Chapter 11 Family Banquet
After finishing her duties, Granny Wu politely asked Yu Qingci a few more questions. Since Yu Qingci was new to the area, she naturally didn't make any extra requests, so Granny Wu went back to report.
Yu Qingci glanced at the servants who were still standing obediently in the courtyard, said a few words and dismissed everyone, leaving only Siqin behind.
Siqin was a second-class maidservant by Qiao's side, but now that she's in her courtyard, she'll naturally be promoted to first-class.
Yu Qingci glanced at Siqin with an icy expression, and the hatred in her chest surged up again. Now that they met again, Yu Qingci really wanted to rush over and slap her a few times, but she quickly calmed down and casually withdrew her gaze.
I just saw Qiao Yuantao in the garden, so tonight this zither player will definitely take action in private, just like in my previous life.
Fine, then I'll grant her wish.
Yu Qingci asked calmly, "Were you serving the Madam before?"
Siqin bowed respectfully and replied, "Yes, Third Miss."
Yu Qingci: "Since you are someone by the Madam's side, I suppose I don't need to repeat the rules for servants. Since you have become my first-class maid, you must keep to your duties. As long as you don't slack off and do your job well, that's fine."
After saying that, he went into the house, and Siqin hurriedly followed to serve him.
After a simple lunch, I took a nap in the room for half the afternoon. At dusk, Siqin came in and said it was time to go to the Old Madam's Shouyin Hall for the evening banquet.
Yu Qingci left Siqin at the Wisteria Courtyard and took Tong'er to the Shouyin Hall.
Upon arrival, they found that there were many more people present than in the morning, making the originally spacious main hall seem somewhat insufficient. In addition to those who had returned from their duties or studies, the two uncles from the second and third branches of the Earl's Mansion, who were born out of wedlock, also came with their wives and children.
Another family reunion was inevitable. Fortunately, Yu Qingci had memories of her past life, so even though the number of people was twice that of the morning, it didn't take much effort, as long as the rules were followed.
In the center of the main hall of Shouyin Hall, there were four tables set up. The entire family of the Earl's Mansion sat down according to the order of seniority. Since Yu Qingci and her brother Yu Qingbai had just returned to the Earl's Mansion, Nanping Bo personally brought the two siblings to sit at the main table.
The old lady, Madam Zhang, glanced at them but said nothing. Madam Qiao, on the other hand, lovingly told the two siblings not to be shy and to ask the maid behind her to serve them whatever they wanted to eat.
The Yu Qingyan and her sister, who were sitting at the table next to the younger generation, looked very unhappy. Yu Qingying, in particular, wished she could get up and chase Yu Qingci and her brother away so she could sit next to her father.
Yu Qingci and her brother didn't pay much attention. As soon as Yu Qingbai saw his sister, he immediately gave her a sweet smile, which put Yu Qingci at ease.
With our father personally looking after him today, no one dares to intimidate my younger brother. That's good. He can use whatever tricks he wants on her.
Yu Jingsheng hadn't seen his daughter for most of the day, so when he saw her now, he asked her with concern:
"Qingci, are you satisfied with the Wisteria Garden? If there is anything you are not satisfied with, please tell me and I will have the servants rearrange it for you."
He spoke with great confidence, because he had specially chosen that courtyard for his daughter, and even the furnishings inside were arranged according to the style of her former bedroom in Youyang, just so that his daughter could live comfortably and at ease.
Yu Qingci smiled at her father: "I'm very pleased with the place you arranged, Father. The courtyard is quite large and the scenery is beautiful. There's even a swing set, which is so much fun. I just didn't expect the mansion to be so big. It took me a full hour to walk there with Granny Wu this morning."
The daughter thought that if she ever came to pay her respects to her grandmother in the future, she must have the maids wake her up early so as not to miss the appointed time.
One sentence was enough to change everyone's expression. Wu Mama, who was standing behind Qiao Shi, was so frightened that she turned ashen-faced and didn't dare to lift her head.
Her deliberate lead of Yu Qingci around the Earl's mansion was obviously at the master's behest. Anyone would think that a young girl who had returned home halfway and hadn't yet been officially registered in the family genealogy would be trembling with fear and apprehension upon entering such a wealthy place as the Earl's mansion for the first time, afraid of making a mistake or saying something that would make her a laughingstock. Even if she was given a little bit of prestige, she could only grit her teeth and endure it.
But who would have thought that this girl would be so straightforward, just saying it out loud in public? Is she really stupid or just pretending?
Upon hearing this, Yu Jingsheng's face immediately darkened, and his sharp gaze swept over Granny Wu. Granny Wu instantly felt a chilling aura wash over her, trembled, and fell to her knees with a thud, repeatedly kowtowing to Yu Jingsheng while muttering:
"My lord, please forgive me. It was my fault. I was delighted to see the Third Miss for the first time and intended to show her around the various residences of the Lord's mansion. However, I forgot the time and caused the Third Miss to walk a little longer than expected. I deserve to die, I deserve to die!"
As he spoke, he reached out and slapped himself across the face repeatedly.
Yu Jingsheng remained silent with a cold face, and the others at the table dared not speak either. The only sound was the slapping of Wu Mama's hands. The three women, Qiao Shi and her mother, looked even more unpleasant. Yu Qingying felt so guilty that she wished she could bury her head under the table.
After all, Granny Wu was one of Qiao's people. After slapping her for a while, Qiao had no choice but to speak up and scold her: "Granny Wu, are you senile? I only ordered you to take the Third Miss over to make arrangements because I thought you were old and reliable. You can't even do such a small thing right, causing the Third Miss to take a detour with you. If I had known you were so useless, I would have simply stopped you from working for me."
Upon hearing this, Granny Wu fanned herself even more incessantly.
Qiao then looked at Yu Qingci and said kindly, "Good child, perhaps Wu Mama is getting old and a little confused. She meant well and wanted to help you get to know the way, but she did something wrong and forgot the time. She should be punished for making such a mistake. Let her slap herself a few times to vent your anger."
Qingci looked over with a blank expression: "But, Granny Wu still brought me here in the end, so she shouldn't have done anything wrong, right? Why does Madam mean to stand up for me? I'm not angry!"
Mr. Qiao: ...
Everyone looked at Qingci with astonishment. Poor child, she didn't even realize that Granny Wu was doing it on purpose.
Granny Wu, who was slapping someone: ...
Madam Zhang glared at Madam Qiao unhappily and reprimanded Granny Wu, saying, "Alright, you're getting on in years, so be more careful in your actions. Go now."
Only then did Granny Wu get up and slink away.
Yu Jingsheng was furious that his daughter was bullied by an old shrew on her first day back. He wanted to lash out immediately, but when he saw Wu Mama kneeling down and slapping herself, he knew that she was an old servant of the madam and that punishing her too severely would embarrass the madam. So he didn't speak up immediately.
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