Chapter 84 Matters of the Marquis of Zhongyong's Residence. Inside the main kitchen of the Marquis of Zhongyong's residence. "Ying..."

Inside the main kitchen of the Marquis of Zhongyong's residence.

"Sister Yinghong, this is a reward money that Second Mistress sent me to deliver to you." The person who came was Xiangyun, a third-class maidservant of Second Mistress. Because Yinghong often made snacks for her, she gave Yinghong a lot of face. As soon as she stepped into the main kitchen, she shouted loudly.

Only when everyone around was looking this way did she walk up to Yinghong and hand her a string of copper coins.

Yinghong's face lit up with joy: "Thank you for the reward, Second Madam."

After the Third Madam left, the First Madam and the Old Madam jointly managed the affairs of the mansion for more than three months, and then she handed over all the power of management to the Second Madam.

In this Marquis's mansion, to receive a reward from the Second Mistress is a matter of great prestige.

Yinghong untied the rope tied to the copper coins, grabbed a handful and stuffed them into Xiangyun's hands. She then wrapped two freshly baked pastries in a handkerchief and handed them over, saying, "Thank you for making this trip to deliver the message, sister."

Upon seeing this, Xiangyun's dimples became even more pronounced.

After she left, Cao Daya, who was standing nearby, came over and said with envy, "Yinghong, you are so amazing. You actually got a reward from the Second Mistress."

Yinghong looked around and, seeing that no one was paying attention, picked out a plate of the rewarded sweet cakes and handed it to Cao Daya, saying, "You should try some too."

"Wow, I can eat this?"

“What’s wrong with eating it? It’s already cold. If you want to eat it, we’ll have to make it again.” Yinghong said nonchalantly, shoving the plate directly into Cao Daya’s hands.

Cao Daya picked up a piece and put it in her mouth. The crust of the pastry had softened slightly because it had been sitting for a while, but it did not affect the deliciousness of the sugar cake at all.

The inside is soft and chewy, but not sticky or greasy at all. The most wonderful thing is the rich sugar syrup filling that flows out, with a hint of osmanthus sugar fragrance. It is truly sweet but not cloying, so delicious that it makes people gasp.

Cao Daya ate one piece, then couldn't resist eating another. She licked her lips, seemingly wanting more, before belatedly realizing the taste was somewhat familiar. She first praised Yinghong's exquisite cooking, then lowered her voice and asked, "This... is this the recipe Han-jie gave you?"

Yinghong nodded and picked up a piece, putting it in her mouth. More than four months had passed since Jiang Zhenniang and Su Zhihan left the Marquis's residence. This time was neither long nor short. Although people rarely mentioned the two of them again, they often thought of them.

"In my opinion, Chef Xu should have chosen you, or at least Qiuyue or Sulan. Why would she choose that Hongjie?" Cao Daya took a big bite of the sweet cake, glanced at Hu Xiaohong in the distance, and looked at her with dissatisfaction.

After Su Zhihan left, Cao Daya and Yinghong supported each other and became closer than before, so Cao Daya couldn't help but feel indignant on Yinghong's behalf.

Yinghong felt a mix of emotions upon hearing this.

In the past, there was a skillful and clever girl named Han in the kitchen. In addition, her own skills were indeed not good, and she was often said to be stupid, so she did not care about these things.

But as Su Zhihan left, Yinghong, with her repeated practice of her skills, often received praise and occasionally even rewards from her master. As she gained confidence, her heart gradually warmed up.

Especially after Xu's niece came to the capital, rumors spread that she was looking for a female apprentice. Yinghong pleaded with her sister and parents to put in a good word for her.

Unexpectedly, the cook, without making a sound, bought an orphan from outside and brought her back to learn cooking skills along with her niece.

Later, Yinghong learned of Xu's intentions: Xu wanted to find her a goddaughter so that she could take care of her in her old age.

Although she understood in her heart, Yinghong felt quite unhappy at the thought of having to be mindful of Hongjie's mood when working in the kitchen, especially since Hongjie always ignored her.

Thinking this, she still gently nudged Cao Daya with her elbow and said, "I know you're standing up for me, but if others hear this, it won't look good for anyone in this place where we see each other all the time."

"Nao, you can take the whole plate and eat it."

"Yes, yes, yes—Yinghong, you're becoming more and more like Han-jie." Cao Daya pouted, muttered a couple of words, and then took the plate to the side.

She had already eaten two pieces, and after eating two more, she felt a bit tired of them, so she gave the remaining pieces to Cao's mother.

She had already eaten two pieces, and after eating two more, she felt a bit greasy, so she gave the remaining pieces to Cao's mother.

First, Cao Mama complained that Daya was too picky about food, and then scolded her for only knowing how to hoard food and not thinking about her family. Finally, she handed over the task of preparing dinner to Daya, and then carried the sweet cakes home, intending to take them back for her husband and son.

Cao Daya, who was left behind: "..."

Seeing her pitiful state, Yinghong quickly comforted her, "I'll help you with it later."

As Cao Mama left the main kitchen and entered the servants' courtyard, she happened to see a group of female servants gathered under the shade of a tree, chattering away.

Her eyes lit up, and she immediately forgot about going home. She rushed forward to join in the fun, forgetting about going home, and eagerly listened to what novel gossip everyone was talking about.

"This Marquis's mansion is acting strangely these days. They've even let people like that into the mansion. It's really..."

“Who says otherwise?” another maid chimed in. “I was quite startled when I saw it.”

"Could it be that you have some connections in the manor?"

"Who are you talking about?" Cao's mother asked, sounding suspicious.

"Sister Cao, the room where Madam Jiang and the others used to live has been moved into again." The maid was startled at first, but when she turned around and saw that it was Cao Mama, she immediately smiled warmly and told her what everyone was talking about: "Guess what kind of family they are?"

"You've bought more people in our household?" Cao Mama looked surprised, then lowered her voice and said, "Didn't Second Madam say before that there are too many idle people in our household who don't do any work, and that we should teach the young ladies and gentlemen in the servants' quarters to start working as soon as possible?"

After the Third Mistress left the Marquis's mansion, the First Mistress and the Second Mistress took care of all the affairs of the mansion. The people in the Marquis's mansion also gradually realized that life was becoming more difficult than before.

Especially in the last few months, not only have the rewards become increasingly scarce and the workload increased, but the masters have also become increasingly difficult to serve.

Then, the servants in the mansion realized that the good days of the past were all thanks to the Third Mistress and her family for their generous dowry and money, which they often used to help the Marquis's mansion.

Now, the eldest daughter-in-law has money in her hands but is unwilling to spend it, only thinking about supporting her own children; the second daughter-in-law likes to put on a show, but in reality she is short of money and still tries to get some benefits from the mansion.

The two maintained a respectable appearance in public, but were extremely stingy and harsh in private, making life increasingly difficult for the servants of the Marquis's mansion.

“That’s right, the most important thing is—” the maid deliberately dragged out her words, and then said heavily, “The two old fellows who came are the old man, and the old man often walks with a cane.”

"Look at you, they even accept people like this."

"How did our once dignified Marquis of Loyalty and Valor fall to such a state?"

Cao's mother listened with great interest, and even after finishing the conversation, she still felt it wasn't enough, so she went to chat with others elsewhere. Finally, she overheard a clue: "I heard from Granny Zhao that this morning, it was Cook Xu's carriage that brought them over. Could they be Cook Xu's poor relatives?"

"Cook Xu's niece? I've never heard her mention this before..."

Is this really true?

"Of course it's true."

"So what exactly is its origin?"

"Oh dear, have you all forgotten?" Upon hearing this, Cao's mother immediately guessed: "Have you forgotten that there's still someone in our main kitchen!"

"There's one more person... Oh, right!"

“That’s right, it’s that Hong Jie’er.” Madam Cao nodded, and seeing that the group was still gossiping about the two old people, she added, “When Madam Jiang and the others came last time, you said the same thing. Maybe they have other skills. Let’s wait and see.”

When Cao Mama recalled the awkwardness of Jiang Zhenniang and Su Zhihan when they first entered the mansion, she couldn't help but sigh and kindly reminded them, "Besides, I heard that Hong Jie'er is an apprentice appointed by Chef Xu. If she really learns the skills, she will have to be mindful of her for the next few decades."

Everyone felt embarrassed after hearing what Cao's mother said.

Cao's mother never expected that what she said would be overheard by Granny Chen, who was hiding in the corner.

Granny Chen returned home happily and told Old Man Hu, who had a worried look on his face, about the matter. She added at the end, "...Look, the people in the mansion are saying the same thing. Our Miss Hong will definitely have a bright future."

"Once she becomes the manager, our family will be rich."

"Don't worry about the good things that are coming up later. Have you thought about what kind of work we should do?"

Upon hearing this, Granny Chen fell silent again. She noticed that Han'er often came out and about, and her clothes had changed from tattered coarse cloth to silk. She felt that the Marquis's mansion was a treasure trove where one could find gold everywhere.

Later, when they saw that the Marquis's mansion was willing to buy the two old people, they believed it even more.

But after they moved in, the manager disliked that they refused to bribe him and were too old and weak to do much work, so he sent Granny Chen to clean the toilets and made Old Man Hu work as a night soil collector.

Outside, the latrine trade was a very lucrative business. There was even a latrine-collecting champion in the capital who became incredibly wealthy by collecting and selling latrines.

But in this Marquis's mansion, it was truly a job that no one wanted to do, as everyone found it filthy and disgusting.

Besides, Old Man Hu had inquired and learned that the night soil collectors in this manor were different from those outside. Even if they collected the excrement and handed it over to the night soil collector, they wouldn't get a single penny of benefit.

The same was true for Granny Chen. Moreover, ever since her family became wealthy, she found laundry and other chores tedious and tiring, so she secretly hired a maid to help with her laundry and cleaning.

She hadn't done anything like cleaning toilets for at least several months.

“We are Hongjie’er’s grandparents.”

If word gets out that the housekeeper's grandparents are washing the toilet, it will probably make Sister Hong lose face.

The two discussed this and tried their best to find a different job. But they didn't have much money, so how could they persuade the shrewd people in the courtyard?

Finally, the two managed to borrow a few strings of cash by using Sister Hong's name, but the money was like a pebble thrown into a pond, making no sound at all.

Now they were truly penniless.

Just when the couple had no choice but to grit their teeth and do the work of cleaning toilets and carrying manure, Manager Zheng, who came to invite Su Zhihan to host a banquet, was politely refused by Jiang Zhenniang, who said that her daughter was too tired and needed to rest for a few days.