The Concubine's Survival Manual

Chapter 180

To take over the hot burden from Mrs. Fifth Young Madam, there are only a few things that Seventh Lady is afraid of: first, the three-day birthday banquet reception and reception arrangements are not good, the guests are treated coldly, or the internal affairs Something went wrong.The second thing is that there was a quarrel between the servants, and if it was revealed afterwards, Qin Niangzi would inevitably be charged with unfairness.The third thing is that the mothers in charge are using her banner to cause trouble everywhere, which is disgusting.

That's why Qin Niangzi took over the housework, first went through the process of the housekeepers at the birthday banquet, and invisibly sorted out all the things everyone had to do, and if they didn't do well, it would be easy to hold them accountable.Which of these mothers in charge is not a human being, and when no one can look at it, there are times when the soy sauce bottle is upside down and cannot be held up.But now I know when I should do what, whether I should do it or not, whether it is done well or not, from the eyes of the superiors, it is easy to see at a glance, how dare I not do it with my heart?

Besides, this filing method seems to be idle, but after careful consideration, it becomes more and more wrong the more I think about it.

Liufang will come to power one day, even if it is not today or tomorrow, unless Seventh Lady dies tomorrow, there will always be a day when she will speak.Even if these mothers instruct the subordinates to deliberately arrange some things to come out, and the trouble is boring, she can bear it now, and in a few years, the things may be forgotten.

But a good memory is not as good as a bad pen. This account book is not bad. Why not keep accounts? There were rumors in the house, and she took advantage of the trend to investigate. The person who did not register was obviously guilty.Do you need to register? If there is a reason, there are witnesses, and it is not so easy to play tricks on the file. ——You can deny what you said, but can you still deny what you wrote?If the mothers in charge want to take chicken feathers as an arrow and make people complain about Qin Niangzi's intentions, they must beware of her holding evidence and settling accounts later.

With such an understatement, the whole situation was settled in an orderly manner immediately, and everyone understood the consequences of going against Qin Niangzi: maybe she will not do well in these three days, but after three days, the things recorded in this file will always be One day it will be my own reminder.

The Fifth Young Madam's ability to be the housekeeper among several sisters-in-law does have her strengths: this young woman is meticulous in temperament, scheming and secretive, she knows how to endure when she is in charge of the house, and she is also ruthless when fighting with the mothers in charge , indeed has the courage to be the head of the house.

But compared with Qin Niangzi, her wrists are so mediocre and rough...

People don't fight with you at all!Today's pretentiousness is to warn these mothers in charge: Even if there are various means, you can underestimate the mistress for a while, and give her soft nails in the open and in the dark, but the master is the master, and the servant is the servant.People keep it in mind, there is too much time to fix you!
Not to mention that I was still supporting her on the sidelines, so that people could clearly know that with Mrs. Xu's support, the title of the eldest son, the day when Seventh Lady will be in power will never be far away!

She glanced around the room, seeing that everyone was silent, she felt a little admiration in her heart unexpectedly.

Even Mrs. Duke, at her age, probably doesn't have such a subtle way to control people's hearts in the palm of her hand, and immediately establish her majesty.

Of course, establishing prestige is only the first step. Although Qin Niangzi took this step beautifully, to be a qualified headed mistress is far from being enough to establish prestige.

Just as she was meditating, Seventh Lady looked at the clock face and said with a smile, "It's almost time for dinner, everyone go back to eat. I have already sent someone to tell you to go to Mingde Hall to answer all the chores at home in the afternoon. Some of you have multiple jobs, so you have to work a few more steps, and come into Mingde Hall after the clock strikes two o'clock."

When she was about to get up, she glanced at the old mother again.

The old mother came back to her senses immediately, stood up respectfully, and saluted deeply. "Mrs. Shizi, go slowly."

"Mrs. Shizi, go slowly." Everyone immediately followed the old mother to salute, and unconsciously, they had already changed their names.

#
Because of the upcoming wedding in the Duke’s Mansion, two housekeeping systems have been created invisibly outside the house. One is the personnel team drawn out to organize weddings, and the other is the small personnel team that usually serves the masters. It's about reorganizing the birthday feast in the morning, and I will deal with housework in the afternoon. Fortunately, the family has been busy recently, and the little master He Xian is sick. There are not too many things, and they are not of great importance. Seventh Lady is out of Mingde Hall Several times, the relatives who came to celebrate the birthday of the family settled down, had to meet and recognize their relatives, and invited the sisters-in-law to come out to meet each other.

At night, Xu Fengjia was left by the emperor to discuss matters in the palace again, and she couldn't come out for a while, so she ate alone, went to play with Shiro and Goro for a while, and then invited the old mother to talk.

"These eleven housekeepers are the most popular people in the mansion these years." The old mother laughed before she could speak, and she unexpectedly became a little more flattering to Seventh Lady. "They are all old people who have been deeply rooted in the mansion for many years. The younger masters will always smile when they see each other. It is the first time that the directors have been able to adjust them to such obedience--it's not that the old man is boasting, but these years The young lady has such a skill!"

Seventh Lady smiled, unfolded the loose-leaf roster written by Shang Yuan, and greeted the old mother and Bai Lu, "Let's watch together."

"This is from the Lin Shan family, and her husband Lin Shan is..." While chatting with Bai Lu and the old mother, she wrote down more detailed files. "I'm in charge of gold and silver utensils. This is the place with the richest oil and water. There is no one behind it. It's not long standing—"

While speaking, Seventh Lady glanced at the old mother.

The old mother immediately understood, and she smiled, "The Linshan family is someone who was used by the madam. Over the years, she has always been very respectful to Qingpingyuan."

It's no wonder that she was the most obedient, she lowered her head before Qiniangzi's eyes swept over her.

Seventh Lady hummed, and tidied up again, "This Lei Xianqing's family has a lot of oil and water, and dealing with men from outside is usually a must..."

I managed seven or eight people along the way, and figured out the family distribution of these people, and then asked the old mother to write some comments, and Seventh Lady picked up another piece of paper.

"The accountant's family." She said slowly. "I'm in charge of all the relatives who come to give presents and take care of them in return, the exchange of favors, storage and delivery. But it's also a fat job."

For a family like the Xu family, the annual entertainment is a huge expense, and if there is any expense, it is oil and water.Besides, relatives and friends come and go, and there are precious gifts every year. Zhang accountant is a rich job as an accountant outside, and his wife can get to this point in the inner courtyard. It can be seen that this family is regarded as a popular servant of the Xu family. up.

The old mother just laughed, "This is an old man left by Mrs. Tai, and she usually helps to write the accounts in the small account room. Human relations and expenses are new errands that I got a few years ago."

Seventh Lady took a look at her, and unexpectedly remembered that the fifth young lady had deliberately dismissed herself and dismissed Zhang's accountant's family on an errand during the audit the previous day.

Husband and wife working together in the account room is actually a big taboo in the family. Internal and external communication must be manipulated, which is convenient and difficult to see through. They are also Mrs. Tai's people...

Qin Niangzi immediately thought of the abnormal behavior of the fifth young lady when she first entered the door.

Interesting, if she hadn't been deeply impressed by the fifth young lady's moody temper, she would almost have thought that the fifth young lady was guilty——

Seventh Lady's brows frowned little by little, and in her heart she had expressed the performance of Fifth Young Madam over the past few months.

As soon as he entered the door, he knocked on himself first, showing off his might, and showing off to Qin Niangzi, who held the entire Xu family's personnel affairs in the palm of her hand.Afterwards, she became very soft again, and gave whatever she wanted, although she complained, but Qin Niangzi gave in with a little pressure, and the speed of submission was astonishingly fast.

If I was not Yang Qi, but a daughter who had just arrived, any concubine who had received traditional education and was appreciated by her aunt filled the house, and faced with the attitude of the fifth young lady, what would I think?
Although I want to take over the housework, my fifth sister-in-law is very strict about the housework. I am new here and I am not stable enough. Should I wait a little longer?After all, although Fifth Sister-in-law is domineering, she never dares to go too far with me, the eldest wife.

The most wonderful thing is that Mrs. Fifth Young Master's pretentiousness can be persistent and repeatedly described until it leaves a deep mark in a person's heart. If it weren't for Seventh Lady's rolling on the tip of a knife for many years, she has developed a whole body of consciousness. I'm afraid she really will be able to hide the good skill of the wink.

If she was an ordinary concubine and was deceived by the attitude of the fifth young lady, she would not be eager to take over the housework.The Fifth Young Madam won half a year for herself.

In half a year, what will she do, what can she do?
Combined with Zhang Zhangfang's abnormal secretiveness, and his performance of turning his eyes away when he dare not look at him, the answer seems to be ready.

Although the Fifth Young Madam's natal family is prominent, it is only an empty name. There are many children in the family, and it is said that there are not many dowries.It's not like the Yang family, the two daughters added up and accompanied a huge sum of money to enter the Xu family.

It's certainly not uncommon to want to fill the pockets of officials at a loss... In this way, the performance of the fifth young lady in the past few months seems to have been strung together by an invisible thread.She will suddenly let go and let herself take over the housework. It seems that the account has been settled?Otherwise, it would not be possible to transfer Zhang Accountant's family away years ago.

But no matter how even the account is done, it is impossible not to find traces...

Seventh Lady came back to her senses and smiled apologetically at the old mother.

"Don't blame mom for being distracted for a while."

She began to check the eleven mothers in charge one by one, and the old mother once again pointed out Cai Le's family: This is the chief cashier of the inner courtyard, who is in charge of monthly money distribution and money expenditure, and it is also left by Mrs. Tai Old foundation.

Speaking of which, among the eleven mothers in charge, there are only five with a clear-cut banner. Cai Le’s family and Zhang Accountant’s family have the color of Mrs. Lin Shan’s family, Lei Xianqing’s family, and Peng Hu’s family—in charge of the internal and external kitchens. The purchases are all related to Mrs. Xu's direct descendants, and the remaining five or six are not well-established in the mansion, and whoever is in charge will listen to them. Even if there are rebellious ones, it is only out of temperament, but they are not qualified to stand in line.

If the Xu family is compared to a family business, then the cashier, the manager of the public relations department and the purchasing, warehousing, and dispatching are standing on both sides with clear latitude and longitude. It's really not easy to be a housewife.

When handing in the first shift, Qin Niangzi got up to see her old mother, "In the next few days, it is necessary for my mother to take care of me."

The old mother smiled even more kindly. "The old slave has his own affairs. Young Madam, please don't be polite to the old slave. If there is anything you can use, just send someone to invite me."

She moved to Qin Niangzi's ear mysteriously again, "Madam heard about the young lady's actions, she was so happy that she ate a few more mouthfuls of food in the evening, and she just said: Mr. Quan has been ordering for so long, until today, I That’s why you don’t have to worry about anything, and you can recuperate well.”

Although Qin Niangzi didn't care much about the privately revealed praise, she couldn't help but smile along with her old mother, "It's because I'm a good wife that I can make my mother eat and sleep soundly."

The two looked at each other and smiled, and how many words were left in silence.

When she had to send the old mother away, she dragged Bai Lu back and sat next to the roster.

"Did you remember what the old mother said tonight?" Seventh Lady asked this sweet round-faced young woman with a smile.

Inviting the old mother over tonight is not only to find out the details of these 11 people, but also to let Bai Lu have a focus on tackling key problems in the future.The Xu family has a big business, and the servants don't know everything. Bai Lu is just such a person. If she wants to gossip, she also has to find the right partner.

Bai Lu grinned and compared her Heavenly Court, "It's all in it, even if I forget it, I can't forget it."

She paused, and then said, "Actually, these mothers are famous people. Usually when the inferior women start nagging, they can't do without these people. I listened to it for a while, and what the old mother said just now It's not too bad, Shen Sitang is remote, and the courtyard is full of dowry brought by Mrs. Wu. Speaking of the whole courtyard, among the servants who can get on the table, that is, Luo Wen's family gave birth to a son, his mother and Zhang Accountant's family The first one is a sister, but it is said that her biological mother passed away early, and the two families have no relationship - it seems that not many people know about it. The rest of them have only been here for a few years, and like us, they don't have many relatives and friends in the mansion .”

It belongs to the accountant's family again.

The appearance of Xiao Fuchun appeared in front of Seventh Lady again... Such a delicate and timid little girl, no matter how you look at it, she is just a material for handling internal affairs. The Fifth Young Madam is willing to keep a right-hand man by her side, why not Simply be more generous and leave the ribbing?Besides, watching her answer my questions, I always have to think back half a beat later, and I know that Xiao Fuchun is by no means as familiar with internal affairs as Luo Wen.

Did he not want to let himself know the relationship between Zhang Accountant's and Rib Wen?
"This fifth sister-in-law." She couldn't help muttering to herself. "It's really a master."

She closed her eyes, and called out the memory of the first day of listening in her heart.

At that time, she decided to listen in, and it was also on a whim. The fifth young lady seemed a little flustered, and she had a few words with her, but neither of them changed their expressions.In the afternoon, instead, he made himself late on purpose. If it wasn't for Qiniangzi's early arrival, she might have already ordered the entire accounting.

He just heard that he was going to attend the housekeeper, so he called the people in the account room for a small meeting, wouldn't that be self-reporting?With the intelligence of the fifth young lady, of course she would not do this, so she could only wait until the afternoon to distract herself before she could verbally hint at the accountants to do small tricks?
No, no, although Zhang Accountant's family didn't come in to answer that morning, Mrs. Wu could send Luo Wen to pass on the message. If there was anything tricky between them, the buffer this morning was enough for several people to communicate in private.Besides, Madam Fifth still had time to go back to have lunch, so why did she have to call someone in to talk in the afternoon when she might enter the flower hall at any time?
She opened her eyes and ordered Bai Lu softly.

"For a while, you and Xiao Fuchun are more likely to walk around... Try to see the child's disposition, if he is easy to talk to. Ask Fifth Sister-in-law if she was proud of her mother's family when she was not married... Was her mother's family rich or not?"

Bai Lu's eyes narrowed, and she agreed without hesitation. "Don't worry, girl, even if she doesn't say anything, there are always unhappy people everywhere."

Seventh Lady sighed in relief: she knew that Bai Lu understood what she meant.

There were hurried footsteps outside again, and after a while, Zhongyuan came in to report back. "Young lady, the wife of the third aunt from Yangzhou sent someone to spread the word that she will be able to enter Beijing from Tongzhou tomorrow. The news was sent to Shen Sitang, and the fifth young lady asked Xiao Fuchun to come and bring the news: Say the third aunt My wife is impatient, so she went directly to Beijing without posting a letter, I'm afraid it will be difficult to prepare a place for a while. Please figure it out."

Rao is that the Pingguo Mansion is quite large, but these days it has been filled up one after another by relatives and friends who came to Beijing to celebrate their birthdays. With such a large group of people here, how to settle down is really a problem.Qin Niangzi sighed, "Call Xiao Fuchun in to talk! How many people are here? Did Fifth Sister-in-law say what to do?"

I had no choice but to send messages back and forth with the Fifth Young Madam to discuss, and it was agreed to clean out several vacant rooms in Lutianyin, and give them to the third aunt and others, and temporarily leased a few nearby inn yards for emergencies.When it was time for the second shift, even Xu Fengjia went back to the room to wash up before finalizing the matter.

After being so busy for several days, until April [-]th, one after another, close relatives and friends have already come to drink.

(End of this chapter)