Chapter 129 Harvest (Part 1)
Seeing that Xu Lingyi attached great importance to this matter, Eleventh Lady hurriedly told her decision to select a maid with a good job for Xu Lingyi and have her send her to serve him after she had her review by the Madam Dowager.
Xu Lingyi listened to her quietly and said, "Why bother mother? Just make the decision yourself!"
His expression was indifferent, his tone was a little nonchalant, but the look in his eyes when he looked at her was brighter than usual.
Eleventh Lady's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately realized that Xu Lingyi was testing her...
Her heart was pounding.
Is it to gain Xu Lingyi's trust and thereby obtain greater freedom, more respect, and a more stable foundation, or to become a wife with an ambiguous face in Xu Lingyi's mind - this is an opportunity!
Eleventh Lady took a deep breath and smiled calmly, "I am young and know little, so I naturally have to rely on your experience. After all, Brother Yu is the eldest son in our family. He should be a role model for his younger brothers in the future, and he must not be careless in his moral conduct. Unfortunately, he is older now and lives alone in the outer courtyard, so it is not convenient for me to visit him. He only has servants around him day and night, so I can't afford to be negligent. Let you help Brother Yu choose a maid, and I can learn a little bit by watching. If there is such a thing in the future, I will have a plan in my mind, and I won't be as flustered as I am now."
As she spoke, she observed Xu Lingyi's expression.
His bright eyes gradually became warm, and his chin nodded twice.
Eleventh Lady breathed a sigh of relief.
Looks like I passed!
Her mood brightened and her smile became brilliant.
Xu Lingyi looked at the joy in Shiyi Niang's eyes, and felt a little uncomfortable in his heart as if he was "judging others by one's own standards".
It seems that I was wrong!
He thought that Shiyi Niang was using this opportunity to test his attitude. After all, she married to protect the interests of Zhege. The more incompetent Yuge was, the more favorable the situation was for Zhege. Just like how Yuan Niang doted on Yuge. If it weren't for the second sister-in-law who stepped in later, Yuge would have been even more useless than Zhege.
Thinking of this, Xu Lingyi couldn't help but look up at Shiyi Niang.
She sat quietly opposite him, her delicate eyebrows and eyes showing a serene expression, and her gentle smile generous and calm.
For a moment, he was confused.
The person in front of me...feels familiar yet strange!
Eleventh Lady on the opposite side noticed that Xu Lingyi was looking at her with a somewhat wandering gaze, and she smiled slightly.
Perhaps it was because their relationship was too different, Xu Lingyi didn't need or was too disdainful to restrain his emotions in front of her. He would often reveal some very real emotions, and she gradually figured out some of the clues.
Xu Lingyi was a typical feudal aristocratic man. He believed in "men are responsible for external affairs, women are responsible for internal affairs", so he would not mention the matter of Mi Mi to himself. Just like he let himself receive Mrs. Qiao without interfering, they each had their own responsibilities.
Despite this, Eleventh Lady couldn't guess why Xu Lingyi looked a little dazed.
He could stay still, but she didn't want to sit here with him and waste time.
Eleventh Lady smiled and pretended to fill his teacup with water.
Xu Lingyi came back to his senses. He smiled and said, "You have considered it very carefully. I will just do as you wish!"
Eleventh Lady smiled and said "yes", then asked Xu Lingyi for his opinion: "Should we ask Chunmo to come and help the Marquis change his clothes? It's almost the evening hour."
Xu Lingyi looked at her submissive look and made a decision.
He glanced at the clock in the west room and found that it was still early, so he told her, "Sit a little longer!"
Eleventh Lady naturally would not raise any objections and obediently sat opposite Xu Lingyi.
Xu Lingyi suddenly said, "The matter of mulberry rice has involved some of the managers. I'm having a headache right now."
Eleventh Lady had guessed this result long ago. She had been preparing a draft in her mind all night last night, thinking that if Xu Lingyi asked her, she would be able to give a simple, clear and well-organized answer to improve her standing in Xu Lingyi's eyes.
But if he answered too smoothly, he would reveal all his strength...
At this moment, when she heard Xu Lingyi asking her, she murmured in a low voice: "It's the same as what I guessed!"
Xu Lingyi raised his eyebrows slightly when he heard her answer, a little surprised: "You guessed it?"
Eleventh Lady nodded and said solemnly, "The Marquis is very strict with his subordinates, and distributing porridge is of great importance. Without the support of those prominent people, the servants would not have the courage to do it."
Xu Lingyi couldn't help but blush.
If the situation was really very strict, such a thing would not happen... But he always believed in "trust people when employing them, and don't employ people if you don't trust them", but he forgot that "human nature is never satisfied". As time went by, and the Xu Mansion was now in a prosperous situation, those who thought they were respectable in front of him could not help but become arrogant.
He said in a deep voice: "What do you think we should do about this matter?"
It was not a tone of negotiation, nor a tone of inquiry; it was just a statement of something.
Eleventh Lady guessed that he had already made up his mind, and now he just wanted to hear what she had to say. But she didn't want to agree with him. The two of them still had a long time to live together. If she kept guessing Xu Lingyi's thoughts and trying to figure out his intentions, she would lose herself sooner or later. What was the point of the freedom she had gained at this price?
Eleventh Lady had a thoughtful expression on her face. After a while, she said, "I will tell you what I am saying, and Your Majesty, please see if it makes sense."
"You say!" Xu Lingyi's expression was very casual.
Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "In my opinion, we should take advantage of the New Year when all the stewards have to go back to Beijing to pay their salaries to close the accounts. After the New Year, we can change the jobs of some stewards so that we can hand in the accounts in a legitimate way. I think the Marquis has already figured out the problems with those stewards. He is keeping an eye on those stewards and there will always be flaws in the accounts. Then we can use this as an excuse to replace a group of people. Even if the news gets out, it will be that the stewards were dishonest and had nothing to do with the porridge distribution, which will save the reputation of the Marquis's mansion."
Xu Lingyi's eyes gradually became solemn.
Unexpectedly, she actually said what was in her heart...
Looking at his young wife, who was still smiling, his voice became low: "Are we just going to let it go?"
Politics is all about compromise. A person who is skilled in applying politics actually showed an attitude of pursuing further. I asked her: "Are you just going to let it go like this?" . . . Eleventh Lady found it quite funny.
But her expression was serious.
"My Lord, you are porcelain, and those people are clay. We don't need to bother with them."
As the saying goes, one rotten apple spoils the whole pot of porridge. You spared them the trouble and made them lose their jobs. They are already single and don’t care about clothes. Besides, our family is big and prosperous, so it is inevitable that there will be unfilial children and grandchildren. When the time comes, they will find any evidence to hold them accountable. We have no right to make up for the loss, so let’s just let them go.”
"But do you know that this matter also involves the Third Master?"
This was something Eleventh Lady had vaguely felt.
Without a tiger flag like the Third Master, how could those cunning and treacherous stewards obey orders? Or maybe they turned a blind eye and pretended not to see it, Lord Hou, I'm afraid there is some misunderstanding! Thinking that the Third Master is Xu Lingyi's brother, even if there are thousands of mistakes, it is not her turn as the sister-in-law to complain, so she advised insincerely, "The Third Master has been in charge of the family business for so many years, if he wanted to do something, he would have done it long ago. Besides, the amount of glutinous rice is not much, and the silver is not much, it is really not worth it. Lord Hou, you'd better think about it again!"
Xu Lingyi's eyes showed annoyance when he heard this: "He admitted it himself?"
Eleventh Lady understood a little in her heart.
I'm afraid he was just trying to defend the Third Madam...the husband and wife are one, and slapping the Third Madam in the face is the same as slapping the Third Master in the face.
"Master Hou, Aunt Qiao only drank some porridge yesterday morning!"
Xu Lingyi was stunned.
He didn't understand why Eleventh Lady suddenly brought this up.
However, Eleventh Lady did it on purpose, using this incident as a metaphor to give Xu Lingyi a shot of defense - and even if Xu Lingyi suspected something, as a woman, she had limited knowledge, so she could only use the people and things around her as an analogy!
"If someone says that I am sweet on the outside but bitter on the inside to Aunt Qiao, and that Aunt Qiao is so angry that she can't even eat, what will the Marquis do?"
Xu Lingyi showed a clear expression.
Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "Whether it is true or not, I am still the wife of the Marquis. You will naturally protect me in front of outsiders. Even in front of your brothers, I think it is the same. No matter how wrong the Third Lady is, she is still the wife of the Third Master. If something like this happens, the Third Master will probably be ashamed and mortified, and will only blame himself for not managing the family strictly. How can he think of making excuses?"
This is what she really thinks.
She didn't believe that Xu Lingning would do such a thing for such a few dollars. After all, he was in charge of tens of thousands of dollars!
Xu Lingyi said nothing, but did not object.
Eleventh Lady knew that she had hit upon the subject of his worries, and decided to continue giving him some advice in accordance with his wishes.
"Speaking of which, since Third Sister-in-law became the head of the family, everyone has praised her for her smartness and ability. It goes without saying that Third Master has been helping the housekeeper for the past few years. You know it best. Mother is now living a long life because the family is harmonious and peaceful. Not to mention that we are now the prince's in-laws, so we must set an example. We should try not to divide the family if we can. Even if we have to divide the family, we cannot do it with complaints. Third Sister-in-law is so anxious about the glutinous rice, and I don't know if it's for a breath of air or for money. But no matter what it is, you have to have a frank talk with Third Master. Let's see what Third Master and Third Sister-in-law think. If it's for money. Forgive me for saying something unpleasant. "There are so many people out there who have taken advantage of your influence to get promoted and make money. You should take care of your own brothers. If it's just for the sake of a fight, everyone can talk it out and the anger will slowly fade away. In short, it's most important for the family to live together in harmony. Not to mention Qin Ge'er and Jian Ge'er. If the older generation is unhappy, don't bring it to the next generation. The more the resentment accumulates, the more it will make outsiders laugh at it. As the saying goes, neighbors will bully a couple who are not in harmony. A family like ours cannot afford to lose ground on this. Mother has experienced everything, why is she willing to be a fool? I'm afraid she has this idea in mind. The Marquis should be even more cautious!"
Xu Lingyi looked at Shiyi Niang, his face full of shock.
At this moment, the third master Xu Lingning was looking at his wife Gan with a face full of shock.
"You, you still have the nerve to admit it?" As he said that, he raised his hand and slapped his wife on the face.
Gan covered her face with her hands, her eyes full of astonishment: "You, you hit me..."
Xu Lingning looked at the red marks gradually appearing on his wife's face, feeling regretful, angry, ashamed and depressed.