Married to a Villainous Minister - Chapter 114

Seeing that Yu Ruhai was still in the dark, completely unaware of how highly the He family now valued and appreciated Meng Yujiao, Jiang Qinghe thought to himself, ‘Perfect.’ He straightened his expression and said bluntly.

“Wasn’t it your greed for medical fees that caused trouble for Old Master He? Let’s not beat around the bush, you and I both know Meng Yujiao’s medical skills are exceptional. I want her to come work at Huichun Hall. If you’re willing to sell her deed of indenture to me today, I guarantee the He family won’t trouble you anymore.”

From the east side room, Old Madam Yu stepped out, clearly intrigued by the offer. She asked, “May I ask how much silver Doctor Jiang is willing to pay to redeem Meng Yujiao’s indenture?”

“Name your price, and I’ll consider it,” Jiang Qinghe replied.

Old Madam Yu hardened her heart and offered, “How about fifty taels of silver?”

Jiang Qinghe had expected the two old foxes of the Yu family to open their mouths wide with greed. But to his surprise, they only asked for a mere fifty taels. Blind fools, he thought. They truly had no idea how precious someone like Meng Yujiao, with her exquisite medical skills, was.

He kept his expression neutral but frowned slightly and said, “Fifty taels? I checked, you only spent four taels to bring her into the Yu family as a bride to ward off bad luck. And now you want more than ten times that? Don’t you think that’s a bit ridiculous?”

Old Madam Yu quickly explained, “But Doctor Jiang, as you just said, Meng Yujiao’s medical skills are excellent. If she hadn’t offended Old Master He, our Yu family could’ve easily earned fifty taels or more from her diagnoses alone. Since you want her at Huichun Hall, surely you wouldn’t balk at that price?”

Jiang Qinghe paused for a moment, appearing to hesitate in the eyes of Yu Ruhai and Old Madam Yu.

“Very well,” he finally said. “Go and bring me her deed. Best not to delay and let things change.”

Yu Ruhai stood up, still a bit uncertain. Old Madam Yu followed him into the east room, quietly urging, “This is a great opportunity, dear. Not only can we sever ties with Meng Yujiao, but we’ll also make some money. And the He family business will be resolved too. You’ll finally be able to rest easy.”

Yu Ruhai thought it over. Ever since Meng Yujiao entered the household, there had been no shortage of turmoil. Selling her indenture and sending her off now seemed like the most appropriate move.

He rummaged under a cushion at the bottom of a cabinet, pulled out a small paper package, and took the deed hidden inside. Then he walked back out.

“Here is Meng Yujiao’s deed. Doctor Jiang, did you bring the silver with you?” Yu Ruhai asked, rubbing the paper with his thumb, his old eyes gleaming with excitement.

Jiang Qinghe waved to the apprentice beside him. When they left Huichun Hall earlier, he had already withdrawn a hundred taels in preparation.

The apprentice pulled a fifty-tael silver note from his sleeve and handed it to Jiang Qinghe. Jiang placed the note on the table and pushed it toward Yu Ruhai.

Yu Ruhai eagerly snatched up the note and, smiling broadly, handed the deed to Jiang Qinghe.

Just then, Yu Jinyan hurried in from outside. Catching sight of the paper in Yu Ruhai’s hand, he swiftly blocked them.

“Grandfather, what’s going on here?” Yu Jinyan asked, recognizing the deed as Meng Yujiao’s.

Yu Ruhai replied in a self-righteous tone, “This Doctor Jiang values Meng Yujiao’s skills and wishes to buy her indenture to have her practice at Huichun Hall. Your grandmother and I thought that sounded like a good arrangement, so we agreed to sell her deed to him.”

Yu Jinyan turned to Old Madam Yu, who nodded approvingly with a smile.

Then he looked to Jiang Qinghe, who sat with calm confidence. Yu Jinyan frowned slightly and said in a low voice to Yu Ruhai, “Grandfather, please come with me.”

Yu Ruhai, noticing his serious tone, smiled politely at Jiang Qinghe, then stood with the deed in hand and followed Yu Jinyan into the inner room.

“How much is Doctor Jiang offering for Meng Yujiao’s indenture?” Yu Jinyan asked quietly as soon as they entered.

Seeing no reason to hide the truth from his most promising grandson, Yu Ruhai replied, “Fifty taels.”

Yu Jinyan disagreed immediately. “You can’t sell it, Grandfather. Meng Yujiao is, after all, Fifth Brother’s wife. If you sell her deed, how will you explain it to Second Uncle and Second Aunt?”

Yu Ruhai scoffed, “Why would I need to explain anything to them? I paid for her with my own money. How I deal with her is none of their business. Besides, Doctor Jiang promised that as long as we sell him her deed, he’ll take care of the He family matter and make sure Old Master He doesn’t come knocking on our door again.”

What Yu Ruhai truly cared about was the He family situation.

Yu Jinyan’s eyes darkened with thought. Recalling the strange reaction from the He family’s gatekeeper earlier, he felt something was off and advised:

“Grandfather, we must think carefully. Why would Doctor Jiang be so generous, not only offering fifty taels for her indenture but also handling the He family for us? If he can make such a deal, it means Meng Yujiao’s value is far greater than that. I suspect she’s already cured Old Master He. Otherwise, why would Jiang dare let her sit for consultations at Huichun Hall?”

Yu Ruhai had been very tempted by the fifty taels, but Yu Jinyan’s words sobered him up. Still, he wavered. “That’s just your guess. If Meng Yujiao really cured Old Master He, then why are the He family people still lingering outside?”

Yu Jinyan didn’t have an answer for that either.

Outside, Jiang Qinghe had been waiting for quite some time without any sign of Yu Ruhai. Growing impatient, he put down his tea cup and said to Old Madam Yu, “Is this how your family treats guests? I have patients waiting at Huichun Hall. You’ve already taken the silver, please hurry and give me Meng Yujiao’s deed.”

Old Madam Yu forced a smile. “My grandson is young and likely has something urgent to discuss with the old man. I’ll go check.”

She entered the inner room and, seeing both men silent and grim-faced, thought something serious had happened. “What now? Why do both of you look like this?”

Yu Jinyan shook his head. “It’s nothing.”

Old Madam Yu turned to Yu Ruhai. “Dear, Doctor Jiang is urging us.”

“Grandfather, why don’t Jinshu and I go back to the He family to investigate further?” Hearing that Jiang Qinghe was rushing them made Yu Jinyan even more suspicious, and he spoke up.

Yu Ruhai, still uncertain, thought it over again. If Meng Yujiao had truly cured Old Master He, the matter needed to be reconsidered. He finally said, “Very well. You and Jinshu go find out more from the He family.”

Old Madam Yu didn’t understand what they were discussing and urged, “Why go to the He family? Dear, just write up the deed and give it to Doctor Jiang already. If we delay, something might go wrong.”

Yu Ruhai shook his head. “No rush.” Then he turned and walked back out to the front room.

Yu Jinyan also stepped out of the hall and called for Yu Jinshu to go investigate the He family situation.

Seeing Yu Ruhai return, Jiang Qinghe stood and said, “There are still patients waiting at Huichun Hall. I can’t afford to delay too long. Please hand over Meng Yujiao’s deed.”