Chapter 3 Chapter 3 Travel
The weather in Jiangling in early winter was sunny during the day but very cold in the morning and evening. Jinniang, wearing an indigo jacket and with her hair tied into a bun, was getting on the carriage with her parents. This morning, the whole family sent her to the ferry.
Luo Yu'e hugged her still sleeping son, wishing she could say more of what she hadn't said yesterday: "You should only say a little bit of what you want to say to others, and don't reveal your heart completely. This time you were smart and were chosen by Madam Chen. It's a good thing you didn't say it until the end. Even the people in your embroidery workshop may not know about it. If it's the same as before, you'll really be screwed."
"My daughter has remembered this." Jinniang pursed her lips and responded. Only a mother would give such earnest advice, but this was also because she had been cheated once before.
Last time, Madam Hu from the embroidery workshop took a job. She handed over a few patterns and asked the head of the room to distribute them to each room. If the embroidery was ready, those with good skills would go to the local wealthy families to make clothes. They would definitely make a lot of money from this job. Unexpectedly, the head of the room kept the flower pattern for herself. She only learned to paint it privately and did not tell anyone in the flower and bird room.
Although this room head was not selected later, this incident did make Jinniang more cautious in everything. You know, this house manager is known for his honesty and simplicity, and he seems very enthusiastic.
It can be seen that the 90% good things people do on weekdays are all for the sake of selfishness. They are really naive and cunning. It shows that the saying "Don't judge a person by his appearance" is still true.
But Jinniang also told her mother: "I will write a letter to you, but I will ask someone from Shuxiu Pavilion to bring it back. I am afraid that someone may open it and read it along the way."
"What are you afraid of? It's not like you're writing something bad." Luo Yu'e said carelessly.
Jinniang knew that her mother was the kind of person who thought everything she did was aboveboard and not afraid of being seen, but this wouldn't do: "Mom, what if I was talking about the money I saved? Forget it, remember, I usually won't ask anyone to bring money back, because if I bring money back, it might be stolen by someone else. But for clothes, I will pack them up and write in the letter. If they don't give it to me or say they lost it, I'll ask them to settle the account."
When she heard about quarreling and fighting, Luo Yu'e's eyes lit up.
Jinniang couldn't help laughing either.
When the family of four arrived at the ferry, the sky was still pitch dark, and even Mrs. Chen seemed to have arrived in a hurry. Luo Yu'e scolded her husband and daughter: "Every time you two are so anxious, I told you to come later, but you came so early."
"Mom, come here earlier so that the road will be smooth. If you wait a while, this place will be packed with people." Jinniang looked at the Jiangjin ferry and was blown by the wind before she lowered the curtain.
Wei Xiong outside rubbed his hands and said with a smile: "Jinniang, Dad is watching you outside, don't stick your head out."
Jin Niang smiled and said, "Lady Chen and I will board the boat later. You can have breakfast at the ferry before going back. My brother has already told me that he wants to have a bowl of duck noodle soup."
Luo Yu'e immediately asked: "Do you want to eat? Ask your father to bring you a bowl."
"No need. When I work at the embroidery workshop, I don't come back for lunch. I often eat here. I have eaten everything. You don't have to worry about me."
As they were talking, they saw Madam Chen hurrying over. Jinniang quickly jumped off the carriage, and the other embroiderers who were going to Bianliang with her also came over. I thought I still had a chance to say goodbye, but as soon as the ship docked, they started to move my luggage. I didn't even have time to say goodbye and was separated from my family. Jinniang couldn't help but tear up.
It was still Miss Chen who advised: "Go back to the cabin quickly. It's windy outside. You guys should get to know each other better. You will be living together for three years in the future."
So, when Jinniang entered, her father had already made her bed for her. After all, her father Wei Xiong was a member of the Imperial Guards, so he was very quick. The people around her were still making their beds, so she sat on the bed and took out her toothbrush, bath towel, and wooden basin. She heard the girl on the opposite bed ask, "Where are you from?"
Jinniang looked over and saw that she was small, with yellowish skin, slender and delicate. She wore two silk flowers on her head and was dressed fashionably. She smiled and said, "I'm originally from Anlu Prefecture. Later, my parents bought a house here, and I've been living in Jiangling Prefecture ever since. What about you? I can hear that your accent is similar to mine."
The girl smiled and said, "I'm from Anlu too."
In fact, these days, if one can recognize a few words and has a skill, his family background is not considered to be very poor. The truly poor people, let alone weaving and embroidery, have to stay at home all day doing farm work and taking care of their younger brothers and sisters without enough time.
The two of them only had a brief conversation, and the other two girls joined in. Everyone was introduced according to their age. The oldest, Qin Shuang, was thirteen years old. She also wore a pink jacket, but it was made of silk, and had two hairpins on her head. Even her bedding looked half-worn, but better than theirs.
The second oldest person was the fellow villager who first spoke to Jinniang. Her name was Fang Qiaolian. The third oldest person was Jiang Shanjie. She was wearing a gray-brown robe and had some acne on her face.
"So, Madam Chen is going to choose one from each room." Jin Niang smiled.
This embroidery studio specializes in embroidery which is divided into four categories: figures, flowers and birds, insects and fish, and landscapes. Jinniang herself is from the Flower and Bird Room, and the other three are heads of different rooms.
Qin Shuang'er took a handful of fried broad beans and shared them with everyone. Fang Qiaolian took it and said with a smile, "Just now I saw someone bring you here. It must be your sister, she's pretty."
Qin Shuang'er's expression was also a little strange: "That's not my biological sister."
"Could it be my cousin?" Jinniang also took a handful of broad beans and prepared to share the pancakes she brought with everyone.
But Qin Shuang'er said, "Not really. When my biological father was alive, he was a minor official in Gusu. Later, when I was seven years old, my father died. My mother returned to her hometown in Jiangling and remarried. She only has me. Now my stepfather has a son and a daughter in his family."
"So you are the daughter of an official family. No wonder you dress differently from us." Jinniang suddenly realized.
Qin Shuang'er smiled and said modestly: "What official? My father was just a minor official before. It's just that my mother remarried into this family. There are so many people in the family and the expenses are high. The clothes I wear are made from my mother's dowry. If I didn't wear them, I'm afraid they would have been taken away long ago."
Jinniang sighed and said, "No wonder it's like this."
In a family, if the man of the house is gone and the woman is unable to support the family, even if she has money, it will be emptied out.
Qin Shuang'er could see that she understood the ways of the world, and she quickly began to praise Jinniang: "Your family looks very well-off, with a house and a mule cart."
"Don't mention it. It's because we bought that house that we have no money. My parents saved some money with great difficulty, but it was all spent after my grandfather died. Although my grandmother worked for my uncle, she still wanted my father to give her money every month. My mother was so angry about this. The family was waiting for food to be cooked, otherwise why would I go to work as a maid in someone else's home?" Jinniang cried about her poverty half-seriously and half-falsely.
Don't say you are too rich, or people will envy you. Don't say you are too poor, or people will come to you first when they find something missing and think you are a thief. This is her personal experience.
At that time, her father was still in the Imperial Guard, and most of the girls in the school she attended were daughters of wealthy businessmen or scholars. She was isolated and looked down upon just because she honestly told them that her father was originally a soldier and later joined the Imperial Guard.
Sister Jiang Shan said, "My family doesn't have these mother-in-law and daughter-in-law problems. My grandparents have passed away long ago, and my father is eighteen years older than my mother."
"How old is your mother?" Jinniang asked.
"My mother is thirty years old this year." Sister Jiang Shan smiled.
Jinniang nodded: "Your mother and my mother are about the same age, but how did you learn to embroider? Sister Qin has a family tradition of learning, and her mother learned Suzhou embroidery. Could it be that you are like me, a latecomer?"
Sister Shan quickly shook her head: "That's not the case. My mother can spin cloth, and my father farms. I originally followed my mother to spin cloth. There was a tutor named Feng living next door to us. When I had nothing to do, I followed her outside and learned a few words. I also learned needlework from Mrs. Feng. I could hold a needle when I was three years old."
"I started to use acupuncture at the age of five, two years older than you. She said that knowing many skills is always a waste, so she let me learn from others since I was young." Fang Qiao Lian said lightly.
Everyone could more or less see that Fang Qiaolian's mother had told Chen Niangzi before she left that she was an orphan and a widow, and that it was not easy for her to work as a handyman in the small kitchen of the prefect's house.
Everyone has their own worries, and every family has its own problems.
At noon, Jinniang took out her own pancakes and shared them with them, and also gave each of them an egg. Seeing her generosity, Fang Qiaolian was not stingy and shared with them the snacks from the mansion's house that her mother gave her.
Madam Chen, who was outside the cabin, heard them talking and sharing food and couldn't help laughing. She then went out to talk to the He family's servants. The He family wanted to bring the festival gifts to the capital, and they rented this boat. Chen Niangzi and Dou Pozi who followed the He family said, "It's not easy for these children to leave their hometown. They are not like us who are used to living outside."
"You are worrying for nothing. When they go to the Zhou family in the future, they will be dazzled by the wealth and fame, and they will talk about leaving their hometown. I'm afraid that no one will want to come back by then." Mrs. Dou was Madam He's companion, and she boasted that she had a pair of sharp eyes and had seen through thousands of things.
Madam Chen smiled and said, "I brought them here, and we will work together in the future. I just want to get things done and not hold me back. However, I would like to ask Sister Dou to teach me, so that I don't go to the Zhou family in the dark."
Seeing that Chen Niang was not a cunning person and treated her well, Dou Pozi deliberately showed off and said, "The Zhou family was originally from Gusu and was considered a scholarly family. However, Mr. Zhou's father died when he was young and he was raised by his widowed mother. Later, because of his talent and learning, he was chosen as a son-in-law by the Han family, a scholar of the Zizheng Palace. Han died after giving birth to two sons. Later, Mr. Zhou married Han's younger sister, Xiao Han, but Xiao Han had no sons, only a daughter."
"Now, in that family, Mr. Zhou died in Quanzhou. The eldest son is the current head of the Zhou family. He is very promising. He passed the imperial examination and married the daughter of Mr. Zhou's colleague, who is our concubine. Our Jiang family is also a prime minister's family, which can be regarded as a good match. The second son entered the government through patronage. He doesn't like to study, but he is very resourceful. He also married a scholar. As for the youngest, he is born in a concubine's house and only manages the family business. As for the eldest master's house you are going to, his wife Jiang gave birth to an eldest son who is eighteen years old this year. He is studying in the Imperial Academy. He also has two daughters. The older one is called Shishi and the younger one is called Huihui. There are also two concubines in the house. One gave birth to the third girl Lingling, and the other gave birth to the fourth girl Susu. The third girl's concubine is the daughter of the dowry maid of Mrs. Jiang. As for their personalities, I only see them once every three to five years, so I don't know them well."
Madam Chen went through the story slowly and couldn't help but exclaimed: "The Zhou family is indeed prosperous. We are not afraid of having a large number of people, but we are afraid that the family will not be peaceful."
Mother Dou burped and waved her hands, "What's the big deal? You guys in the sewing room can hide away and do your work in peace. Besides, you are invited by the main room, so other rooms won't dare to be so tactless. But I have something to tell you."
Madam Chen said timidly, "Just tell me what you want to say. I have a horn of lamb and some wine to honor you."
"Madam Jiang's son, Master Zhou, is currently in the process of getting married. Normally, she is very cautious about him and even doesn't like the young ladies from her relatives. I see that some of you girls who are going with them have ulterior motives. If they do something shady, you might get implicated and not make any money. If you get beaten in the face, you won't have anywhere to seek redress." Mrs. Dou spoke intermittently, and in the end, she fell drunk on a chair.
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