his nose, saying in an irritated tone: "This is a child's matter, why are you taking it out on me There's nothing to get upset about. Just wait and talk to the child properly, isn't that enough Why d...Upon hearing this, Sun shi's brows furrowed slightly. She thought inwardly: "What kind of scheme is this little vixen trying to pull now"

She looked up at Meng Jin Yao, seeing her with a knowing smile that sent a shiver down her spine. She reached out and took the document Meng Jin Yao offered.

Upon unfolding the sheet, it was a long scroll, stacked like an official document. The script was elegant and flowing in small characters, pleasing to the eye. However, there were just too many words, filling the entire length of the scroll.

She had limited patience and wasn't interested in reading the content on the surface.

Seeing this, Sun shi merely glanced at it before diverting his gaze, a smile playing on his lips as he softly asked, "A Yao, what is this"

Meng Jin Yao today has surprisingly good patience, smiling brightly and saying: "Mother, just take a look. Look at the things recorded on top, are they familiar to you"

Sun Shi nodded with a smile, her tone tinged with indulgence: "Very well, Mother will take a look first."

Meng Dongyuan frowned and glanced at his eldest daughter disapprovingly. He had never liked this eldest daughter since she was born. Born under an unlucky star, she caused the death of her mother at birth. Her temper was unknown to whom she inherited, naturally rebellious, and when she spoke to her mother, there were often barbs in her words. If it weren't for Mrs. Sun's magnanimity and unwillingness to hold a grudge against her, how could she have such a good life

Sun looked at the contents on the note, her face changed drastically. The smile on her face vanished instantly, and her eyes were fixed on the words above, her heart pounding in her chest.

Back then, Zhou's dowry list was in her hands when she married into the family. Zhou sent away all her remaining people, only leaving behind Ningdong and Qingqiu, who were given to Meng Jinyao by her maternal grandfather's family. They were said to be bought as playmates for Meng Jinyao, with their contracts in Meng Jinyao's possession, which she couldn't touch.

How could Meng Jingyao have a dowry list that describes everything so thoroughly now

Everyone around her was trustworthy, it was impossible for anyone to have taken the dowry list and copied it for Meng Jinyao. How could Meng Jinyao have such a thing To encroach on the dowry of a deceased woman's daughter, if this got out, how could she ever show her face in public again

Meng Jinyao saw her face change, but her smile didn't diminish. She asked, "Mother, is the food on the table familiar to you"

Sun Shi steadied her heart and feigned nonchalance, drawing a smile as she replied, "The top records many good things, but Mother has no recollection of them. Where did Ayo get this list from"

Don't you remember

Meng Jiny Yao stared at Mrs. Sun for two breaths, instantly withdrawing the smile from her face. Her indifferent tone carried a palpable anger: "This is my biological mother's dowry list. After my mother passed away, you married into the Meng family, and this list fell into your hands. You once said that I was still young and that you would keep these things safe for me until I got married, then return them to me intact to add to my dowry."

However, when I looked at the dowry you prepared for me, I found almost none of the things my mother left me. It was almost all replaced with cheap and useless items as if they were good ones. Is this what you said you wouldn't do—disrespect the dowry my mother left behind

As soon as those words left her lips, Meng Jinyu, Meng Chengzhang, and Meng Chengxing, the three uninformed parties, were stunned. They all turned to look at Sun Shi.

Meng Dongyuan's eyes flashed with surprise, he didn't expect his eldest daughter to actually know what their biological mother had left behind. He wondered who could have secretly told her.

Ten years ago, my second younger brother fell into gambling. My mother felt sorry for her youngest son and indulged him privately, losing a lot of family property in the process. Later, my second younger brother drowned himself in a drunken stupor, luckily he didn't have any children, so there was no need to divide up a share of the family fortune, and my second younger sister remarried after his death.

Because the second brother lost a portion of the family fortune, and over the years, the Yongchang Marquis's mansion had fallen into decline, the current Yongchang Marquis's mansion is not like the one from more than a decade ago. It can only barely maintain its surface appearance.

Thankfully, the Zhou family left a dowry that allowed Yongchangbo Mansion to have more leeway financially. They distributed two-thirds of this dowry to the future wife of the heir and one-third to Ah Yu as her dowry. This way, both children's weddings could be more substantial. As for Chengzhang, being a son of concubine, his status is not as high as that of legitimate sons and daughters; he can just make do with whatever arrangements are possible.

He didn't think there was anything wrong with doing this. A Yao's illegitimate birth had killed Zhou shi, and he believed Zhou shi wouldn't want her dowry to fall into the hands of this unlucky star. This unlucky star had plenty of wealth and glory in Changxing Houfu. Zhou shi's dowry could be seen as helping her siblings, all of whom were close kin. There was no need to be so petty about it.

Just as Sun was speechless under the questioning, Meng Dong spoke up to alleviate his wife's embarrassment: "Ayao, how could your mother possibly hide away your birth mother's dowry Your birth mother died in childbirth. After your mother married into our family, she took you in and raised you. These years, your rebelliousness and disobedience are because your mother pleaded for you before your grandmother. Don't listen to rumors and misunderstand your mother, hurting her heart."

Sun's tense mood eased, and she agreed, "That's right, Ayao. Your birth mother's dowry has been added to your dowry list. Did someone tell you something Just giving you some random things to fool you, making you misunderstand your mother"

"Misunderstanding"

Meng Jin Yu seemed to have heard an incredible joke, chuckled softly, and looked at the couple with a mocking gaze. She smiled sweetly and asked: "Father, mother, how can you say such words without feeling guilty"

That sarcastic smile, those mocking eyes, seemed as if they had seen through everything, making Meng Dongyuan furious. He angrily shouted, "Be presumptuous!"

Then she put on a stern face and glared at her eldest daughter, scolding in a grave voice: "Ayao, how do you speak to your parents Do you think that after marrying into the Hou family, you have climbed high branches and become arrogant, wanting to show off your power to your parents when you return home"

Meng Jin Yao's smile deepened, her tone calm yet laced with sarcasm and irony. "Father must know how much dowry my biological mother had, but he didn't even glance at it before dismissing my understanding of the situation. Is this not unfair Or is it that Father knew the truth all along and was one of the instigators, so he wants to use his authority to suppress me and conceal the truth"

This sounds like you're stepping on Meng Dongyuan's tail, and your anger is even worse: "What are you talking about As a father, I want to know who is spreading rumors in front of you. As for the dowry list you mentioned, I'll take a look for you so that you can give up."

He stopped speaking, reached out and took the long list from Mrs. Sun’s hand, and glanced at it.

This wasn't bad at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it was a shock. The contents of this list were identical to the dowry list of Zhou Shi, the original wife. Zhou Shi's dowry list was in Sun Shi's possession, and the eldest daughter had never seen it. How could the eldest daughter have this

Wait a minute!

The writing on this list is new, and the paper isn't old either. It wasn't an item from seventeen years ago, which means this dowry list isn't the original.

If it wasn't the original, and without the original there's no way to prove it, who knows if what's written on this document is actually true

Thinking of this, Meng Dongyuan's anxious heart finally settled down. He looked at his eldest daughter and shook his head helplessly: "Ayayo, this is clearly newly written, even the paper is brand new. How could this be your mother's dowry list Who gave you this, leading you to misunderstand your mother"ming's behavior. They are not interested in Gu Xiuming himself, but rather his title and status. After all, eligible women from respectable families wouldn't consider marrying him because of his ruin...