Chapter 541 A Dream of Youth 73
Seeing this, Granny Zhang didn't force her. She just watched Xie Ning carefully put on her clothes before going out to call Qingli to bring Xie Ning a basin of hot water. Then she went to the kitchen to get the steamed egg custard herself.
"Sister, why didn't you wake me up just now?" Qingli's face was a little red, and she felt a little uneasy. She had been sleeping for a long time.
Xie Ning took the hot towel, glanced at the dark circles under Qing Li's eyes, and still instructed, "You don't need to stay up so late tonight to study. Take your time. If you don't understand something, just ask me."
Qingli felt a lump in her throat. She was a little apprehensive. Although she was Xie Ning's only maid at the moment, she knew that there would be more and more maids serving Xie Ning in the future.
Like the lady's side, she originally didn't have any maids, but now she not only bought two head maids, but also an old nanny to manage the household.
Not to mention Granny Zhang, she didn't even dare to breathe loudly in front of Granny Zhang, who was a very stern nanny.
The other two maids, one named Qianyun and the other Qianqiao, were said to have worked for a wealthy family in the past. They were from Hebei, but were sold off by their master during a famine and eventually ended up at the Xie family mansion.
Qianyun was skilled in calculation, and Qianqiao was skilled in needlework; both were extremely capable maids.
However, she was not very capable; she couldn't even cook as well as her mother. She had only learned a few characters from her young mistress, which was perhaps her only, and not particularly outstanding, advantage.
So she wanted to learn better, hoping that the young lady would value her more and that no other maid would surpass her in the future.
Xie Ning knew very well what Qing Li was thinking; after all, she was just a fourteen-year-old girl.
Such a ulterior motive... Xie Ning sighed inwardly, but said nothing more.
The concubines in the imperial harem strive to please the emperor in exchange for better treatment; the scholars study hard in order to pass the imperial examinations and become officials; the merchants work hard to earn more money to make a living; and the farmers work hard to cultivate the land in order to reap a greater harvest... Their identities are different, but their essential desires are the same.
It's simply about living a better life.
Being in a servant's position, one naturally has to work hard for the master. If one can gain favor, one can receive more rewards and have a better life.
Therefore, even though Xie Ning knew that Qing Li was deliberately trying to please him, he would not look down on her behavior from a superior position. However, through this incident, Xie Ning gained a deeper understanding of Qing Li's identity.
She had once read law books with Xie Qi, including those concerning the employment of slaves.
If she is a hired maid, she can be released from her contract and return to civilian life if she does not wish to renew it after ten years.
Ten years is the maximum term, which includes the time a slave had been enslaved before being transferred.
Therefore, even if a wealthy family employs servants or maids, once their term of service is up, they must be released and sent home. If a woman is employed as a maid, she must be returned to her husband when she reaches the end of her term; if a woman is employed as a maid, she must be returned to her parents when she reaches the end of her term; if a woman is employed as a maid from another place, she must be returned to her hometown when she reaches the end of her term.
Such slaves are no longer considered objects or property of their masters under the law; they have personal rights and are protected by law.
Such laws were quite unexpected for Xie Ning, because according to her stereotypes about ancient times, slaves were the property of their masters, and they had no say in their own lives, let alone freedom.
However, here, the master cannot arbitrarily beat or kill the servants; if a servant is killed without cause, the master will have to pay with his life.
But such laws only apply to hired slaves.
For private slaves who belong to the lowest social class, they are slaves for life, with no end to their enslavement. Only when the state or their master pardons them can they be freed from their lowly status and become free people.
Half of the servants in the Xie household are now private slaves, belonging to the lowest social class.
Their honor and disgrace depend on their master's family, so they should be very careful.
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