Chapter 228 Visitors
228 Visitors
No matter how frustrated the old lady was, Xu Xiaojuan got the big bargain first. Everything she planned was accomplished. She was extremely happy and lived a happy life with her husband Li Zhao and their two children in Yuehua Courtyard. Li Zhao lived in Houfu, enjoying a different kind of wealth and splendor from his home. At first, he could study hard, but when he went out to meet a group of noble families and officials in Beijing, he saw and learned more every day, and his mind became more relaxed. He spent less time sitting in the study, and more and more time going out to write papers or attend various social events. Xu Xiaojuan complained at first, but after being coaxed by Li Zhao, she ignored it, thinking that she would just do her best in the imperial examination in two years. Whether she passed or not, she would definitely become an official, so there was no need to make her husband suffer too much.
Xu Xiaojuan gradually got bored of serving her husband, taking care of her two children, and going to the inner courtyard to pay respects every day. She could not get any housekeeping power from her eldest sister-in-law, so she began to run outside the mansion. She was a frequent visitor to jewelry stores, spice stores, silk and embroidery shops in the capital, and all places that women were interested in. If you want to know what kind of clothes and jewelry are the most popular in the capital, just ask her. The old lady occasionally had a wedding banquet, and she liked to take her with her. She got to know many young ladies and wives of wealthy families, forming a circle of friends, exchanging business cards with others, and comparing clothes, jewelry and pomp with each other. The couple had only been in the capital for two or three months, but they had already completely behaved like people in the capital. They had not achieved fame, but regarded themselves as reserve officials.
According to the usual practice of each courtyard, Yuehua Courtyard was also allocated a dozen old maids, a dozen big and small maids, Xu Xiaojuan's own wet nurse Zheng and maids Shuixiang and Yuexiang, the two children's wet nurses and little maids to play with. It was a lot of people to order around, but there seemed to be few who were satisfactory and capable of the job. Hearing Xu Xiaojuan's complaints in front of her, the old lady closed her eyes slightly: How can it be easy to find a maid who is satisfactory and capable of the job without three or two years of training and polishing?
She thought of Ruixue. Selling Ruixue was the worst thing she had ever done. She regretted it very much. No one, Ruiyu, Ruiyun, or Ruifeng could comb her gray hair well. When Ruixue stretched out her hand to drink tea, she would know whether it was ok to serve it or not, but these maids could not tell the difference between hot and cold. When she ate candied fruit, Ruixue could poke it with a stick to find the one without seeds and put it into her mouth. Ruiyu put two candied fruits in a row that had seeds in them, and her teeth were almost falling out from chewing them. She thought that by beating and scolding and selling the best Ruixue, she could shut these people up, but people from the Manchu mansion and even the mansion over there said the word "West Mansion". It was an indisputable fact that the Xu mansion had been separated. Why did she insist on shutting up the gossips? When she heard Meimei say "the girl from the West Mansion" and Bai Jingyu say "the second master and third master of our West Mansion", she knew what the meaning of "things are different now". Today's Jinhua Hall is no longer the Jinhua Hall of the past. The Jinhua Hall in the past symbolized authority, and a single word or action could shock everyone in the mansion. But today, Jinhua Hall is just where the old lady lives!
Unable to bear Xu Xiaojuan's nagging, the old lady gave her granddaughter two newly bought maids, which she herself was not comfortable with. First she had Ruixue, the pearl, and all the servants after that were just dirt.
Xu Xiaojuan got two more maids to serve, and took them back to Yuehua Court with a smile, and handed them over to Yuexiang to arrange. Yuexiang saw that the two maids were about fourteen or fifteen years old, one fat and the other thin, but both were well-proportioned, and the more she looked at them, the more attractive they were. Thinking of the little maid who was grinding ink yesterday who was driven out because she was clumsy, she had an idea and led the two new maids to the study to meet the master. Li Zhao was writing, and he glanced at the two maids kneeling on the ground, asked them to raise their heads, looked at them carefully, asked their names, and smiled and said, "Change their names, one to Hongyu and the other to Luyu. Red is fat and green is thin, and they complement each other. It will add some interest to my study!"
This means he was willing to accept the two maids and have them serve him and study in the study.
Yuexiang secretly breathed a sigh of relief. She finally caught the master's eye. Otherwise, where else could she find someone smart and clever? The master couldn't pick out a suitable maid in this courtyard to accompany him to study and study ink. He had to write a long essay in the next two days. He scolded five or six maids who came to the study to serve tea, snacks, and grind ink and get rice paper and ran away.
First, he took the two maids down to find a place to live and let them live in the same room. Then he went to report to the grandmother. When Xu Xiaojuan heard that Li Zhaowei had changed the names of the two maids and kept them in the study to accompany them in their studies, she was relieved and instructed Yuexiang:
"Buy them two more sets of nice silk jackets and skirts. They should be dressed neatly and elegantly when they accompany me in the study to read and write. Don't be slovenly and shabby, which will ruin my mood for reading!"
It was the hottest day of July and Zhuang Yulan had to cheer herself up to go out. Fortunately, she had passed the morning sickness period and could eat and sleep well. She no longer felt uncomfortable and her belly was not noticeable. She could still wear gorgeous and fashionable clothes and was in a good mood.
Shi Songmao carefully helped her to the carriage, told the driver to go slowly, and said to Zhuang Yulan: "My husband has important matters to attend to and cannot accompany you. I have asked the maids to serve you carefully. You should also be careful and go early and come back early... Please apologize to my great aunt for me. I will go to visit my cousins after Master Hou returns home!"
Zhuang Yulan nodded slightly, and Shi Songmao lowered the curtain and stepped back, and the carriage slowly left.
Luo Zhuang, who was sitting in the back seat of the car, sighed and said, "If I could be a few years younger, it would be really good!"
Zhuang Yulan turned her face away and ignored her. This aunt from the same family was so ungrateful that she ran around for her even when she was pregnant. But she didn't know how to appreciate the benefits she received, and she only knew how to gossip and expose other people's scars.
In the morning, when she saw the four concubines, illegitimate sons and daughters of the family lined up to pay their respects, the aunt of the family actually exclaimed in front of the servants: "My son! You, the mistress, are too late... You are not as good as a concubine. She has two sons and will be able to marry a wife in a few years!"
She was so angry that she almost fainted. How could there be such an aunt? She was a girl whose parents raised her until she was sixteen or seventeen years old and married her off with a full dowry. How could her upbringing and intelligence not be half as good as that of an orphan like her?
This aunt from the same family was the one Shi Songmao brought Zhuang Yulan to visit his hometown in Jiangning last time. They had agreed to visit at that time. When they were gathered with their relatives in their hometown, the local accent was soft and the family affection was strong, she agreed to everything they said, but she forgot some of them afterwards. When the aunt from the same family appeared in front of her with a pair of daughters, Zhuang Yulan was so shocked that her jaw almost dropped - had she promised to find a husband for her two cousins? Oh my God, this can't be true, the aunt from the same family must be talking nonsense!
But people have already come to her house, can she still sweep the relatives out with a broom? Will she, the daughter of the Zhuang family, have to go back to her hometown in the future? How will her uncles and cousins look at her? People have to have dignity and trees have to have barks. She doesn't want to be the unkind and unfilial daughter who is scolded by others! Zhuang Yulan pondered for a while and felt that she was unable to find a good husband for her two pretty cousins, but she could find another way for them, that is, to send the three of them to the powerful and well-connected Weiyuan Marquis Mansion!
Luo Zhuang kept on talking: "I should have gone to visit my aunt, but don't I have another reason? This time I only prepared a gift to present to the historian, and you should wait for me to go back and make other preparations. How dare I visit my aunt's mansion without a few hundred taels of silver to buy gifts? I only thought that you are my dear niece, and you promised me loudly last time in my hometown. You don't have to be so formal. At least help me take in your two cousins, let them stay in Beijing for three to five months, and find a good marriage. But you drag me there, isn't this embarrassing for me? If you are unwilling to take care of us orphans and widows, then let me go, and I will find another way!"
Zhuang Yulan stared at her aunt, her eyes flashing with cruelty. Luo Zhuang was stunned for a moment. Zhuang Yulan noticed it, lowered her eyes, and sighed. She used to be gentle and graceful, virtuous and kind, but these days, she had been fighting with concubines and concubines in the Shi Mansion, and she had long forgotten to maintain a good image. Fortunately, Shi Songmao treated her sincerely, supported and cared for her, and did not allow concubines to bully the wife, so that the family was not too chaotic. Even so, there were still many obstacles in secret. The two maids that Old Lady Xu gave her as a dowry taught her: In such a big house, if you want to live a noble and decent life, you must be strong and establish the majesty of the wife!
"Aunt, please be patient and listen to what your niece has to say slowly!"
Zhuang Yulan brushed her sleeves in a relaxed manner and said to Luo Zhuang: "In the past, when my niece saw my aunt in my hometown, she might have agreed to this matter out of joy. However, my niece did not know that she was pregnant at that time. It was not until she returned to Beijing that she was diagnosed with pregnancy. My aunt is an experienced person and knows how uncomfortable pregnant women are. My niece can no longer take on this important task. She is afraid of delaying the two cousins, so she kindly led my aunt to meet my great-aunt. My great-aunt married into the marquis's mansion when she was a teenager and lived in the prosperous capital for decades. The Queen Mother in the palace has some kinship with the Zhuang family, but they haven't been in contact for a long time. She only recognizes our great-aunt as her cousin... Doesn't she know more dignitaries than my niece? The Hou Mansion is glorious and noble. If the two cousins can catch the eyes of the great-aunt and be taken in by the great-aunt, and live in the Hou Mansion for a while, it will be beyond the reach of ordinary young ladies. Why worry about not getting a good marriage? I have made plans for my aunt and cousins, but why does my aunt think that my niece is such a shallow person who doesn't care about family affection?"
Zhuang Yulan pulled out her handkerchief to wipe her tears. Luo Zhuang was panicked and hurried over to comfort her with an apologetic look on her face:
"Oh! It's all my fault, my bad aunt who talks too much! Don't cry, my dear niece, don't let the baby in your belly suffer! My dear niece has brought her niece's husband back to her hometown this time, which is a great thing to bring honor to the family. Everyone in the surrounding area knows that our daughter from the Zhuang family married a second-rank official, and her niece's husband is a powerful official. As an aunt, I couldn't help but have this idea - your uncle was a seventh-rank county official when he was alive. Before he died, he bought some property. He originally wanted us mother and daughter to live close to the Zhuang family and live a peaceful life. But the two cousins are growing up, and they don't want to marry and spend the rest of their lives in Jiangning. They want to return to the capital - Luojiazhuang outside the city is your uncle's hometown. I am a girl from the side branch of the Zhuang family, and I am not as lucky as you. I have only seen her once since I was a child, and I can’t afford the right gift money at the moment. I’m afraid that I won’t be able to see the aunt, but will be driven away, losing face and money...”
Zhuang Yulan sighed and looked at Luo Zhuang with compassion: "You think of your great aunt like this, it's your fault! Your great aunt is old, although she rarely goes back to her parents' home, she always thinks about her family and fellow villagers! Even if you go to her empty-handed, she won't say a bad word about you, but will treat you as a distinguished guest, not for anything else, just because you are from your hometown, your last name is Zhuang! Don't mention any collateral gifts, give me your share, I will bring it together, and your nephew's husband will add two more. "I will take you to the mansion later. No one will stop you. You just need to teach the cousins in the car behind you. They must be careful about their words and deeds. I see that the two cousins are very smart and well-behaved. Just let them talk. After you kowtow and greet them, you can say less. If you can please your great-aunt, everything will be fine. If not, then your niece is really powerless. Aunt, take your cousins back to Luojiazhuang outside the city! When your niece is better, you can visit your aunt again!"
What else could Luo Zhuang say? She could only nod her head repeatedly and agree hastily.
At night, the summer heat was still there, but the Jinhua Hall in the Hou Mansion was cool and comfortable. People were talking and laughing in the hall. There were a row of ice basins under the windowsill at the door. When they were half melted, they were replaced with new ones.
After dinner, Zhuang Yulan went back to the Shi residence while it was still daylight. Luo Zhuang and her two daughters sat in the hall with Old Lady Xu to chat. The eldest aunt of the Xu residence, Xu Xiaojuan, and the three young ladies, Xiaorong, Xiaowan and Xiaomin, also accompanied them. The evening passed as they talked and laughed.
Old Mrs. Xu and her niece, Luo Zhuang, were both smiling extremely happily. In fact, they were brothers for more than three generations and were both married daughters of the Zhuang clan. They each had their own lives and could not see each other normally, but when they met, it was just as Zhuang Yulan said, the old lady was not the kind of snobbish person. Her sincerity towards her own family moved Luo Zhuang so much that she shed tears. She knelt on the ground and kowtowed no less than ten times. If the old lady had not asked Mother Ji to go down and support her, she would not have refused to get up.
Seeing her fellow tribesmen from her hometown, Old Lady Xu was also happy and sighed, she shed a few tears, asked Luo Zhuang about the situation in Jiangning, then took the two Miss Luo's hand, looked them up and down with a smile, and praised them:
"After all, she is our Zhuang family's granddaughter, a girl born and raised in Jiangning. She is so beautiful. There are also beautiful girls in the capital, but how can they have skin like this?"
The eldest daughter of the Luo family, Luo Zhaoying, and the second daughter, Luo Xiangying, were seventeen and sixteen years old. They were indeed pretty, with faces like peach blossoms and shy smiles. They leaned beside the old lady in a delicate and well-behaved manner, like a pair of twin flowers reflected in the water.
The old lady said to Xu Xiaojuan, "Which one of them is not coming tonight? Your cousin and the two Luo sisters can stay at my place first. When you go to her tomorrow, tell her that I taught her to clean up a yard for your cousin and the two sisters to live in. Pay them according to the share of the young ladies in the mansion. You have come all the way to see me, so you must stay in the capital for a few days, see the big places, and have fun before you come back!"
Xu Xiaojuan was in a dilemma. She had just gone to see her sister-in-law during the day to ask for an advance on next month's salary, but her sister-in-law refused. The two of them argued with each other. She was already hating her, and now she was asked to go see her sister-in-law again. Wouldn't that be asking for trouble?
After thinking for a while, he smiled and said to the old lady, "We live in a small courtyard, why bother looking for her? The old lady can just say one word and it will be done - the Xiangxiexuan next door to us is exquisite, clean and tidy, and the fragrant orchid trees inside are blooming brightly and fragrantly, isn't it great? From now on, I can also keep my sisters company!"
The old lady pondered for a moment and nodded: "It's up to you. I'll leave this matter to you. Tell the maids to clean up tomorrow and buy whatever you need. Take out the money to entertain the guests. If she dares not write you a note, you can report it and I'll go find her myself!"
When you are out and about,
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
