Mei Niang said to the old lady with an apologetic look: "I will make a new skirt in the future and give one to cousin Lan as compensation!"
The old lady smiled and waved her hands, then suddenly remembered and said seriously, "Last month, I measured my body for winter clothes, but you didn't do it because you were sick. Your mother went to see Jingyu and Rulan this morning, and they are both still sick. The keys to the large warehouses were returned to your mother. Your mother said that you are now as good as ever, and she wants you to take care of some things, so go and learn to do it!"
Mei Niang realized that the words "Go learn how to do it" meant that she was going to be the housekeeper. She was moved, but turned to look at Xu Junying and said softly:
"Let's wait until Jingyu and Rulan get better. Lord Hou is worried about Heng'er, and he's also afraid that I might not be smart enough and make mistakes..."
The old lady looked at Xu Junying and said, "It's the eldest grandson's wife's job to be in charge of the household affairs. Mei Niang is not the same as before, I think she's fine. Besides, isn't your mother watching over you? How could she go wrong? Heng'er has his own wet nurse and maids to take care of him... Who told me a while ago? Was it Rulan, that there are too few maids and servants in Qinghua Courtyard? Why? Don't every grandmother have her own maids and servants? The ones Ying'er has in the East Garden are all those I gave her."
Madam Zheng said hurriedly, "It was my daughter-in-law's negligence that I didn't mention this to mother. Mei Niang has always been a simple-minded person who is used to using her own dowry. She sent away all the original people in Qinghua Courtyard. I thought she was indeed an idle person and didn't need too many people to serve her, so I sent those people to work in the garden, and gave some to the two new concubines in the master's room..."
The old lady nodded, "The two concubines are fine. One maidservant and two servant girls are enough for each of them. They will serve the main grandmother... and we have enough people in Qinghua Courtyard. A few more won't hurt. Mei Niang will be in charge from now on, and she will need a lot of manpower. Heng'er is the eldest great-grandson. In addition to the wet nurse, we will give her two young wives to follow her, and four little servant girls to play with him. The servant girls around Mei Niang are also grown up, and they need to be matched with others. Carefully select a few smart little servant girls to follow her, so that she can be used more easily in the future."
Mei Niang saw the old lady looking at her, and hurriedly bowed and said, "Grandson's wife, I'll remember it!"
The old lady looked at Xu Junying again and said, "Ying'er, don't worry. Your mother was also like this before. She knew nothing and worked her way up. Isn't she managing the mansion well? Mei Niang will be busy as the head of the household. You should be more considerate and take care of Heng'er!"
Xu Junying responded respectfully to the old lady: "Grandson obeys the instructions of grandmother!"
His eyes swept over Mei Niang, and Mei Niang met his eyes with a gentle and sweet smile on her face.
Xu Junying lowered his eyes. He could not understand. Mei Niang had changed so much. The shyness when they first met, the timidity when they were newly married, the indifference after the couple had been separated for a long time and after the birth of Heng'er, were all gone. Instead, she was enthusiastic, outspoken, lively, quick-witted and versatile. It was a little hard to believe that this was Mei Niang, who had lived in the Xu Mansion for more than a year and was not liked by the elders. Now, after only being alive for three days, she was able to appease both her grandmother and mother and successfully won the opportunity to be the head of the family.
But no matter how incredible it was, she was indeed Qin Meiniang. No matter what else, the affection a mother had for her child could not be faked. Just now, Lan'er almost made Heng'er fall accidentally. He saw it clearly. Mei Niang pushed Lan'er down with red eyes. The ruthlessness made him angry. Didn't Heng'er fall? Even if it was Lan'er's fault, she should be forgiven. Who doesn't like to be clean? It was normal to panic when the child peed on the new skirt. It was only Mei Niang and Heng'er's nanny who were blamed for not taking Heng'er away in time.
Mei Niang patiently persuaded the old lady to take the children out of the room and go to the yard to bask in the sun. She mentioned many benefits of basking in the sun, but the old lady just refused and did not allow the children to go out. She said that the ice and snow were melting and the cold was getting cold, so it would be better for them to sit on the hot couch in the house to keep warm. Mei Niang's words were in vain.
Old Mrs. Xu stroked her left shoulder with her right hand and said, "I'm old and useless. I feel sore here and there!"
Mei Niang knew that she wanted to be kneaded by her, so she smiled and said, "Grandma, move in, let your granddaughter-in-law knead you."
Old Mrs. Xu was very pleased and said to Xu Xiping and her grandchildren, "You guys go by yourselves. I can't sit for long. Mei Niang has skillful hands. Let her massage me. I need to lie down for a while!"
Xu Xiping then brought his sons and nephews to pay their respects, said a few words asking their mother to take care of herself, and then left.
Mrs. Gui followed her husband and left. Xu Xiping frowned at her and said, "Where are you in such a hurry to go? Why don't you take your daughters-in-law to talk to the old lady and relieve her boredom?"
Mrs. Gui blushed slightly and whispered, "Didn't you hear mother say: You need to lean over a little? We are too noisy here."
Old Madam Xu waved her hand and said, "Let's go, I'm tired. I'll just leave Mei Niang by my side. Everyone go - young wives, take good care of the children!"
Gan and Fang each took their children and walked forward to teach them to bow and say goodbye. The old lady smiled and took out a few items from the mahogany bedside cabinet inside the couch. She gave each of them an item, including the eldest sister Meilian, who clung to her father's clothes and refused to step forward to salute, and then sent them away.
Heng'er cried for a while, and Mrs. Zheng couldn't comfort him, so she asked Chunyue to find a wet nurse and take him out to comfort him. She heard him humming in the corridor and refused to stop. She was worried, so she went out to see him, but Heng'er missed a good thing.
Mei Niang carefully looked at the items that Old Lady Xu had given out. They were all ornaments in the shape of auspicious animals made of pure gold. They were exquisite and beautiful. She thought they should be given to the children as toys first. When they grow up, they can be placed on the desk as paperweights or something. Even if they are placed on the eight-treasure shelf in the study, they are also very pleasing to the eye.
This old lady is really generous. The toys she casually gives to her great-grandson are so valuable.
Old Mrs. Xu closed her eyes and leaned against the cotton pile with great enjoyment. Mei Niang's technique was impeccable. After being rubbed and kneaded by her for a while, all the muscles and bones in her body relaxed. She felt indescribably comfortable. A smile appeared on the corner of the old lady's lips:
"There are many such rewards every year, and they are only given to children and grandchildren in the most complete group. I have collected all these little toys since I was six or seven years old. At that time, the wealth of the Zhuang family was not as good as that of several marquisates! I just saw the Qilin robe that Heng Ge'er was wearing, which was exactly what I wanted. What I want to give him today is a red-gold Qilin with emerald eyes!"
Mei Niang smiled and said, "I, your granddaughter-in-law, would like to thank Grandmother for the reward on behalf of Heng'er! Grandmother has great blessings, and the items she has passed on to her children and grandchildren are the rarest and best in the world!"
Old Madam Xu patted Mei Niang's hand and said, "Although my eyesight is dim, I am still good at picking out things for children. I will not pass on anything that is not good enough to my grandson! This is the first time that Heng'er has received a reward from me. I have two red-gold unicorns in total. His father got one when he was a child. This one is his!"
Mei Niang paused, and heard Old Lady Xu say, "You are blessed with a great life, and the heaven has mercy on you. From now on, you should live a good life with Ying'er, support your husband and raise your children, and manage the affairs of the Marquis's residence. Ying'er has been striving for success since he was young, but it's a pity that he followed his father on an expedition at the age of fourteen, and grew up in the shadow of swords and blood. Everyone knows that the Marquis of Weiyuan is powerful and wealthy, but they don't know that it was earned by the lives of several generations of the Marquis of Weiyuan. Ying'er's grandfather and father both died on the battlefield at the same age... I am worried about Ying'er. At least I see that he has the blood of Heng'er. When he grows up, Ying'er will naturally give him the title of a prince... But having Heng'er alone is not enough. Ying'er should have more children. It doesn't matter whether the two new concubines give birth or not. In the future, I will tell Ying'er about two concubines, so that she can have children and continue the incense of the direct line..."
Mei Niang's heartbeat quickened and her eyes widened. Did the things that Wang Mama mentioned come about so soon? The old lady herself asked for Xu Junying to have a concubine!
Her reasons were quite reasonable and did not leave Mei Niang any room for refusal!
Mei Niang was still unable to think of what to say when she suddenly saw the light-blocking gauze embroidered screen on the side of the couch sway slightly, and a slender shadow vaguely flashed by. She changed her mind and said to the old lady with a smile:
"Alas, whether you call her a noble concubine or a good concubine, she is just a concubine! She is not worth much, why bother the old lady to worry about her? My mother and I will welcome her in if we find her suitable. After all, she will have to serve me every day. I have seen her and my husband should be satisfied!"
The old lady closed her eyes, enjoying Mei Niang's massage, drowsy, and said vaguely: "Well, you are a sensible person... It's good that you can figure this out, it's up to you to do it..." (To be continued)