Chapter 13 Chapter 13 A sudden turn of events
After the Dragon Raises its Head on the Second Day of the Second Month, the Zhou family was busy preparing for the marriage of Zhou Cunzhi, the second young master of the eldest house. The task assigned to their sewing room was to weave silk covers with silk ropes. The covers were used to cover wine bottles. When the man proposed marriage, he would send someone to deliver the engagement wine with a load on his shoulders. Although this was Jinniang's first time learning how to make the covers, she learned it quickly.
Fang Qiao Lian and Chen Niangzi were going to make eight large flowers together for decoration. Because Chen Niangzi was omnipotent, the Zhou family didn't have to buy these items outside. They could all be made at home, saving a lot of money.
Don’t think that families like the Zhou family don’t take these things into account. The richer the family, the clearer the calculations are in their minds. To tell whether a large company is profitable or not, just look at the quality of its toilet paper.
Qin Shuang'er was sewing shoe soles. She was just about to help the eldest girl. Before, Madam Chen had asked Jinniang to be in charge of the eldest girl in the future, but somehow the eldest girl specifically asked her to do it.
She was saying, "I saw Sister Shan at the Moon Gate yesterday. She looked a lot thinner than before. I asked her how she was doing, but her eyes turned red and she refused to say a word."
Speaking of the Shan sisters, everyone felt sympathetic, but they only escaped by luck. If the Zhou family gave them away in the future, it would not be their decision. During the period of employment, as maids, they had no autonomy.
Madam Chen coughed lightly and said, "Qiao Lian, Jin Niang, I will teach you how to make a powder puff tomorrow. The man will send rouge and powder to the woman's family, so you need to prepare this."
"Okay." Jinniang and Fang Qiaolian both agreed.
Madam Chen thought that Qin Shuang'er was really good at taking advantage of every opportunity. She clearly had work to do, but she still found work on her own to curry favor with the older girl. She always felt that Qin Shuang'er was not very down-to-earth, so she was unwilling to cultivate her any more.
After a few days, they had finished preparing for the wedding. Madam Chen only asked Jinniang and Fang Qiaolian to take the things to the upper room. At this time, Qin Shuang'er smiled and said, "There are so many things. Let me help carry some of them."
Even Jinniang was shocked by her shamelessness. This was just a forced move. Madam Chen said one day in advance that she wanted to make things for the wedding, and the next day she said that she had taken on an urgent job from the eldest girl, and when they finished the work, she came over to join them.
Madam Chen looked at her with a smile and said, "No need. We have other things to do in the past, so we can't reply casually."
"Well, okay then." Qin Shuang'er felt a little aggrieved.
Jin Niang secretly shook her head and followed Chen Niang to see Jiang. Jiang Niang looked at the red flowers, nets and powder puffs made by Chen Niang. Everything was complete and made extremely delicately. She couldn't help but nodded: "Okay, you all worked hard."
Mrs. Chen smiled and said, "It's not hard. As long as what we do can be put to use, that's good enough."
Seeing that she was neither arrogant nor impatient, Jiang secretly praised her and said, "I have two things to do here. One is to make spring clothes for all the servants in the family. The other is for Miao Xiaoniang. She is four or five months pregnant. You should also start making swaddling clothes, quilts, and clothes for her. Thank you for your hard work."
"Madam, what are you saying? This is our job. We should be treated with kindness by the mansion." Madam Chen was also good at speaking. She could see that Jiang was a person who liked to be praised for her ability.
Sure enough, Jiang was very happy to hear that, and asked Yanhong to take the ruler to reward them. Jinniang was delighted again. She was thinking of giving something to someone to take back to her parents, and now she had this gift.
The next day, the maid in Master Cun's room said that she was sent by the Second Young Master to reward each of them with a pair of gold and silver ingots, thanking them for their hard work. Because the maid serving in the outer courtyard didn't know who did it in the needlework room, she thought everyone did it, including Qin Shuang'er. Fang Qiaolian felt it was unfair and complained to Jinniang secretly: "She didn't do anything, but now she's getting paid for nothing."
"There's nothing we can do about it. This is not something that Madam Chen, you and I can decide." Jin Niang shook her head.
But Jinniang was very happy. She didn't expect the young master to be so generous. A pair of gold and silver ingots were worth almost ten taels. You know, her annual salary was only twelve taels.
It just so happened that Mrs. Chen said that the Shu Embroidery Workshop had a ship going from Bian Jing to Chengdu in March to carry Shu brocade, and it would also stop at Jiangling on the way, so she could help them bring the things back. Jinniang took two handkerchiefs, a green satin jacket and the ruler she had just been awarded. Lanxue had always had a good relationship with her and knew that she was going to send something back to her family, so she sent her a jar of honey. Yanhong quietly sent her two jars of tea.
She wrote all this in the letter, telling her parents that she was living well, that the Zhou family was a kind person, and that the reward was generous, so she asked them not to worry.
She used to not understand why parents sometimes report good news but not bad news. Now she understands that parents are of no help to nearby people and telling them some things will only cause them more trouble.
After sending the things out, Jinniang and the others followed Chen Niang's instructions, "Let's make the servants' spring clothes first, because this is related to the Zhou family's dignity. When the marriage proposal comes, the servants will go with them, and they must not wear too shabby clothes. So, we have to hurry up as much as possible. Then there are the swaddling clothes for Miao Xiaoniang. Anyway, she is still three or four months away from giving birth, so there is still time to make them."
"Okay, but Madam Chen, I suggest that we get all the size lists and distribute them to everyone according to their number. Then if there is a problem with someone's clothes, we can find the corresponding seamstress. What do you think?" Jinniang made a suggestion.
Jinniang did this of course to prevent some people from doing it carelessly, so that others would not come to them for mending their clothes.
Mrs. Chen also agreed: "This is good, and it will prevent others from taking advantage of the situation."
There are a total of fifty or sixty servants in the mansion this year. The clothes of the head maids and the stewards are all silk. The clothes of the head maids and the governess are embroidered. The clothes of the servants around the young ladies and masters also have to be more fancy. As for the little maids and servants, their clothes are made of cotton.
This time, making clothes for the servants was different from making clothes for the masters. There was no profit or profit involved, and the materials used were rougher. This is a big project. Each person has to make more than a dozen sets. Jinniang and the others are working day and night to catch up with the work. Even Qin Shuang'er is working very diligently.
Sometimes when I’m really busy, I just spend ten copper coins to cook a little, and it’s as if all the tiredness disappears.
She felt that such days were very fulfilling. Within half a year, she had accumulated more than ten taels of gold and silver ingots. This was much better than when she worked in the Shu Embroidery Workshop.
While they were busy here, Jiang Shanjie also never stopped. The old lady opened the storehouse and took out several pieces of the best satin to make clothes for Aunt and Miss Mei. As soon as Shanjie came, Aunt told her to make six sets of spring clothes for her and four sets of clothes for Miss Mei, all of which had to be embroidered. Not only that, she also had to make shoes and socks together.
Shan Jie was so upset that she wanted to cry but had no tears. The old lady even said to her daughter, "As servants, you have to torture them until they are exhausted. There is no other way."
But Mei Pan'er thought that her mother was not like this when she was a child. She was generous to her grandparents and kind to the servants, but now she behaves differently.
**
The sky looked like a sea of fire. Jinniang felt it was too dazzling, so she simply came out to get some fresh air. She happened to come to the tea room to play with Lanxue. Lan Xue was decocting the medicine carefully. Jin Niang smiled and said, "Didn't you hear who was sick? How are you decocting the medicine?"
Lan Xue put her index finger to her lips and said, "Shh, keep your voice down."
"What's wrong?" Jinniang was puzzled.
Lan Xue whispered in her ear: "This is for Cui Xian."
Cuixian is the second young master's maid. It was she who delivered the rewards to the people in the needlework room last time. It turned out to be her. Seeing Lan Xue's mysterious expression, Jin Niang was shocked to see that she was suffering from more than just a cold. She asked, "Is she seriously ill?"
"No." Lan Xue quickly shook her head and looked at Jin Niang and said, "Anyway, don't ask. It's not a good thing. It's something that only people in the room eat."
Jinniang suddenly had an idea. This might be a contraceptive drug. She was a little dazed.
"Isn't this bad for your health?"
Lan Xue curled her lips: "What can we do? We can't let a new grandmother come in and get pregnant."
Isn't it Jinniang's fault that the man couldn't control himself when she thought about this? Instead, they let women suffer, and they think they have gotten great benefits.
Lan Xue saw that the atmosphere was dull and changed the subject: "I heard that the eldest girl likes Shuang'er from your room very much. Didn't you say last time that Madam Chen was going to let you make a dress for the eldest girl? How come she got there first? I told you that the eldest girl is the most favored by Madam Chen. She is very popular."
"I know that, but this kind of thing depends on one's own ability." Jinniang is good friends with Yanhong, who is beside Jiang. She thinks that no matter how good Qin Shuang'er and the eldest girl are, Jiang is the one who makes the decisions in the family after all.
Sure enough, Jiang was praising Cuixian to the eldest girl: "She is a person who knows what's interesting."
The eldest daughter, Zhou Shishi, who sat below Jiang, had already started looking at the account book. She was fourteen years old, and Jiang had already been helping her look for a partner. By the time her daughter-in-law came home, the eldest daughter would almost have settled her marriage. Therefore, I am teaching her how to read the account books now, and I also need to tell her such private matters in advance.
Now she heard Jiang praising Cuixian and said, "Mother, after sister-in-law came in, Cuixian..."
"That's Cuixian's own business. Can she please both the mistress and the master at the same time? Otherwise, it's not convenient for me to interfere in your brother's room. But if she goes too far and gets pregnant before the mistress gives birth to the child, then the new grandmother doesn't have to do anything. I can't tolerate such a person." Jiang said with a smile.
The older girl was puzzled: "But you are very polite to Miao Xiaoniang?"
Although Miao Xiaoniang was her father's concubine, her origin was shameful. It was said that she was originally a maid of the third master's original wife, and was later assigned to the second master's wife as a maid. However, this woman became pregnant with her father, and the secret could no longer be kept, so she was brought into the family, and her mother actually accepted her.
But Jiang's face darkened. There were some things she still couldn't tell her unmarried daughter. If the master was self-restrained when he was young, he could no longer hide his lustful thoughts after middle age. When a lecher meets a prostitute, they hit it off. Besides, it is better to make trouble at home than for a man to go out and have affairs with some questionable people.
Besides, Miao Xiaoniang's family was poor. When she gave birth to the fourth daughter, the eldest master did not show any appreciation. Eight years later, when Miao Xiaoniang became pregnant again, the eldest master asked someone to give 20 taels of silver to Miao Xiaoniang so that she could give it to her family to improve their lives. Even so, the Miao family still owed three or four hundred taels of silver in foreign debt, and the eldest master did not offer to help pay the debt.
At Jiang's age, as long as you don't take money from her, it's like playing for nothing. She has both sons and daughters, so even if Miao Xiaoniang gives birth to another son, it won't have much impact.
"When Miao Xiaoniang was born, your brother was already ten years old, and you and your sister were born. What was I afraid of? The situation was different now." This was the only explanation Jiang could give.
The eldest girl nodded secretly. Seeing that her mother was a little angry, she quickly stood up to help pour the water. When she stood up, Jiang saw her shoes and couldn't help asking, "Your phoenix-head shoes are well made, but are they made in the needlework room?"
"Yes, there is a girl named Shuang'er who came to the sewing room as a gift. I think she has good skills." The eldest girl liked her very much.
Jiang waved her hand and said, "No, the clothes you four sisters made last time were made better and more outstanding by Jinniang. Your third sister is skinny but still has some grace. I think her craftsmanship is better."
The eldest girl was a little embarrassed: "Last time it was Shuang who helped me with the revisions many times, and it was her first time doing it with me, so we were a little unfamiliar. Now she is more attentive. If someone else were to do it, it would be bad."
Jiang looked at her daughter and said, "You are soft-hearted. You can't save face when others ask you for something. To tell you the truth, these girls who came from Jiangling are not here to be needleworkers. They are all here to make embroidery for your future marriage. Shuang'er is very popular. She shows off to the second room and treats the maids and women around you with favors. Naturally, you only hear good things from her. You have to be careful. The more such people are, the more you have to be on guard. Think about it carefully. She didn't even want to make the things for your brother's wedding, but made your shoes. They have only been employed for three years. They are trying to please you like this. I'm afraid they have something to hide."
"But Jinniang is different. She has always been conscientious in her needlework and has never sought personal gain. You are not careful when employing people. When you go to their homes in the future, I'm afraid the servants will deceive you, and you will be led by the nose by them."
The older girl was shocked.
**
When it was getting dark, the lights in the sewing room were turned on. Someone knocked on the door. Xiao He opened the door immediately and saw that it was Chunlan who was beside the eldest girl. She smiled and said, "Sister Chunlan is here. Are you here to see Sister Shuang'er?"
After hearing this, Qin Shuang'er felt a little proud. Before, Madam Chen did instruct Jinniang to be in charge of the eldest girl's affairs, but who could blame her for liking her more? This is called relying on one's own ability. Thinking of this, she smiled and stood up to greet him.
Chunlan walked up to Jinniang and said, "The eldest lady wants you to help make a fan cover."
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