Thirteenth Lady's Comback: Her Everyday Life as a Bystander-Chapter 44 - 24: Mid-Autumn Turmoil (Part 2)

Fifth Miss, after all, is no fool. Upon hearing Susu’s words, she quickly stopped crying and grabbed Susu’s hand, "Thank you, Sister, for your advice!" Susu hurriedly said, "The young lady understands everything, it’s not the maid’s credit. Please, young lady, freshen up and tidy yourself first!"

Fifth Miss’s two maids saw that Susu only spoke a few words and coaxed their young lady into a better mood, which made them feel increasingly useless. Their hearts were filled with mixed emotions, but nothing showed on their faces as they assisted the young lady in washing her face and dressing up again.

Susu asked Wu Tong to bring over the new fabric, saying, "This is new silk from Qiao织 Pavilion. Even the palace doesn’t have it. Old Madam said each young lady gets a piece to make clothes!"

Fifth Miss touched the silk, finally breaking into a smile, "Such fine material, only Grandmother would think of me!" Hearing this, Susu couldn’t help feeling a bit weary, yet did not delve deeper into it. After all, seeing her sad for Third Miss made her say, "As long as you like it, young lady. Old Madam also kept two pieces for Third Miss and Fourth Miss. When the Princely Heir returns with the two young ladies, the sisters will be just as before."

Fifth Miss was momentarily stunned by these words. After a good while, she reacted, with a trace of complex emotion flashing across her face, then she happily clung to Susu’s hand, laughing, "Then I’m relieved!"

Susu returned to Sui’an Hall, thought for a moment, and still mentioned what happened in Fifth Miss’s room. Old Madam remained silent, then patted Susu’s head, saying, "Only you, this silly girl, have never changed, being too emotional!"

What Old Madam said left Susu feeling somewhat puzzled, but Old Madam offered no explanation. Susu thought for a long time and simply gave up; she indeed did not suit intellectual labor.

After lunch, after the four of them served Old Madam’s afternoon nap, they left a second-class maid outside to await orders, and the other three finally went with Susu to the storeroom. The storeroom in Sui’an Hall was extremely large, occupying a full eight rooms, and was divided into many small storerooms, like the brocade and silk storeroom, porcelain storeroom, furniture storeroom, antique storeroom, jewelry storeroom, and silver storeroom, among others.

For Mid-Autumn Festival gifts, just the brocade and silk bestowed by the palace amounted to a hundred and twenty pieces. Besides, there were some tributes of feather silk, doro wool, and velvet. These items were not unusual for the Song Family, after all, the Song Family had their own merchant ships; otherwise, Susu and a few maids would not be picking and choosing.

Yang Liu picked a few pieces of material awarded by the palace, pursed her lips, and said, "These appear glamorous but aren’t as practical as the official ones. How dare the Weaving Bureau fool the Emperor and Ladies!"

Ning Cui glared at her, "Shut up, what nonsense are you talking about, can you speak ill of the Emperor and Ladies?"

Susu said, "Sister Yang Liu doesn’t know the inner details. No matter what kind of tributes are offered from each place, whatever is sent to the Imperial Palace will not be the best. If it were silk, that would be one thing, especially with food, picking the second-best to send up is already good."

Yang Liu, Ning Cui, and Bisi were all curious, "Why is that? Shouldn’t the best be for the Emperor?"

Susu shook her head, "For example, tributes like tangerines and lychees depend on favorable weather and land. If the harvest is good this year, it may not be good next year. If you offer the best this year and the palace requires the same next year, where can they find it? Those above won’t care if you had too much rain or suffered a drought. If you can’t deliver on time and quality, it’s the local officials’ fault."

Hearing this, the three understood. Generally speaking, the best batch of tributes from various places was either consumed by local officials or sent to the Capital to curry favor with prominent officials, but never sent to the palace. Even the Emperor was well aware of these conventions.

Bisi said, "Old Madam always said the palace’s rewards are just for appearances. Besides, such material is rarely called bad, and it’s not available outside. When we were just maidservants, even getting a piece of cloth made us overjoyed; it’s only because Old Madam loves us that we can pick and choose!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Liu quickly pleaded, "I admit defeat; I won’t speak anymore!" Only then did Susu and the others nod. Yang Liu was just too carefree, it was best to be low-key as a maid.

Susu didn’t have a moment to spare, needing to catalog both large and small items, and train two little maids. She wished she could become Sun Wukong, "pluck a hair and transform into tens of thousands of monkeys." Only when Old Madam said, "Once things are stored in the storeroom, they can’t run away; tidy them up slowly in the future," did Susu get to relax for a day on the fifteenth of August.

During the Mid-Autumn Festival, including the eldest son, Song Qinghe, who returned for the occasion, there were only eight hosts in total, just making up a table regardless of gender, while all the maids and servants from top to bottom were also given their portion of the feast. In the fifth year of Kangping, the Yangzhou Song Mansion spent quite a satisfactory Mid-Autumn Festival.

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the Princely Heir returned to the Capital with a boatload of goods, promising the Old Madam repeatedly during his departure that he would bring back Third Miss and Fourth Miss.

Old Madam privately instructed Third Madam, "Although the Song Family is of noble rank now, it still lacks foundation. To establish a firm foothold in the Capital, alliances are indispensable. As for the boys, Qing He, your eldest brother, is there to watch over them. It’s the girls who are confined inside the courtyard, while your eldest sister-in-law and second sister-in-law are unreliable. Previously, we worried about Fourth Girl, fearing your eldest sister-in-law might rashly arrange a marriage. Unexpectedly, it’s Third Girl’s marriage that turned problematic!" Then she sighed, "Third Girl is stubborn, and her elder brother is the eldest son by the Second Wife. If this marriage fails to be annulled, it will undoubtedly stir up a lot of trouble. Fifth Girl’s no less worry too."

Speaking of this, she pointed at Susu and smiled, "Every day they say she’s smart, with tens of thousands of little wits, but in my view, she’s just a fool whose heart softens when someone cries!" Third Madam said, "It’s good that Susu is like this!"

Susu didn’t expect that Old Madam’s words implied dissatisfaction with Fifth Miss, and she quietly pondered it over in her heart, yet on the surface, she leaned beside Old Madam, "People often say that foolish ones are blessed. With Old Madam’s protection, being silly is best."

Old Madam, half crying, half laughing, "You have no ambition. Do you think I, Old Madam, can protect you for a lifetime?"

"Of course you can!"