Yutai Bi

Chapter 119
After spending the whole day, Cen Sanniang finally got a general idea of ​​the situation in the Duke's Mansion.

In Wujin's mansion, the main hall in the front yard is basically closed, and four servants are required to clean it every day.The guards and the coachmen all lived in the cross courtyard in the front yard.

In the righteous hall in the backyard lives the old lady, Mrs. Zhang.Du Yanwan lives in Kuayuan.

The side courtyard where Cen Sanniang and Du Yansui lived actually belonged to the Zhengqi Hall, where the original study room of the Duke's Mansion was located.This entrance also has a flower hall for guests, between the side courtyard and the Zhengqi hall.

There are three courtyards and a garden behind Zhengqi Hall.It has been locked for ten years and has never been cleaned.Next door to the side courtyard is the original Princess Mansion, which is said to be bigger than the Duke's Mansion.At the beginning, it was amnesty and built according to the decree, but now it has been confiscated by the Ministry of Household Affairs, and it is also empty.

There are few people in the Duke's mansion.Mother Yin is the upright mother in charge, and has four little maids to serve the old lady.There are two mothers and two maids who accompany Mrs. Zhang.In Du Yanwan's courtyard, there are only two nurses in charge, and there are only two maids.The kitchen is as Mama Fang said, with Mama Wu and two cooks in charge.There are also ten housekeepers who specialize in cleaning in the mansion, and four of them take turns to help in the kitchen every day.

The eldest son of Mother Yin who is in charge of the house gave Du the surname Du Xifu.There is also a youngest son named Du Zhien, who is the head guard of the mansion, responsible for the safety of the mansion, and travels by car and horse.Even the guards, servants, and grooms and bearers, there are only about thirty people in total.

As for Du Yansui, he had a black seven by his side.

The manpower of the Duke's Mansion can no longer be less.It's only April now, and the autumn harvest has been sold, and it will take September to get the money. 46 Two taels of silver are not enough to even distribute monthly silver, and dozens of people still need to eat... Cen Sanniang sighed, thinking silently, the old lady really had a problem for herself.

Du Yansui also said beside him: "San Niang, you must never try to use your dowry to fill the family. The Du family has no face to use the daughter-in-law's dowry."

Cen Sanniang immediately jumped up and pinched him fiercely, glaring at him: "I dare you to know about this situation, and you are testing me together with grandma?"

Du Yansui rubbed his arms and smiled all over his face: "Of course I stand with you. In this way, if you ask me to go up the mountain to chop firewood and sell it, I have nothing to say."

"If I don't accept this account, I won't be able to live if I don't believe in the Duke's Mansion!" Cen Sanniang didn't believe it.

Du Yansui counted on her fingers: "First, grandma can pawn jewelry and dowry, and second, mother can also pawn things. Third, the last three are the furniture and decorations in the yard, as well as the ancient books, calligraphy, paintings and ink treasures left by my grandfather. If you don't take over, at least there are three ways in the mansion to last until the harvest in September."

After speaking, she blinked at Cen Sanniang.

Cen Sanniang laughed when she heard that: "You are smart."

Du Yansui seemed to remember it suddenly, and said with a smile: "I remember that at the beginning of April, the kitchen bought a large amount of rice, flour, oil, salt and firewood at one time for the wedding banquet."

It means that you only need to buy vegetables and cut meat to eat every day.Cen Sanniang breathed a sigh of relief again.

She was anxious, so she called Mother Fang and Ah Qiuxia Chu, saying that she wanted to get familiar with the situation in the mansion, so she asked Manager Du for the key, asked Du Yansui to accompany her, unlocked it and went into the yard three times.

The layout of the Du Mansion is relatively square, with similar courtyard settings.There were no trees in the yard, and it was neatly paved with blue bricks.

The sun in April shines on the grass growing from the cracks in the bricks, and it looks like it is falling apart.

"Grandfather and grandmother lived here." Du Yansui said softly.

The algae well on Chengchen was covered with thick dust, and there were spiders weaving webs on the diagonal braces.

Cen Sanniang looked around curiously, thinking that if Du Yansui dared to help her, she would dare to sell it.

Fang's mother stepped forward and pushed open the door, and a long-closed musty smell came out.

Du Yansui took her by the shoulders and gently moved her behind: "Go in after a while."

Cen Sanniang took a few deep breaths of fresh air, probably almost done, poked her head out from behind him impatiently: "Are you empty?"

Du Yansui just smiled and said nothing.

Cen Sanniang was in a hurry, she lifted her skirt and walked in.The furniture was moved cleanly, not even Zhang Xiaoji was left behind.There is not even a piece of cloth on the beams.Nothing but dust.

The most valuable things are the furniture and furnishings of the main house.The main room is empty, how much can you sell those clumsy tables and chairs in the wing room where the servants live?She hurriedly took Mother Fang and the three of them to continue walking to the back.

Du Yansui looked at her expression and wanted to laugh, but couldn't. He sighed and followed her.

It wasn't until she opened the door that greenery rushed in front of her eyes, and finally Cen Sanniang believed that there was not a single piece of valuable furniture in the Duke's Mansion that she could pawn and sell.

She gave Du Yansui a hard look: "You clearly know..."

She was not allowed to move the dowry, the Du family couldn't bear this face.Let her give birth to cubs with 46 taels of silver?Cen Sanniang turned her head away from Du Yansui.She knew she had been sold out long ago, isn't this just teasing her?

Du Yansui quietly stretched out her hand and took hers.

Cen Sanniang shook it off forcefully.

In front of the three of them, Mother Fang had the nerve to quarrel with him, staring at the wide garden with a straight face and refusing to talk to him.

Du Yansui supported her by the shoulders and forced her to turn around, and said with a smile: "Since you have accepted the account, you will come here to have a look sooner or later. I'm free, so I just come with you. I told you, you will I'm not interested. What if you still find something valuable? Wouldn't you just miss it?"

"The rats who come to the nest will starve to death, how can there be any valuables?" Cen Sanniang muttered.

"Since you don't have any, let's borrow money and spend it first." Du Yansui was not in a hurry.

"Borrow? The Duke's Mansion asked others to borrow money to live?" Cen Sanniang thought to herself, aren't you afraid of losing face?

Du Yansui couldn't help laughing: "It's not uncommon for people who have made good friends in private to borrow for a few months. When the emperor is short of money, the ministers have nowhere to borrow, and many of them go to the Ministry of Households to write IOUs."

Cen Sanniang breathed a sigh of relief.It turned out that borrowing money between big families in ancient times was common, and I only cared about face issues, so I was ignorant.She glared at Du Yansui angrily: "Why didn't you remind me that you had something in your heart?"

Du Yansui blinked: "I'm curious, if you can't think of borrowing money, is there any other way?"

Yes, borrowing money always has to be repaid, plus interest.Jiuyue collected the grain and sold it, and paid back the money, feeling equally nervous in his hands.New Year's Eve at the end of the year.The Du family has many relatives, the maternal grandfather's family, the second cousin's family, a cousin grandma in Longzhou, and Yuchi's mansion all need to arrange rituals one by one.If someone else gave you a gift, you have to return it.

In case of Zhang's death and Yan Wan's consent, they all need money.

The more Cen Sanniang thought about it, the more worried she became, she had to find a way to make money.The Du family didn't want to use her dowry, so she couldn't bear it.But the Du family only has more than 100 square meters of land, and there are no shops or anything.How to do it?

"Let's go, I'll borrow some money to last until September. I'll think of ways to make money later." Du Yansui held Cen Sanniang's hand and turned to leave.

After going out the last door, Mother Fang locked it with the key.Cen Sanniang suddenly shouted: "Wait a minute."

Fang's mother was stunned: "Young Madam, what happened to it?"

"Open the door." Cen Sanniang waited for her to open the lock, then pulled Du Yansui back in.

Du Yansui was also puzzled: "San Niang, these years, my mother has been seeing a doctor and taking medicine, the house has spent money, and all the household items in the triple courtyard behind have been sold out..."

Cen Sanniang had already walked to the main room and asked Du Yansui, "Is there a well in this yard?"

"In order to prevent water leakage, each courtyard has a well, just behind the wing." Du Yansui pointed in the direction.

Cen Sanniang raised her voice and shouted: "Aqiu, Xiachu, you two go get a basin of water. Get some rags."

The two headed towards the wing room, found a wooden basin after a while, fetched a basin of water and brought it over.

"Wipe this here." Cen Sanniang said, pointing to the back profile in front of the main room.

Ah Qiu and Xia Chu rolled up their sleeves, and as they said they soaked a rag in water to wipe the floor.

"Okay, okay." Cen Sanniang squatted down, stroked the floor with her hands, and praised, "I think the floor in front of the main house porch is a bit special. It turned out to be really made of golden silk. Oh, it's so gorgeous, like satin Like."

Du Yansui looked down, and the scrubbed place revealed a mass of beauty.The wood grain is like golden thread, brilliant in the sun.

Cen Sanniang looked up at him with apprehensive eyes: "Don't tell me that every household in Chang'an City uses such expensive wooden planks to pave the floor!"

Du Yan laughed out loud, and stretched out her hand to pull her up: "Prince Teng can afford red sandalwood, but it's not likely that all the floors in the mansion can use golden silk nan."

Cen Sanniang's eyes were as bright as stars: "So, is it worth some money?"

Du Yansui carefully walked back and forth in front of the corridor, laughing loudly: "It's well preserved, all of them are up for sale, 2000 taels is no problem."

Cen Sanniang jumped up happily, and said anxiously: "Mother Fang, Aqiu Xiachu, look around again to see if this kind of wood is also used in other places."

Hearing that the floor of the corridor in front of the main house can sell for 2000 taels, Mother Fang and the three of them also became happy and hurried away.

Several people searched around in the triple courtyard, and it was only found in front of the main house, so they couldn't help feeling a little regretful.

Du Yansui smiled and said: "This is not bad. I will tell Director Du to do it later. This matter should not be publicized. It is fine to borrow money to live. The Duke's mansion is so poor that it has sold all the floors. If it is spread, it will become a joke. "

The three mothers of Fang agreed repeatedly.

Thinking of not having to borrow money and finding 2000 taels of silver, Cen Sanniang's mood suddenly brightened.

(End of this chapter)