Gu Qinlan maintained an elegant smile and replied, "Mother, you flatter me. Huiyi is naturally intelligent, and I am only a few months older than her. My knowledge may not be superior to hers. I myself still need to consult with Mother. How dare I presume to guide her? From now on, we should all follow Mother's guidance, after all, Mother's experience is far richer than ours."
She wouldn't go looking for trouble.
Zheng Huiyi seems to have figured out right from wrong, but her nature is hard to change, and she is unwilling to suffer for it.
Besides, she was already busy enough with her own affairs, so how could she have the time to discipline someone else's unruly daughter?
It is one's duty to educate someone well, but if the education is ineffective, and Zheng Huiyi makes any mistakes in the future, the responsibility will be shifted to her, blaming her for failing to educate her properly.
She would only have gotten herself into this predicament if she were truly that foolish.
Princess Duan failed to grasp the deeper meaning in Gu Qinlan's words, instead mistaking it for genuine praise. She immediately beamed with delight: "Good, good, good! You are all sensible children. After this incident, our family will work together as one, and the prosperity of the Zheng family will surely be just around the corner."
Zheng Huiyi nodded in agreement.
"By the way, sister-in-law, how is Miss Zhao?"
Since the day she entrusted Gu Qinlan to rescue Miss Zhao, she has only received news that Gu Qinlan successfully rescued her, and knows nothing about what happened afterward.
A few days ago, they returned to the mansion, and the people in the mansion spread the word, mentioning that Gu Qinlan had taken Zheng Fenghui to Bianliang for further studies.
Gu Qinlan said casually, "Miss Zhao has already been taken back by her family. Oh, and she left you a letter. I'll have someone deliver it to you later."
Zheng Huiyi readily agreed, but then brought up another matter on her mind: "Sister, could you please put in a good word for me with Granny Zhang? I long to continue learning etiquette from her."
Gu Qinlan raised her eyebrows slightly, and asked with some surprise, "Aren't you afraid of hardship anymore?"
Zheng Huiyi lowered her head shyly, her tone sincere: "It wasn't hardship, just a little tiring."
Gu Qinlan responded with a smile: "Although Granny Zhang is strict, she does possess extraordinary skills. Since you are willing to learn from her, you should apologize to her yourself. Otherwise, even if I put pressure on her from behind, she may not be able to teach you wholeheartedly."
After hearing this, Zheng Huiyi nodded and said firmly, "Alright, I will personally apologize to the old lady."
After talking with the mother and daughter for a long time, Gu Qinlan was finally able to return to her courtyard. The letter Zhao Qingyu had left for Zheng Huiyi was in Xiaoman's hands, and Gu Qinlan instructed Xiaoman to deliver it to her.
Afterwards, Gu Qinlan summoned Huang Yue, the maid from the Zhao family she had brought back, to her side.
“Huang Yue, your master has entrusted your indenture to me, but I would like to hear your wishes. Would you like to stay by my side or return to the Zhao family? If you wish to redeem yourself, I can also return the indenture to you and waive your redemption fee.”
Huang Yue and Zhao Qingyu have similar builds, so the Zhao family arranged for her to accompany the Zhao brothers to Bianliang to welcome their master.
This young woman was beautiful and radiant. Born into an official's family, she served as a second-class maid in the Zhao family, enjoying a far better life than women from ordinary merchant families.
Huang Yue knelt down without hesitation and said sincerely, "This servant is willing to stay, I beg you, Madam, to have mercy. This servant comes from Jinzhou and is from a poor family. If I return home, I am afraid I will not escape the fate of being sold by my parents again."
Gu Qinlan smiled and said, "Have you really thought this through? After all, the Duan Prince's Mansion is not as good as the Zhao Mansion. Your food and lodging here will definitely not be as good as those at the Zhao Mansion. If you decide to go back, I can arrange for someone to send you back."
Huang Yue shook her head firmly, her tone resolute: "This servant does not wish to go back."
After a moment's thought, Huang Yue continued, "This servant works for the second wife in the Zhao family. The second master wanted to take me as a concubine, but I resolutely refused. Therefore, I obtained permission from the first wife to come to Bianliang to welcome you, young lady."
The maids inside the room looked at each other in astonishment, never expecting such a strange thing to happen.
It is well known that being favored by one's master and promoted to the position of concubine is an honor that many maids dream of. However, Huang Yue unexpectedly refused this opportunity. In fact, to avoid becoming a concubine, she took the initiative to leave the Zhao family and came to Jindu.
Huang Yue explained frankly and directly: "The Second Master is a fourth-rank official in the capital. It is indeed a great honor to be his concubine. But my ambition is not here. I only want to serve my master honestly and wait for the day when I can be granted the favor of my master to marry an ordinary person and become his wife."
Although becoming a concubine of the master may seem glamorous, she saw everything clearly from the backyard. In the end, a concubine was nothing more than a pastime for the master. Those noble concubines might be able to retain some dignity, but these lowly concubines who rose from the ranks of maids not only suffered torment and reprimands from the principal wife, but sometimes they even had to serve the master's colleagues or friends, which was also commonplace.
In addition, the second wife was not an easy person to get along with. Even when she was a maid, she was often punished. If she became a concubine, she would become a thorn in someone's side and could disappear silently in the backyard at any time.
She didn't have much ambition and cherished life, so she seized the opportunity and resolutely escaped the constraints of the second branch of the Zhao family.
Seeing that she was honest and kind-hearted, Gu Qinlan said gently, "Since you are willing to stay, I will take you in. From now on, you will stay by my side."
Huang Yue gratefully kowtowed three times to Gu Qinlan: "Thank you for your kindness, Madam."
As the number of maids increased, Gu Qinlan promoted Huang Yue and Xiaoman to second-class maids. She also selected two clever and quick-witted girls from the maids who had come with her as part of her dowry, promoted them to second-class maids, and changed their names. One was named Mai Dong, and the other was named Fu Ling.
These two maids were also exceptionally quick-witted and sensible. In their previous lives, after Fuyu and Hongye assisted Gu Qinlan in running her business, they took care of Gu Qinlan's daily life and were very responsible.
Besides these six maids, there were four other maids in the courtyard who did manual labor. In addition to her dowry wet nurse and two errand boys, there were as many as thirteen servants in the entire courtyard.
However, this is far from being fully equipped. If she intends to open a small kitchen, she will need to add two more helpers.
Thinking of the small kitchen, Gu Qinlan couldn't help but think of her aunt, Madam Liang.
A few days ago, she accompanied Zhao Qingyu home, and Liang Shi also returned to her own home. Now that she has returned, she naturally wants to bring Liang Shi back to her side to spend time together.
After entrusting Hongye with the matter, Madam Liang was soon welcomed. When she arrived, she was carrying an exquisite food box. Upon seeing Gu Qinlan, she smiled and said, "I had long anticipated that you would have a messenger summon me. As soon as your uncle stepped into the house, I began to busy myself preparing this gift. Come on, try it quickly. Look, your cheeks have become much thinner these past few days."
What Liang brought was a carefully prepared medicinal dish, intended to nourish qi and blood.
Her culinary skills are exceptional, and her medicinal cuisine is ingeniously prepared. She skillfully uses the aroma of the ingredients to mask the taste of the herbs, resulting in an exceptionally delicious flavor.
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