Changqing didn't fare well either; he was given three strokes of the cane, stripped of his position, and left the Marquis's residence that very night.
No one from Zhimo's family came to pick her up, so she had to stay another night in a side room. She heard that her youngest son had been sick, and after recovering, he had asked the steward for leave to go outside the city to burn incense. He wouldn't return until tomorrow.
She was carried into the house unconscious. Zhi Ruo harbored resentment towards her and did not want to live with her.
Qingmei is on night duty in the main room today, so she gave up her bed to her.
Qingqian sighed, took out a jar of wound medicine, and secretly applied a layer of medicine to her without even changing her clothes.
Apart from Granny Hua, Qingqian, Qingmei, and Zhiruo, the other servants were unaware of what had happened. Qingyu and Qingping had gone to check the accounts and hadn't returned.
The next morning, everyone saw that Zhimo was being carried out of the inner courtyard covered only by a quilt, and they all started talking about it.
Qingqian only said that Zhimo suddenly developed a high fever and, fearing that she might infect everyone, she would go home to rest for a while.
Chun Cui was the most panicked, as her family had always followed Zhi Mo's lead. They had promised her many benefits, and then Zhi Mo suddenly left.
She was bewildered and at a loss, feeling very unwilling. She wanted to ask what happened, why she suddenly developed a high fever, and whether she should come back, but she didn't dare.
Apart from her, even if others had doubts, they wouldn't, and didn't want to, ask.
Haven't you noticed that Sister Qingqian has been looking sullen these past two days, speaking and acting with unusual severity? Even the most talkative gatekeeper has kept her mouth shut.
Another month passed, and Sister Qingqian came to tell us, "Zhimo's condition has been intermittent, but the Madam has been kind and allowed her to stay home to recuperate."
Then Chunju was promoted to second class, and Chunxue was transferred from the laundry room to the front to mop the floor.
Spring Rain also got a good job; she no longer had to do laundry and was transferred to mop the front yard.
The maids' clothes could also be sent to the laundry for a few dollars. In winter, the clothes were thick and heavy, and the young maids couldn't get them clean anyway.
………………
In a courtyard on the back street of the Marquis's mansion, Zhimo's mother pushed open the creaking, dilapidated door, cursing as she changed the dressing on a few plasters.
"You're just a sludge from a rotten pit, yet you want to climb higher? Do you even have the face to do that? Don't you know your own worth? You've dragged my reputation down with you."
That's a bit untrue and hurtful. In terms of looks, Zhi Mo is definitely a pretty and delicate beauty.
She just regrets that her daughter didn't achieve anything; even if she did, she doesn't know how to praise or flatter her.
Zhi Mo lay on the bed with her eyes closed, remaining silent no matter how much she was scolded.
"We'll run out of medicine at home in a few days. If you get better, great. If not, don't expect me to give you any more money!"
Zhi Mo only reacted after hearing her mother's words. If it weren't for her parents' pressure, she wouldn't have taken this path.
Unable to hold back her tears, she burst into soft sobs, and soon her pillow was soaked with tears.
………………
Wang Yan took a broom and secretly moved next to Chunye to sweep the floor. She glanced around furtively, then said with a grin,
"Let's finish today's work as soon as possible. Today, Aunt Sun is making apple soup, it's so sweet, I'll go have a bowl later."
Chunye smiled, nodded, and her subordinates worked even harder, sweeping with a loud clattering sound.
"What are you doing?" Chunlan came out and scolded. "Grandma Hua is resting. How dare you be so clumsy and wake her up! Just wait till I get my hands on you!"
Chunye pursed her lips unhappily. She clearly saw Granny Hua reading a book, so how did it become that she was resting?
Moreover, the sweeping distance is quite far from Granny Hua, right by the door built in the middle.
"Granny Hua, the maids are sweeping the floor more diligently, are they disturbing you?" Wang Yan was also sweeping the floor near the door, and she heard their conversation clearly.
"I didn't disturb you while you were sweeping, but your loud voice gave me quite a fright."
Wang Yan giggled, "You're welcome. We've swept this yard so clean, there's not a single leaf left."
The leaves will almost all fall in the next couple of days; I wouldn't have dared to make such a boast before.
Chunlan watched from the side, seething with hatred, but dared not say anything, and turned away.
But even from behind, he seemed to be radiating anger, and he walked in a slanted line.
In the evening, Chunju, who had been promoted to second class, arrived—oh no, Zhiju, because they hadn't yet appointed a third-class maid.
Moreover, Zhiruo is injured and needs to rest. Without hiring a maid, she can recuperate properly in her own room.
So she still lives in the back building. When we saw her come to our room, we were all quite surprised.
“Chunyan, you…” she began, her tone slightly smug.
Wang Yan sensed that she was up to no good, and before she could finish speaking, she sat up and glared at her.
Chunju swallowed hard. "You, you should ask Chunxue to bring me a basin of water to wash my feet."
Chunxue was inside the house and heard it too, wondering if this person was crazy or something.
"Get out! You want me to pour you foot bath water? Do your feet even deserve it? Don't force me to throw water on you. You should know you haven't even secured your second-class position yet!"
Chunju turned and left dejectedly, forgetting that ever since Chunyan arrived, the people in the room had become incredibly arrogant.
She shouldn't have been provoked to come here. She has no connections and is lucky to have even reached the second tier. She absolutely cannot cause any trouble.
Zhimo's status as a second-class maid hasn't been crossed off yet; she'll wait until spring to cross it off along with Zhiruo.
Back in her room, Chunlan saw that she hadn't dealt with those people, so she snorted coldly and crawled into bed to sleep.
Chunju felt bitter inside, but dared not say anything, and went to bed to sleep.
The weather was getting colder day by day. The next morning, as soon as Wang Yan arrived at the small kitchen, Aunt Sun peeked out and pulled her to a corner, secretly taking out two hot water bottles from the low cabinet underneath.
"You two go home a little later tonight. I'll make you two hot water bottles; they'll keep you warm all night."
Wang Yan was overjoyed and nodded repeatedly, her eyes narrowing into slits with laughter.
And you know what? The hot water bottle was really warm. When Wang Yan got home that night, she put the hot water bottle in one place and changed it when it warmed up.
After crawling in like this, every part of the blanket will be warm, and then you can place it at your feet and sleep warmly all night.
Two days later, Chunxue and Chunyu were also extremely envious. It was unrealistic to ask Aunt Sun to bring them again, as she had already taken her month's vacation.
Wang Yan told them that she would go back and get a hot water bottle so she could help them fill their bottles that night.
However, it's a secret that it's not the season for hot water bottles yet, so even Qingqian and the others haven't come to fill them with hot water.
This is tantamount to secretly using the public hot water; if word gets out, Granny Sun will be in big trouble.
The two were practically swearing an oath to the heavens, and repeatedly promised not to tell anyone.
First- and second-class quilts are thick and sturdy, some even being gifts from their masters and made of satin. If all else fails, several layers of cotton clothing can be worn underneath for warmth.
Their coarse cloth quilts were thin, and the newly made cotton clothes hadn't been distributed yet. Having a hot water bottle was like a lifeline in this cold season.
Wang Yan and her husband brought back their hot water bottles these past two days to warm their beds for a while before bringing hers back herself.
"It's so cold, I wonder if they'll be able to distribute charcoal earlier this year."
"Dream on," Chunyu retorted to Chunye. "But I think we should try to bring an extra blanket when we go home for our rest this time."
The girls all nodded. It was only a few months, and it hadn't snowed yet, but that didn't stop the temperature from plummeting, becoming dry and cold.
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