After returning to Yilan Courtyard, Nanny Li and Zhen'er Suhe were overjoyed to hear that the Fourth Young Miss had obtained one-third of the housekeeper's power. They said that Yilan Courtyard had been suffocated in the Marquis' Mansion for so many years and now it could finally hold its head up high.
Zhen'er even asked excitedly whether the Fourth Miss would like to take this opportunity to get herself a bigger courtyard and more servants so that she could order others around.
Thinking back to the past, she was always bullied in the kitchen, so she cruelly gave the money she had saved for a long time to the second steward, and begged him to give her an easy job that would not make her less bullied. As a result, the second steward transferred her to the fourth young lady.
At that time, everyone laughed at her, saying that she still had a chance to move up in the head kitchen, but she would never be able to make a breakthrough if she followed the fourth lady.
Now, she really wanted to run in front of those people and show off her power, letting those people with high aspirations and low skills see what it means to stand out from the crowd.
Everyone was amused by her smug look, but because her lady had passed away, they couldn't laugh out loud and felt so much pain in their stomachs.
Zhao Lanzhi said, "There is a funeral going on in the mansion right now, so you should all be careful and don't let anyone catch you."
"Yes, yes, everyone, be careful, or people will say that the subordinates have become rampant before the young lady took office." said Nanny Li.
Then, everyone stopped laughing and spoke in lower voices.
"Speaking of funerals, the madam is really pitiful. She even has to go out to buy a coffin." Su He said.
Originally, the mistress of a wealthy family like Qin would start preparing coffins and funeral clothes when she entered old age, and all the materials used would be extremely luxurious. However, her death was sudden and she had no time to prepare anything. She had to buy ready-made ones from outside, which naturally could not compare to what she had carefully prepared.
"There's only a pile of bones left. What's the use of a nice coffin? We can't do anything about it. The young lady is in charge for the first time and it's already a funeral. Let's think about how to help her!" said Nanny Li. Her tone was like that of the head housekeeper, which made several people laugh again.
"Madam, what you said makes sense." Xie Nanjia stood up and said, "You guys discuss it first. I'll go to Sijin Courtyard to take a look at the painting building."
She is now a free person and a great contributor. She can go wherever she wants. The people there didn't even ask her any questions, but only told her to be careful on the road after dark.
Xie Nanjia agreed, put on a thick cloak, and went to Sijinyuan alone.
The sky was overcast, with no stars or moon. Because of the funeral, the lanterns lighting the streets had been replaced with white ones, which swayed in the wind. The intermittent crying sounds coming from Yi Xin Courtyard in the distance made people feel creepy.
If it were in the past, Xie Nanjia would inevitably be afraid, but now she herself is a person who has been resurrected from the dead, so there is nothing to be afraid of.
She wrapped her cloak around herself and walked forward quickly. Suddenly, not far behind her, there was a "crack" sound, as if someone had stepped on a dead branch and broken it.
"Who?" Xie Nanjia turned around suddenly. Everything around was quiet and there was nothing.
She stood and waited for a moment, then turned around and continued walking forward until she entered Sijin Courtyard, and she heard no more movement.
Feng Lun heard her voice was a little breathless and asked her what happened.
Xie Nanjia wasn't sure if the noise was made by a person, so she didn't tell him in detail, only saying that it was a bit scary to walk alone.
Feng Lun said, "It's so dark, you shouldn't have gone out alone. I'll take you back later."
"Okay." Xie Nanjia agreed readily, "I have something urgent to discuss with Hualou. I'll talk to you later."
As he said this, he lifted the curtain and went into the house, leaving Feng Lun alone in the corridor.
The curtain fell, blocking his view. Feng Lun suddenly remembered that she was now the daughter of a duke, and he couldn't help feeling melancholy.
Xie Nanjia entered the room and saw Hualou and the others were all there. The child was still awake and was crawling happily on the blanket. Several people were holding a toy in their hands and were teasing the child to crawl towards them.
"You guys really know how to have fun." Xie Nanjia said.
When the child heard her voice, he suddenly raised his head and looked at her, grinning like he did every time before.
But this time, Xie Nanjia felt particularly touched, her nose felt sore, and she almost cried.
She reached out, picked up the child, held him in her arms, and kissed the child's rosy little face openly.
In the past, she was a servant and had no right to kiss the child. Now that she has become the child's aunt, she can finally express her feelings without restraint.
She even hugged the child and called out "good boy", which was the name she had always dreamed of but dared not even say out loud in her dreams.
The child had been called "Little Prince" since birth. He was very curious about this new name and poked her mouth with his chubby little hands.
"The young master still wants to listen!" the wet nurse explained.
Xie Nanjia called out "Good boy, good boy, good boy" several times in a row and felt more satisfied than ever before.
The children giggled and danced.
Everyone laughed and said that the young master and the young aunt were very close!
Xie Nanjia couldn't hold back and burst into tears.
Fortunately, she no longer has to hide her emotions.
She didn't expect that after so many twists and turns, she would finally be able to get close to her son legitimately through the identity of his cousin, and she was filled with emotion.
The child laughed and made noise for a long time, but finally got tired of playing and began to yawn and look for his nurse.
Xie Nanjia handed him to the wet nurse and went to Hualou's room with him.
"Why are you here at this time?" As soon as the door was closed, Hualou eagerly grabbed her hand and looked her up and down carefully. "I heard that you slept for a day and a night. Are you okay?"
"It's okay, don't worry!" Xie Nanjia said, "I came here to tell you that I just went to the old lady's place. The old lady asked for my opinion on the housekeeper's power. I recommended Lu Liu, the fourth young lady and the third concubine to her..."
"Why do you want to recommend the Third Aunt? She is not a good person." Hualou interrupted her hastily before she could finish.
Xie Nanjia said, "Don't worry, listen to me. Of course I know that the Third Aunt is not good enough, but I can't recommend three of my own people in a row. This will make my purpose too obvious. I knew that the old lady would definitely be dissatisfied with the Third Aunt, so I specially recommended the Third Aunt. Then, while she was hesitating, I suggested that she listen to the Marquis's opinion. So you should go to the Marquis as soon as possible. No matter what, you must tell him that you must get the one-third of the housekeeper power. In this way, when the Fourth Miss gets married in the future, the Marquis's Mansion will be yours and Lvliu's world."
"So that's how it is. You're really smart." Hualou admired her sincerely after hearing this. "You are worthy of being my young lady's cousin. You are almost as smart as my young lady."
Xie Nanjia: “…”
"So, please teach me how I should tell the Marquis." Hualou said, "I'm not good at speaking, I'm afraid I can't express myself well."
Xie Nanjia said it was okay: "If you are not good at talking, just be good at talking. If you suddenly become too good at talking, it will seem deliberate."
Hualou looked at her with a confused look: "And then?"
Xie Nanjia: “…”
This girl is really getting more and more stupid. After such a long time, she still hasn't understood what her advantages are in front of the Marquis.
"Just tell the Marquis directly that you want to be the housekeeper. If he disagrees, you will not make him midnight snacks in the future."
Hualou's eyes widened: "That's it?"
"Well, that's it." Xie Nanjia said, "Remember when you say this, don't kneel, don't laugh, don't be shy, and don't act like a spoiled child."
"Oh." Hualou blinked, still confused. Out of trust in Xie Nanjia, he went to the front yard without hesitation.
Marquis Dingyuan was overwhelmed by the war in the northern border and the sudden disaster at home. In addition, Qin Chuan kept putting pressure on him to ask for an explanation, his three children were crying around him, and the two eastern and western mansions were clamoring to rebuild the ancestral hall as soon as possible, which made him anxious and angry, and he didn't eat much all day.
Finally, it was dark, Qin Chuan went back, the second and third brothers also left, and the spirits in Yixin Courtyard had finished crying. He finally had some time for himself and could sit in the study and take a breath.
When he calmed down, he realized that he was extremely hungry. Just as he was about to ask Jiuan to bring in some food, the door opened and Hualou, dressed in plain clothes, came in with a food box.
Seeing her, Marquis Dingyuan suddenly felt relieved and a smile appeared on his face.
"Why are you here so early today?" He put down his pen and asked.
"I thought that the Marquis might not be able to eat during the day, and I was worried that you would be hungry." Hualou replied, placing the food box on the table.
Dingyuan Hou sighed deeply: "It's been a whole day, and you are the only one who cares about whether I have eaten or not."
"This is my duty." Hualou said, opening the food box and taking out the soup, vegetables and snacks inside.
The tempting aroma wafted into his nose, Dingyuan Hou swallowed his saliva and couldn't wait to pick up the chopsticks.
Hualou, however, snatched the chopsticks away before him and put them behind his back.
Dingyuan Hou was slightly stunned, then he understood and said, "Oh, I didn't wash my hands."
As he spoke, he called Jiuan to bring in some water. He washed his hands carefully, dried them with a towel, and handed them to Hualou for her to check: "Is this all right now?"
Hualou said, "I have something to ask of you, Lord Marquis. You can only eat if you agree. If you don't agree, I won't make you supper anymore."
"Haha!" Dingyuan Hou laughed, "Are you begging me or threatening me?"
“…” Hualou was stumped by the question and fell into self-confusion.
The silly look made Dingyuan Hou's worries disappear: "Tell me, what do you want to ask me for?"
Hualou then told the old lady about arranging a housekeeper, and then said solemnly with a wooden face: "I want the remaining spot."
Dingyuan Hou was stunned, and after a while he asked her with a half-smile, "Since the old lady wants one person to be picked out from each side, which side do you represent?"
“…” Hualou was stumped by the question again. After pondering for a long time, his face gradually turned red with embarrassment.
"I represent the Marquis's side." She said shyly but firmly.
"You've thought it over." Dingyuan Hou said in a low voice, "You can't regret this."
"I've made up my mind." Hualou bit her lip, "But I don't want to be a concubine, I want to be the legal wife."
Dingyuan Hou was shocked by her boldness, and slowly stopped laughing. He said solemnly, "Why? You are just a maid. What qualifications do you have to be the legal wife?"
Hualou said: "Because I am stupid, loyal, obedient, and I have no ambition. I stayed in the Marquis' Mansion just to protect the young master. The prince's wife and the mistress are gone. No matter who the Marquis and the prince marry, it is impossible for them to treat the young master as sincerely as I do, and..."
"And what?" asked Marquis Dingyuan.
"Besides, my cooking is really delicious. I want to cook for the Marquis for the rest of my life, three meals a day, above board."
Marquis Dingyuan was silent for a moment, and then burst into hearty laughter.
At this time, in the Prince's Eastern Palace, there was a burst of banging and smashing sounds.
Song Jingxing assisted his father in handling state affairs for a whole day and returned to the palace after dark. When he learned of his mother's decision, he smashed half of the items in the bedroom in one breath, scaring everyone in the palace into silence and no one dared to step forward to dissuade him.
"Why, why should I marry a fake just for the sake of ridiculous face? Is my mother doing this for my face or her own? No, I'm going to find my father now and ask him to make the decision for me!"
As he spoke, he stood up angrily, walked out in his middle clothes. As soon as he reached the door, he ran into Queen Meng who had rushed over after hearing the news.
Queen Meng didn't say a word, she raised her hand and slapped him in the face: "It's no use looking for anyone else, the person you want has been dealt with by someone I sent, I'm afraid he's dead now!"
"What?" Song Jingxing's face changed drastically, and he barely stood firm by holding onto the door frame, "Are you serious, mother?"
"Of course I take it seriously." Queen Meng said, "When have I ever lied to you?"
As soon as she finished speaking, Wang Lu hurried over and whispered in her ear, "Madam, the person we sent was captured by the secret guards of the Duke's Mansion."
(End of this chapter)