Chapter 37: The Money-Saving Plans of the Young Ladies
The girls arrived at Xunfang Pavilion. As soon as they walked to the door, they saw a bright girl in a goose yellow dress coming out. It was Fan Wenxi, the only daughter of the eldest wife of the Fan family.
Xu Nian watched Fan Wenxi's every move and sighed silently, this is what a noble lady in ancient times should look like.
And then Xu Nian truly felt what the difference between legitimate and illegitimate daughters meant. Just like the two young ladies in the county magistrate's family, although they are sisters, they each have their own circles, and the legitimate daughter would not bother to play with the illegitimate daughter.
Fan Wenxi prepared various spices for everyone. Since the Empress Dowager in the palace liked to burn incense, the children of officials all knew how to make incense to some extent.
Xu Nian was also very curious. She had made her own perfume in a workshop before, but this was her first time making incense.
"Sister Xu, do you know what these are?"
Seeing that it was Liu Ping who asked the question, Xu Nian shook his head calmly.
"I don't know. Sister Liu, please explain it to me."
Liu Ping paused with a smile on her face, and began to murmur in her heart.
"Is she stupid? Can't she hear that I'm being sarcastic?"
In Xu Nian's eyes, they were just children. She would not care even if they said something a little too much, let alone if it was just a subtle mockery.
After all, they were both shy girls, so Liu Ping couldn't say anything more and had to explain everything to Xu Nian with a pinched nose.
"Oh, why are you so stupid? I told you to use half an ounce of cloves and half an ounce of linden, but you've already used almost half a pound. Who are you trying to kill?"
Xu Nian looked at the spices in the small spoon in her hand, and the corners of her mouth twitched. She felt that Liu Ping was just taking revenge, but she had no evidence.
Fan Wenxi heard the noise and came over to pat Liu Ping in a reproachful manner. Liu Ping, who was originally happy to see Xu Nian embarrassed, said: "......"
After attending this birthday party, the girls who were originally strangers to each other became much more familiar with each other.
Wu Ziqing is a typical lady from a wealthy family with a quiet personality; although Fan Wenxi is only thirteen years old, she is the leader among these girls and is very convincing; as for Liu Ping, she acts completely based on her own likes and dislikes, and Xu Nian thinks she is the simplest one.
After leaving Fan's house, Xu Nian breathed a sigh of relief. She was exhausted from attending this birthday banquet. She felt a headache when she thought about having to come here again to learn all kinds of rules in the future.
What Xu Nian didn't know was that her expression was seen by Luo Jinan in the carriage opposite.
Luo Jinan was originally going to take a medicinal bath in the hot springs at Lingshan Temple today, but Mo Yu, who had gone to deliver a gift to Old Madam Mei, came back and said that he saw Miss Xu also go to the Fan Mansion. Luo Jinan changed his clothes and came to the gate of the Fan Mansion. Only after arriving here did he realize that he had been a little rash.
Looking at Xu Nian, who was wearing thin clothes opposite him, Luo Jinan suddenly felt that he had been negligent.
“Return to Lingshan Temple”
Mo Yu was puzzled. Didn't the prince come here in a hurry just to see Miss Xu? Why did he want to go back now? However, she would not dare to ask even if she had two more courage.
Xu Nian went back to the county government with Tian Shi without knowing anything.
That evening, Xu Nian received a bright red cloak. When Mrs. Xu told him that the girl who delivered the gift said her last name was Mo, Xu Nian immediately knew who sent it.
Tian looked at the cloak in her daughter's hand and asked curiously, "Who sent it?"
"Sent from Changsheng"
Tian patted her daughter and said, "Don't be so rude. When you meet me in the future, you should address me as Lord Prince."
Xu Nian said helplessly: "Yes, yes, yes"
"Nian'er, the prince has sent us a lot of gifts. Shouldn't we return some gifts? Although we don't have anything valuable, we can't be impolite."
Xu Nian still agrees with this point.
"Don't worry, mother. I'll take care of this matter."
The next day, Xu Nian packed up her things and returned to Wanying Village. Tian stood in front of the door and watched her daughter leave reluctantly.
Xu Nian went to the carriage shop and rented a horse-drawn carriage. She didn't want to ride in a convertible in this kind of weather. On the way back, she was still thinking about asking her uncle to convert the family's flatbed truck into a van.
Xu Weian, who had no idea of the situation, was muttering about Xu Nian at home.
"I don't know when Nian'er will come back. When Nian'er is not at home, my mother gets more and more anxious every day."
Xu Fugui and his friend, who were sitting nearby packing up farm tools, agreed in their hearts but did not dare to join in. If their mother heard it, they would be the ones to be beaten. Every time the younger brother poked the basket, he would run away the fastest.
"Second brother, third brother, please say something too."
The two people who were called chuckled and continued with their work.
"Alas, the little bit of flesh I just gained has been lost again. I wonder if Nian'er will feel sorry for me as his uncle when he comes back."
The two brothers Xu Fugui chuckled. They couldn't help but think of the scene where the elder girl ordered the younger brother around in circles. Sure enough, the one who could control the younger brother was the elder girl.
Speak of Cao Cao and he will appear.
Xu Nian started shouting before even entering the yard.
"Uncle, uncle, please come out for a moment."
Xu Weian, who was chattering in the yard, was startled when he suddenly heard the shout.
He stood up and ran out of the yard, and Xu Fugui and the other man followed him.
"Uncle, come here and take a good look at this carriage. Let's modify our cart to look like this tomorrow."
Xu Nian pulled Xu Weian aside and instructed him one by one. She originally wanted to buy finished products, but she had no idea that an ordinary carriage in northern Xinjiang would cost several taels of silver.
Xu Nian's financial management principle is to save where possible and spend where possible. She has an uncle who is a carpenter at home, so Xu Nian tried to get close to the driver along the way and even gave him an extra ten cents for the rental fee. She was very happy thinking about the money she saved.
Xu Weian stiffly followed Xu Nian as they walked around the car. Not only that, she also asked him to look under the car carefully to make sure he didn't waste her ten cents.
The two brothers Xu Fugui who came over saw Xu Weian squirming under the car.
The two brothers: "..."
Xu Nian saw the two uncles and greeted them with a smile.
"Uncle 2, Uncle 3, my uncle wants to convert our flatbed truck into a van. He is still learning how to do it. My grandma is so foresighted. With my uncle around, our family can save a lot of money."
Xu Fugui and Xu Youliang couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"It's still the eldest girl who knows how to live."
"Your uncle knows a lot."
For a moment, the world was filled with only Xu Weian injured.
Despite this, Xu Weian still spent a week to make a carriage that satisfied Xu Nian. This is a story for another time.
That evening, Wang was delighted to see her granddaughter return, so she cooked a table full of delicious dishes. She even cooked several dishes of the vegetables that she had originally been reluctant to eat in order to sell them for money.
Xu Weian watched in amazement.
"Nian'er, you'd better not go out in the future. Don't you know what your uncle eats when you are not around?"
As soon as the words fell, Wang pulled out a chopstick.
"Eating won't stop you from eating. Hurry up and finish your meal and get back to your work."
Xu Weian said aggrievedly: "Even animals need time to catch their breath..."
For a while, the dining table was filled with the Xu family's laughter and chatter.