Chapter 444 Leaving the House (Part 2)
The day Yi Yi died was the day Qiu Hong returned to her parents' home. Song Mama was the godmother, and she held a banquet at her home to entertain her new son-in-law. She also invited the couple of Chief Steward Bai, the couple of Steward Zhao, Mama Du, the couple of Wan Daxian, Amber's fiancé Guan Qing, Yanrong's fiancé Cao An, and others to accompany them.
After the greetings were exchanged, the new son-in-law stayed at Mother Song's house to entertain the guests. Qiuhong went to the inner courtyard to pay her respects to Shiyi Niang and Madam Wen.
Seeing Qiuhong, who was wearing a bright red burnt cloth bodice and bright red pomegranate silk flowers, walk in, Madam Wen's eyes became moist.
Bright red!
Without waiting for Qiu Hong to salute, she stood up and took Qiu Hong's hand, looked her up and down, turned around and smiled at Shiyi Niang, "Madam, look at this child, she is different now that she has grown up, she is more beautiful than before!"
Eleventh Lady wanted to have some fun with her. She smiled and said, "Qiu Hong was originally very beautiful. According to what you said, she is a new son-in-law who has been married for only three days, but she is more beautiful than if she had been raised by you for more than ten years."
Madam Wen naturally flattered Shiyi Niang: "This is also Madam's credit - if you hadn't married her to such a good family, how could she live such a good life." As she said this, she had already let go of Qiu Hong's hand, "Why don't you kowtow to Madam?" She added, "If it weren't for Madam, you wouldn't be where you are today. Now that you have a good life, don't forget Madam's kindness."
After she got married, she was the housekeeper. She was the first one in the Xu family with so many maids. Her husband was capable, and her mother-in-law said that she was the matchmaker of the Fourth Lady and the close servant of Wen Niang. She treated her better than other sisters-in-law. Although she had just married, she was consulted with them on everything, and there was a hint of respect for her. She was sincerely grateful to the Fourth Lady for giving her this honor. Before Wen Niang finished her words, she knelt down and kowtowed to Shiyi Niang respectfully.
Eleventh Lady got up and carried her.
Seeing this, Amber, who was standing by, hurried forward a few steps and helped Qiuhong up in front of Shiyi Niang.
"Don't listen to your aunt." Eleven Niang said with a smile, "She is a mortal who has three points of good, and she has to tell six points."
Qiuhong didn't dare to act casually in front of the two men, so she just nodded in agreement, which made all the servants in the room laugh.
Eleventh Lady knew that Mother Song and the others were still waiting for the new bride to come back so that they could start the feast. She said a few words to Liu Qiuhong and then served her tea.
After all, their feelings were different, so Madam Wen accompanied Qiuhong all the way to the Chuihua Gate before turning back.
When I entered the room, I happened to meet Huo Xiang, the new maid in Shiyi Niang's room, who was leading the famous big mouth to Shiyi Niang.
Aunt Wen was surprised: "What is this for?"
Xiang Pozi hurriedly stepped forward and bowed to her, smiling flatteringly, "Madam said that the courtyard of the third room is empty, and we need to find a few trustworthy people to help take care of the courtyard." Then, she pointed at Huo Xiang and said, "She asked this young lady to send me to question her!" Then she grinned and said, "I am lucky in my old age to have such a good job. I will kowtow to the fourth lady later, and hope that she will bless us to give birth to a young master!"
How did you find such a person!
Madam Wen snorted twice and returned to her own courtyard.
When she went to greet Eleventh Lady in the evening, she found out that Mrs. Xiang had already taken the job. She couldn't help but say, "Madam, why don't you ask someone? Mrs. Xiang is famous for her gossip. If she knows something, then the whole family knows it."
Eleventh Lady smiled and said, "I've heard that too. But her family is having a hard time. The third room has an empty yard, so I've already told her not to visit too often."
Since Eleventh Lady had made up her mind, Madam Wen didn't say anything more, but she still felt uneasy in her heart, so she told Amber and others about it in private.
Amber knew that Shiyi Niang had asked Xiang Pozi to come here just to ask her to pass on a message. But it was not easy to tell Madam Wen about this, so she agreed with a smile and told Shiyi Niang about Madam Wen's good intentions.
Two days later, Yanrong's mother came to take Yanrong out of the house.
Eleventh Lady rewarded her with a pair of red gold bracelets with a touch of oil, a pair of red gold lilac hairpins, and twenty taels of silver: "When you set a date for the wedding, remember to tell me. If you encounter any difficulties in the future, don't hide them, just come to me."
Yanrong's mother was very grateful and relieved. She had thought that Yanrong had done something wrong and was caught. Now it seemed that she was just being overthinking. She also thought that when she returned, she would show off these things to avoid being criticized.
Yan Rong thought that she had been preparing to become a first-class maid before leaving, but in the end, she failed. She also thought about the days she had been with the Fourth Madam. Although the Fourth Madam never said anything, she was fed and clothed like a first-class maid and never spared her. Thinking that she would not know if she would have the chance to see her again after leaving the mansion, her eyes turned red, and she knelt down and kowtowed three times before standing up.
There was a little maid looking out from outside Xiang Fei's curtain.
Amber walked over quietly.
"Cui Er said that Aunt Qin has a fever," the little maid whispered, "She wants Madam to ask a doctor to come over and take a look."
Yan Rong heard it clearly, and she understood a little. She knew she couldn't stay in this place any longer.
She winked at her mother, immediately said goodbye to Shiyi Niang, and left the yard with her mother.
Eleventh Lady asked Amber to take the cards to ask Doctor Liu: "He said that the aunt at home is sick, and asked him to send someone who knows how to do it."
Amber responded and left.
Dr. Liu sent a young man of about seventeen or eighteen years old over here.
The young man walked in with his face red and his head down, not daring to move his eyes, and kept his eyes on his steps: "Master Liu said that since it is my aunt who is ill, I can come. He also asked me to ask my wife, I don't know what disease my aunt has?"
No wonder this Doctor Liu is in charge of the Imperial Hospital.
Eleventh Lady said through the Xiangfei curtain: "She said she had a fever. It has come back several times. I think if it gets worse, I'm afraid we'll have to move to another courtyard to take shelter."
The young man murmured "yes" and followed the maid to Aunt Qin.
Aunt Qin felt that her illness was somewhat inexplicable.
She was obviously fine, but Cui'er said she felt hot. She touched it carefully and felt that it was indeed a little hot. This happened over and over again, and Cui'er suddenly turned pale: "Could it be that Auntie has malaria?"
Aunt Qin was also frightened, and hurriedly asked Cui'er to call a doctor.
When the doctor came, he said she had caught a cold, prescribed some medicine that had nothing to do with the itching, and then left.
Aunt Qin, you can't help but be nervous.
Could it be that I have malaria, and the doctor, under the instruction of Eleventh Lady, treated me as if I had a cold?
At this moment, she thought of Aunt Yi.
With her around, at least there's someone to talk to.
She had no choice but to tell Cui'er: "Don't make any noise, go get the medicine and boil it first."
But after the medicine was ready, Aunt Qin poured it all into the flower tree in the corner of the yard.
Two days later, Cui Er came in trembling, "Aunt, I had a fever this morning and again at noon, and now I feel a little hot again. Can you feel it for me?"
It's over, it's over, isn't this the malaria that the Second Madam mentioned before or something else? And it has also been passed on to Cui'er.
She grabbed Cui'er and said, "Quick, go tell the lady to ask her to invite Dr. Liu to come and see me!"
But before Shiyi Niang could invite Doctor Liu, the news had spread throughout the courtyard that Aunt Qin had contracted malaria and had infected Cui'er.
For a moment, everyone in the yard was in a state of unrest.
Madam Wen hurried to Eleventh Lady's place, but she didn't know that Yang was already there: "...Madam, this is not a joke. We are all easy to talk to, but you are pregnant."
Eleventh Lady raised her head and said to Madam Wen, "You came at the right time. I'm afraid I still need your help with this matter."
Aunt Wen said without hesitation: "Madam, please speak!"
Eleventh Lady ordered Amber to copy down the list of people serving in Aunt Qin's room and give it to Aunt Wen: "Aunt, please help move this matter to Junzixuan in the backyard. When Doctor Liu arrives, we will examine them one by one. Those who are infected will stay in Junzixuan for treatment first, and those who are not infected will live in Ziyuan next to Junzixuan for a few days, and then they will be at the Hou's disposal."
Junzixuan is in the back garden. When someone in the Xu family is sick, they are first moved there to stay for a few days. If they are not well, they are sent out of the house.
Madam Wen left immediately and within two hours, she had moved all the people on the list to Junzixuan.
Only then did Eleventh Lady breathe a sigh of relief.
He ordered Zhu Xiang and several other maids to spray the yard with lime, and then locked the place where Aunt Qin lived.
At night, Amber whispered to her, "Cui'er said she has a younger sister named Xing'er. This time, Manager Bai was selecting maids, and her mother and father sent her to the mansion. She wanted to ask Madam to show some mercy and send her to work in the needlework shop."
Maybe he's afraid that she'll go down his old path!
Although serving the master brings high monthly wages, respectability, and a high chance of marrying into a good family, there are also many chances of being blamed and implicated.
Eleventh Lady nodded slightly: "I understand!"
The next day, two doctors who claimed to be sent by Dr. Liu came to examine the patient.
First I examined people who were fine, and then I went to Junzixuan.
After a while, someone came to tell Eleventh Lady: "It seems to be malaria. Please make a decision as soon as possible, Madam."
Eleventh Lady immediately reported to the Dowager, and then instructed Chief Butler Bai to arrange a carriage and transfer people to the villa on Luoye Mountain at noon. She also asked Butler Zhao to help buy Polygonum multiflorum, Angelica sinensis, ginseng, and Chenpi, and asked the mother on the stove in the outer courtyard to add ginger to boil water for everyone in the mansion to drink.
This even alarmed the neighboring Hou Lin family in Weibei, and they specially sent Grandma Magdalene to ask.
"It's okay." Eleventh Lady comforted Grandma Lin, "Just in case."
Grandma Lin thought about it and simply asked for the prescription and went back to boil a large pot of medicine according to Shiyi Niang's method and distributed it to the people in the mansion. When the family of Duke Dingguo Zheng, who lived in the front, found out about it, they also sent someone to ask for the prescription and boiled water for the people in the family to drink.
Eleventh Lady couldn't help but mutter, "Fortunately it's Chinese medicine, and it's been diluted several times. Otherwise, it would be terrible if I really got sick from drinking it."
After two days of this, news came from Luoye Mountain.
Cui'er couldn't bear the pain and hanged herself.
Eleventh Lady was silent for a while.
The feeling of waiting is not pleasant, let alone the feeling of waiting to die...
This is a kind of relief for her! ******************