After Madam Shengda entered the inner room, she asked Chuntao, who was standing beside the attendant, "Where is Hong'er?"
Chuntao replied, "Madam, the eldest and third daughters are in the study at the end of the room, learning calligraphy with Madam Liu. It's almost noon, and they should be back from the study in two quarters of an hour."
Old Madam Sheng sat at her dressing table, lost in thought. She stared at the woman in the mirror, her eyes bright, her teeth white, her hair black. She reached out and touched her face. She looked like she was in her prime. Although she was already twenty-eight, she didn't have many worries, so she looked several years younger. The woman in the mirror looked nothing like the woman she would be decades later. Back then, her face was wrinkled, her eyes sunken, and she looked like she was dying.
Old Madam Sheng had originally intended to go see Hong'er right away; she missed her so much, having not seen her in decades. But perhaps homesickness was the cause, so she sat on the embroidery bench and waited. She feared that if she left, everything before her would become a shadow.
Old Madam Sheng came to her senses and ordered, "Tell the kitchen to prepare three-fresh soup and crystal cake."
Chuntao agreed and then withdrew, telling the waiting maid to go to the kitchen. At this moment, Qiuju entered the room and stepped forward to announce, "Madam, Concubine Liu has withdrawn another two hundred taels of silver from the accountant."
Mrs. Shengda said indifferently, "Let her support it. The master allowed it."
Qiu Ju said in embarrassment, "But the accounting office is out of money. It's only the beginning of the month and Madam Liu has already withdrawn money three times, which adds up to over a thousand taels."
Old Madam Sheng sneered, "Don't worry about it. Someone else will take care of it. Are you really expecting the wife to fill the dowry for the concubine?"
Qiuju murmured, "But..."
Old Madam Sheng knew what Qiuju was trying to say. In her previous life, Qiuju had coaxed her into taking out her dowry and adding it to the official account, using the excuse of the child. She said that Sheng Huaizhong saw Old Madam Sheng's virtuous character and that no matter how much she doted on Liu, she would never let her surpass the legal wife. Old Madam Sheng, without anyone to advise her at the time, was momentarily deceived and took out her dowry, only to have it all go to the slave girl.
Like Chuntao, Qiuju was a maidservant brought in as a concubine by Madam Sheng when she got married. She had originally intended to be a concubine after her marriage, but Sheng Huaizhong never took a liking to her. Qiuju, however, believed that Madam Sheng was too narrow-minded and that was why she didn't have the chance to become Sheng Huaizhong's concubine, and she always felt jealous. After Concubine Liu came into the family, Qiuju and Liu hit it off, nearly emptying Madam Sheng's dowry.
Old Lady Shengda waved her hand and let Qiuju go down, thinking that she would find Qiuju's indenture contract after Mother Liu came back and sell her off early to avoid being plotted against by this treacherous servant.
"Mother, mother!"
Old Madam Shengda listened to her daughter's clear and sweet voice and turned to look at the door. In a moment, two girls, one large and one small, appeared at the door. The older, more beautiful girl was Hong'er, while the younger, holding the older one's hand, had a chubby face full of childishness.
Old Madam Shengda's heart was filled with a surge of bitterness. She stared intently at Hong'er, fearing she would vanish in the next moment. Only when a pair of soft hands grasped hers did she breathe a sigh of relief. She held Hong'er's hand tightly, extending her other arm to embrace her. Tears streamed down her face like a broken string, soaking her thin summer shirt.
"Mom, mom, don't cry, don't cry." Hong'er let old lady Shengda hold her body softly. Feeling the wetness on her shoulders, she hurriedly comforted her.
"Waaaa..." Old Lady Shengda heard the sound and quickly looked up to see Yun'er standing before her, crying. She quickly pulled Yun'er to her lap and wiped her tears with a handkerchief. She felt a gentle touch on her face as Hong'er wiped her tears with her own handkerchief. Old Lady Shengda smiled through her tears, picked up her two daughters, and rocked them gently. The younger one had stopped crying, and the older one quietly hugged her neck.
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