The bamboo trees outside the courtyard varied in thickness and length, but each was tall and straight. A gentle breeze rustled through the leaves, creating a soft whispering sound as if a beautiful woman was whispering softly.
Mama Fang saw Yuxi standing in the backyard, gazing at the bamboo for a long time, and couldn't help but wonder what was so captivating about it. "Miss, the wind is strong; come inside!"
Yuxi turned her head and said, "No, I don't want to go inside. It's stuffy in there. Mama, isn't it time to cook dinner?"
Mama Fang felt somewhat helpless. Ever since Young Miss had recovered from her illness, she had insisted on staying by her side while she cooked, claiming to be learning culinary skills. Mama Fang did not know whether to laugh or cry. A four-year-old child learning culinary skills? But she couldn't say no to Yuxi and thought that learning to cook was also good, so she didn't object.
After lunch, Mama Fang finally told Yuxi, "Miss, Old Woman Cao, who delivers the vegetables, told me that we might be able to return to Rose Courtyard in the next couple of days." Rose Courtyard was the courtyard where Yuxi lived.
Yuxi nodded. In her previous life, she had also lived in the Green Bamboo Cottage for over a month and only moved out after Yuchen had recovered from her illness.
Yuxi hesitated for a moment before asking, "Mama Fang, there's something I've been meaning to ask you. How did I get smallpox?"
Mama Fang looked at her curiously and asked, "What's wrong?"
Yuxi said, "San Ge1 caught smallpox from someone outside, but I've been staying in the inner courtyard all the time and had no contact with him. How could I have gotten smallpox?" Although smallpox was terrifying, as long as one didn't come into contact with the source of the infection, there was nothing to worry about. Yuxi had been thinking about this for a while, and the more she thought about it, the more she felt that something was wrong.
Mama Fang hadn't considered this before, but her expression changed dramatically when she heard Yuxi's question. "Does Miss mean that someone is trying to harm you?" Recalling the previous incident when the kitchen staff had withheld their food, Mama Fang's heart sank.
Yuxi wasn't sure either. "I don't know if someone is really trying to harm me, but I just feel that this is too strange."
A fierce glint flashed in Mama Fang's eyes. "Don't worry, Miss. If someone is truly malicious and wants to harm you, I will see to it that they suffer a fate worse than death."
Early the following day, three people arrived at the Green Bamboo Cottage. The leader was a beautiful woman with an oval face dressed in an indigo-coloured robe. She was followed by two burly old women servants.
Yuxi felt that the leading maid seemed familiar but couldn't remember her name. Mama Fang exclaimed happily, "Moju, are you here to take Miss back to the Rose Courtyard?"
Only then did Yuxi remember that Moju was her personal head maid. She hadn't seen Moju for over ten years and had completely forgotten about her.
With tears in her eyes, Moju bowed to Yuxi and choked up, "Yes, the Eldest Lady sent me to bring Miss back to the Rose Courtyard. It's truly a blessing from the Bodhisattva that Miss has survived this ordeal."
Yuxi's expression remained calm as she replied, "It's Mother in heaven who has watched over me, allowing me to survive this calamity."
Moju nodded repeatedly. "Yes, it must be the late Lady watching over Miss from heaven." Many people had died of smallpox this time, and their bodies were burned to prevent any after-effects. Miss was truly blessed by the late Lady in Heaven to have survived this ordeal.
Yuxi felt relieved. She was finally leaving this place. There was nothing to pack because everything here would be burned.
The Green Bamboo Cottage was quite far from the Rose Courtyard. Yuxi wasn't in a hurry, so she took her time and enjoyed the scenery along the way. Since marrying into the Jiang family, she had only returned a few times, and everything here seemed somewhat unfamiliar to her now.
When Motao saw Yuxi, she burst into tears. "Miss is back." Yuxi had four senior maids: Moju, Motao, Moyun and Moxiang.
Mama Fang said, "Let's talk inside. The sun is scorching, and we can't let Miss get sunburned." Miss was already sweating on her forehead after walking such a long distance.
Motao lit the brazier at the entrance and said, "Miss, if you cross over this brazier, you can get rid of all the bad luck on you."
Yuxi didn't hesitate for a moment. She stepped forward, crossed over the brazier and entered the Rose Courtyard.
The Rose Courtyard was not very large. A two-room main house was facing the entrance, with ear rooms attached at either end. On either side of the main house were the east and west wing houses🏡. Compared to the other courtyards of the Duke's residence, the Rose Courtyard was relatively small.
The reason why it was named the Rose Courtyard was because there was a trellis of roses on the right wall of the courtyard. It happened to be the season when the roses were in full bloom. The roses on the wall were either fuchsia-purple or jade-white, very beautiful. Several clusters of banana plants were planted by the windows, their broad leaves spreading out like fans, casting a cool shade.
Entering the house, Yuxi took a glance at her bedroom. It was decorated very simply. A six-poster bed with a blue canopy hanging over it was leaning against the wall, and on the bed was a fragrant autumn-coloured quilt. Opposite the bed were two mahogany chairs and a folding screen. Behind the screen was a small dressing room. Apart from the necessary furniture, there were no decorative items such as jade, gold, or porcelain. While the exterior of the other people's houses was simple on the outside and elegant on the inside, it was the exact opposite here.
Mama Fang approached and said, "Miss, please take a bath!" After Yuxi had bathed and changed, a maid burned the discarded clothes to prevent the infection from spreading to others.
Moju used a dry towel to dry Yuxi's hair and said softly, "Miss, you have endured a lot during this period."
A noob translator, きつね, translated this noob translation. Please read this chapter at xin-shou.site. If you read this in another location other than the site stated, it has been taken without the translator's permission. Please don't support this kind of act.
Yuxi glanced at Moju. Over the past month, Yuxi had been enjoying good food, living well, gaining weight, and having a healthy complexion. It was a bit unfair for Moju to say that she had suffered. Yuxi calmly replied, "After surviving a great disaster, one is bound to have good fortune in later years." Because of her doubts, she could not trust the four maids at the moment. In her last life, she was a complete failure, and by the time she died, there was no one around her that she could trust.
Moju smiled. "Yes, Miss, you will surely become wealthy and influential."
Yuxi asked, "Where are Moyun and Moxiang?" Only two of the four senior maids were left, and she didn't know where the other two had gone.
Without much thought, Moju replied, "Moyun's mother fell ill a few days ago. She didn't know you were coming back today, so she asked for leave from the stewardess so she could look after her mother at home. As for Moxiang..." She paused momentarily before continuing, "Miss, Moxiang is no longer with us."
Yuxi's body stiffened as she asked, "What happened?"
Moju's hand paused for a moment before she softly replied, "Moxiang died of smallpox." Simply put, Moxiang was also infected with smallpox and died of it.
Yuxi's expression turned somewhat grim.
After drying her hair, Yuxi sat in front of the dressing table. She knew that the dressing table was made of chicken wing wood, as it was commonly used by the respectable staff in the Duke's residence. She used to feel sad about such humble furnishings, but now she no longer cared about such things. She said, "Bring me a light-coloured garment."
Motao divided Yuxi's hair into two sections and tied them symmetrically into two large buns on either side of her head. She then pulled a small strand of hair out of each bun and let it hang naturally.
Yuxi looked at herself in the bronze mirror. She had been as thin as a bamboo pole in her previous life, but now her complexion was rosy and pleasing to the eye.
Motao brought over two small boxes and opened them. Yuxi saw that half of the jewellery in the boxes was silver while the rest was either gold or pearls. There were no gems or diamonds to be seen. Yuxi said, "There is no need to wear jewellery."
Motao rejected Yuxi's suggestion: "Miss, you should still wear a couple of jewellery pieces! It's too plain without anything, and the Old Lady won't like it." The Old Lady already disliked their Young Miss, and if she dressed like she was in mourning, she would definitely be scolded by the Old Lady.
Yuxi really wanted to say that she didn't care and didn't want to wear any jewellery anyway, but she could only think that in her head. "Then which ones do you think are good to wear?"
Motao picked out two blue pearl flowers out of the jewellery box and put them on Yuxi's hair. She asked, "Miss, how does this look?"
Yuxi wasn't very interested. Although she had been recovering for a month and her complexion had improved, her overall health was still weak, and it would take some more time for her to regain her full strength. No matter how she dressed up now, she couldn't see any significant difference. She said, "It's good enough."
After Moju finished with Yuxi's hair, she brought out a set of light blue clothes. Yuxi shook her head. "Change it." She was tired of wearing blue all the time.
Once dressed, Yuxi took Moju to the Main Courtyard. The Main Courtyard was a bit far from Yuxi's Rose Courtyard, so she sauntered, familiarising herself with the surroundings.
Passing through the Flower Hung Gate3 and bypassing the luxurious peony screen at the entrance, they entered a spacious and well-organised courtyard. At the front was a grand five-room main house with exquisitely carved beams and painted rafters, displaying a rich and luxurious ambience. There were wing rooms and verandas on either side of the main house.
A beautiful woman dressed in purple opened the door curtain and stepped out. She smiled when she saw Yuxi and said, "Fourth Miss, the Old Lady happens to be resting. I'll inform you as soon as she wakes up."
Yuxi didn't show any disappointment, just smiling, "Thank you for your trouble, Cuiyu Jiejie4."
Cuiyu was somewhat surprised. Fourth Miss appeared gloomy and dark in the past, but after recovering from her illness, she seemed more clever. "Miss, you are flattering this servant. That's what this servant should do."
As Yuxi turned to leave, she saw Yuchen walking out of the same room.
Yuchen wore a white muslin inner garment, covered by a cream-coloured half-sleeved jacket5 and a snow-white moonlight skirt. Her skin was fair and delicate, and she had a refined and petite oval face. Her large, watery eyes seemed like they could drip water. Although her complexion was pale and somewhat weak, her gestures and expressions revealed a rare charm.
Upon seeing Yuchen, Yuxi's eyes flashed with complex emotions. Despite having lived for a lifetime, she still felt Heaven had shown too much favour to Yuchen. Not only did she possess an enchanting beauty, but she also had exceptional talent. Having such a radiant elder sister made Yuxi feel extraordinary pressure. Although she did not lack in appearance and other aspects, she could only ever be a background figure in front of Yuchen, which led her to lack confidence and feel incredibly inferior.
Suppressing the strangeness in her heart, Yuxi smiled at Yu Chen and called out, "San Jie6." After living for so long, Yuxi had learned to accept things. Some things were meant to be, and envy, jealousy, or even self-deprecation served no purpose. If you are envious, jealous, or even belittling yourself, the only one suffering is yourself, and it won't cause the slightest harm to the other person.
Seeing Yuxi, Yuchen was reminded of her older brother, who had passed away earlier, making her feel sad. However, when she saw Yuxi dressed in a moonlight white dress, she developed a slight fondness for her. "Grandmother didn't sleep well last night; she's still catching up on her sleep. Si Mei7, why don't you come into my room and sit for a while?"
Yuxi was somewhat surprised. She had never been treated like this in her previous life. But she happily agreed and said, "Alright". The Old Lady adored Yuchen, who had been by her side since birth.
Footnotes Full List
- san=third, ge=elder brother, short form for Gege
Source | Chinahighlights - also known as the Second Gate that leads to the inner courtyard
- Elder sister. Can also be used to show intimacy to older women who are not family members.
- Also known as banbi (Bàn=half, bì=arm).
- San=third, Jie=elder sister, short form for Jiejie
- si (read as se in sir)=fourth, mei=younger sister, short form for Meimei
きつね's Musing
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi