Chapter 219: Chapter 218: Ways to Offend a Sinner

Ye Shuzhen acted so rashly, dodging aside in fright, that her behavior nearly made everyone burst into laughter.

Mrs. Li signaled the workers with her eyes, directing them to carry the items into a room.

Of course, she wouldn’t move everything to her daughter’s room; the items took up quite a bit of space. She had already planned out a practice room for her daughters’ studies, which would be the room next to where her daughter studied, for practicing musical instruments.

“Hey, where are you taking those things? Move that one into my room,” she said.

Ye Shuzhen wasn’t going to abandon the item she had her eye on; it was meant to be hers, naturally.

Mrs. Lai, too, didn’t care about propriety and picked up a slightly smaller wooden box to take to her own room.

After all, Ye Shuzhen was the younger one; people thought she might want to learn musical instruments.

But Mrs. Lai was quite old and had never had a foundation in music. What was she planning to do by moving things to her room?

Everyone was left speechless by their actions, and Young Housekeeper Tang shook his head without a word.

He felt that the people from the Tang family were a bit more civilized; they had been a little rough when fighting over the instruments, but they had stopped when Madam intervened.

But this mother and daughter were embarrassing the Ye family with their behavior. Mrs. Li seemed afraid to speak out, and the five sisters just watched intently without intervening.

It seemed that every family had its share of shameless people. He was thankful that this time, he hadn’t brought back just one of each item; otherwise, it would have been a wasted trip, primarily because he wouldn’t have been able to complete his task.

Hongji’s father sat to the side smoking his bamboo pipe, saying nothing about his wife and daughter’s actions. It was uncertain if his silence amounted to consent.

Mrs. Li felt that her father-in-law probably agreed with their actions.

After all, her daughters already had plenty of things; missing a few small items wasn’t a big deal, especially since the Tang family had given them so generously and appropriately.

Sometimes Mrs. Li thought that many outsiders treated her and her children better than her father-in-law, mother-in-law, or aunts did.

In the past, she harbored much resentment, which she swallowed down, hoping things would get better over time, that even the coldest hearts could be warmed.

Since she and her husband started their own business, things had improved significantly. They were no longer hopeless, and they could now make decisions about some matters.

As a daughter-in-law in a family, she strived for harmonious relations, and minor grievances were not something she would dwell on.

After arranging for the remaining musical instruments to be moved to one room, Young Master Tang followed Mrs. Li to the living room, where the five young girls also sat quietly on the side. Having just taken his seat, a maid served him honey tea. After drinking a cup of honey tea and setting down his cup, he addressed Mrs. Li, holding a child, and her children:

“The matter of hiring a teacher has been arranged. Our Tang family will also be hiring two musical teachers, one male and one female. It so happens that we can have these two teachers work for you part-time, one day every three days. You should also coordinate with your family’s teacher to schedule their lessons when the musical teachers come here to teach.”

Mrs. Li smiled and nodded, saying, “I’m very grateful. We will pay for the teacher’s part-time work, so please reassure both teachers.”

“Good, those two teachers are relatives of our Madam. With their skills, teaching your daughter who has absolutely no foundation will be more than sufficient.”

The Young Master Tang, the housekeeper, also mentioned that he didn’t divulge too much information about the two teachers, explaining they were relatives of the Master, as he hoped this would incite their respect.

“Mm, thank you. When the time comes, my husband and I will bring gifts for paying respect to a teacher when we visit.”

Mrs. Li believed such etiquette was necessary; it would seem insincere to wait for the teacher’s arrival before presenting gifts.

“There’s no rush for that. The two teachers have just arrived and will need a couple of days to rest. Then, after the Tang Mansion has settled their students, they will pay a visit here.”

Mrs. Li nodded and said, “That’s also fine. Young Master Housekeeper, could you please notify us a day in advance before the teacher visits our home, so my husband and I can go and pay our respects beforehand?”

“Mrs. Li, these two teachers are very easy-going; there’s no need for such trouble. If you plan to visit them, you must bring along your five daughters. We won’t notify you a day in advance; the teachers will arrive the next day. If you want to offer them gifts for paying respect to a teacher, then prepare them in advance.”

While Mrs. Li and the Young Master Tang, the housekeeper, were talking, Mrs. Lai and Ye Shuzhen also came to the living room and overheard the matter of presenting gifts to the teachers.

Ye Shuzhen pursed her lips, feeling that Mrs. Li was trying to be too ostentatious. What’s the point in providing gifts for paying respect to a teacher? Wouldn’t it be better to make more dowry items for her? Somewhat annoyed, she sat down on a bench to one side, waiting for her mother to speak.

Mrs. Lai glared at Mrs. Li, thinking that this family-wrecker must have egged on her son; otherwise, how could her obedient son be so reckless with money?

However, she had just snatched an item and, upon opening it, didn’t recognize what it was. She had heard it was an instrument; even if she didn’t know how to use it, keeping it to give as a gift later wasn’t a bad idea–noble and generous, and it would show off her wealth.

Mrs. Lai’s thoughtless actions didn’t stem from any deep love for her grandchildren, nor was she planning on giving the item to her grandchild at this moment.

She had a kind of mentality that desired to possess anything, edible or not.

When she heard Mrs. Li was preparing to give gifts, it was a shock that unsettled her, and she couldn’t help but twist her plump body in irritation as she pointed her fingers at Mrs. Li and her daughters.

“Gifts for paying respect to a teacher? What can these money-losing goods learn to become teachers? It’s just learning to play an instrument!”

Seeing the Mother-in-law speak like this in front of Young Master Tang, the housekeeper, Mrs. Li felt quite embarrassed, as the housekeeper had just mentioned that the teachers of instruments were relatives of Mrs. Tang. Being honored with the presence of a teacher who normally served wealthy families was already a great privilege for their family.

How much could their family afford for a part-time fee? Would those two teachers even care about that small amount of money?

It was out of respect for the Tang Family that they even made an effort to teach their children.

“Mother-in-law, it is necessary to give gifts for paying respect to a teacher. Our family isn’t what it was before, and our children can’t be raised as they were. Many people are saying that you’ve grown wealthy, but if your granddaughters and grandsons don’t know anything, won’t that be embarrassing for you?”

“We don’t need to give gifts! It’s already good enough to pay them. Normally you give the teacher so much fruit and vegetables, which already goes beyond his teaching salary. Why bother giving extra gifts on top of his payment?” Mrs. Lai retorted fiercely.

Mrs. Li shook her head and replied, “Giving gifts for paying respect to a teacher is simply a matter of showing respect to the teacher. Besides, other families really don’t care about the value of the gift–it’s our family’s sincerity that matters.”

“Mrs. Li, you dare to talk back? You’re becoming bolder by the day.”

Mrs. Lai continued to grumble unrelentingly, leaving Mrs. Li and her children even more speechless, unsure of what to do. Mrs. Lai’s confrontational personality, with a grudge that spared no one, really made people wonder if she thought she would never have to ask anyone for anything in her life.

“What’s all this noise and commotion?” Hongji’s father had entered the living room and cast a stern glance at Mrs. Lai.