Chapter 12 Rules of the Rongyue Academy

Wang Xifeng was already managing the household before she had even finished her postpartum confinement. Now, with Wang Ying taking over, she's constantly worried about being exposed. This double blow to her mental and physical health means that Wang Xifeng's current physical condition is probably worse than it was at the same time in the original story.

In the original novel, Wang Xifeng is said to have blood deficiency and spleen dysfunction, which leads to her bleeding problems. She is also strong-willed and unwilling to delegate household management to others, nor does she want anyone to know about her illness. She also refuses to take her medicine on time.

Wang Xifeng's illness won't kill her in a short time, but it's very annoying.

For her to say to me in front of everyone today that she needs to take care of her health, this must be one of her biggest worries.

"This can't be rushed. When you have time in the future, Second Madam, come to Rongyue Courtyard more often to taste the cooking of our Southern chefs. As long as you eat there for a while, I guarantee your complexion will be rosy and your face will be radiant," Yuan Hongqu said half-jokingly.

If it were any other ailment, Yuan Hongqu wouldn't have much confidence in helping her treat it, but for Wang Xifeng's illness, using crops grown in her space to nurture her would be just as effective as taking medicine.

"Then I must try more often. I'll be satisfied if I can have even half of Yuan-jie's charm."

Wang Xifeng smiled, another worry was off her mind, and she felt that today was the most relaxing day she had ever had in the world of Dream of the Red Chamber.

The two chatted and laughed as they looked around the room, when suddenly they heard hurried footsteps outside the door.

"Second Madam, Second Madam is calling you. She says there's a letter from the Xue family and she wants you to come over right away."

Wang Xifeng's brows furrowed almost imperceptibly. This second wife, relying on being her aunt, really didn't treat her like an outsider, ordering her around without any mercy.

She really didn't want to go; wearing a mask all day long was exhausting.

She had finally managed to relax for a moment in front of her former sister, and she really didn't want to go back there.

"Second Madam, please go ahead and get busy. We still need to tidy up here for a while. You probably won't have time to study during the day. You can come over again in the evening when you have some free time." Yuan Hongqu saw through her thoughts at a glance and, fearing the Second Madam might not understand, said:

"I've heard of the Xue family too. They're a prominent family in Jinling. They have a daughter who's a few years older than our Miss Lin. I also heard they have a son who's recently gotten into a lawsuit. I wonder if he's encountered an honest official who can get to the bottom of things?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Xifeng's eyes lit up. She frowned and thought for a moment before smiling and saying, "It must be their family. Sister Yuan, I will definitely come to bother you tonight."

She vaguely remembered the story she had learned in high school, "A woman with a tragic fate meets a man with a tragic fate, and a monk with a gourd makes a chaotic judgment," and the little girl with a red mole between her eyebrows. This must be the case.

Having made up her mind, Wang Xifeng hurried off to Madam Wang's place.

Yuan Hongqu was also quite curious about how the lawsuit would unfold.

It's just that Jia Yucun didn't receive Lin Ruhai's recommendation, even though he followed them all the way to the capital.

However, after arriving in the capital, he went to pay his respects to Jia Zheng on his own.

Without Lin Ruhai's letter of recommendation, Jia Yucun's path to reinstatement was destined to start at a low level.

Therefore, he should not have encountered that gourd-shaped monk, let alone be qualified to judge this case.

That's all Yuan Hongqu could do. As for anything else, she hopes the person involved will have good fortune.

Rongyue Courtyard had been tidied up, and all the old women and maids from the former Hongqu Courtyard were gathered in the courtyard for a brief meeting.

Most of the servants here were brought from Yangzhou. After it was decided that Lin Daiyu would live in Rongyue Courtyard, Grandmother Jia added a few more people.

One is a parrot that will serve Daiyu; this was arranged for Daiyu yesterday.

Today, she's been renamed Zijuan. She's a clever maid, but Yuan Hongqu didn't intend for her to take care of Daiyu personally. This girl will later be able to make decisions directly for her mistress, and she's also a loyal guardian of the "preordained bond of wood and stone." Placing her by Daiyu's side wouldn't be quite appropriate.

Even if Lin Daiyu had reached the age where she could be married in ancient times, it wouldn't be her place as a maid to make decisions for Daiyu or test Baoyu's feelings.

Besides, what kind of good match is Jia Baoyu?

Apart from Zijuan, the rest were old women and maids who did not appear by name in the original work. They came to Rongyue Courtyard and did similar things as before.

They were working in their original places with no hope of advancement, and they had no complaints about being assigned here.

One was Granny Liang, who guarded the gate; another was Granny Liu, a burly woman who looked very strong; and the other was four young maids who did odd jobs.

Yuan Hongqu introduced the work of these people, then placed them into the original groups of the Lin family, before briefly talking about what happened at Rongyue Academy, and finally summarizing.

"...From now on, within Rongyue Courtyard, the rules will be the same as at home. Outside this courtyard, you must abide by the rules of Rongguo Mansion. Although we are guests and should follow the host's lead, our young lady is the daughter of a five-generation marquis and now the daughter of the Salt Commissioner. You must not embarrass her or the Lin family outside... Everything else is negotiable, but the most important thing you must remember is that the young lady cannot be left alone for even a moment. Everything must be done with the young lady's best interests at heart. You must be even more attentive here."

"Granny Yuan, we all understand, you can rest assured. We'll make sure to serve the young lady well and not make her feel annoyed." Several group leaders expressed their loyalty.

When they came to the capital, not only did their own monthly salary increase, but their family members' monthly salaries also increased by 20%. What worries did they have?

The few people from Rongguo Mansion who came over were all astonished by the scene. They had thought that the Second Madam was already quite formidable, but that was probably because they hadn't met this Granny Yuan yet.

The Lin family's servants not only didn't complain, but they also happily accepted the assignments. Were they all out of their minds?

Do they never slack off?

These people from the Rongguo Mansion simply couldn't understand it.

On Grandmother Jia's side, the servants were about to move Daiyu's bedding out of the gauze-covered wardrobe when they heard Yuanyang come over and give instructions.

"The old lady said that the green gauze curtain will still be left to Miss Lin, and Miss Lin's bedding does not need to be moved out. In the future, if she gets tired from playing or if she wishes, she can still rest in the green gauze curtain."

Before long, the news spread throughout the entire Rongguo Mansion.

The Rongyue Courtyard was given to Daiyu, and they really had nothing to say about it. The old lady had said for so many years that the courtyard belonged to Jia Min. After Jia Min passed away, the courtyard was given to her daughter to live in, and they couldn't compete with her for it.

But this green gauze curtain?

Lin Daiyu already had Rongyue Courtyard, so why did she still want to occupy a green gauze curtain? Daiyu felt that the green gauze curtain was small and cramped, but others did not. That green gauze curtain represented the old lady's high regard and favor.

Before Daiyu came, Baoyu lived there. He moved out after Daiyu arrived. Now that Daiyu has gone to Rongyue Courtyard, the Bisha Pavilion is still kept for her.

Does this mean that in the old lady's mind, this granddaughter is more pleasing to her than her own grandson, Baoyu?

"Granny Yuan, I'd better go and talk to the old lady and ask Master Bao to move back to the Green Gauze Cabinet. I just saw the maids in Baoyu's room, and they all seemed dissatisfied with me." Daiyu finished her bowl of rock sugar bird's nest soup before speaking slowly.

They had a bowl of bird's nest every day, even when they were on the ship.

If Yuan Hongqu hadn't gone into the Lin family's storeroom to look for medicinal herbs and discovered that box of bird's nests, which had been there for who knows when, no one in the Lin family would have noticed it.

From then on, Lin Daiyu began her life of eating bird's nest.

According to Yuan Hongqu, bird's nest can relieve coughs and asthma, nourish yin and moisten the lungs, and has a good content of various trace elements.

Given the Lin family's resources and Daiyu's naturally weak constitution, it was essential for her to eat a bowl of bird's nest every day.

Seeing that Daiyu had put down her bowl and seemed preoccupied, Yuan Hongqu quickly said:

"This isn't something a little kid like you should be thinking about. You're so young, thinking so much already, you might not grow tall." Yuan Hongqu smiled, her face full of doting affection.

"Did you like the food over there? Why don't you go take a nap? When you wake up, there will be strawberry cake for you, okay?"