I'm already a concubine, who wants to fight with you?

Chapter 151 Mother’s Family
Madam Zheng snorted coldly, sat down on the armchair, and waved her hand for Steward Zheng to speak.

Manager Zheng bowed and said to Ban Sihui, "Madam Ban, is the Nishang Pavilion in West City the property you transferred to your mother's family?"

Ban Sihui's pupils suddenly shrank.

This Nishang Pavilion was originally given to her by the first wife.

However, because her father and brothers from her natal family were no longer allowed to enter officialdom and were unwilling to work to support the expenses, she secretly transferred the shop.

My sister-in-law was in charge of it in the past few years. In the past six months, under the lobbying of Mrs. Ban, it was transferred to my brother's wife and her family.

No one in the Pei family knew about this and it was kept secret.

She was not good at lying, and was especially afraid of Mrs. Zheng. When she became nervous, she would stutter.

"This, this Nishang Pavilion was given to me by my husband," she blinked hard and said calmly, "It has nothing to do with my family. I manage it myself."

Mrs. Zheng sneered, "You manage it? What do you use to manage it? Bring me the account book, I want to see if you are really serious about it."

Ban Sihui tucked her hands into her sleeves and changed the subject, "Why did mother-in-law suddenly ask about this? Nishang Pavilion is not a big store. Even if there are any problems with income and expenditure, you don't need to ask about it in person, right?"

Madam Zheng narrowed her eyes. "You mean, I can't ask about the Pei family's business?"

Ban Sihui thought about Lianyi's words and felt more confident.

She faced Madam Zheng's cold gaze and said with her neck stiff, "Mother-in-law, you are old, why do you have to run around and worry about these trivial matters? At your age, you should enjoy your retirement. As for the household chores in the mansion, let your daughter-in-law do it."

For a moment, the hall was silent.

Manager Zheng was sweating and felt like a disaster was about to happen.

He had followed Madam Zheng for at least twenty or thirty years, and he saw Ban Sihui enter the mansion with his own eyes, and had known her for more than ten years.

It was the first time I saw the lady speak to the lady like this.

Are you tired of living?

In fact, Ban Sihui regretted it as soon as she said this.

She watched as Mrs. Zheng's expression changed from frozen to ridiculous, and finally to indifference.

The look in his eyes was as if he was looking at an ignorant fool, and he didn't take her "threat" seriously at all.

"She is indeed a good daughter of the Ban family," Mrs. Zheng sneered, "The stupidest decision I have ever made in my life is to marry a superficial thing like you into my family."

Ban Sihui only felt her heart in her chest tremble violently, and the feeling of being insulted and wronged came over her.

Her eyelids were light, her face was red, and tears were falling.

Mrs. Zheng, however, didn't feel sorry at all. She seemed to have exhausted all her patience and just wanted to get rid of her as soon as possible.

"None of the shops and farms under your name belong to you. You have secretly transferred them to your family. Do you think I don't know this?"

Ban Sihui was shocked. Before she was even shocked by how Mrs. Zheng knew about this, she was stunned by what she said next.

"But Pei family's things will always belong to the Pei family. If you want to give it to us, that's fine, but if we want to take it back, you have no right to ask."

Ban Sihui understood the meaning of this at once and said in panic, "The government has already approved the document. Does mother-in-law still want to take it back?"

Madam Zheng leaned forward and looked at her daughter-in-law coldly, "'Seize'? This is just returning the property to its original owner."

Ban Sihui knelt down hurriedly, and the forced demeanor she had put on before had long since disappeared.

"Mother-in-law, since you knew about it a long time ago but didn't get angry, it means you agree with it. But now everything is fine, why do you suddenly take it back?"

Madam Zheng had long lost all hope in this daughter-in-law, and only felt disgust for her. "You only care about your mother's family. Even between your own son and your mother's family, you would choose the latter without hesitation. If I don't stop you, won't you take the entire mansion back and give it to your mother's family?"

Ban Sihui had no idea what was wrong, and argued: "Mother-in-law, you are a daughter, and you also have a daughter. Have you and the second daughter never helped your mother's family?"

Madam Zheng said: "Even if there is money, there is no reason to use the entire husband's family to fill the hole in your own family!"

At her signal, Manager Zheng opened the account book.

"Madam, eight years ago, you secretly transferred a rouge shop, two inns, a silver shop, an antique shop... as well as two farms and a hundred acres of good farmland to your family."

Ignoring Ban Sihui's dumbfounded expression, Manager Zheng changed the account book, opened it and continued reading.

"In addition, you have subsidized your parents' home for many years, not less than eight or nine thousand taels. The house, carriages, and daily expenses for your brother and sister-in-law, your younger brother and sister-in-law, your parents' home, and even the full moon banquet, birthday celebrations, your sisters' dowries, and the renovation of the house in the countryside, etc., all these expenses were paid by you."

Ban Sihui had no idea she was wrong, but was confused that Mrs. Zheng knew so much about it.

"But, but what's the problem? This little money is just a drop in the bucket for the Marquis's Mansion. Besides, I am using my own money to subsidize them. Otherwise, do I have to live a luxurious life while watching my family suffer?"

Manager Zheng was only responsible for the accounts and kept his head down without saying a word.

Mrs. Zheng got a headache after hearing this.

She still remembered how miserable and pitiful Ban Sihui's family was when they fell into poverty many years ago. She knelt in front of her with her child in her arms, begging her to help her family more.

She then thought of herself, who had just given birth to a child a few days ago when something happened at home.

At that time, Pei Sheng was working in another place and was out of reach. The old marquis was fighting at the border, and distant water could not quench a nearby fire.

The only one who could save her family from the dire straits was the old lady.

Regardless of her body suffering from postpartum blood loss, she knelt in the old lady's yard, kowtowed in the pouring rain, begging the old lady to save the women in her family.

But the old lady ignored her and let her cry until she fainted and developed a chronic illness.

Even though her family later made a comeback, Mrs. Zheng still felt a thorn in her heart.

I have secretly resented her countless times, why can't I help her?

Why can't you give her family a hand considering that she just gave birth and is extremely weak, and that she has added a new child to the Marquis's mansion?
Even if she only gave one word, her mother would not become disabled, her sister-in-law and sister-in-law would not be forced to death, and her sisters would have a good home.

Whenever I think about it, I hate myself for being incompetent, and I hate the old lady for her cruelty even more.

So, when Ban Sihui, who was in a similar situation as her, dragged her sick body and knelt in front of her to beg, she felt like she was seeing her former self.

I always think that if we help a little more, maybe we can avoid many tragedies.

That moment of soft-heartedness led to subsequent indulgence.

If Ban Sihui was sensible, she would have known when to quit.

But this child cares too much about her mother's family.

It's as if she treats her husband's family as her boss and only cares about their wealth and honor, whether they have the power to protect her family and whether they have the money to give her family a good life.

She wanted to hold even a piece of tile from her husband's family in her arms and take it back to her parents' family.

And now, her mother's family has not restrained themselves either, and has been acting arrogantly and domineeringly in the name of the Pei Mansion, bullying the people.

Madam Zheng said, "I have sent people to investigate. These days, your family has been using the Pei Mansion's name to buy on credit, occupy land, and smash other people's shops! There are so many complaints about the Pei Mansion, and it's all because you don't control your family!"

Ban Sihui hurriedly said, "Mother-in-law, there is absolutely no such thing!"

(End of this chapter)