The gifts from Hebei this year were not only for the Duke of the State; there were also some for the Old Lady and Yuchen. The Old Lady received a longevity crutch, created using scarce and precious wood, which was only available in Chengde, Hebei Province. Its wood was white and flawless, delicate as jade, and had the reputation of false ivory.
Yuchen got hanging screens made of wood, carved with flowers and bird patterns. The flowers and birds on the hanging screens were like living ones, and the engraving was very delicate.
Yuchen loved these things very much. Not only were they unique, but more importantly, they were given by her father. Over the years, she would receive gifts at festivals and birthdays. Every time she got something, she would hang it up, and this time was no exception.
Yuxi had Hongshan, the spy who reported on other people's doing, was very clear about the significant events happening in residence. She soon knew that Yuchen had gotten a pair of hanging screens.
Hongshan didn't want to tell Yuxi that the Third Miss had received gifts from the Lord while her Miss got nothing. If her Miss knew, she definitely would not feel comfortable. Since Yuxi herself asked her, she could not refuse.
In her previous life, Yuxi had been saddened by this matter for a long time, but now, she didn't take it seriously. "There is nothing rare in the capital; as long as you have money, you can buy it. It's good of you to say that in front of me."
Hongshan carefully looked into Yuxi's eyes and discovered Miss was not even sad. This made her dare to say, "Miss, I don't think this was the Lord's idea, but the Third Lady's." She hoped Yuxi would not resent the Third Lord. After all, the Third Lord was her father, and Miss would undoubtedly still need to depend on her father.
Yuxi smiled and said, "It doesn't matter whose idea it was. Apart from this, is anything else happening inside the residence these few days? "
Hongshan shook her head. "The residence has been quiet these days. Nothing happened."
Hearing this answer, Yuxi did not respond and turned to look at her qipu. She read the qipu whenever she had the time and sometimes played chess while reading it. She alone played for two people. This made her sometimes forget to eat and sleep. According to Moju and others, their Miss seemed to have already been possessed by the devil.
Mama Shen looked at Hongshan coming out from the room and asked in a low voice, "Did Miss say anything?"
Hongshan knew that if she said Miss didn't care about the hanging screen, Mama would surely tell the Old Lady. She also didn't know why; although Miss' face didn't show anything on the surface, she felt that Miss knew their every action in her heart. Unconsciously, she did not tell Mama Shen the truth. "Miss is very sad. She said that she wanted to be alone for a while and did not want to be disturbed."
Mama Shen was somewhat doubtful as she asked, "Really?"
Hongshan cursed in her heart; this unpleasant thing had made her rush forward with her plan. If the Old Lady chastised Miss, then the responsibility would be put on her. However, she didn't dare to offend Mama Shen. "Why do I want to lie to Mama?" she asked with a smile.
Mama Shen was sceptical, but when she saw Yuxi's eyes were red, and her face was not good, she believed in Hongshan's words.[T/C]
Yuxi looked at Mama Shen's manner and felt a little awkward. She didn't understand what the Old Lady was thinking. Could it be that she feared her retaliation regarding the physician matter? Not to say that she had this ability; even if she had in the future, she still couldn't do so because of filial piety. "Hongshan, tell your older brother to send a letter to Mama Fang. Invite her to make a trip to the official residence during the New Year celebration when convenient." She wanted to talk to Mama Fang about something. She had been swamped before, but her teacher would have a holiday during these two days, so she could relax for a while.
Hongshan crisply responded, "Okay."
The baozi[2] made by Mama Fang was very popular, with demand consistently exceeding supply. Business was good and income received was naturally high. After deducting various expenses, the baozi[2] shop had a net profit of more than thirty taels per month. This number was not bad to earn on Shangyuan Street. Fortunately, the people there knew that the owner of the baozi[2] shop was from the Duke of the State's official residence. No one dared to make any suggestions, or trouble would befall them.
Since the baozi[2] shop had made profits, with Yuxi having a lot of money in her hand, naturally, it relaxed her. The maids and the old women beside her were direct beneficiaries of her mood change.
Mama Shen opened her mouth but eventually said nothing. She had served Miss for more than half a year, but her Miss was still very defensive. However, Mama Shen was not a foolish person. She knew who her Miss was on guard against, but this was all the Old Lady's orders which she, as a servant, couldn't disobey. Therefore, her Miss' attitude towards her was neither cold nor light, so she could only endure it.
In winter, the day got dark quickly.
Hongshan watched as Mama Shen left the Rose Courtyard. Only then did she enter the room and say to Yuxi, who was writing, "Miss, this handmaiden has a few words to say."
Yuxi put down her brush and said, "If you have anything to say, you can say it."
Hongshan respectfully said, "This handmaiden knows that Miss has a purpose in mind. But there are some things that Miss still needs to worry about." Seeing Yuxi looking at her, she did not beat around the bush and directly said, "Just like today, Miss acted too indifferent when the Lord only gifted the Third Miss. If this is being known by the Old Lady, she will surely be unhappy." To act indifferent was like having no expectations of your parents. In the eyes of the Old Lady, her Miss was dissatisfied with the Third Lord. As his child, she should have been a filial daughter. If a girl bore a reputation of being unfilial, she should not think twice about her future marriage or even departing from the residence.
Yuxi looked grave and said, "What are you trying to say? There's no harm in saying so." She was worried that Hongshan was digging a hole for her, so she had to be careful.
Hongshan said, "Miss, this handmaiden has to say something beyond this handmaiden's limit. Even if the Lord is being partial, Miss must still be a filial child." Only filial children could make people like and feel at ease with them.
Yuxi stared at Hongshan like she was able to stare out a hole. "I want to know why you said these words to me." If it was to dig a hole for her, it could only be said that Hongshan was too bold. If she was not careful with such a thing, she would also trip into the hole she dug.
Hongshan looked up and said, "I believe in Miss." As for what she believed, her Miss must know.
Yuxi unexpectedly looked at Hongshan. This was a surrender.
Hongshan was so nervous that her palms were sweating, but she did not regret what she had just said. Some time ago, it was her turn to take a vacation. She told her father about her Miss recent performance. Her father said that even if Fourth Miss did not have incredible good fortune as the Third Miss in the future, it would certainly not be lacking. Her father told her to serve her Miss till she was accepted by Teacher Song and then served her wholeheartedly.
Hongshan considered it long and finally made her stand clear before Teacher Song accepted her Miss. Otherwise, when Miss worshipped Teacher Song, everyone would know that Miss' future was not bad. No matter how sincere she was then, she couldn't be reused. Not being reused and going against the Old Lady's wishes was not a good bargain.
Yuxi said primly, "Your father is the second steward. You can find a good way out even if you don't rely on me. Tell me, why did you do this? I want to hear the truth. "
Now that Hongshan had decided to take this road, she would not have any more leeway for herself. "Miss, I originally wanted to wait on Miss for five or six years, then by that time, I will be seventeen or eighteen, the age of me getting married. If I marry outside, I should have a good life." When she said to marry outside, she meant to marry into a good people's home and become a wife, thus getting rid of her fate as a maid.
"What happened?" asked Yuxi. For Hong Shan to suddenly change her mind meant something must have happened, and it must not have been small.
Hongshan's eyes were red as she said, "I have an older cousin who also served the Old Lady before. A few years ago, she was released and married a scholar. Last autumn, my cousin's husband passed the Imperial Examination and earned himself a juren[3] title. Later, his family immediately started to turn their back on my elder cousin. They believed that her background as a former maid was damaging their family's reputation. A few days ago, they wanted to cease the marriage between the two of them. So, my father went to their home to officially separate them. But the family was afraid of the status of the Duke of the State residence to proceed, so the matter hasn't been settled yet. My elder cousin is currently living a hard life over this thing." She was very close with her older cousin, so when she saw her change into a haggard person in just a few months, her heart and head turned cold in respect of marriage.
Yuxi calmly asked, "Are you afraid of falling into the same situation as your cousin, so you don't want to be married out? Or do you want to marry a person from inside the residence?"
Hongshan spoke her mind directly, "The background of the people in the mansion is the same, so they certainly will not dislike my background. They also know the truth about me, so I don't have to worry about being cheated." Her elder cousin's husband used to be an honest and loyal person. Otherwise, her elder cousin would not have chosen that person. It could only be said that the man disguised himself so well that her whole family could not see the real him. In the official residence, there was no such concern. After all, they were in the same place, so it was not a problem to inquire about a person's details.
Her elder cousin's incident dealt a significant blow to Hongshan, making her unwilling to marry outside.
Rather than directly giving her response to Hongshan, Yuxi asked a question instead, "What was the matter with the copybook?" For Hongshan to climb to a second-class maid in the main house, she was not a fool. However, in the case of the copybook, she was stupid enough to say things without thinking. Yuxi felt strange at that time, but she didn't ask much.
Hongshan knelt on the ground and said with a white face, "Mama Shen asked me to tell her Miss' every move. I didn't want to do it. It happened that Ziyi Jiejie[4] came to me and talked about the copybook." She did this to alienate Yuxi from her and not let her serve her close. Then, she would know less about Yuxi and have nothing to report to Mama Shen.
Yuxi suddenly understood. Indeed as she expected that the incident happened for a reason. "Aren't you afraid I can't give you a good future?"
Hongshan had already thrown caution to the wind and said, "That's my life too." It could be seen from the case of Mama Fang that as long as she devoted herself to her Miss, she would not ignore her.
It was a good bargain for Yuxi to gain Hongshan's loyalty, so she said, "As long as you can do it, I won't let you fall into the same situation as your cousin."
Hongshan put her heart back into her stomach[5]. Her elder cousin's affair chilled her, which made her afraid to marry outside. If she married into the residence, she had to find a backer. Although her father was a second steward, he was already old. Neither of her brothers was smart enough to take over her father's duties in the future. She would have a challenging future if she didn't have strong backing. This was also the real reason why she committed herself to Yuxi. For her future, she decided to gamble. As for winning or losing, it took time to prove.
Footnotes Full List
- Lol. Didn't her eyes were red and her face was not good because she hadn't been sleeping and eating lately?
- steamed stuffed bun
- successful candidate in the imperial provincial examination
- older sister
- Chinese phrase : no worry/stop being worried
Noob Translator's Musing
Hohoho... In a few more chapters, we will meet... 😍
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi
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