On the second day, Song Jiaren got up from the bed very resolutely, yawned twice, washed and dressed. She wore a pastel pink double-breasted, waist-cinching, bottom-supporting silk skirt, and double sleeves with embroidered round flowers in the same color. There was only a coral hairpin on her head. Her eyes were full of spring water, so it seemed that a beauty did not need too much embellishment, she was already so stunning.
Gu Zhen wore a royal blue gown, a jade crown tied up his hair, and his posture was as straight and upright as a pine or cypress. After breakfast, he took Song Jiaren to the front hall to meet a group of servants.
"Originally, it was Steward Lin who helped me in the mansion. He was chosen by my mother from the family. He was a trustworthy family member. After I left the capital, all my properties were managed by him. He is also the one who is tidying up this house now. Look after the remaining servants. Use those who can be used, and sell those who can't." Gu Zhen thought for a moment and said slowly, "If you have any questions, ask the steward... or ask me."
Song Jiaren secretly rubbed her waist, and looked at the servants standing in rows with their heads lowered with a slight headache. She felt a little unsure. She had never even been a squad leader since she was a child, and she didn't know how to manage so many people for a while.
"Is there a roster? How about I call out the names first, and then those who hear their names stand up so I can introduce them?"
Steward Lin had heard about Song's affairs a long time ago. When he saw her now, he found that she was even more beautiful and charming than when he first saw her in the mansion, and she vaguely had the aura of a royal highness.
"Yes, I'll bring it to you right away."
"Thank you, Steward Lin."
Song Jiaren insisted on retaining some of her true nature with people she just met, so she pretended to straighten her back and smiled when she saw everyone she met.
The roster was brought in. According to the rules for servants, everyone had to change their names, so the names that stood out on the roster were all Chun. These people had not been in the roster for long, so those standing below could not help but take a few peeks.
It took some time to call the roll, and I couldn't remember many people. I could only remember a few maids with outstanding looks, but I had no impression of the rest of the servants.
"Are you all standing according to your duties? Those with the same duties should stand together so I can see clearly." Song Jiaren smiled and glanced at the person next to her who was just drinking tea. She turned back and saw that the servants below were unmoved. Her tone became cold and she said with a chilling tone, "Didn't you hear anything?"
The people below moved slowly, dividing into several circles with different numbers of people and different tasks. They quickly glanced at the lady with a cold face, felt a sense of awe for no reason, and lowered their heads.
The butler stepped forward, nodded, and said respectfully, "Your Highness, Madam, these are responsible for sweeping and cleaning, these are responsible for shopping, these are the courtyard guards, and these are..."
Song Jiaren looked in the direction of his finger and found that the servants hired by the housekeeper were quite reliable. Although the rules were a bit loose, most of them were young and middle-aged, and the maids all looked honest and simple, with no old ones.
After the introduction, everyone bowed and greeted Song Jiaren and Gu Zhen.
Song Jiaren was a little uncomfortable, but she managed to hold it in. She just smiled stiffly and said, "It's easier to work together if we're familiar with each other. From now on, we'll be family. It's just that I don't know any of you yet, so today we're all getting together to get to know each other. We'll get along for a long time in the future, respect each other, and do our jobs well."
Suddenly, he recalled the incidents at the Lin family of Tonghe City Lord, and added, "One more thing to say: everyone, please do not betray your master for personal gain or pass on information to others. If you are found out, the consequences are unpredictable..."
The lecture lasted for the entire morning. After Song Jiaren and Gu Zhen left for a while, the servants dispersed and started talking at once.
"Madam seems to be in a bad mood."
"How scary! He changes his face so quickly."
"What an amazing one."
On the other side, Steward Lin followed back to the study. There were paintings and calligraphy hanging on both walls, a plaque hanging on the main wall, and a bright mahogany table below with armchairs on it. There were also some low-backed chairs in the two rows below, with a small square table in the middle of each chair, and a carpet in the middle of the floor.
Song Jiaren sat upright in the hostess seat on a mahogany chair, with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince reading a book next to her.
The housekeeper brought a stack of account books. "Madam, here are the expenses for repairing the house. Below is the list of servants and their monthly pay. The maids who serve you personally are all house slaves. Here are their indentures."
Gu Zhen put down the book and saw a hint of fatigue on Song Jiaren's face. He lazily leaned back in his chair and turned his head to say softly, "Let's leave it at that for today. Tomorrow you will go with me to inspect the shop and proceed step by step."
Steward Lin placed all the account books on the table, bowed, and said with a smile, "Then I, this old servant, will withdraw first."
Only Song Jiaren and Gu Zhen were left in the study. She slumped down in her chair and sighed comfortably, "Finally, I can rest for a while."
The pile of account books that caught her eye gave her a headache again. Suddenly, a big hand stretched out from her waist and massaged her with moderate strength. The pain in her waist was instantly relieved. She looked at the culprit, leaned on the arm with peace of mind, and enjoyed the service on the edge of the table.
I fell asleep without realizing it, and when I woke up I was on the couch in the room. It looked like it was not yet lunchtime, so I didn't rush to get up. I lay on the couch and thought about the morning's speech, feeling that I hadn't performed well in some areas.
It wasn't until lunchtime that she got up from the couch and went to the front hall to eat with Gu Zhen. Facing the table full of dishes, she softly asked, "Isn't it a bit wasteful for just two people to eat so much? What should we do with the leftovers?"
Gu Zhen poured her a bowl of soup and said, "It won't be wasted. The maids downstairs will take it back to eat."
Eat what they left?
Song Jiaren picked up the bowl and drank a mouthful of soup, then swallowed the dry food steamed bun in her mouth. She continued, "There are many things I don't understand. There weren't so many people in the camp before, and I didn't have to worry about this or that. Now that I'm suddenly asked to take charge of household affairs, I'm a little confused."
Gu Zhen put down the soup bowl, pondered for a moment, and asked in a low voice, "...Anything else you're worried about?"
"I'm just worried that I won't be able to manage it well and something might go wrong." Song Jiaren poked the food in the bowl with her chopsticks.
Gu Zhen was not good at managing these things, and unlike her, he was not overly worried, so he sighed slightly and said, "Why not let the housekeeper train a few capable people so that they can help in the future."
"That's fine. I don't have to do everything myself. The advantage is that I have people I can use. I can just do some appropriate checks. This can reduce a lot of pressure." Song Jiaren relaxed and picked up the chopsticks to take a few bites of fish.
At night, Song Jiaren supported herself against the Crown Prince who was leaning over her, and mumbled a few words vaguely. She lost all her strength after being kissed so gently by him, and could only hide her face in the quilt.
By midnight, Gu Zhen, with a satisfied look on his face, hugged her with his strong and sturdy arms and took her to the bathtub behind the screen to wash. He kissed her tender face from time to time. Song Jiaren was so tired that she couldn't open her eyes. She leaned her head on his thick chest, closed her eyes and let him clean her.
It rained at some point, and the ground was still wet when she woke up in the morning. Gu Zhen couldn't wake her up, so he could only cover her with the quilt again and go out.
The sky was clear and blue after the rain, and the air was fresh with the smell of earth. Another hour passed before Song Jia came out of bed to take a breath. The room was filled with an ambiguous smell. She endured the burning face and opened the window. She was a little nervous when she remembered that she had to go out to inspect the store today. She didn't eat much breakfast. Finally, when she was about to go out, she saw His Royal Highness the Crown Prince returning on horseback.
"Where are you going?" Song Jiaren asked puzzledly after he got off the horse and sat in the carriage.
Gu Zhen was sitting in the carriage. On the small coffee table were burning incense and warm tea, as well as a few snacks. They were packed by a maid named Xiaotang when he went out. She had a chubby and honest appearance, and was dexterous and hardworking.
Song Jiaren had made it clear from the beginning that she didn't like being served closely, so the maids prepared all the necessary things in advance and then retreated to other places to take care of other things.
The carriage was moving slowly, and soon she heard the noisy sounds outside. She lifted the curtain and looked out. It turned out that the carriage had reached the main street, not far from the hot pot restaurant. After inspecting the shop, she could go there to have a hot pot.
The carriage stopped in front of a teahouse. The manager had already sent someone to greet them, saying that the owner was coming to inspect the store and asked them to prepare to receive them. Therefore, as soon as Song Jiaren and Gu Zhen got off the carriage, they were directly welcomed into the store by the store owner and sat down in the inner room.
Song Jiaren smiled and sat at the head of the table with Gu Zhengao, wearing a veil on her head. "Boss, please don't worry. We are just out for a stroll and just came to see this."
The shopkeeper was quite clear-headed. Steward Lin had been in charge of the business for years, so this was his first time meeting the master. He wasn't sure what his temperament was like, so he nodded respectfully. "Don't worry, madam. The teahouse is doing good business. The number of people who enjoy drinking tea has only increased in recent years. We also have connections with various governments, and tea from other places is mostly imported from us. We also ship to other friendly neighboring countries."
Song Jiaren looked up and smiled, "Then why didn't you have a drink after sitting for so long? Maybe the shopkeeper was reluctant to give it to you."
The shopkeeper slapped his forehead and laughed, "Look at how confused I am. Wait a moment, everyone. I'll go get the best tea from the bottom of the box."
After sipping tea and sitting for another half a minute, Song Jiaren and Gu Zhen left the teahouse and went to the next one. Before leaving, the shopkeeper gave them a few packets of good tea.
"This shopkeeper is good, quite interesting, not too reserved, nor careless." Song Jiaren had a small notebook in her hand, and she wrote down every time she visited a store so that it would be easier to organize later.
"Is it because he gave you two bags of good tea?" Gu Zhen asked casually, looking at her delicate fingers fiddling with the tea bags.
Song Jiaren said unhappily, "Am I such a short-sighted person? Who doesn't know that the wool comes from the sheep? It's just that his personality is more appealing to the eye. In business, the most taboo is to have high expectations but low skills. He has been respectful since he arrived, but not overly fawning, which is good."
Gu Zhen looked at her quietly for a few seconds, then slowly said, "How could I not know what kind of person you are? It was just a joke."
He was tall and had an aura that could not be ignored when he sat in the car. When Song Jiaren saw that he was explaining to her seriously, her attitude softened unconsciously for some reason.
"I'm not really angry either."
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