Chapter 29 Chapter 29 Two chapters merged into one
Mrs. Chen was a little anxious when she arrived at the needlework room. Seeing this, Mrs. Jin said hurriedly, "You don't have to worry. Let's write down what needs to be done first and then assign them one by one. If there is really too much to do, we can only ask the embroiderers outside to take over some of it."
"Since she has already invited us here, how can she hire someone else? Wouldn't the money she paid be wasted? We have worked so hard for so long, it would be bad if we were given a reputation for incompetence." Madam Chen sighed.
Jinniang knew what Chen Niang meant. If they succeeded in this order, their value would double when they went to work for other families in the future. So Chen Niang had to strive for perfection and not make any mistakes. However, the eldest girl's wedding would be in two years, and there would be too much embroidery to do. She was afraid that if she didn't do it well enough, she wouldn't be able to make a name for herself.
However, Jinniang was puzzled: "Aren't they just some sheets, mattresses and curtains? Can't we just share them among ourselves?"
Fang Qiaolian also agreed: "Yes."
"You are still little girls and don't know how many things there are to embroider. The bride has to have her wedding dress, veil, wedding shoes embroidered specifically, as well as the clothes she will wear in the few days after the wedding, and several sets of embroidered shoes. The bridal chamber's curtains, hanging curtains, embroidered quilt covers, bedspreads, chair covers, tablecloths, pillowcases, and table curtains. Gifts for the groom's elders and peers, fan cases, purses, pipes, shoes and socks; gifts for the bride's elders, target mirror cases, powder puffs, oil rubbings, purses; and headscarves, sweat towels, purses, shoe uppers, powder puffs, and oil rubbings as rewards to the other party's servants. Do you think it's a lot?" Madam Chen said it all in one breath.
Jinniang & Fang Qiaolian & Qin Shuang'er: ...
Seeing that everyone was stunned, Madam Chen looked at them and said, "So, you know my dilemma, right?"
Jinniang calmed herself down, raised her eyes and said, "Instead of worrying and complaining, why don't we do it one by one? For example, we should finish the bride's wedding dress, veil and wedding clothes first, and then start making curtains and hanging curtains. If there is one item that cannot be completed, we can find someone outside to make the whole set, so that it will not be a mess when the time comes."
For example, when you are embroidering plum, orchid, bamboo and chrysanthemum, but only the chrysanthemum purse is not finished. When you send it as a set, it is not a set at all. You have to go out and buy more chrysanthemum purse, which costs money.
Madam Chen pursed her lips and said: "You can't help with the wedding dress." She still had some skills to hold back. Embroidering wedding dresses was her unique skill, and she would never teach it to outsiders unless they were her successors.
"I will make the bride's wedding dress, veil, wedding shoes and her clothes. As for the rest, I will divide them among you. The most urgent thing now is to make the wedding curtains. Later you can measure the bed. Each of you can make one out of gauze, one out of silk, and one out of silk. Finish these first, and then start making the quilt cover." said Madam Chen.
Jinniang breathed a sigh of relief. She went to the warehouse to look at some gauze and selected a piece of aqua blue brocade with an ice plum pattern, a piece of bright red brocade with a peony pattern, and another piece of silk with a flower and bird pattern.
Madam Chen first taught them how to measure the bed and how to cut the curtains. Madam Jin took notes before starting to cut.
If there was anything she didn't understand, Madam Chen would give her some pointers. Jinniang was working on the job in full swing and no longer took private jobs. Now was the time for her to learn the craft. If she did well, she would be able to find a job with her skills wherever she was in the future.
Whether in ancient times or modern times, one must have his own foundation.
Qin Shuang'er did the opposite. She secretly found Chunlan and took the initiative to embroider something for the older girl. Because of this, Jinniang and the others handed in the tent in advance and received the job of making quilt covers, but she was still working on the tent.
"Qiao Lian, what are you going to do with your quilt cover? Let's not make the same thing over and over again." Jinniang smiled.
Fang Qiao Lian said, "I'm going to embroider my best dragon and phoenix quilt. I'm going to embroider it, but it may take several months, not just a short time. Hey, what about you?"
Jinniang smiled and said, "Of course I am also the peony flower that blooms with wealth and splendor, which is what I am best at."
Quilt covers are different from clothes. Quilt covers need to be embroidered in large areas, which takes a lot of effort.
Looking at Qin Shuang'er again, she hadn't even finished making the tent. Jinniang shook her head. This person stayed up late every day like a daily routine, even worse than her.
During the time she was embroidering the quilt cover, Jinniang gradually moved on to embroidering small pieces of flowers, and then to whole pieces. She was trying to figure out the layout and how to fill the quilt. This was her first time, and everything is difficult at the beginning.
This quilt cover was embroidered from March to June. Jinniang was too lazy to even celebrate her fourteenth birthday, let alone her cousin inviting her home for dinner. She wrote a signature on the embroidered quilt cover and handed it to Chen Niangzi.
Madam Chen checked it over and couldn't help nodding: "Not bad, the embroidery is exquisite, but the layout is a bit too cramped. What are you going to embroider on the next quilt cover?"
"I haven't thought about it yet." Jinniang shook her head.
"It's okay. Let me teach you how to make a wedding quilt first." Madam Chen put down the work in her hands and said.
Jinniang watched and learned to sew again, and then she breathed a sigh of relief. She was a latecomer, unlike Qin Shuang'er and Fang Qiaolian who knew how to do it.
After learning it, I heard the maid from the outer courtyard come in and say, "Miss Jinniang, your elder sister just gave birth and she asked you to go and have the third day bath."
When Madam Chen heard this, she quickly said, "Madam Jin, go ahead. You're the first one to finish, so you can also think about what to make for the next quilt cover."
So, Jinniang also went to ask for leave from Luying. After all, she couldn't go out without a badge. Unexpectedly, Jiang heard it and not only granted her leave, but also said with a smile: "You have been very busy these days, and I guess you don't have time to prepare for the third-day bathing ceremony."
Jiang liked Jinniang very much. She thought she was plump, hardworking and very talented, so she admired her very much.
"Madam, you have a keen eye. I don't know what to send for the third day of the baby's birth. Before, I could send a piece of cloth, and this year some more were sent. I want to go to the street to have a look." Jinniang scratched her head.
Jiang leaned back and said, "You are a little girl, it's strange that you know this, and there's no need to buy those inferior ones on the street. For the third-day bath of a child, the mother's family should use a silver basin, a copper basin, or a basin with painted patterns, put chestnut stalks, cover them with a beautiful headscarf, and put five boys and two girls made of silk. But you are a relative, and you will participate in the third-day bath, so just bring some dried fruits and money. Luying, take two silver scepters to reward Jinniang, so that she will be happy when she goes to her sister's house."
Jinniang kowtowed and thanked him.
It was the first time for her to receive a reward of silver ingots. The larger silver ingots were worth fifty, forty, and twenty taels. Now she received a small silver ingot of one and a half taels, which should be a reward during the New Year.
She kept these silver beads close to her body, and went to a silver shop to buy a pair of five-cent silver anklets, which she spent two hundred coins on, and which were small enough to have bells hanging on them. She wrapped them in a Xiangyun gauze handkerchief, and prepared to give them to her nephew as a gift for his third-day baptism.
My cousin Rong Niang is a warm, enthusiastic, unpretentious and beautiful young wife. She has only lived here for more than a year, but the neighbors all get along like a family. Jinniang, the cousin, has become an outsider. She is actually puzzled. Rongniang has clearly invited her to come many times, but when she really came, it seems that she was treated mediocrely.
"Sister, this is a small gift I prepared for my nephew. Please don't reject it." Jinniang said with a smile.
Rong Niang was in confinement. She leaned on the pillow and took the hand towel. She opened it and asked, "Is this an anklet?"
"Yes, there are a lot of things going on in the mansion now. I work day and night and don't have time to buy anything specifically. It's not worth the money." Jinniang said with a smile.
Rong Niang must be very happy at this moment. She patted her son beside her and said with a smile: "Don't bring anything in the future. Just come empty-handed. You, like your brother-in-law, work very hard. You should rest when you should. Don't overwork yourself."
Jinniang shook her head: "Big sister, now is the time to learn the craft. I can't slack off. Once I stop, I will become rusty."
Embroidery is like writing in the previous life. It seems that there is no change for a period of time, but after a long time, even you yourself will not be able to look at your work. She has not yet reached the point of financial freedom.
"Forget it, forget it. Just one sentence from me has caused you so much trouble." Rong Niang was also unwilling to bring up these controversial topics.
Jinniang also took advantage of the situation and said, "Yes, let's talk about something lighter. Does the boy have a name?"
Rong Niang smiled happily and said, "His father is flipping through a book. He hasn't found it yet. We are just calling Bao'er randomly now."
While they were talking, the neighbors and friends gradually dispersed. Jinniang touched the baby's head. She didn't dare to use too much force because she felt that their faces were like steamed peaches.
The two sisters were talking indifferently, and Rong Niang whispered, "Jin Niang, you are not young anymore, what do you think? Your parents are not around, you have to take care of your own lifelong affairs."
Although Jinniang is not a celibate in modern times, her dedication to her career is definitely greater than so-called love and marriage. It is the same in ancient times. She had to pretend to be shy and said, "It's nothing. My service period will end next year. I can only make plans for this matter when I return to my parents in the future. I can't marry the same slave."
"Hearing you say this, I know you have a high aspiration." Rong Niang said, holding her hand.
Unlike when they first arrived, Rong Niang and her family's place looked quite good. However, she and Jin Niang complained, "Your brother-in-law is too busy. Today is your nephew's third-day bath, and he has to go to someone's house to see a doctor later. Sometimes he has to get up in the middle of the night. Fortunately, we have hired two servants now, so I feel much more relaxed."
Jinniang didn't know why, but she thought of her somewhat arrogant brother-in-law, and couldn't help but persuade Rongniang: "Sister, I heard from my aunt that you are very talented in cooking and making rouge. Now that you have someone to help you take care of the child, when you get better, let your brother-in-law open a shop for you in the future."
"You, don't know how expensive money is unless you run a household. A random shop like this in Bian Jing can earn seven or eight strings of cash a month. If I do business, I'm afraid I won't be able to make back my capital. What's more, if I open a shop, I'll trap people there, and I can't sit still." Rong Niang waved her hands quickly.
Jinniang stopped trying to persuade him and just smiled and said, "You are right."
Rong Niang said calmly and proudly, "You don't have to worry about this. Your brother-in-law treated a patient before. His family runs a rice grain business. We produce grain in Huguang. I happen to know a few people from the same hometown, so I will bring them together and take some commission."
Jinniang blushed: "I am too fond of teaching others."
In fact, she was not jealous of Rong Niang. It was just that she was ambitious after all. She always believed that there was no such thing as pie in the sky. People's appearance and luck were only temporary bonuses. Only what you earned and experienced yourself belonged to you.
But now she knows that if she always behaves like this, it won't work. After all, Rong Niang now has a capable husband, she herself is popular, and she has given birth to a son. Perhaps she is the lucky one and can live under the love of her husband all her life.
During the third day of the baby's bath, everyone gathered around a copper basin filled with water and put things in it. Jinniang took a look and saw onions and copper coins. She threw in a pair of silver anklets, which turned out to be the most valuable thing in the basin.
But for some reason, she didn't seem to have much interest in the child. When Si'er and Qiao Lian asked about the baby in the sewing room, Jinniang just said, "It's so small, with a red face. I'm afraid to hear it cry. For some reason, I get upset when I hear it cry."
Mrs. Chen, who was always steady, laughed out loud: "You are just little girls saying this. I was the same when I was young. I would cover my ears when I heard a baby crying, and I would get annoyed when I heard people bragging about their children. But when I had my own children, I really thought everything was good."
Everyone laughed when they heard this. According to Jinniang's plan, she would return to Jiangling in a year, ask Shuxiu Pavilion to increase her monthly salary, and then find a suitable marriage. She could live a plain and simple life like this for the rest of her life.
With this incident as a diversion, the days of sewing were no longer so boring. They now only had to focus on making the eldest girl's dowry and didn't have to do anything else.
However, not long after the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Zhou family had another happy event. The second daughter, Zhou Huihui, was engaged to her aunt's third cousin, who had served as the prefect of Jiangling and was currently the prefect of Yangzhou, that is, Mr. He San.
Some people say that the reason why Magistrate He was transferred from Jiangling to a wealthy place like Yangzhou was because of this good marriage. However, it is said that the second girl is not very satisfied because she is "sick" and Lan Xue is decocting medicine.
Jinniang sat down in her tea room as usual. Lanxue said angrily, "Look, I smell like medicine all over here."
"Why is the second young lady sick at this moment?" Jinniang was puzzled.
To be honest, from her perspective as an outsider, the second girl's temperament is not something that everyone can tolerate. The eldest girl can suppress her nature, be more tactful, and get along with others without showing it, but the second girl is not that kind of person. It was popular in the Song Dynasty to marry cousins. This marriage was actually very appropriate. Mr. He San was talented and also a relative. Jiang really knew her daughter's temperament, so she chose him specially.
Lan Xue smiled and said, "You are a smart person, how can you not understand? My elder sister married into the prime minister's family, and my younger sister only married into the prefect's family. If it were you, you wouldn't be able to stand it either, right? But this kind of thing can't be changed. Mr. He San is still living in our house. If people knew about it, our life would not be easy."
These things had nothing to do with them originally, but they were still affected, and Jinniang was arranged to make a new set of clothes for the second girl.
"Why me?" Jinniang is now very adept at embroidering the quilt cover, because the layout of the previous one was too showy and ended up looking complicated. This time, she embroidered a quilt cover of mandarin ducks playing in the water, and her embroidery was even more fresh, simple and elegant, with mandarin ducks sitting side by side under the lush lotus leaves.
But even though she had plenty of time, Jinniang was unwilling to help the unruly second girl make clothes.
Madam Chen said, "I heard that the second young lady specifically asked you to go."
Jinniang said in embarrassment: "Last time, the second lady said that the clothes I made were not good. I am worried that the clothes I made are not to her liking."
But Madam Chen patted her on the shoulder and said, "I can't do anything about it. She specifically wants you. The eldest lady loves her daughter. We work for her and we have to listen to our superiors. Just don't say anything."
"Yeah." Jinniang took a deep breath and went over with the ruler and pattern.
She also said that the second young lady looked good, but she looked unhappy. Jinniang tried her best to smile and said, "Second young lady, I will help you measure your size first. Then, if you want to make a dress, just tell me and I will draw it for you. If you agree, I will go to the storehouse to find cloth to make it."
Perhaps it was the continuous blows, the second girl felt relieved when she saw Jinniang smiling and ready to make clothes for her. But she didn't even raise her eyelids and said listlessly, "Just make one piece of clothing."
If you hear "casually", then you can't really be casual. Jinniang said, "It's almost Mid-Autumn Festival now. I want to make a piece of soft red satin with a layer of gauze on the outside. This way, it will have a hazy feeling of 'mist shrouding the cold water and the moon shrouding the sand'. If I embroider it with osmanthus flowers and jade rabbits, what do you think, Second Miss?"
Just now he said it was up to him, but now he heard about Jade Rabbit and quickly sat up: "Jade Rabbit is not good, Osmanthus is OK."
"If I just embroider osmanthus flowers, it would be too simple. Do you think there is anything else you would like to embroider?" Jinniang asked.
But the second girl raised her eyebrows and said, "How dare you! I said that Jade Rabbit is not good, and it is not good."
"Yes, you are right." Jinniang rolled her eyes in her heart.
The second girl glanced at her and said, "Didn't you say you can draw? Draw one for me first."
Jinniang nodded: "Okay, I will paint here today and make the wedding quilt tonight. What color clothes do you want?"
Don't let her draw for a long time, otherwise the second girl won't want it anymore.
"Of course it's red. What other colors are there? How can you be so stupid that you even forgot what you said?" The second girl vented.
The people around the second girl were also gloating over her misfortune. Someone even said, "If it were you, you should eat less. You've become fat and your memory is not good."
"You stupid slave, kneel in my room for a few hours before leaving." The second girl felt annoyed just looking at her.
Jinniang knelt down with a wooden face and said nothing, because she knew that the second young lady was unhappy and wanted to express it. Even if Jiang heard it, she would feel that her daughter was unhappy and it would be impossible for her to make the decision for her. However, it was impossible for her not to retaliate.
She swore that she would definitely take revenge, even though she was a small person and could not really allow herself to be bullied. Even if I can't take revenge for the time being, I will definitely not forgive her later.
While kneeling on the ground, all Jinniang was thinking about was how to embroider the mandarin duck quilt and whether to continue embroidering hollyhocks next time. It seemed as if she had embroidered hollyhocks only once. In fact, hollyhocks are also a very important flower in Shu embroidery. But as she was thinking about it, she thought of her mother again. If her mother knew that she was teased and punished like this, she would definitely jump up and curse.
The people in the second girl's room were serving tea, pouring water and running errands, walking back and forth. Some of them even thought she was in the way and kicked her away, making "tsk" sounds.
Jinniang was completely immersed in her own world until dinner time. Perhaps someone came over from outside, even Si'er from the sewing room came over, and then the second girl seemed to see her and said, "Hey, get up. You will know your identity in the future."
Jinniang's knees ached and she felt dizzy when she stood up. She glanced at the second girl and thought to herself, you asked me to kneel in your room because you are afraid that outsiders will know, but I am not Sister Jiang Shan.
She walked slowly to the door, Si'er came over to support her, but she suddenly fell down. Si'er cried out "Oh my God, Sister Jinniang, why did you faint..."
It was the peak time for delivering meals, and people were coming and going, and Jinniang just fainted. The second girl was a little scared. The aunt's insidious method also depended on the target. Shanjie was an insignificant person, but Jinniang was the most famous embroiderer in the past two years. She even did an excellent job, and Jiang praised her publicly.
Si'er was still young, and couldn't help but ask, "Sister Jinniang, could she be dead?"
…
Jiang heard the noise and asked Luying, "What happened outside?"
Luying hesitated. She was not Yanhong and had an average relationship with Jinniang. She certainly didn't want to say bad things about the second young lady for the sake of a maid, so she tried to fool her.
Zhang also helped to conceal it: "It seems that a servant fell."
"Look at you guys playing tricks, what's going on?" Yanhong's child was dead when she was born, and she was crazy. Jiang was afraid that she would cause trouble.
When she asked this, Luying said, "It seems that the maid in the sewing room fainted."
"Nonsense, the maids in the needlework room are busy with needlework every day. The other day I went to the needlework room to see Jinniang embroidering a quilt. She said she didn't drink a sip of water all day just to finish the embroidery. How could they come to the main room?" Jiang thought it was Yanhong's fault and immediately scolded, "What is it? If you hesitate, I will punish you if you are careful."
Seeing that her life was in danger, Luying said, "It was Jinniang from the sewing room. I heard that she made clothes for the second young lady today. She stayed in the second young lady's room for several hours and fainted when she came out. I think she might be too tired."
Zhang who was standing aside was speechless. The Zhou family was said to be the most kind-hearted family. Her mother also said that the First Madam Zhou was good at managing the household and the Second Madam was a famous living Bodhisattva. They were all easy to get along with. But she didn't expect that there was even a reason to force the servants to faint.
Jiang was speechless: "Luying, you don't have to serve here, go and get the doctor."
Right after the marriage proposal, the servants in the mansion were treated harshly. Although Mr. He studied in the Imperial College on weekdays, he happened to stay at the Zhou family during his days off. If it was not dealt with quickly, who knows how many rumors would spread, and it might even become a handle for the daughter to marry into someone else's family.
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