“Madam Su, we and Young Master Nangong came by carriage, so we are not tired at all.”
"If there's any chores around the house, just call on us. We're a lowly, coarse family; we don't need rest."
Su Luo asked Nangong Qing to sit and wait for her in the front yard, while she first led the Shi family to their side room.
Upon hearing Butler Shi say this on the way, Su Luo's good expression vanished instantly.
He stopped and turned to the Shi family, speaking seriously.
"Steward Shi, everyone is born from their parents' womb after ten months of pregnancy. As human beings, there is no distinction between noble and lowly."
We are all human beings, born equal. As long as we do not look down on ourselves, no one can look down on us.
Don't say things like "your life is cheap" anymore.
Su Luo's words struck Butler Shi like a ray of light breaking through the darkness.
No one ever told them that they were all human beings and were born equal. He was able to become the head steward and had managed many servants.
But in front of those big shots, they are nothing more than ants that can be crushed at will.
What kind of person is this Lady Su that earns her family such respect?
Butler Shi and his son Shi Shuang exchanged a glance, both seeing relief in each other's eyes.
"Yes! I misspoke, please punish me, Madam Su."
"This place is different from the capital, you will gradually realize that, and your work is also simple."
Su Luo first explained the tasks they needed to do to avoid them panicking.
"Steward Shi, my family only has two children and my mother-in-law. There is also a teacher named Master Xie living in the embroidered tower. He is the teacher of my Huanhuan."
Every few days, there will be a Doctor Du staying in the East Wing. He is my apprentice, so you don't need to worry about the pharmacy.
I will manage that place with Dr. Du.
Also, you're in charge of managing our rice paddies, fields, and the income from the estate.
The three stewards followed behind Su Luo. After hearing what they heard, Steward Shi felt that it was far too little.
"Madam Su, besides these, is there anything else?"
"Yes, I have a 30% profit from both Fumanlou restaurants in Yongle County, and I split the profits 50/50 with Doctor Du from the herbal oil sold at Ji'antang."
From now on, accounting and management will all be handled by you.
"Just tell me what else the house needs, and we'll get what we need. From now on, I'll only be checking the accounts."
Butler Shi clasped his hands in a fist and bowed again: "Yes, Your Excellency obeys."
After instructing Butler Shi, Su Luo then spoke to Aunt Dong.
“Aunt Dong, you will be in charge of taking care of my mother-in-law. There are no servants in the kitchen yet, so you can start cooking. My mother-in-law is a person who can’t sit still, and she will cook for us with you.”
Aunt Dong was terrified. She could cook, but she had never had a master cook with them, the servants.
"Yes, I will obey your orders."
There's also Shi Shuang. Su Luo arranged for him to manage the family's horses, such as cutting grass and feeding them, as well as handling travel and shopping.
"Shi Shuang, for now you'll handle the things I mentioned: the household necessities, such as food, clothing, and daily necessities. You'll be in charge of buying and selling them. Once Yan Chuan and the others go to school, you'll be responsible for picking them up and dropping them off."
"Yes, I understand."
After Su Luo finished speaking, she led them to the room that had been prepared for them.
One large room was for the housekeeper, and the other for the Shi couple.
"Then you should rest for a while. If I'm not back by tonight, I've told my mother-in-law, and she'll show you around the area."
This includes information about some people and events in our village, so you can all learn about them.
"yes……"
The three of them spoke in unison. Su Luo had said almost everything that needed to be said. If there was anything she hadn't mentioned, she would say it when she thought of it.
Back in the front yard, Nangong Qing sat there pouring himself some tea. When he saw Su Luo return, he immediately stood up and walked over to her.
"Su Luo, have you made arrangements for Butler Shi and the others?"
"Yes, thank you for the matter with Butler Shi. I am very satisfied with his family."
Su Luo has a good eye for people; this Butler Shi must be a good butler.
"As long as you're satisfied, that's all that matters. This is their contract of indenture. Steward Shi is a domestic servant, as is his son Shi Shuang. Only Aunt Dong was bought from outside."
"Their indentures are now being given to you, four in total. Keep them safe; they are their lives."
Su Luo put away their contracts, concealing them with her sleeve, and carefully placed them into her spatial storage.
The space is currently only planted with rice, which is almost ripe and will be ready for harvest in a few days.
"Nangong Qing, how much silver did you spend on this contract? I'll give you the silver."
Hearing Su Luo's distant attitude, Nangong Qing sat back down in his chair, ruefully blowing on the still steaming tea.
"What's with all this talk about money? Steward Shi was willing to come here, and I didn't do much work or spend much money."
Consider it a favor I'm doing you; no money needed.
Compared to Su Luo's contributions to the entire Nanning Kingdom, everything Nangong Qing did for her was insignificant.
"In that case, I can only thank you."
Seeing that Nangong Qing was still sitting there, Su Luo said, "I need to go out for a bit, do you want to come?"
"want……"
Before Su Luo could even say what she was going to do, Nangong Qing eagerly agreed.
"Then let's go."
As long as he follows Su Luo, Nangong Qing is willing to go anywhere; he feels like he's obsessed.
It was simply impossible for a prince like him to escort a steward to Changping Village.
But this time he came voluntarily, and even Ah Xu wasn't allowed to come along. Perhaps he really just wanted to see someone.
Even though nothing will come of it between them, he's still happy as long as he can see her a few more times.
"Su Luo, isn't this the kiln where you used to live? What are you doing here?"
Su Luo didn't turn around and continued straight ahead.
"Come see how the turnips and rapeseed are doing. You went all the way here to bring the turnips, don't you want to see how they're growing now?"
"Yes, of course I want to."
Nangong Qing simply didn't urge Su Luo. No matter how anxious he was, he couldn't rush things that grew from the ground.
Su Luo opened the fence in the dry land and went inside to see that the turnips and rapeseed were already in bloom.
The turnip's root grows in a way that resembles a large radish, and its flowers are white and purple, like clouds dyed with color, which is very beautiful.
The flowers of the rapeseed plant are almost indistinguishable from those of rapeseed flowers. If Su Luo hadn't known that it was rapeseed, she would have thought it was rapeseed flowers.
The flowers are in full bloom, and in early spring, bees are already collecting pollen from them, their wings buzzing.
"Su Luo, can these two plants be grown together to produce the cabbage you're talking about?"
Su Luo looked around for a while before saying, "It's not that simple. They need to be pollinated before the seeds can be considered successfully cultivated."
"How to pollinate."
Nangong Qing was like a curious child; he truly knew nothing about these new species.
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