Did the third place winner regret it today?

Chapter 10

In the blink of an eye, it was March again when spring came and flowers bloomed. The fourth daughter of the third branch of the Yin family went up the mountain quietly a year ago, and returned quietly a year later.
When he entered the mansion, he first went to pay his respects to his stepmother, the Third Lady.
The Third Lady looked her up and down and said, "You've grown a lot taller."
Yin Shi looked honest: "I have enough food, clothing and daily necessities. Everything is fine. Mother Gao also takes good care of me."
Madam Gao is not a high-ranking figure in the eyes of the Third Madam. It is enough for her to not neglect her duties and not bring shame to her. The Third Madam nodded and said, "Reward her later."

"Okay. Now that you're back, live a stable life. Rest for two days and then go to school with your sisters. Tell me if you have anything else to say." The third lady called her confidante, Grandma Sun, and rewarded Yin Shi with a pair of pearl flowers, some food, incense, and some festive and bright fabrics.
Yin Shi knelt down and saluted his stepmother: "Thank you, mother."

The Third Madam thought of something else: "Oh, by the way, Qingyan from your courtyard has gone to climb up the social ladder."
There was sarcasm in the third lady's tone.
This was really unexpected. Yin Shi was stunned: "Huh?"
Mother Sun said, "I've always thought that girl is very cunning. Now, while the girl is away, she has climbed up to the eldest son's family and is trying to take her away."

The eldest house is the house of the old lady's eldest son, and the third lady was obviously a little angry.
Yin Shi became cautious: "Then...?"
The Third Lady waved her handkerchief and said, "Forget it. We can't keep Lady Jin. I'll give you another maid."

The Third Lady was unhappy, but Yin Shi was secretly happy. He comforted his stepmother and said, "My master said that people without blessings cannot enter a blessed family. She left us because she was unlucky. Mother, there is no need to be angry with her."
After not seeing each other for a year, Xiao Si has become able to speak. The third wife's expression eased slightly and nodded: "You have grown up."
Yin Shi brought out the chief monk of Donglin Temple: "Master taught me many truths."
From now on, if there is anything different from before, I can say it’s because I’ve “grown up” or “my master taught me that”.

The Third Lady became interested and leaned forward: "How is your relationship with your master? Can't you help us reserve the courtyard on Buddha's birthday?"
As expected of the daughter-in-law of a merchant family, she is a very honest and down-to-earth person.
Yin Shi said seriously: "I will try it when the time comes."

The young concubine's attitude was very correct. The Third Lady was much more relieved by the fact that the eldest house wanted to take away the maid. She discussed with Madam Sun: "Who do you think is suitable to be placed in the Little Fourth Courtyard?"
"Xia Tao?"
"Xia Tao can't do that. She's good at sewing. The sewing I gave to the old lady depends on her."
"Bell?"
"Lingling knows my taste best. I can't live without her."
Mother Sun mentioned two more names, but they were both rejected. In short, the Third Madam's maids all had their uses, and she couldn't do without any of them.

Yin Shi understood.
Because Qingyan was the eldest maid who was in charge of things for Yin Shi, the Third Lady and Mother Sun both thought that they should give her another person who could take charge.
But the capable maidservants had been trained over several years, and the Third Lady was used to them and didn't want to give them to others. Probably mainly because she didn't want to be inconvenienced or uncomfortable because of a concubine's daughter.

Yin Shi said tactfully, "It's not necessary to have a sister. Qiao Que is only four years older than me, but she was in charge of my clothes and money in the mountains. She's very capable. I don't find it inconvenient. Why not give her the gift?"
She was tactful, and the Third Lady's face became better. She said, "But there can't be one less person in the yard."

Yin Shi had something in mind and suggested, "How about giving me a small one?"
The third lady thought it was okay.
"If she keeps it with her since she was little, she can use it for a few more years." She said to her mother, "Go find her a smart one."
Yin Shi took advantage of the situation and said, "My mother loves me, so can I choose someone who has a similar personality to play with me?"

The third lady scolded, "Naughty."
Although she scolded him, the concubine's words and attitude made her feel comfortable after she had been away for a year, so she agreed and told Madam Sun: "Pick a few and let her choose for herself."
Mother Sun agreed.
Yin Shi smiled and squatted down again: "Thank you, mother!"

The Third Madam said, "It's easy to deal with maids, but you can't live without an adult in your courtyard..."
Yin Shi's eyebrows jumped.
Her wet nurse died early, but she used to live with her aunt, so there were no other adults in the yard.
Although Gao's mother was convinced by her this year, she gradually realized from the test that it was because Gao's mother knew that this year was just a temporary job and would not become a permanent job, so she was not so tough in her mentality.

But if a mother is really assigned to her as a fixed person, it is hard to say.
Adults naturally have the ability and right to control children. What's more, this child was assigned to her by her stepmother, so she is under the control of her on behalf of her stepmother.
Yin Shi would never want to have such a person in his yard.

Fortunately, Yin Shi had already learned from Mama Gao that the Third Lady, the concubine's daughter-in-law, had been caught up in a family feud.
She cherished the human resources she brought as a dowry, or was a bit stingy, anyway, she was reluctant to give them to her concubine's daughter. Because if she gave them to her, she would have to follow her to someone else's house in the future.
Just like Gao Mama, although Gao Mama herself has no job, her husband is the third lady's companion, and has successfully become a useful person around the third master. The separation of slaves can be separated by parents and children, but it is rare to separate husbands and wives. How will Gao Mama marry Yin Shi when the time comes? You can't take her husband with you. Then the third lady will suffer a great loss.

But because of the complicated family feuds - Gao Mama also told Yin Shi about some of them when she was chatting, which gave Yin Shi a headache. In short, the relationship between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, sisters-in-law, and legitimate and illegitimate children is very complicated. Because of all the complicated family feuds, the third wife is particularly wary of servants who do not belong to her faction, and does not like others to insert people into the third room.

Yin Shi took advantage of this and immediately said, "I'm already this old. Besides, I have a mother. I'll just go to Mother Sun for anything."
The Third Madam's efforts to save face for the concubine's daughter were fully demonstrated at this time, and she went with the flow and said, "Yes, it's just a few steps away. If you have anything to say, just come to my room."
Then he said to Grandma Sun, "You have to bear more of the hard work."
Mother Sun smiled kindly and said, "What's so tiring about that?"

After paying respects to the stepmother, you have to go pay respects to the old lady.
The old lady was not very enthusiastic about this granddaughter who had no blood relationship with her, but she did not treat her harshly. She praised her filial piety and said, "You should treat your mother the same way in the future."
"Mother" refers to the legal mother, the third wife.
Well, this...if you say it's encouragement, you can say it's not wrong, but I always feel like something is wrong.
The corners of Yin Shi's mouth twitched.

The old lady also gave her two pieces of brightly colored fabric as a reward: "It will be more festive for your daughter to wear."
She is still alive and well, don't bring the bad luck of a deceased concubine to her.
Yin Shi deeply understood the spirit.

She had spent a year in the mountains and was no longer in the anxious and nervous state she had been in the first few days after she came here.
Also, because the little child has been separated from his family for a year, any changes in him are not surprising, and it makes sense to say that he has grown up.
Yin Shi also knelt down and bowed to thank his grandmother: "Thank you for the reward, grandma. May you be in good health and may you be blessed with good health."

It's really good to be born as a concubine in a wealthy family. Yin Shi likes the Yin family like this - they are not affectionate to you, they will not pay special attention to you, but they are not harsh to you either, and the food, drink, clothes and daily necessities are all pretty good.
I wish this state could continue.

The reward was received by a maid. Yin Shi first sent Qiao Que back to the courtyard to pack up, and brought Yun Juan with him, so Yun Juan went to receive the reward.
The two of them took the reward from their elders and returned to the small courtyard they had been away from for a year. Qiao Que was busy, and when she saw them coming back, she came forward to complain about her grievances: "Sister Qingyan was taken away by the eldest son's family, and she won't be back."
"Have you seen her?"
"She knew we were back, so she came over and handed me the keys to the yard. I told her to wait for the girl to come back, but she said she was busy over there, and left like a chicken."

What the Third Madam said was right. She really was trying to climb up the social ladder and looked down on the illegitimate sons and daughters.
But Yin Shi didn't care, she was even secretly happy. With Qingyan's departure, she felt less restrained and would feel much more comfortable.
She told Qiao Que: "Madam has agreed to promote you. You will replace Qingyan in the future, and we will have another little girl in our courtyard."

Qiao Que was surprised and delighted, and asked hurriedly, "Will my monthly salary also increase? Same as Sister Qingyan's?"
Yin Shi had forgotten about this and after thinking for a while he said, "I'll confirm it with Mother Sun later. Since I'm doing the eldest girl's work, I should take the eldest girl's money." During this year in the mountains, Qiao Que could feel the changes in his own girl.
In the past, the fourth girl listened to her aunt and Qingyan on many matters, but in the past year in the mountains, she made her own decisions. The senior monks praised her for her intelligence.
Qiao Que was older than Yin Shi, and she used to coax Yin Shi. But now she felt that "the girl has grown up and has her own ideas", so she listened to Yin Shi.
She was originally a servant, and unlike Qingyan who was older and could barely read and write, and with Yin Shi's deliberate training, hinting and guiding her over the past year, she had become accustomed to listening to Yin Shi's words.

Yin Shi said: "Keep all the keys. They will be yours from now on."
He also asked her to count and put away the rewards given by the elders.
Qiao Que looked at the fabrics and became happy: "The weather is getting warmer now, so I can make some new clothes for the girl."
When you are in mourning, you should wear something new.
Yin Shi smiled and said, "You will be the eldest girl in the future, so you can worry about these things."
Qiao Que was greatly encouraged and took the clothes to sort them out.

Yun Juan joined the team, and Yin Shi was not idle either. Qing Yan left, and now there were only three people around her, except for Li Pozi, the other two were actually children.
She is the only real adult.
She rolled up her sleeves, too.
Mrs. Li swept the courtyard, Qiaoque packed up clothes and cash boxes, Yunjuan wiped the table, and Yin Shi packed up some personal items.

Occasionally I looked up and saw that spring was in full swing outside the window, with green branches drooping and the yard full of sunshine.
Yin Shi stopped and looked at the yard through the window.
After a year of buffering, he has become calm and peaceful, no longer nervous and anxious as a year ago. Without Qingyan's suppression and restraint, he finally has a sense of reality that "I am the master here" and "this yard is mine from now on."
Yin Shi smiled slightly and sighed softly.
Live a good life here from now on.

In the afternoon, the sisters came chattering.
Master Yin San had three sons and five daughters, of whom Yin Shi was the fourth.
People at that time usually counted one year older based on the year. So this year, the eldest aunt is twelve years old, the second aunt is ten years old, the third aunt and Yin Shi are the same age, both nine years old, and the fifth aunt is only six years old, still a little kid.

Sanniang pulled Yin Shi's sleeve and said, "If you had come back a few days earlier, you could have celebrated my birthday. Really."
The third wife had no biological daughters, and all her daughters were born to concubines. The third wife's birthday was in March, and Yin Shi's birthday was in May. Yin Shi came back just after the third wife's birthday, and missed her birthday.

The sisters told her again: "Brother went to the capital with aunt."
The maid who had been delivering things to her was a laborer who didn't know much about the affairs of the mansion. Neither the grandmother nor the stepmother thought that this little concubine needed to be informed. It might also be because she had left last year, and when she saw Yin Shi this year, she no longer felt that this was "new news" that should be told.
If her sisters hadn't told her, Yin Shi would have had no idea about this.
Yes, such marginalized people.

Yin Shi asked: "Why are you going to the capital?"
"Go to Shen's house and study with me."
"The fourth brother from the first house has also gone."
"And the second brother from the second house."

The sisters were talking to each other all the time. They were at the age when they loved to talk. They didn't see their father often, and they didn't feel comfortable with their stepmother. But they were quite relaxed when they were alone.
They were all cute and pretty little girls, vying to tell her what had happened in the mansion during her absence. Yin Shi's heart melted, and he turned around and called Yun Juan: "See if there is anything to eat in the cupboard, and bring it all over."
The old lady laughed at her: "After not seeing you for a year, you have become more generous."
Er Niang also laughed: "You were not stingy with clothes and jewelry before, so it would be difficult for you to stutter."

Hey, my memory was awakened, and it turns out that my original self was a foodie who loved to protect food. That’s great, I can act like myself.
Yin Shi smiled with curved eyebrows: "I just came back and missed you guys, so be generous."
The girls giggled.
He also told her, "Father's new concubine Zhou is pregnant now. I don't know if it will be a boy or a girl this time."

Yin Shi had a strong feeling that "time is moving forward".
Probably no one cares about the dead Aunt Yan. After all, even her own children died with her, and Yin Shi was just an impostor.
Her husband, Master Yin San, will naturally have new concubines and new children.
This is how the times are.

When the dried fruit snacks were served, everyone ate and chatted without being polite.
The aunt said with anticipation: "The Shen family is a family of scholars. Studying in their family is much better than studying at home. It would be great if my brothers could pass the exam and become scholars."
Sanniang said, "My eldest and second brothers are not as good at studying as the eldest sons. I'm afraid it will be difficult."
Er Niang said, "Pah," "Say something good."
The girls are all relatively young, but they all understand that if their brothers achieve success, they will also be able to rise with them.

Yin Shi subconsciously asked, "Is it appropriate for so many people to go to someone else's house?"
In her original time and space, if a relative came to stay at your house for two days while traveling, it would be considered as having no sense of boundaries and would be criticized if it was posted online.
But the old lady said as a matter of course: "It's not inappropriate for the in-laws' house."

Yin Shi then realized that this time and space was different.
The concept of "family" here is much larger than that of "home", and it is very normal for relatives to live with you, study with you on loan, or even come to ask for money.
The Yin family is rich, and even though several children go to live there, they certainly won't spend the Shen family's money. They will spend their own money, and they just go there to get some educational resources.
But this is the purpose of marriage. In this time and space, "marriage" is defined as "a marriage between two surnames." The Shen family married the fourth daughter of the Yin family not for Mrs. Shen herself, but for the kindness they had shown in the past, and were willing to marry into the Yin family and share some of their resources with the Yin family.

Yin Shi looked at the beautiful little girls and thought that the future marriages of all of them, including herself, were not under her control, so she sighed softly.

Master Yin San returned home in the evening. He still remembered that his wife had said yesterday that she would send someone to pick up the fourth daughter from the mountain today. While changing clothes, he asked, "Did you pick up the fourth daughter?"
The Third Lady handed him a long home gown and said, "You're back. You ate well in the mountains and grew a lot taller."
"At this age, it's time to grow up." The third master pointed at a maid and said, "Go tell the fourth lady that I'm back. Ask her to come to the study to see me."

Yin Shi had been waiting for him for the whole afternoon. After receiving the letter, he hurried to the study and behaved very respectfully: "Greetings to father."
Parents who provide food and clothing are also parents!
She will depend on this person for her living in the future. The Third Madam cannot be offended, and the Third Master Yin must deal with her even better.
"After not seeing each other for a year, my daughter is always thinking about her father."
There is no harm in being sweet-talker, and she really has often thought about how to deal with this "biological father" after coming down the mountain this year, and it is true.

Men don't give birth to children themselves, and often don't raise them themselves. Especially in wealthy families, each has its own yard, so they may not see their children every day. Once they are far away, or haven't seen each other for a long time, the relationship will easily become estranged.
But once the person stood in front of him again, and saw a daughter who was pink and clean, with beautiful eyebrows and eyes, good manners, and well-behaved and lovely, Master Yin San's fatherly love surged up again like a rising tide.

The father sighed with relief: "You have grown taller."
Yin Shi said: "Thanks to my mother's love and careful management, I have no shortage of food and clothing in the mountains and live a very stable life."
What do men want most in their family? It is that all the women in the family live in harmony. This includes the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, sister-in-law and sister-in-law, mother and daughter, etc., and even wives and concubines.
The Third Lady had never stingy with her money. She would never give up a single word of praise for her stepmother. Why not have someone carry her in a fancy sedan?

Sure enough, Master Yin San listened and nodded, and asked a few questions about food, clothing, health, and the situation on the mountain. Then he turned around and called out, "Bring five taels of silver to give to Si Niang."
He also said to her, "You have been very filial to your aunt. You should be filial to your mother in the future. You have been away for a year and never come back for the New Year. You have become estranged from your brothers and sisters. Take this money and prepare a feast for everyone to have fun. Stay well at home in the future."
Look, you’ve touched it correctly and taken the right picture, and now the good things are coming.

(End of this chapter)