Chapter 69 Chapter 69 He was really hurt by her.
People living in the back alleys of Nanfu Street rarely pay attention to Jasmine, so Jasmine naturally won't take the initiative to go up and say hello.
To be precise, the people living on this street never visit each other.
But today was special. The beautiful woman who lived next door was standing at the door. She looked at her and asked, "Are you okay?"
The concern in my eyes cannot be false.
Jasmine shook her head. "No problem. Thank you, my lady."
The woman didn't reveal her origins, let alone her name, and certainly didn't ask Jasmine. She simply pressed the jar into her hands again and said, "It's quite effective. Try it. They might come after you tomorrow, so stay home if you can. People of our status aren't suited to being in the spotlight."
Jasmine didn't say anything else, just nodded and said, "Thank you."
After returning to their courtyard and closing the gate, Shancha asked, "What does she mean? What does 'our status' mean?"
When she first moved in, Jasmine was not sure, but when she learned that the alley was called Nanfu Street Back Alley, Jasmine suddenly realized.
The Duke once mentioned to her that the concubines in the back alleys of Nanfu Street all wore gold and silver jewelry, and she was deeply impressed by this statement.
The lady living next door was probably a concubine from outside the household, and she must have considered her a fellow traveler.
Seeing her being chased and beaten, he guessed it was the wife's doing. As they were both wanderers in this world, that's why the lady took care of her.
Jasmine didn't need to explain to anyone. She returned to her room and told Shancha her guess.
Jasmine opened the lid and sniffed the jar; it was a delicate, medicinal scent. She let Shancha apply the cream to her, then she applied it to Shancha.
The maids around the eldest young lady were truly formidable. Jasmine's arms were bruised from being scratched, her hair was pulled, and she even accidentally scratched her face, leaving two bloody marks.
Shancha and Cuizhu fought each other, and Shancha had several cuts on his face.
Of course, the girls who fought against them were even worse off than them.
Jasmine decided to take a different route tomorrow. She would have to be more cautious on her return. Shancha tucked a pair of scissors into her pocket.
Jasmine was horrified, snatched it away and threw it away.
"Ma'am, what are you doing?"
"What are you doing?" Jasmine scolded her loudly, "If we were in front of people, would you dare to do it?"
Shancha wanted to say "I dare" stubbornly, but in front of her wife, there was no need to pretend. So she kept silent.
Jasmine continued, "You don't dare to do it, but there's a very real possibility that you might accidentally do it. Then you'll be dead, and no one will be able to save you."
Shancha was so frightened that she dared not move. With a sad face, she said, "My dear, I was wrong."
The two of them stared at each other in the room for a while, and then decided to go to the yard to get some fresh air.
Biyue Xiyue was idle the whole day, and only started to get busy when she saw them come back.
Jasmine and Shancha both noticed it, but they were not in the mood to pick a fight with them today.
...
The Duke's Mansion.
When the eldest young lady and her group returned covered in dust, it was time for dinner.
Now, that concubine was the scoundrel everyone in the Duke's Mansion hated. The eldest young lady's wife couldn't wait to go back and change her clothes. As soon as she entered the living room, she burst into tears, "Mother, did you know that the slave girl had confessed? She's been so hypocritical to everyone, just pretending. We've really been fooled by her!"
The eldest young lady didn't say why Jasmine had deceived her. The old lady knew about it, but she didn't expose that it was the eldest young lady who had used her first. After all, the eldest young lady and she were from the same mansion.
Not only did she not expose the truth, the old lady even made it clear that she was on the side of the eldest young lady's wife: "Could the faces of the girls behind you also be related to her?"
The eldest young lady glanced at Cuizhu and the others behind her and nodded hurriedly: "Yes, she was the one who scratched me."
The old lady looked at the eldest young lady with a look of disgust, as if she was "nothing." "There are so many of you, and you were tickled by her? You are all useless."
The eldest young lady was unconvinced: "You didn't see how powerful her claws were. But this time, we were evenly matched, and she didn't get any better. If Fourth Sister-in-law hadn't stopped her, she wouldn't have been able to escape."
Seeing the old lady's gaze coming towards her, the Fourth Young Master's wife hurriedly explained, "She said she would report it to the authorities. I was indeed afraid. How could we lose face in Jingzhao Prefecture?"
"The fourth daughter-in-law is very considerate." Then, the old lady went on to scold the eldest daughter-in-law, implying that she was stupid.
"There are so many ways, but you chose the dumbest one. If the fourth son's wife hadn't stopped you today, would you still be planning to kill someone in the street?"
The master stood up and spoke for the eldest young lady's wife: "Mother, you know Youwei's temper best. She won't do that."
"I know this, don't I? Do I need Dalang to remind me?"
The old man smiled innocently and said nothing.
After the meal, the old lady consoled the Duke: "Erlang, now you know the true face of this woman, right? Fortunately, she didn't have any children. She only lived in the mansion for a year, and she left before she made any serious mistakes. Otherwise, our Duke's Mansion would be in great trouble."
The Duke nodded solemnly as always, "Mother is right." He looked at the eldest young lady's wife and said, "She no longer has any connection with the Duke's Mansion. If you seek her out, it will only give someone with ulterior motives a handle on the Duke's Mansion. Please think twice."
The eldest young lady's wife hurriedly said, "Don't worry, Duke. I won't go looking for her again and cause trouble for myself."
The Duke nodded again, then bowed to the old lady and took his leave.
"Go ahead. Remember to drink less."
The Duke said: "Chun Li is busy today and is not here. Zi Fu will not drink."
"That's good, that's good."
An hour after the Duke left, the old lady found out that the Duke really hadn't drunk any alcohol. She wondered if he had really been drinking just to accompany Deputy General Han.
"Could it be that I am wrong?"
Nanny Qian knew what the old lady was thinking. Standing beside her, she whispered, "Just now, the eldest young lady scolded the concubine so much, saying that she was also seriously injured. If the Duke cares about this, how could he remain indifferent? I guess we are really overthinking it. Look, he was drinking for the past few days, but today, as soon as Deputy General Han was not around, the Duke stopped drinking. It's obvious that he is really doing this for Deputy General Han."
The old lady nodded: "Then I feel relieved."
...
No one in the Duke's Mansion knew that the Duke had climbed over the wall and left.
The Duke hadn't originally intended to leave, so what did that woman have to do with him? He had made it clear to her that they would have nothing to do with each other from now on.
But as the night deepened and everyone was asleep, he became more and more puzzled. Has she really been pretending every day for the past year or so?
She pretended to deceive the eldest young lady and others, and also deceived him.
He really wanted to ask her, isn't she tired? Why?
He must get an answer.
Standing in front of the small courtyard door in the back alley of Nanfu Street, the Duke paused while knocking on the door.
It's really late.
The Duke was planning to leave and come back tomorrow.
There were quick footsteps inside, and then the door behind him opened.
"Master, why are you here?"
The Duke was puzzled that she had discovered him again. He didn't ask about such an insignificant matter. He turned around and was about to speak when he saw the ointment covering half of her face.
There was a handkerchief tied around her wrist, which reminded the Duke of Guo that his concubine had broken her arm twice before.
"You and the eldest young lady fought, so I guess you used quite a bit of force?"
Jasmine asked, "Are you here to call me to task?"
Jasmine said aggrievedly, "It was the eldest young lady who provoked me first. Look, there are two cuts on Jian'er's face. And his hand is injured too."
Jasmine swiftly raised the hand with the handkerchief tied on it to show her grandfather.
The Duke glanced away from her claws, ignoring her words and said solemnly, "I only came here to ask you one thing."
Jasmine nodded: "When my master asks, I will tell him everything I know."
The Duke looked at her calmly and said, "Have you been pretending all this year?"
Jasmine quickly shook her head: "No."
"How dare you say no?" The Duke scolded sternly, "You are pretending to be flattering and insincere. You are clearly a fierce and stubborn person, but you pretend to be weak and vulnerable, innocent and simple. If you say no again,
The Duke was clearly furious. Jasmine felt like she was going to be chopped to pieces if she dared to argue again.
But he was not someone else. Jasmine was not afraid of him.
Jasmine was just heartbroken; he was truly hurt by her.
She didn't know what to do.
then--
The Duke was grabbed around the waist again and held tightly.
The Duke was so heartbroken that he couldn't express it in words. He said with a stern face, "How could I have ever agreed to let a woman like you stay? I was blind."
As soon as she finished speaking, Jasmine was pushed away by an unexpectedly strong force. The Duke grabbed her shoulders and asked her, "Let me ask you one last question. If today's incident hadn't been exposed, how long would you have kept pretending?"
Jasmine's eyes were filled with tears as she said truthfully, "A lifetime."
After getting the answer, the Duke let her go and turned around and walked away.
Jasmine leaned against the door frame and cried bitterly.
Many heads popped out from around.
The lady next door watched the man and the horse disappear, and then she quickly walked to Jasmine's side.
"You should have thought of it earlier. He's just looking for something new. How long can he love you? You'd better take better care of yourself."
Although she gave herself the best ointment, Jasmine was too lazy to pay attention to her at this time. She wiped her eyes, walked into the door without saying anything, and slammed it shut.
Only the beautiful lady and her servant were left outside the door.
The maid outside stared at the closed gate and angrily said to her wife, "My wife, why should we care about such a heartless and rude person?"
The pretty lady said, "She is nothing but a pitiful creature."
Jasmine, who was inside the room, heard this and became even angrier. But who told her to accept someone else's things? It was not right to go out and argue with them.
She cursed inwardly, "You are the pitiful one, pitiful for eight lifetimes!" Then she angrily threw her sleeves and went into the house.
Biyue Xiyue stood out from the chicken coop and glared at the house angrily.
"This is the second time I've had a secret meeting with a man in the middle of the night! I have to tell the master! He hasn't come in the past two days."
Xiyue: "I will go back to the mansion tomorrow. I must tell the Master and Madam about this."
"Um."
...
The next day, as soon as Jasmine and Shancha went out, Xiyue also went out.
Today, when Jasmine went to work, she was scolded by the shopkeeper again.
Jasmine knew she was wrong and kept bowing her head to apologize. As luck would have it, she was seen by the eldest young master's wife again.
The eldest young lady came here to pick a fight, but she didn't expect that before she could even do anything, the concubine had already been scolded.
The eldest young lady was very happy. She made a proud tour around, walked up to Jasmine, asked her to help her pack, and asked her to help her put the things in the car. Before leaving, she threw her two golden beans.
The golden bean rolled from Jasmine's face to the ground and rolled a long way. Jasmine quickly squatted down to pick it up.
The eldest young lady's wife hadn't expected her to be angry. Feeling bored, she lowered the curtain and ordered the driver to leave.
Jasmine picked up the golden beans and carefully put them into the purse in her arms before entering the shop.
The shopkeeper was worried and pulled her to a corner to teach her a lesson: "Did you really remember this?"
Jasmine nodded hurriedly: "I know I was wrong. I really won't dare to do it again next time."
The shopkeeper had never seen anyone as shameless as her. There was no guilt on her face, but she apologized very quickly.
"If you do it again next time, I will never let you go."
The shopkeeper said this and turned away.
Jasmine glanced at the shopkeeper's back and thought to herself, "I'll have to be more careful next time. Other shopkeepers are eager to sell defective items, but here, if she sells them, she'll be criticized."
Jasmine didn't worry at all. After all, she could get at least three taels of silver from the sale today.
"Here comes the chief manager!"
Someone shouted, and Jasmine looked towards the door. She saw several fairies surrounding a big fairy wearing a Xiangfei veil and entering the door. They then went up to the second floor in a grand procession.
Jasmine noticed with her sharp eyes that the shopkeeper followed the crowd upstairs with a shy smile on his face.
Jasmine frowned. Why did the head shopkeeper come today?
She is so unlucky.
Yao'er and Shancha surrounded her, one on each side. Yao'er asked worriedly, "Will the shopkeeper report you to the head shopkeeper?"
Shancha became even more worried and asked, "What will happen if I file a complaint?"
Yao Er: "They might be kicked out. I've only been here half a year, and I heard several people were kicked out before. But they were stealing. I don't know what they'll do to you."
Jasmine prepared for the worst. She also decided that if she was kicked out, she would at least get her wages back.
This shop was wealthy and powerful, so logically speaking, it wouldn't give her any trouble. But if it did, don't blame her for being difficult.
"They're coming down!" Shancha said, and quickly retreated to her own position.
As expected, a pair of silver-white silk shoes embroidered with rust-red peonies stopped in front of Jasmine.
Jasmine raised her eyes and saluted, "Boss."
"No need to be so formal." Yuan Liangliang arched his brows and said, "Today I have a favor for you. The phoenix hairpin that Madam Lu bought has a feather that's not fine enough. Madam Lu is a regular customer, and we can't let her down. Go and exchange it."
As Yuan Liangliang spoke, Xiangdai beside her handed the box to Jasmine.
The box was open, and inside lay a golden double-phoenix hairpin.
Jasmine hesitated for a moment before taking the box without saying anything.
She wanted to make a loss, so what was it to her? Since she didn't say it out loud, there was no need for her to do anything unnecessary.
Jasmine nodded: "Don't worry, Master, I'll be there right away."
Yuan Liangliang: "Go quickly and come back soon."
It was early in the morning that I sold the defective phoenix hairpin to Mrs. Lu.
All goods entering the store had to be checked again, and everyone discovered this fish that had slipped through the net.
Since it is a defective item, the customer must be informed first and the item can be sold at a discount if the customer is willing.
It happened that Mrs. Lu came in hurriedly. Jasmine was counting the items and didn't want to count them again, so she was a moment late in paying attention to Mrs. Lu.
Mrs. Lu refused to buy it and called her deaf. Jasmine, of course, continued to greet her with a warm and friendly smile, but she directly recommended the phoenix-head gold hairpin to Mrs. Lu, who happily bought it at full price.
When Jasmine arrived at Lu's house with the double phoenix-headed golden hairpin, Lu's house was holding a grand banquet.
After the blunder at the Eighth Princess' birthday banquet, Jasmine always walked in through the front door. The concierge at the Lu Mansion recognized her as a waitress from Concubine Liang's clothing shop and warmly welcomed her in.
Jasmine didn't dare to inquire further. She simply entered the courtyard and took a closer look. The doorman then took the initiative to explain to her, "Sister, you may not know, but today is our old lady's birthday. Gifts are being presented in the house right now."
Jasmine nodded to show that she understood.
The concierge took her to the flower hall and said, "Sister, please wait a moment. I will go and ask the lady to come over."
Jasmine saw the doorman walking towards the living room on the right.
The female guests in the guest hall were laughing and making noises, while Jasmine waited obediently. Just as she was about to take a sip of water from the cup on the table, she suddenly heard a delicate cry: "Madam, what good intentions are you having!"
Mrs. Lu explained, "I don't know... I heard my mother liked it yesterday, so I lined up in front of Concubine Liang's clothing store before dawn to buy it. There's no way it could be a problem. How could it be a problem?"
"What do you mean, Madam? Are you saying that I have wronged you?"
The old man snorted, "It's my eldest daughter-in-law who has to work so hard."
"Mother, that's not what I meant." Madam Lu pointed at the concubine, "It's you, it must be you who did it..."
"Mrs. Lu."
Jasmine spoke loudly, stepped forward and saluted Madam Lu, successfully interrupting Madam Lu's words.
Mrs. Lu turned to look at her blankly.
Jasmine looked apologetic and smiled faintly, "Please forgive me, Madam. The phoenix hairpin you bought this morning was a defective item from the shop. I was so busy that I didn't notice it. To make up for my mistake, the shop will give you a double-phoenix hairpin. You don't have to pay the difference, just give me the defective one."
Jasmine said as she opened the box for Madam Lu to look at.
A sharp-eyed lady noticed it and exclaimed, "Is this double-phoenix hairpin a new product from Concubine Liang's clothing shop?"
Jasmine smiled and nodded to the lady.
Mrs. Lu was overjoyed and excitedly took Jasmine's hand: "Thank you, today is all thanks to you!"
Jasmine hurriedly said that she was the one who was wrong.
Mrs. Lu still thanked her and signaled her personal maid to send her off.
Jasmine walked out of the living room and could still hear voices coming from the room behind her.
Mrs. Lu felt much more confident. The concubine apologized to her, and the old man was also grateful to her. Everyone praised Mrs. Lu and congratulated the old man.
Mrs. Lu's maid brought a bag of silver ingots to Jasmine.
The maid said excitedly, "Thanks to the maid for coming to the door in time today, otherwise my wife would have been ridiculed by others."
"It's all my fault."
The maid told her not to say that.
Jasmine got on the carriage, and as the carriage drove away, she saw the maid still standing in front of the door, watching her go.
Back at the shop, Jasmine returned the flawed phoenix hairpin.
Yuan Liangliang asked, "Did you see anything interesting when you went there?"
Jasmine didn't expect her to know. "How did the shopkeeper know?"
Yuan Liangliang smiled proudly: "I only know that today is the birthday of the old lady of the Lu family, and the phoenix-head hairpin that Mrs. Lu bought was intended as a gift for her. It seems that you sent it just in time."
The matter had been perfectly resolved. Jasmine confessed without burden, "I deliberately sold the phoenix hairpin to Madam Lu. If I hadn't gone today, Madam Lu would have been scorned by everyone in the mansion. Madam Lu didn't mean to scold me; she was just too impatient. I made the mistake first, and I will correct it in the future. Please, Master Shopkeeper, give me another chance."
Yuan Liangliang raised his eyebrows in surprise: "You are very flexible and have a bright future."
The shopkeeper standing nearby turned pale and knelt down, saying, "Please, Master, don't replace me!"
Yuan Liangliang gestured to Xiangdai to help her up: "Why should I take your place? We are short of manpower. Although you are a little honest, you are my confidant. Get up quickly."
The shopkeeper then burst into tears of joy, kowtowed and got up.
Yuan Liangliang turned to Moli and said, "Where were we just talking? Yes, you have a bright future. But you were also deeply wrong. Madam Lu doesn't deserve your sympathy at all. The reason we're asking you to make amends is because Madam Lu is our regular customer and our money."
It was a rare opportunity for the Imperial Concubine to leave the palace, so she was incredibly energetic. She continued, "Just think about it. Today, she bought a defective item from us. If she finds out, she might never set foot in our shop again. That would be a huge loss for us. If word gets out, we'll have a lot more customers. We don't need to risk everything for that one phoenix hairpin. Madam Lu is not only a customer of our shop, but after this experience, she'll definitely be a regular customer of yours in the future. You have to play the long game to catch the big fish, don't you understand?"
Jasmine nodded to show that she understood.
Not long ago, Jasmine was feeling anxious and worried, but now she is calm and composed.
The next day, Madam Lu came again. Not only did she bring cakes made in her house to everyone in the shop, she also specifically asked Jasmine to recommend some good things.
She buys whatever Jasmine points out.
Finally, they packed up and took away a carriage.
When she was about to leave, Jasmine stood at the door to see her off. Madam Lu whispered to her, "Jasmine is the concubine of the Duke's Mansion, right?"
Without waiting for Jasmine to speak, she continued, "I understand. Being a concubine to the Duke is not as good as being a commoner's wife. If the He family regrets it, don't worry, I will find you a good wife in the future."
Without waiting for Jasmine's response, Madam Lu got on the carriage with the help of her maid. Madam Lu waved at her, "Go back."
Jasmine watched the carriage go away, and suddenly she thought of many people. She hated everyone who had hurt her and wanted revenge.
But in fact, it’s not a bad idea to take a step back.
She thought of the chief shopkeeper again.
Jasmine decided to follow the instructions of the chief shopkeeper from now on.
After getting off work, Jasmine thought about her impulsive behavior today, and the more she thought about it, the more she regretted it.
How could she not regret it! Before the head shopkeeper left, he asked the younger shopkeeper to inform her that the loss she suffered at Madam Lu's place would be deducted from her monthly salary.
No additional refund will be made.
In other words, she didn't get a penny of her monthly salary!
Fortunately, I don't have to pay for it myself. This is the only way Jasmine can comfort herself.
Fortunately, she had received two gold beans from the eldest young lady's wife and a bag of silver from Madam Lu today. These were much more than her monthly salary.
Jasmine refused to let herself down. She put her hands behind her back and went out to call Biyue and Xiyue, "Kill a chicken for me tonight. No, two. One for soup and one for roasting."
"Okay. I'll catch the chicken right away."
"I'll go boil some water."
The two of them immediately got busy.
Jasmine turned around, took two steps and turned back again. She always felt that these two people today were different from before.
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