“Ninth Concubine, with Master in this condition… I’m afraid this is his final rally before death. I’ll choose a plain-colored outfit for you,” Xiaohong said quietly.
Lin Zhijin looked at the white coat in her hands and shook her head.
White wouldn’t do. She wasn’t attending a funeral yet. If Master Chen saw her wearing white, he would definitely think it was inauspicious.
She swept her gaze over the clothes and chose a light blue coat. She wore only a pair of pearl earrings and a pearl bracelet, keeping everything simple and low-key.
Lin Zhijin lived nearby. Aside from First Madam, the Second Concubine, and Third Madam, who had been keeping watch there since early morning, she was the first to arrive.
“Master.”
Lin Zhijin walked up to Master Chen and looked at him timidly before revealing a faint smile.
“You look quite energetic today. Does that mean your illness is getting better?”
The Second Concubine frowned and was about to reprimand her when Third Madam beside her stopped her.
“Little Nine is here. Come over.”
Master Chen looked at the beautiful concubine who had been carefully nourished until she was delicate and lovely, regretting that she had not been the one who came to him that day.
“Master.”
Lin Zhijin obediently stepped forward.
Master Chen looked her up and down, nodded, then pointed at his shoulders, signaling for Lin Zhijin to massage them.
Lin Zhijin hurriedly stood behind him and gently massaged his shoulders. When her hands grew tired, she switched to lightly pounding them instead.
The concubines and children arrived one after another.
Aside from First Madam’s two children, every child who could return had come.
As for the bedchamber maids, they did not even have the right to enter the room.
No wonder Hu Xiaoyue had wanted so badly to become pregnant and be promoted to concubine.
“Everyone’s here?”
Master Chen looked around, then took a sip of ginseng tea from the Second Concubine’s hand.
“When Eldest went to Chou Country, the family property had already been divided once. Today, I’ll divide my private assets as well, so that once I close my eyes for good, you won’t make an ugly scene fighting over a little gold and silver.”
“Father, however you wish to divide your belongings is up to you. As your children, we only hope you’ll remain healthy.”
The middle-aged man standing near the front spoke with reddened eyes.
Lin Zhijin sneaked a glance at him.
This should be Second Master Chen, who was currently managing the household, right?
Once his eyes turned red, everyone else began to cry as well, including Lin Zhijin.
Even if Master Chen couldn’t see her, she still had to put on an especially grief-stricken expression.
“All right. I don’t have much time left. Don’t waste it.”
Master Chen glanced at Shiqing.
Shiqing immediately came forward carrying a tray.
Looking at his children, Master Chen said, “The majority of the family fortune was already divided before, so I won’t give you children any share of my private assets.”
No one said anything.
They all waited for Master Chen to continue.
Master Chen nodded in satisfaction.
“I had Shiqing divide it into three portions. One portion will go to the grandchildren. Grandsons and granddaughters alike will all receive equal shares. One portion will go to the nine madams. As for the final portion, one-third will go to the bedchamber maids, one-third to Shiqing and the others. They’ve followed me for many years and have always been loyal. I can’t mistreat those who have rendered meritorious service. As for the final one-third, First Madam will keep it for now. If Xiaoyue is pregnant, it will go to mother and child. If she isn’t, donate the money. Consider it a way for me to accumulate some virtue after death.”
He looked toward First Madam.
Seeing her nod, he asked Second Master and Third Master to remain while everyone else left.
Lin Zhijin looked worriedly at Master Chen before following the others out.
The moment they stepped outside, the Seventh Concubine said with a half-smile, “Ninth Sister really is fortunate. You haven’t contributed anything, yet you still get to divide Master’s private assets equally with us.”
In an instant, everyone’s gaze fell on Lin Zhijin.
Some of those gazes were like sharp arrows, as though they wanted to pierce straight through her.
Lin Zhijin’s heart tightened.
This Seventh Concubine really knew how to stir up trouble.
Her mind raced, but her body moved even faster than her thoughts.
She quickly walked over to First Madam and hid behind her like a fledgling bird, lowering her head fearfully and looking as though she did not dare say a single word.
The corners of First Madam’s lips curved slightly.
Then she glanced sideways at the Seventh Concubine.
“If Little Nine didn’t have such an auspicious fate, how could she have been brought in to perform chongxi for Master? Enough. Those are Master’s private assets. How they are divided is up to Master. If you’re dissatisfied, you can go ask Master yourself. Why bully Little Nine?”
“First Madam really does protect her.”
Seeing First Madam step in, the Seventh Concubine stopped making trouble.
About half an hour later, crying suddenly came from inside the room.
Everyone exchanged glances and hurriedly pushed open the door.
Second Master was half-holding Master Chen in his arms.
When he saw them come in, he cried bitterly, “Father fainted. Where’s the doctor? Hurry and bring the doctors in!”
Both Chinese and Western doctors arrived.
Several doctors took turns examining him, and every one of them shook their heads.
The oil was exhausted and the lamp was spent.
There was no longer any way to save him.
As Master Chen lay dying, he held First Madam’s hand and said a few things to her.
Finally, he looked at the wives and children gathered beside his bed and regretfully closed his eyes.
“Father…”
“Master~”
“Grandfather…”
Lin Zhijin knelt down with everyone else and cried bitterly.
At the same time, a huge weight finally lifted from her heart.
Her chastity was finally safe.
Moreover, this old man had actually been quite generous to her. He had even left her a share of his property.
Although it was only one-ninth of one-third, judging by the Seventh Concubine’s reaction, it definitely would not be a small amount.
She looked around at the room full of people, each harboring their own thoughts.
If the property really was substantial, she was alone and weak, with no reliable maternal family to support her.
She was afraid she wouldn’t be able to keep it.
After they had cried for quite a while, First Madam told everyone to return to their rooms.
Lin Zhijin simply followed the crowd and did whatever the other concubines did.
“Ninth Sister, wait. Why are you walking so fast?”
The Seventh Concubine called out to Lin Zhijin.
“Ninth Sister, are you still angry about what Elder Sister said earlier? You’re still too young. You don’t understand that someone who appears to treat you well might not truly be good to you, while someone who says unpleasant things might not necessarily be bad.”
Lin Zhijin did not respond.
She wasn’t really a seventeen-year-old girl.
Of course she didn’t believe First Madam would treat her well for no reason.
But right now, she was trapped here and did not have the strength to confront anyone head-on.
All she could do was show weakness.
Seeing that Lin Zhijin refused to respond no matter what she said, the Seventh Concubine angrily flicked her sleeves and left.
“Ninth Concubine, you must be hungry. Master has just passed away, so the kitchen only prepared plain vegetarian noodles.”
A young maid entered carrying a food box.
“Set them out.”
Lin Zhijin rubbed her stomach.
She really was hungry.
She had thought Master Chen’s property would only be divided after his burial.
Unexpectedly, First Madam summoned everyone to the main courtyard that very afternoon.
By the time Lin Zhijin arrived, most people were already there.
The room was packed full of people.
Fortunately, although she was young, her seniority was high, so there was actually a seat for her.
Lin Zhijin sat down nervously with her legs pressed together and obediently waited for First Madam and the others to speak.
“Second, how is the sale of the land Master told you to sell going?” First Madam first asked Second Master Chen.
“What? Selling the land? Why are we selling the land?”
The Third Concubine looked at her son in shock.
“Father ordered it. He said things are different now. Our family owns too much land and draws too much attention. Anything that can be sold should be sold.”
Second Master Chen explained.
Lin Zhijin raised an eyebrow.
Master Chen really had foresight.
He had actually anticipated what would happen later.
“Why sell the land? This is the foundation of our family. People only sell land when they can no longer survive. It isn’t as if our family can’t survive,” the Fourth Concubine said.
Everyone began talking over one another, all disagreeing with the sale of the land.
“That’s enough. Father’s decision wasn’t wrong. Sell whatever family land can be sold as soon as possible. The times… are different now,” Fourth Master Chen said in a deep voice.
Immediately, everyone fell silent.
That included the Third and Seventh Concubines, who had been protesting the loudest just moments ago.
Lin Zhijin knew who he was.
Fourth Master Chen, who worked at the Nancheng municipal government.
He was the true person in power in the Chen family.
First Madam smiled as though she did not take these matters to heart.
“As for the private assets Master divided before his death, none of you objected at the time. Since that’s the case, sign the paper and leave your fingerprints. Once everything has been sorted out, I’ll have people deliver your shares to your rooms.”
Lin Zhijin’s current persona was that of an illiterate girl who only trusted First Madam.
So when the paper was handed to her, she looked as though she had no idea how to sign it.
In reality, she quickly skimmed through the contents.
Then she froze.
She had forgotten.
Traditional Chinese characters were still used at this time.
There were quite a few characters she couldn’t recognize.
Using the context, she guessed her way through it and fortunately did not expose herself.
Then, with Xiaohong’s help, she pressed her fingerprint onto the paper.
Once the document was handed back, she continued sitting there like a mushroom.
The room remained noisy for quite a while before First Madam dismissed everyone.
Lin Zhijin left with the others.
Next came Master Chen’s funeral.
His coffin remained in the residence for seven days.
As a concubine, Lin Zhijin had to go mourn and cry every day.
Her face became swollen from all the crying.
When Master Chen was finally buried, she slept for more than ten hours straight.
If Xiaohong had not woken her, she could have kept sleeping.
“Ninth Concubine, First Madam asked you to go over,” Xiaohong said quietly.
Lin Zhijin’s heart stirred.
Here it came.
She wore a white dress and a white coat, with a white flower pinned in her hair.
Standing there, she looked delicate and pitiful.
Sure enough, a woman looked especially beautiful dressed in mourning.
“Ninth Concubine, you’re really beautiful.”
Xiaohong had watched Lin Zhijin become prettier little by little.
Otherwise, she truly might have thought she had been replaced by another person.
The corners of Lin Zhijin’s lips curved slightly.
For now, she could still make herself look beautiful.
Once liberation came, she would have to dress as plainly as possible.
“You’re here. Sit.”
First Madam gestured for her to sit and looked approvingly at Lin Zhijin’s current appearance.
“You’ve changed a great deal since marrying into the Chen family. You’re becoming more and more beautiful.”
“It’s all thanks to the many tonics First Madam gave me, and you even found a doctor to treat me.”
Lin Zhijin hurriedly credited everything to First Madam.
First Madam nodded in satisfaction.
“You know how to remember kindness.”
“Of course. Although there are many things I don’t understand, I know who treats me well.”
Lin Zhijin once again expressed her loyalty.
“Since that’s the case, Ninth Sister, there’s something I’d like you to agree to. Would that be all right?” First Madam asked with a smile.
Lin Zhijin looked cautiously at First Madam.
“Me? If even you can’t accomplish it, then… can I really do it?”
“Don’t worry. It isn’t difficult.”
First Madam waved her hand.
Chunlan handed a booklet to Lin Zhijin.
“This records the share of Master’s private assets that was given to you.”
Lin Zhijin glanced at First Madam in confusion before opening it.
Whoa.
There really was quite a lot.
She immediately closed it again and said awkwardly, “I can’t read.”
First Madam slapped her forehead lightly.
“I forgot. Then I’ll explain it briefly. Besides one hundred mu of farmland and one mountain, there’s also a three-courtyard residence and two shops. I won’t bother mentioning the other miscellaneous things. But what do you plan to do with these properties?”
Seeing Lin Zhijin’s shocked expression, First Madam spoke earnestly.
“Little Nine, you’re too young, and your maternal family can’t be relied upon. These things… I’m afraid you won’t be able to keep them.”
Lin Zhijin truly was shocked.
She had never expected one-ninth of one-third to amount to so much.
There was farmland, a residence, and even a mountain…
“First Madam, it’s too much. I don’t dare accept it. Why don’t you keep it instead?” Lin Zhijin said helplessly.
A trace of satisfaction flashed through First Madam’s eyes.
“How could that do? These were all left to you by Master. How about this? I’ll pay you according to the market price.”
Market price?
She was afraid she might live long enough to receive the money but not long enough to spend it.
In a deep and sprawling residence like this, someone could simply tamper with her food and take her life.
Besides, these things were ticking time bombs.
They did not fit her identity as one of the oppressed masses.
She might as well go along with the flow and give them directly to Madam Chen Lishi, saving herself from having others covet them.
Lin Zhijin repeatedly shook her head.
“No, no. I already eat and live in the residence, so I don’t need that much money. Besides… I’m afraid of having too much money.”
“Then how about this? I’ll keep everything for you first. When you’re older, I’ll return it to you.”
First Madam smiled warmly.
Lin Zhijin immediately nodded and looked at Madam Chen Lishi with overwhelming gratitude.
“Thank you, First Madam.”
When she left, she did not even take the booklet with her.
Since she had already given the property to First Madam, there was no point in keeping it.
After Lin Zhijin returned to Wenzhu Courtyard, Mama Sun followed closely behind with a large number of things.
“These are decorative objects, jewelry, and fabrics from Master’s private assets. These two chests were given to you by First Madam.”
Lin Zhijin had thought Madam Chen Lishi would take everything.
Unexpectedly, she had only wanted the immovable property.
But the more she behaved like this, the more Lin Zhijin worried that she had some other scheme in mind.
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
Sorry, I fell asleep last night. This is yesterday’s update. There’ll be another update at six this afternoon. Muah muah (づ￣3￣)づ╭?～