“Madam Lin’s mind is far too narrow. She actually went so far as to take offense at a servant…”
Seeing that Madam Shi was gracious and reasonable, Madam Lin smiled as well.
“Madam Shi has shown us such kindness. If I continue refusing, I would only appear ungrateful.”
With Madam Shi mediating between them, the atmosphere in the room finally became somewhat more harmonious. Yan Xianzhi curved her lips into a smile and looked toward Madam Wang.
“Then it seems I will have no choice but to trouble your residence for a few days.”
Madam Wang was seething inwardly, but with Madam Shi beside her, she had no choice but to force a smile.
“What are you saying, Young Lady?”
Daiyu watched Madam Wang’s insincere smile from the side and silently withdrew her own smile. She reminded herself that she absolutely had to make her aunt bring her back as soon as possible.
Rongguo Estate.
Ever since Madam Wang and Fengjie had left, Jia Mu had felt that her right eyelid kept twitching. An uneasy feeling immediately arose in her heart.
With Fengjie accompanying her, Madam Wang should not cause any trouble, right?
As Yuanyang massaged Jia Mu’s legs, she smiled and said, “Old Madam, just put your heart at ease. They are only going to bring someone back.
How could anything possibly go wrong?”
“You have simply been thinking about Miss Lin too much, which is why you cannot stop worrying. Once Miss Lin arrives, your heart will naturally feel lighter, and you will feel much more comfortable.”
Jia Mu sighed.
“Let us hope so.”
As if to prove Jia Mu’s words, Amber came in to report.
“Old Madam, Miss Lin has arrived!”
Upon hearing this, Jia Mu’s eyes immediately lit up, and her face blossomed into a bright smile.
“Why have you not invited her in yet?”
Yuanyang was observant enough to notice that Amber’s smile looked somewhat stiff. She frowned.
“Miss Lin has arrived, has she not? Why are you making that expression?”
Amber hesitated before replying, “Miss Lin has indeed arrived, but she did not come alone.”
Jia Mu waved her hand with a smile.
“I thought it was something serious. Perhaps Yu’er brought that sister of hers along?”
“I heard her aunt also has a daughter around her age. The two girls must be very close and unwilling to part, so naturally she came along as well.”
“That is nothing. Surely our family is not so short of rooms that we cannot accommodate one additional person?”
After Jia Mu finished speaking, she noticed that the smile on Amber’s face had become even more awkward. She could not help staring at her in astonishment.
“What? Did her aunt come along as well?”
“That is somewhat unexpected, but Madam Lin has her own affairs to manage. She probably intends to stay only for a few days and will have to return eventually…”
The more Jia Mu spoke, the stranger Amber’s expression became. Seeing this, Yuanyang grew both anxious and curious and urged her softly.
“Tell the truth already. Are you deliberately trying to make Old Madam anxious?”
Amber gave a bitter smile.
“Old Madam, Miss Lin really did come with the Yan family’s young lady.
Madam Lin did not come, but each young lady brought one wet nurse, one governess, four personal senior maids, and eight junior maids. They even brought their own kitchen staff and sewing attendants. There are more than a dozen sedan chairs alone, not counting the carriages carrying their luggage.”
Jia Mu was completely stunned. It took her a long while to recover, and she could not help wondering inwardly.
Was Madam Lin acting this way because she was afraid Rongguo Estate would neglect Daiyu?
But then another thought occurred to her. Remembering what Wu You’s wife had done, she could only sigh.
“Madam Lin’s mind is far too narrow. She actually took offense at being a mere servant.”
Previously, Wu You’s wife had put on airs in front of Madam Lin. Her words had openly and subtly implied that the people Madam Lin had prepared were inadequate, while she had boasted about the grandeur and status of Rongguo Estate.
Madam Lin had said nothing at the time, but she had clearly held a grudge. Her actions today were obviously meant to flaunt her family’s wealth in front of Jia Mu.
Jia Mu naturally would not be like Wu You’s wife and consider the people prepared by the Yan family unworthy of appearing in respectable company.
Even so, she had never expected Madam Lin to send so many people over. When she calculated the expenses on her fingers, her brows immediately drew together.
“With so many people, the daily expenses must be considerable.”
In previous years, Jia Mu would never have cared about such expenses.
But over the past few years, the Jia family had lacked anyone influential enough to support them in the court. Their circumstances were naturally not what they had once been.
They still had to maintain the family’s reputation and outward dignity, while more silver flowed out than came in. The household expenses had gradually become tight.
Jia Mu was naturally overjoyed that Daiyu had come to stay at the estate, but the additional expenses truly gave her a headache.
Just as Jia Mu was worrying about this, a maid came to report.
“The second Mistress has returned.”
Yuanyang waited for a moment, but when she did not hear anything about Madam Wang, she exchanged a glance with Jia Mu. Both of them found it strange.
Madam Wang and Fengjie had gone to the Yan family’s imperial estate together, yet only Fengjie had returned.
Where was Madam Wang?
When Fengjie entered the room, she saw Jia Mu looking at her with a puzzled expression.
“Feng girl, why did Wang Shi not return with you?”
Fengjie sighed.
“Grandmother, Second Madam and I met my Second Aunt at the Yan residence. No matter what, Second Aunt insisted on taking Second Madam back to the Wang family residence to stay for a couple of days, so she sent me back to inform Old Madam.”
Jia Mu was slightly surprised. She had never expected Madam Shi to be there.
“The Wang family also has a relationship with the Yan family?”
“Old Master Yan was my Second Uncle’s teacher in his younger years, and Master Yan and Second Uncle also share the bond of having studied under the same teacher.”
Fengjie explained everything to Jia Mu.
“Second Aunt heard that Miss Lin and Miss Yan would be staying at our residence, so she offered to cover all the expenses for both young ladies while they are here. Of course, the young ladies have always enjoyed such treatment at the Yan residence. It was not as though we only made these arrangements after hearing that someone else would be paying.”
When Jia Mu heard that Madam Shi was willing to cover the expenses, a great weight lifted from her heart. She smiled.
“That goes without saying. It is only natural for unmarried young ladies to be treated with greater care. You have not even seen the kind of grandeur your mother enjoyed when she was still at home.”
Fengjie forced a smile.
“I have never had such good fortune. I suppose Second Madam must have seen it, though?”
Jia Mu nodded.
“Of course. There is an order of seniority among the children. Your Second Uncle had to marry first before Yu’er’s mother could leave the family and marry.”
At this point, Jia Mu suddenly felt that something was not right.
The Wang family and the Yan family could be said to have an old connection, but they were not even relatives. Why would Madam Shi be so attentive?
Besides, there was no need to mention the Yan family’s young lady for now.
Jia Mu herself had been the one who arranged for Daiyu to come to the capital. Naturally, Rongguo Estate should have been responsible for all her food and daily expenses. Why would they invite a relative to stay and then ask someone else to pay for her lodging and meals?
If that was the case, why had Madam Shi brought up paying the expenses?
How had the conversation even reached this point?
An unpleasant premonition rose in Jia Mu’s heart. She pushed herself upright from the couch.
“Feng girl, did Wang Shi say something to Madam Lin?”
Fengjie sighed and gave a bitter smile.
“Old Madam, please do not ask. Madam Lin said that Miss Lin and Miss Yan are very close and did not want to separate, so Miss Yan wanted to accompany Miss Lin and stay with us for a few days. But Second Madam said that the Yan girl wanted to stay at our residence because the Yan family could no longer afford to support her, and that she had come here simply to freeload.”
Upon hearing this, Jia Mu’s heart grew heavy. Yet strangely, she was not shocked. Instead, she felt an almost helpless sense of inevitability.
Madam Wang truly did not want Daiyu to come to Rongguo Estate. For that reason, she had even been willing to say such ugly things.
“Did Madam Lin simply listen to that without saying anything?”
Fengjie shook her head.
“Old Madam, please do not ask about that. The Yan family is no ordinary household. Would they really be willing to swallow such humiliation?”
“Besides, Second Aunt went there to visit on behalf of Second Uncle. After hearing her own sister in law say something like that, how could she pretend she had not heard it?”
“Second Madam’s words were unpleasant, but she certainly did not gain anything from them. Instead, she came away carrying a stomach full of anger.”
“That is why the moment Second Madam left the imperial estate, Second Aunt called her into the carriage.”
“In my opinion, this matter will probably not be hidden from Second Uncle.
Second, Madam still has a great deal of scolding waiting for her when she returns to the Wang family.”
Jia Mu nodded and sighed.
“In that case, I shall simply pretend I know nothing about it.”
In Madam Wang’s eyes, Wang Ziteng and Madam Shi’s words carried far more weight than those of an old woman like Jia Mu.
Since Wang Ziteng was willing to step forward and discipline his younger sister, Jia Mu would simply pretend she knew nothing. Otherwise, after Madam Wang was reprimanded by her, she might not think about how to make amends and instead end up resenting Jia Mu.
“Where is Yu’er now?”
Fengjie replied, “The two young ladies brought an extraordinary number of attendants and pieces of luggage. We could not simply find some random place and pile everything there, so I took the liberty of choosing a Pear Fragrance Courtyard and temporarily settled them there.”
“I came here partly to report this to you and partly to ask for your approval. Is this arrangement acceptable?”
Jia Mu nodded.
“That was where the Grand Ancestor spent his later years cultivating peace and quiet. I originally did not wish to disturb it, but there are simply too many attendants accompanying the two girls. Apart from the dozen or so rooms there, there is no more suitable place.”
“Your arrangement is quite appropriate. Let it be.”
Fengjie nodded and smiled.
“The young ladies should have settled in by now. They will probably come to pay their respects to Old Madam shortly.”
Jia Mu composed herself. The thought that she would soon see her granddaughter naturally put her in an excellent mood.
Meanwhile, Daiyu and Yan Xianzhi were led by the servants to Jia Mu’s residence.
After thinking about her day and night, Jia Mu finally saw Daiyu. Tears immediately filled her eyes. She pulled Daiyu into her arms and sobbed uncontrollably.
Although Daiyu was angry with Madam Wang, seeing her own maternal grandmother still made her sad, and tears slowly slipped from her eyes as well.
Yan Xianzhi watched from the side and could not help worrying. Although such tears were perfectly natural, Daiyu’s tears were precious indeed. How could she endure shedding so many?
She gently offered a few words of comfort.
“Seeing your maternal grandmother should be a happy occasion. Yu’er ought to smile more. If you make Old Madam too sorrowful and upset, I fear it will not be good for her.”
After crying for a while, Daiyu’s emotions eased somewhat. She wiped away her tears and smiled.
“Elder Sister is right. Look at me, I was so busy crying that I made Grandmother sad as well. That was my fault.”
Jia Mu held back her sorrow and smiled too.
“How could that possibly be your fault?”
Everyone exchanged greetings and established their places according to age and seniority before taking their seats.
Yan Xianzhi sat in the lower seat according to the proper order, while Jia Mu pulled Daiyu beside her and had her sit near the edge of the raised couch.
Besides Yan Xianzhi and Daiyu, the room also contained Madam Xing, Li Wan, Fengjie, and the Three Spring Sisters.
Jia Mu held Daiyu’s hand and carefully asked about Jia Min, from the time she first became ill, to seeking doctors and taking medicine, and finally to the point when treatment failed and preparations were made for the funeral.
As she spoke, she could not help becoming sorrowful again. Holding Daiyu’s hand, she said,
“Of all my children, the one I loved most was your mother. Yet I had to watch an elder bury a younger one. How could I possibly not grieve?”
“Now that you have come, stay peacefully in the estate. Whenever I see you, it will be as though I am seeing your mother. Think of it as fulfilling your filial duty to your mother in her place.”