An Adopted Daughter Worth a Fortune

[Drafting; the story will begin after 100,000 words are written.] A major event shook the Lou family of Xingqing Marquis’s residence. The elderly lady, believing she had little time left, wanted to give Miss Dou, whom she had raised, a personal fortune worth ten thousand taels. The Lou family was thrown into an uproar. Miss Dou was the grandniece of the late marquis’s concubine. After her family fell on hard times, she came to seek refuge with them. But the old concubine had already passed away, and the elderly lady took pity on the young, frail girl and kept her by her side. Miss Dou was gentle and easygoing, virtuous, filial, and kind. For years, she had stayed by the elderly lady’s side, caring for her dutifully and tending to her meals and medicine with meticulous attention. She had spared the Lou family’s masters and mistresses plenty of trouble, so everyone in the family liked her well enough. But if the elderly lady was going to hand her ten thousand taels, that was another matter entirely. The second branch’s master and mistress reasoned that the money should stay in the family. Their son, a carefree layabout with no ambition, could marry this good wife and have someone to rely on for the rest of his life. The third branch’s mistress hurried to contact her nephew from her maiden family, telling him to come to the capital at once and snatch up the golden treasure… Before long, handsome young men from prominent families and charming young gentlemen were arriving one after another. The elderly lady said, “This marriage must be left to Yunzhu’s wishes.” The marquis’s eldest son, young and successful, steady and reserved; the second branch’s eldest son, charming and dashing, bright as the morning sun; a spoiled young master from a wealthy merchant family… The young cousin galloping back in a hurry: “Sister, wait for me!” Dou Yunzhang herself said, “Let me sleep with ten thousand taels in my arms for a couple of nights first.” Theme: The most beautiful thing is to regain what you once lost.