7 letters lost and open "sister-in-law"

  After leaving the wine building, the brother and sister returned home, and Qing asked curiously: "Brother, did Xiang's family really send me a letter?"

  Zhi nodded, "Yes, that's what Big Brother said. In his letter, he asked me why you hadn't replied to the letter that Young Master Xiang had written to you long ago." He turned his head and gazed quietly at Ruoxi, "I also heard that Young Master Xiang sent many gifts to you."

  "What time was it sent?"

  January.

  "It's been quite a while indeed. I wonder if it got lost on the way?"

  "This is also possible. But it shouldn't be, I received every letter and item you sent me previously."

  "That's really hard to say." As for the ancient "postman", they didn't have much hope, in modern times, with such advanced transportation tools it's easy to lose goods, let alone in ancient times.

  Upon arriving at the post station, Zhiyi had the station master check all the letters, but none were found to be addressed to his home. The station master looked embarrassed as he told Zhiyi: "General Fang, every time we receive a letter for you at this post station, I have it delivered promptly. This time, however, there really isn't one."

  Really can't find the letter, can only return. I guess it's really lost, or it may have been privately swallowed. But Zhiyi couldn't suspect that the postmaster had privately swallowed it, he didn't need to do so at all. Before, Fang Jinglan had also sent him valuable items several times, which were delivered to his hands completely intact. He still trusted the postmaster.

  It's a pity that Ruoxi didn't receive the letter and gift from Xiang's family, but to show courtesy, Ruoxi wrote back a letter to Xiang's family, stating that she hadn't received the previous letter, then added some apologetic words. Ruoxi wrote very briefly, although she was engaged to Xiang's son, she couldn't be too explicit, and only wrote some polite inquiries.

  After the Lantern Festival, she couldn't find any excuse to go out and could only stay in her room embroidering flowers, and at the same time send some practical local specialties such as fabrics to her elderly mother-in-law and others who were far away in the capital.

  Sister He Lin is the most diligent in writing letters, followed by Rumei. In her letters, Sister He Lin would often talk about interesting things happening in the capital city, gossip from various prominent families, and events occurring in the imperial court, which helped Rumei stay informed without feeling too isolated. As for Third Sister Rumei's letters, eight or nine out of ten times they were complaints about Second Sister Rushan's misdeeds.

  As Ruoshan's 18th birthday is approaching, her father Fang Jinglan has also put her marriage on the agenda. Recently, she and her sister have been taken out by their stepmother Li to visit relatives and friends. Whenever Li has social engagements, she brings the two sisters along. In her letter, Rumei expressed both pride and anger, saying that Ruoshan is not particularly liked by the noblewomen, but is very popular among the young masters of aristocratic families.

  Like the emotions also received the old lady's letter, in the letter all are teachings of their own, and then it is the family preparing to tell Zhiyi about the marriage, initially set eyes on Yu's family girl, that is He Shi's elder brother's wife's younger sister.

  To be honest, the Yu family in the capital is not considered a high-ranking or wealthy household. In Qing's opinion, as a matter of course, he should marry a girl from a prestigious military family that matches his social status. However, unexpectedly, she turned out to be a young woman from the Yu family with a slightly inferior family background and completely unremarkable appearance.

  However, as for brother's marriage, as a younger sister, I don't have the right to speak, so I just simply told him our family's opinions and that's all.

  I don't have any opinion on this matter, I just lightly said: "I'm also getting old, it's time for me to get married."

  "Like a provocative eyebrow, she asked: 'Sister mentioned in the letter that Yu's family girl is of medium appearance, gentle personality, and 28 years old. There is nothing else besides this.' He Shi usually speaks straightforwardly and never easily says bad things about others, so with such a brief few words, it can be inferred that Yu's family girl is not outstanding either."

  Zhi Yi furrowed his brow, "Family background and appearance are secondary, the most important thing is character. As long as Yu Nang's daughter is virtuous, open-minded, gets along well with my sister-in-law, respects her elders, and treats the young kindly, I have no reason not to marry her."

  "Then what if he doesn't treat his little sister well?"

  Zhī yì miè tā yī yǎn, "mèi mèi zhème kě ài liǎng lì, tā méi lí yuán bù shàn dào nǐ de."

  Translation:

  Zhi Yi gave her a glance, "Your sister is so lovely and charming, she has no reason not to treat you well."

  Although she was quite satisfied, although there was a suspicion of perfunctoriness, she cleverly didn't dwell on it anymore, and then asked in a low voice, what about Chao Yun and Wan Xue in brother's room.

  Zhi Yi said calmly: "If they know their place, after your sister-in-law enters the house, I'll let Old Madam take charge and give them a title."

  Like a nod of affection, Chao Yun has been serving Zhiyi for many years, with no merit but hard work. Becoming the madam is also a natural fit.

  Before long, it was the end of the month again, and it was time to distribute the monthly allowance to the lower officials. As expected, he went to the accounting house and fulfilled his previous promise, doubling the salary of each lower official. However, he encountered strong opposition from Cui Xue.

  The reason for refusing the silver was quite sufficient. "Miss, these underlings' pay is all provided by the government, Miss really doesn't need to increase the money again. It's actually not good this way."

  It makes sense for the snow to be removed, because the General's Mansion is an imperial bestowal, so many of the lower-ranking servants in the mansion are also imperial bestowals, and the silver is also issued by the local government. There is really no need to distribute silver.

  "Although it is said that being a mother in the mansion is not easy, but mothers like Cheng, Liu and Wu are all old people in the mansion. In Beijing, mothers who have managed to get a position can earn one or two taels of silver, why should our mothers here still be struggling to make ends meet with only half a tael? Not to mention that some wet nurses can even get some extra money on the side, if they are also allowed to receive one or two taels from their masters as rewards, they would definitely be better off than small landowners who own fifty mu of land outside."

  He puckered his lips and said, "The rice in the capital is as precious as pearls, but this is Datong, how can it be compared to the capital?"

  He gazed at her, smiling slightly: "Sister-in-law is right. However, I'd like to ask, how much money can sister-in-law get in a month?"

  Yu Xue grasped her fingers, and said with a whine: "When I first came here, it was 800 coins. Later, the master had the accountant raise it to one tael of silver. Not long after that, the master raised it again to two taels of silver. Now, she's still getting two taels." Seeing Yu Xue's face filled with resentment and a hint of excitement, she said: "Could it be that Miss thinks Yu Xue is being paid too much? If so, in order to cut down on the household expenses, Miss can deduct it as needed, and Yu Xue won't complain."

  Chen Xiang saw her pitiful appearance and couldn't help but frown, another living Zhang Niang. Unfortunately, her skills were too shallow, Zhang Niang's pitifulness was always performed in front of Old Master Fang Jinglan. She didn't dare perform it in front of Zhiyi, because Zhiyi wouldn't fall for it, so she took it to Ruqing instead.

  With a gentle gaze, she slowly sipped the warm red date congee, and said softly: "Sister-in-law, I don't like to hear you say that. You've been serving brother tirelessly for years, without any credit or reward. Now that he's given you two strings of cash, following the customs of the capital, it means he's already acknowledged your status as his wife. You should be happy about it, shouldn't you? As for others, I know you're trying to save expenses, but you can't be too stingy and hurt people's feelings, right?"

  Yu Xue stiffened his face, barely nodding and forcing a smile, "Miss is being considerate, it's me who's being narrow-minded."