After dinner, Chen Afu, Song Mama, Huang Mama, and Mu Aunt washed the children's faces and let them go to bed. Chu Hanyan, Yang Qian, and Luo Mei slept on Chen Afu's bed, Dabao, Yang Chao, and Luo Mingcheng slept on Alu's bed, and Dahu and Daya slept on Chen Ming's kang in the upper room.
In the afternoon, when the children were sleeping, Aunt Luo brought a few people to Luyuan.
She said that this was the person the master picked for Chen Afu in the General's Mansion, and he also gave Chen Afu several slave contracts.
Chen Ahfu felt a headache when he looked at the six people, old, middle-aged and young. Why did his family need so many servants? That Mr. Chu really didn't understand the suffering of the people.
Chen Ming and Wang Shi were heartbroken when they saw so many "freeloaders" coming all of a sudden. Their daughter didn't have much money saved, so how could they support all these people all of a sudden? But they thought that they were from the General's Mansion, and they couldn't afford to offend them, so they didn't dare to show it on their faces.
Aunt Luo seemed to see the difficulty of the Chen family, and smiled and pulled Chen Afu aside. He whispered, "The two dark and strong young men are Xue Dagui and Chu Xiaoniu, who have some skills and run errands in the mansion. They are not just guards. My master said that they are only temporarily loaned to your family, and the monthly salary is still paid by our mansion. When you don't need them in the future, or buy suitable people, let them go back. The four are a family, and they are given to you with the slave contract. The old one is the old Zengtou, who is fifty years old this year. Although he is a little old, he is very skilled in carpentry. He was a village head when he was young. Brother Zeng Shuang is the son of old Zeng, twenty-eight years old. Before coming here, he was the second manager of the external affairs room in the mansion. He often runs errands outside, understands general affairs, knows how to manage the household, and knows many officials. The Zeng family's sister-in-law is the wife of the Zeng brother. Her maiden name is Jiang, and she is the needlework manager in the mansion. The little girl is Zeng Xiaoqing, eleven years old, just right to be your personal maid."
After hearing what Aunt Luo said, Chen Afu was grateful to Chu Lingxuan for considering his family. The two bodyguards could not only watch over the hospital, but also work. They were seconded and could go back after his family was through the dangerous period.
However, the Zeng family is so nice that she is very satisfied with everyone and is sure that they will be useful to her family in the future.
But, can they willingly change from being the servants of the lieutenant general's family to being the servants of their own family? This gap is very big. It's like a government official in a big city in the previous life, who was suddenly demoted to work in a township enterprise in a remote mountainous area.
If a person is in Cao's camp but his heart is with Han, even the servants will be annoying. Just like some of the servants in "Dream of Red Mansions", they are more troublesome than their masters.
Chen Afu said hesitantly, "Thank you, sir. I am very satisfied with these people. But my family is too small and we live in the countryside. I am afraid that the Zeng family, who have always lived in a wealthy family in the city, will be wronged..."
Aunt Luo said domineeringly, "What's wrong with our country? When my master returned to the General's Mansion, even the chief steward of the mansion treated him with courtesy. Even if he occasionally returned to the Marquis' Mansion in the capital to do business, those stewards did not dare to look down on him. Ah Fu, don't worry, since my master sent him here, he must be reliable."
Chen Ahfu added, "My family should pay the monthly salary for those two guards. It's unreasonable for them to work for me and let your master pay for them."
Aunt Luo smiled and said, "Afu, don't be polite. My uncle is also thinking about me. Only when your family is safe can I feel at ease to play in your house, right?"
After that, he pulled Chen Ahfu in front of the others and said, "Don't underestimate Master Chen because she is a young lady. She is very capable and has taught me very well. Even the master and the host have praised her and respected her. Especially the young master Bao Ge'er, he is very capable and will enter the government in the future. You will not lose face if you follow them. If you serve them well, you will have great fortune in the future. Isn't there an old saying that it is better to be the head of a chicken than the tail of an ox?"
When those people heard this, they immediately knelt down and kowtowed.
Chen Ahfu asked them to stand up. He thought to himself that his family had eight more people, and they had several big stomachs. He had to find a way to make the best use of them, so that each of them could shine the most and be self-sufficient...
Chen Afu called the whole family to the living room, asked them to kowtow and acknowledge their master, and then redistributed their living quarters and divided their work.
Old Zeng was the gatekeeper and housekeeper. Zeng Shuang was mainly responsible for managing the family's fields and some external affairs. Jiang and Aunt Mu were in charge of the kitchen and helped Wang with needlework. Zeng Xiaoqing cleaned the house and served Chen Afu and his son personally. Shanzi fed the pigs and chickens and served Alu.
As for Xue Dagui and Chu Xiaoniu, her family didn't need them to simply guard the house, they had to work. She had long since set her eyes on the wasteland 200 meters northeast of her home, which was about five mu in size. She bought it and reclaimed it to grow watermelons...
Old Zeng lived in the back house, temporarily sharing a room with Shanzi. Zeng Shuang and his wife, Xue Dagui, Chu Xiaoniu, and Aunt Mu lived in the back room, and Zeng Xiaoqing lived in the east ear room. Let them tidy up their rooms and take a rest.
Afterwards, Chen Ahfu took out some money and asked Chen Ming to go to Liu Lizheng's house in Shangshui Village to buy the few acres of land. That was the land of Shangshui Village.
Aunt Luo smiled as Chen Ahfu finished the assignment and then gave another suggestion, "Ahfu, look, my sister is having so much fun at your house that she doesn't want to go back. My boss is at a banquet and hasn't come back yet. It must be so boring for me to stay alone in Tangyuan. You can ask Dabao to invite him to your house and let him play with my sister more. You are a good cook anyway, so you can cook a few dishes tonight and treat me to a few drinks. It's also your way of thanking him for his help, right?"
That's right. This gentleman has helped her a lot, and she will have to rely on him for more help in the future.
Chen Ahfu smiled and said, "I have also thought about inviting Lord Chu to our home as a guest. But I was afraid that Lord Chu would despise our humble family, so I have always been embarrassed to invite him."
Aunt Luo smiled and said, "You seem to be very smart, but you can also be confused sometimes. If you invite me, even if my master doesn't come, he will be happy. Besides, my master misses me very much and has praised you a lot, so he will definitely come."
After hearing this, Chen Afu quickly called Dabao and Alu, gave them some instructions, and asked them to go to Tangyuan to invite Chu Lingxuan.
Because the most distinguished guest was coming, Chen Afu sorted out the ingredients, thinking of making a mutton hotpot. She asked Mu and Wang to do the preliminary preparations, and she wanted to cook the soup herself.
The children woke up early. Usually, the children would play games with Chen Afu as soon as they woke up, but Chen Afu was busy today, so he let them play with building blocks by themselves. The other children could still play by themselves, but Chu Hanyan, who already had a stable biological clock, felt uncomfortable because she didn't do what she should do as soon as she woke up. She didn't play either, but ran to the west wing corridor to watch Chen Afu assign tasks to those people, and her eyes kept moving with Chen Afu.
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