Having subdued Hongshan, Yuxi was in a good mood.
She continued saying a few more words, "Your cousin is a bitter person, but the most crucial thing is that she is timid, so she is easily trampled by other people." To be the Old Lady's personal maid, one had to have two brushes[1]; therefore, it excluded the possibility of having a temper or being weak. The only thing left was her fear of abandonment. When one had misgivings in one's heart, one would give in again and again.
Hongshan was horrified. She didn't even tell her about the type of person her cousin was. "How did Miss know that my cousin is timid?"
Yuxi chuckled. "Your father is a man with a high position in the Duke of the State's residence. Will he be afraid of a juren[2]? Your cousin must have some misgivings if she submits to the humiliation."
Hongshan said with a bitter smile, "What Miss meant was that my cousin was afraid that her children would suffer, so she was ready to compromise. Now, she has agreed to take concubines for her husband."
Yuxi said, "Your cousin's concession will only make her family treat her even worse, and her bitter days will not stop despite that."
Hongshan felt a little sluggish as she looked up at Yuxi. "Miss, I haven't received less of my cousin's kindness before, so I want to help her."
Yuxi felt that Hongshan had a good temper as she knew how to repay her favour. "Tell your cousin to say these to her husband, the rushing fear of sorrow, the sorrowful fear of the horizontal, the horizontal fear of not killing. There are many juren[2] in the world, not many more than your brother-in-law or a few less than him. As long as your cousin dares to throw caution to the wind, then she will not be the one to be in fear but your brother-in-law."
Hearing this, Hongshan felt shocked, and she immediately kowtowed Yuxi. "Thank you very much for Miss' advice."
Yuxi laughed, saying, "Don't be too quick to kowtow me. If your cousin does not dare to do it, then whatever I have said was meaningless." As long as Hongshan's cousin stood up for herself, there would be nothing for her to be afraid of.
Thinking of her previous life, Yuxi suddenly was in a bad mood. Speaking of which, she had also become a doormat because she was too weak. Unlike now, which servants in the State Residence dared to show their faces in front of her?
On the twenty-fourth day of the twelfth lunar month, Teacher Song declared that she would have holidays, which lasted until after the Lantern Festival. That meant it would be more than twenty days of vacation for her.
Yuxi didn't slack off despite the long holiday. That night, she wrote big characters honestly and took out the qipu[3] to ponder.
Seeing this, Mama Shen could not help but say, "Miss, didn't Teacher Song say that your painting is good? So, why doesn't Miss paint more?" Diligence made perfect, and if one didn't practice all the time, one would not learn well.
Yuxi answered simply and clearly, "Not interested." No matter how well she painted, she could not become a famous artist. Even if Yuchen's painting was sold for a considerable sum later, it was because of her identity, not because her painting was worth that much money.
Yuxi knew how much weight she had. She had good qualifications, but only higher than the average person, though far inferior to Yuchen. However, one's energy was limited. If one wanted to learn everything, one could not understand anything else well. So now, except for the time she studied in class, she would spend her spare time on chess and embroidery. The painting was just to pass the time. Learning chess was to better train one's abilities in all aspects. Embroidery was because she had a deep foundation in this stuff. She could do it well even if given little time, saving her time and trouble.
Mama Shen did not flinch at Yuxi's remark. Instead, she said, "Miss, you still have to learn to paint well. In the future, when you go out to socialise after you get married, you will have the skill to attract attention." She thought it was best to learn a musical instrument, which was also much more pleasant for people to listen to. It was just that no matter how much she persuaded, Yuxi was unwilling to learn it.
Yuxi didn't want to listen to Mama Shen's nagging anymore, as she couldn't understand why it was only fitting when one did according to their thought. No, it was actually to follow the path set by the Old Lady. One Yuchen was enough, so why drag her along? "As you can see, I am swamped every day and have no time to paint."
Mama Shen glanced at Yuxi and saw no displeasure on her face. She continued, "As long as Miss doesn't spend all Miss time on chess, Miss will have time to paint."
Yuxi pulled a long face. "I know what to learn and what not to learn. I don't need you to teach me." She had given Mama Shen some face, but she still opened a dyeing workshop[4].
Hearing Yuxi's harsh words, Mama Shen's face turned red.
Mama Fang entered the residence on the twenty-ninth day of the twelfth lunar month.
Mama Fang was now wearing a new pine-coloured long jacket, a combed bun with a long red-gold hairpin on her head, and gold earrings on her ears. She looked like a wealthy old lady.
Yuxi saw Mama Fang and said with a smile, "These days, mama has been working hard."
Mama Fang touched the long hairpin on her bun and said with a smile, "It is also because of me towing some of Miss' blessing." The people of the State Residence liked to decide on the dishes according to the guest[5]. They would certainly look down upon her if she came dressed in plain and shabby clothes. She was specially dressed with riches and honour when returning to the residence. This also could convince everyone that her baozi[6] shop did make money.
Yuxi waved the crowd back, leaving only Mama Fang inside the room. She then asked, "Mama, have you brought all the things I asked you to bring?" She made a list for Mama Fang and asked her to purchase the items listed.
Kushen / kuh-seng
Image credit to duoclieu via pharmacognosy (Flavescent sophora root (Kushen)-Sophora flavescens Ait., April 18, 2012)
Image credit to duoclieu via pharmacognosy (Flavescent sophora root (Kushen)-Sophora flavescens Ait., April 18, 2012)
Mama Fang pointed to the parcel she had brought. "Miss, I got everything! Miss, what do you buy these things for?" Miss' list was also bizarre. She demanded things like kushen, centipede, musk, etc. Among them, musk and centipede also needed to be in powder form.
Yuxi did not hide her words from the mama who would be involved in the process. "I accidentally saw a prescription for removing scars in an ancient book and wanted to try it. If it is well made, I will sell it. At that time, we will have plenty of money, and mama will not have to work so hard. "
Mama Fang felt that Yuxi was joking. "Miss, it cost more than forty taels[7] of silver to buy these herbs. Can this jade paste be sold back to the Benma[8]?"
Yuxi smiled and said, "How would mama know if we haven't tried? If we mix the ointment according to the recipe and sell them out, we will make a lot of profit." Selling them into the inner Palace was unnecessary for her to explain. While in the market, a perfect scar cream box would sell for several silvers each. By personally creating the ointment, it will certainly fetch a reasonable price.
The things Mama Fang brought were not complete. It was missing a single ingredient, pearl powder. However, the price of pearl powder was too high. If it was not cost-effective to buy it outside, Yuxi could try to get it from inside the residence.
Mama Fang felt a little distressed. "I was afraid of losing money." The main reason was that she didn't believe Yuxi could create any scar-removing ointment. She also thought that Yuxi was only wasting money.
Yuxi smiled and said, "If we can make it, it will be one to ten thousand[9]. If we can't make it, we only lose a few tens of silvers. I can still afford to lose that much." She wanted to buy a property with the money she earned from selling the ointments. She was not ambitious either. She wanted to buy one or two storefronts and one or two hundred mu[10] of fertile land, which could ensure that she would not need to worry about money in the future.
Mama Fang knew that Yuxi had a big idea, and she could not stop her. She said, "Miss, the baozi[6] shop business is getting better and better. With that, it will make even more money. Last month, it made more than forty taels[7] of profit!"
Yuxi nodded and said, "Mama, the recipe for the baozi[6] stuffing must not be known to other people. Otherwise, someone will want to fight on the leitai[11]."
Mama Fang smiled. "Miss is too over-sensitive. It's just a matter of stuffing. Where is it worth for people to cast their eyes on?"
Yuxi couldn't help but smile bitterly as she looked at Mama Fang's disbelieving look. It was fortunate that the Duke of the State's business reputation also took care of outside matters. Otherwise, if the baozi[6] shop had been managed according to Mama Fang's idea, it would have been closed long ago. "Mama Fang, the recipe of the baozi[6] stuffing must not be told to others unless given with a life contract in your hand." Having a life contract meant having the power to fight back and not be worried about being betrayed.
Mama Fang listened to Yuxi's words and said with some embarrassment, "Miss, I want to take a disciple and teach her how to make baozi[6]."
Hearing this revelation, Yuxi immediately asked, "Does mama have a candidate?" If there was no candidate, Mama Fang would not have told her directly.
Mama Fang nodded. "Well, the child's name is Xiao Wei. She is 12 years old this year and lives on Shangyuan Street, not far from my shop. Xiao Wei is a cute, filial child, very likeable, and quick at learning. If I teach her, it will only take three months to teach her until she is good. "
Yuxi asked, "How did Mama Fang know her?"
A smile appeared on Mama Fang's face. "Xiao Wei's mother always comes to the shop to buy baozi[6]. Gradually, we know each other after meeting a lot." Mama Fang and Xiao Wei's mother talked a lot with each other, creating a good relationship between the two.
When Yuxi heard that Xiao Wei's mother had bought the steamed buns, she did not ask any other questions but asked the main question straightforwardly, "Did the other party agree to sign a life contract?" There were good people in the world, but there were more bad-minded people.
Mama Fang shook her head. "Miss, Xiao Wei has already made a promise. How can I ask her to sign the contract? However, both families have agreed that if I accept Xiao Wei, even if she marries in two years, she can continue working in the baozi[6] shop as long as she is paid monthly wages. "
Yuxi looked at Mama Fang's smiling face and sighed slightly in her heart. Nine times out of ten, the family had watched the baozi[6] shop start making money and came up with the idea of asking for the stuffing recipe. It wasn't that Yuxi looked down on Mama Fang, but from Moju and Motao, who were trained by Mama Fang, that she knew that Mama Fang was not very sharp. Even if she was being calculated, she would not even know. "You can't teach her." This would directly say that Mama Fang could not teach, not that she could not teach without signing the contract first.
The smile on Mama Fang's face froze. "Miss, why can't I teach her? That child is perfect, filial and sensible."
Yuxi was keenly aware that there was still something else in that statement by Mama Fang, "Mama, do you still have anything else to tell me?"
Mama Fang said somewhat unnaturally, "Xiao Wei is a lovely child. I have promised to recognise her as my daughter."
Footnotes Full List
- Chinese idiom: be skilful at certain extent
- successful candidate in the imperial provincial examination
- Chinese chess manual
- T/N: I believe this sentence supposed to be an idiom, but I can't find anything about it online or maybe I had searched it the wrong way. I believe it means the same thing as giving someone an inch, they'll take a mile. Probably. 😅
- Chinese idiom: to treat sb according to their social status
- steamed stuffed bun
- unit of weight equal to 50 grams (modern) or 1⁄16 of a catty 斤 (old)
- Probably a name of a medicine shop?
- Chinese idiom: highly profitable
- unit of area equal to one-fifteenth of a hectare
- Chinese old words : to take up a challenge at someone
Noob Translator's Musing
As everyone knew, scammers loved people like Mama Fang. With a drop of tears, scammers could get all of her assets without hard work.
And by the way, congratulations to my boys for winning LCK Spring 2019 Final! Good job!
Image credit to League of Legends Champions Korea LCK via Flickr | Mike Plant of Hotspawn (LCK Spring Finals: Faker Regains His Throne)
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The Rebirth of Han Yuxi