Volume 2, Step by Step to Victory, Chapter 23: Looking at Things Differently
The second girl was very unconvinced, and though she hesitated, she ultimately swallowed her words.
But then the sixth sister whispered, "I think the second sister is right, the fifth sister has indeed gained a little weight."
There was a moment of silence in the room as everyone looked at the old lady.
The old lady seemed not to hear her, and, holding Ruan Bi's hand, asked carefully, "Are you getting used to life at the temple? What do you do for morning and evening prayers? How is your diet and daily life?"
Ruan Bi had carefully prepared answers to these questions, so her answers were naturally apt and appropriate.
When the old lady heard that two out of the three meals a day were porridge, she said with pity, "Poor thing, how can she get fat from drinking porridge every day?" She then said to Manyun, "Send someone to the kitchen to tell them to make more chicken, duck, fish and meat so that Fifth Girl can have some good nourishment."
Manyun responded and left.
The sixth girl felt as if she had been slapped from afar, and her face turned red.
The old lady continued talking to Ruan Bi. When she heard Master Ziying say that she used to only have six orifices open, but now all seven are open, she put her hands together and said, "Amitabha, it must be the old master protecting you from heaven, turning misfortune into fortune. Come, Fifth Sister, come with me to the ancestral hall to offer incense to the old master..." As she spoke, she was about to get off the bed.
Just then, a voice announced from outside: "The First Madam has arrived."
Footsteps sounded, and the First Madam entered with a smile, followed by her maid Baozhen and an unfamiliar nanny. Seeing that the Old Madam was about to get out of bed, she asked, "Mother, where are you going?"
"I originally wanted to take Fifth Sister to offer incense to the old master, but never mind, we can go this afternoon." The old lady sat back down on the couch and said to the eldest wife, "You've come at the right time. I was thinking of sending someone to call you over."
The First Madam was slightly surprised and asked, "What does Mother want with me?"
"It's not a good thing, I'm going to scold you." The old lady pointed at Ruan Bi and said, "I heard that Fifth Miss's wet nurse fell ill last year and was taken away by her son to recuperate. It's been almost a year and she still hasn't recovered. Why don't you find her a more reliable and stable wet nurse?"
The First Madam smiled and said, "Speaking of this, I should be scolded. I've remembered it several times, but I've been busy with this and that and forgotten again. Besides, we have quite a few maids in our household, but as for the nanny, she's either too old or sick, and we don't know anything about the outsiders, so we haven't found a suitable one yet. Yesterday, the Old Madam said she wanted to bring Fifth Miss back, and I remembered this matter again. After thinking it over, I actually came up with someone, so here she is." As she spoke, she turned to the unfamiliar nanny and said, "Nanny Liu, go and greet the Old Madam and Fifth Miss."
Liu Mama stepped forward, bowed, and said, "Old servant Liu greets the old lady and the fifth young lady."
"Luo Liu Shi?" The old lady pondered for a moment. "Is she from the Luo Shan family? Why does she look so unfamiliar?"
The First Madam said, "Mother has forgotten that Luo Shan's first wife passed away last winter. This is his second wife, whom he married three months ago. She has never visited the mansion. She used to be a head maid in the Lu family in Zhejiang. She knows the proper etiquette."
The old lady looked Liu Mama up and down. She saw that Liu Mama was not yet fifty years old. Her hair was neatly combed and adorned with only a silver hairpin. Her hands were clasped in front of her in a very proper manner. Her nails were cut very short and the crevices under her nails were clean. Although she was not particularly attractive, she still looked quite dignified.
Turning to look at Ruan Bi, he asked, "Fifth Girl, what do you think?"
Ruan Bi was naturally unwilling. The three maids in the room were all young and inexperienced, and easily manipulated. This Granny Liu, on the other hand, seemed to be a shrewd person, and as the wife of Luo Shan, the First Madam's personal maid, she was unlikely to be loyal to her in the future. However, she also knew that this matter was not up to her to make a decision, and the old lady's question was just a polite gesture. So she said, "It is up to Grandmother and Mother to decide."
The old lady said, "Alright, she'll do. Also, Fifth Miss is short one maid, you can fill that gap for her too."
The First Madam said, "It's all been made up. I sent a maid over this morning."
Ruan Bi grew increasingly frustrated. She had stayed at Yuxu Temple to pray for blessings in hopes of gaining the old lady's favor, but this favor was also a problem. In her own room, Xiuzhi was not yet capable of handling things on her own, Chamei was rather clumsy, Xiushui was siding with Manyun, and then there was Liu Mama and a little maid who sided with the first lady... Well, she could only entrust this great responsibility to the right person.
After a moment of random thoughts, I came to my senses. The First Madam was saying, "...Does Mother have anything else to say? If not, I'll head back now. There are a few stewardesses waiting for me."
The old lady nodded and said, "It's alright, you can go back to your work."
As soon as the First Madam left, Granny Liu took her leave, saying she needed to go home and give some instructions.
As soon as she left, the maidservant asked from outside, "Madam, the kitchen says the food is ready. Would you like to eat?"
The old lady glanced at the water clock and said, "Open it, girls, stay and eat with us."
They ate without speaking and slept without making a sound; the meal was eaten in complete silence.
After finishing their meal and drinking tea, they exchanged a few pleasantries. The old lady yawned, and Ruan Bi and the others tactfully took their leave. In a short while, only Zheng Mama, Sun Mama, and Manyun remained.
The old lady asked Granny Sun, "What was she doing when you went to the temple?"
Granny Sun said, "When I arrived, she was doing her morning prayers with the Taoist priests. Granny He and I stood outside for a long time, and she didn't even notice us. I also inquired and found out that she never misses her morning and evening prayers at the temple. She doesn't wander around aimlessly when she has free time; she always reads books in the scripture pavilion. She is very well-behaved."
The old lady said "Oh" and didn't say anything more.
Granny Zheng said in a low voice, "After all, blood is thicker than water. As people get older, it becomes apparent."
The old lady remained silent for a moment, then waved her hand, and Zheng Mama and Sun Mama withdrew and returned to their respective residences.
When Granny Zheng walked to the backyard of Chunhui Hall, she saw several young maids peeking into the alleyway by the small gate. Curious, she asked, "What are you looking at?"
The maidservant gestured for her to be quiet, saying, "Mother, keep your voice down. The five young ladies are talking."
Granny Zheng paused for a moment, then walked over. Just as she reached the small door, she heard faint voices coming from nearby.
"...I never would have guessed that you, who used to be so quiet and unassuming, were actually quite shrewd." That was the voice of the Sixth Sister.
Then the third sister said, "Sixth sister, what nonsense are you spouting again? Quickly apologize to fifth sister."
Sixth Sister said, "Where did I talk nonsense? It's clearly true."
Ruan Bi said, "Third sister, it's alright. It's normal for sixth sister to think this way. As the saying goes, different people have different opinions. If you're thinking about scheming, then of course you'll only see scheming."
The sixth sister was furious: "You..."
The second sister said, "Sixth sister, I think you should stop arguing. Ancient books say that only sages open the seven orifices. Our fifth sister is already a sage. In the future, she will probably have great love and virtue for the world. When we see her in the future, we should all bow and respectfully address her as 'Great Virtue and Great Sage'."
Ruan Bi said, "The hat that my second sister gave me is too tall. I am too small and humble to wear it. I should take it back."
The fourth sister smoothed things over, saying, "Alright, alright, if the servants hear us going back and forth like this, wouldn't they laugh at us?"
The second young lady said, "Isn't this more to your liking? After all, you're the only proper young lady in this household..."
Upon hearing this, Granny Zheng realized that the conversation was getting increasingly absurd, so she quickly shooed the maids away and then coughed heavily.
The talking in the alley immediately stopped, followed by footsteps that gradually faded into the distance.
After thinking for a moment, Granny Zheng followed them out of the alley. She saw that the five young ladies had already separated and were walking towards their respective courtyards. She followed the fourth young lady and Ruan Bi for a while, and when they reached a less crowded area, she called out, "Fifth young lady."
Ruan Bi and the Fourth Sister stopped at the same time and turned around to see Zheng Mama walking over.
Granny Zheng approached and said, "Fifth Miss, I would like to inquire whether there are any scriptures or mantras that can transcend life and death?"
Ruan Bi said, "There are quite a few. What does Mom want to use them for?"
"I just wanted to accumulate some good karma for my short-lived Tong-jie..."
Ruan Bi knew that she had something to say to her, so she pretended to think for a moment and said, "The Supreme Lord of the Mysterious and Profound Heavenly Venerable spoke of the Wonderful Scripture of Saving from Suffering and Removing Sins. It is very profound and not long. It is suitable for reading aloud. Mother, come with me and I will copy it for you."
Granny Zheng said gratefully, "Thank you, young lady."
Ruan Bi led Zheng Mama and the Fourth Miss back to Liaoyuan, then parted ways and went into the east wing. She invited Zheng Mama to sit down in the inner room. Zheng Mama said, "Miss, I can't stay long. There's something I need to tell you first."
Ruan Bi was slightly surprised by the seriousness in her voice. "Please speak, Mother."
"Three days ago, the palace sent someone to the mansion to inform us that the old lady and the first lady should bring the second and fourth young ladies to the palace to pay homage to the Empress. Yesterday, they suddenly sent someone again, saying that the young ladies should also come along."
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