Union

Chapter 7 New arrival
With the fate of Chen Ping and his mother already decided, Liu Mama asked Madam Hou what should be done with Xianglan.

That kind of girl should absolutely not be allowed to climb up there.

She's ruthless and vicious. They humiliated her today, and if she rises to a higher position later, she'll definitely retaliate.

But having raised her for so many years, it would be a pity to rashly kill her or abandon her.

As Liu Mama was pondering how to deal with Xianglan, Madam Hou spoke up: "She's too wild and might corrupt the other girls. She can't stay on the estate, and it's not appropriate to send her up. So let's send her down through the means of bestowing favors."

Lady Hou said, "I'll ask the Marquis later if he has any promising young men in mind. Then we can send Xianglan over." In this way, Xianglan would have to rely on the Marquis's mansion for a living, so she naturally wouldn't dare to cause any trouble.

After the mistress and servant had settled these troublesome matters, Madam Hou asked about the girls selected this time. Liu Mama answered them one by one, and specifically mentioned Yunying.

She had mentioned Yunying earlier, but only said that Chen Mama disliked the girl and deliberately suppressed her. Now, when Yunying was mentioned, she said, "She is simple-minded. If she were sent to the Prince's mansion, she probably wouldn't be able to save her life. If she were sent to the son-in-law's place, it would be fine."

When the topic of sending someone to her son-in-law came up, the Lady of the Marquis couldn't help but think of her troublesome second daughter.

The eldest daughter of the Marquis's family, Lin Shuyu, and the third daughter, Lin Shuqing, were both born from her womb. The eldest daughter's marriage went smoothly in every way, but when it came to this youngest daughter, everything went wrong.

Shuqing finally got married. Her husband was Chen Yanzhou, the second son of the Rongguo Duke's Mansion. Although Yanzhou was born to a second wife, he was of the highest caliber in terms of appearance, character, and talent. This was a good match between them.

Unexpectedly, after six months of marriage, the bride and groom were no longer respectful to each other, but rather as indifferent as strangers.

This matter caused Lady Hou great distress.

She wanted to persuade her daughter to live a good life with her husband.

Who could have foreseen that at this very moment, Chen Yanzhou's mentor would be implicated in the case of the late Crown Prince? Chen Yanzhou refused to sever ties with his mentor and was also implicated, directly demoted to the Lingnan region as a county magistrate.

The daughter and son-in-law had a strained relationship, so naturally she was even less willing to go through hardship with him. But it wouldn't make sense for the son-in-law to take up his post alone without anyone to serve him.

To prevent her mother-in-law from putting other women around her son-in-law, Shuqing went to her family home to ask them to select a few girls from their estate to serve her...

Even now, when Lady Hou thinks about her spoiled and willful youngest daughter, her head still aches.

She had tried to persuade her, even resorted to physical punishment, but the girl refused to take back her words. She even went so far as to say that if her family wouldn't give her the girl, she would find a slave trader herself, buy a few suitable women, and send them over…

Lady Hou was driven to desperation by her youngest daughter and had no choice but to compromise and give in, allowing Liu Mama to take advantage of the opportunity to select a few simple-minded girls for her son-in-law while they were choosing people for the Prince Zhaoyang's mansion.

Thinking about all these random things, Lady Hou's mind became even more troubled, and she felt even more depressed.

Unfortunately, she's my biological daughter, and I can't just ignore her situation.

Lady Hou said, "Tomorrow, go to the Rongguo Duke's mansion and tell him that I have acquired some fine fabrics. Ask Shuqing to come back and choose a few that she likes to take with her."

Mrs. Liu quickly replied, "Yes."

Lady Hou sighed again, "Now that we've chosen a man for her, we should let her see if he's suitable. Also, I want to persuade Shuqing again that it would be best if she accompanied her husband to his post. They are a young couple and have no children. It would be good if she could endure hardship with her husband, but if she really can't bear the poverty, she should at least wait until she's pregnant before returning to the capital... In a woman's life, no matter how much her husband values ​​her, she always needs a child to rely on."

"Madam, please rest assured, the Third Miss is not an unreasonable person. Please talk to her again, and she will understand."

"If she could understand so easily, why would you need to go to the estate to pick people? Oh well, this wretched child is my own offspring. I'll try to persuade her again tomorrow."

The master and servant chatted for quite a while, and seeing that the first watch had already sounded outside, the Marquis still hadn't come over. The Marquis's wife then realized that the Marquis was either resting in the concubine's room or still busy in the study.

However, the Marquis has been preoccupied with matters of state these days and probably has no time to fool around with his concubines.

These thoughts drifted through Lady Hou's mind, and she let out a soft sigh of frustration before going to bed to rest.

***
The next day, Yunying opened her eyes as soon as it was light.

Hearing the soft footsteps outside, she quickly took out a set of clothes and put them on.

Just as I finished dressing, I heard a knock on the door.

"Miss, are you up? It's time to wash up. Breakfast will be served soon." Yunying replied, "I'm up," and quickly stepped forward to open the door.

Standing outside the door was a maidservant who was even younger than Que'er, looking no more than ten years old. She had her hair styled in a bun, wore a light blue dress embroidered with orchid patterns, and had a yellow tassel hanging from her waist.

The little girl was small, but she stood steadily while carrying a half-basin of water.

Seeing this, Yunying quickly stepped aside to make way.

Yesterday, it was this little maid named Cailian who served her while she washed and dressed. Seeing that she was young, she wanted to take over the work from her. Unexpectedly, the little maid showed a fearful expression and said that she dared not trouble the young lady, because if the head maid found out, she would be punished.

The little maid looked so pitiful and anxious that Yunying dared not do anything for her anymore.

Cai Lian was clearly used to hard labor, and she was very quick and efficient.

She helped Yunying with her washing and dressing, then carried the basin outside. As she walked, she said, "Sister Caiyun will come to comb your hair shortly, and Sister Caiwei will bring you food. Please wait a moment, they will be here soon."

Sure enough, Caiyun arrived just as Cailian stepped out the door.

The girl's attire was similar to Cailian's, except that her top was blue instead of cyan. Later, when they were combing their hair, Caiyun and Yunying said that the maids wearing cyan tops were the lowest-ranking maids in the manor, and she, wearing blue, was a third-rank maid. Second-rank maids wore pink, and first-rank maids wore purple.

Of course, these are the colors of clothing for spring and summer. In winter, the colors of clothing worn by maids of different ranks would be different.

Caiyun was quick-witted and skillful. She styled Yunying's hair into an elegant "Wangxian" bun and then chose a white jade lily of the valley hairpin with tassels to place in her hair.

Yunying appeared very quiet, and the hairpin, combined with her somewhat frail and sickly appearance, made her seem aloof and ethereal, like a fairy untouched by worldly affairs.

Caiyun couldn't help but praise, "What a beautiful young lady! No wonder she has such a bright future."

"It's because your cooking skills are good."

"It's mainly about looks." Caiyun smiled, wanting to say something more, but then saw Caiwei come in carrying a food box.

Caiyun didn't linger. After bowing to Yunying, she took her leave.

Caiwei was not as talkative as Cailian and Caiyun, and silently served Yunying her meal. After the meal was finished, Caiwei said, "Miss, please rest. Madam will probably see you all later."

Yunying said, "Thank you for informing me, sister." She watched Caiwei leave before she was about to ponder the personnel matters of the Marquis's mansion when she saw Jin Kui walking over with her maid.

Without Yunying even needing to greet her, Jin Kui sat down on the stool next to her.

She whispered to Yunying, "Did those maids tell you anything just now?"

"say what?"

"The matter of Lady Hou wanting to see us at noon," Jin Kui said, her eyes wide. "We need Lady Hou's approval before we can be sent out. If Lady Hou doesn't approve, we'll probably have to go back to the estate."

"That shouldn't be the case," Yunying thought for a moment and said, "We were chosen by Liu Mama after all, and Madam Hou trusts Liu Mama's judgment. Besides, even if she doesn't give us face, can she really refuse Liu Mama's face? Meeting us should just be a formality, so you don't need to worry too much."

Jin Kui nodded upon hearing this, "You're right."

She felt relieved and started chatting with Yunying about the information she had gathered about the Marquis's mansion that night.

The old lady of the Marquis of Chang'an's mansion is still alive. She has three sons. The eldest son is the current Marquis of Chang'an. Because the old lady is still alive, the Marquis's mansion has not been divided, meaning that the Marquis's mansion still has a second son and a third son.

The second master of the Marquis's mansion was a lecherous man who couldn't resist women. The maids of the second branch of the family complained that there were too few who hadn't been taken advantage of by him. The third master of the Marquis's mansion, on the other hand, was successful. He took his wife and children to serve as officials in another place and hadn't returned for several years.

It is also said that Lady Hou had two sons and two daughters. Her eldest son is the heir of the Marquis of Chang'an's mansion, and he is very handsome and upright. Her second son is studying at the Imperial Academy and is said to be very learned. Her eldest daughter married the heir of the Earl of Changshun. The Earl of Changshun passed away a year ago, and the heir inherited the title. Now, when he sees the eldest daughter, he has to address her as Lady Changshun. As for Lady Hou's second daughter, she also married into the Rongguo Duke's mansion, which is a good match for her. Her husband is the second son of the Rongguo Duke.

When it came to the second daughter of the Marquis and the second son of the Duke of Rong, Jin Kui couldn't help but say a few more words, because Yun Ying would have to make a living under their care.

Thank you to Everest Baby for the 100 Qidian Coins! Thank you to all the readers for your recommendation votes! PS: Please add this to your favorites! Please add this to your favorites! If you like this story, please add it to your favorites!

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(End of this chapter)