The summer day has not yet passed, and the weather does not look like summer. In the morning, the little maid Qiaozhi yawned and opened the courtyard door of Zhengqiu Hall, then picked up the copper basin and went to the pantry to get hot water and prepare to freshen up. The long-handled brass stove was gurgling, and another little maid, Ju'er, entered the room with a copper basin in a sleepy eye.

Qiaozhi knew that she usually served Sister Ganlu beside her wife, so she hurriedly smiled and said, "This pot is about to be opened, I'll help you bring it down." ”

Ju'er put the copper basin aside, stretched and said, "It's okay, Sister Ganlu is still in Qixia Courtyard, you use it first, and then I will boil the water for my own use." ”

The water stove stopped making a noise, and Qiaozhi took the water stove down, poured it into her copper basin for Ju'er, and said, "Sister Ganlu hasn't come back yet?" It will take five or six days for this cloak to be mended. ”

This Qiaozhi was born with a loyal appearance, and he is also known for being honest on weekdays, Ju'er saw her eagerness again, and did not refuse, and watched her pour water for herself with her sleeves and hands, while chatting, "It is said that it is a piece of gold that has been sold, the process is extremely complicated, and Sister Rao is manna also has a headache!" ”

Qiaozhi said enviously, "Sister Ganlu's work is really famous, and even the Qixia Courtyard has begged us to come here." ”

Ju'er raised her chin slightly, and said a little proudly, "It's nothing, Sister Ganlu is not the only one who is outstanding in this regard." She said that when she saw Qiaozhi looking at herself ignorantly, she couldn't help but carefully walked to the door and looked around, the yard was quiet, no one was coming, Ju'er felt relieved, so she came back and bit her ear with Qiaozhi, "Since Wu'er swallowed gold, Mrs. taught Sister Xueya and Sister Yunwu a hard lesson, these two sisters usually don't go out to walk around, we are in the autumn hall, Sister Ganlu has a good personality, treats people kindly, and manages people no worse than when Sister Songyan was in the past, I want to say, It's stronger than Sister Songyan, and Sister Yuhua has always respected Sister Ganlu very much, I don't think Sister Ganlu will be dominant in the future? ”

Qiaozhi nodded hesitantly and said, "You have some truth in what you said, it's just that Sister Ganlu is not too young, and it should be matched in a blink of an eye, and I don't know what it will be like when the time comes." ”

Ju'er snorted disdainfully from her nose and said, "Living in the main courtyard of this Hou Mansion, a person like the stars holding the moon, is it worth going out to those lowly little guys?" Sister Ganlu's character and appearance will be blessed in the future! ”

"What nonsense are you talking about!" Ju'er heard a scolding at the door, her face turned pale with fright, and when she turned around and saw that it was Yan'er, she breathed a sigh of relief, and said with a smile, "Yan'er, I'm joking with Qiaozhi." ”

Yan'er reprimanded her a few words, but didn't take it to heart, and hurriedly picked up the hot water and went out the door with a heavy heart. Ju'er waited for her to leave, then took a sip lightly and said, "When I was supposed to be on duty, I didn't get up earlier, and now I know it's late, so I come to grab hot water again." ”

Qiaozhi turned a deaf ear, and had already filled the copper kettle with water and put it on the stove.

In the main room of Zhengqiu Hall, the person lying on the bed moved slightly, and Yuhua, who had been paying attention, gently lifted the curtain. The man on the bed was lying on her side, her long black hair like a black silk snaking behind her, and she asked in a nasal voice that hadn't woken up yet, "When?" ”

Yuhua replied with a smile, "When the party is over, do you want to sleep for a while?" ”

Songyan sat up slowly and said, "Don't sleep, I told Zhou Zheng's family yesterday to come earlier, and I finished the handover yesterday." ”

She sat on the bed in a snow-white middle coat, holding the quilt and coming back to her senses little by little, Yuhua brought the mint water that had been prepared from the side, and asked Songyan to take it in her mouth to wake up. Songyan took some mint water in her mouth according to her movements, spun it in her mouth, and spit it in a porcelain cup that Yuhua had already raised to her mouth.

Yuhua served her, and her mouth couldn't stop babbling, "Last night, I settled the affairs of the house with Zhou Zheng's sister-in-law, and she grinded until the third watch, and in the end, either this short charter, or the missing seal, most of it was not finished." I don't know what kind of fancy she's going to play today. ”

Songyan washed his face, took the horsetail toothbrush dipped in some bitter ginseng from Yuhua's hand, and said, "Why does this mouth of yours say so many words more than others?" ”

She seemed to be saying to Yuhua, and she seemed to be muttering to herself, "No matter what tricks she plays, it can't be worse." ”

When she finished speaking, she brushed her teeth seriously with a toothbrush, and ignored the rambling rain flowers.

When everything was cleaned up, the little maid sent by Yuhua to the big kitchen also came back with a food box. At first glance, the dishes are much inferior to the past, but they are just a bowl of white rice porridge, four side dishes, and a plate of noodles commonly known as one bite to swallow. It's just that although there seems to be nothing in the porridge, it is fragrant as if it is going to eat people's tongues, and the side dishes are even more hollowed out, filled with all kinds of complex ingredients, and even the original sprinkled with some salt is just swallowed in one bite, and the pine smoke is only eaten with goat's milk, which is soft and sweet.

Songyan silently finished eating all this, took out a handkerchief and wiped the corners of his mouth, and said to Yuhua, "Sue the kitchen, do whatever I want, don't make your own decisions, if you can't do it well next time, change to someone who can understand people." ”

Yuhua respectfully agreed, and went out to carry the food box in person.

There was a severe shortage of manpower in the Zhengqiu Hall, Yuhua went out, and the rest of the little maids also had something to do, and the servants who came to answer in the morning were crowded in the patio in front of the upside-down room, no one reported, and they didn't sit upright. One of the servants listened, and even gave her a few pieces of candy.

Qiaozhi boldly went to the main room, the maids on the road looked hurried, and they didn't bother to ask her, until they got to the front of the main room, the little maid at the door asked her what was the matter, Qiaozhi told the truth, and the little maid entered the room. After a while, with some doubts, he went out and told Sù Qiaozhi, "...... Madame let you in and talk. ”

Qiaozhi's mind was blank, and he kept admonishing himself to calm down in his heart, took a deep breath, and opened the curtain and walked in. This is the first time she has entered the main room, the five rooms are three bright and two dark pattern, the main hall is hung with a plaque of contemplation, there is no room link, a black lacquer strip case on the wall, for a rosewood seat embedded nine old interstitials, the copper stove in the corner does not know what incense burns, there is no one in the room, someone in the west room said, "Come here." ”

Qiaozhi followed the voice and walked over with his head down, and saw a person sitting on the Luohan bed, knelt on the bluestone slab, kowtowed and said, "Please be Madame." ”

Songyan glanced helplessly at the mat used for saluting, knowing that Qiaozhi was a sincere person, and said, "Get up quickly." ”

Qiaozhi stood up, and Songyan saw that she was restrained, so he smiled and said, "Qiaozhi, come to me." ”

Qiaozhi heard that she remembered her name, and she was a little excited, so she leaned up and stood in front of Luohan's bed, and naturally glanced at Songyan. I saw that Mrs. was wearing a honey-colored short shirt on her upper body today, with a bright pomegranate red skirt, both of which were very eye-catching colors.

Although Qiaozhi often sees Mrs. on weekdays, she has never been so close as she is today, and she finds that Mrs. is really good-looking and scary. She could see that she suddenly touched Songyan's eyes, and was about to lower her head, but found that Madame's eyes were not at all high, with a peaceful smile, looking at herself gently and gently. Qiaozhi's cheeks suddenly became a little hot, and she smiled stupidly at Songyan.

Songyan took out a dim sum box on the table and gave it to Qiaozhi, let her sit on her feet to eat, and was not in a hurry to let people bring in those servants, and asked slowly, "Who is here in the inverted room?" ”

Qiaozhi took it, and he didn't dare to eat a mouth full of scum in front of Songyan, so he only held the box and replied, "Sister-in-law Zhou Zheng, Mother Jin in Changxiang, Mother Fan, Mother Yao, Sister-in-law Yongning, Mother Qi in the courtyard in the east, Mother Lin." Zhao's mother in the big kitchen, Tuo Jin's mother, said that there are many things in the kitchen in the morning, please be accommodating, and come later. ”

Song Yan listened attentively, and when she finished speaking, she asked, "Who do I remember that Mother Zhao is from Mother Jin?" ”

Qiaozhi held his breath and went through it carefully in his heart before saying, "Mother Jin used to be an errand boy in the kitchen, and then the housekeeper mother in the long alley and Mother Lin in the west yard had an awkward quarrel in front of Zhou Zheng's sister-in-law. “

She saw that Songyan was listening carefully and knew that she was interested, so she had the courage to continue to talk about something else, "But Mother Zhao has a son who works as an errand in the carriage and horse office in the outer courtyard, and she recognizes a godmother, who is also the mother of the big kitchen, and it seems that her surname is Wu." Some time ago, who asked me about Mother Wu! In addition, Zhou Zheng's sister-in-law and Zhou Zheng's steward family did not sign a deed of sale with the house, Zhou Zheng's sister-in-law's father and mother used to be the old people in the Hou Mansion, when the old Hou Ye and Mrs. Hou let their family go free, after the Hou Ye inherited the title, Zhou Zheng's sister-in-law came back to the house on an errand so far, because the Hou Ye gave a little face, and has been in charge of the miscellaneous affairs in the house. ”

Songyan couldn't help laughing when she heard her say that there were a lot of human contacts, and said, "It's hard because of your young age, and you guard the door all day long, and you inquire about these things carefully and clearly." ”

Qiaozhi also laughed honestly, and said embarrassedly, "I don't know why, when they gossip, they always like to pull me." ”

Songyan touched her head and asked, "How old are you?" Who else is in the family? ”

Qiaozhi replied, "Thirteen years old! The family farms outside the city, and there are also parents, four younger brothers, and two younger sisters. ”

Songyan was startled, "These people? It's not easy to feed, right? ”

Qiaozhi's eyes darkened, but she still smiled and said, "It's not easy. ”

After speaking, he didn't say anything more, neither taking advantage of the grievances to complain, nor crying poor, Songyan nodded in his heart. Qiaozhi was already chattering, and said sincerely, "Fortunately, I am following Mrs. now!" Receiving a third-class case every month has 300 big money! ”

Her small face, whose facial features are not outstanding, glows with vitality, and her words are full of anticipation for the future. Songyan laughed, and said some other gossip to Qiaozhi, and estimated that the housekeepers and servants in the upside-down room were almost dry, so that Qiaozhi followed him to the hall, and ordered the little maid to summon the stewards in.

The servants were left out of their temper and walked in pairs along the verandah. The two servants who followed not far behind Zhou Zheng's house bit their ears and whispered, "I heard that in the past, the lady in our house was doing things through the hall, but now this style seems to be going back." ”

"It was rumored yesterday that Zhou Zheng's daughter-in-law was called by his wife and asked carefully, and there was no movement in the east courtyard at all."

"It seems that everything in the future, I'm afraid I will have to nod my wife."

Zhou Zhengjia listened silently, looked up and looked forward, entered the hall of Zhengqiu Hall, hung a plaque of Shensu, there was no fat powder in the inner courtyard, and the furniture and furnishings that were half new and not old have always been the place where the Marquis of Dingyuan gave orders, so there was no partition between the three rooms on the bright side, and it was very wide. Songyan sat on the only two chairs in the hall, and there were four little maids standing behind him, and when the stewards entered the door, they seemed to be pinched in their mouths, and they saluted in a proper manner, and stood under the hall.

Zhou Zhengjia raised a smile and said, "Madam, how did you rest last night?" ”

With a light look and a verbose look of wanting to say something useless, Songyan smiled, replied, and said, "Is Mother Zhao from the big kitchen here?" ”

Seeing that she ignored it, the smile on Zhou Zhengjia's face was a little stiff, and a short and fat woman came out of the crowd, knelt down and said, "The maid is." ”

Songyan nodded, and Zhengse asked, "What I sent Yuhua to say, do you know everything?" ”

Mother Zhao hurriedly replied, "Don't worry! Clearly! ”

Only then did Songyan show a smile on his face, asked Zhao's mother to get up, and said kindly, "...... It's not a big deal, I know that the kitchen is busy working under the stove every day, and Zhao's mother is also working hard, Qiaozhi, move an embroidery pier for Zhao's mother. ”

A room full of housekeepers with more qualifications than their own qualifications and powers are standing, and they are sitting alone? Mother Zhao was so anxious that she was sweating, and hurriedly waved her hand and said desperately, "In front of you, where can I have a place to sit?" I'm standing, just standing. ”

Hearing that she unconsciously held the pine smoke extremely high, Zhou Zhengjia's face was even worse.

Now that Ma Wei was enough, Songyan turned back to Zhou Zhengjia and said, "You went back yesterday, but you have all the things ready?" ”

Forced by the situation, Zhou Zhengjia, who bowed his head in momentum, had to reluctantly replied, "Madame has never really been in charge of things before, and she may not know that the signs and cards used to enter the weeping flower door and the seals used to exchange gifts have to be taken back in the same way." ”

Songyan didn't say anything, just looked at Zhou Zheng's house quietly. Zhou Zhengjia saw that she was very stable, and she was not in a hurry at all, so she had to bite the bullet and continue, "There are some places where you have to ask Master Hou to show you...... The housekeeper of the flower room had something to do at home, and when she asked for leave to go back, she had to stop again...... "She herself knew that the reason was too far-fetched, and it was unbearable, and the more she spoke, the quieter her voice became, and she stopped unconsciously, and through the hall quietly, she could hear a few timid servants behind her making some heavy breathing.

The little maid behind Songyan obediently served the teacup, she took it and took a sip, put it on the table casually, and made a popping sound. Although Zhou Zhengjia was not afraid of her, his heart couldn't help jumping, and he lowered his head unconsciously.

Songyan said, "The chief steward is finished?" ”

Zhou Zhengjia reluctantly responded, Songyan smiled slightly, and said, "I didn't come to ask for these things on a whim, didn't the chief steward think that he could drag this matter over if he didn't do anything?" Or is it that my wife Hou used to have bad bones, and if she doesn't have a council, she wants to take care of the house for me? ”

Zhou Zhengjia's mind was stunned, and when she looked up, she saw Songyan talking nonsense with her eyes open very calmly, and she said that she was not in charge of the feed because she was weak and sick, and she couldn't help but curse in her heart, which was too ...... It's shameless!

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It's finally a new chapter! Congratulations! A thick chapter is sent!