As for “some hidden silver in the bottom of the box,” Qiao Xuan had worked hard to find a pitiful ten liang of silver.
Of course, as the saying goes, a skinny camel is bigger than a horse. Compared to a peasant girl, the daughter of the county magistrate is much better off.
These things may be seen as bullying and humiliation in the eyes of a real county magistrate’s daughter, but for Qiao Xuan, she considered it a small gain.
Just talking about the ten liang of silver, it was still a substantial sum for a farming family!
The insult from Madam Qiao might have been a fatal blow to the original owner’s self-esteem, but it meant nothing to her.
Compared to being poor and destitute, her starting point was not bad. If she wanted silver, she could earn it herself.
In the future, she would give them a good face slap and that would be satisfying!
After tidying up, Qiao Xuan generously took all the fabrics and distributed them to her mother-in-law and her sister-in-law, Xuzi. She specifically offered them to the family to make clothes.
These fabrics meant nothing to her, but they were valuable in a farming family.
Fang and Xu were both surprised and somewhat disbelieving.
Fang was still hesitant and somewhat hesitant, afraid that others would say that she was greedy for her daughter-in-law’s dowry.
You should know that when her daughter-in-law’s dowry was carried into the house yesterday, she had heard many sarcastic comments, especially from her second and third sister-in-law. Those words were so sour that they could squeeze out a tub of vinegar.
Qiao Xuan observed their expressions and smiled brightly, saying, “This is just a little something from your daughter-in-law’s heart. If you treat your daughter-in-law as an outsider, how can your daughter-in-law feel at ease? We are all one family, so we should be affectionate and warm, shouldn’t we?”
Fang laughed heartily and accepted it, unable to help but say, “This dowry is the most important thing for a woman. You, take good care of your own things and don’t waste them. We still have a long way to go in the future!”
Qiao Xuan felt warm in her heart, truly moved, and nodded with a smile, “Mother, I will remember your teaching!”
She took out two pairs of brightly colored silk flowers and gave them to her younger sister-in-law, Shao Taotao, and her three-year-old niece, Shao Qing.
In her eyes, the workmanship of these silk flowers was somewhat rough, but they still cost twenty-five wen per pair. Who in the countryside would easily spend money to buy them?
Madam Xu was very happy and thanked her for Shao Qing; Shao Taotao also liked it very much, blushing and shyly thanking her. She happily put them in her hair and received praise and compliments from several women.
Because Qiao Xuan had some ulterior motives behind giving the fabrics and silk flowers, she felt somewhat guilty. Now, she was extra enthusiastic in praising and complimenting them, and the women laughed happily, all in good spirits.
She gave gifts with a bit of a test in mind to see what kind of character her mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and younger sister-in-law had. If they were greedy, then she would have a clear understanding.
But it turned out that they were not like that at all.
Even if Madam Xu had some greedy thoughts, it was just human nature.
Qiao Xuan finally felt relieved.
She didn’t know that Madam Xu was also feeling somewhat guilty at the moment.
Since her fifth sister-in-law arrived, she had been inferior in every aspect. She was feeling resentful and frustrated. When she saw her trying to please her mother-in-law, Madam Xu couldn’t help but curse in her heart, “Shameless!”
Who would have thought that her fifth sister-in-law would be so generous as to give her so much fabric, with two pieces being thick enough to make winter clothes once filled with cotton? She also gave such beautiful silk flowers to Shao Qing.
Madam Xu felt that she was truly unworthy!
