Union

Chapter 4 A bright future
Sure enough, Liu Mama then selected another girl to replace Yunying.

All the young ladies present had just vaguely heard Chen's mother's "slander" to Liu's mother.

Mother Chen did not want Yunying to marry into a wealthy family, which was within their expectations.

They understood that Chen's mother was retaliating. But what could they do when Chen's mother's reasons seemed too legitimate?
Under such circumstances, the girls dared not say anything more.

—Although they never intended to speak up for Yunying, seeing Chen Mama bring Yunying down from her pedestal with just a few words, they couldn't help but feel a sense of "killing the chicken to scare the monkey" and "the rabbit mourning the fox's death."

In an instant, he lowered his head even further.

The atmosphere in the flower hall was somewhat oppressive and gloomy. Liu's mother seemed completely oblivious to the undercurrents, or perhaps she was already used to this situation.

Amidst everyone's own thoughts, she dropped another bombshell.

"This time, in addition to selecting people for the Prince's mansion, we also need to select three more young ladies to serve the Third Young Master."

Upon hearing this, the young ladies who had been standing quietly with their heads bowed in the flower hall immediately raised their heads.

Even Yunying stared intently at Liu Mama at the head of the table, her breath catching in her throat.

The news brought by Liu's mother was clearly unknown even to Chen's mother beforehand.

Then Chen's mother also showed a shocked expression and couldn't help but ask Liu's mother, "Third Miss..."

The third daughter and her husband have only been married for half a year, so why is she already adding another person to her husband's side?
Could it be that the third daughter is pregnant?

But this isn’t right either.

If the young lady is pregnant, the young master should respect and cherish her even more. He certainly wouldn't be so blinded by greed as to be so indiscriminate in his pursuit of women. If that were the case, the Marquis's mansion wouldn't be directly confronting them; that would be out of respect for the Rongguo Duke's mansion. Why would they bother arranging for someone to serve the young master?
On the other hand, even if the son-in-law really needs someone to serve him, doesn't the young lady still have several head maids by her side?
These head maids were originally intended to be concubines or maidservants. They grew up alongside the young ladies and were able to work in unison with them. Moreover, most of them were born into wealthy families, so if one of them made a mistake, it would affect the entire family, making them the easiest to manipulate.

Why would a young woman choose to pick girls from the estate when she already has suitable men around her?
Mother Chen looked at Mother Liu with suspicion. Mother Liu naturally couldn't talk about the master's family's secrets, but she had to make a plausible reason for adding more people to the son-in-law's household.

Mother Liu said, "The young master has been sent to serve as an official in the Lingnan area. The young lady is frail and may not be able to go with him. The young lady feels sorry for the young master and knows that the girls in our village are usually well-behaved and clever, so she thought of picking a few kind people from the village to send to serve him."

Chen's mother understood, but it didn't seem like she fully understood.

To reiterate, the girls on the estate are indeed clever and capable, but no matter how outstanding they are, can they outshine the head maids around the girls?

Those women are all highly skilled. Perhaps they are slightly less beautiful than the girls on the estate, but they grew up by the girls' side from a young age, so their knowledge and abilities far surpass those of the others. Besides, they are loyal to their masters, so wouldn't it be more reassuring to choose them to serve the young master?
Many thoughts raced through Chen's mother's mind, but she didn't say them aloud.

This has nothing to do with her. Anyway, what difference does it make which man she gives these girls to?
Mrs. Chen readily agreed, "So that's why. Then please pick a few more good ones. I wouldn't dare to wrong my son-in-law."

They spoke warmly on the surface, but Chen's mother was filled with suspicion. Her third son-in-law was to be sent to Lingnan... Could it be that he had offended someone and was being demoted and exiled there?
Not only did Mother Chen have this thought, but the young ladies sitting below also shared the same idea.

After all, Lingnan has been a barren land for exiling criminals since ancient times. It was rife with miasma and snakes and insects, and many people would die within two years of arriving there.

But the son-in-law actually wants to take up an official post in Lingnan...

The girls who had initially been excited about the opportunity to choose a son-in-law quickly suppressed their desires.

They didn't even try to get closer to Liu's mother; instead, they buried their heads in their chests and retreated imperceptibly, wishing they could retreat outside the door so that Liu's mother could no longer see them.

Unlike the other girls who avoided her like the plague, Yunying raised her head at this moment and looked at Liu Mama without flinching.

When Liu's mother met her gaze, she immediately understood what the girl meant.

She smiled and said, "You're quite bold, young lady. But you're frail, and Lingnan is a place plagued by miasma..."

“Mom, I’m not afraid.” Yunying’s eyes were clear and her tone was firm. “Yunying was raised by the master’s family and has received their kindness. Now that the master’s family needs my help, Yunying will naturally do her duty. Besides, life and death are predestined. If the King of Hell really wants to take my life, no matter where I am, I will not be able to escape this calamity.”

Jin Kui reached out and gently tugged at Yun Ying's sleeve. "Why are you so upset about going to serve your son-in-law?"

The son-in-law is going to Lingnan. Putting aside how barren and impoverished that land is, will their delicate bodies be able to endure the hardships there? Besides, he is the husband of the third young lady.

The third young lady probably didn't want to suffer with her husband in his new post, which is why she wanted to choose someone to serve him. But no matter what, he is still her husband. If she can allow them to suffer with him, how could she possibly want them to enjoy good fortune with him?
Who knows, once the son-in-law is transferred back to the capital, these hardworking and meritorious old women might just die.

This situation is different from being sent to the residences of other powerful and influential people.

Just like her, now that she's going to the Prince's mansion, if she really encounters any difficulties in the future, she might be able to ask the Marquis's mansion for help.

But what if she marries the son-in-law?

Is the Marquis's mansion helping them, or helping the legitimate daughter of the mansion?
It's obvious they won't help them, leaving them completely isolated and helpless, so why bother?

Jin Kui rarely showed kindness, but she didn't understand Yun Ying's situation.

For Yunying, going to her son-in-law's place had a thousand and one disadvantages, but at least it could temporarily relieve her predicament. Moreover, it was countless times better than going to the Prince's mansion. It was a glimmer of hope that Yunying had never imagined.

After all, Yunying had her own little scheme: Lingnan was thousands of miles away, and she could easily escape when no one was looking.

Although she didn't know where she could escape to without a household registration or travel permit, she decided to put those distant possibilities aside and take it one step at a time for now.

Yunying took a deep breath, her eyes pleading as she looked at Liu's mother.

Just then, Chen's mother looked at Yunying with a gloomy expression and spoke again, "Miss, you're being ridiculous. You know your own health condition. Rather than going to your son-in-law's place and causing trouble, you'd better stay on the estate."

Yunying said, "Regardless of my health, if we follow Mother's advice, I don't need to go anywhere else. I can just stay on the estate and enjoy my retirement, right?"

“You…” Mrs. Chen raised an eyebrow, her face turning fierce. She had always thought Yun Ying was weak and timid, someone easy to bully. But she never expected that this time she would almost break her teeth.

That makes sense, though. If this girl were truly a coward, how could she dare to slap her Ping'er?

Ah, so he's just a master of pretense, his insides are black!
Given this, she dared not let her leave the estate.

Mrs. Chen snorted coldly, and then tried to sow discord between Mrs. Chen and Mrs. Liu.

But this time, before she could speak, Madam Liu had already looked over and said in an unquestionable tone, "Mrs. Chen, since Yunying has this intention, let her come with me. This girl is intelligent and kind-hearted; I don't think she'll be bad. Besides, she's willing to share the burdens of the family, which shows she has a conscience and deserves a bright future. To be honest, it's all thanks to your good upbringing. I think even if she leaves this estate, she won't forget your kindness. Don't you think so, Mrs. Chen?"

That's definitely not the case.

Mrs. Chen was inwardly groaning.

Given the evil deeds that the mother and son committed against Yunying, it's already a sign of Yunying's kindness that she didn't retaliate. To expect her to remember their kindness is like wanting both a ram and milk—a pipe dream.

Mother Chen was naturally unwilling to let Yunying leave, but Mother Liu had already given her face by removing Yunying from the list of those to be sent to the Prince's mansion. Now that Mother Liu wanted to send Yunying to her son-in-law's mansion, wouldn't it be deliberately making things difficult for Mother Liu if she objected again?
Liu Mama was the dowry maid of the Marquis's wife. In the Marquis's mansion, even the masters had to bow to her. For a maid who had won the favor of the lady of the house to keep nagging in front of Liu Mama was simply too presumptuous.

Mother Chen immediately suppressed her dissatisfaction and said with a smile, "You're right. Yunying is indeed a good girl, sensible and grateful. It's just that the girl is frail. I was so worried about her before that I completely forgot that she's growing up and will eventually have to make a name for herself. It's good that you've considered everything so thoroughly. No wonder people often say that having an elder in the family is like having a treasure."

These words were quite flattering to Liu Mama, calling her a treasure of the Marquis's household. Liu Mama was naturally pleased, but on the surface she was extremely humble and kept waving her hands, saying, "This old servant is just a servant, how can I be called a treasure? I just serve by the Madam's side every day and have heard a few words of instruction from her..."

The two exchanged a few more compliments, and Liu's mother was pleased. She then selected Qiu Ning and a girl named Mu Jin, intending to send them to her son-in-law's side as well.

With the selections finalized, the matter was considered closed.

Just then, it was time for dinner, so Chen Mama warmly helped Liu Mama to the side room for the meal, and the other young ladies naturally dispersed as well.

(End of this chapter)