Chapter 33 Young Master, I Want a Breastfeeding Leave
"Auntie's family has sweet dates, eggs, white flour steamed buns, and flowery clothes. Auntie's family also has four older brothers who will play with you and protect you. With your brothers, no one will dare to bully Xiaoxiao anymore."
"The old lady had four sons and always wanted a daughter. She will treat you like her own daughter, and our family will treat you well."
Liu looked at Song Xiaoxiao with a loving expression.
Song Xiaoxiao was startled and looked at Song Li helplessly.
Song Li pried Song Xiaoxiao out of Liu Shi's arms.
What a great actress!
Why didn't Madam Liu offer any help before?
At the beginning of the story, I asked her to watch the child for a while, but she couldn't even keep an eye on him!
Now he's holding Song Xiaoxiao very tightly, you have to pry him out!
“Don’t trouble Aunt Liu, my sister and I want to stay together and don’t want to be separated,” Song Li said coldly.
How cold was it? Probably as cold as when Liu glanced at Qian Hutao just now.
Madam Liu was not annoyed, but smiled gently and advised, "Da Ya, as the saying goes, 'Men should marry when they are of age, and women should marry when they are of age.' You will be sixteen by the New Year. You are not young anymore. It is time to find a partner for yourself and make plans for your future."
Song Li said, "Being together as sisters is the best home for us."
Madam Liu still smiled: "No, what I mean is that a woman's youth is fleeting, so you should find a man while you're still young."
But she didn't say "marry," because Young Master Lou only wanted to buy Song Daya as a maid.
Lou Yicong wanted to buy a maid, but felt that Song Xiaoxiao was too young and it wouldn't be worthwhile to buy her as well. However, if he only bought Song Li, Song Xiaoxiao would starve and freeze to death sooner or later, so he hesitated.
Liu came today because the village head asked her to help Lou Yicong resolve the issue of Song Xiaoxiao.
As for how she would treat Song Xiaoxiao after adopting her, Madam Liu had not thought about it.
However, Song Xiaoxiao is already ten years old, and will be eleven after the New Year. If she is raised for a few more years, she can be directly given to the second son as a wife. They know her background and can handle her well, which will save on the dowry.
Adopting Song Xiaoxiao would please Lou Yicong and give him a wife for free—it's a win-win situation.
Song Xiaoxiao heard Liu's thoughts and turned as pale as paper.
Song Li smiled kindly as she looked at Liu Shi, whose eyes were darting around.
Should we kick them out, or politely tell them to leave on their own?
Madam Liu chuckled awkwardly, "What you just said was absolutely kind. I've been through this before, I wouldn't harm you."
Song Li sneered: "Monet's 'Water Lilies' and Van Gogh's 'Starry Night' are also good paintings."
Liu: "?"
I don't understand puns.
Song Li: "Then please ask your brother Wu En."
Liu: "?"
I don't understand pinyin!
Song Li then changed her wording, "Please leave gracefully."
She's still Muramasa's wife, after all; we can't be too disrespectful.
Liu was still: "?"
He doesn't understand art either!
There's nothing we can do about that...
Song Li took a deep breath, silently assumed a fighting stance, and began to chant: "Overwhelming Force!!"
—We have to thank Zhao Youchang for coming up with this idea; otherwise, throwing darts through someone's palm could easily cause permanent damage and would be too bloody.
"Awooo—"
Liu was struck in the lower back by a palm strike, feeling as if her waist was about to break, and she screamed in pain.
But she remained defiant, clutching her aching back and arguing, "You're biting the hand that feeds you! You don't appreciate a kind heart!"
Song Li shouted again, "Line up—"
Liu was so frightened that her face turned ashen, and she ran away in a panic.
She wanted to yell, "How dare you hit me? My man can make you suffer a terrible death with a flick of his finger," but she didn't dare because she was afraid that Song Daya was someone Lou Yicong wanted.
Half an hour later.
Lou Yicong's meticulously decorated rural earthen house.
Bang!
A petite and pretty village girl kicked open two heavy ash wood doors.
Lou Yicong was studying at her desk.
Qingzhu was grinding ink beside him, serving Lou Yicong as he read.
Both of them were startled by the sound and looked up—
Looking up, I was even more startled.
Then I saw Song Daya, who had supposedly acted bravely (and supposedly bravely) to fight off the strong man yesterday, standing in front of me with her hands on her hips and her eyebrows raised.
Lou Yicong had a misconception that if her face were a little darker and she carried two battle axes, she would look like Li Guang, the Black Whirlwind, one of the Twelve Generals of Liangshan.
Song Li walked up to Lou Yicong with a gloomy face: "I heard you wanted to sell me, right?"
Lou Yicong: "You knew everything?"
Since she didn't deny it, it seems Song Xiaoxiao's special abilities are real.
Song Li frowned.
Beneath the rough cloth sleeves, his fingers were clenched tightly.
Yesterday, when Lou Yicong tried to cut in line, she told him, "Don't make me regret helping you."
At that moment, she truly regretted it.
He caused such a commotion as soon as he arrived. I should have had him stabbed to death yesterday!
Unlike Zhao Youchang, who, despite his distinguished background, deliberately concealed his identity, she was adept at skirting the rules. However, Lou Yicong was the only son of Magistrate Lou, and she could not afford to offend him.
How much are you willing to pay for me?
After trying her best to calm herself down, Song Li asked.
"Ten taels," Lou Yicong said.
He didn't have much money.
"What rank of maid am I, and how much is my monthly salary?" Song Li asked again.
“Although the money you receive for selling yourself isn’t much, you are a first-class maid, and your monthly salary will be one tael,” Lou Yicong said.
Qingzhu was shocked. She had just arrived and was already a first-class maid?! There was no precedent for this in the manor!
Lou Yicong also felt that he was very generous and sincere.
Seeing Lou Yicong's smug expression, as if she were a "first-class maid personally appointed by this young master," Song Li chuckled.
Suppressing her exasperation, Song Li continued, "How many dishes do I get every day? Is it four dishes and a soup, including one large meat dish, one small meat dish, and a soup?"
Lou Yicong was a little confused by the question.
He hadn't thought about that question yet.
Qingzhu was displeased. "I've been by your side since I was a child, and my daily meals always consist of three dishes and a soup. Why do you have one more dish than me?"
Ignoring the clueless young man, Song Li continued, "Do I have critical illness insurance?"
"If so, what level would it be?"
Is there any pension insurance?
"If so, what level would it be?"
"Will they handle housing allocation?"
How many days off per month?
How much is the overtime pay for working on rest days?
How much is the overtime pay for working on holidays?
"How many days are marriage leave, maternity leave, breastfeeding leave, and annual leave respectively? How many company-funded trips are there per year?"
A series of questions left Lou Yicong dizzy.
He only just realized how troublesome it was to buy a maid.
Isn't it enough to just sign a contract of servitude?
He was puzzled—he had only Qingzhu since he was a child, and his mother was just a concubine who didn't care about these things and had no right to do so. It was his legal mother and two legitimate sisters who were in charge of these matters.
Besides, he always thought these were mundane matters of the inner court, and that a man of stature should have ambitions beyond his hometown; getting involved in these things was a sign of no ambition.
Wait a minute, something's not right... Lou Yicong frowned.
This girl seemed to have asked him for a house just now?
He had to hide himself away, and his travel expenses were going to be spent on taking the imperial examinations. Where would he get a house? Where would he get the money to buy a house?
And what about insurance, rest days, overtime pay, and all sorts of leave...?
Lou Yicong thought it over carefully, and finally realized with dismay that she couldn't even order her maid around.
Lou Yicong fell silent.
Seeing his silence, Song Li smiled.
She knew that if she threw all these questions out at once, Lou Yicong's little brain, which only knew how to read classic texts, would crash.
"If you can't even afford these, how can you buy me?"
With a flick of her sleeve, Song Li gracefully turned and left.
Lou Yicong was left completely bewildered.
Beside her, Qingzhu was also deeply shocked. Seeing that her young master's complexion had improved, she asked hesitantly, "Young master, can I have breastfeeding leave?"
Song Li had just rattled off a whole bunch of things, which he didn't quite understand, but for some reason it felt wonderful, and he wanted it.
Unfortunately, he wasn't very bright and couldn't remember everything; he only vaguely remembered "breastfeeding leave."
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