After the whole family was swept away, I lay down flat

Chapter 704 Manpower
Haitang was standing in the front yard. She heard the gate of the Jin family opening and closing, and then opening and closing again. Then three groups of people rode away on fast horses. She felt that something must have happened to the Jin family.

Otherwise, why would they send people out one after another so early in the morning when it was still light? Is this a fast messenger? Is there some important news that needs to be sent to the capital as soon as possible?
Haitang put away the whip in her hand and walked back to the backyard, thinking that she would go back to ask Jin Jiashu. Even if it was not as convenient for her to talk to him as before, she should at least have an idea in her mind and remind him when necessary.

After returning to the house and changing her clothes, Haitang combed her hair again, dressed casually, and went to the upper room in the main courtyard to have breakfast.

Grandfather Hai Xiya got up early today and had almost finished his meal. When he saw his granddaughter coming over, he smiled at her lovingly, picked up his felt hat, put on a large cloak, and prepared to go out to the yamen.

Ma personally tied the big cloak for him, muttering, "I asked Ma Changnian to go out with you. If you need anything, just ask him to run errands. There are snacks in the lunch box. If you are hungry, eat something first. I also asked him to bring the hand warmer and foot warmer. If you feel cold writing in the room, ask Ma Changnian to make it for you. Don't try to save trouble and bear it in silence. If you get cold, you will be in trouble. Last year, you had frostbite and it was uncomfortable to even pick up a pen to write. Don't let it happen again this year!"

Hai Xiya listened to her chattering every day, but he didn't find it annoying. He responded with good temper and never forgot to remind her in return: "Don't stay alone at home, think less about your son and grandson, ask someone to talk to you when you are free, or go visit your acquaintances, or go back to your mother's house to visit your brother and sister-in-law, but remember to dress warmly and don't catch a cold."

Ma smiled and said angrily, "I know it, why do you have to nag me?!" She personally escorted Hai Xiya out the door.

Usually at such times, Haitang would be very tactful and quietly pretend to be a wallflower, and would never highlight her presence in front of her grandparents, making her look like a very bright oil lamp. Anyway, with the caring instructions of her grandfather Hai Xiya, Ma would be in a good mood after sending her husband back, and at least she would be able to hold on for an hour or two without being depressed, which was more effective than Haitang coming up with a hundred jokes to make her grandmother happy, so of course she would not say much.

As expected, Ma came back in a happy mood, and brought Aunt Cui and Ma Youli's family with her.

When Haitang was having breakfast, Aunt Cui and Aunt Ma were talking about the marriage of the latter's eldest granddaughter Grape. Grape was promised to Zhou Xiaojian of the Jin family a few years ago. Now that he is older, Zhou Xiaojian's family is looking forward to him getting married soon. The two elders got together to discuss and decided to hold the wedding in November this year. Now the date has been set.

Aunt Ma came to Ma to announce the good news, and to ask for a wedding leave for her eldest granddaughter. It was impossible to quit her job. When Zhou Ma transferred Ma Youli's family to her sister Ma's name, she also transferred the ownership of their entire family. Now Grape is about to marry Zhou Xiaojian. Since Zhou Xiaojian is a son of a military household and a good citizen, Grape must be released before she can marry. Ma had already given her grace and went to the government to register her, but after marriage she still had to return to the Hai family to work, but at that time she was a hired servant, not a family child.

Ma Youli's family is very satisfied with Zhou Xiaojian, their grandson-in-law. They were worried that this marriage would not be successful in the early years. Now that the wedding date has been set and their eldest granddaughter's marriage has been successfully completed, they feel at ease. Aunt Ma couldn't help but smile when she talked about it: "When the time comes, the family will set up two tables in a nearby restaurant to entertain relatives and friends, and also invite the master, the mistress, the second grandmother, and the young masters and girls in the family to come and have a glass of wedding wine." Ma smiled and said, "We won't go. Jinhua (referring to Aunt Cui) and her husband will go to congratulate us. Grape is a good girl, and Zhou Xiaojian is also a good young man. They can achieve a marriage, and they will definitely live in harmony in the future. You don't have to worry!"

Aunt Ma couldn't stop laughing. When Ma ordered Aunt Cui to give her the big red envelope and two bundles of dowry given to Pu Tao, her smile became even more cheerful.

Haitang put down her chopsticks after breakfast without saying anything. Grape had served her for a while, and later basically worked for Second Aunt Hu. However, she also contributed a lot to Grape's dowry, and had added a pair of small silver-gilt flower hairpins and four pieces of cloth a few days ago. Grape came to kowtow to her in person, but she stopped him and gave him another reward. Because of this, Grape's sister Shi Liu has been extra attentive when serving her recently. No matter how she said she didn't need anyone to serve her, Shi Liu would always come to the backyard to ask her if she needed anything. She couldn't help but feel worried, fearing that one day when she climbed over the wall to the neighboring Jin family, she would be discovered by the overly responsible maid, and everyone would be embarrassed.

Ma Li's family left happily, carrying a lot of bags. Aunt Cui saw her off all the way and smiled when she came back, "Look how happy Caixia is. She wasn't this happy when her son got married. It's obvious that she found a good grandson-in-law who suits her taste."

Ma said, "I heard her say before that Zhou Xiaojian has found a job. The Jin family has a lot of connections. Once Zhou Xiaojian joins the army, it won't be hard for her to get promoted. By then, Grape will be an official's wife, which is definitely better than being a maid now. Caixia was very ambitious when she was young, but she just had bad luck. Although she doesn't have that blessing now, she is naturally happy that her granddaughter has a chance to succeed."

Aunt Cui sighed, "If Zhou Xiaojian really joins the army and becomes an officer, we won't be able to keep Grape to work. We are short-handed at home, and Second Madam is still short of people. Madam, isn't it time for us to have a new person?" After saying that, she glanced at Haitang and said, "There has been no big maid in my sister's room. Only Shi Liu helps with the rough work. There is no one to watch at night. It's really unreasonable. My sister is too wronged."

Haitang didn't expect that she would suddenly mention herself, and hurriedly said, "It's okay for me. I usually stay in the main courtyard during the day, either talking and eating with grandma, or reading in the west wing. I only go back to the backyard at night, so I don't need anyone to serve me. It's enough to have Shi Liu to help with some rough work from time to time. I can handle small things like pouring tea and water by myself. Grandma needs help to take care of such a big family. Now that my second uncle has gone away, my second aunt is in urgent need of help. Grape is going to get married, so she will have to take at least ten days off. For such a long time, my second aunt still has Xiao Shitou, so she can't do without someone to help. I was thinking about letting Shi Liu go to my second aunt to help. Aunt Cui really doesn't have to worry about my house."

Aunt Cui sighed, "I know that my sister is considerate and worried that the Madam and the Second Mistress would not have enough people to serve them, so she would rather suffer. But our family is now a well-known official family. Adding a few more servants is really nothing. How can we let my sister take care of herself without even a maid to serve tea and water? When we were in Suzhou, we had Jinguo to take care of my sister! Now we have lived in Chang'an for several years. The master has been promoted and will go to the capital next year. Is our family not as grand as when we were in Suzhou?"

"This is indeed a problem." Ma also became serious. "I originally thought that the people at home would be enough for the time being. When we enter the capital next year, we have never lived there and don't know what the rules are. We will have to buy or hire a few local maids to ask about it clearly, and then add more people. Otherwise, it will be troublesome to bring too many people to the capital over 2,000 miles away. But now Chang'an and Baoshun have taken Dazhuang and his son away, and Grape is getting married, so the family is really short of manpower... Jinhua, go and call a reliable matchmaker so that we can choose the new bride."

(End of this chapter)