Chapter 32
Since the food on the table was only for one person, it was unrealistic to ask for more. Yunkai felt embarrassed to eat more, and Yueming consciously slowed down. The two of them quietly gave way to each other, and an ambiguous atmosphere quietly arose. As they ate, they actually felt a warm and tender feeling.
Yun Kai was startled by his own thoughts. Looking at Yue Ming, whose eating manners had become elegant, he suddenly felt a little uneasy. What was wrong with him lately? What kind of nonsense had he been thinking about? He said to the maidservant beside him, "Go and see if the food is ready. It's been so long."
The maid nodded and was about to go out to give Xiao Sai food when he hurried in. Yun Kai was a little displeased to see that he had nothing in his hands and asked, "Where's the food?"
Feng Xiaosai had just been frightened, and his face was still filled with confusion. He stammered to Yun Kai with a hint of uncertainty, "Li Shengmeng sent two maids and a carriage, saying... saying... they were for Miss Lan's service."
Yunkai looked at Yueming in surprise. When had she gotten in touch with her grandfather? Yueming, a piece of braised pork in her mouth, looked at Yunkai in confusion. What on earth was Li Shengmeng? Why was he sending her something?
The two looked at each other for a while, and Yun Kai turned to Feng Xiaochong and said, "Bring the person in!" He has already been sent here, we can't send him back, right?
The two maids Li Shengmeng had sent were sisters, Ai Ye and Ye Hu. They were graceful and decent-looking. After listening to their conversation for a while, Yun Kai knew they were undoubtedly Li Shengmeng's daughters, part of their dowry. As for why they were given to Yue Ming, Yun Kai found the story quite intriguing.
Coming out of Yueming Courtyard, Yunkai said to Feng Xiaochong: "Have someone keep an eye on these people Li Shengmeng sent over and see who in the mansion they have contact with."
Feng Xiaosai asked cautiously, "Do you suspect that there are people in this mansion that have been planted by Li Shengmeng?"
Yun Kai walked forward, his hands behind his back, his leather slippers clacking against the floor, making the entire corridor clatter. He sneered, "How else could they have arrived so quickly? The reply from my eldest brother and father hasn't arrived yet, and this person is already at our door. Either there's a traitor in this mansion, or the news leaked when the letter was delivered to Li Shengmeng. Even if you know who it is, don't touch them. Just quietly report it to me."
Feng Xiaosai was puzzled: "Why keep them here and not kick them out?"
Yun Kai casually picked a branch of white magnolia that extended into the corridor, put it under his nose and sniffed it. "Why chase them away? After this wave of them leaves, they will think of sending another wave in. Instead of guessing later, it's better to keep an eye on these few now."
Feng Xiaosai replied, "Don't worry, I will do what you ask."
Yunkai nodded and glanced back at Yueming's courtyard. She had been asking him for a maid who could speak Chinese, and now that she had two, she must be overjoyed. With the momentum he'd used to intimidate the servants, she'd definitely thrive in the mansion. Without him, the child would probably ignore him again.
He was numbed by his own resentful thoughts and glanced disdainfully at the white magnolia in his hand. It must be the fragrance that was causing the trouble. He casually tossed the magnolia into the flowers outside the corridor, turned around, and continued walking with his hands behind his back.
With these two maids, Yueming finally felt the same treatment as Yunxiang's daughter, Xiangkan. After dinner, Yehu prepared her bath water, pouring a decoction of acanthopanax senticosus and nettles into a tub filled with hot water. After adjusting the water temperature, Yehu invited Yueming to undress and soak for a while, but Yueming refused. Except for when the maid bathed her as a child, she had always washed herself after school. She wasn't used to being asked to expose her body to strangers out of the blue.
Seeing that Yueming was unwilling, Ye Hu didn't say anything. He just found a thin cotton tube skirt for her to wrap around her chest and helped her into the bathtub.
Putting a cloth under Yueming's head, Yehu led her to the edge of the tub. Aiye brought a bucket of hot water into the room, poured a few scoops of water into the basin, and placed it on a stool for Yehu to wash Yueming's hair.
While giving Yueming a massage, Yehu praised her, "Miss, your hair is so nice, so black and shiny. Why don't you grow it longer? You won't need to wear a wig if you can wear a thick bun."
Yueming's fingers slid under the water. Hearing this, she said nonchalantly, "This is called a student hairstyle. We all like to wear this short hairstyle at school. It's trendy and easy to manage." She remembered looking in the mirror this morning and seeing her hair almost past her shoulders. She was afraid it needed a trim. She asked, "Do you know where there's a barbershop near Yunxiang? I need a trim."
Ai Ye, who was looking for pajamas for her in the closet, smiled and said, "You're going to stay here for a while, so why not grow your hair longer? There's no hairdresser here who can cut a modern haircut, and I'm afraid it might get messed up."
Yueming remembered Yunkai's usual 3:7 split hair style, his temples always neat and tidy. He waited until he came to ask who cut his hair. If he could do a suit hairstyle, he could definitely do a student hairstyle. He thought about the day he asked Feng Xiaosai to hire a tailor. He wondered if he'd hired one; there had been no news in days.
By the time Yueming finished her bath, Ai Ye had already made her bed and used moxa incense to fumigate the mosquitoes. Previously, she'd read a few pages of the English novel Yun Kai had given her before falling asleep. It wasn't that she wanted to go to bed early, but she had to; the book had a remarkable soporific effect. She'd been going to bed earlier than the chickens lately, and finally, tonight, she had someone to keep her company, so she didn't have to go to bed early anymore.
Yueming changed into her pajamas and sat on the bed with her legs crossed. Yehu stood by the bed, wiping her hair with a cloth. Aiye and the servants went to pour water. Yueming honestly felt that compared with the two sisters in terms of service ability, Ye Nan was like a ragtag soldier who had been conscripted.
Yueming asked Yehu, "Are you following me temporarily and going home after I leave, or are you following me forever?" Yehu's hand froze as he wiped his hair, then he said nonchalantly, "The master told me before we left that I should follow the young lady carefully."
Yueming turned his head and looked at her innocently: "What if I don't want you anymore?"
When Ai Ye, who had just entered the room, heard this, he was so scared that he fell to his knees, his head pressed against the floor, his body trembling slightly.
Yueming was startled and pulled Yehu's sleeve and said, "Hey! Why is she kneeling down? Go and help her up."
Unexpectedly, Ye Hu walked to Ai Ye and knelt on the ground, saying in a trembling voice: "Miss, please have mercy on us. Whether we are given away or given as dowry, if we are driven back, we will have no good life. Miss, please don't drive us away."
She had sensed it while bathing just now. While both sisters were capable, the younger sister, Yehu, was clearly more eloquent than her elder sister. Her earlier probing had no hidden agenda. She knew how long the host-guest relationship would last, so she could better understand how to treat them. With Yunkai as a living example, she had already figured out some of the techniques for disciplining servants: a blend of kindness and authority, wasn't it?
She smiled and said to the two sisters kneeling on the ground, "I just asked casually because I didn't know what I was talking about, but I scared you so much. All right, get up! Go to the kitchen and get some cold tea and snacks, and we'll talk together."
Ye Hu and Ai Ye went out. Ai Ye wiped the sweat from his head and said to Ye Hu, "I was almost scared to death just now."
Ai Ye was also frightened and her chest was pounding, but when the young lady told her that she wanted to talk together, she felt relieved.
She said to Ye Hu calmly, "Miss, are you trying to intimidate us?"
Ai Ye hesitated and said, "No way! The young lady looks so weak and delicate, she doesn't look like a powerful person."
Ye Hu was speechless. If you weren't a powerful person, you'd kneel there as soon as you walked in. She took her sister's hand and they pretended to walk away. "We were sent to her out of the blue, and she didn't ask anything for such a long time. She just knocked on the edge of the pot to scare us. This shows that the young lady knows what's going on."
Although Ai Ye is the elder sister, she is used to relying on her younger sister to make decisions. When she heard Ye Hu say this, she was a little worried: "If it's a powerful one, we will serve him carefully. If it's a good-tempered one, we will respect him. But what should we do with this one with a deep mind?"
Ye Hu muttered to herself, "How do I know what to do?" She patted Ai Ye's hand and said, "We just have to serve with all our heart and fulfill our duties. The rest is up to fate!"
Yehu brought a pot of roselle tea, next to a plate of finger-shaped rice dumplings and a dish of brown sugar sticky rice popcorn. Aiye brought a plate of small cantaloupes and a plate of long mulberry leaves. They placed the items on a lacquered bamboo basket in front of Yueming's bed. Yehu poured Yueming a cup of roselle tea. The pomegranate-red liquid in the white porcelain cup resembled a Mogok gem.
Ye Hu handed it to her with both hands: "Miss, please try it. I just came here and don't know your taste. I didn't add much rock sugar when cooking it. Try it. Is it sweet enough? If not, I'll add some more for you."
Yueming took a sip and found it was sweet and sour, just right. She smiled and said, "No need to add any more, it's just right." Looking at Ai Ye, who was still kneeling on the ground scrubbing the floor, she waved and said, "Don't be busy, come and talk to me."
Ai Ye put the rag aside and knelt in front of Yueming's bed somewhat stiffly.
Ye Hu picked up a piece of cantaloupe with a silver skewer and handed it to Yue Ming. He asked with a smile, "Miss, what do you want to talk about?"
Yueming waved her hand. She had just eaten sweet and sour melon, which had no taste. She looked at Yehu and said, "Do you know the third wife in this mansion?"
Ye Hu's hand froze as she pulled back. The melon on the silver skewer trembled and was about to fall. Ye Hu quickly reached out to catch it. She thought the young lady was going to ask about Li Shengmeng, but she ended up asking about the third wife of the Tusi Mansion.
Miss Yueming's thoughts were truly unfathomable. The young lady waited for her reply, unsure what to do with the melon in her hand, so she held it tightly. After a moment's hesitation, she spoke carefully, "The Third Madam's family, Mengding Mansion, comes to Lishengmeng every year after the Water Splashing Festival to borrow grain. I've heard some of the talk in the mansion. I'm curious what you'd like to know."
Yueming was about to lean against the headboard, and Aiye quickly took a pillow to support her back. Yueming smiled at Yehu and said, "Just tell me what you know.
Looking at Yueming's smiling face, Ye Hu subconsciously wanted to lower his head, but he suppressed the inexplicable timidity in his heart and spoke softly, "The third wife is the eldest daughter of the Mengding Tusi Mansion. She was a famous beauty in her youth. She married into the Yunxiang Tusi Mansion and became the third wife, and she was very favored."
After saying this, she stood up and threw the cantaloupe in her hand. Yueming raised an eyebrow and looked at her back. What she said was as good as not saying anything. This is the trouble with smart people. It's hard to even say clichés.
She turned her gaze to Ai Ye, who looked even more obedient as she knelt beside her, and feigned confusion, "Mengding Prefecture is a Tusi prefecture, so why is it borrowing grain from a Meng? I heard that Mengding Dam is very large, flat and wide, and the land is very fertile. How come there is not enough grain?"
As expected, Ai Ye lived up to Yue Ming's expectations and immediately revealed a huge secret: "I haven't heard anyone talk about why Meng Ding Mansion is so poor, but the old people in the mansion said that the current life of Meng Ding Mansion is considered good. In the past, life was even more difficult. Even the Third Madam, a daughter of the Prime Minister, had to sell rice on the street."
Yueming listened with great interest. She touched a finger-sized rice dumpling from the plate, unwrapped the bamboo leaves and mugwort leaves, and raised the honey dipping plate for her to dip in honey.
Yueming took a bite. The glutinous rice was fragrant and the honey had a floral aroma. She didn’t know if eating sweets really made her feel good, or if Ai Ye’s gossip made her happy. She thought this rice dumpling was particularly delicious.
She asked with a smile, "Doesn't the Mengding Mansion even have servants to manage things? They actually let a young lady from a chieftain's mansion sell rice on the street?"
Ai Ye was afraid Yueming would choke on the sticky food, so she filled her cup and said, "This is quite embarrassing to talk about, but it's not a bad thing at all. Master Han met the Third Wife on the road while she was selling rice, so he brought her back to the mansion."
Yueming thought the word "receive" was a good choice. A concubine should be "received," while one "married" should be a wife. No wonder the Third Wife was always harping on status and position. The more she lacked something, the more she cared about it. She, a distinguished young lady from the prime minister of Mengding Prefecture, had escaped her difficult life and become a concubine, enjoying the splendor and wealth of the Tusi Mansion. Now that she had a full stomach, shouldn't she seek some dignity and pursue spiritual things?
When Ye Hu entered the house, she heard her sister babble, "The eldest and second young masters in their mansion smoked themselves to death, and the third wife's generation has no male offspring. The eldest young master left behind a six-year-old son, and the grandfather from the next room is watching him covetously. If anything happens to this young man, the Mengding Mansion will be completely destroyed, and the position of chieftain of Mengding will pass to the grandfather from the next room."
Ye Hu's eyebrows twitched when she heard this; she knew the young lady was no pushover. She quickly washed her hands and managed to get the truth out of her sister. The housekeeper had broken several bamboo sticks before, but that hadn't stopped her sister from talking too much.
Seeing Ye Hu coming in, Yue Ming didn't ask Ai Ye anything, but stared at Ye Hu with a half-smile and said, "I always thought that all the young ladies of Xiangkan must be dressed in gold and silver and have servants and maids. I didn't expect there would be such a woman as the Third Madam. If she hadn't met Master Han, she might have had to go to the fields to plant rice. This person has to obey orders! What's the meaning of birth? Following the right person is important, but it's not good to point to the other mountain to be higher. Man'e, the Third Madam's personal bodyguard, just didn't understand whose food she ate and whose clothes she wore. She relied on the fact that she was an old woman who followed the Third Madam from Mengding Mansion and acted arrogantly in this mansion. What was the result? She was beaten up by the Second Young Master and thrown back to Mengding Mansion."
Ye Hu was sweating profusely after hearing this. He forced a smile and said, "Miss, you are right. How can a servant be stronger than her master?"
Yueming stopped leaning against the bed and sat up, swinging her feet on the edge. "That's not true. This servant will become like the master she follows. The Third Madam has always been a pushover. Servants who have been with her for a long time will just follow her example, won't they?"
Looking at Ai Ye, who looked puzzled, and Ye Hu, who looked apprehensive, she suppressed her smile and said sternly, "The first thing you need to do when you follow me is to be loyal to me. If you do anything dishonest in the name of serving me, I won't say a word even if they use you to fill the lotus pond in the garden."
Ye Hu's legs went weak and he knelt at Yue Ming's feet and said, "Miss, please understand. We are here to serve you and would never dare to have any bad intentions." Ai Ye also hurriedly knelt in a row with Ye Hu, lowered his head and dared not speak.
Yueming said calmly, "I'm just afraid that your family will be manipulated by others and forced to do things against their will. If the people who sent you here are trying to find out what's going on in this mansion, then I tell you, it's impossible. I can't let my father and I get involved in those messes. If I find out, I can take care of you all with just a packet of medicine without anyone in this mansion having to do anything."
Looking at the two people lying on the ground, their hands holding them up shaking like leaves on branches in the autumn wind, Yueming changed his tone and said, "Of course, if you are loyal to me, I will not treat you unfairly. When I return to Kunming, I will take you with me. After leaving here, whether you want to study, get married, or even start your own business, I will arrange everything for you."
The two people lying on the floor looked up in surprise, unable to believe Yueming would actually say such words to them. They were a little bit unconvinced. After following the young lady for their entire lives, they would belong to her. She would decide their business, their life and death. They couldn't believe that they would ever get married in this life, let alone study and start their own family.
Ai Yu was so excited that tears welled up in her eyes and she couldn't utter a word. Ye Hu kowtowed three times on the floor, her forehead flushed red as she choked with sobs and said to Yue Ming, "I know that everything I say to you now is empty talk, but don't worry, young lady, since the master allowed us to serve you in the Tusi Mansion, we have put our lives in your hands. We will do anything you ask us to do, and we won't do anything you don't allow us to do, even if someone holds a knife to our necks."
Yueming got out of bed and helped them up. "It's boring to talk about this so late at night. I'm just laying it out with you. I want you to know what you can and can't do in this mansion, and where my bottom line is. We can all get along well, right? Don't be nervous. You are my people, just follow my rules. Others just need to be respectful and don't offend me."
Ye Hu said, "Don't worry, we won't do anything immoral or reckless in this mansion, and we won't cause any trouble for you and Master Lan."
Yueming nodded: "With your words, I feel relieved."
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