Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Madam Chen rushed into the sewing room, clearly anxious. Seeing this, Jin Niang quickly said, "No need to panic. Let’s first write down everything that needs to be done and then divide the tasks among us. If we really can’t finish it all, we can have some pieces done by outside embroiderers."

"If they’ve already hired us, how could they go elsewhere? Wouldn’t that make their payment to us a waste? After all our hard work, it would be terrible to end up with a reputation for being unreliable," Madam Chen sighed.

Jin Niang understood Madam Chen's concern. If they completed this commission well, they could charge double when working for other households in the future. That’s why Madam Chen insisted on perfection without any mistakes. However, the eldest young lady’s wedding was still two years away, and there was simply too much embroidery to do. She feared the work might not be good enough to establish their reputation.

Still, Jin Niang was puzzled. "Isn’t it just bed sheets, quilts, and curtains? We can divide those among ourselves, can’t we?"

Fang Qiaolian nodded in agreement.

"You’re still young girls and don’t realize just how much needs to be embroidered," Madam Chen explained. "For the bride alone, there’s her wedding dress, veil, bridal slippers, and the clothes she’ll wear in the days following the wedding, along with several pairs of embroidered shoes. Then there are the bridal chamber’s curtains, hanging screens, embroidered quilt covers, bedspreads, chair drapes, table skirts, pillowcases, and tablecloths. Gifts for the groom’s elders and peers—fan cases, pouches, tobacco bags, shoes, and socks. Gifts for the bride’s elders—mirror covers, face powder puffs, cosmetic pads, and pouches. And let’s not forget the rewards for the servants—headscarves, handkerchiefs, pouches, shoe uppers, powder puffs, and cosmetic pads. Tell me, isn’t that a lot?" Madam Chen listed everything in one breath.

Jin Niang, Fang Qiaolian, and Qin Shuanger: "..."

Seeing their stunned expressions, Madam Chen looked at them. "Now you see why I’m worried?"

Jin Niang steadied herself and raised her eyes. "Instead of fretting and grumbling, let’s tackle things one by one. For example, we can start with the bride’s wedding dress, veil, and wedding attire before moving on to the curtains and screens. If any task proves too much, we can have the whole set done elsewhere rather than deliver incomplete work that would be hard to explain later."

For instance, if we embroidered plum, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum patterns but failed to finish the chrysanthemum pouches, delivering an incomplete set would waste our effort and require buying replacements, costing extra money.

Madam Chen pursed her lips. "You can’t help with the wedding dress yet." She still held back her skills—embroidering wedding dresses was her specialty, something she wouldn’t teach outsiders unless they were her true successors.

"I’ll handle the bride’s wedding dress, veil, bridal slippers, and her clothing. As for the rest, I’ll divide the tasks among you. The immediate priority is the wedding curtains. Later, go measure the bed first. Each of you will make one gauze curtain, one silk curtain, and one taffeta curtain. Once those are done, we’ll start on the quilt covers," Madam Chen instructed.

Jin Niang let out a relieved sigh. She went to the storeroom to inspect the fabrics, selecting a roll of water-blue gauze with ice-plum patterns, a roll of bright red silk brocade with peony motifs, and a roll of taffeta with floral and bird designs.

Madam Chen first taught them how to measure the bed and cut the curtains. Jin Niang took notes carefully before starting to cut the fabric.

Whenever they encountered difficulties, Madam Chen would offer guidance. Jin Niang worked with single-minded focus, turning down side jobs. Now was the time to sharpen her craft—if she did well, her skills would secure her work anywhere in the future.

Whether in ancient times or modern, one must have a foundation to stand on.

Qin Shuanger, however, took the opposite approach. She secretly sought out Chunlan, volunteering to embroider items for the eldest young lady. As a result, while Jin Niang and the others finished the curtains early and moved on to quilt covers, Qin Shuanger was still working on the curtains.

"Qiao Lian, what design are you planning for your quilt cover? Let’s make sure we don’t overlap," Jin Niang asked with a smile.

Fang Qiaolian replied, "I’ll embroider my specialty—a dragon-phoenix wedding quilt. That’s a must, though it might take months. It’s no small task. What about you?"

Jin Niang grinned. "I’ll stick to my strength—the peonies symbolizing wealth and honor."

Unlike clothing, quilt covers required large-scale embroidery, demanding immense effort.

As for Qin Shuanger, she hadn’t even finished the curtains yet. Jin Niang shook her head—this girl was pulling all-nighters like they were nothing, even more so than herself.

During the quilt-cover embroidery period, Jin Niang gradually progressed from small floral motifs to full-coverage patterns, learning how to plan and fill the space. This was her first attempt, and as the saying goes, all beginnings are difficult.

She worked on the quilt cover from March to June, even skipping her fourteenth birthday and her cousin’s dinner invitation. Once finished, she tagged the quilt and handed it to Madam Chen.

Madam Chen inspected it and nodded approvingly. "Well done. The embroidery is exquisite, though the spacing feels a little tight. What will you embroider for the next quilt cover?"

"I haven’t decided yet," Jin Niang admitted.

"No hurry. First, let me teach you how to make a wedding quilt," Madam Chen said, setting aside her work.

Jin Niang observed carefully, then tried stitching it herself once. She sighed in relief—she had learned on her own, unlike Qin Shuanger and Fang Qiaolian, who had prior experience.

Once she had learned, an older maid from the outer house came in and announced, "Miss Jin, your elder sister at home has just delivered a baby. She’s invited you to attend the third-day blessing ceremony."

Upon hearing this, Madame Chen quickly said, "Jin Niang, you may go. Since you finished first, you can also think about what to do for the next quilt cover."

So Jin Niang went to ask Green Tassel for leave, as she couldn’t leave without permission. Unexpectedly, Jiang Shi overheard and not only granted her leave but also smiled, saying, "You’ve all been working very hard these days and probably haven’t had time to prepare gifts for the baby’s third-day celebration."

Jiang Shi was quite fond of Jin Niang, finding her plump, hardworking, and clever in an unassuming way, so she held her in high regard.

"Madam, you truly have a discerning eye. I don’t know what to bring for the celebration. Before, I could have sent fabric, but I’ve already given some to my family this year. I was thinking of going to the market to look for something," Jin Niang scratched her head.

Jiang Shi leaned back and said, "You’re just a young girl—how would you know? There’s no need to buy shoddy wares from the market. For a baby’s third-day celebration, the mother’s family should prepare a silver, brass, or colorfully painted basin filled with chestnut twigs, covered with a beautiful headscarf, and include figurines fashioned from silk representing five boys and two girls. But since you’re a relative attending the celebration, just bring some dried fruits and lucky money wrapped in red paper. Green Tassel, give Jin Niang two silver ingots as a reward so she can happily visit her sister’s home."

Jin Niang hurriedly kowtowed in thanks.

This was the first time she had received silver ingots as a reward. Larger ingots could be fifty, forty, or twenty taels, but the one she received was a small five-tael silver ingot, likely meant for festive occasions.

She hid the silver ingots against her skin and went to a silver shop, spending two hundred coins to buy a pair of small silver anklets weighing half a tael each, adorned with tiny bells. She wrapped them in a scented cloud-gauze kerchief, intending them as a gift for her newborn nephew.

Her cousin Rong Niang was a kindhearted, down-to-earth, and lovely young woman. Though she had only lived there for a little over a year, she had already befriended all the neighbors as if they were family. Jin Niang, on the other hand, might as well have been a stranger. She couldn’t understand it—despite Rong Niang’s repeated invitations, whenever she visited, the treatment she received seemed rather ordinary.

"Elder Sister, this is a small gift I prepared for my nephew. Please don’t disdain it," Jin Niang said with a smile.

Rong Niang, still observing postpartum customs, leaned against a pillow and took the kerchief. Unwrapping it, she asked, "Are these anklets?"

"Yes. With so much work at the manor, I’ve been busy day and night and didn’t have time to buy anything special. It’s nothing fancy," Jin Niang replied.

Rong Niang, seemingly very happy, patted her son beside her and said cheerfully, "In the future, don’t bring anything—just come empty-handed. You’re just like your brother-in-law, always working so hard. You should rest when it’s time to rest and not overexert yourself."

Jin Niang shook her head. "Elder Sister, now is the time to learn skills. I can’t slack off. If I stop, I’ll get rusty."

Embroidery was like writing in her past life—there might seem to be no progress in the short term, but over time, her work would become something even she couldn’t bear to look at. She hadn’t yet reached the point of having the means to be independent.

"Alright, alright, my one remark has drawn so much from you," Rong Niang said, unwilling to dwell on contentious topics.

Jin Niang took the opportunity to change the subject. "Right, let’s talk about something lighter. Does the little one have a name yet?"

Rong Niang smiled happily. "His father is still poring over name books and hasn’t decided yet. For now, we just call him ‘Baobao.’"

As they spoke, neighbors and friends gradually dispersed. Jin Niang gently touched the baby’s head, not daring to use much force—their faces always seemed as soft as steamed peach fuzz to her.

The two sisters made small talk, and Rong Niang lowered her voice. "Jin Niang, you’re not young anymore. What are your plans? With your parents not around, you’ll have to mind your own prospects."

Though Jin Niang hadn’t been a staunch singlehood advocate in her modern life, her dedication to her career had always outweighed so-called love and marriage. Here in ancient times, it was the same. She feigned shyness and said, "It’s nothing much. My indenture ends next year, and only after returning to my parents can I make plans. I can’t very well marry another bondservant, can I?"

"Listening to you, I can see you have high aspirations," Rong Niang said, holding her hand.

Unlike when she first arrived, Rong Niang’s home now seemed quite comfortable. Still, she complained to Jin Niang, "Your brother-in-law is too busy. Today is your nephew’s third-day celebration, but later he still has to go out to see patients. Sometimes he even has to get up in the middle of the night. Thankfully, we’ve hired two servants now, so I’m much more at ease."

For some reason, Jin Niang thought of her somewhat aloof brother-in-law and couldn’t help advising Rong Niang, "Sister, I remember Aunt saying you were very talented at cooking and making cosmetics. Since you have help with the baby, why not ask your husband to open a shop for you once you’ve recovered?"

"You don’t manage a household, so you don’t know how expensive daily necessities are. In Bianjing, renting even a small shop costs seven or eight guan (strings of cash) a month. If I went into business, I might not even earn back the capital. Besides, running a shop would tie me down, and I can’t sit still for long," Rong Niang flapped her hand impatiently.

Jin Niang didn’t press further and simply smiled. "You’re right."

Rong Niang then added, both candidly and proudly, "Actually, you don’t need to worry about this. Your brother-in-law once treated a patient whose family runs a grain business. Since our hometown in Huguang produces grain and I know a few fellow townsfolk, I helped connect them and took a cut as middlewoman."

Jin Niang flushed slightly. "I spoke out of turn."

She wasn’t jealous of Rong Niang—she simply believed in self-improvement and that nothing good came without effort. Beauty and luck were fleeting advantages; only what one earned and experienced truly belonged to them.

But now she realized that her attitude might not be sustainable. After all, Rong Niang had a capable husband, excellent social connections, and a newborn son. Perhaps she was simply one of the lucky ones, fated to bask in her husband’s doting forever.

During the baby’s third-day bath, everyone gathered around a copper basin filled with water, dropping in symbolic items. Jin Niang glanced inside and saw scallions and copper coins. She tossed in a pair of silver anklets, which turned out to be the most valuable item in the basin.

Yet she felt little interest in the child. When she returned to the embroidery room, Si’er and Qiao Lian asked about the infant. Jin Niang simply replied, “Just a tiny thing with a red face. The crying unsettles me—I can’t bear it.”

The usually composed Madam Chen burst into laughter. “Spoken like a true young maiden! I was the same when I was your age—found parents boasting tiresome, and would cover my ears at a baby’s cry. But once you have your own child, you’ll find everything about them wonderful.”

The others laughed along. For now, Jin Niang had her own plans: return to Jiangling in a year, ask for higher wages from Shu Embroidery Studio, then seek a suitable match. A quiet, ordinary life would suffice.

With this distraction, the days of needlework became less tedious. At present, they were focused solely on preparing dowries for young brides, with no other tasks assigned.

But not long after the Ghost Festival, another joyous occasion arose in the Zhou household. The second young lady, Zhou Huihui, had been betrothed—to none other than Third Master He, the son of her aunt who had previously served as prefect of Jiangling and now held that post in wealthy Yangzhou.

Some whispered that Prefect He’s transfer to Yangzhou had come about through this advantageous match. However, the second young lady was displeased—she had "fallen ill," and Lan Xue was busy brewing bitter remedies for her.

Jin Niang, accustomed to such scenes, settled into the tea room. Lan Xue curled her lip. “See? Now everything smells of bitter remedies.”

“Why did the second young lady fall ill at such a time?” Jin Niang wondered aloud.

Truthfully, from an outsider’s perspective, few could endure the second young lady’s temper. The eldest daughter could suppress her nature, composing herself gracefully and navigating social interactions without revealing her thoughts. But the second young lady was different. Cousin marriages were customary in the Song Dynasty, and this match was quite suitable—Third Master He was scholarly, a relative, and Jiang Shi, knowing her daughter well, had deliberately chosen him.

Lan Xue chuckled. “You’re clever enough usually—how can you not see it? The elder weds into a prime minister’s family, while the younger only gets a prefect’s son. Wouldn’t you be upset too? But there’s no changing it. Third Master He is even staying in our residence now. If word got out about her dissatisfaction, she’d face consequences.”

Though these matters should have concerned them not, the fallout reached even Jin Niang—she was assigned to make a new set of clothes for the second young lady.

“Why me?” Jin Niang had become quite adept at embroidering quilt covers. Her previous design had been overly intricate in an attempt to show off, but this time, she chose a refined design of mandarin ducks playing among lotus leaves.

Though she had time to spare, Jin Niang had no desire to work for the temperamental second young lady.

Madam Chen sighed. “I heard she specifically asked for you.”

Jin Niang hesitated. “Last time, she said my work was unsatisfactory. I’m afraid my designs won’t please her.”

Madam Chen patted her shoulder. “There’s nothing I can do. She insisted. The madam dotes on her daughter, and we’re just hired hands. Don’t argue—just do as you’re told.”

“Mm.” Jin Niang took a deep breath and gathered her measuring tape and patterns.

When she arrived, the second young lady’s complexion looked fine, though her mood was clearly sour. Jin Niang mustered a smile. “Second Young Lady, let me take your measurements first. Then, you can tell me what kind of outfit you’d like. I’ll draw the design here now for your approval before selecting fabric from the storeroom.”

Perhaps worn down by recent disappointments, the second young lady found Jin Niang’s cheerful demeanor somewhat soothing—though she didn’t even lift her eyelids, muttering listlessly, “Just make whatever.”

Hearing “whatever,” Jin Niang knew she couldn’t take it literally. “With Mid-Autumn approaching, how about a soft red satin gown with a sheer outer layer? It would create a hazy effect, like *mist veiling cold water, moonlight veiling sand*. We could embroider osmanthus blossoms—what do you think?”

The second young lady, who had just said “whatever,” sat upright at “jade rabbits.” “No jade rabbits. The osmanthus is fine.”

“Osmanthus alone might seem too plain. Is there anything else you’d like embroidered?” Jin Niang asked.

The second young lady scowled. “What insolence! I said no rabbits means no rabbits!”

“Of course, as you wish.” Jin Niang bit back a sigh.

The second young lady glanced at her. “Didn’t you say you could draw? Show me a sketch first.”

Jin Niang nodded. “Very well. I’ll draw the design here now and work on the wedding quilt tonight. May I ask what color you’d prefer for the gown?”

No point laboring if the second young lady changed her mind later.

“Red, obviously. Are you stupid? You just mentioned it yourself.” The second young lady snapped.

Her attendants snickered, and one added, “Maybe eat less—your gluttony dulls both body and mind.”

"Worthless servant! Kneel in my room for a few hours before going out." The Second Miss found her presence annoying.

Jin Niang knelt down expressionlessly and remained silent, knowing the Second Miss was just letting off steam. Even if Jiang Shi heard about this, she would perceive it merely as her daughter's bad mood and wouldn't stand up for Jin Niang. But Jin Niang had no intention of letting this go unpunished.

She vowed to pay her back. Even though she was just a nobody, she refused to be trampled upon. Although she couldn’t get back at her immediately, she would certainly make sure the Second Miss paid dearly later.

While kneeling, Jin Niang’s mind drifted to how to embroider the mandarin-duck-patterned quilt. She considered whether she should do hollyhocks next—she had only embroidered hollyhocks once before, although they were an important motif in Shu embroidery (a Sichuan style). As she thought about it, her mind wandered to her mother—if her mother knew she was being toyed with and punished like this, she would fly into a rage.

The servants bustling around the Second Miss’s room went about their business of serving tea and running errands. Some even kicked Jin Niang aside, making a scornful click of the tongue because they found her in the way.

Yet Jin Niang remained lost in her own world until dinnertime, when visitors arrived—even Si Er from the sewing room came by. Only then did the Second Miss pretend to notice her again. "Oh, you can get up now. Remember your place from now on."

Her knees throbbed, and spots danced before her eyes as she stood. Jin Niang glanced at the Second Miss, thinking, *You made me kneel here so outsiders wouldn’t see, but I’m not Jiang Shanjie.*

Limping slowly toward the door, Jin Niang was met by Si Er rushing to support her—but suddenly, Jin Niang collapsed. Si Er gasped, "Oh no! Sister Jin Niang—she’s fainted!"

It was the busiest time of the evening, with people coming and going as meals were delivered throughout the house. Jin Niang’s collapse caused quite a stir, and even the Second Miss felt uneasy. The aunt’s sneaky tricks worked only on those who were insignificant—Shanjie was nobody, but Jin Niang had become the most celebrated embroideress in the household over the past two years, earning public praise from Jiang Shi for her exceptional work.

Little Si Er blurted out tearfully, "Sister Jin Niang… she isn’t dead, is she?"

...

Hearing the commotion, Jiang Shi asked Green Tassel, "What’s happening outside?"

Green Tassel hesitated. Unlike Yan Hong, she wasn’t close to Jin Niang and had no desire to speak ill of the Second Miss for a mere maid’s sake, so she tried to brush it off.

Zhang Shi also helped cover things up: "Seems like a servant tripped and fell."

"Stop lying to me—what really happened?" Jiang Shi pressed. Yan Hong had gone half-mad after her child was stillborn, and Jiang Shi feared she might be causing trouble again.

Only under pressure did Green Tassel finally admit, "It seems a maid from the sewing room fainted."

"Nonsense! The sewing maids are always busy with needlework. Just the other day, I saw Jin Niang embroidering a quilt—she told me she hadn’t even drunk water all day to focus on her work. Why would they come to the main house?" Jiang Shi grew more convinced it was Yan Hong’s doing and snapped, "Tell me the truth! If you keep stalling, I’ll punish you too!"

Fearing for her own safety, Green Tassel finally confessed. "It’s Jin Niang from the sewing room. She spent several hours today making clothes in the Second Miss’s room and collapsed when she left. She must have been exhausted."

Even Zhang Shi was speechless. The Zhou family was known for its decency—her own mother had praised Zhou’s First Madam for her household management and the Second Madam as a living bodhisattva, easy to get along with. Yet here they were, driving a servant to the point of fainting.

Jiang Shi sighed. "Green Tassel, stop wasting time and fetch a physician immediately."

Right after finalizing the marriage arrangement, mistreating a servant like this—even though He, the prospective son-in-law, usually studied at the Imperial College, he happened to be staying with the Zhou family during his break. If this wasn’t handled swiftly, rumors would spread, becoming leverage to use against her daughter once married.