Chapter 9 Chapter 9 Kitchen.
"Have you folded the amaranth?"
"Here it comes." Almost as soon as the chef finished speaking, the kitchen maid handed the bamboo basket forward.
"Sister Hu, go turn over the cakes in the steamer." At another stove, the cook who was busy processing the cakes in her hands gave the order without looking up.
…
Linzhi stood at the door of the kitchen, looking in with great interest. People were coming in and out of the kitchen, and some people complained that she was blocking the door, but when they looked up and saw that it was Linzhi, they immediately fell silent.
"Hey, whose family are you from——"
"Let's go, leave her alone." Another person hurriedly pulled the person ahead away, "Why are you arguing with a fool?"
"That's her..."
"That's her."
The servants in the kitchen were used to it. They just said a few words and continued working, ignoring Linzhi's presence.
Seeing no one left a message, Linzhi simply followed the crowd into the kitchen. She paced back and forth in the kitchen, watching everyone busy at work with great interest.
Among the busy servants, there is a lazy person, who is as conspicuous as can be.
Just when someone couldn't stand it anymore and wanted to scold, Linzhi pretended to be curious and picked up a bean pod, peeled it like others, and threw the beans lightly into the wooden basin.
Seeing this, the maid who was about to scold her was stunned and didn't know whether she should go up and stop her from doing her job.
"Being stupid doesn't hinder work. If she wants to do it, let her do it." The old woman peeling bean pods was worried about not having enough people to help. She quickly stopped the servant who was about to drive her away and muttered, "She's not lying in bed and can't get up. Any help is appreciated. Do you really think she's a lady in the house who just needs to be served?"
"Mrs. Zhou, what nonsense are you talking about? Why don't you kick her out right now?" The cook heard the commotion and glanced at Lin Zhi before interrupting her: "You're letting this idiot do this job. Aren't you afraid she'll get into hot water or boiling oil? If she gets hurt, Steward Lin and Madam Song will skin you alive too."
"...Yes." Mrs. Zhou replied awkwardly, and hurried forward to grab Linzhi, coaxing and pushing her out of the kitchen.
But as soon as she turned around, Lin Zhi took the opportunity to slip in again. This happened again and again, and Mrs. Zhou was exhausted and sweating. When she saw Song Jiaoniang coming, she felt like she had seen a savior: "Mother Song, you are finally here!"
"I'm sorry, Mother Zhou, for causing you trouble for no reason."
Song Jiaoniang first apologized to the mother-in-law, and then called out to Lin Zhi, who was determined to go into the kitchen: "Sister Zhi, Sister Zhi, come here quickly."
But Lin Zhi turned a deaf ear and just buried her head in. Song Jiaoniang, facing everyone's gaze, smiled wryly, took two steps forward, and dragged her daughter back.
Lin Zhi was still reluctant, standing there crying: "Go in, go in——"
"Good sister, go back and eat some candy cakes."
"Candy cake?"
Seeing Song Jiaoniang coaxing Lin Zhi to leave with food, the people in the kitchen couldn't help but talk about it: "A good girl has become like this."
"She used to be such a clever girl, but now she's become like this...poor Mother Song."
"I heard that Mother Song hasn't slept these days."
"I see the same thing. Those dark circles..."
"Not to mention Madam Song and Manager Lin, even Aunt Qian who lives next door to them doesn't have a place to sleep!"
Back in the house, Lin Zhi curiously touched Song Jiaoniang's eyes. Song Jiaoniang had no time to hide, and exclaimed: "Oh, you girl."
Lin Zhi looked at the black ash on her fingertips and was suddenly at a loss whether to laugh or cry: "Mother - where did you learn this trick?"
"Your father said so." Song Jiaoniang said with a smile, "Did you see the reactions of those people just now? They were stunned for a moment when they looked at me."
"Here." Song Jiaoniang nodded again, motioning Linzhi to look at the table. She had put a lot of effort into her performance, deliberately eating snacks that made her feel irritated, causing blisters on her lips and mouth. Add to that the dark circles under her eyes, and even the stingiest aunt next door gave her a pair of silk shoes and two strings of copper coins: "Those are from Aunt Qian."
Linzhi thought about it for a moment and immediately became happy.
Lin Sen heard the mother and daughter's snickering from inside, and lifted the curtain to let them in: "Go inside, go inside, you two must not let your guard down."
Linzhi quickly restrained her expression and nodded seriously.
"Speaking of which, what are you doing in the kitchen?"
"If you were to say where in our house the most lively and gossipy place is, it would definitely be the kitchen."
Lin Zhi went there to see how the meals were prepared and to learn about the styles and usage of the various utensils used in the mansion. Secondly, she knew that the kitchen was the busiest place, with not only various maids busy with their work, but also servants who came in batches to pick up meals and eat the meals, which could help spread the news further.
She wanted to spread the message that she was stupid and let it sink into everyone's minds.
Song Jiaoniang thought about it and realized that this was indeed the case. She nodded and stopped paying attention to her daughter's movements. Instead, she talked about another matter: "Your father found a familiar servant and asked about it while he was out shopping."
Lin Zhi slowly moved in and sat down in front of Lin Sen, listening to him mutter, "After I talked to your mother last time, I was still worried, so I asked someone to help find out more."
"That guy's surname is Chen, and his given name is Yan, which is the same as the inkstone. He's not from Taiping Prefecture, but came from Bianjing with a caravan as a transporter."
The so-called escort, as the name suggests, is a person who guards the transportation of goods.
At present, the government's livelihood is usually handled by institutions such as courier shops, while there are no shops specifically responsible for this matter among the people. Ordinary merchants or ordinary people who need to transport goods usually hire idle men to act as escorts through courier shops.
The escort agencies also use official contracts to hire people. At the same time, in order to reduce risks, they are very cautious in choosing escorts to avoid damaging their reputation.
Therefore, most of the idlers who can be hired by the brokerage firms have good reputations, or have family members who sign their names or whose families are willing to provide financial guarantees.
When Song Jiaoniang heard Lin Sen say that Chen Yan was the escort, her worries were visibly reduced.
Lin Sen continued, "It's a pity he hasn't been in Taiping Prefecture long, so it's hard to tell what his character is like. But people who have been drinking with him say he's generous and open-minded, and he seems to have a good temper."
Song Jiaoniang did not comment on this. She pretended to be generous in front of others, but was quite mean to her family members. It was hard to tell from her in such a short time.
However, Lin Sen's next words immediately made Song Jiaoniang's eyes widen: "It is said that he is an orphan."
"He's an orphan?"
"That's right."
Song Jiaoniang's brows relaxed and she was in a good mood. The requirements for becoming an escort had been mentioned before, and since he had no family to guarantee him, it meant that this person either had good character and was trusted by the brokerage firm, or had a good family background and sufficient collateral.
It’s true, they are a perfect match!
Song Jiaoniang was very happy and patted her chest repeatedly: "That's good, that's good."
However, Lin Sen was not as optimistic as Song Jiaoniang. Instead, he shook his head and said, "When you're out in the world, your status is given by yourself. It's hard to say you're just flattering yourself."
"Besides, we have neither connections nor time, so it's not easy to send people to Bianjing to inquire on the spot. We can only rely on hearsay, and we won't know the details until later."
Lin Sen glanced at Lin Zhi and swallowed his unfinished words. There were troubles within the mansion, and outside. As he inquired about the situation, he happened to overhear gossip from someone nearby: someone he'd been drinking with owed a debt and had then pawned his wife to pay it off.
Things like this make him feel anxious.
Lin Sen originally wanted to settle down in Taiping Prefecture after leaving the mansion, but after thinking about it, he felt that his daughter was just pretending to be crazy, and it was too risky to stay in the local area. But he was also worried that if he went too far, he would be deceived in an unfamiliar place.
He looked at the mother and daughter, forcing himself to suppress his uneasiness. He first said that he would ask someone to continue investigating, and then earnestly urged them to continue the role play: "Let's go to the master in a few days and ask to be released from the mansion."
Song Jiaoniang nodded: "I know, just wait, someone in the mansion will soon be unable to hold back."
There is no difference between the government and the officialdom. There are only so many positions, and there are countless eyes watching. There is bound to be someone who has ulterior motives.
Over the next few days, rumors about Linzhi in the prefectural government intensified. Not only had she broken her nails, but she had also learned to climb trees and rob bird nests, and to jump and catch mice like a wild cat. She even pulled out a piece of silk from Mother Song's hidden drawer and draped it around her like a cloak.
In addition, she was particularly interested in things in the kitchen. She would go into the kitchen to help (play) every few days, and then be taken back by Mother Song and Manager Lin who would call her name all the way.
What is even more regrettable is that Manager Lin and Mother Song were both exhausted by Sister Zhi'er's troubles and had to take turns taking leave to stay at home and take care of their daughter. They were on the verge of losing their jobs as managers.
Some people felt sympathy, while others took the opportunity to cause trouble. For example, Mrs. Zhou from the kitchen used cheap snacks to cheat Lin Zhi out of her valuable jewelry. Another person spoke to the servants who were in favor with the old lady and the master, hoping to take advantage of this opportunity to take over Lin Sen and Mother Song's positions in one fell swoop.
"I thought it would take a few more days." Song Jiaoniang fanned herself and talked to Lin Sen in the house.
"This is all thanks to Sister Zhi. Sister Zhi acted so well." Lin Sen sat cross-legged on the couch, praising his daughter with pride. If it weren't for Lin Zhi's perfect acting that kept the whole family in the house ignorant, the matter would have been delayed even longer.
Thinking of this, Lin Sen complained: "But, Mrs. Zhou is going too far!"
Upon hearing this, Song Jiaoniang agreed deeply: "Sister Zhi has given her many rewards in the past, and we also gave her a lot of things when her family was in trouble."
"Who would have thought he would be such a shameless person? Not only did he steal the things from Zhi Jie'er, he also tried to instigate Zhi Jie'er to steal things from home."
Taking advantage of Linzhi's stupidity, Mrs. Zhou used cheap things like sesame candy, hawthorn strips, and even fried tofu with scallions to trick Linzhi into taking her earrings and ring.
Even though Linzhi had nothing left in her hands in the past two days, she still didn't give up and secretly encouraged Linzhi to steal things from home.
Fortunately, Sister Zhi is just pretending to be stupid. I don’t know what would happen if she was really stupid.
"That bitch is deliberately looking for trouble because we don't have time to cause trouble! No, no, I can't swallow this anger. Tomorrow..."
Song Jiaoniang grew angrier and angrier as she spoke, her teeth itching with hatred. However, Lin Zhi remained calm and reached out to stop the fuming Song Jiaoniang, saying, "Mother, don't be angry. Don't worry, whatever Mrs. Zhou eats, she'll have to spit out later. I guarantee she won't get a penny more."
When Song Jiaoniang heard this, she became worried about her daughter again: "Mrs. Zhou is a shameless person. Don't confront her head-on, okay? We are not short of money at home. Those little things can be treated as feeding the dog..."
"I know, don't worry, mother." Lin Zhi listened to Song Jiaoniang's caring words, her eyebrows curved and she smiled gently, but she took it to heart.
Just because the family has enough money doesn't mean it can be wasted, especially if it is taken away by an ungrateful person like Mrs. Zhou.
Lin Zhi was worried that Song Jiaoniang would continue to mutter about this, so she quickly changed the subject: "Speaking of which, Dad, isn't it time to bring up that matter?"
Lin Sen took a deep breath: "Yes."
He and Song Jiaoniang held hands tightly, and their palms were a little wet and sticky.
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