Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"So you're saying Madam Aunt didn't give a single penny as a reward?" Jiang Shi asked Yan Hong.

Yan Hong nodded. "That's right. Jin Niang from the sewing room is known for her exceptional needlework. She stayed up all night to finish the clothes and rushed to deliver them. They say she even fell on the way, only to be berated and sent away after Madam Aunt picked apart her work."

Jiang Shi frowned with her slender brows. "Despite her noble background, she’s surprisingly stingy. Later, go quietly to the servants’ quarters and give that girl two padded jackets. I remember having an oversized goose-yellow damask jacket from last year, and another blue Hangzhou silk one, a gift from a subordinate—I’ve never worn either. Just give them both to her."

Yan Hong looked surprised. "You value her so much to just hand over two jackets like that."

Jiang Shi smiled. "Feeling envious? I have my reasons."

There were some things she couldn’t even tell Yan Hong. After all, Yan Hong and Green Tassel dressed better than daughters of petty officials when they went out. If the Madam Aunt criticized her people, Jiang Shi would elevate them further—this way, everyone would know it wasn’t her people who were at fault, but the Madam Aunt herself.

Later, when the Madam Aunt needed help, the servants would shirk their duties, making her position increasingly difficult.

Besides, Jiang Shi personally disliked the idea of the Madam Aunt returning. If she hadn’t come back, the old lady’s personal savings would have gone toward dowries for the eldest branch’s daughters. Otherwise, the household would end up footing the bill, which she absolutely refused to accept.

So, after Yan Hong delivered the two jackets to Jin Niang, she quietly let it slip around the compound about the Madam Aunt’s refusal to give rewards.

Jin Niang was thrilled with the jackets and relieved that Fang Qiaolian had gone to her godmother’s house for dinner that day, and Qin Shuanger and Jiang Shanjie weren’t in the room. She hid them away carefully, continuing to wear her usual jacket.

On New Year’s Eve, the room was cold and quiet, but Jin Niang remained unfazed. She fetched hot water from the tea room, bathed, washed her hair, and was halfway through drying it when Fang Qiaolian returned, bringing her some warm chestnuts.

"Thank you, thank you," Jin Niang said with a smile.

Fang Qiaolian laughed. "Don’t mention it. Why not follow my lead and take on a godmother? Then you could stay here for good."

When Fang Qiaolian shared her plans, Jin Niang shook her head. "It’s different for me. My mother didn’t even want me coming to the capital. If I stayed, they might come looking for me. And does your godmother dip into your earnings? You should watch out for that."

Fang Qiaolian replied, "She’d like to, but I won’t let her. At most, I give her a hundred coins a month and ask her to buy pricier items for me. Having this connection also helps make friends."

"That’s very smart. Anyway, tomorrow Lan Xue mentioned there’s usually a New Year’s bonus. I wonder if we’ll get one?" She hadn’t come to the Zhou family to make friends—she was here to earn money.

But the Zhou family proved to be generous indeed. Even newcomers like them received bonuses—year-end rewards. Senior maids like Yan Hong and Green Tassel got ten taels each, skilled ones like Lan Xue five taels, along with handkerchiefs and fabric pieces. Even hired workers like Jin Niang received two taels.

Back in the sewing room, Madam Chen gave each of the four women two hundred copper coins. Jin Niang and the others then gifted Little Si and Xiao He each a pouch containing ten coins.

Everyone was in good cheer.

With the holiday season, the sewing room finally slowed down, and Jin Niang and the others got a few days off.

When Lan Xue brought some clothes for mending, she shared some gossip: "They say the eldest son of the second branch is gravely ill—they’re preparing a coffin to counteract the ill omen. But guess what? The second wife is pregnant."

"Really?" Jin Niang pushed the needle with her thimble, clearly surprised.

The last time she visited Madam Aunt, she had caught a glimpse of Second Wife Wu from afar—she must have been about thirty-two or thirty-three years old.

Lan Xue fanned the small clay stove where pear soup was simmering for Jiang Shi. Neatly arranged plates of fresh and dried fruits sat nearby. She popped a piece of snow pear into Jin Niang’s mouth and added, "It’s true. My sister works in the second branch and got double the bonus this time. The second master is well-off, and she usually gets more than me. Now, if the second wife gives birth, she’ll get even more."

"How wonderful," Jin Niang said, savoring the juicy fruit. After all, matters of the second branch had little to do with them.

Lan Xue’s jacket had a burn hole, so Jin Niang patched it with thread of a similar shade and embroidered a small flower over it. Lan Xue was delighted and gave her two extra pears and two tangerines.

When Jin Niang tried to refuse, Lan Xue insisted, "Take them. It’s not much, but it’s all I have."

Maids in wealthy households who reached a certain status were often highly skilled in social graces. Thanks to Yan Hong, Jin Niang had received two jackets. Wondering how to repay her, Lan Xue’s gesture gave her an idea—rather than offering food from the kitchen that Yan Hong might look down upon, she would offer something made with her own hands.

So she turned and headed to the eastern side room. Upon seeing Yan Hong, she curtsied and said, "Sister, thank you for speaking up for me to the madam the other day. She rewarded me with two jackets, and I’ve been unsure how to thank you—until now."

Yan Hong smiled and said, "I wasn't speaking up for you. It's not easy for all of you working here in the mansion."

"Sister, you naturally have a chivalrous heart, but if I didn't repay your kindness, what kind of person would that make me? As it happens, I still have some pearl-white satin left over from the last time I made clothes. I thought I could take your shoe pattern and embroider some 'three-drunk hibiscus' flowers on them—but I wonder, do you prefer flat shoes or another style?" Jin Niang only had scraps of fabric to work with; Madam Chen wouldn’t accept small remnants, and the only slightly larger piece she had was this pearl-white satin.

When Jin Niang mentioned the “three-drunk hibiscus,” Yan Hong felt intrigued. "Flat shoes then. We maids are always on our feet outside."

Jin Niang sketched out the shoe pattern and asked whether Yan Hong had any foot problems, like bunions. Seeing how careful Jin Niang was being, Yan Hong praised her again, adding, "Take your time finishing them. You can give them to me after the Lantern Festival. These days, don’t come to the front too often. During the New Year celebrations, the master, the second young master, and the madam’s nephews will all be coming to pay their respects. It wouldn’t be proper if you ran into them."

Jin Niang was just about to agree when a maid came in and said, "Sister Yan Hong, the madam is asking for you. She says Concubine Miao is expecting."

The previously calm and composed Yan Hong instantly stood up. Jin Niang mused inwardly that although people in modern times often claimed the line between legitimate and illegitimate children was blurred under the patrilineal system, was there really no difference at all? Even today, how could anyone share their bed with a rival? Judging by Yan Hong’s expression, clearly something was wrong.

Jin Niang assumed that now that Concubine Miao was pregnant, the madam must be upset, and the needlework room would probably need to prepare clothes and shoes for the upcoming little master or lady. What she didn’t realize was that this was actually the beginning of the Zhou household’s internal power struggles—a matter that, of course, belonged to later events.