Chapter 130 -

Chapter 130: Chapter

Third Uncle Bai Chenghao stepped forward, clearing his throat as he looked around the dusty, weed-filled yard.

"Is there anything else we need to know about this place?" Third Uncle asked Mr. Shen. "Any orders or messages left by Mother before we arrived?"

Mr. Shen nodded, his fat cheeks shaking slightly as he gestured toward the deep corridors of the estate.

"Yes, Master Bai," Mr. Shen said in his friendly, slow voice. "Old Madame Bai left very clear instructions for your arrival."

He pointed toward three separate covered walkways leading deeper into the property.

"First of all, this estate has three main courtyards," Mr. Shen explained clearly. "Old Madame Bai instructed that each branch take one courtyard for themselves. The East Courtyard goes to the Main Branch, the West Courtyard goes to the Second Branch, and the South Courtyard goes to the Third Branch. However, there is only one central kitchen in the back, so all three branches will have to share it."

"Share a single kitchen?!" Madame Chen shrieked, still slapping mosquitoes off her arms. "How are three households supposed to cook in one room?!"

Mr. Shen ignored her outburst and kept smiling. "The structure of the house is sturdy, but it needs a lot of weeding and clearing. Once you sweep the dust, it will be good to live in. Old Madame Bai also paid for lanterns and firewood, which will be delivered by town merchants later this afternoon. Brooms, buckets, and cleaning rags are stored in the corner shed near the gate. I will show each branch to their assigned courtyard now."

Second Uncle Bai Chengbang groaned, wiping cold sweat from his forehead. "Fine! Just show us to our rooms so we can get out of this mosquito nest!"

Mr. Shen led the family down the long, creaking wooden hallways. He brought Second Uncle’s and Third Uncle’s branches to the West and South Courtyards first, leaving the entire Main Household standing at the entrance of the East Courtyard.

The moment Mr. Shen turned his back to leave, Madame Chen, An Yulan, and her daughters Bai Wenxiu and Bai Shishi bolted forward like greedy chickens. They scrambled down the wooden porch, rushing straight for the largest, sunniest rooms in the main building.

"We take the primary bedchamber!" Madame Chen shouted, shoving open the grand wooden doors to the master room. Dust poured out instantly, making her cough violently, but she still tried to throw her dusty bundles onto the central bed. "Wenliang, bring our bags in!"

An Yulan ran right beside her, pointing wildly at the spacious side chamber. "Wenjiang and I are taking this one! It has the biggest windows!"

Bai Wenxiu and Bai Shishi immediately rushed to claim the next best room, shoving each other’s arms as they argued over who got the softer bed frame.

While Madame Chen and her daughters acted like wild animals marking their territory, the rest of the family stood near the courtyard entrance, watching the ridiculous circus in total silence.

Madame Zhao stood quietly near her twins, her arms tucked into her sleeves as she stared at Madame Chen with a calm, indifferent expression.

Yimei stood beside Zhengyu’s wheelchair, her dark eyes flat and empty, completely unbothered by the loud screeching. Beside her, Zhengyu leaned his chin on his palm, a cold, mocking smirk touching his lips as he watched his father’s concubine act like a shameless thief.

Master Bai stood right in the middle of the yard, his pale face turning dark red with sheer humiliation. He looked at his concubine screaming and shoving through the dust, then looked at the cold, silent gazes of Yimei and Madame Zhao. He felt completely stripped of his dignity.

Before Madame Chen could throw her bags onto the bed, a sharp, loud voice sliced right through the courtyard.

"Come back here this instant!"

Madame Bai’s voice rang out like a crack of thunder, echoing off the wooden pillars.

Madame Chen froze mid-step, her hand hovering right over the dusty bed. She turned around with a deep frown, her face twisted in annoyance as she prepared to argue back and demand her right to the big room.

"What do you want, Sister-in-law—" Madame Chen started to whine, but the words died straight in her throat.

Standing right beside Madame Bai was Master Bai. His face was ghostly pale, his eyes glaring at Madame Chen and her children with pure, burning disgust and anger. He was already completely disgraced by Yimei at the inn, and seeing his concubine act so greedy in front of the entire household made his blood boil.

Madame Chen’s heart dropped into her stomach. Seeing Master Bai’s furious face, she knew that if she uttered one more greedy word, Master Bai would explode right in front of everyone.

An Yulan, Bai Wenxiu, and Bai Shishi instantly shut their mouths, pulling their hands back from the doorframes and slowly backing down the porch steps like beaten dogs.

Madame Bai stepped into the center of the courtyard, her face cold, firm, and completely in command.

"The primary room belongs to the head of this household and me," Madame Bai announced flatly, her voice leaving zero room for argument. "The side rooms belong to Zhengyu, Yimei, and my daughters. Madame Zhao, you and the twins will take the west rooms. Madame Chen, you, your son, and your daughters will take the remaining quarters at the back."

Madame Chen bit her lip so hard it almost bled, her face pale with bitter anger, but under Master Bai’s heavy, furious glare, she didn’t dare say a single word. She stomped her feet, grabbed her messy bundles, and dragged her whining daughters toward the dark, dusty rooms at the back.

Yimei didn’t waste a second. She gestured to Liu Feng, who smoothly pushed Zhengyu’s wheelchair toward the clean, quiet room at the edge of the courtyard.

Qinqin carried their bundles inside, while Yimei pushed open the wooden windows, letting the fresh afternoon breeze blow out the stale, dusty air.

"Qinqin," Yimei said, her voice smooth and focused. "Go get a bucket of clean water from the well. Let’s set up our room."