"The two brothers went out together again!" The lady looked disappointed.
Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "Your Majesty can go to some social events on weekdays if you want to, and you don't have to go if you don't want to. But now that the New Year is approaching, some local officials have come back to Beijing early to pay their respects to the emperor, and you can't miss them."
The lady nodded: "I know that too. It's just that the house has been so busy these days that I feel a little reluctant to leave."
Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "It will be fine by the early summer of next year."
In the spring, provincial governors from all over the country would return to Beijing to report on their work. Given Xu Lingyi's status and position, he would have more social engagements.
"When the weather warms up in early summer next year, we will have plenty of places to go. Who would want him to accompany us?" The old lady smiled as if she didn't care, and the third lady came.
She wore a bright red jacket with ten kinds of brocade patterns, had her hair done in a peony bun, a red gold and jade headband, drew her eyebrows, put on powder and rouge, and dressed in a solemn and gorgeous manner.
It looked like the couple had had an argument... Only if they wanted to hide something would they pay special attention to that aspect... Could it be that he was beaten...
Eleventh Lady made a secret guess and stepped forward to greet the Third Lady.
The lady smiled and asked, "Where did you go?"
The third lady smiled and walked forward to the lady-in-waiting, saying, "It's cold, and I have nothing to do at home, so I sorted out my boxes." Then she looked down at her clothes and said, "I didn't expect to have such a beautiful jacket, so I took it out and put it on to see you. How is it? Is it okay?"
The lady looked her up and down and said, "It looks good. Such a bright dress will be great to wear during the New Year!"
"Really!" The third lady laughed, "Put it away when we get home, and take it out to wear during the New Year."
The lady pointed at the Third Lady and turned around to look at the Eleventh Lady standing behind her with a smile: "Look, you are taking this opportunity to complain to me and ask for new clothes to wear!"
Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "I wonder how many good things are stored in your storeroom. Why don't you take this opportunity to reward us with some? We can wear the clothes you reward us when visiting relatives during the New Year, and it will be face-saving." As she spoke, she pursed her lips and smiled.
As an old man with the ability, who wouldn’t want to be a money-giving boy and be liked by others?
The lady laughed and said to Mrs. Du beside her, "It's really hard to say."
"That's because you have so many good things that young people are jealous." Mother Du flattered the lady in a neither humble nor arrogant manner, which made people feel very comfortable.
The Madam was indeed very happy, and she told Wei Zi: "Go to the storehouse tomorrow and take out the new styles of zhuanghua and kesi that the palace awarded for them to choose from." She also said, "Call Danyang as well. Leave a few for Yizhen as well."
"Oh my!" The third lady's face was full of surprise, but a little exaggerated, "Thanks to my mother, now everything is fine!"
Eleventh Lady smiled: "It's too late for me to feel sorry for you!"
The lady just laughed.
Mother Du said, "Our lady has a lot of stuff. As long as you have the strength to move it away."
The Third Lady turned to Eleventh Lady and said with a smile: "This is great. We have to eat a few more bowls of rice."
This made everyone in the room laugh.
Just then, the three brothers Xu Siqin arrived and greeted everyone. They hurriedly asked what everyone was laughing at. Mother Du repeated what she had just said. Xu Sijian immediately said, "I want to make new clothes, too."
The third wife stretched out her slender finger and tapped her youngest son's forehead in dismay: "When did I ever lack your food and clothing?"
Xu Sijian hesitated.
Xu Siqin smiled and said, "There are mountains outside mountains. Who wouldn't want to see grandma's things? I want them too. It's just that I'm the oldest, so I'm embarrassed to ask."
The lady was so amused that she smiled widely: "That's right, that's right. Otherwise, why would your mother be obsessed with my things?"
Zhun Ge'er heard this and shouted in a baby voice: "I want grandma's things too!"
Everyone was laughing so hard that the atmosphere was very lively.
After dinner, the dowager still gave Xu Siqin and Xu Siyu many instructions before sending them out. Eleventh Lady, the Third Lady, and Xu Sijian waited until the wet nurse took Zhenjie and Zhunge to rest before they said goodbye to the dowager and left.
The old lady was getting old and was sleeping less and less. After closing the door at 11 pm, she did not go to bed immediately. She would often chat with Mama Du, Wei Zi, or Yao Huang, or play cards. Today was no exception. She just asked all the servants in the room to go to bed, leaving only Mama Du alone.
"Go and ask around." The kindness and amiability on the lady's face just now turned into shrewdness and competence. "Among the governors of the Five Military Governors' Office, besides the Fourth Brother, who else participated in the city patrol? Ask the chief steward Bai, who did the Third Brother settle accounts with last night? Ask the servants around the Third Brother, when did General Fan Weigang come back? Where did he listen to the opera? What opera did he listen to? When did the two gentlemen break up with Master Fan? When did they return to the mansion?"
Mother Du also changed her smiling face and replied "yes" with a serious expression.
At 1:00 am the next day, the lady washed her hands as usual and sat in the warm room in the east room of the Buddhist hall, copying the Heart Sutra.
Mother Du walked in quietly.
The lady sat upright, writing without even lifting her eyelids.
"how?"
Mother Du thought about the news she had received, and even though she was mature, she paused before speaking: "The people from the Five Military Governor's Office said that no one was arranged to patrol the city. Chief Steward Bai said that the third master was alone in the office the night before yesterday. The servant beside the third master said that General Fan came back the day before yesterday and invited the marquis to go to the opera. The marquis and the third master arrived at 3:30 pm, left at 1:00 pm, and returned to the mansion at 1:15 pm." She narrated everything she had heard as simply and without emotion as possible, but her voice lowered involuntarily.
The lady seemed not to hear it until she finished writing the last stroke. Then she looked up at Mother Du and said, "Frame this calligraphy and give it to the third son."
Mother Du bent down respectfully and replied "yes" respectfully.
The lady held out her hand.
Mother Du hurriedly helped the lady up.
The lady went to the main hall of the Buddhist temple, kowtowed three times to the enshrined Guanyin Bodhisattva, lit three sticks of incense, then stood up and went to the warm room with Mother Du.
"What did the third son's wife do last night?" The voice was very cold.
Mother Du had been with the Madam for nearly 40 years and knew her temper. Before coming, she had found out all the questions that the Madam might ask and had a draft in mind before she went back to the Madam. Therefore, although the Madam did not ask Mother Du about this matter, Mother Du had already asked about it secretly. Now that the Madam asked, it was not difficult to answer.
"I heard that she was doing needlework, waiting for the Third Master to come back. She didn't go to bed until the late afternoon."
"Where is the fourth son's wife?"
"Tell the night watch mother and Aunt Qiao's people to wait for the Marquis at the door. I will rest at around midnight as usual."
The lady had a thoughtful expression.
"Look, you don't know? Or are you able to keep calm?"
"I don't know." Mother Du knew the importance of the matter, and she became humble. "However, Wanxiang went to see the Fourth Madam a few days ago, and the Marquis went to patrol the city in the evening. This morning, the Marquis did not go directly to the court as usual, but went to the Fourth Madam's room and had breakfast there. I heard that when they were having breakfast, all the servants in the room retreated." After saying that, she thought for a while and whispered, "They are all people trained by Mother Tao. I can only find out a general idea. I can't find out more."
The lady nodded slightly after hearing this: "How does the fourth lady treat Madam Tao?"
"Not long after entering the house, the chief steward Bai from the outer courtyard pointed to Xiang Chou'er's maid who was feeding the horses in the stable to move things for the Fourth Madam. Not long after, Xiang's granddaughter, the one called Xiao Fangfei, was arranged to sweep the floor in the back garden. A few days later, she took the place of a married maid and was promoted to the second rank. Now she gets a monthly salary of 500 coins. Xiang was so grateful that she praised the Fourth Madam to everyone she met. She even made meat pies for her. She often interacted with Amber, who was in front of the Fourth Madam, and made shoes and socks for her. They were very affectionate."
The lady's lips curled up: "She is quite clever."
Mother Du couldn't tell whether the lady was praising the Fourth Madam or Xiang Po, so she could only smile vaguely and replied "Yes".
The lady sat back in the warm room and picked up a copy of the Diamond Sutra on the desk...
* * * * * *
Eleventh Lady sat on the big kang by the window, doing needlework, and the moon-white silk curtain hanging on the glass window was touched with a silver spoon, and the scenery outside the window was in full view. The white snow reflected the light of the orchid and shone on her body, outlining a slender but graceful outline like a tough willow.
Luyun tiptoed over, but found that the needle and thread in her hand had stopped at some point, and she was staring blankly at a half-embroidered camellia on the embroidery shed.
She hesitated for a while, then whispered, "Madam, the greenhouse worker is here to change the flowers."
Eleventh Lady said "Oh", sat up straight, her eyes regained their former agility, and she smiled warmly: "Let them in!"
Luyun replied "yes" in a low voice, and soon brought two maids in to pay their respects to Shiyi Niang. They replaced the camellia flowers in the room that were about to wither with wintersweet flowers that were half in bloom and half in bud.
There was immediately a faint fragrance in the room.
Eleventh Lady took a deep breath and asked the old woman, "Do you have any daffodils?"
The old woman smiled and said, "Of course there are some! But they haven't budded yet. If Madam wants to display the daffodils, I'll go talk to Sister Ji Ting and they'll be delivered in a couple of days."
When sending flowers to the greenhouse, it is important to leave them half-laid and half-waited. Those that have not yet formed buds cannot be brought in.
Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "It's okay, let her send me a few pots. It's the same if I take care of them myself."
The old woman immediately agreed, and together with another old woman, placed a holly tree in the corner, and asparagus fern and aloe on the flower table.
Amber came in, holding a blue and white vase with hibiscus in it.
"Madam, where do you think I should put it?" She looked at Eleventh Lady with a smile.
Eleventh Lady saw that the hibiscus was as big as a bowl, and it was bright red and bright, which made people feel warm. It was very festive to decorate the house full of green bamboo plants in winter. She smiled and looked around, then pointed to the window behind her and said, "Put it here!"
Amber responded by getting on the kang and placing the vase on the window behind Eleventh Lady, whispering, "Madam, you really guessed it right. There's something fishy about the replacement of the maid!"