Granny Cen was waiting for her to say that. “Of course there are. The Guo family and the Fourth Madam’s family have some kinship ties, which is why the Fourth Madam chose him. There are many cheaper options in the city than the Guo family.”
After listening to several suggestions, Rong Shu asked, “Which one do you think is the best, Granny?”
Granny Cen dared not reveal her agreement at once, and only said, “Both Zhou’s Cloth Shop and Lin’s are good. Lin’s is a little more expensive, but it has a great reputation.”
She paused for a moment before saying, “The Zhou family’s business was established in the last few years. It’s located in the south of the city, and many people like to get their fabrics cut from there. Although the fabrics aren’t as good as the Lin family’s, they’re cheaper.”
Seeing Rong Shu deep in thought, Granny Cen continued to subtly guide her: “I heard you say that cotton-padded clothes will be 30% more expensive this year. Why not choose something cheaper? That way, the same amount of money can benefit more people.”
That does sound like the truth.
Rong Shu thought for a moment, then shook her head and said, “Let’s choose the Lin family instead; it’s safer.”
Granny Cen acknowledged, and Rong Shu gave her a few more instructions before she left.
Mei Yun had been keeping watch nearby. After the person left, she said to Rong Shu, “Why doesn’t Madam choose Zhou Shi? If the matter can be accomplished with less money, the old lady will surely be satisfied.”
Rong Shu took a sip of tea, picked up the letter that had been delivered to the family earlier, and began to speak as she opened it.
“What my mother wants is for things to be done well, not for money to be saved.”
Granny Cen recommended Zhou Shi to her only so that she could have a comparison, but in reality, she had accurately grasped this thought of hers.
This was her first time handling such a matter, and given her cautious nature, she would certainly choose a reputable cloth shop like the Lin family.
The Song family is not short of money. If they try to save money and end up messing things up, it will only anger the Xie family.
Granny Cen was incredibly shrewd; she had her mind completely under her control.
But Rong Shu is no longer like she was in her previous life, jumping into other people’s traps without understanding anything.
She was just waiting for Granny Cen to set the trap before she could throw people into it all at once.
There’s no need to rush now. She opened the letter and read its contents.
The letter was written by Jiang Yu.
He passed the preliminary examination a few days ago, and Rong Shu had someone send over the long robe she had made for him.
Jiang Yu wrote to say that the robe fit her perfectly, but her elder sister’s eyesight wasn’t very good, so she didn’t need to worry about it anymore.
Rong Shu smiled as she finished reading the letter.
Mei Yun could tell from her expression that there was no bad news this time.
Madam Jiang’s health is not good. In the past year or so, seven or eight out of ten times, the news coming from the Jiang family has not been good.
“Madam, did the young master say something?”
Rong Shu said, “Ayu said that Mother has been in good health these days. Ever since he passed the preliminary examination, Mother has been able to eat half a bowl more per meal.”
This is indeed good news.
As long as Madam Jiang is in good health, the three siblings will have more hope for the future.
However, Rong Shu hesitated when she brought up the matter Jiang Yu mentioned at the end of the letter.
The winter solstice marks the anniversary of Jiang’s father’s death.
In Zhaoxian County, there is a custom that a water and land ritual or Buddhist ceremony is held in the fourth year after a person’s death.
Wealthy families would naturally hold religious ceremonies, light everlasting lamps, and invite eminent monks to chant sutras for three days and three nights.
Even the poorest ordinary families would still worship at temples and ask the monks to chant scriptures for several hours.
Rong Shu didn’t have much money, and Jiang Yu was probably worried that she would be in a difficult situation, so he directly told her that his mother had said not to be extravagant.
Rong Shu knew in her heart that she had to recite scriptures and keep the lamp burning for at least a day to fulfill their filial piety.
In the letter, Jiang Yu said that October 20th was the anniversary of his father’s death, and asked her which day she would set off, so that he and his younger sister would meet her outside the city.
Aside from the three-day homecoming ceremony, Rong Shu never returned to Zhao County.
In her previous life, Xie was much stricter with her than she is now, and she followed her around every day.
At that time, Jiang Yu also wrote to ask her when she would arrive home, but she knew that Xie was not happy with her, so she did not dare to mention that she wanted to return to Zhao County. She only replied that there were too many miscellaneous matters in the mansion at the end of the year and she could not leave.
Although she sent money home, no letters came from home for the next two months.
Looking back now, she realizes that her younger siblings and mother must have been unhappy at the time.
Rong Shu certainly wanted to go back. Now that Xie Shi had changed her opinion of her a little, if she handled the Winter Solstice charity matter properly and asked Xie Shi for permission, she would definitely agree.
Mei Yun added, “You haven’t been home for so long. If you go back, the young master and the second young lady will definitely be happy.”
Rong Shu folded the letter and thought to herself, “Isn’t that right?”
For her, it had been many, many years since she had seen him.
In her previous life, after she died, she only saw things related to Song Wenjing; she didn’t see anything about anyone else.
She had no idea how her mother and siblings fared afterward.
Thinking of all this, Rong Shu couldn’t wait to rush back right now.
Since they had decided to go back, Rong Shu said, “Let’s go out of the manor tomorrow to buy some things and bring them back with us.”
Mei Yun naturally agreed.
*
The next morning, after paying his respects to Madam Xie, Rong Shu asked Mei Yun to have a carriage prepared and leave the mansion.
She’s been married into the family for so long, but she’s hardly ever gone out.
As far as I can remember, aside from the time she returned to her parents’ home, the other time was when her mother and sister were sick, she went out of the mansion to buy a lot of medicine and tonics and had them sent back.
Before leaving, Mei Yun thought for a moment and asked her, “Madam, should we leave a message for Third Master?”
Song Wenjing has been staying at the manor these days. Mei Yun thinks it would be better for Madam to leave a message before going out, so that Third Master won’t be unable to find her.
Rong Shu wanted to say no, but she didn’t need to.
These days, apart from eating and sleeping, the two of them have hardly seen each other.
Rong Shu didn’t even know whether he was in the study or had left the mansion.
But at least she hasn’t gone to the capital yet, and she’s not pregnant, so there are some things she still needs to consider.
She nodded: “Just go and tell Granny Liu.”
After that, the master and servant quickly got ready and went out.
Rong Shu wasn’t very familiar with Jiangzhou City, but Mei Yun would occasionally leave the mansion. She asked the coachman to go to the most bustling Changsheng Street.
Rong Shu had already made a list of the things she needed to buy yesterday.
She had just received her monthly allowance a few days ago, so she had some extra money.
Even in the dead of winter, Changsheng Street is still crowded with people.
They disembarked from the carriage at the street corner and began strolling down the street.
Rong Shu rarely gets the chance to go home, so she naturally wants to prepare suitable gifts for each family member.
My younger sister Jiang Fu is only fourteen years old this year, which is the age when she loves beauty. Rong Shu picked out a lot of fashionable silk flowers for her, as well as a hairpin.
Since Ayu is a boy and a student, he naturally needs the Four Treasures of the Study. In addition, Rong Shu knows that he loves to play chess, so she also bought him a chessboard and chess pieces that look quite nice.
When it was her mother’s turn, she was at a loss.
She couldn’t afford the expensive tonics, so she would occasionally take some from the ones Xie gave her and send them back, which was enough to help her recover.
Rong Shu really couldn’t think of anything, as her mother had been bedridden for many years.
As the two strolled along, Mei Yun spotted a wonton shop with many people sitting there, and it smelled delicious.
“Madam, you’ve been walking for quite some time. Why don’t you sit down and rest for a while?”
The two of them were carrying large and small bags and were indeed tired. Rong Shu nodded and went to the wonton shop with Mei Yun.
After ordering two bowls of wontons, Mei Yun told her about things happening in the city.
“Don’t let the small size of this shop fool you, their wontons are famous throughout the city. I often hear people say that their broth is incredibly delicious…”