Chapter One

  After Xianyi returned, she put the bangle in a box and hid it in a safe place. This thing was brought by Han Niangniang, and it's hard to say if anyone else has seen it. If any clues were leaked outside, she would be afraid of bringing trouble to herself and Chen Niangniang. Fortunately, since Xianyi and Jinfenghua deceived Han Niangniang, her illness had improved somewhat compared to before, although she still looked seriously ill, but at least didn't deteriorate further. This was a good thing, but unfortunately, Jinfenghua was convinced that Han Niangniang liked to see Xianyi, so he often took Xianyi to visit Han Niangniang at night, and Xianyi couldn't refute it, she had to accept her fate. However, as time went on, Xianyi felt that Han Niangniang seemed to have discovered Jinfenghua's unusual behavior, at least no young master could take a maid to serve his aunt who lived in a different courtyard late at night.

  These were all trivial matters for Jin Fenghua, and Xianyi was too lazy to care about them. However, the direct result of working hard during the day and not being able to sleep soundly at night was that she felt drowsy all day long. It wasn't until she came back to her senses that she realized her mother's time in front of Madame had become shorter and shorter, while Zeng Yiniang's time in front of Madame had become longer and longer. Moreover, apart from Autumn Scene, Madame had actually started to favor Lu Shuang, who had always been making mistakes, and had cooled down towards Yun Shuang, whom she had always liked.

  "Mother, I'm going to have a new aunt?" The young and tender daughter Jin Qiaotian sat on the chair, being fed pastries by Madame, her little legs kicking back and forth in an unbecoming manner, but it seemed that Madame had always been indulgent of her, spoiling her even more.

  "Is it your elder brother who is getting married, and there will be one more person to love and care for you, little sister? Are you happy?" The madam had two daughters besides her two sons, the eldest daughter and the third daughter. Recently, something happened at the eldest daughter's place, so the madam became even more fond of her younger daughter who was still by her side, almost taking her everywhere every day. Although Chen Ayi had advised against it, it was clear that the madam didn't listen to advice much anymore.

  "If she doesn't hurt me, can I get someone to spank her?" Jin Qiao was overbearing and tyrannical from a young age. Once, in order to slap the face of Er Niang, she even took away the maid who served by her side for several days. When the maid returned, she had almost lost half her life. This matter was suppressed by the first lady, but Xian Yi still knew about it because of Chen's involvement. Therefore, she kept a distance from this young and ruthless little maid.

  The madam's face stiffened, although she wanted to scold him, but in the end she spoke softly: "She is your sister-in-law, she is your elder, you can't treat her like a servant girl."

  "Didn't that woman say that after marrying my brother, she would be his person? What if she bullies me?" Jin Qiaotian had no good feelings towards the woman who was about to take over her brother. In her opinion, her father, mother, and sister were all hers, and those other people should have disappeared long ago, especially the concubines in the mansion.

  "It's okay, if she dares to bully you, tell me and I'll take care of it. As her elder, I can naturally put pressure on her." The madam couldn't help but speak up when she saw her daughter pouting. Chen Mama, who was standing by, furrowed her brow but didn't say anything. She had already sensed that something was amiss between herself and the madam, and it seemed like a rift had formed between them.

  The mother and daughter were talking, when Zeng Nian's maid walked in. In just over a month, Zeng Nian had become elegant and refined, with silver hairpins and pearl earrings; her old padded jacket was probably long gone, buried at the bottom of some trunk. Zeng Nian first glanced at Chen Nian, seeing that she was waiting on them, then raised an eyebrow in mockery before walking over to curtsy and say: "The kitchen maid said that this month's allowance is not enough."

  "What's going on?" The madam raised her head, displeased: "In the past, every month there was a surplus, how come this month is short? Could it be that someone has embezzled?"

  The old woman hastily said: "I think they don't dare, but now Cao's wife is pregnant and Han's wife's body is also dragging on, after all..."

  "It's all a bunch of useless things!" As soon as the mention of her sisters-in-law, the lady of the house felt uncomfortable and looked at Chen Mama with an indifferent expression: "This household is all under your management, what do you think?"

  This sentence is indeed ruthless, even if the keys and power are in Chen's hands, after all, they are just a gun in the hands of the madam. The account books in the house are also controlled by the madam. Even if there are some people who steal and cheat, it's just a small number. In the past, when things were missing, it wasn't uncommon, but at that time, Cao was new to the house and Han didn't have much power either. It was easy to suppress them. This matter is actually easy to solve, everyone has their share, even if Cao is pregnant, she had already been given extra before. According to the rules, if Cao wants more, she will have to pay for it herself. There's nothing that can't be solved. The problem is that the madam is not satisfied in her heart, thinking that Chen had advised her too much before, and feeling that she had spoiled these concubines too much.

  Madam Chen didn't know why the mistress had been avoiding her lately, but she could tell that it was because of how she handled the concubines. Naturally, Madam Chen felt a bit bitter in her heart. She was someone who had been trained by Mistress Chen herself, specifically to prepare for her daughter's marriage. Every word and action of hers was taught by Mistress Chen, who feared that her hot-tempered and impulsive daughter would get into trouble after marrying into another family and become the laughing stock of those concubines. In the past decade or so, things were still fine, as Mistress Chen was younger and took care of her natal family. But as she grew older, her temper became more explosive, as if she wanted to vent out all the anger she had suppressed before. Now, with the changes in their eldest daughter's situation and the thoughts of those concubines in the household, Mistress Chen deeply doubted whether her past actions were right or wrong. Furthermore, with Old Madam Zhen intentionally sowing discord, Mistress Chen developed a misconception that if she had been stricter earlier on, there might not be any concubines or children born out of wedlock in the household. She didn't think it through, but even someone like Master would likely have many mistresses outside the household. Not to mention, if Mistress Chen had been too ruthless, they might not have four children now.

  People always like to think in the direction they like, but Mrs. Jin thought her own mistakes were unwilling to let herself bear, and instead complained about Chen Qiang who had been following her all the time. Xian Yi watched clearly from the side, and her heart was even colder. If Mrs. Jin couldn't be relied on anymore, then the Jin Mansion might not be so easy to mix in.

  Fortunately, the lady only complained a few words and let Chen's mother handle the rest. Xian Yi saw her mother leave and also found an excuse to leave the main room. As soon as she entered the side room, she saw Xiuzhu holding a box of rouge, looking left and right with joy on her face, while several third-grade maids sitting next to her were thinking about their own thoughts without talking.

  "Where did you buy this again?" Xian Yi asked cautiously as she sat down beside Xiuzhu.

  Xiu Zhu raised her hand, holding the rouge and putting it under Xian Yi's nose for a whiff, saying with satisfaction: "Where could I afford to buy this? This one box costs half a tael of silver."

  As soon as this was said, the maids who had been silent until now all looked over.

  Xian Yi gently tugged on Xiu Zhu's sleeve and whispered, "Is it a gift from Young Master?"

  Xiu Zhu blinked her eyes, and her smile couldn't be stopped. One look and you could tell she had guessed correctly.

  Xian Yi looked at her smiling face, and thought of what the madam had said a few days ago that they would be sending out the betrothal gifts soon. She couldn't help but feel uneasy for Xiu Zhu, but this was the path she had chosen herself, no matter what, only she could walk it.

  They were watching the rouge when Dong Jing walked in, rarely, she also had a faint smile on her face, which made her originally dull and wooden face look much more vivid. After coming in, she even greeted Bao Tian and Xiu Zhu, took something and left.

  "Is she really happy today?" Xian Yi asked strangely, nodding her head slightly.

  "I heard that her relatives from her mother's side have arrived." Xiu Zhu looked at the rouge box with affection, casually responding.

  "Isn't her family gone?" This is a fresh matter, Dong Jingyuan was originally with Xiuzhu as the second-class maid, and it seems that Xiuzhu should know more about Dong Jing than others.

  "She has no family left, but her relatives have recently found her." Xiu Zhu put down the rouge box, glanced at those third-rate maids, and leaned over to whisper in Xian Yi's ear: "I heard that she might be redeemed, it was her mother's brother who came, he had been missing for a long time, when he returned, he found out that his sister's whole family was gone, so he came for this niece."

  "Isn't she the gatekeeper's granddaughter?" Xian Yi was puzzled. "Then isn't her own uncle also a biological son of the family?"

  "It's not that, her mother was originally from a good family, but later became a servant due to difficulties at home and the loss of her younger brother. Now that he's back, it's like a miracle." Xiu Zhu sighed, "In these times, those who have sold their bodies into servitude can hardly escape, let alone someone born into a noble household."

  "This can't be a bad guy." Xian Yi thought more, Dong Jing was born in the mansion, and suddenly this kind of close relative appeared, which is a bit strange.

  Xiu Zhu said disbelievingly: "She herself has admitted it, what business is it of others? However, it's said that she brought a token with her, so there shouldn't be any mistake."

  Winter scene's matter, no one thought much of it, she was the big lady's personal maid, and the big lady had always been good to her. It was hard to say whether she would be let go or not, and even if she was, who would take her place? All this required careful consideration. But Xian Yi didn't think that Winter Scene's matter could also involve herself. Originally, a Spring Scene had already been arranged for the eldest miss, but after the eldest miss sent over another maid, there were whispers that one Spring Scene wasn't enough, and it was likely that the big lady would send another maid to be a concubine.

  "Who is it that has dragged me into this mess? Why didn't she go and talk about Xiu Zhu or Xian Xian, but instead had to mention me? Who can compare to these two when it comes to being a mother-in-law?"

  After noon, I originally wanted to find Autumn Scene to ask for some embroidery threads, but unexpectedly, I heard such a sentence at the door, which really pierced my heart.