Chapter 49 Send them all back
Even the thick-skinned Granny Gui couldn't hold back any longer and said with a forced smile, "Young Madam is joking. The private treasury is naturally full of Young Madam's dowry."
Yu Qingci: "Since you know it's part of my dowry, I'll take the key back. I can decide who keeps it, so Granny Gui doesn't need to worry about it."
Granny Gui, unwilling to give up the key, said, "Since the young mistress doesn't trust this old servant, I won't say anything more. But the young mistress probably doesn't know that the wives of the servants who came with her dowry, including those from the shops and estates outside, have all entrusted their indentures to this old servant for safekeeping."
The madam said that the young mistress is young and inexperienced and might not be obedient to the servants, so only an old servant like myself can keep them in check.
Granny Gui spoke with barely suppressed pride.
Yu Qingci frowned and glanced at Granny Pei. Granny Pei quickly whispered in her ear, "That should be the case. Last night, I carefully checked the young mistress's dowry. There wasn't a single indenture for the servants of the Earl's household. No wonder this old hag is so confident."
Yu Qingci looked at Granny Gui again. Granny Gui stood there with her body straight and her head held high, but her eyelids drooped down and she stared at the ground expressionlessly.
Yu Qingci smiled faintly: "I was originally going to send you back after I finished what I was doing, but since Granny Gui is in such a hurry, then, Granny Pei..."
Granny Pei responded in agreement.
Yu Qingci: "Go tell the steward to send all the servants who came with the dowry from the Earl's mansion back. They've worked hard these past two days, so don't forget to give them a reward."
Granny Gui was startled upon hearing this. Should she send them all back?
Why would the young mistress react this way? Shouldn't she be set right and honored, so that she would never dare to offend Granny Gui again?
If all the servants who accompanied the dowry were really sent back, what would become of the Nanping Marquis's reputation?
But seeing that Granny Pei was about to leave, Granny Gui realized she had misspoke. If she were really sent back to the Madam, she wouldn't be spared. So she quickly stepped forward and said:
"Young Madam, please wait. I apologize for my clumsy tongue and for offending you. Please forgive me. I was just trying to help you, and that's why I was a little anxious. Besides, since you've already sent us here, how can you send us back?"
Yu Qingci: "I dare not use servants whose indentures are not with me. It seems that the madam did not really intend to bring you all with her as part of your dowry, otherwise she would not have refused to give me indentures. It would be better to send you back as soon as possible."
Granny Pei was about to leave again when Granny Gui rushed forward to stop her.
Granny Pei looked at her rudely and said, "Young Madam is right. Which master would dare to use servants without indentures? In principle, the indentures of those maids should be placed in the dowry. How dare you, old hag, hide them away?"
Granny Gui, her face flushed, said hastily, "Who hid it? It was Madam who said she wanted this old servant..."
Pei Mama: "Madam said you should keep those people's indentures in your bosom and not give them to the young mistress? What is your madam up to? Could it be that those maids are just for show, and she plans to return them after the marriage is over?"
"If the Earl's family doesn't want to send servants, they should just say so. What's the point of this charade? Aren't they afraid of being laughed at?"
Pei Mama's sharp words made Gui Mama's face turn pale and then red, and she stammered, "Madam instructed this old servant to help the young mistress manage these people, and this old servant dared not disobey."
Yu Qingci: "Granny Pei, there's no need to argue with him anymore. Just tell the steward to send everyone back. I dare not use servants without indentures."
Pei Mama was about to leave again, but Gui Mama, seeing that she couldn't stop her, had no choice but to soften her tone and say, "Perhaps this old servant misunderstood. Madam's intentions were good. This old servant will now hand over the indenture to Madam."
After saying that, she turned around and went back to her room. A little while later, she came back with a stack of papers in her hand. Granny Pei took them and looked them over before handing them to Yu Qingci.
Granny Gui was so angry that her hands and feet went numb as she watched the two of them carefully examining a stack of indentures. She never expected that the gentle and obedient Third Miss in the mansion would become so tough after marrying into the family, showing no regard for the lady's dignity. If she were still the same as before, she would have treated her like an ancestor.
It was all caused by that old hag Pei stirring things up!
Before Granny Gui could finish her little scheme, Yu Qingci frowned and said, "Why are three contracts missing, Granny Gui? Where are your indentures with Siqin and Ling'er?"
This time, Granny Gui was truly convinced and, in a fit of desperation, said, "The indentures of the three of us are naturally in the hands of the Madam."
If you're so capable, go ask the lady for it!
Yu Qingci quickly realized that, yes, the three maids, Gui Mama and the others, were different from the other maids outside. They served her closely. If Madam Qiao wanted to do anything to her in the future, she would definitely go through these three. She had their indentures in her hands and was not afraid that the three of them would disobey her.
She looked at Siqin and Ling'er. Ling'er was also full of resentment, but she didn't dare to look Yu Qingci in the eye. Her eyes were fixed on the side and kept wandering.
Siqin stood there with an honest and obedient demeanor, as if the dispute had nothing to do with her.
In her previous life, Siqin did not accompany her to the Qiao family as part of her dowry. Instead, she returned to Qiao's side and became a first-class maid. However, it is said that she later did something wrong and was banished by Qiao to the estate to be married off to a peasant, thus becoming the lowest-ranking servant in the Earl's mansion.
Yu Qingci strongly suspected that this was just a tactic used by the Qiao family to control their servants. Even if the Qiao family had ordered the servants to betray their masters, they would not feel comfortable keeping such a girl by their side.
After Yu Qingci figured things out, she ignored Granny Gui and the others and took Tong'er and Lianqiao into the house.
Watching Yu Qingci leave, Ling'er hurriedly stepped forward and whispered to Granny Gui, "Granny Gui, what do you think the young mistress will do with us? Now that the positions of first, second, and third-class maids have been decided, what will happen to me and Sister Siqin? We can't just be lowly maids, can we? Will she transfer us to the shops outside?"
Ling'er didn't want to go to the shops outside; staying close to the young mistress and serving her was much better than going outside.
Granny Gui had lost all face today and was in no mood to talk to the two maids. She said irritably, "How should I know? Just wait and see."
Anyway, our indentures aren't in her hands, so she can't just sell us off. You two remember, we belong to the Madam, and she'll make all the decisions for us.”
Siqin also said in a low voice, "If the young mistress really transfers us to other places, then what does the mistress want us to do..."
She couldn't say anything more. Granny Gui gritted her teeth and said, "At worst, we can just apologize first and wait until we've established ourselves here before talking about anything else. Hmph, the waters in this mansion run deep. There's no reason why she'd rather use servants from the General's Mansion than those of us she knows well."
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