Chen Lianghou was indeed efficient. The next evening, after Lin Yuqiao had dinner at Li's place, she returned home and heard her maid Zihe say that the Marquis had someone bring over a cat and placed it on the couch in the room.
Lin Yuqiao rushed over excitedly and saw a small white fur ball lying in a small bamboo basket, which looked like it was sleeping.
Granny Fang, who was standing nearby, also looked at it and said that the kitten was at most a month old, and its paws were still soft.
Lin Yuqiao excitedly stroked the kitten's head, but perhaps her movements were a bit too rough, waking the kitten up. When it opened its eyes, it was discovered that it still had heterochromia (different colored eyes).
Lin Yuqiao smiled contentedly as she picked up the timid kitten nestled in her hand.
She knew that Chen Lianghou also loved her, although this love was not even one-thousandth as much as it was for Lin Yuqi. It was the kind of love where he would hug and tease her when he saw her, and wouldn't necessarily miss her when he didn't see her. But she should be content, at least among the children, besides Lin Yuqi, she was the one who won Chen Lianghou's heart the most.
Of his sons, only his youngest son, Lin Yutian, was somewhat favored by Chen Lianghou, who would occasionally remember to check on his studies. As for the other sons, he hired tutors and stopped paying attention to them.
Sometimes Lin Yuqiao couldn't help but be curious about Chen Lianghou's deceased first wife, Chen Shi, wondering what kind of special woman could make Chen Lianghou so devoted to her, while being so indifferent to his second wife and all the children born afterward.
Actually, Chen Lianghou wasn't the kind of abusive father who mistreated his children. He provided them with plenty of food and clothing, but he treated Lin Yuqi and Lin Yuqi like they were adopted children, treating them completely differently from his own. If none of the children received fatherly love, there wouldn't be anything to complain about, but the fact that only one of them had it while the others received very little is what makes it so distressing.
The saying "It's not scarcity that's the problem, but inequality" is the origin of most people's grievances.
After thinking about it all night, Lin Yuqiao considered countless powerful-sounding names, but none of them seemed quite right. In the end, she named the kitten Naigao (Milk Cake). The kitten looked soft and tender, and its meows were gentle, sounding like it was being affectionate. Lin Yuqiao felt that Naigao suited it best.
Those who served her were all happy with whatever pleased their mistress, and they all praised the unique name "Milk Cake".
The next day, Lin Yuqiao happily told Li about it, and Li laughed, "I'm such a glutton, even when I'm naming my cat, I can't do without snacks."
However, since Lin Yuqiao liked it, Madam Li assigned another maid to Lin Yuqiao's courtyard to take care of the cats on a daily basis.
Today, the Chen Liang Marquis's family is considered to be of average strength among the marquis families in the capital, neither the best nor the worst. Although the current Marquis of Chen Liang has little real power in the court, the family has accumulated a century of heritage and its foundation remains. Moreover, their ancestors rose to power during wartime, and their great-grandfather brought back many valuable items when he fought.
Furthermore, the Chen Lianghou family was renowned in the capital for its upright family traditions and simple household. Lin Yuqiao's grandfather had only two legitimate sons and no illegitimate sons, and originally only had one concubine. Both the Marquis of Chen Lianghou and his second master were indifferent to women, and initially only had their principal wife in the house, without any concubines. The second master only took a concubine because the second wife had no children.
All the young masters and ladies in the manor are legitimate children. Only the heir, Lin Yuqi, is treated better than Lin Yucheng and the others among his brothers. The three sisters, Lin Yuqiao and Lin Yuqi, do not have any distinction in status and all live very comfortable lives.
Each young lady was accompanied by at least one nanny, one wet nurse, four head maids, four second-class maids, four maids responsible for sweeping, scattering and running errands, and four old women who did rough work. This did not include the people serving in the kitchen in the separate small kitchen in the courtyard.
Furthermore, as she grows older and needs more people, she will need to add more servants. Her daily life will be filled with servants at her beck and call, and she will be accompanied by a large group of people whenever she goes out. Since she can't even recognize all the people who serve her normally, adding a few more won't make a difference. Now, Li Shi has added another person specifically for Lin Yuqiao just for a cat, which is not a big deal.
So although there have always been many private affairs in the inner quarters of a household, the scenarios in the domestic drama novels Lin Yuqiao had read before her transmigration—where young ladies were pushed into the water or framed for being alone in the mansion—were nonexistent. Everywhere she went, she was surrounded by a group of people, and there were many maids and servants constantly moving about. It wouldn't be easy for someone to openly harm another person.
Lin Yuqiao arrived at the perfect time of her life. Her brother was a good student, her mother managed the entire Marquis's mansion and had considerable influence, and she was the only legitimate daughter of the eldest son's family. She was happy every day. She just wanted to grow up peacefully, marry a man of equal social standing or a talented and accomplished man, and become the mistress of a mansion or a matriarch, striving to live to see four generations under one roof. That would make her life worthwhile.
Although this wish was simple, Lin Yuqi knew that it would be quite difficult to have the last laugh. This was because the world was inherently demanding of women, and women in the inner quarters were like duckweed, their lives dependent on men, and their fates were truly unpredictable.
Like her mother, who, after marrying as a second wife, not only had to fawn over the son of the first wife but also appease her cold-hearted husband, while also having scheming sisters-in-law and a mother-in-law who only cared about her grandson and watched the infighting from the sidelines. To have so many children and make a better life for them, Li Shi must have swallowed countless grievances and tears throughout her life.
For a woman who marries into a less-than-warm in-law family, her children are her only support and hope; with children, she can survive. So, whether life is good or bad is irrelevant; in this era, those without children are truly unfortunate, having lost all hope.
For example, Lin Yuqiao's second aunt, He Qingfang, although she had been a favorite in the household for half her life, she had no son. Now, she was heartbroken and had arranged for the second master to take a concubine. However, she was still resentful. Whenever the second master stayed with his new concubine, the second mistress couldn't help but torment her the next day.
The second master was a righteous man. Since he had taken a concubine, who was also a distant cousin of the madam, he wanted to treat her well. Therefore, he was quite fond of his new concubine, which made the second madam furious.
It's incredibly easy for a mistress of the house to manage her concubines; she can simply assign them a few tasks that will leave them speechless with bitterness.
The second wife wasn't much kinder to her own cousin either. As long as she served the second master, she would have to fan and massage her legs the next day.
Despite the freezing weather and the underfloor heating, the second mistress complained of being too hot. She insisted on having someone fan her through a screen to let in fresh air. The fan would be on all morning, and her legs would be massaged all afternoon, leaving everyone miserable. Even after returning home, she couldn't rest; she still had to make shoes and socks for her, which she couldn't finish without working under the lamp until dawn. However, since it was considered natural for a concubine to serve her mistress, she had no grounds for complaint.
After being disciplined by the second mistress several times, the concubine was unwilling to endure it any longer. She found an opportunity to faint by the second master's side. She was clever; she didn't speak herself but let the maidservant serving her complain.
Because the new concubine was young, considerate, and gentle, and served him well, she was even more lovable than the proud second wife, and the second master's heart was already more inclined towards her. Then, seeing the bruises on Concubine Jiang's knees, and knowing the doctor said her fainting was due to overwork, he became furious and went to question his wife. She was the one who decided to bring her in, so how could she be so unvirtuous now?
The second wife had hardly ever been given a hard time by the second master in all the years since they got married. Now that she saw him standing up for a concubine, she was even more furious. She started crying and making a scene, saying that the second master's favoritism towards his wife and neglect of his concubines had left her with no way to survive, and that she wanted to kill herself by crashing her head against his head.
The second master intended to reason with her, but she kept arguing and being unreasonable, which made him even angrier. The two of them started arguing and the eldest and second young ladies heard the commotion and rushed over, kneeling and crying in front of the second madam.
The manor has always been quiet and free of trouble over the years, but now the second branch of the family has caused quite a stir. By the time Lin Yuqiao heard about it, it had already spread throughout the entire manor.
"My second sister-in-law has been hunting sparrows all day long, and now the sparrows have poked her eyes out. She's fierce. And this cousin is no pushover either. It's amazing that she chased away everyone the old lady gave her. I don't know where she found such a treasure."
Li had been keeping a close eye on the second wife's movements, and now that things had finally escalated, she wasn't surprised. Now, just knowing that He Qingfang was having some kind of trouble made her happy enough to eat an extra bowl of rice.
Zhang was also very unhappy when she heard about the trouble caused by the second wife. It was the second wife, He Qingfang, who had chosen the concubine herself, who was her own cousin. She had promised to live a good life with her, but now she couldn't tolerate her.
Zhang is now truly disappointed in the Second Madam. She has been almost always tolerant of her, but He Qingfang shows no gratitude whatsoever and only thinks about competing with Li.
Zhang had tolerated He Qingfang's lack of a son all these years, but now that He Qingfang herself couldn't have children, she couldn't tolerate others having them either. Such jealousy made Zhang Shi unable to bear it any longer.
When Zhang paid her respects in the morning, she had a stern face. After everyone else left, she stopped He Qingfang and looked at her haggard and sallow face. She showed no pity and said directly, "Second son's wife, since your cousin is not serving you well and you are so dissatisfied, then I'll have to find two more obedient people to serve the second son."
He Qingfang was not happy after her big fight with the second master. Her eyes were red and swollen with bloodshot veins. She knelt down immediately after hearing Zhang's words.
"Please have pity, Aunt! Our master now favors his concubine over his wife after taking a concubine. What will become of us three when that slut Jiang has a son? You must stand up for me!"
"What 'slut'? You're becoming more and more shameless these days! Listen to what you're saying! 'Doting on your wife and neglecting your concubine'? You can't just say that casually!"
He Qingfang, spoiled by Zhang, momentarily forgot that a mother-in-law would never fail to protect her son and instead side with her daughter-in-law. These words immediately enraged Zhang, who trembled with regret for her past mistake of marrying such a woman to her second son.
"If you keep making a scene like this, I'll send you back to the He family!" Zhang said fiercely, and He Qingfang, full of grievances, dared not continue speaking.
"If you live your life properly and stop mistreating your concubine, I will naturally leave you alone after the child is born. But if you continue like this, I will have no choice but to arrange for my second son to take in a virtuous second wife."
Seeing that Zhang's actions didn't seem like a simple threat, He Qingfang realized that continuing the commotion wouldn't end well, and out of fear, she dared not act recklessly any further.
He channeled all his resentment towards Zhang and the second master into hatred for his cousin, Jiang. He hated her so much that he vowed to kill her once she gave birth to his son.
Originally, He Qingfang hadn't decided what to do with her cousin's newborn child. She probably thought of sending her to the estate or sending her away to remarry, ultimately out of consideration for their kinship. Now, she felt that Jiang Shi was actually instigating the Second Master to provoke her, which was truly hateful, and she felt betrayed.
But she didn't realize that she herself had been too harsh on the Jiang family. Even the most submissive person would have some temper.
After the rumors of the two wives fighting over the concubines faded away, the Laba Festival had passed. Lin Yuqiao's long-awaited second brother, Lin Yucheng, finally returned.
As his older brother, Lin Yucheng knew that Lin Yuqiao and Lin Yutian were both childlike and loved excitement, so he brought them back a lot of trinkets from outside.
Clay dolls, various exquisite little cages for holding insects, sugar paintings, and small animals woven from bamboo strips and sorghum stalks—each person received a small box full of these items. He had bought them all at the markets he passed along the way. They weren't as exquisite and detailed as the toys in the mansion, but they were precious gifts from the heart.
Lin Yuqiao sighed inwardly. Although Lin Yuqi also cared for Li Shisheng's younger siblings, it was easy to sense the difference in their closeness when compared to her own brother Lin Yucheng.
Like Chen Lianghou, Lin Yuqi only showed affection and tenderness to her younger siblings when she found them agreeable. Take the parrot in his yard, for example; if she truly cared, she would have given it to her long ago. If it were Lin Yucheng, Lin Yuqiao would have seen the parrot in her yard on the very first day he returned.
It wasn't that Lin Yuqi cared about the parrot and couldn't bear to part with it; it was just that he didn't care about his younger siblings at all, which was why he couldn't remember them. He would pretend not to know even if he heard about their affairs.
Just like when he was a child, Zhang Shi severely punished the wet nurse who took care of Lin Yucheng because Lin Yucheng reached out to pick the New Year's gifts before him. When they went to worship Chen Lianghou at the ancestral temple during the New Year, Zhang Shi only cared about pulling him along and completely forgot about Lin Yucheng. He knew about these things, but in his heart Zhang Shi was closer to him than Lin Yucheng, so he pretended that nothing had happened. Only when it was mentioned in a public way, like Li Shi, would he do his best.
However, Lin Yuqiao and her other brothers never really expected Lin Yuqi to take care of them. After all, they had grown up seeing Chen Lianghou and Zhang Shi showering Lin Yuqi with affection while treating them coldly. They had long since unconsciously drawn a line between Chu and Han in their hearts, and although they were brothers, they did not cross the line between each other.
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