19 Feeling
While drinking tea, they talked about the situation of both sides after the division of the mansion, from the old lady to the rooms below, and the marriages of the girls, everything was mentioned. Bai Jingyu had just heard that the old lady wanted to sell Ruixue, and told Meimei and Ning Rulan. The three sighed. The old lady showed a cruel look, which was very scary. The maid who had been with her for many years was well-behaved, smart and obedient. She loved her like her own granddaughter every day, but she sold her alive or dead just because she said something wrong.
Bai Jingyu whispered the story about how the old lady had dealt with the concubines in the past. It turned out that the maids on duty at the gates were discussing it quietly in the middle of the night to keep away sleepiness. She happened to eavesdrop on it while checking the night, but she couldn't show up and scold them. They were all old maids, and they told it in a very clear and concise way - when the old lady was young, she had two concubines. She gave one to the old grandfather as a concubine when she was pregnant with the old marquis. One of them was very favored. When the old grandfather went to the border town to defend, he actually took her with him. Two years later, he gave birth to a concubine's son. It seemed that the family of three was close and happy, but the concubine could not adapt to the local climate after all, and gave birth to a son. When my grandfather left, he repeatedly told his wife to take care of his aunt. The old lady readily agreed. As soon as my grandfather left, she poisoned the illegitimate son and said that the aunt would not take care of the child and killed the descendants of the Xu family. She locked him up in a quiet courtyard and starved him to death. At that time, my great grandmother was still alive. Seeing that the little illegitimate grandson died soon after returning home, she was heartbroken and angry. She wanted to investigate the matter in person. The old lady pretended to be sick and did not answer. Soon, she really found out that she was pregnant. Seeing that her son had few children, she was afraid that she would scare her daughter-in-law and harm the fetus, so she had to give up. The matter was left unresolved. My grandfather was very sad when he heard that his concubine and illegitimate son had passed away. Since then, he rarely returned home. The second master did not see his father until he was five or six years old. When my grandfather died in battle at the border, the second master only saw his father three or two times. Later, my great grandmother passed away, and another old aunt also died of illness.
Meimei sighed and said, "There are so many things like this in the mansion. A man has a wife and a concubine, and women are jealous of each other. The strong will win, and the weak will live a miserable life. This is why I had to leave the Hou Mansion in the first place. The old lady gave Cousin Zhuang to the Hou Lord, and I have always been looked down upon by her. Then she will support Cousin Zhuang and let Cousin Zhuang be the master of the family. The Hou Lord will listen to my grandmother. I used Heng'er to exchange for the housekeeper's power from the eldest lady, but in the end I will be forced to hand it over to Cousin Zhuang and make a living under her. Mother and son have no hope anymore. Seeing this, I couldn't stand it anyway, so I just left!"
Bai Jingyu looked at her with sparkling eyes: "You are so resolute! But I dare not, if I run away, I may never come back. You have your reasons for being so stubborn - the old lady has the queen mother, and the emperor and the queen take care of you. Big brother can't just listen to the old lady and look down on you. You finally earned this face back, and you don't have to suffer the resentment of marrying a concubine. Big brother still values you the most in his heart!"
Ning Rulan smiled and said, "Second sister-in-law, my eldest brother has always put my eldest sister-in-law first. I don't think he wants to marry a concubine!"
Bai Jingyu smiled and nodded, "Indeed, cousin Zhuang is not worthy of big brother. A woman like her is not very outstanding, but she is very scheming. I am close to her and understand her a little bit. I often wonder what my sister-in-law would do if she were her wife. If she is not angry with me, she will disgust me. I didn't expect it to end like this! To put it bluntly, she married the historian and earned a second-rank imperial decree! I think I am better-looking and more capable than her, but I am not there yet!"
Ning Rulan hit her with a round fan, and the three of them laughed non-stop. Meimei was surprised to find that Bai Jingyu's temperament had changed a lot, and the whole person seemed different from before. She looked at Bai Jingyu's face carefully and said:
"It's been just a short time since we last met. I noticed that Rulan is now white and plump, but Jingyu is like a different person. She's thinner, but looks fresh and bright. Look at her little face, which is white with a hint of red, like a pink lotus that has just bloomed in the morning!"
Bai Jingyu's face turned redder and Ning Rulan smiled, "You just saw it? She has been like this since the beginning of summer. Now my second brother follows her closely all day long, for fear that she will leave as soon as she wants like my eldest sister-in-law!"
Meimei fanned Rulan and said, "Stop talking about me, as if I have led you astray!"
Bai Jingyu also glanced at Rulan: "What nonsense are you talking about? Do you think he will have good things by following me? He either wants money or asks me to take Wei'er in my name. I won't pay any attention to him!"
He bowed his head to Meimei and thanked her again, "It's all thanks to the prescription given by my sister-in-law. I've been taking the medicine for more than a month, and I no longer think about those annoying things. All my illnesses seem to have been cured. Now I don't feel any pain anywhere, and I feel refreshed!"
Meimei smiled and said, "No wonder! When you are in a good mood, you become more and more beautiful, with a unique charm!"
Bai Jingyu lowered his eyes in embarrassment: "Just make fun of me, I was almost divorced, and I'm still charming!"
"You were frightened by the Second Master. I heard from the Hou Master that there are no divorced women in the Xu Mansion, and the Second Master will not divorce his wife easily. He was just trying to scare you!"
Bai Jingyu sighed, "It's scary or not. I didn't have the courage to make a big fuss. At that time... Oh! It's no use regretting it now. I've forgiven him now. I think it's all for my elder sister's sake!"
Meimei said, "I forgot about the two girls in your room. How are they doing? Weisheng, the daughter of Xiangrui, is already this big. Should Xiangxue be born soon?"
Bai Jingyu fanned herself impatiently, "She's about to give birth while she's talking. Xiangxue is so weak! How can a pregnant woman lie in bed all day? If she walks around more, she'll know how hard it is when she gives birth!"
Rulan looked at her and smiled: "You are willing to take care of them!"
Bai Jingyu smiled helplessly, but there was a fierceness in his voice: "What can I do? I am not as lucky as you to marry a loyal husband. I have sacrificed my whole life, and since I can't take it back, I have to hold on to everything tightly! I just told you about the old lady's old story. I should learn something. Those two girls hurt me too much. I treated them well since they were young, and once they got the master's favor, they thought they had climbed up the ladder from then on, but they turned against me. Seeing that the second master and his wife and I had such a quarrel, they didn't help and even added insult to injury. Xiangrui framed me, and Xiangxue hid when she saw me. She cried in front of the second master that I was vicious and would harm her and the fetus... I must at least let them know the consequences of betraying the master and not taking the principal wife seriously!"
Rulan was stunned for a moment, and couldn't help but hold her belly with both hands: "Second sister-in-law, you, you must not hurt others!"
Seeing her like this, Bai Jingyu hurriedly comforted her, "Don't be afraid, don't be afraid! I'm not a bad person, especially towards good sisters like you. I don't have any bad intentions! When I get angry, I am a little harsh to the servants, but I won't kill anyone - I have an elder sister, I must always do good things for her!"
Meimei said: "You don't have to be jealous and ruin your peace of mind. You can be husband and wife as long as your heart is still there. If there is no love, it's pointless to fight hard! I always agree with the saying: Don't have the intention to harm others, but be on guard against others. Don't wait until you are knocked to the ground and can't move before fighting back. It's the right thing to do to seize the initiative!"
Bai Jingyu nodded frequently: "Sister-in-law is right!"
Suddenly, a maid was heard outside the hall announcing that the Third Master was coming to pick up the Third Madam. Shao Qing saw Xu Junya coming in with a smile on his face, and he bowed and apologized for disturbing the sisters-in-law's gossip. Bai Jingyu asked a few questions about the situation in Jinhua Hall. Xu Junya replied that after the old lady went back, she drank a cup of cold tea and then went to bed. The brothers followed the Second Master and left. He talked with his sixth brother under the corridor for a while before coming to pick up Rulan.
Meimei escorted them out of the flower hall. Xu Junya helped Ning Rulan to leave first. Bai Jingyu also wanted to follow them back to the west courtyard. Meimei walked with her to the corridor and said, "It's more convenient to have that door. You can talk to each other more often on weekdays."
Bai Jingyu smiled and said, "It still needs to be locked up at night. As the saying goes, brothers should settle accounts clearly. Now that we have separated, we may not care about small details, but we still need to pay attention to the above!"
Meimei nodded: "It's better to lock it up and let the maids take the night watch. In case of any emergency, they can take care of each other!"
"That's right!"
Just as they were about to go their separate ways, they saw Bai Jingyu's wet nurse Huang Mama and several maids hurrying over. They didn't care that the sun was scorching, their faces were red from the sun, and they were sweating. They rushed to Bai Jingyu, bowed to everyone, and didn't care that Meimei was beside them. They said to Bai Jingyu in a hoarse voice:
"This old servant is here to tell Second Madam: Second Master is smashing pots and bowls at home, he is so anxious that he is going crazy, Second Madam, please go back quickly! Something has happened!"
"What happened? Don't worry, mom, tell me slowly!"
"It's Aunt Xiangxue... She's about to give birth. She's bleeding so much before she even starts giving birth!"
"What's the point of looking for me? You should go find a doctor!"
"Someone has already gone. The Second Master is calling for the Second Madam!"
Bai Jingyu sneered: "I'd better be the one at this time, right?"
Then he bowed to Meimei and said, "I'm going back now. Sister-in-law, please take a rest!"
Meimei said, "Shall I go with you to take a look?"
Bai Jingyu waved her hand: "It's better not to go to a lowly concubine giving birth! I don't want to get involved in that bloody and foul place... I'll send you a message later!"
Meimei no longer insisted. She watched Bai Jingyu leave surrounded by a group of servants and maids. She also called Cui Xi and others to return to Qinghua Courtyard.
As they walked along, they listened to Cui Xi retelling Bai Zhan's words: After the division of the mansion, the mansion was slightly renovated and everything was in good condition. Except for the servants in each room, who were taken away by themselves, the maids and servants in the garden and the servants and doormen in the front yard were divided into two groups and decided by drawing lots to decide who would stay or leave. The second and third wives personally counted and checked the roster, and they were all in the account office. They said that they would wait for the young lady to come back, and if there were any to exchange, they could do so at will. The general manager was waiting to reply to the young lady, and the pile of running account books and physical objects left by Bao Ju were locked in the east courtyard. They were all kept by the marquis privately, and the young lady would move them over to take a look when she was free. During this period, the daily affairs of the mansion were taken care of by the second and third wives of the west mansion... Meimei rubbed her eyebrows: It seemed like I was back to the beginning. At that time, I was so eager to take care of all this, but now I am so fed up with it. I feel annoyed when I hear about the management of the mansion. What kind of mentality is this
Cheer up, take it easy, this is... home!
Thinking of something, he said to Cuisi behind him, "Go find Baizhan and ask him to keep an eye out for a maid that Jinhua Hall is about to sell. Ruixue is smart and clever. She has been honest with us before. She suffered this fate because of the separation of the mansion. If she is sold to a good family, it would be fine. But she is pretty and smart. If she ends up in a brothel or a flower boat, it would be miserable. Find someone to buy her and send her to Cen's house to live there first!"
Cui Si agreed and left. Cui Xi paused and said softly, "Just now, the accountant saw me and said that the eldest aunt wanted to withdraw money to buy bird's nest and ginseng. She thought the existing ones in the mansion were not of good quality. The accountant told the housekeeper, and the housekeeper said that according to the old rules, the three hundred taels of silver must be approved by the eldest young lady herself!"
Meimei glanced at her and said, "Three hundred taels of silver? What kind of ginseng do you want to buy?"
Cui Xi replied: "My eldest aunt asked for the old lady's kind, to make soup for the eldest lady..."
Meimei laughed: This aunt is really not a simple person. She is here with the old lady to settle her past accounts!
At the beginning, Xu Junying gave her five old ginsengs, saying that they were to be used to honor the old lady. After thinking about it, she only gave two to the old lady and kept three for herself. One was divided into three parts, one for herself, Ning Rulan, and Madam Qin. One was sold for silver to protect herself and to honor her mother who came to visit her. The other was given to Madam Qin to take back as a treasure to protect the house. What happened? The old lady also took it out to show Xu Xiaojuan. Xu Xiaojuan found that her grandmother had two of the good things her brother brought back, but her mother didn't have any. Isn't it unbalanced
I didn't have the heart to care about her. What was the situation at that time? As the wife of the eldest son, she didn't have anything decent around her. What did Madam Zheng lack? If she didn't give it, she wouldn't feel guilty. If she didn't have that little ginseng, she would have been really sad at that time.
He said to Cuixi, "There is no more old ginseng like that, but I have some money. You can give it to her later. But tell her: follow the doctor's advice. Madam, it is not suitable for you to drink ginseng soup now! If you want to use it, go ahead! It's so hot, you still have to be careful with your tonic!"
Cui Xi agreed and said, "Bai Zhan knows where the Marquis made the wooden bowl for Heng Ge'er. It's a workshop in the palace, and the wood is extremely expensive. Bai Zhan said that we can only find a craftsman outside to imitate Heng Ge'er's and find some similar wood. That should be possible, right?"
Meimei nodded: "Okay, how can there be two that are exactly the same?"
As they were talking, they returned to Tsinghua Courtyard. The upper room was indeed very cool. After asking Heng'er if he was still asleep, Meimei leaned on the couch to take a nap, but she was not sleepy at all. She closed her eyes and thought of the scene of her and Xu Junying lying on the bed hugging each other last night. She couldn't help but feel red and heartbeat. She opened her eyes and looked around. The jade screen, pearl curtains, and brocade embroidery, a brand new and gorgeous room, is this her new home? She couldn't find the slightest feeling of being a bride. It was so miserable. In two lives, marrying was a muddle!
Seeing that she was not asleep, Cui Lian came up to her with joy and showed her treasures. She opened all the cupboards and showed her the new clothes inside. Every piece was gorgeous and exquisite. Cui Lian said something that made her want to cry:
"Even a bride doesn't have so many new clothes. The Marquis is so good to the young lady!" (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets on Qidian. Your support is my greatest motivation.) (To be continued)