use physical force to push past them. He had no choice but to stand awkwardly in the courtyard.

"What’s going on? Where are the bolts of fabric your eldest brother sent over? Didn’t you say you were saving them for my eldest nephew’s betrothal gifts?

"And how is a set of jewelry missing? You were wearing it the last time you visited home!"

"Waner, how are these quilt covers missing too?"

"My poor daughter," Old Madam Hu lamented. "You weren’t even home, and this side room has been rummaged through so dreadfully..."

Standing in the courtyard, Lin Dali felt every passing second was sheer torture. He wished he could just close his eyes and escape from it all.

"Good heavens, the Lin family truly has an inside thief. They even dared to touch the main wife’s dowry..."

"Isn’t it obvious? With how arrogant that woman was just now, she clearly has someone backing her up."

"If you ask me, Mrs. Lin is simply too polite to these lowly concubines. Later, I’ll properly teach her a few tricks on how to discipline such people. Otherwise, if their ambitions grow too wild, who knows how they might harm the legitimate heirs."

Bai Suihe sharply noticed that Lin Dali’s legs were trembling, though he was trying his best to hide it.

At this moment, someone else spoke up. "Ladies, there is actually another possibility. Some people are highly ambitious and look down on the position of a mere concubine.

"As we all know, the law dictates that a concubine cannot be elevated to a wife. Could it be that Widow Ma’s ambitions are so lofty that she wants to replace Mrs. Lin?"

Several ladies immediately played along, letting out dramatic gasps. "No way, that’s entirely too absurd. She really dares to dream?"

"What is there not to dare? As long as a man is willing to dote on her, that’s all the backing she needs.

"While one cannot legally demote a wife to a concubine, there is always the old saying: ’Get promoted, strike it rich, and have the wife die...’"

Those words were like a drop of water splashing into a boiling vat of oil. The crowd erupted into an uproar, with everyone agreeing that such a plot was entirely possible.

Lin Dali squatted down and covered his face. He had never been so humiliated in his life.

Could he honestly say he didn’t have such thoughts?

No matter how much he liked Ma Mingli, he knew Mrs. Lin could not be divorced. Not to mention, she had given him so many children. For the sake of their sons and daughters, the position of Mrs. Lin could only belong to her. He had only wanted to coax Widow Ma a bit so she would serve him more wholeheartedly, never expecting things to escalate to such a disastrous state.

With so many ladies mocking and sneering at him, Hu Waner just stood there, entirely indifferent. Could she be thinking the exact same thing?

He opened his mouth to explain but didn’t know where to begin. Looking up, he saw his sons standing beneath the porch. For some reason, a wave of guilt washed over him, and he didn’t dare meet their eyes.

"Master, our house has been robbed. Quickly, send someone to report this to the authorities!" Hu Waner held the inventory list, her face full of anxiety. "These thieves are incredibly bold! They made a complete mess of my dowry and took so many things..."

"We can’t report it to the authorities!" No longer caring about hiding his face in shame, Lin Dali shot to his feet and said urgently, "Ming Li must have just moved some things out of curiosity. I will definitely replace them later!"

"What? Aren’t you just inviting a wolf into the house?" Old Madam Hu said loudly. "How dare you bring such a shady woman into the estate? She dared to steal the main wife’s dowry this time, so will she resort to murder for money next?

"You must give us an explanation today. Otherwise, I will have to go out and ask a few highly respected elders if this conduct of the Lin family is appropriate!"

"Are you trying to force me to my death?!" Lin Dali broke down. Why couldn’t they just live in peace? Did they really have to escalate everything until no one could gracefully back down?

"If you’re going to say that, then I definitely need to find someone to reason with you," Old Madam Hu declared. "Eldest boy, go and invite the clan elders over. I want to ask them if the Lin family thinks it’s acceptable to freely squander another woman’s dowry!"

Young Master Lin glanced at his father, who was currently glaring fiercely at him. Sighing, the young man simply stood to the side in silence.

Lin Dali let out a breath of relief. At the same time, a bitter feeling welled up in his heart. He feared that all three of his sons had come to resent him. He only wanted a considerate woman by his side. Was that so wrong?

"You won’t go? Then let the butler do it." Hu Waner could understand; her son was truly caught in a dilemma between them. However, the fact that all three sons had accompanied her here today already made their stance clear. Her eldest son would be participating in the imperial examinations in the future, and as his mother, she had to consider his reputation.

The butler trembled in fear. He didn’t know what would become of him after today, but he was certain his position as butler was lost. He might even end up being sold off.

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