Chapter 008: The Old Lady Makes Her Move

Old Lady He asked again, "Is the guest room for the young master and young lady tidied up? The cold wind is already biting in the morning and evening. The goose down quilt I received the other day is both light and warm; have someone take it to cover the young master and young lady! It is pitiful, having been born in the southern countryside, they have not experienced the severe cold of the capital, and we must take care of them carefully"

Upon seeing their age and appearance, the esteemed lady recognized that these were the legitimate daughters of the second wife, Madam Shi, specifically the eldest daughter He Ying and the second daughter He Qi. It was known that the second master was of illegitimate birth and had married the daughter of the official Shi, who was also of illegitimate birth. Official Shi was known for his frugality, often advising the new emperor to spend less money on palace repairs and to consider the welfare of the common people. Official Shi himself lived simply and required his family to avoid extravagance, earning a very good reputation among the populace. However, after marrying into the He family, Madam Shi, despite her strict frugality, was quite adept at accumulating wealth, even going so far as to take a leg from a fly that passed by. As a result, Old Madam He held her in great disdain. Unexpectedly, the eldest daughter-in-law of Madam Shi was quite accommodating and managed to win Old Madam He's favor. The two daughters, He Ying and He Qi, born of the eldest daughter-in-law, surpassed their mother in charm, having learned from a young age to flatter Old Madam He, who would affectionately call them "my dear children" upon seeing them.

"What’s wrong with the boy?" He Ying saw Xiao Ganlan acting like a little adult and covered her mouth as she laughed, "Could it be that boys are not allowed to touch at all?"

The three ladies fell silent, but Li Shan laughed and said: "Look at what the old lady is saying, as if we are going to compete with the young masters and young ladies for the maids. The lovely girls raised by the old lady, who would dare to object if she wanted to assign them to those young masters and young ladies? Moreover, it is not as if the public monthly allowance is being withheld; it is merely the old lady who privately allocated the monthly allowance to them. In the end, it is only the old lady who bears the loss, and it has nothing to do with anyone else. Who would dare to say more?"

Haha... the entire hall was filled with uncontrollable laughter. Old Lady He laughed so hard that she spilled her tea all over the floor, while the eldest lady laughed so much that she sprayed tea all over Li Shan. He Nian and Gui Jie were also laughing uncontrollably. Even He Yuan was lying in the wet nurse's arms, laughing so hard that she could hardly catch her breath

As they spoke, the old woman led in the spring oriole and the autumn swallow, first arranging the mats for them to kneel and pay their respects. After a moment, she raised her head to let Old Lady He take a look. Old Lady He nodded and said: "Although they are country girls, it is rare for them to be so graceful and not to appear rustic, so it is acceptable!"

I will feed him a bite! He Min saw that the little olive was being cool and found it extremely cute. She took a full spoonful of porridge from the nurse's hand and brought it to the little olive's mouth. The little olive, with a blank expression, said: "You scooped too much!"

Seeing that Miss Gui was puzzled, Mrs. He then explained the reason. It turned out that the fathers of Qiu Tang and Qiu Ping were both in charge at Mrs. He's silk shop, which is why Qiu Tang and Qiu Ping were very well-informed. Previously, the First and Second Madams had sought excuses to want these two maids, but Mrs. He pretended to be deaf and dumb and refused to let them go. Now that Miss Gui had arrived, she suddenly gave both of these maids to her, which inevitably led to some quiet murmurs of discontent.

They were talking here, while at Old Lady He’s place, her personal maid Qiubo was quietly asking: "Old Lady, I do not understand, the young mistress has just arrived in the capital, and you have already given her Qiutang and Qiuping, ... ... "

Because Xiao Ganlan and He Yuan are too adorable, all the women in the room were distracted. A few of them cast slightly critical glances at Guijie, but then turned to look at them. At that moment, the maid brought out more tea and snacks. Since the daughters-in-law of the fourth and fifth households were not present, Guijie was the youngest in the hall. Guijie quickly stood up to personally serve tea and snacks to Old Lady He. When she was about to serve others, everyone laughed and said, "You only need to serve your own lady!" He Zining's wife, Li Quan, helped to serve tea to Mrs. He, while the other daughters-in-law served their own ladies. Everyone returned to their seats to drink tea and chat.

"Now that you are here, do not call me 'young lady' anymore; just call me 'young mistress' like the others!" The noble lady smiled and said, "Later, two maids will come over from the old lady's side. You should be more restrained in your conversation and observe their character before engaging in discussion."

He Yuan saw the young man trying to act cool in front of others, and he couldn't help but chuckle inwardly. Just as he was taking a mouthful of porridge from the nurse, he heard He Cheng eagerly say, "I will feed the little sister!"

Your sister heard from Wang Mama on the road that He Zining's wife, Li Quan, is actually the cousin of the first wife, Li Shan. Upon hearing her speak, she naturally responded with a smile: "I have indeed heard Wang Mama mention that Wen Ge'er and Yi Jie'er are both exceptionally intelligent. If my children could attend school alongside Wen Ge'er and Yi Jie'er, they would surely benefit greatly."

Upon seeing the young Olive and He Yuan, Old Master He was filled with joy and immediately gathered them close to him, asking whether they could read and what books they had studied in the countryside. He inquired if they had adapted well to life in the capital. He then turned to He Nian and remarked, "The children are articulate and evidently intelligent; they should be well taught. In a few days, they should join He Cheng and the others to attend school!"

"Father said that men and women should not be intimate! You touched me, so you must marry me!" Little Olive's small face was extremely serious, "I am still young and do not want to take a wife yet"

"Do not speak of me as if I were an old witch!" Old Lady He laughed and continued, "Although the two girls brought by Nian's wife are quite beautiful, they are likely too accustomed to the countryside and cannot handle grand occasions. If we are to host guests and such, Nian's wife should take Qiutang and Qi Ping out to truly showcase their elegance." After finishing her words, she instructed someone to serve the meal and also ordered the maid to invite all the ladies and grandmothers from each household to dine, treating it as a way to welcome the esteemed lady.

Old Master He, as Miss Gui imagined, had flowing white whiskers; although he was elderly, he could not conceal his air of elegance. After the formal greetings were completed, Miss Gui then realized that He Nian bore a striking resemblance to his grandfather, while he did not closely resemble his father.

He Yuan noticed that although these two cousins were young, their faces were sharp and already had the makings of beauty. However, their flamboyant demeanor did not endear them to him. When he saw He Qi reaching out, he instinctively shrank back to avoid her hand, grinning as he said, "You can't touch me!"

After the spring orioles and autumn swallows had departed, Old Lady He said to Madam Ning, the eldest lady: "Please assign my attendants Qiutang and Qiuping to serve Young Master Ci and Young Miss Yuan! Their monthly allowances will be deducted from my share. Do not say that I am biased; after all, Young Master Ci and Young Miss Yuan have been in the countryside for three years, and as their grandmother, I have not been able to care for them, nor have they had a share of any good things. Now that they have returned, there is no proper maid by their side, and the wife of Young Master Nian is also new to the household. It will take some time for our maids to assist them, as there will be guests coming and going, and various etiquettes need to be communicated. You should not say that I am biased; after all, Young Master Ci and Young Miss Yuan have been in the countryside for three years, and as their grandmother, I have not been able to care for them, nor have they had a share of any good things. Now that they have returned, there is no proper maid by their side, and the wife of Young Master Nian is also new to the household. It will take some time for our maids to assist them, as there will be guests coming and going, and various etiquettes need to be communicated. Although Qiutang and Qiuping are not particularly outstanding, they are still quite honest. They can serve Young Master Ci and Young Miss Yuan, and assist the wife of Young Master Nian a bit, and that will suffice!"

What is there to be unclear about? Lady He, seeing that the daughters-in-law had dispersed, now reclined on the beauty couch, only allowing the maid to gently massage her legs with a beauty fist, and said with a smile: "What kind of person is Nian Ge? At that time, he was able to make the decision to marry this noble lady, which indicates that she possesses extraordinary qualities. Naturally, Nian Ge will take over the position of the Director of the Astronomical Bureau in the future, and the silk workshop must also have a suitable person to manage it. If Nian Ge's wife cannot even keep two maids, then I must reconsider. Now, the He family seems to want to poach Qiutong and Qiuping, but I will not allow it; I will give everything to Nian Ge's wife instead.

He Min hurriedly poured half of the porridge from the bowl he was holding for the wet nurse and fed it to Xiao Ganlan. This time, Xiao Ganlan graciously accepted the porridge. When He Min came to feed her again, she instructed, "Hold it steady, so it won't splash on my clothes"

Upon hearing this conversation, the esteemed lady could not help but feel a sense of curiosity. However, it seemed as though she was concerned that the arrangement of sending two maids to her room might not be agreeable to the other madams.

Even if the ladies are as cunning as devils, they still have to drink the foot bath water of the old lady! Qiu Bo couldn't help but tease, covering her mouth and laughing, "With the old lady's thousand years of cultivation, how could they possibly compete?"

The old lady just knows how to tease us! He Ying and He Qi have already hurried over to meet the esteemed sister. Upon seeing the twins, they both exclaimed, "How delightful!" As they spoke, they rushed over to take a closer look at the little olives and He Yuan, and were about to reach out to touch their little faces

Just as the conversation concluded, Mrs. He arrived, instructing the maids to wait outside. She entered and addressed the esteemed lady: "Today, the matriarch has sent Qiutang and Qiuping to serve you. Although it is a kind gesture, I fear it may provoke jealousy. It is sufficient to be polite to them; do not overburden them with tasks."

Little Olive had long since evaded He Ying's grasp, glaring and declaring: "I am a boy!"

At that moment, a maid came up to report, saying that the two maids serving the esteemed young lady were currently outside and asked if Old Lady He would like to meet them. Old Lady He nodded and said, "Let them in to have a look! However, one thing to note is that the young masters and young ladies have grown up, and they still need a proper senior maid to attend to them. The two maids are to serve both the young mistress and the young masters and young ladies, which is rather inadequate."

Li Quan smiled and said to the noble lady: "My brother and sister went to their uncle's house today and have not yet returned. If they come back and see how much everyone loves Ci Ge and Yuan Jie, they might be even more excited than Cheng Ge and the others!"

Madam He said, "Initially, both the first and second wives encouraged their daughters-in-law to take these two maids, but they were unable to do so. If they had succeeded, the silk shop would naturally have more financial resources than others. " As Madam He spoke, she noticed that the maids had taken the little olives and He Yuan outside to bathe, and could not hear the conversation here, so she lowered her voice again and said, "In the future, when the old lady stretches her legs, no one in this household will submit to anyone else. Although the silk shop originally belonged to the old lady as part of her dowry, over the years, which of the daughters-in-law in the He family has not invested money in it? Therefore, the silk shop is no longer solely the old lady's, but rather a shared asset of the entire household. However, the amount of money each person invested back then varied, and if disputes arise in the future, who knows what will happen? At this moment, who does not wish to build a good relationship with the managers of the silk shop? The fathers of Qiu Tang and Qiu Ping both work as managers in the silk shop, making them quite popular."

Ah, no! He Yuan raised his head and saw He Cheng already scooping up half a ladle of porridge, blowing on it, and feeding it to him with the back of the ladle. He couldn't help but tilt his head back slightly and exclaimed, "You need to feed it to me with the pointed end; I can't eat it sideways!"

"Come and meet your aunt!" Old Lady He said with a smile upon seeing He Ying and He Qi arrive, "Earlier, I mentioned that you insisted on following the housekeeper's wife to the Temple of Heaven to offer oil. I said you must be craving the vegetarian dishes you had there last time, and just wanted to tag along for a free meal. Everyone didn't believe it! Now that you’ve returned with greasy mouths, it seems credible now!"

Upon hearing this, He Cheng turned the pointed end and fed it over. He Yuan took a bite and nearly choked, snatching the spoon and saying, "I can eat it myself!" It is still safer to be self-reliant; if I am fed a few more bites, I might really choke to death. This young master is definitely feeding someone for the first time; perhaps he is still waiting for an adult to feed him. His attitude while feeding is extremely gentle, but the action is quite vigorous, which is truly unbearable

Seeing that Old Master He had more to discuss with He Nian, the young lady hurriedly took Little Olive and He Yuan to take their leave first. A maid came to guide them to the side room to wash up. Chun Ying and Qiu Yan were already waiting in the side room, and upon seeing the young lady and the twins arrive, they rushed to greet them. After the maid went down to fetch water, the two of them finally sighed and said: "Miss, the residence is truly vast. If one were to take a stroll outside, they would surely get lost. When the lady brought Zi Luo and Zi Qian to our countryside, I thought they were the most outstanding, but who would have thought that upon seeing this time, all the servants in the residence serving the ladies are beauties, dazzling to the eyes."

As they were laughing and swaying, a woman came over to inquire if Old Master He had finished his court duties, and hurriedly reported back. Only then did Old Madam He smile and instruct He Nian to take the esteemed lady and the dragon and phoenix twins to meet Old Master He and the other elders.

While speaking, a burst of silver bell-like laughter came from outside the hall. A maid lifted the curtain, and in came two slender young girls, one about ten years old and the other about eight. Both smiled and said, "We heard that Auntie brought back younger siblings today, so we hurried over to see them. We are not late, are we?"

He Nian and Sister Gui were busy taking Xiao Ganlan and He Yuan out, momentarily occupied with teaching them how to address Old Master He and Master He.