Flowery Hair: A Maidservant

Chapter 128 Truly a Deep Mother-Daughter Bond

This year's Mid-Autumn Festival saw few decorations in the capital due to the disaster, resulting in a far less festive atmosphere than in previous years.

Fu An Ju.

The masters of the household all came to pay their respects to the old lady early in the morning.

In recent days, old relatives and friends that the old lady had made in the capital have been visiting her one after another, and she has also attended several banquets. As the saying goes, fortune turns around. More than 20 years ago, the old lady left the capital alone with her three children in a sorry state. Now she has returned to the capital, not only moving into a house at the foot of the imperial city, but her grandson is also the third-ranked scholar in the imperial examination. All of this shows that the Tang family is now thriving.

The old lady, naturally in high spirits due to the joyous occasion, was even healthier than when she was in Lin'an. Now, sitting upright on the daybed, wearing a square-necked longevity-patterned vest, she looked at her daughter-in-law and the room full of grandchildren with great vigor.

Seeing that Madam Yun led the Seventh Miss to pay her respects first, she smiled and said, "Little Seven, come sit here with your grandmother. Suwen, bring the honey milk cake and lotus flower pastry prepared in the small kitchen."

While the officials were on leave, Tang Lin stepped forward to pay his respects to the old lady and said with a smile, "Old lady has a new darling. It seems that Little Seven has surpassed all of us older ones."

The seventh young lady had just been put down by her wet nurse when she heard this. She grabbed Tang Lin's big hand and said in a childish voice, "Big brother, don't be sad. You are also my treasure."

The fifth young lady laughed first, pinched the seventh young lady's little nose, and said to the old lady, "Old lady, look at the seventh young lady's little mouth. She's already so sweet even before she's tasted the honey cake."

Aunt Lu was holding the second young master, waiting to pay her respects. When the second young master heard about the honey milk cake, his eyes lit up, and he wriggled in Aunt Lu's arms, struggling to get down.

When the old lady saw this, she quickly said, "Aunt Lu, quickly bring Xiao Er here. It's been two days since we last saw him."

After the masters were seated, Madam Yun first reported to the old lady: "The master wrote a letter the other day, saying that after finishing his business in Lin'an, he went to Jinzhou. This year's Mid-Autumn Festival gifts were all delivered to various mansions by Brother Lin."

The old lady was cuddling with the two little ones when she waved her hand and said, "You two are so good at handling things. From now on, you don't need to come and report back to me when you come to welcome or send off guests. Although it's not easy to live in the capital, I feel most at ease with you here."

The thing the old lady was most grateful for in her life was not that Tang Xian had made a fortune by founding the Tang family business and accumulating a huge business empire, but that she listened to her son and personally went to the Yun family mansion in the capital to ask for Madam Yun's hand in marriage.

Back then, their branch of the family was extremely weak, and they had become merchants, a profession most despised by the powerful and upright officials. When the old lady first heard that her son wanted to marry the granddaughter of the deceased Minister, she felt very guilty and almost thought her son had gone mad...

When Tang Xian finally married Lady Yun back to Lin'an, due to past events, he had no choice but to take Concubine Liu as a concubine in the same year. The old lady felt deeply sorry for her daughter-in-law, so she never acted like a mother-in-law. The household management was handed over to Lady Yun on the day she entered the house.

However, Madam Yun has never made a mistake in terms of etiquette.

Guangbai led several maids to serve tea, fruit, and snacks, while Suwen also brought out some pastries. Fu'an Residence originally had four head maids, but Mujin was released from her indenture by the old lady a couple of years ago and betrothed to the son of a manor owner in Lin'an. Now, there are only Suwen, Guangbai, and Huaying, and no one else has been added.

Hua Yan and Meng Zhu served as attendants, standing behind the second young lady and listening to their masters chat about everyday matters, creating a harmonious scene.

Despite having studied for many years, the eldest young master was not at all pedantic. He often told interesting stories about the court in a witty and humorous way, which made the fifth and fourth young ladies burst into laughter. After a while, the third young lady pulled the fourth young lady to get up.

"Grandma, Mother, my aunt has been recuperating alone in the old house in Lin'an for many years. She wrote a few days ago saying that she has recovered greatly. Please grant Grandma your grace and allow my aunt to return home."

After the third young lady finished speaking, she knelt down. The fourth young lady continued, "Yes, Auntie is all alone in Lin'an. No matter how big a mistake she has made, shouldn't she make amends? Besides, Auntie has always respected Madam and been filial to the old lady. Please, Mother, allow Auntie to return to the capital for your daughter's sake."

Before Madam Yun could respond, the old lady's face darkened slightly. What Aunt Wen had done had never been publicly disclosed, and she had always been told that she was recuperating. It would not look good if Fourth Sister revealed it like this and made things public.

"It truly shows the deep bond between mother and daughters. If Third Sister and Fourth Sister miss your aunt, the steward will send someone to Lin'an to reunite after the festival."

Things were alright in Lin'an, but in the capital, which family wasn't careful and cautious? The old lady had become increasingly clear-headed these days, and she would never allow any unruly people to exist in the Tang family.

The fourth young lady never expected this outcome. She looked at Madam Yun in a panic, but Madam Yun didn't even give her a glance.

She looked down and saw her elder sister wringing a handkerchief, her expression showing great interest. The fourth young lady could no longer hold back and immediately cried out, "No...no, no, my sister and I will not go back to Lin'an. If we miss our aunt, we can write her a letter and send her some money."

Aunt Lu glanced at the Fourth Miss with a pair of eyes that seemed to be smiling but weren't, carrying an undisguised mockery.

She had no right to speak here, but she couldn't help herself, so everyone heard her say, covering her mouth with her handkerchief: "It's fortunate that Aunt Wen is literate; her daughter is indeed very filial."

The second young master took a bite of the lotus-shaped pastry, making a rustling sound. "Aunt Lu... stumbled, I misspoke, Fourth Sister doesn't want to... go back..."

Aunt Lu was startled and quickly bent down to cover her son's mouth. She carefully glanced at Madam Yun and was relieved to see that Madam Yun did not blame her. The sixth young lady gently shook her head at her aunt. She thought that her older brothers and sisters should all like to hear what their younger brother said.

Only after the Fourth Miss had made such a scene did Madam Yun speak. "Third girl, do you have anything to say?"

The third young lady was filled with unease. After so much time, she vaguely understood that the trouble her aunt had caused was probably related to Aunt Lu. But she was soft-hearted and cared about family ties. On one side was her aunt, and on the other was her sister. She just couldn't understand why things had come to this.

"Mother, your daughter... wishes..."

The fourth young lady interrupted crisply, saying urgently, "Mother, the third sister said she wants to be like me, writing to Auntie whenever she misses her. She just met Auntie when she came to the capital, so she's not in a hurry to go back and be with her."

The third young lady closed her eyes and could only nod in agreement.

The old lady now dislikes the fourth young lady very much. She asked Guangbai to help her two granddaughters up and pointed to the maids behind the third young lady, telling them to take the two young ladies back to the courtyard to change their clothes.

The atmosphere in the flower hall became harmonious again. Aunt Lu took her leave with the second young master in her arms. After Aunt Liu's eldest daughter got married, she had a son and a daughter. Because she loved Aunt Liu, she also loved children very much. She had been spending more time with Aunt Lu.

Madam Yun dismissed the young ladies, leaving only Tang Lin to discuss the wedding arrangements with the old lady. The six rites of marriage had already been completed, including betrothal, asking the name, and accepting the auspicious date. In a few days, the betrothal gifts would be sent to the Su family.

When Hua Yanmengzhu came out of Fu'an Residence with the Second Miss, she was followed by several rough-working women, each carrying two pots of precious chrysanthemum bonsai in full bloom.

"I wonder what Aunt Wen will think when she finds out," the second young lady sighed.

"Just now, Madam gave the Third Miss a chance, but the Third Miss is soft-hearted and easily held back by her twin sister."

Hua Yan was unaware of how the madam had dealt with Concubine Wen. The official explanation from the household was that Concubine Wen had fallen ill and needed to recuperate at the estate. During that period, the Orchid Pavilion Courtyard was always filled with the smell of medicine, which was indeed the case.

Fu Zi originally served the Fourth Miss, but after the Fourth Miss was confined to her quarters, she was also sent out of the mansion a few days later.

As for why Aunt Wen fell ill, Hua Yan figured out the reason but kept it to herself and never told anyone.

The second young lady will be of marriageable age after her birthday in September, which means this year is very likely to be her last Mid-Autumn Festival at the Tang residence. Mengzhu and the others at Yunyi Courtyard were slow to realize this, only Aunt Mei and Huayan had foreseen it.