After being forced into a marriage with a wealthy family, the virtuous wife caused a huge uproar.

Rong Yingluo's dowry was not placed in the Silver Willow Courtyard, but in a courtyard that was closest to it.

In order to control her dowry, Madam Su deliberately found a reason not to put it into the Silver Willow Courtyard.

Rong Yingluo asked Yinghong to get the dowry list from Granny Zhu, as she wanted to check the accounts one by one.

Actually, she didn't know what kind of dowry she was given, because two months ago, she rushed back to the mansion, changed into her wedding dress, and got into the bridal sedan chair.

But she knew perfectly well that those two paintings were gifts she gave to her eldest sister as part of her dowry.

The two arrived at the warehouse, where a large padlock was hanging on the door.

Without Rong Yingluo having to lift a finger, Gu Ce made a gesture and secretly revealed himself.

"Break the lock."

An Yi drew his sword from his waist and with a single stroke chopped the lock off the door. He then pushed the door open and invited the two inside.

Just then, Granny Zhu and Yinghong came running over with the dowry list in hand. The two of them knew the young lady's dowry best.

Rong Yingluo took the order and quickly skimmed through it. Gu Ce stood beside her and looked at it as well.

"Granny Zhu, check the valuables first," Gu Ce instructed.

Granny Zhu and Yinghong began rummaging through chests and cabinets, with Rong Yingluo following behind, examining each item one by one.

Just then, Su Jingyi arrived in a hurry, leading Zhao Mama and her maid.

"A-Ce, Liu-Li, what are you doing?" Su asked knowingly.

"Mother, my dowry has never been touched since I entered the manor. And I don't have the key either."

Today, my husband and I went shopping and were surprised to find that two of the paintings by Lingyin Hermit, which were part of my dowry, appeared at Baibaozhai.

"Mother, tell me why this is?" Rong Yingluo had never spoken to Madam Su so coldly before, but now she could no longer pretend to be a filial and respectful daughter-in-law.

Since a falling out was already imminent, she didn't mind bringing it forward.

"This... Liuli, are you sure you're not mistaken? Where are the paintings by Lingyin Jushi in your dowry?" Su Jingyi looked incredulous.

She had seen the dowry list, but it didn't specify whose paintings they were; it only listed how many paintings by famous artists were included.

"Mother, do you think I can't recognize my own dowry? The painting by Lingyin Jushi is priceless. My father spent a fortune to buy it for my dowry, just in case I was looked down upon in the Gu family. This is the confidence my family gave me, and it's beyond question." Rong Yingluo's eyes flashed coldly.

"Mother, the key is in your hands. Give us an explanation." Gu Ce was practically saying that she was the one who stole it.

"A-Ce, what do you mean by that?" Madam Su's face also turned cold. No matter what, she was his mother and the matriarch of the household. Wasn't she afraid that the officials would impeach him for being unfilial if he showed such disrespect?

"What do you mean, Mother? Do I need to spell it out? You stole my dowry and sold it." Rong Yingluo didn't mince words and spoke very bluntly.

"Rong Liuli, you're asking for death." Madam Su could no longer maintain her image as a kind mother; she couldn't keep up the act any longer.

In all the years she had been married into the Duke's mansion, no junior had ever dared to speak to her like that: "Guards, slap him in the face."

A maid was about to step forward, but before she could reach Rong Yingluo, Gu Ce kicked her away, saying, "Let's see who dares."

Both sides were on the verge of drawing their swords.

"What are you doing?" At that moment, the old lady appeared at the courtyard gate.

"Grandmother, Mother stole my dowry!" As soon as Rong Yingluo saw the old lady arrive, her expression changed instantly, and she ran forward crying to complain.

"What did you say?" The old lady rushed over as soon as she learned that Gu Ce had kicked the butler, unaware of what had happened.

"Today, my husband and I saw two famous paintings from my dowry at the Baibaozhai store, and only then did we realize that my dowry had ended up on the street," Rong Yingluo said, weeping.

"Mother, I didn't steal it. Rong is just talking nonsense," Su immediately defended herself.

"Granny Ye, you take your people and go with Liuli to check the dowry. All of you wait here; no one is allowed to leave." The old lady sternly swept her gaze over the crowd and immediately ordered the courtyard gate to be closed. No one was allowed to enter or leave.

Rong Yingluo's eyes lit up. The old lady was truly decisive and ruthless, not giving Su Shi the opportunity to find someone to help her, nor allowing the news to leak out.

If this didn't happen, then let it go. If it really was stolen, then the matter should be dealt with right here in this yard.

It allows you to handle things effectively while also protecting the reputation of your family.

Granny Ye, along with the two maids from the old lady's side, Granny Zhu, Yinghong, and the other two, counted the items together.

It only took half an hour to finish.

"Madam, ten paintings and calligraphy works and twelve antique ornaments are missing from the young mistress's dowry. These are the most valuable items in the dowry."

Moreover, all ten paintings and calligraphy works were created by the hermit Lingyin, and the antiques were collected from various countries by the head of the Rong family.

"Granny Zhu said that the value of those antiques is immeasurable, and the calligraphy and paintings are priceless," Granny Ye replied respectfully.

"What?" The old lady was stunned.

Su Jingyi was also shocked, her eyes wide open.

Wasn't Rong's dowry only worth around 50,000 taels? How come it's so valuable?

The dowry list only listed the names of each antique and the paintings and calligraphy, without specifying their origin or artist.

She was presumptuous, thinking that the Rong family could only buy things that were common in the market. She never expected that the Rong family could buy so many good things that even the Gu family couldn't buy.

At first, she thought the Rong family was unwilling to marry their daughter into the Gu family and had deliberately given less dowry, but since the value of 50,000 taels was more than double that of the previous four, she didn't think much of it. There were also shops and farmland properties that hadn't been included in the calculation.

It turns out that all those things were priceless treasures.

If she had known it was a painting by the hermit of Lingyin, she wouldn't have made such a hasty decision.

"Where did you get so many paintings by the Hermit of Lingyin?" Madam Su didn't believe that the Rong family could produce so many works by famous artists all at once.

She was fortunate enough to see one of Lingyin Jushi's paintings in her early years; only a few families in the capital could collect his paintings.

When she saw the painting of a tiger descending the mountain, she was startled, thinking she had seen a real tiger, its majestic form seemingly about to leap out of the painting.

"You don't need to ask where my Rong family came from. All the paintings in my dowry were by the Hermit of Lingyin. There were twenty-five in total, but ten are missing. Each painting costs at least ten thousand taels of silver. Twelve antique ornaments are also missing, each costing at least five thousand taels of silver. Mother, you are the mistress of the house. How will you compensate me?" Rong Yingluo said arrogantly.

From this day forward, she will no longer pretend to be a dutiful daughter-in-law. Now that she is the wife of a first-rank prime minister, she no longer needs to humble herself and maintain a facade of maternal love and filial piety.

"It's your own fault for not looking carefully, and now you're blaming me." Upon hearing that it would cost 160,000 taels of silver, Madam Su dared not agree.

Such a large sum of money couldn't be raised even if the Duke's mansion were sold.

"This is the first time I've entered this door. My mother is in charge of all the guards and servants in the house."

When I married into the Gu family, I only brought four servants with me from my maiden home. Only Yinghong and Granny Zhu entered the inner courtyard.

"Mother, how am I supposed to guard them? My mother was supposed to give me twenty servants as part of my dowry, why is the Gu family only allowing me to bring four?" Rong Yingluo directly tore off the mask, exposing Su's methods.

"You...you've gone too far, you've really gone too far. Ah Ce, how dare Rong Shi be so disrespectful to her elders? I, Gu Jia, can't afford to have such a daughter-in-law. Divorce her!" Su Shi was forced into a corner and spoke without thinking.