The Good Concubine of the Qing Dynasty [Red Mansion]

Yun Shuyao just returned to Lanxinyuan, and someone had already delivered breakfast to her.

She took a look and saw a bowl of meat porridge, a plate of dumplings, two steamed cakes, and a bowl of steamed eggs.

Logically speaking, this is more than enough for one person, and there will be some leftovers for two people. This is what Nanny Wang specifically reminded her of, that the portions must be sufficient.

But it was the first time that Hongxiu witnessed her master’s big appetite with her own eyes.

She ate it all.

Eat cleanly.

There was nothing left, and it looked like there was still room for more.

Hongxiu: “(⊙?⊙)”

Her master smiled shyly and said, “My appetite is bigger.”

Hongxiu hid her embarrassment under a smile: “Auntie, are you full?” If she was full, she would take the food away and return it to the big kitchen.

Yun Shuyao did not hide her appetite and did not intend to eat less.

She can hide it for a while, but hiding it for a long time will only make things difficult for herself.

Why should she embarrass herself?

“Not yet. Forget about today. Starting tomorrow, can you ask the kitchen staff to add more portions? Well, half of today’s portion, or double the staple food, will be enough.”

Hongxiu: “…(⊙0⊙)”

She was stunned for a moment, then replied with a smile, “Yes, I should.” She planned to turn around and ask Nanny Wang.

Although there are rules in theory, if one really doesn’t have enough to eat and word gets out that the master’s concubine doesn’t have enough to eat in the mansion, will anyone still listen to the reason?

Hongxiu cleared her throat twice and said, “Auntie, do you want to take a rest now or let everyone come to pay their respects?”

Hongxiu was assigned by the old lady to be the head maid for Aunt Yun from the beginning. She had seen her master before entering the house, but the others had not seen their master.

Yun Shuyao smiled slightly: “Meet the people in our courtyard. We will get along for a long time in the future.”

“yes.”

Soon everyone gathered and stood in a row in front of Yun Shuyao.

According to the rules of the Lin family, the main concubine in the back house is equipped with one first-class maid, one second-class maid, one lower-class maid, and one old woman, a total of four people.

Hongxiu is a first-class maid, 16 years old, born in the Lin family. Her parents are both from the Lin family’s farm, and she is good at dressing up.

The second-class one is in red, 14 years old, bought by Lin Ruhai when he took up the post here and is very skilled in sewing.

The little maid is Hongtao; she is only 10 years old. She has just been brought into the Lin Mansion as a purchasing agent and is responsible for running errands and other chores.

The mother-in-law’s surname is Sun, and she is responsible for some rough work in Lanxinyuan.

Yun Shuyao listened to their introductions and felt secretly moved.

That’s the difference.

The Yun family did not hire servants. At most, they would hire someone to help out when they were too busy, similar to a part-time worker.

But after entering the Lin Mansion, she was not yet a proper master, and she had four people serving her.

“We still have a long time to spend together. I believe that time will tell a person’s true character. As long as our hearts are directed in the same direction, the days in Lanxinyuan will definitely be prosperous. But if anyone has great ambitions, please tell me as soon as possible so that we can form a good relationship. Otherwise, it will be ugly if things get out of hand.”

Hongxiu took the lead and knelt down, and the four of them said in unison: “We dare not.”

Yun Shuyao took two steps forward and helped Hongxiu up. “Everyone, get up. There’s no need to be like this. I naturally believe in you. I just want to be clear about this.”

She handed each person a red envelope, with a smile on her face: “I won’t delay your work. Hongxiu, please stay to talk to me.”

When you first arrive, it is natural to inquire about your colleagues and superiors, as well as the working hours and atmosphere.

The other three left with the red envelope in their hands, and Hongxiu hesitated for a moment: “I wonder what Auntie wants to know?”

Yun Shuyao: “Can you tell me about the master’s backyard first? There are only three of us in the mansion?”

This refers to the fact that when they went to serve tea to Jia Min today, only Aunt Mei was present.

As far as she knew, there were two more concubines.

This question is not difficult to answer. Hongxiu felt relieved. She had been worried that her master was difficult to get along with and had high aspirations, but it seems that she is not a bad person at the moment.

“There are two girls serving in the master’s outer study. One is called Lu Lan, and the other is called Lu Liu. The old lady said that after they give birth to children, they will be the concubines of the Lin family. They usually serve the master in the outer study and rarely go anywhere else.”

She hesitated for a moment but still said, “Before that, there were two girls who had served the master since he was young. They were released before he took office.”

Yun Shuyao understood.

The two were old and childless, so they were allowed to marry freely, and two more were selected from the maids.

This is also her future goal. She will just sit back and do nothing while working, and after a few years, she will find a way to leave.

Yun Shuyao: “Are you a child of the Lin family?”

Hong Xiu: “Yes, I used to serve in the old lady’s yard.”

Yun Shuyao was startled.

This person actually came from the old lady’s place.

She guesses she must know a lot.

Thinking of this, Yun Shuyao’s smile became more sincere: “Do the master and his wife pay their respects to the old lady every morning and have breakfast together? Should I do the same in the future?”

Hong Xiu shook her head: “The old lady likes quietness. Every day, the master and the mistress would go to pay their respects and have breakfast together. Today is your new arrival, so tomorrow you don’t need to go to the old lady. You can just go to pay your respects to the mistress.”

Yun Shuyao: “I see. I wonder if the old lady and the master are busy on weekdays?”

“The old lady worships Buddha, recites and copies scriptures every day, and usually eats vegetarian dinner alone. The master is busy with official business, goes out in the morning, and only comes back at dinner time. The wife manages household affairs in the morning and practices calligraphy and painting in the afternoon…”

After listening, Yun Shuyao concluded that her fixed work content every day was to pay her respects to her direct superior, Jia Min, and punch in. After punching in, she could go back to her own yard. If Lin Ruhai did not come, she would go off work. If Lin Ruhai came, it would usually be during dinner time.

There is a lot of time when she is free!

If Lin Ruhai didn’t come, this would be a dream working time.

Yun Shuyao also asked about her salary. Hongxiu was not surprised at all at this time. Her master was a bit… You can’t judge a person by his appearance. When she talked about these things, she was surprisingly frank.

“My aunt gets three taels of silver per month. Go to the account office to collect it on the fifth day of every month.”

Three taels!

Yun Shuyao was not a fairy who was unaware of the world. She knew that the pillar of the Yun family, that is, her father, only earned three taels of silver a month as a tutor and thirty-six taels of silver a year. This was enough to support a family of five, and also allow him to continue to take the imperial examinations and send his two children to private school, which was enough to prove its spending power.

Her mother used the betrothal money from the Lin family to buy a shop and rent it out, with a monthly rent of only one and a half taels of silver. As for the hilltop she bought in her hometown, her father and uncle discussed it and hired a middle-aged couple to run it, and the total cost was only four taels of silver.

After understanding the situation, Yun Shuyao lay down for a while, and when she woke up, it was lunchtime.

Hongxiu had already gone to talk to Nanny Wang and told her that the dishes for lunch would still be the same, but the portion had increased, enough to fill her up.

Yun Shuyao nodded with satisfaction and then ate up all three portions of food under Hongxiu’s numb gaze.

Hongxiu: “…”

Her big and strong second uncle could eat so much, but her aunt was so thin; where did all the food go?

She couldn’t figure it out.

Putting down the chopsticks, Yun Shuyao said: “Hongxiu, walk with me in the yard.”

“yes.”

Because there are only a few owners at the Lin Mansion, the Lanxin Courtyard is quite a large place. As the name Lanxin Courtyard suggests, orchids are planted here.

And there are quite a few varieties.

There are five rooms with small gardens in front and behind, where orchids are mainly grown, with other flowers and plants occasionally dotted around.

Yun Shuyao estimated that the garden was more than 100 square meters and these five rooms… The Yun family also had five rooms, including a kitchen and study.

Of the five rooms here, except for the side room where the maids lived, the rest were for her use.

The living environment is amazing.

At dinner time, Hong Yi had just returned from the kitchen with a lunch box when Hong Tao ran over to tell Yun Shuyao the good news: “Aunt, the master is here!”

Hongxiu was delighted because, when Aunt Mei came in, the master did not go to Meixiangyuan the next day.

Lin Ruhai hadn’t eaten yet, but when he arrived, the meal suddenly became plentiful.

Looking at these dishes, the smile on Yun Shuyao’s face instantly became more sincere.

Who wouldn’t be happy if the boss treated us to a fancy dinner?

There’s no need to work overtime anyway—Yun Shuyao didn’t think he would stay tonight.

She saw it this morning, and Lin Ruhai must have seen it more clearly and would go to comfort the sad Jia Min.

They didn’t spend much time together in the morning, so she couldn’t tell whether the couple was truly in love, but it was obvious that the couple got along harmoniously. So, since Lin Ruhai had married a decent woman from outside in order not to offend his wife, if he didn’t want to cause trouble in the backyard, appropriate comfort would be necessary.

The facts were just as Yun Shuyao thought.

After dinner, Lin Ruhai was drinking tea when his servant brought in a wooden box.

This morning, when Hongxiu was dressing her, Lin Ruhai also saw what was inside.

Apart from a set of jewelry that was just for show, Lin Ruhai didn’t like the rest.

This was certainly because Lin Ruhai had high standards, but it was also because he really felt disgusted.

Is this all the good things his concubine has?

The maids around his mother all had more than this amount of wealth.

Combined with the good impression yesterday, this scene came about.

Opening the box and looking at the two sets of unpretentious yet not simple jewelry inside, Yun Shuyao curved her eyes and said, “Thank you, Master. I like them very much!”

This is an unexpected bonus, and of course, she is happy.

When Lin Ruhai saw Yun’s happy smile, he felt satisfied that his kindness was not in vain.

Yun Shuyao made a simple estimate and concluded that several hundred taels of silver would be necessary.

Tsk, rich people.

Yun·Worker·Shu Yao said: I am not jealous at all!

Really, don’t believe it?

Look at my sincere eyes.jpg

Every time she received a bonus before, it meant that her workload had increased, and her boss would open his purse strings for fear that she would run away. Now, her workload did not increase, and she did not need to work overtime. It was a complete surprise.

Sure enough, the time was almost up, and Lin Ruhai stood up: “It’s getting late, you should take a rest.”

Yun Shuyao smiled and sent him off. Oh, it’s time to get off work. Goodbye, boss~

After leaving Lanxin Courtyard, Lin Ruhai went straight to Bitao Courtyard.

In the Bitao Courtyard, ever since everyone knew that the master had returned and gone to the Lanxin Courtyard, no one in the entire courtyard dared to speak loudly. Everyone was very cautious, for fear of disturbing the mistress and getting into trouble.

Fortunately, the frozen atmosphere thawed soon.

A little maid came in to announce the good news: “Madam, the master is coming to Bi Tao Courtyard!”

Jia Min was sitting on the couch with a collection of poems in her hand, looking absent-minded. Her nurse was looking at her worriedly. When she heard the maid’s reply, Jia Min was startled. She immediately put down the book and asked the nurse, “Is there anything wrong with me?”

The nurse smiled and said, “Don’t worry, ma’am. Everything will be fine.”

Only then did Jia Min feel relieved and stood up to go to the door to greet him.

Not to mention the joy in the main house, in Lanxin Courtyard, Yun Shuyao refused Hongxiu’s comfort and asked them to go downstairs to rest. She was alone and took out a “copper coin” from the cabinet.

This copper coin is not big, with blurred lines on both sides and a square hole in the middle.

That’s why she would think it was a copper coin in modern times.

After her blood was absorbed by the copper coin, she realized that it was a spiritual mirror, a spiritual weapon belonging to cultivators.

As for the hole in the middle, that’s the lens that has been destroyed.

In the modern world, spiritual energy is thin, and without a master to nourish it, it is already very difficult for it to maintain a little spiritual immortality.

After going to the apocalyptic world, although the spiritual energy there was mixed with demonic energy, it restored some of the power of the spirit mirror, allowing it to bring her to this world.

The Dream of the Red Chamber is also an unscientific world.

It is said that the protagonist of this book, Jia Baoyu, is the stone left over from when Nuwa repaired the sky.

If it is true, what level of treasure would it be?

Yun Shuyao couldn’t imagine it and was a little curious.

However, Lin Daiyu was not born yet, and Jia Baoyu should not have been born either. No matter how curious she was, she could not see him.

Yun Shuyao hid the mirror, sat down on the bed with the curtains drawn, and began to practice.

Lingjing did not teach her the secrets of cultivation, but she still had the most basic methods of cultivating supernatural powers.

However, supernatural powers must be studied and practiced diligently and used frequently, and only then will they grow slowly.

However, she doesn’t have much else now, but she has a lot of time.

If you take one step at a time, the road you walk will be more solid.

The main courtyard was excited about Lin Ruhai’s arrival. Yun Shuyao in Lanxin Courtyard was concentrating on cultivation. In Meixiang Courtyard, after hearing the maid’s report, Aunt Mei flew into a rage, suddenly sweeping the teacup to the ground. She glared at the little maid, her pretty face was furious: “Are you serious? Did the master really give jewelry to Lanxin Courtyard?”

The little maid knelt down immediately, trembling with fear: “I saw it with my own eyes, the master’s long-servant brought it in.”

Aunt Mei: “…”

Since she came into the family, her master has never given her anything.

Moreover, the master left early the next morning when she first came in, so she served tea to the mistress all by herself.

Why can people from Lanxinyuan win the master’s favor?

Slowly, the anger on her face disappeared and turned into gloom. She looked in the direction of Lanxinyuan, not knowing what she was thinking.

The little maid, kneeling on the ground, quietly raised her head and glanced at her master. For some reason, a chill rose behind her…