Marrying a treacherous official

On that day, Granny Kong gathered the heads of the four major estates and the maids and servants in the courtyards to pay New Year's respects to the First Madam.

Chunxuan and Huachao stood to the side watching Granny Kong give her a lecture, both of them intimidated by her imposing aura.

"Sister Hua, you should learn how to speak properly from Granny. We'll be waiting for you to lecture us from now on."

"I can't scold anyone but you, the lady's favorite."

"That's right."

Chunxuan nudged her arm and whispered, "I heard that Madam is going to open the treasury to distribute reward money. Is that true?"

Hua Chao pushed her hand back, "Madam is always generous; you'll see when the time comes."

The two were whispering to each other when suddenly Granny Kong turned around and glared at them, scaring them into shutting up and not daring to utter another sound.

"I've said all the rules. Anyone who dares to be disrespectful in front of the First Madam will be sent back to the North Village to farm. They're hopeless cases, so I'll just throw them away."

With a single sentence from Granny Kong, the servants straightened their backs. "Stand in a line, three at a time, and go in to pay your respects to the Madam."

The maids and servants lined up in three rows, waiting to enter the front hall to pay their respects.

Granny Kong walked up to Chunxuan and Huachao and ordered in a stern voice, "Take your hands out."

The two men turned their palms out and struck each other with a thin stick, causing them to gasp in pain.

Granny Kong declared, "If this happens again, a month's salary will be confiscated."

Chunxuan and Huachao responded in unison, "We will never dare to do it again."

Following the custom of the manor, Yunji distributed bonuses to the servants before the New Year to create a festive atmosphere.

She never imagined that Granny Kong would make such a grand spectacle.

"The old lady agreed to let the eldest wife take charge of the estate and the general affairs of the backyard, and the Marquis's wife was not allowed to interfere. On the surface, the Marquis's wife was still in charge, but who didn't know that this was no different from the family splitting up and living separately?"

Granny Kong saw her concerns and, speaking from experience, said:

"The New Year is a time for officials' wives to socialize, especially when it comes to exchanging gifts. A little too little is disrespectful, while too much is overly attentive. It is only when the timing is just right that the gift is presented."

"The ladies of the officials outside are all watching the movements of the mansion, wondering whether the New Year's gifts should be sent to Minghe Hall or Qinghui Courtyard. At this time, the lady must step forward and come up with a plan to handle things, and then things will naturally go smoothly."

Yunji understood the subtle implication in those words.

Previously, the gifts exchanged between aristocratic families were all handled by the Lady of the Marquis, and all social obligations were handled by Minghe Hall, while New Year's gifts were naturally stored in the mansion's storeroom.

Now that the master holds a high position, and the two courtyards are each managed separately and have no connection with each other, if the favors and New Year's gifts are handed over to the Lady of the Marquis, then all the good stuff will flow into the outsiders' fields.

"I'll discuss this with the master later and first finalize the list of court officials who will be sending gifts. As for what return gifts to send, we'll discuss that with the nanny in detail."

She thoughtfully said, "The nanny should tell the gatekeeper that if any officials come to the mansion to deliver gifts to the master, no matter what kind of New Year's gifts they are, they must bring them to me for inspection, and then I will pick out a few items to send to the Lady of the Marquis."

By intercepting the gifts in this way, very little of the New Year's gifts reached Lady Hou, and all the favors ended up in her hands.

News of Qinghui Courtyard distributing bonuses to the servants quickly spread throughout the mansion.

From the mansion of the Marquis's wife to the courtyards of concubines and young ladies, maids came to inquire about how much reward money the First Madam had given to the servants.

Granny Kong explicitly forbade the maids and servants from gossiping, but she didn't stop them from nodding or shaking their heads at outsiders.

Those old women were all very shrewd. After a little probing, they figured it out and went back to the various courtyards. They gathered in small groups and gossiped about it, and the news spread like wildfire. Soon, all the servants in the mansion knew about it.

The First Madam gave each of the maids and servants in Qinghui Courtyard a string of cash as a reward, along with a coarse cloth jacket. Even the Master's personal guard received a string of cash as a reward, along with a brand-new cotton robe.

In previous years, Lady Hou would only use 160 taels of silver to cast "New Year's gifts," which were then carved into the shapes of plum blossoms and crabapple blossoms and distributed to the public.

Although the design of these ingots looks auspicious, they are too light. When they were distributed to the three hundred servants as a reward on New Year's Eve, they received very few ingots. In comparison, the First Madam's generosity was undeniable.

"The First Madam is truly generous in giving bonuses to her servants, unlike the Marquis's wife—"

The old woman whispered in another person's ear, "The money that comes in is never going out."

The man whispered back to her, "So many gifts were brought into Qinghui Courtyard from the palace before the New Year, the First Madam has plenty of money."

The old woman tugged at the man's coarse hemp sleeve and said in protest:

"No matter how rich the First Madam is, she only has the rewards from the palace. Her estates don't generate any income. The Marquis's wife has been in charge of the household affairs for over ten years, managing no fewer than ten estates and dozens of shops, so how come she doesn't have as much money as the First Madam?"

After hearing this, the man nodded in agreement repeatedly.

As the old woman got more and more excited, she became increasingly unrestrained in her speech, "To put it bluntly, it's because the Lady of the Marquis is hoarding her silver and is reluctant to give bonuses to her subordinates."

As Cui Lizhu passed by the back garden, she saw two old women gossiping behind the artificial hill. She quietly walked over and overheard this conversation.

The two old women turned around and saw the young woman standing behind them. They were so frightened that they knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy.

Cui Lizhu felt it was an eyesore to even glance at them, and instructed her personal maid:

"After they are beaten eighty times, find a matchmaker to sell them off."

The maidservant quickly bowed her head and replied, "Yes."

After selling the two old servants, Choi Yeo-joo returned to Myeonghwa Hall.

Seeing that Ms. You was leaning back in her rattan chair and still had the leisure to play with the parrot, she became even angrier.

"Gu Yunji merely distributed a reward to the servants, and those gossipy old women immediately started flattering and belittling Mother. If Mother continues to allow her to seize power, then this Marquis's mansion will be ruled by the Gu family from now on!"

Why bother with those old women?

Yu threw a pine nut into the parrot's beak and said nonchalantly, "They're just gossiping everywhere, trying to squeeze out more money for a reward on New Year's Eve. I won't give it to them."

"Mother, is this really just a matter of a few coins?"

"Otherwise, what is it?"

Lady You's expression hardened as she said:

"The old man has already come to our door threatening Zhuo'er's safety with a knife and a knife. How can you expect me to stand up for her? Right now, nothing is more important than your second brother's success in the imperial examinations, and nothing is more important than your marriage into a prestigious family. Even if you can't swallow this insult, you'll have to bear it."

Choi Yeo-joo tightened her jaw, still unwilling to give up, and said:

"Mother, have you thought this through? If you continue to let Gu Yunji seize power and dominate, it will be difficult to deal with her later."

"Her flamboyant behavior won't last long."

"Has Mother figured out a way to deal with her?"

Yu teased the parrot with pine nuts, making it mimic his speech, "Repeat after me, first day of the month—"

The parrot, clumsily repeating, "First day of the month—"

Choi Yeo-joo asked, puzzled, "What does this have to do with New Year's Day?"

"On the first day of the Lunar New Year, clan elders would come to the mansion to attend the reunion banquet."

A sharp glint appeared in Lady You's phoenix eyes:

"If I were to link Gu Yunji's overstepping of authority in managing the courtyards with the division of the family, and to expose her treasonous act in front of the clan leader, even if the old lady stood up, she wouldn't be able to protect her. After all, the Cui family still has the final say in the entire clan."