Volume Two, Step by Step to Victory, Chapter 25: Needles in the Eyes
Xiuping talked on and on, and then invited Xiuzhi to visit her place, Fengxiang Garden, before leaving.
Not long after she left, the head of the sewing room, a woman named Ruan Bi, delivered new summer clothes—normally, summer clothes should be delivered before the start of summer, or at the very least before the summer solstice. However, at that time Ruan Bi was under house arrest, and the sewing room naturally forgot about her.
The woman in charge, whose husband's surname was Jiang, was twenty-five or twenty-six years old and plump. She bowed with a smile and said, "I apologize to Fifth Miss. Two embroiderers in the needlework room quit their jobs a while ago, and we were short-handed. We were busy making summer clothes for the First Madam and the Old Madam, so we put the young lady's clothes aside. Who knew that we had to rush to finish them recently, and then the young lady went to stay at Yuxu Temple for a while... It's been almost half a month, and it's almost the Lesser Heat season. I'm really sorry."
Ruan Bi didn't take such trivial matters to heart, but she knew they treated people differently based on who they were dealing with. If she was polite to them, they would take it as weakness; if she was rude to them, they would complain everywhere as if they had suffered a great injustice. Therefore, she didn't comment on what Xiuzhi said, but just smiled faintly and said, "Put the clothes down and invite your sister-in-law outside for a cup of tea."
After Sister Jiang finished her tea and left, Qiu Yan from Fourth Miss's room came over and said that Fourth Miss wanted to invite Fifth Miss to do needlework together. Ruan Bi gladly accepted the invitation, and together with Xiu Zhi, they went to Fourth Miss's room with their embroidery frames.
Of the three main rooms, one was used by the Fourth Sister as a separate embroidery room. There were about a dozen embroidery frames of various sizes, some square, some round, some triangular, some on stands, some on supports, and some leaning against the wall, a dazzling array of items. In addition, there were about a dozen pieces of textiles hanging on the wall, which made Ruan Bi's eyes dazzled.
The fourth sister stood up, pulled her hand and sat her down, saying, "It's not like it's the first time you've come here, but it's as if you've never seen her before."
Ruan Bi said, "It's been a long time since I've been here, so this feels new."
The fourth young lady had her maid serve her tea, then took the embroidery frame from Xiuzhi's hands and said, "Let me see, Fifth Sister's embroidery now..." Before she could finish speaking, she saw the crooked stitches and burst out laughing, "How come my sister's embroidery isn't as good as it used to be?"
“You know I’m lazy. I only think of embroidering once every ten days or half a month. If I’m going against the current, of course I’ll fall far behind.”
The fourth sister said, "Then you'll have to start practicing from scratch. I have some embroidery work that my third sister urgently needs, but I don't have time today. Let Qiulan guide you."
Qiulan, who was standing to the side, shifted her body somewhat reluctantly, but did not utter a sound.
Ruan Bi was also unwilling. Although she had no love or hate for the people in the Ruan family, she still had her likes and dislikes. Qiu Lan was one of the people she disliked. "Fourth sister, you can go about your business. I'll just take a look and learn a little."
The fourth sister nodded and said, "That's fine."
Ruan Bi casually glanced at the dozen or so embroideries of various sizes hanging on the wall of the Fourth Sister. She couldn't help but admire that the Fourth Sister had put in a lot of effort. Not only was her embroidery skill superb, but her composition and color matching were also ingenious. Whether intricate and gorgeous or light and elegant, they all left blank spaces like in calligraphy and painting, so the embroidery also had the artistic conception of calligraphy and painting.
Among these dozen or so embroideries, the most outstanding are undoubtedly "Phoenix Facing the Sun" and "Flowers in Full Bloom," with their bright and lustrous threads and graceful depictions of flowers and birds. It's clear at a glance that the Fourth Miss put a lot of thought into them, perhaps reflecting her inner self. Although the Fourth Miss always appeared in public with a serene and unassuming demeanor, the time the eldest young master caused trouble in Ruan Bi's room, and she suddenly appeared, seemingly to resolve the situation but actually adding to the chaos, made Ruan Bi realize that she was definitely not the kind of woman who was as tranquil as water.
She is shrewd, calculating, and very patient, just like embroidery.
When Ruan Bi first entered the workplace, a senior colleague once said something to her: "A person's character is hidden in what they are good at."
Seeing that she had been staring at the wall for a long time, the fourth sister asked curiously, "What is Fifth Sister looking at?"
“I’m looking at my sister’s masterpiece; her fingers are truly like a gentle breeze.” Ruan Bi sighed, “I have no hope for her in this lifetime.”
The fourth sister laughed, her needle and thread never stopping. "How old is my little sister? She's been out here her whole life."
Ruan Bi asked, "Fourth sister, may I ask you for one?"
The fourth sister paused in her needlework and asked, "Which one does the fifth sister want?"
Qiulan's expression changed, and she called out softly, "Miss..."
The fourth sister glanced at her quickly.
"Let's go with that one, 'Red Breeze and Rising Sun'."
The fourth sister held the needle in her hand for a long time without piercing it, her face shifting between light and dark.
Qiulan finally couldn't bear it any longer and said, "Fifth Miss, you spent a whole year embroidering this Phoenix Facing the Sun painting."
Ruan Bi nodded and said, "I can tell that this one was made with the most care, which is why I asked Fourth Sister for it. Sister Qiulan, Fourth Sister hasn't said anything yet, why are you in such a hurry?"
Qiulan said, "Fifth Miss, you know perfectly well that Fourth Miss loves her sisters the most. Aren't you putting her in a difficult position by asking for her like this?"
The fourth sister raised her voice slightly and said, "Alright, Qiulan, the fifth sister is just joking with me."
"Fourth Sister is so clever. Sister Qiulan, you should learn from your young lady." Ruan Bi said as she sat down in front of the embroidery frame. Of course, she didn't really want the embroidery; she just wanted to see the Fourth Miss's attitude. Sure enough, she was intelligent and quick-witted, and she brushed the matter off with a joke.
Qiulan's face flushed red and then turned pale. She sulked for a while, but eventually sat down.
Ruan Bi also understood why the Fourth Miss liked to use Qiu Lan. She was devoted to her and straightforward. In case of extraordinary events, she could help her say things that she couldn't say herself, and then she could calmly turn the situation around.
"Fifth Sister, what does Master Ziying look like?"
Ruan Biwei was taken aback by this sudden remark. "If you want to know what she looks like, it's simple. Just go to Yuxu Temple next time and ask her for an audience."
The fourth sister sighed and said, "It's not that easy. So many young ladies and noblewomen in the capital want to see her but can't... Speaking of which, the fifth sister is really lucky."
Ruan Bi said dismissively, "Who knows whose good fortune it will be?"
The fourth sister raised her eyes, looked at Ruan Bi seriously, and said thoughtfully, "No wonder Master Ziying would see my sister."
Ruan Bi disliked her probing approach, which was like embroidery, and said, "Sister, you're overthinking it. The real person is here to treat my illness."
The fourth sister pondered for a moment and said, "Haven't you heard, sister? When Empress Zhao was young, the immortal Ziying once examined her face and said that she was destined for greatness."
Ruan Bi chuckled inwardly; so this was what the Fourth Miss wanted to spy on.
Empress Zhao and Master Ziying were old acquaintances; she was originally not on the list of those to be received, but was suddenly added later; naturally, she had many thoughts on this…
A phoenix facing the sun, flowers blooming in wealth and prosperity—this was indeed her pursuit.
"I've never heard of that. Who told you, sister?"
The fourth sister said vaguely, "I heard it from my aunt. My aunt was related to the Zhao family... By the way, sister, please don't spread this around. I don't know if it's true or not."
"Don't worry, sister, I'll keep it a secret." After thinking for a moment, she asked, "By the way, has Aunt Lin's injury healed?"
Speaking of this, the fourth sister lowered her eyes sadly. "The weather is too hot, and the wound is unbearably itchy, flaring up repeatedly."
"You have to be careful, it's not good to have a scar."
"Yes, that's what I advised her too." The fourth sister was in a bad mood and silently embroidered flowers.
She remained silent, which suited Ruan Bi perfectly. She embroidered for another quarter of an hour, her fingers pricking five or six holes in the needle, before returning to the east wing. As soon as she entered, she heard soft sobbing. Ruan Bi paused, almost thinking she had entered the wrong room, and whispered to Han Xing, who was standing at the door, "Who's crying?"
"It's Sister Tea Girl."
Why is she crying?
Hanxing shook her head and said, "I don't know."
Xiushui came out from another room and said, "Just now, Chamei knocked over the incense burner and was scolded by Liu Mama. She said that she was clumsy and not even as good as the rough maids in the outer courtyard. She also said that if she continued to do this, she would have the First Madam send her to the outer courtyard."
A surge of anger welled up in Ruan Bi's heart. In her mind, Cha Mei was one of her own, while Liu Mama was an outsider. She instinctively hated Liu Mama for interfering with her people.
Moreover, she knew that Granny Liu was doing this to establish her authority first.
If I go along with her, she'll establish her authority, and the maids will probably all be afraid of her. But if I don't go along with her, she won't establish her authority, but with the Madam as her backer, she can cause trouble in my room, which will be difficult to deal with.
Where is Aunt Liu?
"I was just called away by the people in the First Madam's courtyard."
Ruan Bi thought about it carefully and decided to put it aside for the time being, and see how she behaved next before making any plans. She took Xiuzhi into the inner room and said, "Go and comfort Cha Mei, and remind her to be more careful in her work and more shrewd in her dealings with others." To be honest, Liu Mama's scolding of Cha Mei wasn't without reason. Cha Mei had always done rough work in the outer courtyard, and was indeed very clumsy in her work. However, she was kind-hearted and had helped Ruan Bi during her house arrest, so as long as she didn't make a serious mistake, Ruan Bi would continue to protect her.
Xiuzhi nodded, put down the embroidery frame, and went out.
Ruan Bi sat down at the desk, intending to read for a while.
Xiushui brought in a cup of tea, holding a small blue cloth bundle in her hand. Without saying a word, she placed the tea and the bundle on the table, stepped aside, and looked at Ruanbi with a complicated expression.
Ruan Bi opened the package; inside were the two copies of the Diamond Sutra that she had copied last time.
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