The three of them—mistress and servants—would have new clothes made each season. The original owner had at least ten sets from inside out, while Nanny Su and Ren Dong had fewer, but still two sets each. Even so, the three of them only had a little over a dozen sets of clothes in total.
Yet now, hanging in the courtyard were at least several dozen pieces, not to mention that besides women’s clothing, there were also men’s and elderly people’s garments.
Xi Ning looked at the evasive expressions of Nanny Su and the other, steadied herself against the doorframe, and stepped out.
“Speak. What’s going on?”
Ren Dong was not as experienced as Nanny Su. Seeing her mistress’s cold expression, she spilled everything like beans pouring out of a bag.
“Miss, please don’t blame Nanny Su. This laundry work is something we both took on, and we only do it during our spare time. We’ve never neglected your affairs.”
How could Xi Ning blame them? Seeing their expressions and the courtyard full of clothes, she understood everything.
She helped the little maid kneeling on the ground to her feet and asked Nanny Su, “How much money do we have left at home?”
Nanny Su rubbed her hands on her clothes, looking uneasy. “Less than one string of cash.”
One string of cash was equivalent to one tael of silver. Prices in the capital were not low—food, clothing, and daily necessities all required money. Moreover, Xi Ning’s illness required medicine. This one string of cash was what Nanny Su and Ren Dong had saved by scrimping and earning from doing laundry for others. How could Xi Ning possibly blame them?
“I still have some jewelry. Nanny Su, take it to the pawnshop and sell it. Don’t do laundry work anymore.”
Ancient times were unlike her previous life, where washing machines were available. Here, only wealthy households could afford to hire people to do laundry. Their clothes were made of fine silks and satins, which had to be washed clean without damaging the fabric, requiring great care.
Moreover, bending over for long periods was hard on the back.
Upon hearing Xi Ning’s words, Nanny Su’s eyes reddened with emotion.
“This old servant knows you care for us, but as servants, it’s our duty to share our mistress’s burdens. Your jewelry was all bought by Third Master. If he finds out you sold it, he might take his anger out on you. Please, never say such things again.”
“That’s right, miss. When Third Master comes, you’ll need to dress up beautifully with them. Both Nanny Su and I are used to rough work. Besides, the weather is warm now, so doing laundry isn’t tiring at all.”
Ren Dong chimed in. She was the one in the courtyard who most looked forward to Third Master’s visits. When he came, if the miss dressed up beautifully, she would surely capture his heart.
Xi Ning had no interest in dressing up to seduce Pei Zhao. With the three of them unable to afford food, what use was keeping that jewelry?
In truth, before Pei Zhao left, he had given the original owner a thousand taels of silver. An ordinary household in the capital spent less than thirty taels a year. Even if the original owner loved buying clothes, rouge, and powder, she would only spend about a hundred taels a year. That money would have been enough for them for decades.
However, the original owner thought she had climbed to great heights and spent without restraint. Later, wanting to inquire about Pei Zhao’s whereabouts, she scattered quite a bit of silver. In the end, she didn’t even have money to hire a doctor when she fell ill.
Xi Ning rubbed her forehead. Although being reborn was fortunate, the mess she had inherited was truly distressing.
Seeing her fall silent, Nanny Su thought she had persuaded her. She then counted out several dozen copper coins from her purse and handed them to Ren Dong.
“Since the miss can get out of bed, her health must have greatly improved. Go to the street and buy a piece of meat and some seasonal vegetables. Let’s celebrate for the miss.”
“Yes, I’ll go right away.”Ren Dong grabbed the money and darted out in a flash. Xi Ning knew she was afraid of being scolded again and shook her head with a smile as she watched the girl disappear through the courtyard gate.
“That girl.”
After a light chuckle, she turned to Nanny Su and said, “I can keep these pieces of jewelry, but you absolutely must not take on any more laundry work. I’ll figure out a way to earn money.”
“Young lady…”
Nanny Su had no idea what method Xi Ning had in mind to make money, but in any respectable household, it was unheard of for the mistress to take on menial work.
“Enough, the matter is settled. Say no more.”
Her expression turned stern, carrying an undeniable presence. For a moment, Nanny Su seemed to see the shadow of Third Master in her, and she instinctively fell silent.
Xi Ning was satisfied.
“What are we having for lunch?”
During these past few days confined to bed, she had been surviving on plain congee and simple side dishes. Nanny Su’s cooking skills were even worse than the cafeteria food from her previous life’s school—a cafeteria notorious for driving away prospective students every year due to its terrible taste. From this, one could imagine just how much Xi Ning, a true food lover, had suffered these past days.
Now that she was finally able to get out of bed, her first priority was to head to the kitchen in search of something decent to eat.
Nanny Su, her plump face beaming with a smile, followed closely behind, both protecting her and explaining, “This morning, I bought half a hen from Madam Xu across the street. I was planning to stew it into soup for you, young lady. Once Ren Dong returns, I’ll prepare two more meat dishes for you.”
Previously, while Xi Ning was ill, her diet had been kept light. Moreover, with little silver to spare, the three of them—mistress and servants—had gone without meat for quite some time.
At the thought of having meat for lunch, Xi Ning swallowed hard. In her previous life, she had grown tired of lavish feasts, but suddenly finding herself in ancient times, she had endured a half-month of bland vegetarian fare. She felt her face had even taken on a sickly pallor.
However, this rare opportunity for meat could not be entrusted to Nanny Su to “ruin.” Rolling up her sleeves, she strode into the kitchen.
“I’ll handle lunch today.”
The young lady knows how to cook?
Nanny Su’s first reaction wasn’t to stop her but sheer astonishment.
The original host had been a melancholic soul, often holed up in her room, indifferent to food. She rarely ventured out and had never once set foot in the kitchen.
Xi Ning was aware of Nanny Su’s shock. She couldn’t imitate the original host—her greatest loves in life had always been research and good food. With research no longer an option, only food remained to bring her satisfaction.
Besides, if she wanted to earn money, she needed to let Nanny Su and the others know about her skills.
Ignoring Nanny Su’s surprise, Xi Ning picked up a bunch of spring onions from the shelf.
It was still early spring, with few vegetables available in the market. Nanny Su got along well with Madam Xu across the street; the two often took on laundry work together and had grown close over time. These spring onions were a gift from Madam Xu.
Xi Ning cleaned and trimmed the onions, cut them into sections, and set them aside. She then sliced a few pieces of ginger. After heating oil in the wok, she added the onion sections and ginger slices, frying them until golden brown before removing and discarding them.
The aroma of onions was overpowering, filling the entire kitchen with their fresh, fragrant scent once fried.
She poured the fragrant onion oil into a small bowl, added two spoonfuls of flour, and stirred until smooth. A clear, thick onion oil paste was ready.
Next, she began kneading the dough. She added half a spoonful of salt to the flour to make it more elastic. Her kneading technique was practiced and skillful, leaving Nanny Su unable to look away. Her young lady actually possessed such a skill!
Nanny Su didn’t suspect that her mistress had been replaced by someone else. After all, they hadn’t been with the original host for long—both she and Ren Dong had been bought by Pei Zhao after the original host arrived in the capital.
Moreover, since the original host had been perpetually gloomy and rarely left her room, Nanny Su assumed she had learned her culinary skills back in Jiangnan.The kneaded dough was divided into evenly sized portions, rolled into thin oval sheets, then evenly spread with the cooled scallion oil paste, and finally sprinkled with a layer of chopped scallions and sesame seeds.
For scallion pancakes to taste delicious, the spiced salt mixture is crucial. However, Sichuan peppercorns were still a precious spice at the time, and the master and servant couldn’t afford them. Xi Ning had seeds in her wristband, but there was no reason to take them out now.
Fortunately, Xi Ning’s skills were excellent. Even without the spiced salt, the scallion pancakes she made were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. With just one bite, the savory scallion flavor inside was so fresh it could make one’s tongue tingle.
When Ren Dong returned with the meat, she caught a whiff of this enticing aroma.
She quickened her pace.
“Nanny Su, what delicious thing are you making?”