Chapter 52 Merely Half Master, Half Servant

Chapter 52: Nothing But Half-Mistress, Half-Servant

"You're talking to me about 'rules'? You must be joking, right?" Xi Qianyue's face turned icy. "I'm just telling you, not bargaining with you. Anyway, I don't even have to say it—you'll do it on your own."

Xi Qianyue grinned happily, as if she could already picture Xi Jiaojiao looking pathetic.

"Are you still going to offer me the mistress's tea?"

"Of course, I have to."

Xi Jiaojiao hastily offered tea to Xi Qianyue, addressing her as "First Madam."

"You may leave now. You've been through enough."

Xi Qianyue gave her a sympathetic look and waved her away.

Qing Bi led Xi Jiaojiao and her maid out with disdain, and at the courtyard gate, she tossed out, "Take care of yourself."

Xi Jiaojiao's face went pale with fury, and Qing Bi kept taunting her: "Concubine Jiao, do you still think you're the Second Miss? Now you're just a concubine."

"Even as a concubine, I'm more respectable than you."

"Is that so? You're just half-mistress, half-servant—no, actually, we're both just servants to the First Madam. If she tells us to kneel, we'd better not stand. Right?"

After dropping that taunt, Qing Bi turned and walked off, not even bothering to look at Xi Jiaojiao's face.

"That insolent wench! How dare she!" Xi Jiaojiao trembled with rage, barely able to choke out the words.

Lv Zhi was shocked too. She never thought Qing Bi would turn out like this!

Back in the Xi family, even though Qing Bi had a fiery temper, the First Madam always kept her in line—how could she be so rude now?

Could it be that because the eldest miss had become the legitimate wife, she was riding on her master's coattails?

Both mistress and maid returned to the courtyard fuming, and had the main kitchen deliver their meals.

"What is this? Two vegetable dishes! Even servants eat better than this."

Xi Jiaojiao was about to lose it. What the heck was this? One plate of stir-fried wood ear mushrooms, and one bowl of leafy green soup.

"Concubine Jiao, this is the standard ration for concubines in the mansion. If the concubine wishes to eat better, she can contribute some silver and order dishes." Old Lady Zhang said with a nasty grin.

In truth, the mistress of the house already had some silver in hand, and the main kitchen's purchasing didn't have to be this stingy. Though servants did eat vegetables, the masters always had two meat and two veg dishes.

But Concubine Jiao was merely a concubine—she didn't count as a master. Just like the Marquis's Concubine Qin, who had always eaten simply and rarely touched meat.

When Xi Jiaojiao was in the Xi family, Zeng Shi, as the legitimate wife, had been kind and fair, never shortchanging the concubines' rations.

Xi Jiaojiao figured the Marquis's mansion should be even more proper, right?

Yet on the very second day after she arrived, this happened.

"Concubine, if you don't need anything else, I'll be going now."

Old Lady Zhang sneered to herself. Wasn't this Concubine Jiao the First Madam's own younger sister? How had she fallen so low?

Lv Zhi quickly stuffed a big wad of coins into Old Lady Zhang's hand: "Nanny Zhang, our concubine would like steamed egg custard and braised pork. Please, just make these for us, at least."

Old Lady Zhang beamed with delight: "You got it! Concubine, wait a moment. From now on, if you want anything, just say so ahead of time, so we can get ready. Otherwise..."

Otherwise, it's back to two veggie dishes.

Old Lady Zhang didn't need to finish her sentence—Xi Jiaojiao knew exactly what she meant.

She had to grease palms!

Lv Zhi followed Old Lady Zhang to the main kitchen and managed to get the food.

"Calm down, Concubine. I just peeked into the main kitchen—there really weren't many good dishes. They're all reserved for the mansion's masters. The servants' food is never that good—just enough to fill your stomach."

Xi Jiaojiao still couldn't believe it. This was the Marquis's mansion, after all!

Of course, by dinner, Xi Jiaojiao had Lv Zhi grease the kitchen's palms again.

The next day, Yang Luo and Yang Yao actually came to Xi Jiaojiao's courtyard, which made her overjoyed.

The three young women naturally chatted about clothes and jewelry.

As they chatted, many of Xi Jiaojiao's silks and trinkets ended up in the hands of the Yang sisters.

"Jiaojiao, this is so pretty. Look how good it looks on me."

"Jiaojiao, aren't I fair-skinned? This rose-red brocade is perfect for me."

"Jiaojiao..."

With all those "Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao" calls, how could she say no?

The moment she showed the slightest reluctance, the Yang sisters would always roll their eyes at her.

"Aren't you my eldest brother's concubine? My eldest brother adores me."

"We're the Marquis's daughters. Even associating with a concubine like you is below us. I thought we could get along, but it turns out..."

Xi Jiaojiao was on the verge of collapse. After finally managing to send them off, she took stock of her belongings and realized she'd lost a ton of stuff.

When the two sisters left the courtyard, their maidservants' arms were piled high—stuffed to overflowing!

Lv Zhi also complained for a while, but in the end, she could only comfort Xi Jiaojiao again.

"Concubine, there's no choice. You've got to win the eldest young master's favor and hope for the future."

Didn't Xi Jiaojiao know this?

Yet knowing was one thing—life was still a real struggle.

The servants of the Marquis's mansion kept coming to her to get money!

Xi Jiaojiao and Lv Zhi were both stunned. When they learned it was on the lady's orders, they were even more speechless.

"Concubine Jiao, it's because the lady thinks highly of you that she's asked you to keep an eye on the mansion's shopping. Isn't it handy for you to eat and drink whatever you like?"

Old Lady Zhang's words were honey-sweet!

Fine—she'd pay for her own food and drink, she accepted that! But everyone else's meals were also on her tab!

Xi Qianyue sipped her mung bean porridge, listening to the maidservants' reports, and laughed so hard she nearly doubled over.

"This is too funny. She fought to get into this shabby Marquis's mansion—what a riot. Let's make a bet: how long will Xi Jiaojiao's money last?"

The maidservants joined in the fun, some saying two months, others half a year.

A few days later, Xi Jiaojiao could no longer hold out and came to see Xi Qianyue again.

"Elder sister, Madam, what kind of rule is it that a concubine like me has to support the whole marquis household?"

Xi Qianyue didn't bother to hide her smile: "You're talking about 'rules' again? As for rules, Lady Wu loves to talk about them—go discuss them with her. You'll get nowhere talking to me about that. Of course, you could follow my example, support your own people, and fight back!"

Xi Jiaojiao's eyes went wide in shock. How could she dare to fight back like Xi Qianyue did?

She was merely a concubine—if she made a move, wouldn't she be kicked out immediately?

Of course, even if she were the rightful wife, she wouldn't dare...

Only then did she truly realize how bold Xi Qianyue was.

"Why aren't you afraid he'll divorce you?" Xi Jiaojiao asked, utterly incredulous. "You're so audacious and reckless..."

"If he divorced me, I'd still live well—I have plenty of money! But if he divorced me, Yang Xingxian would be finished too. He still dreams of being made an heir. If he dared to divorce me or seek a separation, he could forget that dream entirely."

Only then did Xi Jiaojiao understand that she and Xi Qianyue were fundamentally different.