Chapter 415

In the early hours of the winter day,

Xu Zaijing's courtyard was pitch black and silent.

Only a faint candlelight shone from a window at the corner of the house.

"Clang, clang~ It is the stroke of the Yin hour (4:00 AM). It is cold and snowing, remember to add clothes!"

"Clang, clang~"

The voice of the monk reporting the time on the street came faintly,

And from the place where the candle was lit in the corner of the house, faint voices came: "Mama Xia, is it snowing?"

With a rustle,

The window in the corner was opened and then quickly closed.

"Sister Yun Xiang, it is snowing."

"Oh!"

Half a quarter of an hour later,

Voices came from the room again: "Young Master, it's snowing. You should wear this cloak."

Amidst the conversation,

The door was opened,

And two people, one tall and one short, walked out carrying lanterns.

Standing at the door and smelling the scent of the first snow of winter, Xu Zaijing breathed out a long puff of white vapor.

While exercising his body and taking steps, Xu Zaijing walked from the corridor at the door into the courtyard, and along the path that had already been swept by the old woman on night duty, he walked to the horse-racing track.

"Swish, swish~"

The sound of bamboo brooms sweeping the ground came from the path between the wooden house and the stables.

Seeing Xu Zaijing and the other person walking over with lanterns, A Lan and Xun Shu, who were sweeping the snow, each shouted "Young Master."

Xu Zaijing nodded.

Walking to the door of the wooden house by the horse-racing track,

Bright lanterns were still hanging under the eaves of the wooden house.

Xu Zaijing led Yun Xiang to push the door and enter the room, and while untying his cloak, he looked at his Master, who was busy using horsetail grass to polish the accessories for a small bed in the wooden house.

Xu Zaijing, having taken off his cloak, was about to step forward to help.

Uncle Yin waved his hand and said: "Young Master Jing, go exercise yourself! Your hands are too strong; don't ruin it for me! Yun Xiang, girl, you come!"

Yun Xiang, having put down the water gourd and other items, smiled and went over.

"Yes, Master."

After Xu Zaijing finished speaking, he leaned over to a small bed that had already been completed in the room, looked at the luster of the small bed in the candlelight, and then touched it with great affection.

"Master, your craftsmanship is beyond words; it has to be this!"

Xu Zaijing gave a thumbs up.

Uncle Yin, in a great mood, had eyes full of smiles in his single eye and said: "Don't worry, there will be one for you!"

"Ahem!"

Xu Zaijing straightened up at once and walked outside.

Previously, the Marquis Yongyi's residence only had the couple Xu Minghua and Sun Shi as the master and mistress, and Xu Zaijing and his brothers and sisters all popped out of Sun Shi's belly one after another, all using the same small bed from oldest to youngest.

But as Zaiduan and the others gradually grew up and married, and had Xu Xingdai and Xu Xingzhong, the small bed became somewhat insufficient.

"What are you shy about! There will definitely be more to be made in the residence in the future."

Uncle Yin muttered hoarsely.

Yun Xiang, the maid beside him, kept her head down and accelerated the speed of polishing the wooden accessories.

Outside the wooden house,

Snowflakes were still drifting in the sky,

And Qingyun led two fine horses out of the stables.

Soon,

The sound of horses running came from the horse-racing track, mixed with the sound of weapons clashing and bowstrings vibrating.

Half an hour later,

Qingyun and the horses, panting heavily, all ran back to the vicinity of the wooden house, puffing out white vapor.

Xu Zaijing dismounted, patted his mount gently, and then stretched.

After entering the wooden house again to drink a mouthful of warm water and greeting his Master, he took people and left the horse-racing track.

After bathing and changing clothes, Xu Zaijing had breakfast in his mother's courtyard,

And after bringing people back to his own courtyard, Xu Zaijing looked at the three maids who were organizing his book boxes and said: "You don't need to follow me to the Sheng family today."

Qingcao and the other two all looked over in surprise, and Yun Xiang, who was on duty today, looked at Xu Zaijing innocently: "Young Master?"

Xu Zaijing nodded affirmatively and continued: "I have already agreed with Mother!"

"When the sky brightens, you go with Mama Zhu to my storeroom to take a look, and after you discuss and pick the things, take the carriage to the Sheng family."

The three maids looked at each other, and then bowed to Xu Zaijing in unison: "Yes, Young Master!"

"Hmm!"

After speaking, Xu Zaijing carried the book boxes himself and left the courtyard.

After giving instructions to Qingyun in the outer courtyard, Xu Zaijing rode out of the Xu family's main gate with his elder brother.

On the way to the Sheng family,

One could occasionally see animal-drawn carts entering the city in the early morning,

The carts were loaded with goods such as rice, grain, and winter vegetables,

Some carts were covered with sheds, while others were covered directly with reed mats, and whether it was the sheds or the reed mats, they were all covered with white snowflakes.

The sky brightened,

The overcast clouds dispersed,

And the sun's rays spilled out from the gaps in the clouds.

When Scholar Zhuang walked leisurely into the school,

In the inner courtyard of the Marquis Yongyi's residence,

In a corridor not far from the mistress's courtyard,

Qingcao, Yun Xiang, and Hua Xiang, wearing newly made winter clothes and cloaks, were walking behind the two mamas beside Sun Shi.

After passing through the corridor and the gate,

The few of them arrived at the entrance of a courtyard.

"Xiao Zhu, Xiao Dan, why did you come over?"

The two mamas walking in front, upon hearing this, had smiles on their faces and bowed to the decently dressed woman who spoke in front: "Sister-in-law Cui, we brought the three girls from Fifth Young Master's courtyard to pick some things."

"Greetings, Mama Cui."

Led by Qingcao, the three maids of Xu Zaijing all bowed in unison.

"Get up quickly! Get up quickly! I am just a servant; how can I accept your bows!"

The woman smiled and walked a few steps, coming to Qingcao and the others.

"Mama, what are you saying? It is only natural for us to bow. How is your health now that winter is here?"

"Good! Very good!"

Listening to the conversation between Qingcao and Mama Cui, Yun Xiang and Hua Xiang smiled behind Qingcao.

This Mama Cui was not an ordinary servant of the Marquis's residence; she was Xu Zaijing's wet nurse, so her status was naturally different from others.

"Sister-in-law, this is the tally issued by the Madam; please verify it!"

Mama Zhu beside Sun Shi took something out of her sleeve and said.

Mama Cui smiled: "Good! Then I will take a look first!"

After carefully checking, Mama Cui looked at Qingcao and the others and nodded: "Come, come over!"

Saying this, she led the few of them toward the entrance of the courtyard.

After writing their names and pressing their red fingerprints on the table at the entrance of the courtyard, Mama Cui led the few of them over the high threshold and into the courtyard.

Hua Xiang and Yun Xiang, who hadn't been in the residence for long, hadn't been here before and looked at the courtyard with quite a bit of curiosity.

They saw that the ground of this courtyard was much higher than the ground at the entrance, there was no snow on the ground, and the melted snow water from the roof was led out directly into the grooves in the courtyard.

The courtyard was not large, and after entering the gate, there were all one- or two-story wooden houses and brick buildings.

There were wooden signs hanging at the entrance of each room.

Getting closer, the two sisters could also see words like 'Medicinal Materials', 'Leather Goods', 'Cloth', 'Wood', 'Gold and Silver', 'Jade Ware', etc., written on the wooden signs.

"Qingcao, why did you come to the storeroom this time?"

"Returning to Mama, a maid sister in the Great-aunt's family has decided on a marriage, and the Young Master asked us to pick a few satisfactory gifts to send over."

Mama Cui, walking in front, nodded and said: "Then it's not good to send medicinal materials. Let's look at cloth, gold, silver, and jewelry."

Saying this, Mama Cui took out a delicate key on a copper ring from her sleeve, walked to a room with a 'Gold and Silver' wooden sign, opened the delicate copper lock, and pushed the door open.

"Come, come in and take a look."

Qingcao stepped over the threshold with ease, while Yun Xiang and Hua Xiang looked around with curiosity.

They saw that the room was dry and bright, filled with simple and elegant wooden shelves, and the air had the scent of wood and other smells,

And the wooden shelves were full of delicate and bright wooden boxes.

"You are all people from Young Master Jing's courtyard; look for yourselves! Tell me if you like something, and I'll tell you if you can take it away."

Mama Cui said with a smile.

The two mamas beside Sun Shi also stood at the door and nodded with smiles.

Qingcao smiled, bowed to Mama Cui and the two mamas, and walked over holding the hands of Hua Xiang and Yun Xiang.

Arriving in the room,

Qingcao let go of their hands, opened a delicate and huge wooden box, and said: "This is the pure gold pony that Princess Pingning gave to the Young Master before; it cannot be moved."

Yun Xiang and Hua Xiang looked at the pony wrapped in precious silk in the wooden box and nodded.

"These in the box are the gold ware sent by the Lady Ningyuan; they cannot be moved either."

"These are the gold and silver melon seeds bestowed by the palace; they are meant to be used, so if needed, you can pick a few!"

Hua Xiang and Yun Xiang nodded.

Qingcao pointed to several wooden boxes inlaid with copper nails:

"These large boxes are the gold and silver sent by the Marquis Xiangyang... they are all finished products and can be used for gift exchanges."

Yun Xiang pointed to the larger wooden boxes behind those boxes and said: "Sister Qingcao, what about those?"

Qingcao and Mama Cui at the door exchanged a look and smiled: "Those were sent after the two young masters of the Marquis Xiangyang were born; they are exactly the same as these boxes."

"Oh!"

"On this side are the ones sent by the Marquis Tuoxi Cao family..."

"This is the thank-you gift sent by Northern Liao."

"This is the one sent by the Bai family of Yang Zhou."

After circling half the room, Hua Xiang looked at the wooden caskets that were more numerous than the wooden boxes sent by the Marquis Xiangyang twice, and looked much better in material, and said: "Sister Qingcao, what are these?"

Qingcao shook her head and said: "I don't know about this either, and you shouldn't ask! We will naturally know what we are allowed to know."

"Yes!"

As they talked, the three little maids had almost finished circling the two sides.

Subsequently, Qingcao led the two to the very inside.

There was a desk facing the main gate, and Qingcao bowed her head toward the wooden box placed in the most honorable position on the desk and said: "These are things bestowed by His Majesty. In the wooden box is the ring bestowed by the Empress when the Young Master was a child, and that is the hairpin sent by Imperial Consort Rong; none of these can be moved."

"Hmm, hmm!"

After speaking, Qingcao pointed to the wooden shelf on one side of the desk: "These were sent by the Duke of Lian, the Lu family, and the Li family; they are all extremely delicate gold and silver ware made by great craftsmen. When our Young Master and the Lu family young master became sworn brothers, the Lu family and the Li family sent thirty pieces all at once."

Yun Xiang looked at the delicate wooden caskets and said uncertainly: "Sister Qingcao, were they sent according to the Young Master's age?"

Qingcao nodded: "Yes, relatives will send two pieces every year in the future."

Hua Xiang said hesitantly: "Sister Qingcao, are we looking for the Young Master's good intentions among these?"

Qingcao pondered for a while, then shook her head hesitantly: "These are all too valuable; it would be overshadowing the host."

Saying this, Qingcao walked to the delicate large wooden box that she didn't know who had sent.

After opening one, she took out six wooden caskets engraved with flower patterns from the twelve long, flat wooden caskets lined up side by side.

"Sister Qingcao, it would be a pity to break up this set of flower patterns!"

Hua Xiang said in a low voice.

Qingcao, while handing the wooden casket to Hua Xiang, shook her head: "It's fine, there are eleven more sets in the box."

"Oh, oh!"

Closing the wooden box,

The three maids walked over, each holding two flat wooden caskets.

"Mama, please verify."

Qingcao placed the wooden caskets in her hands on the small table at the door.

Mama Cui smiled and said: "Qingcao, you only look at your Young Master's; don't you look at your own?"

Qingcao, hearing this, looked toward a wooden casket the size of a water bucket on the small table in the room.

"Sister Qingcao, you have one too?"

Yun Xiang asked in a low voice.

Qingcao nodded.

Looking at the expressions of Yun Xiang and Hua Xiang, Qingcao sighed and said: "Come, take a look!"

Mama Cui and the two mamas beside Sun Shi all laughed.

Qingcao walked to the wooden casket and took out a small key from the purse at her waist.

After opening the delicate small lock, she said: "These are mine, and half of them were rewarded to me by the Old Marquis of Xiangyang when you came to the Marquis's residence."

After speaking, Qingcao pointed to the small table where her wooden casket was placed; there were six drawers on the small table.

"The left side is yours, Yun Xiang, and the right side is Hua Xiang's. It doesn't matter if you mix them up; the things inside are all the same."

Saying this, Qingcao gently pulled out the drawers for them.

Looking at the jewelry in the drawers, Yun Xiang said with curiosity: "I have an impression of the ones below, but why haven't I seen the few at the very top?"

Qingcao, upon hearing this, hurriedly looked at her own wooden casket as well.

Mama Cui at the door smiled: "Those were just sent by Qingyun two days ago, with instructions to put them there for you."

Xu Zaijing had a spare key to Qingcao's wooden casket.

"Alright, the verification is done; let's go take a look elsewhere."

Saying this, Mama Cui beckoned to the three maids.

The three maids hurriedly pushed the drawers and locked the caskets.

Soon,

The door was closed,

And the room fell into silence once again.

Elsewhere, the door of a room with 'Jade Ware' hanging on it was opened.

Just like in the 'Gold and Silver' room, Qingcao led the Yun Xiang sisters and pointed in the room, saying: "Most of those were gifts from friends when the Young Master went to Yang Zhou."

"These few were sent by the Sixth Young Master Liang, who thought they were quite good."

"Sister Qingcao, what about this one?"

Yun Xiang asked, standing in front of a wooden box the size of a table.

Qingcao walked over, gently opened the wooden box, and said: "This is a good thing sent by the Lady Ningyuan when the Young Master was one year old."

"Wow~"

The quality of the jade carvings of the eighteen weapons and the four treasures of the study in the wooden box made the two maids, who had seen quite a few good things, exclaim.

Gently closing the wooden box,

Qingcao led Yun Xiang and Hua Xiang to the long tables placed against the wall, which was the place Qingcao had just called 'Yang Zhou, gifts from friends'.

"Let's pick here!"

Subsequently, the three maids discussed and each picked a jade-carved hairpin from the wooden boxes on the long table.

Arriving at the door,

Mama Cui, after checking, shouted to the old woman at the entrance of the courtyard: "Someone, send three long boxes over!"

After shouting, Mama Cui continued: "The three girls have already looked at two places. Since the Young Master gave instructions, we must also take a look at the cloth and leather goods. Come!"

Saying this,

Mama Cui led Qingcao and the three of them into another room.

Standing at the door,

Looking at the exquisite and precious materials in the room,

Mama Cui and the two mamas also felt quite emotional,

As many of the materials in this room were tribute items, rarely seen on the market, and mostly bestowed by the Empress before.

After wandering around the room in a daze, the three girls picked a total of one bolt, which was material sent by the Xie family.

When Mama Cui was checking,

Yun Xiang looked at the somewhat crude silk bow bag hanging in the room and said softly: "Sister Qingcao, whose work is that? Why would it be placed on the wooden shelf with the materials bestowed by the Empress?"

Qingcao said: "That was embroidered for the Young Master by the two young ladies Pingmei and Anmei when they were children, and it has always been placed there!"

The three at the door all smiled with gratification upon hearing this.

"Young Master Jing also always instructs me to take good care of it!"

Mama Cui said with a smile.

(End of chapter)