Chapter 31 Chapter 31 Two chapters merged into one
When they were halfway through embroidering Haitangxiadie's wedding quilt, Chen Niang asked them to make matching pillowcases. Jin Niang breathed a sigh of relief: "This is easier."
Mrs. Chen smiled and said, "Embroider the big pieces first, then the small ones will be much easier. Start with the difficult ones and then move on to the easy ones, so you can relax a little bit."
"Yes, if you let us embroider the wedding quilt last, the people behind us will become more and more impatient." When you are in a hurry, if you do something particularly complicated, it is easy to make a mess as you go on.
The sewing room is boring most of the time, but fortunately, Jinniang got her monthly salary today, so she can still find some comfort.
When she was in Jiangling before, she thought that one or two taels of silver a month was not a small amount of money. Now that she has come to Bianjing, she knows that there are always people better than you. Let’s not talk about others, just look at her eldest brother-in-law, who has a monthly salary of thirty-five strings of cash.
When she had money coming in, the eldest girl also had some dowry sent by the Han family. The Han family heard that the whole family was in mourning, so they specially sent the dowry first. The eldest girl remembered that last time the second girl bullied Jinniang because of her, so she specially called her over to give her a reward. When Jinniang came over, the eldest girl was also doing needlework. When she saw her, she waved to her.
"Come and see the purse I embroidered."
Seeing her embroidering pea green butterflies on pink satin, Jinniang thought her color combination was a little strange, but she didn't say it out loud. She just smiled and said, "How can it be such a coincidence that I am also embroidering butterflies."
As soon as she heard it, she knew they were making a wedding quilt for her. She couldn't help but blush: "Thank you for your hard work these days."
Jinniang shook her head: "Look at what you said, this is all our duty."
On the girl's desk was a small red-lacquered tray with gilded crabapple flowers, on which were placed delicate pearl, silk, and velvet flowers. She couldn't help but say, "Just pick two of whatever you like."
The truly valuable parts of these head flowers are the pearl ones, which are worth about one tael each. The other silk and velvet flowers are even more ordinary. The eldest girl has indeed learned the shrewdness and capability from the eldest lady. For example, the wedding quilt embroidered by Jinniang and her companions would cost at least ten strings of coins in an ordinary embroidery workshop, and the cheapest one without embroidery would cost eight strings of coins. However, Jinniang and her companions had been embroidering wedding quilts for more than half a year, and their monthly salary was only nine strings of coins, so they saved more than twenty strings of coins. If Jiang gave them another ten strings of coins as a reward, they would still have to bow in gratitude.
This is just the wedding quilt. The other pillowcases, oil rubbings, hanging curtains and wedding canopies are all in vain.
But she would not complain about anything. If she had not gone out with Madam Chen, how would she know all this?
Jinniang quickly declined: "I dare not pick, this is what I should do."
"Since you don't dare to choose, I will help you choose. This is a pair of rose beads. I think they match your character, which is as beautiful as pearls and jade. Please accept them. If you refuse again, I will be angry." The eldest girl said as if she would not tolerate any argument.
Jinniang had no choice but to accept it.
The eldest girl asked Xia He to find a box to put the dowry in, and Jinniang chatted with them, talking about the Han family sending dowry.
Chunlan said, "Last month, the old lady of the Han family came to talk to our old lady. She looked very energetic. How come she passed away so soon?"
"I don't know either. I just heard people say that her family got into trouble." The eldest girl now knows about these official affairs because she helps Jiang's housekeeper.
Chunlan brought a bowl of Songluo tea and said, "I heard that the Seventh Young Master's mother was the niece of Old Madam Han, but she died too early. Old Madam Han takes care of him on weekdays, and the Han family dare not neglect him. I don't know what will happen to him in the future?"
Just as the eldest girl was about to say something, Xia He had already found a mahogany box, put a pair of pearl flowers in it and handed it to Jinniang. Jinniang took her leave first. She had no interest in what the elder girls were talking about. These things were too far away from common people like them.
Jinniang also placed the pair of pearl flowers in her own box and locked it with two copper locks.
After that, she continued to finish the work in her hands, but before she had finished embroidering for an hour, Si'er came in and whispered in her ear: "Sister Jinniang, Sister Yanhong is going to be sent out."
"What?" Jinniang was shocked.
Si Er said seriously, "It's true. They said that Sister Yanhong's illness is too serious and she can't let the illness pass on to the masters. The eldest lady and the eldest master discussed and decided to send her to the manor in Daming Mansion to recuperate."
Daming Prefecture is also known as Beijing Daming Prefecture. Before being selected as a Beijing official, Mr. Zhou served as an official in Daming Prefecture.
Jinniang asked: "How did you know?"
"Mrs. Mei just said that she is going to Daming Prefecture and wants me to help her sew some clothes." Si'er said.
Now all the people who are properly employed in the sewing room are helping to embroider the dowry, so most of the people in the mansion will ask Si'er for help when they need sewing, because Si'er was taught by Jinniang, and although he has not learned to tailor yet, he is no problem for daily sewing.
She took out a hundred yuan and gave it to Si'er: "Give this money to that old lady Mei and ask her to help take care of Yanhong. This is also my best intention."
Si'er was shocked. You know, Sister Jinniang always brought her monthly allowance home. She herself was not a well-off person and had to get up early and go to bed late for the monthly allowance. Now she took the money and took care of Yanhong, so she agreed.
Mrs. Mei was just a servant who didn't get much money on weekdays. She was so happy to see a hundred yuan that she said to Si'er, "Don't worry, Miss Si'er. Even the Madam asked us to treat Miss Yanhong well."
"It's good that you can do this. We are all servants, so why bother to deal with yourself?" Si'er said with a smile.
There was no curfew in the Northern Song Dynasty. At night, Yanhong went out with the maids. Seeing that she was not very clear-headed, Jiang sighed slightly, but she had to send her out, otherwise, she would make a fuss. It would not be good if someone from the Wang family saw it. She had originally planned to let Yanhong go back to Jiangnan, and let her get married after she recovered. However, her husband disagreed and wanted to send her to Daming Prefecture so that no one would know about it.
At night, the sound of the carriage wheels rolling over the ground was particularly clear. Yanhong's hands were tightly holding the handkerchief, and she only relaxed her hands after the carriage drove away.
On the Double Ninth Festival, fasting meetings were held in temples in Bianliang. Many temples were crowded with tourists, and some people went to the suburbs to climb mountains. Places such as Cangwang Temple, Sili Bridge, Choutai, and Liangwang City were all places where people feasted and gathered, and it was very lively. 【1】
On Tuesday, the master and his wife also had a banquet at a place outside the city, inviting everyone to go out and relax for a while. Even the servants in the sewing room were lucky enough to go out and play. After all, other servants had time to rest, but only the people in the sewing room did not rest day or night, so this time Jiang specifically ordered them to go out together.
Jinniang was sitting in the carriage, feeling very happy: "This is the first time I've been out of the city since I came to the Zhou family."
As long as they don't have to work, they will be in a good mood. There is no other way, everyone is very tired during this period.
Madam Chen also rubbed her eyes. She was an old embroiderer. When she was young, she had endless energy. Now that she was old, her waist and legs ached and she felt very uncomfortable. She just felt dizzy sitting in the carriage.
She said to the three people in the sewing room with deep feeling: "Now is the time for you to work hard and improve your craft. At my age, I can't endure it anymore, and my eyesight is starting to deteriorate."
"You are right." Jinniang and the others said.
Just after saying this, Qin Shuang'er lowered her head. She was already fifteen years old this year, but still had no luck. The eldest girl seemed to only care about Jinniang, the second girl had Qiao Lian to please her, and the third and fourth girls were too young, she could not afford to wait any longer.
But what can she do?
Do I really have to wait until next year to go back to Jiangling?
No, never.
Soon, they arrived at the suburbs, and several of Jiang's daughters-in-law were surrounding the old lady. This is said to be a banquet venue, so it is very lively with people coming and going, and there are young ladies and old women carrying baskets selling various foods.
The Zhou family seldom eats food from outside because they think it is not clean and they do not buy it. Jinniang wanted to buy some, but it was not convenient for her to leave the main group, so she could only lower her head and follow Chen Niang in front of her. On the way, Jiang met her family, and they went into the inner room. Jinniang and the others moved around freely in groups of three or four, but Madam Chen told them not to go too far, as it would be bad if they were kidnapped.
Even though the emperor often severely punishes those who kidnap and buy women and children, there are still people who buy and sell human beings, and it is difficult to prevent them.
"Don't worry, we'll just walk around here and won't go far," Jinniang said.
Madam Chen didn't like to move, so she waved her hand and let them go.
Jinniang walked around for a while and felt that she had relieved the fatigue of the past few days. At the corner, she saw Zhu Xiaoniang from the second house. She recognized her and the two started chatting.
"I heard that you will return home after completing your term of office next year?" Usually, Zhu Xiaoniang would talk to no one except a few servants in the room. Fortunately, she knew Jinniang now and there was no conflict of interest between them, so they started talking outside.
Jinniang smiled and said, "Yes, we will finish it this year and work for a full year next year. When the eldest daughter gets married, we can return home."
Seeing that she was plump but articulate, Zhu Xiaoniang couldn't help but like her: "It's great that you can be with your parents and relatives. I envy you so much that I can't even envy you."
Then he asked her, "How old are you this year?"
"Fifteen (nominal age)."
"You're now at the age to talk about your in-laws. You'd better keep your eyes open and choose carefully. Don't be shy. Once you listen to the matchmaker, everything will be over." Zhu Xiaoniang sighed slightly.
Of course Jinniang didn't dare to ask any more questions. She had heard long ago that matchmakers relied entirely on their mouths and could even make a dead person come alive. She didn't know how many men and women had unhappy marriages because of some unscrupulous matchmakers. But she doesn't even think about herself now, because she hasn't considered getting married. In fact, if you remove marriage and childbirth from your life, you won't be bound by time and space.
The atmosphere was a bit dull, and Jinniang couldn't help but change the subject: "I heard that you are a native of Bianjing, do you know Wenxiuyuan?"
Zhu Xiaoniang was really a very smart person. She smiled and said, "Of course I know that. Are you interested in applying for the Wenxiu Academy?"
"I'm just asking for some information. I don't have a home in Beijing." Jinniang said.
Zhu Xiaoniang said, "I'll give you a suggestion. Since I've been married for so many years, I've had very little contact with the outside world. You can go find an agent and ask them if there's a job opening or a shortage of people to buy a house. You can contact them."
When Jinniang heard this, she suddenly understood and thought that knowing the world is knowledge, and understanding human nature is writing. No one should be underestimated, and you can really help yourself grow by learning from them.
She immediately thanked him: "Thank you, little girl."
Zhu Xiaoniang threw her handkerchief away: "It's a trivial matter, and I didn't really help you at all."
Jinniang said goodbye to her and got up to go somewhere else. The suburbs were indeed much vaster and the view was also broader. She saw a group of people gathered in one place to watch. She got closer and found that it was a group of teenagers playing polo.
The leaders were naturally the second young master Zhou Cunzhi and the third young master Zhou Shenzhi of the Zhou family. Although the second young master studied literature, he was skilled in archery and horse riding, and he was vigorous and powerful on horseback. The third young master was also waving a pole, and he looked sure of victory. They were all wearing red shirts, and there were three young men behind them. There was one boy who was about eleven or twelve years old. His eyes were particularly clear. The red shirt made his lips and teeth look red, and his appearance was so outstanding.
Originally, Jinniang thought that among all the people she had met, Mr. Zhou Er was considered to be a very handsome man, but after seeing this young boy, she felt that in a few years, as long as he didn't grow crooked hair and cheeks, his appearance would probably be even better.
But, she didn't quite understand polo, and she was just thinking about asking an agent when she could go out again. Seeing that Qin Shuang'er had squeezed in by virtue of her good relationships, Nanny Lin naturally pointed at them and told her, showing off how much she knew: "Look, those are Young Master Yan, Young Master Yan, and Young Master Xian of the Jiang family. Young Master Yan is the son of the head of the Jiang family, and the other two are the sons of Sixth Master Jiang."
"Where are the people who are fighting against our family from?" Qin Shuang'er asked.
Nanny Lin said, "The one leading the fight has a very prominent family background. He is the son of the prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture. If he wasn't our second young master, he wouldn't have honored us by fighting with us."
Although Jinniang didn't understand, she also watched the fun here. But it was strange that the third son of the He family didn't participate in such a polo match. It was just normal social interaction.
It's not that Mr. He San didn't understand all this, but he was a bit conceited by nature. He was the son of the prefect, and he was considered to be of noble status in the prefecture, but he was nothing in the capital. Although Zhou Cunzhi was enthusiastic about him and he admired Zhou Cunzhi's talent and they had a good personal relationship, he was unwilling to be someone else's foil.
What's more, he heard from others that his second cousin was a bit capricious. Those servants were nothing, of course, but if she had this temper, she would be arrogant when she went to his house in the future.
Just as I was thinking about it, the polo game was over.
Jinniang had been walking outside for a while and was already starving, but when she saw Chen Niang waving at her, she thought she had been out for a long time, so she quickly ran back and followed Chen Niang into the side room.
But she saw a commotion nearby. When Jinniang went in, she saw that it was Wu's son Zhou Qinzhi, whose face was red, as if he had choked on food. Wu was so anxious that she was at a loss as to what to do. The wet nurse was patting his back and trying to dig it out with her hands...
This is a typical case of choking on food. You need to use the Heimlich maneuver. She glanced at the fourth girl and found that although she was anxious, she didn't seem to want to save her at all. Jinniang saw that the child was getting worse and worse, so she immediately came out and said, "Second Madam, my brother was choked before, and my father saved him like this. Can you let me try?"
Wu was desperate and tried all kinds of treatments. Seeing that it was Jinniang, she immediately agreed: "You come."
Jiang was of course somewhat disapproving. If someone from her side stepped in and caused the second house's only child to die, she would not be able to take responsibility, so she asked, "Jinniang, are you sure?"
"Madam, we can't delay any longer." Jinniang pushed the wet nurse away. She knew that the child was already one year old and could be picked up from behind. She was fat and strong, so she placed her fist two fingers above the belly button and exerted force. A piece of candy fell out and the child cried out "wow".
Jinniang covered her chest and relaxed, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
She was afraid that Jinniang would kill the second wife's child and then blame the first wife, which would cause a rift between the two wives. However, now that Qin Ge'er is well, she is willing to do a favor and pulls Jinniang over to ask, "How can you be so bold, kid?"
Jinniang scratched her head and said, "I'm usually not very courageous, but this is a matter of saving people. If I hadn't seen my father saving my brother, it would be fine, but I have seen it before, so I don't care so much."
She really didn't think so much about it. In fact, she usually considered herself to be a person who kept to herself and would never have a Madonna syndrome. However, saving lives is urgent. It would be fine if she didn't know the method, but if she really knew, why didn't she rescue him?
The fourth young master stopped crying, and the child even poked her head out of her mother's arms and looked at everyone curiously. Mrs. Wu also breathed a sigh of relief, and the look in her eyes when she looked at Jinniang was different.
"Good boy, this time it's all thanks to you."
Jinniang shook her head: "This is nothing, I just did what I should do."
Wu smiled and said, "This is not what you should do. You saved the Fourth Young Master, so I want to reward you. You can have whatever you want."
It just happened that someone was saved. Jinniang is not a person who likes to preach, but she has always felt that one should not expect anything in return for doing a favor. She does not understand this to mean that she is broad-minded, but she feels that once one has decided to do something, one should do it according to one's own wishes and does not need to worry about whether someone will repay her or not.
But now that Wu had said so, Jinniang looked up at Wu. She knew that the Second House was rich and the Second Master was very good at business, but she had no purpose in saving people, so she just smiled and said, "The "Records of Natural History" that the Second Madam gave me last time gave me a lot of benefits. I discovered how to make bamboo clothes from it, and I can help others later. Please also give me the flower and bird album so that I can observe it carefully and embroider better for the eldest lady."
After saying this, she stepped back, not trying to steal the limelight from others. She didn't want others to really think that she was loyal and reliable, and then ask her to stay and continue to be a slave.
The fourth girl glanced at Jinniang. At this moment, she had not yet realized that Jinniang had also traveled through time. She just thought that it was no wonder that Jinniang had been able to turn her life around so many times in her previous life. She was really extraordinary. Others all want money, but she wants books. But Wu Luan is as calm as a chrysanthemum and really doesn't care about money. This is really the right way.
Sure enough, Wu Luan was very happy: "Okay, even if I don't have it at home, I will have someone find it for you."
Immediately afterwards, Master Zhou Er rushed in from outside, and all the female family members avoided him. Jinniang took a look inside and saw Master Zhou Er comforting Mrs. Wu, so she turned around immediately.
Because of this, Master Zhou Er specially sent them a table of food in the sewing room. Jinniang and Chen Niang had their meal together, next to the waterside pavilion, listening to the gurgling water, which was very comfortable.
Madam Chen smiled and said, "Madam Jin, we are all thanks to you."
"Madam, please don't mention it. My heart is in my throat. I'm lucky enough that I'm not afraid of being blamed by the ladies." Jinniang shook her head.
Madam Chen felt it was a pity. It would have been great if Jinniang had asked for more reward money. This girl was too conservative. She would never be able to find a better family after she left the Zhou family. Even though Mr. Zhou was only a fifth-rank official, his position was in a key position and his family was well-off. This might not be the case for other officials. Some poor officials lived a very hard life.
Still too young.
On the way back, Jiang looked at her second daughter who had just returned home, and personally took her by her side, saying to her: "You also saw this girl, she is a rare loyal person, you treated her like that, and she still -"
"Mother, she was hiding a sinister heart and fainted at the door on purpose. I didn't punish her for long. Can't I punish a servant? Why did you send me to my grandparents' house so eagerly?" The second girl was not convinced.
Jiang couldn't understand her: "Don't think that slaves can be punished at will. If you push them too hard, they will poison you and trip you up. Do you really think you can get away with it? As the saying goes, courtesy is not given to common people. People above us will never do anything too out of line. We all take care of each other's dignity, but they have nothing. I asked Chen Niang's father, who was from the imperial army, and her mother was a famous shrew. The couple didn't agree with her being a maid. She came here because she wanted to learn a skill from Chen Niang. You see, although she is a maid, she can read and write. There were so many people today, and she was the only one who had the courage to come out to save people. Your second aunt is very grateful to her, and you still come."
The second girl was listening attentively. Actually, she and Jinniang did not have any deep hatred. It was just that every time she saw her neither humble nor arrogant appearance, she felt that she did not act like a servant. She was a servant but did not act like a servant. Naturally, she wanted to discipline her, otherwise she would indulge her in the future.
But now she has become the hero who saved the fourth cousin. If I continue to make things difficult for her in secret, I'm afraid she will go to the second house for help.
Although her second uncle's official position is not as high as her father's, the second branch of the family is wealthy. It is said that her mother took out all the money from the bottom of the box when her sister got married. When she gets married, she will need her second uncle's help to buy the dowry, so she can't offend the second branch of the family.
This damn girl is completely naive and mean, and the second girl hates her secretly.
But Jinniang, who returned to the sewing room, received a thank-you gift from the second lady in the evening. There were two picture albums in the gift, which were actually painted by Hanlin scholars from the Hanlin Academy of Painting. These might not be available on the market. In one of the books, there was even a jiaozi note worth fifty strings of cash.
It was really a pleasant surprise. With this money plus the silver she had saved before, she actually saved up a hundred strings of coins. She also had the support of the second wife. Even if the second girl came home, she would not dare to humiliate her as before.
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