After being forced to leave the marriage, I became the wife of a top scholar.

Chapter 73 How come he's so rich?

Meanwhile, the burly man had already ridden back to the capital at full speed. Without stopping for a moment, he entered the city and went straight to the palace without even changing his clothes.

Meanwhile, the Emperor was reading memorials in his study when he heard that Commandant Fu had returned. He was overjoyed and exclaimed, "Eunuch Fu, quickly summon him in!"

Eunuch Fu bowed his head and accepted the order, then led the burly man into the imperial study.

Upon seeing the emperor, the burly man effortlessly removed his straw hat, knelt on the ground, and greeted him, "Your Majesty, long live the Emperor!"

"Commander Fu, rise quickly!" The Emperor was eager to know about the Lin family's affairs, so he ordered him to stand up and speak.

Commander Fu stood up, and the Emperor offered him a seat. "Minister Fu, when you went to Huai'an County, did you find out anything about Lin Yunche's current situation?"

Fu Mang nodded, "Your Majesty, the young master of the Lin family is indeed engaged. Almost everyone in Huai'an County knows this, so there's no mistake."

The Emperor frowned. "Which family did you book with?"

Fu Mang replied truthfully, "She is the eldest daughter of the Bai family in Huai'an County, named Bai Wanqing."

The Emperor was even more puzzled, "The Bai family of Huai'an County? I've never heard of them before. What kind of family are they?"

Fu Mang replied, "It's a small merchant family; it's normal that Your Majesty hasn't heard of them."

The Emperor was somewhat shocked. "A merchant family?" This was beyond the Emperor's expectations. The Lin family was a powerful and influential clan, and even their marriage alliances involved families of officials for generations. Although they had been temporarily settled on the border, there was still a chance for them to return in the future. Moreover, they had the Lin family army in the capital, a position that no ordinary family could shake.

They actually considered themselves commoners from the border. The Lin family even refused his arranged marriage for the sake of a merchant's daughter, which was something he hadn't expected.

As for the imperial marriage, it was originally proposed by Imperial Censor Cheng. When Lin Yunche was selected as the top scholar in the imperial examination, his second daughter took a liking to him and insisted that he petition the Emperor for a marriage decree. The Emperor thought that having such a daughter from an official family would not only appease the Lin family but also allow her to monitor their every move—a win-win situation, which seemed quite acceptable.
This saves them a lot of trouble, but the Bai family really got a huge advantage.
"Very well, even without the connection of the censor, didn't I still appoint him as the top scholar? I hope Lin Yunche can really bring me a surprise." The emperor seemed to be speaking to Fu Mang, but he was actually talking to himself. When Lin Yunche came to participate in the imperial examination, the emperor had high hopes for him, especially for the article he wrote that amazed the court. This was something that Lin Feiyun had not been able to accomplish for so many years on the border, and he hoped that Lin Yunche could complete it for him.

So the emperor ordered someone to send a congratulatory gift to the Lin family, and the matter of bestowing a marriage upon the top scholar was dropped.

It is said that not long after the Lin family came to the Bai family to set the date, they sent a matchmaker to present the betrothal gifts.

Bai Chenming and Chen Shi both knew that the Lin family's conditions were average, so when Lin Yunche sent the betrothal gifts, neither of them took it seriously. After all, it was only six loads of gifts, which was far less than what the Du and Huang families had given back then.

But when Lin Feiyun revealed the contents of the box, both Chen Shi and Bai Chenming were taken aback.
The boxes weren't just filled with makeshift quilts and embroidered shoes; they were packed with gold and silver jewelry and exquisite jade artifacts. Not to mention that there were six loads of them, even just one load was worth more than all the betrothal gifts given by the Huang and Du families combined.

Bai Chenming and Chen Shi stared wide-eyed, too shocked to speak.

"Father-in-law, these things are too valuable for us to accept!" It's normal for Bai Chenming to have reservations. After all, anyone who has been to the Lin family knows their financial situation. Suddenly bringing out so many precious things as a betrothal gift would make any normal person suspicious.

The same was true for Chen, but she did not want to refuse. Her eyes gleamed as she looked into the box.

Lin Feiyun smiled and explained, "My dear in-law, don't worry, the origins of these things are all above board and won't cause trouble for the Bai family." Lin Feiyun only said this, but didn't explain in detail where these things came from. After all, they were sent by the Emperor, and if he said that, Bai Chenming might feel pressured.

Although Bai Chenming was still somewhat skeptical, he did not refuse again.

After seeing the Lin family off, Bai Chenming was troubled. "With such an expensive betrothal gift, how much should our dowry be?"

Madam Chen didn't like hearing this. "The betrothal gifts are the betrothal gifts, and the dowry is the dowry. How can they be compared? We should still give as much as we are entitled to, and we can just add some more for Qing'er."

Although Chen spoke eloquently, she had already begun to plan her betrothal gifts.

Bai Chenming immediately ordered his men to carry the betrothal gifts to Bai Wanqing's courtyard, but Madam Chen stopped him, saying, "Master, these are gifts from the Lin family to our Bai family, they should be confiscated! Why are they being carried to Qing'er's courtyard?"

Bai Chenming glared at Madam Chen, "Don't think I don't know what you're thinking. Don't forget that Furong and Qinglian's betrothal gifts were carried into their own courtyards. Why can't Wanqing's betrothal gifts be carried in?" Madam Chen retorted, "Master, you're right. Furong and Qinglian's betrothal gifts were indeed carried into their respective courtyards, but after they selected a few items, I made them confiscate the rest!"

“But if you carry Qing’er into this courtyard, I won’t be able to carry her out again,” Madam Chen said logically.

Bai Chenming knew that this was indeed the case, so he didn't say anything more. After all, Chen was not Qing'er's biological mother, and there was no need to add any more conflict to the family.

“Alright! Let’s take them to the public treasury first. Go and tell Qing’er to take stock of them herself and pick out a few that she likes. It’s good to have a general idea of ​​what to expect!” Bai Chenming said.

Madam Chen was naturally delighted, her eyes crinkling with laughter. "That's right, that's right. Master, you go ahead and get busy. Leave this to me."

Bai Chenming nodded slightly and then left the main hall.

Looking at the six boxes of treasures in front of her, Madam Chen didn't hesitate and ordered someone to call Furong and Qinglian over so they could choose first.

Bai Qinglian arrived first. She had heard from Chun Tao that the Lin family had come to present betrothal gifts today, bringing six boxes. She had just been mocking the Lin family for their meager offerings, but a short while later she received a message from her mother telling her to go to the storeroom and choose some nice things. She couldn't understand what was so special about the Lin family's things.

But as soon as she entered the warehouse, she was stunned by the objects in front of her.

These six boxes, though few in number, are priceless. For example, two boxes are filled with gold and silver jewelry, such as gold butterfly hairpins, gold filigree dragonfly hairpins inlaid with jewels, and gold sparrow hairpins. The remaining two boxes contain jade artifacts, such as several pairs of jade bracelets in various colors, including white and green, as well as waist belts and jade pendants, which are matched in several sets. The last two boxes are filled with the most popular Shu brocade and Suzhou brocade at the time, all of them top quality, and all kinds of precious medicinal materials, including thousand-year-old ginseng, snow lotus from Tianshan, and even the uncommon white-fleshed lingzhi mushroom.

Bai Qinglian was practically green with envy. "Mother, were all of these sent by the Lin family?"

"Yes! They were all sent by the Lin family." Madam Chen pulled Qinglian to the box containing the jewelry. "Lian'er, take a look. Whichever one you like, you can take it. It will be your dowry later."

Bai Qinglian gritted her teeth, but then thought that she might as well take them. She couldn't let all these things go to Bai Wanqing in the future, so she simply put aside her worries and started picking them out. "Mother, this one is pretty, and that one is pretty too."

Chen laughed and said, "Then take them all. There are so many here, no one will know what's missing."

Madam Chen had already had the betrothal gift list put away; she could simply make up a new one later.

Just as Bai Qinglian was picking things out with great enthusiasm, Furong arrived, but she didn't come alone; she came with Bai Wanqing.

Because in Furong's opinion, her mother asked her to come and choose the betrothal gifts that Brother Lin would give to her older sister, and it would be better if her older sister was present. As a result, the two of them had just entered the storeroom when they saw that Bai Qinglian had already put a lot of things in her arms.

When Chen and Bai Qinglian saw who it was, they looked embarrassed. "Uh, Qing'er, you've come!"

Bai Wanqing hummed in agreement, then her gaze swept over the six boxes on the ground. She had just heard from Ruixin that Young Master Lin had brought six boxes when he came to propose marriage, which must be these.
Bai Wanqing noticed the items in the box. She was initially surprised, but then, considering Lin Yunche's identity, it didn't seem so difficult to understand. However, Furong was still frightened by the sight before her.

Especially the items Bai Qinglian was holding in her arms; each one was exquisitely beautiful. It turns out Brother Lin's family is so wealthy.
"Well... these have already been delivered to the Bai family, so they naturally belong to our Bai family. Qing'er, you shouldn't mind giving some to your second and third sisters, right?" Madam Chen said to Bai Wanqing with a smile.

Bai Qinglian raised her chin, looking at Bai Wanqing provocatively, but Furong shook her head, "Mother, even if it's something from the Bai family, it's still Brother Lin's betrothal gift to Sister Bai. Logically, Sister Bai should be allowed to choose first!"

Madam Chen had a terrible headache with her second daughter, who always sided with Bai Wanqing. Madam Chen glared at Furong, who opened her mouth but didn't say anything more.

Bai Wanqing smiled faintly, "Mother is certainly right. The betrothal gifts are not a dowry. Since they have been sent to the Bai family, they naturally belong to the Bai family. But Mother should have informed me first!"

"It's not too late to give these betrothal gifts to my sisters after I've counted them all."

As she spoke, Bai Wanqing extended her right hand to Madam Chen, gesturing for her to hand over the list of betrothal gifts.

Madam Chen was naturally unwilling. "Qing'er, what do you mean by this? Do you think I, as your mother, can't manage your household? I can easily take stock of these things for you. Why do you need to do it yourself?"

(End of this chapter)