Time Travel: The Noble Family

Chapter 153: Chapter 64: Small Kitchen

Yuehuan did not attend the calligraphy class.

Mr. Yun had already received the news that Yuehuan was grounded. As he watched the three young ladies immerse themselves in writing characters, he sighed softly. Of the four sisters, the Third Young Lady was actually the most talented, but the Fourth Miss had the most potential. In just over a month, she had progressed from not being able to write at all to producing characters that somewhat resembled the real thing, which was truly remarkable. This indicated that not only was the Fourth Miss perceptive, but she also worked very hard. If she could keep it up, she would surely achieve outstanding results in the future. However, he couldn’t express these thoughts, as saying them would not be beneficial to the Fourth Miss. That was the sadness of being a daughter born of a concubine.

Yueyao always transcribed “The Letter of Request in Quick Snow” during class, and today was no exception. However, after writing it three times, she looked over to Yuehuan’s empty seat with some surprise. Given Yuehuan’s enthusiasm for learning, she wouldn’t have missed the class unless something significant had happened. It seemed that Maternal Aunt Su’s incident had implicated Yuehuan.

The walk from the Lanxi Courtyard to Jingsi Garden was not short, and it would’ve taken even longer if Yueyao detoured to the Upper Chamber. Since the Old Madam had said there was no need for her to come over to pay her respects in the morning and evening, Yueyao had not gone. But ever since Tingzheng went to Li Mansion to study, Yueyao always visited the Upper Chamber after class. Although she usually stayed for only a half-hour, the Old Madam liked it very much.

Like usual, Yueyao went to the Upper Chamber first to accompany the Old Madam. The Old Madam was naturally happy with her granddaughter’s filial piety, and everyone above and below spoke of Yueyao as a filial person.

On the way to the Upper Chamber, Yueyao asked Hua Lei, “Why didn’t the Fourth Miss come? What happened?” Yueyao hadn’t considered it had anything to do with borrowing a book.

Nanny Deng had made significant efforts to bribe her way to information, and now news from within Lian Mansion could be known immediately. Hua Lei had already heard, “Miss, the Eldest Madam punished Maternal Aunt Su. The Fourth Miss rushed to the main branch and yelled at the Eldest Madam, so she has been grounded by her.”

Yueyao raised her eyebrows in surprise. She hadn’t expected this changed Yuehuan to consider Maternal Aunt Su as a mother so quickly. It was bold of her to yell at Lady Mo for Maternal Aunt Su’s sake. However, this also revealed that she was a person of good character, as the original Yuehuan would certainly not have done such a thing.

Yueyao found it quite interesting. The main branch would now lack the hypocritically dull-witted Yuehuan and, instead, gain a filial and courageous Fourth Miss. It seemed that she should give the filial Fourth Miss some appropriate help.

When Yueyao arrived to visit the Old Madam in the Upper Chamber, she casually mentioned Yuehuan’s absence from class, “Grandmother, you wouldn’t believe how talented my younger sister is. Although our teacher has not praised her openly, I know that among us four, the Fourth Sister is truly the most gifted.” Yueyao was sincere in her words; she was astonished by Yuehuan’s pace of learning, so how could the teacher not be aware? It was simply that the teacher, due to Yuehuan’s status as a child born out of wedlock, could not praise her openly.

The Old Madam’s eyes sparkled, “Oh, is it true?” The teacher had told the Old Madam good things about Yuebing and Yueyao, and he had complimented Yueying and Yuehuan too, but those were only in passing. So the Old Madam really did not know that Yuehuan was also a precious gem.

Yueyao said with a smile, “Grandmother, could I possibly deceive you? The Fourth Sister is much stronger than I am. I am completely willing to concede to her.” When Yueyao laughed, her eyes and brows curved like the crescent moon in the sky, absolutely beautiful.

The Old Madam appeared contemplative.

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Seeing that the Old Madam did not commit to any response, Yueyao did not continue on this topic, but instead brought up something else, “Grandmother, Brother Zheng will be back in a couple of days. I am thinking of making a few more sets of winter clothes for him.” Typically, masters had four sets of clothes for the winter season, and four sets would obviously not be enough for a whole winter. Yueyao didn’t trust Lady Mo much and decided to make them herself.

Making two extra sets of clothes was a minor issue for the Old Madam. However, there were rules to be followed, and if one wanted more clothes made, they would have to pay with their private silver.

The Old Madam looked at the thin clothes on Yueyao, “The weather is now turning cool. You also need to take care of your health and not catch a cold.”

Yueyao hesitated before speaking, “Grandmother, the Lanxi Courtyard is too far from the kitchen. It’s fine in the summer, but in a few days the weather will become colder, and even boiling some hot water will be inconvenient. Grandmother, I would like to start a fire in the Lanxi Courtyard.” Yueyao expressed her wish subtly but clearly—she wanted a small kitchen.

The Old Madam frowned after hearing this, “But now is not the suitable time for construction.” She had considered having a small kitchen set up in the Lanxi Courtyard, but her son had just passed away, making it inappropriate to break ground. Moreover, with the Chinese New Year approaching and many things to attend to in the mansion, it was not fitting to start construction.

Yueyao smiled softly, “There’s no need to go through so much trouble; the Lanxi Courtyard already has a small kitchen, just that it hasn’t been used for a while. I’ve had someone check it, and everything is quite good, just a bit old. Asking a couple of craftsmen to refurbish it a little and tidy it up would do.” Now was an excellent opportunity. Once the year-end came, it would be too late. As for next year, that was even more uncertain.

After thinking for a moment, the Old Madam said, “It would be good to tidy up the small kitchen in the Lanxi Courtyard.” While breaking ground for new construction was not suitable, simple repairs were not a problem.

Feeling guilty, Yueyao thought about how dearly her grandmother loved her, yet she calculated against her each time. Facing her grandmother, she always felt unworthy.

Old Madam looked into Yueyao’s eyes, filled with guilt, and smiled as she touched Yueyao’s cheek, “Silly girl, it’s just a minor matter, it hasn’t disturbed your grandmother’s peace. As long as you are all well, it puts me at ease.”

Yueyao hugged the Old Madam and called out softly, “Grandmother.” She truly wished that her grandmother would live a long and healthy life, so she wouldn’t feel so lost. But life, aging, sickness, and death were not for her to decide; all she could do was accompany her grandmother as much as possible.

The Old Madam said lovingly, “Silly child.” Yueyao was so careful and cautious; the Old Madam felt a pang of heartache, followed by sadness. If the second son and his wife were still alive, Yueyao could have asked for anything directly; there would be no need for her to beat around the bush with minor requests.

After returning, Yueyao asked strangely, “Mother, Lady Mo punished Maternal Aunt Su to kneel because Yuehuan borrowed a book from me, but something doesn’t feel right. There must be another twist to this.” Even if Lady Mo disliked Yuehuan getting close to her, there was no need to make Maternal Aunt Su kneel from morning until midday just for borrowing a book. It seemed like an overreaction. Yueyao felt that there had to be something she didn’t know about.

Nanny Deng nodded, “Miss is thinking correctly. Even if Lady Mo is incompetent, she wouldn’t punish Maternal Aunt Su over this matter. There must definitely be something else.” But whatever that something else was, they couldn’t find out.

But Yueyao thought even more deeply—what exactly was it, and why did it happen at this particular time? If she hadn’t thought more about it, she would have believed that it was the incident of Yuehuan borrowing the book that angered Lady Mo. But since it had nothing to do with the borrowing of the book, why would Maternal Aunt Su choose this time?

Yueyao remembered the words Maternal Aunt Su had said to her in her previous life, words that could have been taken as sincere sentiments. Of course, they were merely meant to deceive her into willingly jumping into the fire pit, “Mother, I find this Maternal Aunt Su quite interesting.”

Nanny Deng didn’t understand, “What do you mean, Miss?”

Yueyao smiled, “Go and look into Maternal Aunt Su’s background for me. Everyone thinks that because Maternal Aunt Su had given birth to a son and a daughter, Lady Mo would feel threatened. But they don’t know that Maternal Aunt Su is Lady Mo’s capable assistant.” The dirty work that Lady Mo didn’t want to do was always carried out by Maternal Aunt Su. For Lady Mo, Maternal Aunt Su was a sharp weapon; helping her win her husband’s heart, dealing with rival women, and poisoning concubines and illegitimate children.

Nanny Deng didn’t think that a maternal aunt warranted so much attention from Yueyao, but since Yueyao insisted, she did not object, “Miss, I will send someone to check on it.”

After finishing a painting in her studio, Yueyao had Hua Lei take a look. Hua Lei nodded, full of praise. However, Yueyao shook her head. For what reason she shook her head, Yueyao didn’t explain to Hua Lei, because even if she did, Hua Lei wouldn’t understand.

At bedtime, Yueyao’s thoughts once again drifted to the matter of Maternal Aunt Su. Yueyao shivered; perhaps she had thought it wrong. It wasn’t that Lady Mo was preventing Yuehuan from associating with her, but it was very likely that Maternal Aunt Su didn’t want Yuehuan to associate with her and had intentionally designed this whole charade, teaching Yuehuan a lesson not to be in her company anymore.

Yueyao sighed softly. If this were the case, she was afraid she had thought too simply; eventually, she would have to stand in opposition to all the women of the main branch. Such a life was truly exhausting. She found herself missing the life at the Nunnery, which, despite its austerity, was carefree every day.

Old Madam spoke to Lady Mo during her morning greetings, “The child is still young and may act impulsively, so your discipline is warranted. However, Fourth Miss previously suffered an injury that caused her to forget all manners completely. Now that the nurturing nannies and tutors are in the mansion, you could let them teach her slowly. If you keep her confined all the time, she will end up lagging behind Yueying and the others.” Old Madam meant that Yuehuan deserved punishment, but it shouldn’t cause her to fall behind in her studies. Considering Yuehuan’s initial performance, the fact that she had shown good progress was due to the nurturing nannies and the tutors’ efforts.

With the Old Madam having spoken, all Lady Mo could do was comply.

Maternal Aunt Su, hearing that the Madam had changed her stance so quickly, slipped a pouch to the maid who came with the message and carefully inquired as to why the Madam had changed her mind.

The maid, having received the gratuity, surreptitiously squeezed the pouch. It was quite plump, with a good amount of silver inside. In a quiet voice, she relayed to Maternal Aunt Su, “The Madam instructed this after her return from greeting the Old Madam.” Upon returning from the visit that morning, the Madam’s expression had been somewhat troubled.

Maternal Aunt Su felt a chill in her heart and immediately removed her silver bracelet to give to the maid as a gesture of gratitude.

Seeing how weighty the silver bracelet was, the maid didn’t skimp on her words, “Before the Madam went to greet the Old Madam, Third Young Lady had visited the Upper Chamber.” The subtext of her words was clear, and Maternal Aunt Su understood the implication.

Maternal Aunt Su felt her complexion pale and instructed her personal maid, “Invite Fourth Miss over.” She had hesitated whether to take drastic measures, but it now seemed she had no choice but to speak out.

After Yuehuan finished cleaning Maternal Aunt Su’s wound, she went to copy scriptures. Even after writing the scriptures for a Shichen, Yuehuan couldn’t calm her disturbed emotions. She felt very upset thinking about what had happened earlier.