Besides buying a mother and daughter as servants for her daughter, Madam Xu also felt that it wouldn't be proper for her house to be without servants since a noble person was living there. So, she made a quick decision and bought three more old women.
After selecting her chosen person, Madam Xu readily arranged with the matchmaker to complete the formalities for purchasing the slave.
The matchmaker was overjoyed. She had made such a big deal so early in the morning; it was a fantastic start to the year!
She first praised Madam Xu with a big smile: "Madam Xu, you really have good taste! The women you chose are all excellent, each one is worth several!" She glanced at the three old women who had been bought and gestured for them to be more diligent as she had said.
Then the matchmaker started gossiping, "Madam Xu, you may not know this, but there was quite a big incident at General Ren's mansion last night and this morning!"
Upon hearing about General Ren's residence, Madam Xu's interest was immediately piqued.
She quickly pressed, "Oh? What happened at the Ren residence? Tell me quickly!"
Seeing this, the matchmaker became even more smug. She vividly recounted the events at the Ren family's residence, "Last night, thousands of frogs jumped into the Ren family's bridal chamber, disrupting the wedding night and causing no peace. This morning, the Ren family was complaining that their valuables were missing and they were searching all over the capital, even reporting it to the authorities..." She described the story with great enthusiasm, gesturing as she spoke.
Madam Xu listened with great interest, occasionally bursting into laughter. Finally, she exclaimed repeatedly, "Hahaha, what a fitting end! The Ren family deserved their fate for their betrayal!"
Seeing how happy Xu was, the matchmaker also burst into laughter, "Hahaha, that's what everyone outside is saying."
In high spirits, Madam Xu casually took out a string of copper coins from her purse, handed it to the matchmaker, and said, "This string of copper coins is a reward for you!"
"Thank you, Madam Xu." The matchmaker was overjoyed and quickly thanked her as she took the copper coins. Then she led her people away happily, preparing to continue their transaction at the next shop.
After watching the matchmaker leave, Madam Xu turned around and looked at Madam Ma and her daughter, saying to them, "You two go to the west wing in the backyard and wait there for Miss's orders."
Upon hearing this, Granny Ma and her daughter immediately replied in unison, "Yes, Madam."
The two bowed deeply to Madam Xu, then picked up the bundle and headed towards the backyard.
The mother and daughter walked through one of the gates and stood outside the west wing of the backyard.
Granny Ma called softly, "Miss."
"Come in."
As soon as the mother and daughter entered the room, they saw the young lady sitting in front of the dressing table, combing her silky long hair in front of the bronze mirror.
Upon seeing this, Granny Ma and her daughter hurriedly stepped forward to greet and bow to the young lady.
Lin Yajun nodded and smiled slightly, "No need for formalities, please familiarize yourselves with the environment first."
"Yes, Miss." Granny Ma put down her bundle and quickly began to tidy up the bed and fold the quilt.
The maidservant quickly stepped forward and said softly, "Miss, why don't I comb your hair for you?"
Lin Yajun smiled and said, "Okay, then I'll trouble you." With that, she handed the wooden comb in her hand to the maid.
The maidservant respectfully took the comb and began to comb her mistress's hair. Her movements were gentle and skillful, as if it were a skill she had practiced countless times.
She first gently took the young lady's long hair in her hands and carefully combed it, each stroke just right, neither tangling the hair nor pulling it too hard. After combing, the maid quickly and accurately gathered the long hair up, skillfully twisting it a few times with her nimble fingers, and then used a delicate hairpin to fix the bun on top of the head.
In the blink of an eye, a beautiful and elegant hairstyle appeared before her, like a fine work of art. Lin Yajun looked at herself in the mirror and nodded in satisfaction.
The maid then picked out a purple silk flower from the jewelry box and gently tucked it into her hair. The silk flower complemented the color of Lin Yajun's dress perfectly, adding an elegance and freshness to her beauty.
She was pleased with the skillful maid, and Lin Yajun asked with a smile, "What's your name?"
Upon hearing this, the maidservant quickly knelt down and bowed respectfully, replying, "Please grant me a name, Miss!"
After a moment's thought, Lin Yajun replied, "Your name will be Qiaoqing."
Upon hearing this, the maid's face lit up with joy, and she quickly knelt down to express her gratitude, saying, "Thank you, Miss, for bestowing this name upon me!" When she stood up, the corners of her mouth turned up slightly, revealing two small tiger teeth, making her look quite adorable.
She loved the beautiful name; at her previous home, the lady of the house simply called her Little Grass.
Granny Ma first observed the young lady and, seeing that she was opinionated, decided to do more and speak less and offer less advice.
Qiaoqing is gentle, obedient, and diligent. When serving tea and water to her mistress, she would test the temperature of the water on the back of her hand before handing it to her, showing great care.
The three of them, master and servant, gradually became familiar with each other.
In the outer courtyard, Madam Xu assigned three other old women to the task: "Madam Shi, you are in charge of cleaning, washing clothes, and sweeping the floor."
"Wang, you are in charge of chopping firewood and making tea."
"Jiang, you are responsible for serving meals, tea, and water, and taking good care of your master."
“Yes, Madam,” the three old women replied respectfully.
After Xu assigned the tasks and Li Ma prepared breakfast, Jiang hurried to the kitchen, washed her hands in a basin, and then carried the food to the main courtyard.
After finishing her work, Madam Xu hurriedly entered the west room of the main house.
Her face was beaming with a smile, but there was a hint of schadenfreude in that smile.
As soon as she entered the house, Madam Xu couldn't wait to tell Lin Daoyan everything that had happened at the Ren residence.
As Lin Daoyan listened, his expression grew increasingly solemn, and the shock in his heart intensified.
Unlike Xu's joy, Lin Daoyan felt a sense of foreboding.
He felt that things were not so simple. The frog infestation at night was strange enough, but the fact that the Ren family had also lost all their wealth was too bizarre.
Lin Daoyan knew very well that if the Ren family's wealth were lost, people would definitely suspect him.
After all, he and the Ren family had become enemies after yesterday's marriage exchange incident.
After Ms. Xu finished speaking with a laugh, she was somewhat surprised to see that Lin Daoyan was not as happy as she had expected.
Seeing that it was getting late, she urged, "Husband, let's have breakfast quickly. After we finish eating, we still need to go to the main courtyard to pay our respects to our mother-in-law."
Just then, Lin Daoyan and Madam Xu suddenly heard a commotion coming from the main courtyard next door. They exchanged a glance, a sense of unease creeping into their hearts.
Immediately afterwards, they heard a lot of people shouting, and the sound was getting closer and closer, as if they were running towards their east courtyard.
Soon, Old Mrs. Lin and her husband from the second wife's family appeared at the door, looking extremely angry.
Behind them were people from the third branch of the family, as well as a group of Lin Daoqing's men.
It turned out that Old Lady Lin and the second wife had only just learned about what had happened at the Ren residence.
The dowry maids rushed back to complain, "Last night, during our young lady's wedding night, a swarm of frogs swarmed onto the bed, ruining her entire wedding night. This morning, all of the Ren family's wealth was gone, including our young lady's dowry. The Ren family is still searching everywhere..."
Upon hearing this, Old Lady Lin and the people from the second and third wives were stunned as if struck by lightning, their faces showing shock.
Frogs causing a ruckus during a wedding night? That's unheard of!
It is utterly unbelievable that a third-rank general's mansion would lose its wealth while guests were gathered.
"It must have been the eldest son's doing!" Old Mrs. Lin exclaimed after regaining her senses. Her eyes widened, and she shouted angrily, pointing directly at Lin Daoyan, "It must have been that black-hearted bastard!"
Lin Daoqing's face was terribly gloomy. He gritted his teeth and said, "Lin Daoyan's kung fu is first-rate. Only he has the ability to do these things without anyone noticing."
Cheng was so angry that she jumped up and down, cursing, "How could he do such a thing? Is he even human?!"
"I'm going to the eldest branch of the family to demand an explanation, avenge my daughter, and get back all that wealth!" Cheng Shi angrily rolled up her sleeves. She was from a military family and had always been shrewish and fierce, so beating Xu Shi, who came from a merchant family, was no problem for her.
"Let's go find that heartless bastard and get back the Ren family's wealth and our daughter's dowry!" Lin Daoqing chimed in, his face equally furious.
Lin Daoqing knew that even ten of himself couldn't defeat one of his elder brothers, so he summoned twenty of his men and angrily came to settle scores with the eldest son's family.
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