By Jia Xiuzhen

After Xiaoer took the words back, it was almost late at night, Mammy Xu read the reply and ordered Zhuangshang to prepare a car. The next day, she took the car and went to the mansion to find Li Wan to report the matter.

It was a sunny day, and Mother Jia was holding a banquet in the courtyard.The invited troupe sang two songs, but was disliked by Jia Mu for their poor appearance and let them rest. Now only a few female musicians played "Flying Flower Order" and "Chunxi Tune" one after another.

Baoyu was about to pour wine for Daiyu, but Daiyu covered her cup and refused to let her go. Xiangyun was about to squeak her, and laughed for a while.Jia Mu laughed and said, "That's all, Yu'er has a light drinker."

Daiyu heard that she was amnesty, abandoned the wine glass, slipped under Baoyu's arm, and threw herself into Jiamu's arms. Naturally, Xiangyun and Baoyu refused to let go, so they followed.

Daiyu said with a smile: "Old ancestor, look, I'm blushing, I really can't drink it, so brother Bao and Yun'er teamed up to bully me."

Jia Mu helped Daiyu up, and seeing that her face was flushed, she turned to Baoyu and said, "Baoyu, you bully your sister like this!"

Baoyu laughed so hard that he couldn't answer, Xiangyun became anxious and said, "Old ancestor, how can you trust Sister Lin's mouth? Her face is red with a smile!" Baoyu couldn't help laughing when he heard that go.Daiyu was also overjoyed.Jia Mu could only pat this and caress that.

Baochai smiled and said, "Sister Lin's complexion now, with this dress, looks like a beautiful person with peach blossoms."

Everyone took a closer look, Daiyu was wearing a thin square collar and long trousers with a light foundation today, with whole branches of peach blossoms embroidered on it, pink pearls and suet jade for the butterfly love flower collar on the front, and a pair of hair sticking tightly on her head. Covering the temples, the water-colored emerald tassels are inlaid with jade. If you look closely, the tassels are very small white jade carved chains, and the wind sounds softly when you move.Now she is smiling hard, her face is like a peach blossom, her eyes are full of spring water, and she has another kind of coquettish attitude.

Jia Mu felt even more happy when she saw it, and said with a smile: "You are wearing this very well."

Aunt Xue said from the side: "How many people have I met, and there is no such character as Miss Lin, the old lady is very lucky."

Jia Mu laughed and said, "She's still young, but she's only three-fifths talented and seven-fifths dressed."

Xiangyun also said: "It's been a few days since I've been here. Sister Lin really doesn't have the same clothes and jewelry every day. It's hard for you to be patient. Sister Bao even finds it troublesome to wear flowers in the morning."

Aunt Xue said with a smile: "Bao girl has a weird temper, she is not used to those who love those flowers and fans, how many times I have said it, she is still the same."

Jia Mu laughed and said, "Young girl, it would be nice to tidy up brightly. It's also pleasing to look at."

Sister Feng took the pot and poured wine for Jiamu, and said, "Isn't that what the old ancestors said? Alas, we old gangsters can't eat powder if they want to whiten their faces!" Jiamu laughed. He had to drop his chopsticks and scolded: "Monkey boy, you are always helping the food like this, then we shouldn't be pickles!"

Sister Feng hurriedly said: "Then how can it be the same? The old ancestor is a rich and noble peony who has cultivated into a fairy. It is not the last time that Goddess insisted on blooming in winter. You refused, old ancestor, so I came down to have a glass of wine." Isn't it?" Everyone was confused by what she said, Li Wan looked at it from a distance and couldn't help but praise it.

Xiangyun followed suit with a smile, but couldn't help looking up at Daiyu's head, so Baoyu asked her, "Sister Yun, what are you looking at?"

Xiangyun pointed to Daiyu's pair of occluded temples and said, "I think the tassels on sister Lin's head are so delicate. Why don't you see other sisters wearing them?" Smiling, eyes full of light, how can I remember what I said to Xiangyun for a while.

Seeing that Xiangyun's complexion was a little dark, Baochai smiled and said, "Sister Yun, what are you talking about? Why do you look forward to seeing that Sister Lin wears it so well that everyone can wear it?"

Xiangyun said: "Isn't Sister Lin the same as the second and third sisters? I haven't seen anyone else use these."

Baochai said: "But child, you are the same as everyone else here, and you have never seen this pair of cicada hairpins on your head anywhere else."

Xiangyun said: "This is worn by my family."

Baochai said: "That's it. Sister Lin also brought some from her family. What's so strange?"

It was only then that Xiangyun remembered that the Lin family now had staff in Beijing, but it wasn't necessarily that Jia's mother had subsidized them privately, but that he was being abrupt, so he smiled and said nothing.

Pull Baochai to approach Jia Mu, only to hear Jia Mu talking to Aunt Xue about the south. "Although we are also the root of the south, we are a family with shallow roots, and we can't compare with those serious families in the south of the Yangtze River. For example, in the Lin'anbo family, everything is particular, and the behavior of other people can't be learned by others."

Sister Feng said jokingly: "The old ancestor also told us two things, so that we can also know about the grandeur of the family. If we can learn a little or two, maybe I will also increase the fragrance of books." Everyone knows Sister Feng. She has never read and learned to read, but she is so eloquent and frank, she can't help laughing and sighing.

Jia Mu scolded her and said, "It's a foolish way of speaking! If you can learn it by listening to a few sentences like this, how can you still speak of the style of aristocratic family!"

But in the end, she was aroused by her, and just as Baoyu picked out peach kernels and meat for Daiyu with a silver picket, he followed along and said, "For example, the walnuts in Lin'an Bo's house are not only the chicken heart peaches and monkey brain peaches that we are used to here, , there is another kind of very small hickory nut. It is only in the area of ​​Tianmu Mountain in Zhejiang Province. The whole is about the same size as longan. Think about how many kernels there can be in there? How many dishes are there in their house that no one else can make? The smell comes out because they use the oil pressed from the hickory kernels."

Everyone was speechless, Jia Mu saw that they had listened, and laughed again: "Speaking of it, don't be discouraged, but the girls in our family are far inferior to them."

Aunt Xue shook her head and said: "The old lady is joking again. The girls in our family are all precious and precious. They are even better than this. How can I raise them? It's almost like this to be a fairy. gone."

Jia Mu shook her head and laughed, "In their house, even the materials for the girls' clothes are made by a group of people. It's not like us. When we come, we can pick some at will. Diet is also different for each person, depending on the body's foundation. , and eat according to the solar terms. Here, we just follow my old lady for a couple of bites.

Let me tell you a joke, once at her family's banquet, an official daughter who was recently transferred from another province went back and told her mother that the embroiderer in Lin'an Bo's mansion is really amazing, the flowers embroidered on the clothes are actually alive!It is still budding in the morning, and it will be in full bloom in the afternoon!But her girl has a set of three clothes of the same color, with the same color on top, but the flower is embroidered three pieces in one color from budding to full bloom. "

The listeners were all surprised, but Daiyu looked back at Mo Ge'er silently, and Mo Ge'er grinned.

Everyone started discussing, Jiamu looked at Daiyu with a smile and said, "Now I only look at the people sent by the Lin family to serve Yu'er, they seem to be doing things differently from the aristocratic families in the south."

Daiyu said with a smile: "Old ancestors, don't bother with them. This day will make me fail. If I get compliments, I don't know what to do."

Jiamu took her and sat up close, looked at her carefully, patted her hand and smiled and said: "What's wrong? This slave should serve you with all your heart and soul. You are all at the age of flowers, fresh every day. Only those who are beautiful and beautiful can live up to their time and dignity." Aunt Xue and the others all agreed after hearing this.

Ji Xiangyun said from the side: "Old ancestors, didn't they all say that the third generation knew how to eat, the fourth generation knew how to wear, and the fifth generation knew poetry and books? Why does the Lin'an Bo Mansion always work hard on these things, and still have the nerve to call it a family?"

Mother Jia paused while holding the tea, looked at her and said with a smile: "Silly girl, what poems and books do you know?! You are talented because you are famous for being a virtuous person, so let people see it as a joke! You are a family member , the bottom line is only in the two words 'inside and outside'. But there are more inwards and less outwards. The food and clothing are related to the harmony of the four seasons, longevity and health, which is naturally the most important thing. Those false names The bustle is not taken seriously. People like us, in order to gain a foothold in the world, have to pay attention to some pomp and decorum, but it is for others to see. How can we compare with how comfortable and comfortable they are.

You say that poetry books, to them, are nothing more than the state of mind that everyone can appreciate poetic and picturesque.This is vulgar. "

Sister Feng said with a smile: "Okay, okay, the old ancestors don't have to bend the corner to scold people. It's vulgar to seek a future. I'm counting silver and copper day and night. Isn't it worse than a village woman?" !"

Mother Jia held back her smile and touched her and said, "You girl has one advantage, that is, you have a little more self-knowledge than ordinary people." After talking about Sister Feng, everyone laughed crookedly after thinking about it.

After the banquet was over, everyone went back. Daiyu changed into the clothes she was wearing in the house, looked at Mo Ge'er with a smile and said, "Put away those clothes as soon as possible. Someday they will fall into people's eyes, and you will laugh." Let's save face for the family!"

Mo Ge'er brewed the spirit tea that Li Wan gave, and said with a smile: "The girl is too careful. Just now the old lady forgot to mention that the Lin'anbo mansion still eats every day, let's go early Don’t even eat the rice to be really pure.”

Daiyu pursed her lips and smiled, and Mo Ge'er came closer and said, "The clothes of the three bodies are not for daily wear, but for banquets. There are many people and things are complicated. I knew what would go wrong. If it was stained with wine or tea, it would be impolite not to replace it. If it was completely different, who knows what other people can make up. This is why the "three drunks" Fanghua's embroidery method is not rude and elegant. There are not many families like this in the south, so girls don't have to worry about it."

Daiyu didn't mind listening to it, but she thought about it and asked again: "Do you know the one from Lin'an Bo's Mansion?"

Mo Ge'er said: "Miss knows that I am from Mingzhou, Lin'an Bo Mansion has also heard people mention it a few times, saying that his family tree can be traced back to the Northern Song Dynasty, and in the previous dynasty he was named King Qian. But it's all just talking casually, and I can't do it right." Daiyu nodded after hearing this, but it has nothing to do with her, and she was tired after half a day, so she also threw it away, and leaned on the side bed to rest.

In the Lixiangyuan, Baoyu's nursing mother was talking to Aunt Xue. Baochai asked someone to bring tea up and said, "Mom, try this tea. It's softer than usual. It just uses wine and meat. It's just right for you." drink this."

Nanny Li hurriedly bowed her body and said, "The girl wants to beat me, how can I get the girl to let me go."

Aunt Xue stopped her with a smile: "We live here, and we should be the same as you usually are. She is a junior, so there is nothing she can't stand."

Nanny Li condescended for a few words before sitting down again.Xiangyun also brought tea to drink, and said with a smile: "I forgot to ask my ancestors just now, I don't know what kind of tea should be used in the Lin'an Bofu now."

Baochai scolded her for a few words, and Nanny Li was about to play with her own knowledge, so she smiled and said, "Girls don't know, but there are many aristocratic families in the south. We don't know who has it or not, we just know Even the servants in those mansions have eyes on the top of their heads. During the previous rounds of southern tours, those aristocratic families had to give imperial banquets, but they made fun of the imperial banquets in private. , a breath of wealth, half a year of rest and recuperation'. Laughing at the richness and rusticity of the royal family, you talk about your courage! But the old saints at that time did not blame them, and brought a boat full of Nanchu back when they returned to Beijing. Hey , Tell me, it’s obvious that people are scolding me, I don’t know what to think.”

After hearing this, Aunt Xue asked Tong Xi and Tong Gui to serve fruit plates. Mammy Li became more embarrassed and talked more, and became close to this Lixiangyuan every time she came back.

When Li Wan went back, Nanny Xu had been waiting in the room for half a day. Li Wan asked if it was time for dinner, and replied that she had just taken it from the big kitchen and had eaten, so she sat down and talked about business.

As soon as Mother Xu explained what Ji Liang meant, Li Wan nodded and said, "That's all, I'm afraid it will delay his business. Since he started his own workshop in the south, it would be best."

Mother Xu said: "Grandma shouldn't think about it, but instead of thinking about it, she likes to think about it blindly. Ji Liang is in charge of Qiqiaofang now, what is the price of colored glaze, and why does he care about the sale of those pairs of socks? But here, Well, somehow, I was taken advantage of, and I heard that a few days ago, there was a carpenter in the town who was working on the sock knitting machine."

Li Wan said: "It's time to check it out. It's not just about this machine. There are also a lot of things in our village. It's silently missing this and that. It will become a rule in the future. You can still return it." How to manage things. If you find that person, you don't have to make things difficult for him, just drive him out."

Mother Xu had some points in her heart, and she only nodded quietly after hearing this.He said again: "In the past two years, I haven't collected rent seriously, but grandma rewards and buys a lot of things. Now there should be rules and regulations, grandma, don't worry."

Li Wan nodded, thought for a while, and said, "Left and right, we have orders from Ji Liang, and we don't buy and sell them in Beijing. The stolen machines will never go the way of Ji Liang, and there are many in Beijing." Population, if we don’t touch our hands, we might as well do favors.”

Mother Xu asked: "What does grandma mean?"

Li Wan smiled and said: "I'm incompetent, and this kind of thing is in my hands because there was no decent business in the village at that time. Now that some people have seen it, it is necessary for those who are really capable to see it." Look at the benefits. Feng girl is the one who is not afraid of money and silver, so I will leave this business to her."

Xu Nanny thought for a while and said, "Grandma, I don't think I'm talking about reasoning. The second mistress is certainly good at tricks, but her temper... is that niece again, we can't sell this!"

Li Wan said with a smile: "It's just a few words, and it doesn't cost us anything. And with her in front, we won't be able to show us. If we really want to find out something later, there will be less gossip and complaints. Last time I was a bitch." The taro, sweet potato, and sweet potato can't be beaten, and I recruited a training session. Wouldn't the benefits of real gold and silver be more popular these days? Hand it over, and give away a favor for nothing, I'm afraid that person won't be so easy to get wind of it gone."

After hearing this, Mother Xu thought about it carefully, now that the Jia family is more and more concerned about money, Li Wan is a person with no ambitions, and this thing in his hands in a year really turned out to be only a thousand taels of silver, but now it has fallen into the hands of others. It is not this number.There are a lot of people in the village, if you lose the machine today, who knows what will come out tomorrow?If you give it to Sister Feng while there is no big movement in the market at this moment, she will surely gain a lot with her ability.This thing in Li Wan's hands is hard to guarantee that it will cause resentment if it is spoken out in the future. If Sister Feng has it in her hands, then it is not something that others can make up their minds at will.Thinking of this, he nodded in agreement.