Chapter 38 The Poor Marquis's Mansion, the Wealthy Dowager Lady
Suddenly, Madam Wu felt short of breath. It took her a long time to calm down, and she anxiously asked, "When will the earnings from the various estates and shops be sent over?"
After thinking for a moment, Granny Zhou replied, "It will take another seven or eight days."
Madam Wu breathed a slight sigh of relief. "That's good, that's good. We'll be fine once the estate and shops show up."
Granny Zhou forced a smile, reluctantly shattering Madam Wu's illusions. "But Madam, tomorrow is the day to distribute monthly wages to the servants in the mansion."
Mrs. Wu waved her hand, "There's no money in the account right now, let's wait a few days."
Zhou Mama awkwardly reminded her, "Madam, the Marquis's mansion has no precedent for delaying the monthly wages of its servants. Even in the early years, when the Marquis's mansion was in dire straits, it never missed paying the monthly wages of its servants."
Mrs. Wu frowned deeply. "I don't have the money. How can I give it to you?"
After thinking for a moment, Madam Wu looked intently at Granny Zhou and said, "The Marquis's mansion has been short of money for quite some time now. How did the old lady manage things when she was in charge?"
Granny Zhou raised her chin almost imperceptibly, a hint of admiration unconsciously showing in her eyes.
She said, "In the past, whenever the Hou family's accounts ran out of money, the old lady would take out her own private savings to help the Hou family."
"Is the old lady really that generous?" Madam Wu was somewhat skeptical. "Besides, how much silver could the old lady possibly have? This entire Marquis's mansion, does she think it can live entirely off the old lady's money? I don't believe it!"
Granny Zhou didn't argue. She knew that when the old lady was in charge of the household, she kept two sets of account books. One set was for the Marquis's mansion, which she managed. The other set was for the old lady's own dowry, which was managed by Granny Fang's husband, Yang An.
"Alright, you can leave now." Madam Wu said, annoyed, and shooed him away. "I'll discuss it with the Marquis's residence when he returns."
Granny Zhou curtsied and withdrew.
Once outside and in a secluded spot, Granny Zhou couldn't help but curl her lip in disdain.
Back when they were working for the matriarch, none of the people under her ever had to worry about money.
When the Marquis's mansion ran out of money, the Dowager Lady readily used her private savings to replenish the public funds.
Although the old lady was strict with those who worked below her, she was also very generous and often rewarded them.
But ever since they started following Lady Hou, who is sweet on the outside but bitter on the inside and stingy, let alone receiving any rewards, it's now uncertain whether they can even get their monthly allowance.
It's true, without comparison, there is no harm!
She must have been blinded by greed to have left Songhetang.
Look at the kind of life the people of Songhetang are living now.
Not only did all the servants receive 30% more in monthly wages than those elsewhere, but their work was also much easier.
It is said that the servants of Songhetang can eat as much as they want three meals a day, and they can also eat meat once a day!
Whose servants are so arrogant? They live better than the daughters of many minor officials!
Not to mention Granny Fang, Wei Jia, and A Jiu, who often accompanied the Grand Madam!
The Dowager Lady just watched the opera today, and I heard she's going out again tomorrow. In a few days, she'll be hosting a banquet for the Dowager Lady Zheng of the Duke of Jin's mansion!
Tsk tsk, Songhetang is living the good life these days...
Granny Zhou's eyes reddened with envy.
If she had known earlier, she would never have left Songhetang, even if it meant death!
***
Min Qiaoshi, of course, had no idea that Wu was worried about money. She happily ate her dinner, climbed into bed early, leaned against the headboard, and waited for Ashuang to read to her.
Ah Shuang was the second oldest maid among the batch of maids who entered the mansion, excluding Wei Jia.
Ah Shuang was the daughter of a perennial scholar who had repeatedly failed the imperial examinations. She had learned to read in her childhood. Her father, a scholar, had squandered all the family's wealth on his studies and fell ill before his death, leaving them with considerable debt. After her father's death, the family could no longer make ends meet. Ah Shuang was then sold by her family.
Her family originally intended to sell her to an old widower for a high price, but she refused, choosing instead to sell herself into slavery and severing ties with her family.
Fortunately, because he knew a few characters, Yang An bought him back.
"Agarwood, also known as agarwood chips or Hainan agarwood, is a plant of the Thymelaeaceae family... an evergreen tree... growing in mid-altitude mountains and hills... pungent, bitter, warm, and enters the spleen, stomach, and kidney meridians. It promotes qi circulation, relieves pain, warms the stomach, and stops vomiting..."
Ah Shuang reads from the script at a moderate pace.
After reading through all the descriptions of agarwood, just as they were about to move on to the next plant, Madam Min Qiao was already feeling sleepy. So she waved her hand and said, "Let's stop here for today."
"yes."
Ah Shuang closed the "Compendium of Materia Medica" in her hand and tiptoed out of the house.
When she met Weijia at the door, she couldn't help but ask, "Sister Weijia, why did the Grand Madam ask me to read the Compendium of Materia Medica to her? She's not going to be a doctor, so what's the point of knowing these things?"
Wei Jia smiled and said, "I don't know either. Just read whatever the Grand Madam tells you to read."
Ah Shuang still found it strange, "Doesn't the Grand Madam like listening to stories? Why doesn't she ask me to read storybooks to her?"
Wei Jie glared at her, annoyed. "With your rote reading style, you think you can read storybooks to the Grand Madam? Isn't it more enjoyable for her to go to the teahouse to listen to storytellers? They tell stories with such intonation and rhythm, and there's even background music. That's what listening to a story is all about! Can you compare to them?"
“Sister Weijia is right. I can’t compare!” A Shuang smiled awkwardly, then her eyes lit up and she said, “Sister Weijia, what do you think about me going to learn from those storytellers how to read to the Grand Madam? Do you think that’s feasible?”
Wei Jia's smile deepened. "Sure, why not! If you can read the Compendium of Materia Medica in a less boring way, the Madam might reward you if she's in a good mood."
Ah Shuang smiled shyly, "I don't want the Grand Madam's reward, I just want to make her happy. I never dreamed I could come here and live such a good life with the Grand Madam. So, I want to learn more skills to repay the Grand Madam."
When her father was still alive, the family rarely saw meat throughout the year, and even getting enough to eat was a struggle.
Once her father died, she was completely starving, going hungry twice a day, and the only meal she ate was just watery soup.
Actually, none of these things mattered. What she couldn't bear the most was that as soon as her father died, her brothers urged her mother to marry her off to an old widower in the next village with a dowry of ten taels of silver.
It is said that he beat the old widower's wife to death. After that, no family was willing to marry their daughter to him.
Even knowing it was a pit of fire, her family still wanted to push her in...
Ah Shuang sold herself to a slave trader for only ten taels of silver.
The boy initially refused, but Ah Shuang said that he could read and write and that he would definitely be worth a lot of money if sold to a wealthy family.
The boy then agreed.
Ah Shuang gave the money she received from selling herself to her family as a way of repaying their kindness in raising her, and from then on severed all ties with them.
After that, Ren Yazi took Ashuang to the capital.
Because she could read, the slave trader sold her for a high price of thirty taels of silver!
Since the Grand Madam spent so much money to buy her back, she should make herself truly worth that much money in order not to let down the Grand Madam who spent so much money!
Looking at Ah Shuang's clear eyes and serious expression, Wei Jia's smile reached her heart.
"When I have time, I'll take you to a teahouse to learn from the masters."
"Thank you, Sister Weijia!" Ah Shuang happily carried the book away.
Wei Jia couldn't help but smile. This wonderful life was like a dream! It gave her so much to look forward to!
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