The housekeeper's words sound simple but are complicated. First of all, the meeting will take place at a certain time and the servants will be waiting there to be arranged. Such matters should have been raised by Chang Yuzhu, the former assistant housekeeper, but she didn't know what she was thinking and remained silent.
Mi Niang first asked someone to find out the old customs for the death of an old marquis, looked at it carefully, and wrote down the general process with a pen. She would first ask the Qin Tianjian to choose a date. Old Madam Weng had her own imperial decree, so she was afraid that there would be roadside sacrifices. Since her family was a relative, if the coffin passed by her door, she would have to set up roadside sacrifices.
Then there is the matter of inviting monks to perform the ritual of salvation, but the specific number of monks to be invited should be the job of men. Also, setting up another place to invite Taoist priests to perform rituals to resolve grievances and difficulties, and the choice of a place to keep the body should also be made early.
After they finish their meeting, they all have to cry for the dead, and the place cannot be too far away.
This is an external affair, but internal affairs are even more complicated. Mi Niang caught a few of them in total, and she thought that in addition to her own funeral, she also had to entertain many people. Many of the people who came at that time were from noble families. Those people had noble status, and it would not be good to show her weakness.
And then there were all sorts of things. She wrote down everything she could think of before going to bed to rest.
But the next day, before dawn, Mi Niang got up first. Fang Weiyan couldn't help but ask, "It's so cold, don't you sleep a little longer?"
"No, everything is done, and I can't sleep well."
She thought Fang Weiyan probably didn't know how diligent she was when she was in the girls' school. She was afraid that many students were not as hardworking as her. She was conserving her energy every day so that she could perform better when the time came.
If you want others to respect you, you can't do it by using your power to overwhelm them; you must be capable.
After she stood up, she asked Chuntao to send people to ask each room whether they had decided where to hold the meeting. If they had not chosen, they would hold the meeting in Jingchunzhai or Muyuantang.
"It's getting late now, go and come back quickly. This place is closest to the funeral hall. Please handle it properly and don't let them worry about it."
Fang Weiyan saw the maids taking orders and leaving, and couldn't help but ask: "Didn't we ask the four of you to work together to do it? Why did you decide? Aren't you afraid that others will say you are too bossy?"
It should be noted that although Fang Weiyan and Mi Niang seem to be in harmony with each other, they are actually completely different in their ways of dealing with people. Fang Weiyan always takes a moderate approach and is very peaceful most of the time.
But Mi Niang said, "Wait, how long are we going to wait? Fifth brother's wife is the Crown Prince's wife, she should have made up her mind yesterday. Since Madam asked us to do it together, we have just waited for each other without saying anything. If we have to wait for others, I think we will be in chaos in the morning."
"But if your eldest sister-in-law says that she will do what others say, what will you do?" Although Fang Weiyan was not in the inner chamber, he also knew the personalities of the people in the family.
Yu followed the crowd and was unwilling to stand out easily. Although the lady was very good at talking about which shop in the capital had the nicest clothes and which places were fun, she was unwilling to take responsibility when big things happened.
"What's there to be afraid of? She can just wait. Even if no one comes, I will do what I should do."
Most people in this world are afraid of losing face, so they don't even dare to try.
If you try something, you have a 50% chance of success. If you don't try, you are just following the crowd.
Then she smiled and said, "Anyway, when the time comes, everyone will look to others, and I will just give up."
Whenever something is done, there must be a leader and a deputy. People who are too incompetent to make decisions still want to maintain their dignity, but dignity is earned by themselves, not given by others.
Yu was actually feeling uneasy about Shuxiang's move to the main house, so she got up early and waited for notification.
But Shuxiang said, "Grandma, our fourth grandma said that since the madam asked everyone to discuss matters together, she must designate a meeting room. Unfortunately, the madam is ill, and she did not dare to disturb, so she chose two places that are slightly closer to the mourning hall, one is Jingchunzhai and the other is Shimuyuantang. What do you think, grandma?"
Yu thought that both places were good, but if it was the Crown Prince's wife, Chang, who said so, she would definitely agree. However, Fourth Madam Ruan was not the head grandmother after all. If she followed her, she would still have to depend on the Crown Prince's wife's mood for the rest of her life.
So he smiled and said, "I don't understand these things. How about this? I will wait for them to discuss it together, and I will do whatever they do."
Shuxiang smiled and said, "Grandma is really mature and prudent. Our grandma often says the same thing at home."
There was a mocking tone in her tone. Yu was dissatisfied in her heart, but she had to smile. After Shuxiang left, Cuiliu beside Yu said, "The maid of Fourth Madam is too rude. How can she be in a negotiating tone? After all, you are the eldest sister-in-law. I think Fourth Madam used to respect you. Could it be that Shuxiang is acting on her own?"
Yu shook her head. "No, this is probably her true nature. Before we had no conflicts of interest, we naturally got along well with each other. But I can't understand why she is so aggressive when she is just a housekeeper."
Yu was confused, but Xiangjun pointed to the place and said, "This Jingchunzhai is quite good."
There were enough braziers there and the space was large. It was closest to the mourning hall and Min Ge'er couldn't leave her side for even a day. Moreover, Jingchunzhai was closest to their Zhenxiayuan.
Zi Su smiled and said, "Our fourth grandmother also said that Jing Chun Zhai is great. It seems that she has the same taste as you."
Compared to Yu who follows the crowd, Xiangjun cares more about her son. Although being a housekeeper is important, her son is the foundation of her life.
Bai Zhi went to Qiyan Pavilion. When she arrived, Chang Yuzhu had just finished washing up. She heard Bai Zhi say, "Last night, our fourth grandmother said she didn't know where to go with the other grandmothers to discuss matters, and no one spoke up. She said that many relatives and nobles will come today, and if we don't settle it soon, it will be a mess. What should we do?"
Chang Yuzhu really forgot. She had been thinking about where she could stand out yesterday, but the problem now was that she hadn't even decided on a place for meetings.
Having to be reminded of this was like a slap in the face.
But Chang Yuzhu had no time to think about these things, because if she didn't get it done quickly and something went wrong, the other three rooms would be separated in the future, but she would be the mistress of the Marquis' Mansion.
Although she was very angry, she still said, "Okay, I understand. I'll tell you where grandma will go to gather when the time comes."
Bai Zhi said, "Our grandmother has chosen two places and has already sent people to clean and decorate them. Jingchunzhai is a bigger place, so it will be more convenient for everyone to assign tasks when the time comes."
Chang Yuzhu sneered: "Your grandmothers have already chosen everything."
Bai Zhi smiled and said, "I thought the Crown Prince's wife would have informed everyone yesterday, but I didn't expect you to be so forgetful. Our grandmother always said that the Fifth Master and our Fourth Master are brothers, so if you can't think of it for a while, she will naturally think of it for you. Now so many people are waiting to see how you manage the house, so don't be polite."
Mirror Spring
Chang Yuzhu looked around and asked, "Has my sister-in-law not arrived yet?"
Mi Niang took a sip of tea and shook her head gently: "I asked her this morning, and she also said she didn't know."
As soon as she finished speaking, Tang's mother came over and said, "Grandmothers, hurry up and assign tasks. Most of the relatives have arrived."
Xiangjun was a little anxious after hearing this. She must have wanted to get a good job in advance that would allow her to show up and take care of her son. She wanted to say something, but she waited for everyone to bring it up.
Mi Niang was drinking tea calmly. The servants were standing more and more behind her. Chang Yuzhu coughed lightly and said, "In an emergency, we have to make decisions based on the situation. I will assign them first."
"Fifth brother's wife, you are the prince's wife, just tell me." Mi Niang looked at her.
Just this morning, she had already lost the battle, but Chang Yuzhu knew that few people knew about it. Now that she was making great plans, she couldn't help but say, "Since you want to be in charge of something, I have summarized a few points. One is the communication between guests, and the other is to control the family. I know that the third and fourth sisters-in-law are both young, and the eldest sister-in-law is also tolerant, so I have to be the bad guy."
Mi Niang thought to herself that you will know how to choose when the time comes, so that you can not only win over the servants but also show off in front of the nobles.
So she said, "You are right, my sister-in-law. You are the new bride and the wife of the prince. It is only natural for you to have guests."
Seeing that Mi Niang agreed, Chang Yuzhu also thought that she was aware of the current affairs.
However, Mi Niang said, "However, if I were alive and my third sister-in-law was in charge of the tea room, we should be in charge of the servants. If my sister-in-law is welcoming guests and has to come out again, wouldn't that be neglecting the distinguished guests?"
The township official also agreed: "That's right."
Chang Yuzhu thought about it and agreed. Then she heard Mi Niang say, "I think it would be better if you, Fifth Sister-in-law, continue to take care of the guests. It would be a good idea to divide the staff into two groups. One group will be responsible for pouring tea and water for the guests. As for the teacups and tea trays, someone will be in charge of them. Then, Sister-in-law can take care of them. As for the night patrol, take care of the door and monitor the candles. I think Third Sister-in-law has Min Ge'er to take care of. Why don't you let me do it?"
"How can this be so embarrassing?" But Xiangjun was happy in her heart, and she didn't want to patrol at night in the cold wind.
Mi Niang smiled and said, "In that case, I will also recommend myself to be in charge of the servants in front of the coffin to mourn, burn incense, add oil, hang curtains and keep vigil. I will be on duty during the day and patrol at night."
Because she chose something that no one wanted to do, but then Chang Yuzhu no longer argued about keeping vigil in front of the coffin, which was something that could make her stand out as a filial son and a virtuous grandson. She was not a supernatural being.
The county lord saw that the two of them had settled their affairs while talking, but his own affairs were not settled, so he asked, "But what should I do?"
From her selfish point of view, she must have wanted to welcome and see off guests and make more friends with the noble ladies, but the Crown Prince's wife took it away. In addition, Mi Niang was waiting in front of the coffin and crying, which was also a good job, but if she wanted to come, she would have to patrol at night. In a moment, all the good things in her heart were taken away.
Chang Yuzhu said enthusiastically: "Third sister-in-law can take care of the tea and food of relatives in the family."
The county lord muttered to himself that the relatives in those clans were far worse off than the people in the Dong'an Marquis's Mansion.
When she was a little hesitant, Mi Niang said, "You can take care of the meals for the relatives and the family, as well as the lanterns, lamps, candles, paper-cuts, tablecloths, curtains, cushions, etc. I think Third Sister-in-law can do it too."
Chang Yuzhu added two more things: "We will put the things in different places, and let Third Sister-in-law take care of the things in this mansion."
After she finished speaking, she was still a little jealous of Mi Niang. Her mind worked too fast. Others were fighting one against one, but she was fighting ten against one.
Then Mi Niang said, "My eldest sister-in-law will probably be here soon. I think if you are too busy, you can ask her to help you."
Look, after she said this, Xiangjun still didn't react to what to do at this time.
At this time, Mrs. Yu came in from outside and said, "Hey, why didn't you call me?"
Chang Yuzhu smiled and said, "We came here from where Fourth Sister-in-law pointed out. Why didn't you call Eldest Sister-in-law?"
This was pure provocation, and Yu forced a few laughs.
Mi Niang shook her head: "The first one I invited was my sister-in-law."
It's just that you want to follow the crowd, who would specially invite you? I respect you on weekdays, which shows that I am a polite person, but if you treat me differently, don't blame me for treating you differently.
A lady from a wealthy family would naturally not really fight or tear each other's hair, but a secret loss would be enough to make you feel uncomfortable.
At this time, most of the servants had arrived.
Amidst the commotion, Chang Yuzhu felt that her chance had come. There was no point in arguing with Yu. Anyway, Ruan would definitely become enemies with Yu, and her goal would be achieved.
Therefore, she stood up and said, "Everyone please be quiet. Madam has assigned us four grandmas to manage the funeral. We will be in charge of the funeral for 49 days. Don't bully us because we are young and pretend to obey..."
She talked for a long time in a very proud manner, but Yu still didn't understand what she was supposed to do.
But when she looked at Mi Niang again, Mi Niang glared at her, and Yu was actually a little scared.
She believed that she had never offended her, and occasionally mentioned her to compare with the Fifth Mistress. Could it be because she said that Mi Niang was not as good as the Crown Prince's wife?
But things didn't go her way this morning.
If she had known this, she would have agreed.
After counting the number of people, Mi Niang looked at the sixty-odd people in front of her and said, "You all heard what the Crown Prince's wife said just now. She wanted to beat you with a stick, but here I will do it like this. If you do something wrong, your silver and rice will be given to you for doing a good job. Also, you will be standing guard in front of the coffin. The weather is cold, so I will ask the kitchen to bring hot soup. You should also dress warmly. As for the twenty people who will be guarding the coffin, ten of them will take turns..."
Mi Niang further elaborated that some people work the morning shift, some people work the night shift, and then they cycle back and forth. The rest of the time they can rest at home, and the old women and servants who patrol the night must play cards with them all the time.
After saying this, the people who had been keeping vigil for the first half of the morning had already followed Mi Niang to the coffin. The people who had been keeping vigil for the second half of the morning smiled and said, "Although we got up early, we can go and rest now. Fourth Grandma's arrangement is very appropriate."
As soon as Mi Niang came to the coffin, Fang Wei Yan and a few others were crying sadly. When he saw her coming, he was about to say a few words to Mi Niang, but he saw Mi Niang kneel on the ground with a "thump" and burst into tears. She has always been good at singing and reciting, and in her words, Madam Weng was a person with greater merits than Buddha.
Seeing her crying so hard that her tears had never dried, Fang Furong couldn't help thinking that although Wei Yan's wife was usually indifferent, her expression didn't seem to be hypocritical.
It shows that she is a human being.
She almost cried until she fainted. In the end, Fang Weiyan saw that something was wrong and hurriedly said to Shuxiang, "Hurry up and help your fourth grandmother go to the side room to rest."
Even at this point, Mi Niang still refused to leave. Fang Wei Yan was surrounded by people and couldn't say anything, but he was very anxious in his heart. My aunt, what on earth are you going to do?
Soon, Fang Weiyan found out, and the whole afternoon everyone was talking about how filial Fourth Grandma was.
Mrs. Xiao, who came to pay her respects, couldn't help but shed tears and said, "Since ancient times, loyal ministers must come from the families of filial sons. Now we finally know it."
The relatives in the clan also urged Mi Niang to mourn, and only then did Mi Niang agree to move to the second room.
Chuntao had already arranged for someone to prepare ginseng soup. After drinking the ginseng soup, Mi Niang thought that since she had done this, she would just have to report in front of the coffin in the future.
But there is no need to say this to Chuntao. Apart from her parents and Fang Weiyan, there are some things that cannot even be said to people around her.
After drinking a bowl of ginseng soup, Mi Niang washed her face with water and put on makeup again. She said to Zi Su, "Go and tell the maids at the gate that there are too many people here today and they are not allowed to let anyone in casually. If you are unsure, you and Mo Xiang can go and check it out. You don't have to serve me here."
"Yes." Zi Su and Mo Xiang didn't dare to say more.
Mi Niang's place is in perfect order, but Yu's is in a terrible state.
She first sided with Chang Yuzhu. After all, she was the Crown Prince's wife. So when Ruan brought something to her in the morning, she declined. However, she also missed the opportunity to assign tasks. It seemed that Chang Yuzhu also wanted to take charge of the matter, such as the monks' meals and the accommodation for the Taoist priests who performed the ceremony.
How can I care about Yu family?
Here the lady was talking to her relatives, but she said that some of her aunts had returned. She was not willing to entertain relatives from the clan, but her aunts and cousins were all married well, so she was willing to receive them.
They would never let Yu stay here, but instead asked her to do other things.
There were also people looking for local ladies to get things. She was thinking that if she couldn't use them all, she could resell them. Which family doesn't need money? Take their third family for example. They all live on the monthly allowance. She did have a dowry, but it was mostly gold and silver. She spent a lot of it when she was praying for a child, and she also had to take care of various things on a daily basis. Not to mention that the third master Fang Weiting had no job and often asked her for money. How could she let Yu interfere? She had already sent her confidant.
This made Yu feel awkward, as if she didn't belong anywhere.
She regretted that if she had agreed directly without hesitation, she would not have fallen into such an embarrassing situation now. In fact, her relationship with Ruan was still good when she first came in.
What was even more depressed was Chang Yuzhu. It was originally a very good job for her to receive the noble ladies and court ladies. Even Xu thought it was a good idea after listening to Mama Tang.
Mother Tang also nodded: "Fifth Grandma got the job of welcoming guests. I heard that it was Fourth Grandma who proposed it."
"Well, you know Wei Yan's wife. She has no ulterior motives. I trust her."
The servants were envious of those assigned to Mi Niang's work and said, "More than ten people under Fourth Madam's command have just gone back to sleep, and those who go to the coffin have asked the kitchen to prepare hot soup. It's not like the other madams', where everyone has to wait and is not allowed to rest until the work is done."
"Yes, Fourth Grandma is really filial. She didn't just wipe her tears and leave for show. She really cried for a long time. Fourth Master tried to persuade her to leave but she refused. Just now she saw me there and asked if I was cold. She asked Aunt Chuntao to bring me some tea cakes."
This is what made Chang Yuzhu depressed. Originally, she should have been the one to be honored today, but Ruan's move of crying for the dead was really like cutting off the fire from under the cauldron. You know, all the ladies who come to the Fang family have to go to the mourning hall to burn incense before meeting her. Then they will know how filial Ruan is. She even said to her face: "I heard that your fourth sister-in-law is the wife of Fang Shijiang. It is true that loyal ministers must come from filial sons. She is really filial. I also heard that she drew a small portrait of your old lady for everyone to look at. She is really a filial son and a virtuous daughter-in-law."
Chang Yuzhu was so angry that she fell backwards. Ruan had already gone to the next room to rest, but she still had to deal with so many noble ladies. She didn't even have time to drink a cup of tea. She got all the benefits.
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