Four Seasons Brocade – CH 072

Chapter 72 ☆、  

When Ah Wu followed Lady Cui into the courtyard where she had lived for several years, she realized how cramped it looked. Land in the capital was incredibly expensive; anyone who could afford a three-courtyard house in this area was extremely wealthy.

However, compared to the gardens of Jiangnan, the third house’s remote and cramped courtyard was somewhat unsettling for both Lady Cui and Ah Wu, and even Zi-Shan and Zi-Zhui were a little uncomfortable.

The two second-class maids who had followed Ah Wu from Jiangnan had been chattering amongst themselves about how magnificent the Duke’s Mansion must be, but now that they were actually inside, they realized it could not compare to even the residences of ordinary officials, let alone the wealthy salt merchants of Jiangnan.

Back in Jiangnan, Lady Cui dominated the inner courtyard, promoting all of Ah Wu’s head maids to first-class status. Zi-Shan and Zi-Zhui became first-class maids, receiving a monthly stipend of one tael of silver, hoping only that they would serve Ah Wu more diligently. Lady Cui also bought two more maids locally to serve as second-class maids for Ah Wu and added other servants and maids as well.

With many people brought back from Jiangnan by Lady Cui and the presence of servants arranged by the First Madam, the Third Branch’s courtyard felt even more cramped. Fortunately, Lady Cui’s head maids, Si-Qi and Si-Qin, were well-trained and quickly brought order to the once bustling courtyard, which resembled a marketplace. A dozen or so people moved about quietly, without making a sound.

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After this performance, those servants arranged by the First Madam, who had initially looked down on the Third Branch, now felt uneasy, and their movements became more subdued. Some more discerning individuals could tell from this that the Third Branch was now quite different from before; their manners seemed no less strict than those of the most prestigious families in the capital.

This tactic of striking a chord to intimidate, combined with Si-Qi’s earlier act of making an example of someone, immediately had a significant effect.

Ah Wu, attended by Zi-Shan and Zi-Zhui, was already seated by the south window in her room, drinking hot tea. The maids bustling around, busy unpacking luggage and clothes, worked silently, not daring to disturb Ah Wu, who was lost in thought.

Ah Wu was quite satisfied with the scene, even a little smug.

Jiangnan had been prosperous since ancient times. Except for lacking the prestige of the capital, the aristocratic families there were just as refined in every way—food, clothing, daily necessities, and transportation. To put it bluntly, Ah Wu had personally visited Jiangnan and learned that even Princess Kangning, back then, was quite a country bumpkin for a while after arriving there.

The servants that Ah Wu brought back from Jiangnan, a long journey, each possessed unique skills; if not one in a hundred, they were at least one in ten. The head maids of Lady Cui, Si-Shu and Si-Hua, were getting old, and Ah Wu, seeing they lacked ability, decided to persuade Lady Cui to properly dismiss them, either by marrying them off to other families or to the stewards—both would have good prospects.

Si-Qi and Si-Qin were maids Ah Wu bought for Lady Cui in Jiangnan. Knowing Lady Cui’s inability to manage servants, she specially spent a large sum of money, asking Third Master Rong to use his connections to bring back a skilled matron specifically to train Si-Qi, Si-Qin, Zi-Shan, and Zi-Zhui.

The remaining second-class maids, rough maids, and old women also came from extraordinary backgrounds. The matchmaking industry in Jiangnan was now quite large, with some places specializing in training maids and old women for nobles; such people were easy to manage and comfortable to use.

Si-Qi and Si-Qin also came from such a courtyard. They were given extra care by nannies, simply because they were senior maids and needed to be especially responsible and capable.

Therefore, others, looking at the third branch’s courtyard, only thought the servants from Jiangnan were impressive, unaware that just hiring these dozen or so people had cost no less than a thousand taels of silver.

Today, Ah Wu felt the money was well spent.

Zi-Shan and Zi-Zhui helped Ah Wu change into soft, slightly worn clothes, loosened her hair, braided it, and changed her into pink soft-soled shoes embroidered with golden lotus flowers. They then quietly summoned Tong-Guan to massage Ah Wu’s legs before discreetly leaving to prepare some things.

Zi-Shan and Zi-Zhui returned to their room, where two young maids immediately brought a basin of water.

“Sister, you’ve worked hard. This water has a few drops of rose-scented dew; please wash your face,” said Cui-Ling, a young maid, wringing out a handkerchief and handing it to Zi-Shan.

Over there, Zi-Zhui had already sat down, and the little maid Cui-Long was wringing out a handkerchief to wipe her hands, but the liquid in the basin was not rose-scented dew but jasmine dew.

“Sister, this courtyard is too cramped. We sisters all have to squeeze into one room, and this is the Duke’s Mansion!” Cui-Ling was only ten years old this year and, taking advantage of her young age and knowing that Zi-Shan was protective of her, she spoke somewhat without restraint.

“Stop babbling. This is the capital; you are lucky to even have a place to stand. Do not be so tactless. Those wealthy merchants from Jiangnan, even if they had the money, would not dare buy a house like this in the capital.” Zi-Shan took a sip of the tea Cui-Ling handed her. “Sharp-tongued and gossiping, are you not afraid of biting off more than you can chew? Go to Nanny Gong and get twenty lashes on your hands. Just say I told you.”

Cui-Ling knew Zi-Shan was angry. Even when she caused much bigger trouble, she’d only gotten ten lashes. Therefore, she did not dare beg for mercy, nor did she dare look at Zi-Zhui and Cui-Long beside her. She knelt with a thud and said, “Sister, Cui-Ling knows she was wrong.” Only after saying this did she dare to get up and go out to receive her punishment.

This Nanny Gong was the nanny Ah Wu had hired in Jiangnan specifically to manage the maids’ punishments. She had been with Ah Wu for a long time, in charge of the punishments in her courtyard.

“Cui-Ling, you’ve gotten into trouble again! How many strokes of the cane will you get this time?” A pretty girl of about thirteen or fourteen came out of Nanny Gong’s room. Seeing Cui-Ling’s dejected appearance, she knew Cui-Ling had been punished by Zi-Shan again.

“Twenty.”

Gong-Yun raised an eyebrow upon hearing this. “What trouble did you get into this time that made your sister Zi-Shan punish you like this?”

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Cui-Ling was about to speak when Gong-Yun quickly stopped her. “Go inside; Nanny Gong is here too.”

Hearing that Nanny Gong was there, Cui-Ling’s legs went weak, but she did not dare utter a sound. She obediently followed Gong-Yun inside and endured a long scolding before finally leaving the room. Her palms were swollen from the beatings. The maids and servants who were close to Cui-Ling felt sorry for her; some offered her ointment, but none dared to ask why.

Inside Zi-Shan and Zi-Zhui’s room, Cui-Ling had been punished, and Zi-Zhui said to Cui-Long, “This place is different from Jiangnan. Do not cause trouble for Madam and Miss when you go out. Be careful with your words, or twenty slaps will not be enough.”

Cui-Long quickly nodded.

Although the atmosphere was quite oppressive for a while, Cui-Long had served Zi-Zhui for so long and was familiar with Zi-Shan. After a while, her childlike nature inevitably led her to speak up. “Sister, what’s wrong with Miss these past few days? From a distance, she seemed to look unwell.”

Although Cui-Long was also a maid serving under Ah Wu, the rules in Ah Wu’s room were extremely strict. Everyone had their own duties, and no one was allowed to run off to serve another, especially not to fawn over their master. This was to prevent jealousy and rivalry among the servants; many ruins had been caused by this.

Therefore, since Cui-Long was not Ah Wu’s personal attendant, she was not allowed to linger near her, even if no one else was serving her. If Ah Wu did not call her name, Cui-Long was not allowed to approach.

So Cui-Long could only watch Ah Wu from afar, feeling concerned but only daring to inquire from behind.

Cui-Long did not know Ah Wu’s thoughts, but Zi-Shan and Zi-Zhui did. They exchanged a glance, saying nothing. As the girl grew older, so did her worries.

At this moment, even Zi-Shan and Zi-Zhui began to miss Jiangnan. How carefree those days were! Even if the two little maids, Cui-Ling and Cui-Long, said something wrong, it would not matter. Now that they were back in the Duke’s Mansion, things were different.

Zi-Shan and Zi-Zhui, like Ah Wu at this moment, had the same thought on their minds: “Marriage.”

Ah Wu was already thirteen years old, the age when young girls should start considering marriage. If she got engaged now, the betrothal ceremony would take at least half a year.

When a noblewoman married, the groom’s family would urge her repeatedly, while the bride’s family would try to keep her there as long as possible. This was because the girl, pampered and privileged at home, would become a wife after marriage, responsible for serving her in-laws, caring for her siblings, and serving her husband. Caught in the middle, she’d endure hardship and try to please both sides—a truly difficult situation. Therefore, both the bride’s family and the girl herself would strive to keep her at home as long as possible, establishing a set of rules and customs. By the time she was married, she would already be fifteen or sixteen.

Families with a long history or scholarly traditions, of noble birth, placed even greater emphasis on their daughters’ upbringing. Daughters were not allowed to marry before the age of eighteen, supposedly to learn proper manners from their mothers, but in reality, it was because they were reluctant to part with their daughters.

The more prestigious the family, the more respected their daughters were.

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However, while a late marriage was possible, an engagement must be arranged early. Otherwise, others would suspect something was wrong with the daughter.

Back in Jiangsu, many ladies and wives, out of respect for Third Master Rong, expressed interest in marrying into the Rong family. However, after discussing it with Third Master Rong, Lady Cui declined all offers.

Third Master Rong knew he was returning to the capital and worried that if Ah Wu married someone from Jiangnan, far from home, she would have no one to confide in if she suffered mistreatment. Lady Cui was even more reluctant to let her go; besides Third Master Rong, Ah Wu was her other pillar of support, and she could not bear to be apart from her.

Moreover, with Ah Wu growing up and looking like that, Third Master Rong was even more worried and anxious. The marriage was delayed, and they had not even found a suitable match. Third Master Rong and his wife decided they could only return to the capital to make further plans.

However, Third Master Rong knew the situation of the Duke of Anguo’s Mansion best. The sooner Ah Wu’s marriage was settled, the better; otherwise, things might change, and it could turn into a disaster.